129. Festival

129. Festival

“Hello, Claire.”

“Uh, yeah.”

After sending the opposing girl flying out of bounds, I returned to the spectator seats and sat down.

When the opponent first disappeared with a flash, I worried if she might have been seriously injured, but then I remembered the protective shield that kept me unharmed even after being hit by a meteor, so I decided not to worry.

After a while, following the frantic search by the staff, the girl was found lodged in a building wall far away, and my victory was declared.

I looked at Claire and Priscilla and asked.

“What are the remaining matches?”

“After the next match, it’s the semifinals. The Princess and I will spar, and then Skadi will face the winner of this match.”

“I see.”

I adjusted the sandbags tied to my body. Although I didn’t show it much, they were incredibly heavy. Just walking felt like I was undergoing my father’s training every second, which would definitely build muscle, but it was incredibly cumbersome.

“I misjudged the force control earlier.”

“Really?”

“Yes. The sensation of using my body is so different.”

Normally, I feel like I’m flying lightly, but now it feels like fighting while carrying a mountain. Although my power might have increased, the unfamiliar body sensations and slowed speed were a major problem.

If I misjudge the force control, I might injure someone with excessive strength, or I might fail to incapacitate an opponent by not applying enough force. Even if that weren’t the case, not being able to move as I wished was a penalty in itself.

Meanwhile, Claire made me reaffirm my promise again.

“Anyway, if I win, you have to grant my wish. Got it?”

“I got it.”

What kind of wish could she possibly have to reconfirm it so many times? I was just going to say I wanted to sleep naked and hugged.

Come to think of it, I didn’t know Priscilla’s wish either. I turned to Priscilla and asked.

“Priscilla, what wish will you make if you win?”

“Me? Of course, I was thinking of licking Skadi’s tail all over! So, how I’ll lick it is, first, I’ll take off Skadi’s panties….”

“No, you don’t need to say any more than that.”

While we were talking, the last match of the quarterfinals had ended. Next up were the semifinals, and Claire and Priscilla stood up from their seats.

“I’m going.”

“I’m going!”

I waved goodbye to them.

A moment later, two people stood in the arena. One was a tiny blonde kid, and the other was a red-haired girl flaunting her twin buns. There was no need to ask who they were. They locked eyes and began preparing for battle. The countdown numbers echoed.

POW!

As soon as the countdown ended, Claire kicked off the ground and charged forward. But Priscilla, as if she had anticipated that, created a giant wall of fire and retreated backward.

Claire, surrounded by a golden aura, couldn’t be stopped by just that. However, the blazing flames obscured her vision, so Claire had to stop charging and swing her sword horizontally to blow away the flames.

At that moment, meteors rained down from the sky. It was undoubtedly the same ones she had dropped when fighting the girl the first time. However, unlike then, there were many more.

“Mages are prepared beings!”

“Ooh.”

Priscilla, with her hands on her hips, uttering a line I’ve heard many times before. Claire firmly gripped her sword and looked up at the sky. A meteor shower was falling towards her.

As Claire’s feet firmly planted themselves on the ground, a thud echoed, and a brilliant golden light began to shine. With a dazzling brilliance, as if looking at the sun, her sword was swung.

“Ooooh.”

The golden trajectory advanced unhindered, splitting the meteors in half. Eventually, all the meteors exploded, and their fragments scattered.

I clapped my hands. Clap, clap, clap.

How could anyone counter magic with such a crude method?

The meteor fragments, falling like raindrops. However, having lost all their immense mass, they had no impact.

“Huh? There’s nothing else cast!”

Priscilla, flustered, raised her staff, but Claire drew her sword faster than Priscilla could launch a fireball.

“Kyaak!”

With a clear striking sound, Priscilla flew high into the sky. She then fell with a thud. Looking closer, I saw yellow liquid flowing from beneath her school uniform skirt.

“H-hngh….”

She peed herself.

Didn’t she pee herself when we first fought? And it seems she peed herself during sex later, so maybe Priscilla likes peeing.

If I were to make her and Ur combine their pee later…

“Ah, it’s my turn.”

As the unconscious Priscilla was carried back to the spectator seats on Claire’s shoulder, my name was called out loudly. It was my turn to head to the arena.

If I win this match, I’ll face Claire. Of course, there’s no way I’ll lose this match, so it’s practically confirmed.

Heavy footsteps echo throughout the arena. Of course, it’s not my footsteps, but my opponent’s. Following that, I stepped onto the arena with the sound of the dirt floor cracking underfoot.

My opponent is…

“Baldy?”

“I’m not bald!! Ahem, Grand Duchess, it’s been a while! I haven’t forgotten my previous defeat!”

A smooth, bald, muscular giant holding a double-headed axe in each hand glared at me, veins bulging on his head. I wondered who it was, so I closed my eyes for a moment and racked my brain. It seemed to be the muscular bald guy I fought at the beginning of the semester.

His name was Ja… Jab? Was it Jabot? Honestly, I don’t remember well. Nor his family name.

The only thing I recall is that during our previous battle, the last leaf on his head was cut off by my sword strike. I don’t remember anything beyond that.

“Uoooooh!”

He held a massive two-handed axe in each hand. One was an axe blazing with fire, and the other was an axe emitting a chilling cold.

The fact that it emitted coldness was somewhat similar to my sword, but the temperature was not as low as my sword. Seeing that, it didn’t seem like a high-quality weapon.

The bald man opened his mouth.

“Since my last lingering attachment to the Grand Duchess vanished, I was able to shed my meaningless burden and finally move to the next stage! Behold, this is our family’s secret technique, ‘Double Lariat Axe Elemental Reaction Storm’….”

I folded my ears down and closed them. Like Priscilla, why are they all obsessed with strange skill names? If they’re going to do that, they should just swing their sword one more time.

“Ur. It’s been a while since you’ve worked.”

“Heeeng.”

I drew my sword. Perhaps it was the aftereffect of stroking the tattoos, but Ur couldn’t give a proper answer and just moaned.

Tap, tap.

“Heeeng♡”

“Well, I guess it doesn’t matter…?”

If Ur had been conscious, we could have had a more spectacular battle through cooperation with the ego sword, as seen in the book. But then again, my opponent now was of such low caliber that I could probably fight him without a sword. There was no need to receive assistance from Ur.

Still, it was a shame, so I called out to Ur while swinging my sword.

“Ur~”

“Hwaaangeungaeungaeungae♡”

“Hmm.”

I don’t know.

I naturally lowered Ur and tightened my grip. Then, a cold chill began to emanate from the sword blade along with a white light.

“Ugh?!”

The ground slowly froze. A white mist of frost filled the arena. As sharp ice grew terrifyingly, consuming the ground, the bald man hastily retreated in surprise. At the same time, snow began to fall slowly from the sky.

Oh… does my sword have this function?

The snowy landscape is my home ground. While others’ feet sank deep and their bodies shivered from the cold, I could move here more freely than anyone else.

Yes, this is truly a domain created for me.

Feeling exhilarated, I quietly muttered.

“Domain Expansion…!”

….

“… Ugh, so cheesy.”

I twitched my lips in embarrassment and sent the bald man flying out of the arena by swinging Ur.

I quietly bid farewell to the bald man, who had become a star in the sky, and then ran out of the arena as if escaping, my face flushed bright red.

I knew I shouldn’t create skill names. It’s just embarrassing and has no practical use….

“Domain Expansion… Pfft.”

“D-don’t laugh.”

I looked at Claire, who was trembling, trying to suppress her laughter, and said. Claire smiled slyly at my words and stood up from the bench, whispering in my ear.

“Domain Expansion…!”

“N-no, stop it.”

If she’s trying to lower my combat power by teasing me, it might be a correct judgment. This teasing is much more impactful than when I was directly hit by the breath of a white wyvern when I was young.

I covered my bright red, burning face with my tail, but I couldn’t do the same for my ears. Claire continued to whisper in my ear, teasing me.

Ugh, when will the next match start?

In the end, I had to endure Claire’s teasing until the final match began much later.