Merely a Farce

After the round of 64 had ended completely, a three-hour break was scheduled before the round of 32 would begin.

“…It’s definitely strange.”

When Senior Iris muttered this, everyone who was eating turned their attention to her.

The break time also served as meal time, so we were having a late lunch.

“Senior, what’s wrong?”

When Riel asked this while looking at her, Senior Iris immediately replied:

“That match with that guy… Allen or whatever his name is.”

“Ah…”

Riel’s expression soured immediately at the mention of Allen’s name.

Since that day, Allen hadn’t approached Riel, but he often stared at her openly.

Each time, she would flee to me in panic to avoid his gaze, which was cute, but it was certainly unpleasant.

However, apart from staring repeatedly, he didn’t do anything else, and since looking isn’t a crime, it was difficult to deal with.

At most, Riel would yell “Why do you keep staring at me!” to make him look away?

But then he would stare at Riel again later when she felt safe.

I didn’t mention it because I didn’t want Riel to have an unpleasant experience, but honestly, it was really creepy and concerning.

“I’m bothered by how Balder could have taken damage from such weak attacks.”

“Balder is the big guy, right?”

“Yes, we’ve practiced together a few times.”

Senior Iris continued in response to Emilia’s question.

“That guy’s endurance is as impressive as his size, to the point where even I would need to land several proper attacks to barely make him pass out.”

“Wait, making him pass out is impressive enough…?”

I said this before I knew it.

I was amazed that Senior Iris could make him pass out with just a few attacks.

Well, I think I could do it too if I tried, but I’d probably need to hit him more than twice as much.

Plus, to land an attack, you’d need to get within his range, which isn’t easy either…

“That silver-haired fellow isn’t completely without skill. His speed is probably among the top at the academy.”

Certainly.

As Senior Iris said, Allen’s final rush was surprisingly fast.

To the point where Senior Balder, who had been blocking his attacks, let a few hits land, just avoiding vital spots.

Well, conversely, that means the power was so pathetic that he could afford to take the hits.

“But no matter how I think about it, he definitely didn’t have the skill to beat Balder… was it really just a condition issue?”

Senior Iris fell into thought, murmuring “hmm…”

In reality, we weren’t the only ones who had doubts about that match.

Especially the second-year seniors who knew Senior Balder well inquired with the tournament organizers about whether magic had been used, and the organizers responded desperately that there had been no flow of magical power or anything like that.

…How flustered those organizers must have been when a group of second-year seniors, mostly large men, came rushing over making such a fuss.

Anyway, a major incident was avoided because Senior Balder himself dismissed it, saying that he hadn’t felt any magical power either and that it was probably his own fault for not managing his condition properly.

However, Senior Balder’s unsatisfied expression was quite concerning.

“Hypothetically speaking, if that guy continues to advance, he’ll eventually face you, Senior Iris.”

“That’s right. But I have absolutely no intention of losing.”

Senior Iris clenched her fist, expressing her determination.

Honestly, looking at the tournament bracket, most of Allen’s opponents in both the round of 32 and 16 were formidable second-year students.

Opponents who, with Allen’s skills as I saw in the round of 64, would be difficult for him to defeat.

How on earth did Allen win the championship in the original story?

Is he weaker now than in the original? I’m not sure.

“Be careful, Senior Iris.”

“Haha, don’t worry. Whatever trick my opponent tries, I’ll just crush them head-on.”

…Somehow, I really believe this person would actually crush them head-on.

After the break ended, the round of 32 began.

My match was the first, and my opponent was a first-year girl like me.

I remember she’s from the same class, but I can’t recall her name.

She was definitely one of those who followed Allen like a goldfish…

“Mr. Kyo Wentos!”

“Hm?”

My opponent called my name.

Ah… so her name is…

“Uh… you are definitely…”

“I am Lepia Albaine!”

Ah, she directly told me her name.

Given that I’ve never heard her family name before, she’s probably a commoner.

…To be fair, not all of Allen’s followers are sub-heroines, and since I don’t particularly have any close relationship with them, I can’t remember all their names.

“Allen doesn’t even need to face you! I’ll defeat you right here!”

“R-Right.”

I had memorized all the students’ names when I first entered the academy, but as time passed, I forgot the names of most people I didn’t have much interaction with.

I feel somewhat sorry about that.

“Begin the match!”

“Here I come!”

With the referee’s shout, Lepia took her stance and charged at me.

Surprisingly, she had a proper kingdom sword stance. It was like she was following the textbook perfectly.

“Haap!”

Clang!!

I raised my sword and blocked her strike.

There’s quite some strength behind it.

She seems to have received solid basic training; looking closely, there are even calluses visible on her hands.

“Yaap! Haaat!!”

Lepia unleashed a series of strikes like that.

As I blocked or dodged them, I became certain.

This girl has considerable talent.

That’s why it was such a waste.

“There!”

“Kyaaah!!”

After the 4-strike combo taught in kingdom swordsmanship, there’s a gap of about 3 seconds.

How to fill this 3-second gap varies by individual and is left to personal discretion, but in her case, it seemed she filled it with evasion.

The problem was that her evasion was terribly crude.

My attack hit her arm, causing her to drop her sword and fall backward with the momentum of her evasion.

“Ugh… ughh…”

Lepia groaned in pain, holding her arm.

Regardless, the referee shouted:

“That’s it! First-year Kyo Wentos wins!”

“Why would you use an incomplete technique in actual combat?”

“……”

“Instead of following Allen Ludwig around, you should have trained harder.”

I was being sincere.

This girl is clearly one of those who cheered for Allen at the training ground.

So it was incredibly frustrating to learn that she had been doing that when she was scheduled to participate in the Mushin Festival.

If she had spent that time focusing on her training, we could have had a somewhat interesting match.

If she had trained hard, she might have been stronger than the current Allen.

Of course, I had no intention of losing.

Is it just my imagination?

Most of the competitors in the left bracket where I am seem to be first-years, while the right bracket where Senior Iris and Allen are seems to be full of second-years.

…Isn’t this placement a bit strange?

“…Someday, I’ll get my revenge.”

After muttering that and lowering her head, she trudged off the stage, and I also left the stage.

As the round of 32 continued, it was once again Allen’s turn.

Allen’s opponent was, of course, a second-year senior.

“Friedel Ronde. She’s strong enough to have reached the quarterfinals in last year’s Mushin Festival. Her condition seems good too, so I don’t think she’ll lose.”

Senior Iris’s knowledge about second-year seniors.

Well, even from my perspective, the skill difference between Allen and Senior Friedel is obvious.

Logically speaking, Senior Friedel should win.

But just like in the round of 64, the round of 32 followed the same pattern.

“That’s it! First-year Allen Ludwig wins!”

Waaaaaaa, a cheer erupted.

Senior Iris stood with her mouth agape, a dumbfounded expression on her face.

That’s understandable.

In the early stages of the match, Senior Friedel was clearly overpowering Allen.

She used a series of sword strikes at a speed similar to Allen’s.

But unlike Allen’s, hers contained power that was incomparably stronger.

Allen, who somehow blocked her attacks while taking some hits and injuries, began his own series of attacks.

The problem occurred there.

Senior Friedel’s wooden sword, which had been calmly blocking Allen’s attacks, suddenly broke with a crack.

At the point where the wooden sword broke, the match was ended, considering it as losing a weapon.

Senior Friedel looked at her broken wooden sword with a bewildered expression.

Senior Iris was muttering, “But the condition of the wooden sword was perfect…”

It wasn’t just Senior Iris.

Those with some knowledge of martial arts couldn’t hide their bewilderment at the result of this match.

However, to the general audience who didn’t know better, it would have appeared as if Allen had broken the wooden sword with his flashy consecutive attacks.

Allen waved his hand in response to the cheers and left the stage.

“That bastard…”

Displeasure seeped through Senior Iris’s voice.

“What kind of trick is he playing…?”

Because there were many matches that ended faster than expected, it was possible to complete all the round of 32 matches on the first day.

The next day’s schedule would include the rounds of 16 and 8, and the semifinals, to determine the two finalists.

And after the matches ended, I was at the training ground.

In front of me stood Senior Iris holding a wooden sword, and behind on the bench sat Riel and Emilia.

“Here I come, Senior.”

“Yeah, bring it on!”

I gripped the sword with both hands and prepared for the kingdom sword’s consecutive attack.

No need to hide it; this was the stance for the consecutive attack Allen had used in the rounds of 64 and 32.

My sword strikes, which reproduced Allen’s attacks exactly, descended upon Senior Iris.

Thwack!

“Ugh!”

One of my attacks landed on Senior Iris’s shoulder as she was dodging all of them.

Though it wasn’t particularly powerful, Senior Iris groaned with a loud sound.

“Isn’t it difficult to evade everything without any defense?”

“My motto is to make the impossible possible!”

The method Senior Iris came up with to counter Allen.

It was simply to not get hit by any attack.

Senior Balder, who took a few hits and suddenly developed body issues.

Senior Friedel, whose wooden sword suddenly broke while blocking attacks.

Suspecting that in either case, attacks had connected somewhere, Senior Iris chose the somewhat crude method of not getting hit by any attack at all.

Thwack!

“Tch! Again!”

That day, I participated in Senior Iris’s special training to counter Allen.

Although it was interrupted midway by Riel’s suggestion to eat, Senior Iris somehow managed to successfully evade all attacks several times.

“That’s it! Kyo Wentos wins!”

The first match of the round of 16 also ended without any issues.

It ended so easily that there was barely any cheering or applause from the audience.

No matter how I think about it, it’s clear they placed all the first-years except Allen in the left bracket.

What is this? Did someone perform a ritual for me to reach the finals?

And there was a contrasting situation too.

“That’s it! Allen Ludwig wins!”

Waaaaaa!!

Allen! Allen! Allen!

Allen’s opponent, like in the rounds of 64 and 32, was a strong second-year who was considered a title contender.

Moreover, most matches appeared to be comebacks where he was being pushed back but won with flashy techniques.

As a result, many audience members responded enthusiastically, and voices cheering for Allen grew louder.

“Haah…”

But the problem was that, as indicated by Senior Iris’s sigh, to some people’s eyes, it looked like nothing more than a farce.

However, Allen was certainly gaining significant popularity in this Mushin Festival.

After all the quarterfinalists were determined, an immediate two-hour break was scheduled before starting the quarterfinals.

Most competitors were in good condition, but Allen went to receive treatment for his injuries.

Well, considering how much he had been hit, he probably had many injuries.

And then the quarterfinals began.

It was no different from the round of 16.

My bracket contained only less skilled first-years, and Allen once again faced a title contender.

And naturally, the matches flowed in a similar pattern.

Allen! Allen! Allen!

The audience’s cheers supporting Allen.

Allen’s flashy comeback victory.

It was truly nothing but a farce.

I can only pity the title contenders caught up in this farce.

Swords breaking, conditions suddenly deteriorating, missteps, etc. When implausible situations keep happening to skilled practitioners, everyone can’t help but find it strange.

Several renowned martial artists requested verification from the tournament organizers, but the organizers only responded that they had investigated all means including magic and drugs, and found no issues.

Eventually, the competition continued, and the semifinals to select the finalists began.

From the semifinals, instead of wooden swords, competitors use personally brought practice swords, making the matches more intense.

My match… let’s skip it since it ended with nothing particularly worth noting.

By now, the audience is almost to the point of booing.

Seriously, tournament organizing committee, how did you arrange these brackets?

As I came down amidst the audience’s jeers, I saw Senior Iris looking anxious.

“Senior Iris? What’s wrong?”

“Well, you see…”

Senior Iris sighed deeply and held something out to me.

“Senior, this… Don’t tell me?”

“Yes. It’s my practice sword.”

The practice sword was broken and discolored black as if the middle part had corroded.

Without a sword, one cannot compete.

“It’s a practice sword I had newly made recently, but what on earth happened to it…?”

The practice sword had been with the senior all day.

For someone to do this to the sword?

That was impossible.

But it was also unthinkable for a newly made sword to end up like this.

There wasn’t enough time to go out and buy a new sword now.

No choice then.

“Senior, use my sword.”

“…Huh? Is that okay?”

“Yes, well… it might not feel as good as a new one.”

“No, no. From what I can see, it looks very clean, almost like new.”

Senior Iris said this after drawing my sword and examining it.

Well… I didn’t even get to exchange a few sword strikes with my recent opponent, so it would look new.

Swallowing those words, I gave her a thumbs up.

“Good luck in your match. Show the results of your special training.”

“Haha! Thanks. I’ll definitely repay this favor!”

With that, Senior Iris ran toward the stage.

From the opposite side, I could see Allen entering the stage with an expression full of hostility.

The semifinal match to determine who would face me in the finals was about to begin.