"Well, you won...?"

　A murmur echoes through the guest room.
　The man who is also the master of this room has heard of it."that is, only Trajist Gnose Bestia, the emperor of the Vestian Empire, and the maid in the VIP room, and the Rank S adventurer who just uttered his voice, the infamous noise.
　If there are no other members of the Imperial family, do you watch the competition with the members of each faction or do you not come to the arena in the first place?
　It is natural to say that it is impolite for ordinary events not to show up at the events in which the emperor participates, but what is being held now is a competition, which is very close to a festival.
　Furthermore, as long as the main game alone is not finished in a day or two, basically you can be free to attend the opening and closing ceremonies.
　...and yet many nobles come to the arena for scouting purposes, negotiations with other factions, and much more to be done.

"You've certainly won, haven't you? without magic in his stipend, and with respect to that scythe, without a blade."
"Oh, you're probably trying to fight me. In fact, he is better than he was in the first round."
"Oh? Let the Lord, who is said to be immovable, say so much. The adventurer of crimson certainly has tremendous power."
"Of course. I took the trouble to look at it. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

　It's not very much, but it doesn't seem to be for the emperor of the Westian Empire, which has the largest print on the continent.
　If there had been anyone here, I would have been amazed.
　But Trajist only smiles merrily at the noise's words, and even maids don't seem to interfere.
　This is... this is the adventurer of Rank S.
　It revealed how many Rank S adventurers there were only three in the world who were allowed to speak equally to an emperor of a country.
　And Noise's presence here is why there is no bodyguard in the VIP room where the emperor is.
　While Trajist has shown genuine confidence in his ability to have noise and no other bodyguards, Noise has also shown that he has no intention of causing any harm to the Trajist as long as he is present.
　Although both sides were products of compromise, it was also true that they recognized each other as careless friends.
　...although, for a friend, we are somewhat apart in age.

"Well, I see. ... Let's ask you a question. Do you think he will stand before the Empire of Bestia?"

　Joy! I've told you so, but the content is very heavy. The Spring War has shown that if crimson becomes an enemy, it will only be swept away by the army.
　In other words, it is not the number, but the quality that is necessary to compete against the crimson, who is good at regional annihilation.
　We need people who are capable of competing with crimson individually... or at parties.

"All I can say is that there is a high possibility. When I met him, he didn't seem to be loyal to the kingdom of Milliana. But if you contract for a job, you'll stand by your side in the meantime... I suppose that's the attitude."
"So, is it possible to pull them out? If they don't have that much affection for the kingdom of Milliana, they might be on my side."

　a natural question to ask if one hears an explanation of noise
　But the noise itself shakes its head lightly at the question.

"It's only my intuition, but I don't think I'll take sides with you and pretend to be hostile to the Kingdom of Milliana."
"Why? If what you're saying is true, there shouldn't be any need to side with them."
"So that's all I can think of."

　Hunch. That was all, but it was a good reason for Trajist to agree.
　If this had been attributed to intuition by those adventurers, they would probably have laughed with their noses.
　But before you is the noise of a Rank S adventurer. Such a person's intuition deserves credit.
　And the intuition was right.
　Indeed, Ray has no particular attachment to the kingdom of Milliana itself. No, I have quite a few bad memories, including conflicts with the aristocracy.
　But... it was still very unlikely that Ray would be hostile to the kingdom of Milliana itself.
　There are many reasons for this, but one of the main reasons for this is probably Elena Kerebel. He is also becoming attached to the first stop in the frontier town of Gilm.
　For those reasons, there is no reason for Ray to be hostile to the kingdom of Milliana so far.
　I don't even know what's going on, but my instinctive ability to sense it is probably because I'm one of the top adventurers in Rank S... and I think it's because I'

"Well, then, will he be a hindrance to the rest of his action?" I should be glad to have such a successor."

　mutter to that extent and let out a small sigh.
　I know that my sons and daughters are now engaged in a secret struggle over the right to succeed to the throne.
　I'm not saying no to it. As a Trajist, I would highly recommend more.
　Because the Empire of Bestia is the strongest country. At least the people believe that and act that way.
　The Vestian Empire is certainly a powerhouse. However, we are still not strong enough to call it the most powerful country.
　Therefore, those who seek to become emperors of the Westian Empire are required to be competent.
　Trajist knew it deeply, too, because he had fought back and forth with many of his relatives to become emperor.
　That's all... he who has not only his own ability, but also the elements of fortune, or the competence of his companions, can be crowned emperor of the Westian Empire.
　In that sense, the adventurer, nicknamed crimson, who had already left the stage, had something to touch the strings of Trajist.
　If this man becomes emperor of the Vestian Empire, the country will probably fly higher.
　That's why we'll get the sea, the long-cherished wish of the Vestian Empire, swallow the kingdom of Mileana, and fly the flag of the Vestian Empire all over the continent.
　Of course it's just a trajist's intuition. However, considering that it is a man's intuition that has risen to the throne of the Vestian Empire as well as noise, it is not entirely unreliable.

"Then why don't you marry him?"

　Trajist responds with a wry smile to the teasing noise.
　It's true that it's the most efficient choice. However, if they do so, the dissatisfaction among the nobles will explode, and if they do not do so, it could lead to a civil war.

"It wouldn't have been so much damage on the Celemus Plain."
"If I were to say that, maybe it was because he was so active on the Celemus Plain that he was nicknamed crimson, but since he was so famous, he has been unable to abandon the aristocrats of the Bestian Empire." If he hadn't been active in the Celebrity Plains, I don't think he would have had to buy so much."

　A cup is gently offered before the little smiley noise.
　Reach out to the cup, thanking the maid briefly for her concern.

"Well, it will be difficult to bring in crimson at all costs."
"…I see. now?"

　a trujist with a smile on his face and a meaningful gaze at the noise
　Indeed, relations with the kingdom of Milliana are bad now. But it's true that it won't last forever.
　As emperor of the Vestian Empire, I can never withdraw to the kingdom of Mileana, but I am willing to show mercy if they make concessions.

"I don't know when it will be."
"...hmm,"

　Trajist snorts a little grumpy at the noise he's been making fun of.
　The next moment, however, he opens his mouth, twisting his lips into a small smile.

"Is it better for you to be hostile to crimson?"
"I won't deny it. That's why I took part in this farce.""Oh, farce is too much to say. It's one of the greatest events in the Empire of Bestia."

　I blame him in words, but what oozes in his voice is his smile.
　Trajist knows. The Rank S adventurer next to you never shows his face, but he's bored.
　No, it's because we've reached rank S.
　He's an overwhelming powerhouse, and that's why he's no match for him. Because there is nothing to do, training is essential, and as a result, strength increases even more.
　He is a clumsy man in many ways.

(If I had an interest in things like wine and women, it would have been a different story...)

　It can be said that the situation is stagnant because he is serious about his career as an adventurer.
　Whether it's coming from below or not, there's no one in today's empire with a rank of A but a rank of S.
　In the first place, there are only three people in the world, Rank S. It couldn't have increased so easily.
　That's why... Trajist is very interested in the crimson character that the man in front of him has envisioned.
　I was originally interested in the Spring War, but now I'm more interested than that.

(Clubeni and immovable. If things go smoothly, we'll win in the final. ... Well, I wonder what's going to happen then.)

　With that in mind, Trajist turned his attention to the next game, which had begun before he knew it.





"Here's gold,"

　As soon as Ray enters the VIP room, he receives a cloth bag given to him by Elk.
　It's a natural bet Ray had been betting on himself. ...but when Ray receives it, he frowns slightly.
　The weight of the bag seemed almost the same as when I asked Elk to bet on me.

"I'll ask you, did you win?"
"Of course. That's why the stakes should be increasing. ...but because of the famous influence of your name, the ratio is low. It's what we call an iron plate."
"There was someone who bet on his opponent in the first round.

　It is true that there were a lot of people who hated crimson in the first round to show their support for their opponents. But if they bet on their opponent, Anacelle, not Ray, it means they lost the bet as long as Ray won.
　Maybe not many people were motivated to continue doing the same thing, but as a result, Ray's performance was very low in this battle.

"I thought the first round had a pretty bad reputation."
"You were being pushed unilaterally."

　Elk nods to Ray's words.
　In fact, it was a defensive battle to the untrained eye. But if you look at it from a person of some skill or more, it's a completely different story.
　There were quite a few people who felt threatened by the skills they showed in the first round, and the result of the conversation was the weight of the bag in Ray's hand.

"Well. I can't help it, can I?"

　Let out a small sigh and put a bag of gold and silver in the mistling.
　You must have been watching it. A supposed aristocrat in the same room as Dusker opens his eyes with a cry of amazement.
　Determined that he is probably the first person to enter the guestroom today, Ray turns his attention to the matches taking place on the stage.
　There, very rarely in this world, women in their twenties with clubs fought overwhelmingly against a man with a long sword.

`I would have chosen a spear rather than a club,'

　Ray looked at the Elk muttering next to him.

"Are you learning the martial arts of a school that aims to capture the opponent alive instead of defeating him?"
"Then it could be a guard or something like that."

　They had a conversation like that, but what was going on in front of their eyes was not a scene of capture.
　Whether the club itself is made of a special material or not, the club's trajectory changes with a slight movement of the wrist, and the body of the man holding the sword is repeatedly struck.
　It's because it's a club... because it doesn't have a blade like a spear, a man of prime age is hit unilaterally and accumulates damage.
　In the end, the offense continued almost unilaterally, and the game ended with a near-total victory.

"...my son, if he wins, will fight against her eventually...he won't wake up to strange tastes."

　That Elk's words strike Ray's ears.