"The dueling arena is ...... here!

　Ore and Lily and the others hurriedly went to the palace hall where the battle of the kings between Shin and Masuda took place.
　When I arrived at the hall, there was a ring of white tiles in the center of the room, surrounded by bleachers, where a number of aristocratic figures of this country were seated.

'There you are, Keogh.

　When his name was called, he turned around and saw Rostam sitting in one of the bleachers.

"Mr. Rostam, what happened to Sin?

"Well, I guess you could say I made it. His physical abilities are outstanding by nature. But whether he can win with that depends on the plan I've given him.

"Measure ......

　I nodded quietly at Rostam's words.
　It's true that something won't change much overnight.
　But if you train and give him a plan, there is a possibility of a reversal.
　I believe in that plan, Rostam says, and I'll sit next to him.
　At least at this point there's nothing more we can do.
　All we have to do is watch the battle for the king below us.

　And as we watch, a loud bell rings and two figures are seen on the stage below us.

　One is the first prince Masauda, the rightful heir of this arabial royal palace.
　The other was the true second prince of the country, Sin, who was nearly assassinated for the sole reason of being born of a commoner's consort, and had been missing until now.
　As soon as the two figures go on stage, you can hear a roar from the audience.

Is that ...... Prince Shin?

"As I recall, the Battle of the Kings is supposed to be conducted by Master Alisha: ......?

"No, Alisha-sama was originally in the form of her brother Shin, and she didn't appear in that form ......?

"From what I've heard, Master Alisha was injured last night, isn't that related to ......?

　Apparently, many in the audience saw Singh on the stage and were confused as to whether it was Alisha or not.
　On the other hand, the man standing in front of Singh, Massouda, did not show any signs of agitation.

Why are you here when that little commoner girl is supposed to be here?

　To the questioning Massouda, Singh does not show any weakness and declares with strong-willed eyes, "This is my battle.

This is my battle. This is my battle to remain in this kingdom. It is a coward's thing to ask your sister to take your place. This battle for the King will be fought by me.

　The voice is loud enough to be heard clearly in the audience, and the audience is once again in a panic as they realize that it is the real Second Prince Shin who is now challenging the king to a battle.

　But Masuda, who is facing him, keeps a cool face and quietly raises his hand to still the crowd's buzz.

Very well. Now the battle of the kings is about to begin. Do neither of us disagree that the winner, according to our royal blood, will have the right to make his or her point?

There is no "......

　Singh nodded quietly to that declaration of Massouda.
　Soon, after their pronouncement, a magician appears on stage.

Now we will try to determine who is truly righteous by the ancient and legitimate ritual of the War of Kings.

　As soon as the sorcerer announced this, swords were distributed to both Singh and Masoudha respectively.

The swords are to be used against each other in this battle of the kings. Both of you will identify your weapons, and then it is time for the king's battle to begin.

"This is Massouda, all clear.

"...... thin. No problem.

　Both of them check their weapons to see if there is something in them, but they both declare that there is no problem.
　But for some reason, I couldn't shake my anxiety as I watched.
　If you can check your own weapon, you can't plant it on Shin's side.
　However, if there was some trick on Massauda's side - despite my fears, the signal to start the king's battle rang out below me at last.

Now, with the consent of both parties, the battle for the king is about to begin!　Good luck to both sides!　Goddess Bless!　Get the victory to do yourself justice!

　As soon as the sorcerer's sentence was over, it was Massouda who made the first move.
　At the same time, Masuda closed the gap between the two, and at the same time, he thrusts his sword in his hand like a rapier at Shin in countless ways!

"Phew!

　It was faster than I expected, and in an instant, it made nearly a dozen thrusts, which Shin avoided with his natural dynamic vision and reflexes, but avoiding all of them was no match for the sword in his hand, defending against several sword thrusts and reducing contact with his body to zero.

It's a good thing ...... that he's surprisingly strong.

　I've always thought that such royalty were usually just talkers, but I was wrong, and Masuda's skills were evident.

Even royalty needs strength to fight. Particularly nowadays, with the heroic system, powerful people are rising in the world. It's not unusual for some royalty to train themselves and show their abilities.

　Certainly. I'm sure that the same is true of Shin, or rather Alisha, and also Rostam.
　I've been thinking about this for some time now, and while I was thinking about it, Massauda's attack on Singh never stopped, and before I knew it, he had been driven to the edge of the stage and had fallen into a situation where there was no escape.

......!

"I'm amazed that someone who has never handled a sword can endure so much. As far as sword handling is concerned, it's unseemly, but what it makes up for in dynamic vision and reflexes, I admire. But no more!

　As soon as Massouda declares this, another high speed thrust goes to Shin and he tries to catch it with his sword, but it is flicked off.
　Seeing that his opponent's weapon is gone, Massauda smiles in victory and raises his sword in his hand.

It's over!　Unholy Child!

　The moment he said that and swung his sword down, the figure of Shin, who was cowering in front of him, disappeared.

What ......?

　Massouda scowls, clearly disconcerted, but so do we.
　But so were we, and before you could ask where the hell we were, Rostam, who was next to me, muttered.

"Behind you,

　As Rostam declared, he saw Singh, who was going behind Masoudha, blasting a kick with all his might over his back.



There is ......?

　Massouda looked as if he had no idea what had been done to him for a moment.
　But that was the case with all the nobles in attendance.

Huh!

　As if to ignore the stunned atmosphere of the hall, Shin closed the distance at once and grabbed both fists and showered his fist blows on the body, arms and face of Masuda without mercy.

''Yah!　Ugh!　Gah!

　An unexpected counterattack from Shin . No, that improbable means of attack causes Massauda to fall back in a panic.

Wait, wait. ......!　Wait, you ......!

　Protecting his broken nose with his hand from being hit in the face with a decent fist, Masuda protests desperately, as if it were impossible.

You!　You know this is the battle of the Kings!　I told you that this battle of the Kings was a serious contest with a sword!　That's why you're using your fists!

　It was exactly an attack from outside the rules. It was a legitimate protest against insane behavior that amounted to an out-of-field brawl, a tirade.
　Massouda's statement was agreed with by the royal families gathered around him, most of whom said, "Indeed ......," "Such a barbaric way of fighting is no way to call it a king's battle ......," "It's like a brawl It is ......," he quipped.

　But in response to the protests from Masoudha, Singh, without seeming bothered, tells us clearly: "What's the problem?

What's the problem?

"What, what ......?

"There should be no rules of kung-fighting such as 'Do not use your fists. There should be no such rules of the King's battle as "Do not use your fists.

　Singh assured him so, as a matter of course, but when he heard this, he saw Massauda swinging his sword violently in his hand, letting his anger get the better of him.

'You've got to be kidding me!　We don't bother to include such a natural thing in the rules!　A battle of the kings is a sacred contest for the will of the other!　To make it such a rule-less spectacle, that's the point at which you are disqualified from fighting for the King!

Then you can admit defeat. Lord Massouda.

　It was Rostam, who was standing next to me, who responded to Massauda's voice.

He's right. It's not a foul since it's not in the rules. There are no strict rules in this king's match. The only rule is to continue until your opponent dies or admits defeat. Then, appearances are of no importance. Whether you use your fists or your bite, whether you use poison or not, it doesn't matter.

　At Rostam's statement, Massouda could be seen breaking out in a cold sweat, as if he had seen through something.

'Indeed, this King's War . It is said that the weapon to be used is the sword, but it is not said that you are not allowed to use your fists if the sword is gone. If you want to enforce the rules so rigorously, next time you will have to be more selective in stating the rules before you start the king's battle, Lord Massouda.

You ......!

　Although Rostam's statement was, to put it bluntly, almost a quibble, still, no one could be sure that he was right and that this would be a foul.
　The fact that the aristocrats around him are nodding their heads with difficult looks on their faces is proof of that, and the fact that he is distracted by such comments from the audience is just a distraction for Massauda himself.

Huh!

　Again, without missing Masuda's consciousness to the other, Shin's fist entered Masuda's face, and without missing it, he fell to the ground.

"Gahhhh!　Kid, gah! ......!　You disgusting little bastard. ......!

　Spitting out the blood in his mouth, Masoudha does not hide his hatred for Singh, spouting disparaging remarks as if his previous aristocratic appearance was a lie.
　When Singh comes at you again, Masoudha counters with a thrust, but Singh, no longer needing to stick to fighting with his sword, changes direction on the spot.
　As soon as he moves into Masuda's blind spot, he crouches down like a beast and, in a move reminiscent of a panther, leaps at Masuda's body.

"Geez, ......!

　The body of Massoudas was met with a merciless body blow, knocking him to the ground and at the same time pressing a shoe against his throat.

This is it. Brother, admit defeat.

　There was a clear winner, even to the casual observer.
　That's what the audience felt, and aside from the way he fought, Shin's moves were extraordinary, and if this were a normal tournament or match, Shin would have been declared the winner at that point.
　But, however, this was a battle of the kings to determine who was right.
　Unlike a match, the only way this match could be settled was for one of them to admit defeat or die.

...... don't you dare!

　Masuda swings his sword at Shin's foot, which stomps on his own throat.
　The cut hurts Singh's leg, and his face is slightly twisted in pain.

Ha, ha, ha ......!　You're the one who brought the rules into it first, kid!　For the record, I will not agree to your surrender!　I'm going to drive it through your heart, and then it's over!

　As Singh's face is contorted against the slightest wound, Massouda's laughter sounds as if he is convinced of his victory.
　He's still got some poison on his sword!
　I stood up to protest, but Rostam, who was sitting next to me, stopped me.

"Don't worry, there's no problem. Kyou.

　Following Rostam's words, I turn my attention to the resolution below.
　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make the most out of the situation.

''!　Ridiculous!　Manticore poison!　Even a haze should cause intense dizziness!　Why is that!

　Singh remains calm as he replies to an impatient and bewildered Massoudas.

...... You have no idea what kind of monster I've been raised by. I have a slight resistance to the manticore's poison. A little bit of poison on a sword like this won't even slow me down.



　He muttered, and in the next moment, Singh's fist crushed Masuda's jaw and sent him flying through the air, and he tumbled to the ground.

'You want to kill me with poison, you'll summon a manticore directly to me.

　With that word, the battle for the king came to a conclusion here.