Hustle and bustle.
　Crowds.
　Laughter and touts.

...... oh.

　The scene in my eyes made me let out a small exclamation as En and I held hands, rolling our eyes.

"Well, that's certainly true, that's exactly what a festival is.

　The heat and energy I feel around me makes me feel good about myself.

　--It's already five days since the day I was told by the king of the demon world to participate in the arena.

　We were ready, and had come to the area near the arena where the tournament was to be held.

　The streets were filled with people, and the owners of the stalls on either side of the street were constantly raising their touts' vigorous voices.
　When I look down, I see that everyone I pass has a smile or an excited expression on their face, and I can see that the whole city is very lively.

　I've been feeling the city getting noisier and noisier for a few days now, but this is even more impressive today.

　I've been thinking that the current situation in the demon world is quite tense ...... but I guess the festival is a different story.

　I'm sure you'll find that this is one of the most important events in our world where we don't have a lot of entertainment, and this is one of the few times we can take a break from our days.

"?　The way you put it, Yuki-sama, you have participated in such a large scale event?

"Hmm? Oh, oh. . well, sort of.

　I'm not going to be able to get a good idea of what I'm going to do with it.

It's a very good idea to have a good idea of what to do with it.

"First, Yuki-dono must register at the entrance of the arena. After that, he will have to follow the instructions of the management staff, as it is completely random and we have no room to intervene in which match he will participate in.

"Well, ...... was the qualifying round in a battle royale format?

Yes. Roughly fifty people will fight in unison to select the top three remaining contestants. Well, I'm sure you have this much to spare.

　Yes, yes, we'll do everything we can.

Also, we have some of our own people on the operations staff, so if you have any requirements, just ring the bell I gave you. One of us will be there in a minute.

Oh, that dumb bell.

　It's like a magic tool that emits a specific wavelength of magic power around you, and I was given a bell that doesn't make a sound when you shake it.
　The same is true of the disguise ring I'm wearing on my finger right now, but the faction at the top of the magic world has many interesting things to offer.

　--You'll be able to find out more about them by visiting their website.

　We arrive in front of the large circular building - the arena.

　The feeling is similar to ...... baseball dome.

　There is a great deal of noise and crowdedness around here, and a good number of armed men and women, who are probably contestants like me, can be seen lined up at the main entrance.
　The armed groups are lined up in the line, which is a somewhat surreal sight.

　...... Nevertheless, there are a lot of people with strange equipment like this ......

　What's that? Broomstick? Do you have a broom branch part, a sharp needle?

　Some of them have a weapon that looks like a hammer on the opposite side of a scythe hilt.

　Other than that, as they are used by various races, each one of them with special weapons and armor, it's a very chaotic place. A weapons fair, this place is .

　...... No, well, I'm using a large sword with a very long blade as my main weapon, so you may not be able to say much about it.

You should have your disguise on before you go to the reception. Leila, sorry to leave you alone. If you sense anything is amiss, use the one I gave you and return to the dungeon immediately.

"Yes, yes, sir!

　You can't be with them after the disguise, so you can't be with them after the disguise, so I said that while slurring my words a bit regarding the necklace that is the return device to the dungeon, Leila immediately understood my intentions and nodded her head.

You're in charge of Leila, Haloria. I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make it work.

Ha, I'll take care of it. I will protect you, if it is in my power to do so.

　No, if there's an emergency like that, Leila will run and you'll run away too.

Then, Yuki-dono, come this way.

　Then, at Hood's urging, I went into the shadows, accompanied by En, to use the map and the "search" skill to check the situation around me.
　After confirming that no one is watching you, I put magic power into my ring, change my hair and eye color to silver, and take out my solé - a white mask - from the item box.

　The design of this mask is very different from the one I used in King's Landing before.
　If the old one was a clown mask, this is the ...... one. It's similar to the mask worn by the black grim reaper, which has the ability to control electric currents.

　Oh, there's no lightning bolt-like pattern under the eyes.

　However, since the mask has a rather inorganic expression, it looks a bit horrifying, so there is a star-shaped gemstone inlaid underneath the corner of the left eye as decoration.
　When I told the king of the demon world about the jewel, he gave it to me with a plop. So he's rich after all.

　I made this one by training, but it's a boomerang.
　The performance of the boomerang is very poor because it doesn't return when thrown, but since I don't think I'll ever actually throw it, it's not a problem at all.

　By the way, I didn't make a mask with an open mouth. You don't have to wear the mask all the time, so I don't mind.

Okay, that's it. --I'm sorry, En. I'll definitely take you to the festival in the evening when we're done, okay?

"......, okay . Anywhere with the Lord is fine.

　The girl in the kimono who says such a happy thing with a slightly embarrassed expression pasted on her usual blank face.

　Coo ...... What a cute guy.
　I'm not sure if there are two such cute creatures in the world. No, there aren't. Antonyms.

　I pat her head and say the words with a smile on my face.

"Thanks, En. I'd be happy to be anywhere with En. --Then will you go back to your weapons for a while?



"......

　With a small nod, she lightly touched her hand to the body of En that I held out in front of her - the flame of sin - and then, as if fusing with it, she disappeared.

　After confirming that she had returned to her weapon, I put the flame of sin back on my shoulder and let out a small breath of air.

I'm not going to be able to get rid of it.


　　　* * *


Good morning . You're a player. Post your registration card, please.

　At the main entrance of the arena, I hand the card-shaped registration card of the athlete, which I took out of my pocket, to the receptionist of the demon tribe with horns and a tail.

I'd like to check. --You are Mr. Eupsilon, aren't you? You are from Reggie Hegg and your weapon is the one you carry: ...... ...... Oh, that's great, you're participating in this tournament on the king's recommendation.

　I nodded at her words.

　Eupsilon is, of course, an alias of mine.
　It comes from the German 'Y' (yupsilon), which is easy to understand.

"Huh, we're looking forward to working with you. --Then, for identification purposes, would you please pour your magic on your registration card?

　I've been given the registration card back by her, and I poured my magic power into it as she told me to, making it emit a small light to show that I'm the person I am.

　But still, you're doing a pretty thorough background check.

　It's also a good idea to have a good idea of what you're doing.

　I'm sure you'll be able to find a way to make that happen. In fact, I'm from a fake name and a lie.

　Well, knowing the king, maybe he has a plan for those fake registrations too.
　He seemed pretty confident when he told me about the players to watch out for, so he must have used some means to back it up.

Yes, thank you very much. We have confirmation of the player list. Now, please bring this number plate.

　Saying that, she was handed a single square wooden stick with the number 113 written on it.
　As for size, it's a little bigger than lip balm.

"That is Mr. Epsilon's calling number for the game, so please do not lose it during this tournament. For the players' waiting room, please follow the instructions of the officials at the back of the street. --So, good luck, Mr. Eupsilon!

　After a small bow to her, I finally entered the arena through the crowded front entrance and headed for the off-track passage the receptionist had told me about, which was different from the path to the bleachers.

　Finally, you're out of the crowd.

　You continue on your way, and an old man waiting for you asks you if you are a player, you nod and show him your registration card.

All the rooms from here on are waiting rooms, so you can go anywhere you like. However, you are not allowed to enter any of the rooms with a red 'full' tag in front of the door, so please go to the other areas.

　Isn't there a separate waiting room for each player in particular?

　Well, I heard that the first qualifying round is a battle royal match, completely to reduce the number of people, so I guess that's about it.

　After parting with the attendant, you are advancing through the inner arena again, when you hear a telepathic message from Boris and En.

...... interesting.

Haha, En is the first time you've been in a place like this.

"......

"It'll probably be more fun on the field. Well, it's a bloody place, so I don't want you to be too funny.

　Normally, bringing a child to a place like this would definitely be bad for education, but ...... en is a weapon in its original form.

　It's a little annoying, but with the past of the cursed magic sword era, she is well aware of the fear of "power".
　If you're not sure what to do, you can ask for a few minutes of your own time.

"...... En only wields power when she is with the Lord.

Yeah, thanks again. I'm counting on you.

　Eventually, I arrived in front of one of the empty waiting rooms and opened the door and walked into it.

　--A moment later, a number of eyes pierce me.

　Some are staring at you as if they were shooting you dead, others are looking at you curiously, and still others are observing the incoming enemy while keeping their presence as light as possible so as not to be distracted by their surroundings.

　Aa...... good atmosphere.

　If you've ever been in a match of any kind, you'll probably know what I mean.

　This is the heat and fighting spirit that each of us exudes before the game begins.

　The faintly felt euphoria that envelops the entire room.

　--This is the way a festival of this type should be.

　With a wide smile on the edge of my mouth under my mask, I slowly looked to the left and right as if to provoke the gathered gazes and proceeded inside the modestly spacious anteroom and sat down in an empty space.