"Let's party!



　A young man with a cowboy hat on and long hair flowing down his back was walking by.
　His long, slitted eyes looked up at the morning sky, and his name was Arrows, the Monster Hunter.

　I'm not sure if this is a good idea or not, but it's a good idea.

It's close.

　It was a wide grassy field.
　The breeze comfortably caressed the low grass, and their tones rustled in the sky.
　Their steps kept a steady pace in the deep blue, a mixture of green and red, as if baked by the morning red sun.

　At the end of the grassland where they were walking, a forest area spread out.
　The dense forest in the direction of the rising sun seemed to have a halo of holiness.
　Even if you were not a god, there was enough "atmosphere" there to make you feel intimidated.

"Hey, I'm really scared...

　The sound of a pair of boots followed from behind him.
　When he turned around with his hat in his hand, a girl with a drawn expression was following him with her back arched, clutching her prized sword.

　Letting out a sigh of relief, Arrows said.

What are you talking about? You were able to fight so well against Izuna.
"Why are you comparing me to Izuna?

　The name of the girl who tilted her head to the point of incomprehension was Leafy Lean Glide.
　You can find a lot of things that you can do to make your life easier.

　"She is also a very talented swordswoman, and when she is not hunting demonic beasts, she sometimes trains with him.

"What?　Didn't I tell you before, little girl? The Arcadia King Gorilla is like an unintelligent Izuna.
"Unintelligent Izuna: ......?


　"Leafy imagines.


"I'm not stupid, I know. A carrot is a burdock.


　.......

"Doesn't sound like much, does it?
No, it's nothing compared to him, but it's not like he's going to let you off the hook in an instant.
"Heh. I feel sorry for Motisuke.
You're imagining things like a fool, aren't you?

　Arrows breathes a small sigh.

I'm not sure if you've heard of it or not. Countless people have died because of this thing. It's good that you're not scared, but don't let your guard down too much either.
But he's not intelligent, is he Izuna?
Oh, ...... intelligence is an overstatement. It's a brainless isna.
"It's Izuna who can't think straight. ......?

　Leafy imagines.

"Because I'm an idiot. I don't know.


　.......

It's not as big a deal as it sounds.
"Then it's a monkey. You can't read ahead or anything like that!
"Monkey.

"I'm not a person. I'll eat a banana.

It's kind of funny.
How come I can't tell he's a berserker?
...... You mean he doesn't talk?
What makes you think the Arcadia King Gorilla can talk?
What? Well, I've met a talking hexenbiest at .......
What the hell are you talking about? That's impossible.
I'm serious!

　Arrows left her in a daze and stepped out again, stopping there. He grinned and pushed his cowboy hat back on.

...... is coming.
What?

　A silhouette on all fours is lumbering towards you in the morning sun.

　It's--


No, it's too big!


　More than four merets tall.

Don't worry.
What?

　Leafy barked in desperation at Arrows, who held up his twin swords.
　I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that.

"They don't flock.
That's not good!　I didn't really expect them to flock.
That's right. Yeah, well, a lot of hexenbiests do.
You tell me, d*mn it!

　That's a lot of energy. I can tell you've got a lot of power.


　However, Leafy is a warrior.
　It was then that he drew his sword, determined not to be defeated by a mere wild creature.

　The Arcadian King Gorilla noticed them and turned away for a moment.
　A few steps back to the entrance of the forest, Leafy's mouth dropped open.

"Oh, by the way. It's not just power that I'm talking about when I compared you to Izuna.

　--The gorillas are the ones who can punch through trees with one hand.


Arcadia King Gorilla uses a weapon.
How is that possible?


　f*ck you!　Leafy and Arrows challenged the Arcadia King Gorilla, shouting...














I thought I was going to die. ......
It's a shame.

　I'm not sure what to make of it.
　I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but it's a good idea.
　The name of the party was to commemorate the second martial arts tournament or pep rally.

　Although there is still no word on what form the tournament will take, the date of the second tournament has been announced by the Royal Capital Spectacular.

　There is no information on the specific details of the tournament, and even though there are still a few days left before the tournament.

　That's not the point, the festive theme is just a pretext.

　It's a little too early to really have a pep rally, even if they're ready to go out there and do whatever it takes.

　But Leafy, who had heard of the restaurant through pasta, and Arrows, a hexenbiest hunter, brought some food.

　All of them have participated in martial arts tournaments as fighting swordsmen.
　It was the idea of the strong girl who came up with the idea to turn the restaurant into a place for swordsmen with high hopes for their future success.

　I'm not sure what to make of it, but I'm sure it's a good idea.

　I'm sure you've heard of the Arcadia King Gorilla, but I'm not sure if it's any good," she said with a snort.

You idiot. Basically, the more magical elements a hexenbiest contains, the better it tastes. It's a delicacy, so it's worth the price. ...... I never thought I'd be able to eat it like this.

　I'm not sure what to make of it.
　It's a good idea to have a good idea of what you're looking for.

I'm happy that Pasta-chan has such high expectations of me.

　I'm so happy to see you expecting so much from me, pasta girl.

"You're not old enough to be my uncle, are you?
"Heh. When you're in your late twenties, you usually look like an old man.
"Hey, stop it, you'll get me in trouble too.

　It was Izuna who panicked.

"Hey, how old are you now, Izuna?
"Huh?　Twenty-four.
One year to go. ......
Stop it, stop it, stop it!

　Pasta laughs teasingly at Izuna's head.
　Such a pleasant atmosphere continued for a while.
　In the midst of the relaxed atmosphere, everyone looked up at the smell of the meat.

It's ready!
"Oh, we've been waiting for you!

　We couldn't dismantle the whole body, so we had to use some of the meat that we had delivered to the hunting cooperative.
　There was enough meat to fill the bellies of the dozen or so people present, and it was roasted and served with herbs.

So, without further ado, let's get ready for the second round!

　Anise, the signer's daughter, presumptuously led the way, and we each clinked our mugs of sake together in a toast.

　The meat of the Arcadia King Gorilla has a strong odor, but if you can get rid of it, it's tender and delicious.
　As one would expect from a restaurant, the processing of the meat was perfect, and each of us was impressed by the dish.

　In the meantime.

"The second one.
What's going on?

　There was a girl lying on the table.
　Leafy.

　I'm not sure what to do, but I'm going to do it.

"There you go, you misrepresented your abilities.
"What kind? You just didn't answer because you weren't asked.

　I think back to the first combat tournament.
　It's a story about a man who hired her to be his bodyguard without saying a word, but was actually good enough to enter the tournament as an honorary guest.
　It's not that I'm deeply rooted in it, but I had some thoughts about it.

I thought, "......, you should fight the Arcadia King Gorilla. I was thinking.

　I've been thinking about it," she says, rubbing her nostrils, which are red from alcoholism.

I thought, "I'm not going to make much of a difference in this tournament.
Hmm.
You should be a little more interested!

　I'm sure you'll be able to understand why I'm so excited about this.
　I don't want to show weakness to Izuna and Arrows, who I consider my rivals, and I know that Pasta will give me crap about it.
　In that sense, it was quite convenient for him to talk to Futa, who was overwhelmingly strong.
　He would understand about the sword fighting.

I'm sure you'll be able to figure out what's going on.
"............ doesn't sound like much.
That's what I thought at first.

　I thought so too at first," he smiled.
　But then he shook his head.

I thought I was going to die. I thought I was going to die, and it was a hell of a fight. I thought I was going to die, and it was a hell of a fight, but Arrows and I were able to pull it off.


I see.
I'm talking about beating Izuna. I'm talking about whether you can beat Izuna.
So you're saying we can't win now, so we should train and start over?
Yeah. I'm not saying I've given up for good. It's not that I'm depressed, it's just that I don't know what I'm going to do in the next tournament.
Hmm, I don't know.
You're a dick. You're a dick.
You're drunk.

　I'm sure you've heard that people in this country, especially the aristocracy, have a strong taste for alcohol, Futa thought, and then remembered. She had been adopted by a commoner.

　It's hard to say whether that makes her strong or weak, but Leafy was definitely one of the weak ones.

In the end, you have to decide for yourself what to do. It's not like you're going to get better instantly.
...... That's right.
"There is a possibility that you will regret either choice. You never know what the future holds.
That's true.
...... But yeah, you're right.

　I feel that I am not good enough, so I hesitate whether to leave or not.
　Aside from the fact that Futa was jealous that he had the option to hesitate.
　I've never been in the exact same situation as Leafy, so I can't really relate to her.

　Still, I've had my doubts and troubles.
　For example, I've often wondered about sword fighting.

If I were Pasta, I'd say, "It's better to go for it than not to go at all. If you're Prim, you'll probably go into it thinking you'll get something out of it even if you lose. If it was Izuna, she'd probably go in thinking she might win today.
Everyone's rushing in.
On the other hand, Lilac-sama might take a wait-and-see approach. I think it all comes down to what kind of value you place on a fighting sword.
"...... what value?
I'm not like you. "I'm not like you. I want to show that you can be successful even if you don't have a job, and sword fighting is the way to do that. So yeah, if you've got a goal in mind, you've got to find the best way to achieve it.
"...... My goal?

　He raised his blushing face and muttered.

I want to rebuild ...... my father's dojo in Sakurahana Itto Ryu. In order to do that, I need to spread the Sakuraga Itto Ryu. But it's useless if people don't think it's a great style. I'd rather not be seen than lose and be thought of as a small school. ......

　I'm sure you're right.

I'm not sure if you've heard of it or not, but I'm sure you've heard of it. This is the best I can do right now to show you that. ......

　He clenched his fists and nodded.

I'm not sure if you've seen this before. I can do what Izuna was trying to do. I'll do it.

　The clenched fist, which could be seen as a statement of determination, was dazzling.
　Futa suddenly realized and smiled.

"Oh, that's good, isn't it?
What do you mean?

　I'm not sure what you mean by that," he said, lowering his eyebrows slightly.

No, it's not something I can talk about yet.
What the hell?
But ...... this might be a tournament where you can make a difference.
"...... Oh. So you know something, huh?

　Leafy raises the corners of his mouth aggressively.
　Futa didn't want to say more than that.
　It wasn't confirmed yet, and more importantly, Pasta hadn't made it public yet, so he couldn't talk about it.

　2on2.

　That's what the next tournament will probably be about.
　If so, Leafy's ability to stall even the strongest opponent would be a great advantage.

　Futa thought honestly, and wondered what she would do next time.