I'm here...

　He raises the white flag as he sits in a large figure on the ground. I can't. I can't do it anymore. I was able to snatch a few times, but I couldn't land a decisive blow. You can use magic, but in swordsmanship, I don't think you can win. It's just that he's the god of swords.

I'm sure you'll be able to find out more about this. I was a little more serious than I thought. With proper training, you should be able to reach the same level as me, right?

　I don't know. I have no intention of taking over the second generation. To be honest, even if I'm that skilled at swordsmanship, the only person I can think of to fight is you.

I could barely see our swordsmanship, that I could not...
"Wow, me too.... Soooo great, both of you....

　Hilda and Yae are talking about such things while they are stunned. I'd like to say that there's a pretty high wall between me and my sister, even if I say it's great, but I don't have that kind of spare energy left.

"Oh, by 'almost' you mean 'a little', right? That's quite promising, isn't it, you two?

　Sister Morobane watches Hilda and the others happily. In contrast, the two of them look up at the sword god in front of them with sparkling eyes. Are they happy to be recognized in any way?

''I'll teach you both a handful of skills sooner or later. I plan to stay with you, Fuyao-kun, for a while.''
'Really? Double-bladed sister-in-law!
Sister-in-law, superior! I appreciate it, that I do!

　Two people with even more sparkling eyes. Two followers of the Sword God have been born, haven't they?

''Muu~. Morohana-chan took two of my sister-in-law, Imouto.......
Hey, I respect you, Hanakoi, okay?
Linze-chan. I'm a good girl. I'm a good boy.

　I don't know what it is, but Hanakoi's sister is hugging Linse. Lou also seems to be interested in Morobane sister, though not as much as the two of them. Well, in her case, she's not as much of a swordsmanship idiot as the two of them.
　I've managed to revive her to the extent that she can move her body, so I put a 'refresh' on her and recover her strength. Huh. I guess I'm not done yet either.
　Before I knew it, there was a gallery around me. It's no surprise that they've been hitting each other so flamboyantly.

"Who is that?
The Lauri guests, apparently. But they're not contestants.
You're that good... why?
I don't know.

　I can hear the galleries whispering in my ear. The answer. Because I'm a man.
　Among the guys looking at me from afar, there was that skinhead stick-artist and the female martial artist of the dragon race.
　When the skinhead noticed my gaze, the skinhead lightly bowed his head and bailed, but the female martial artist was staring at me. Hmm? The right eye is golden, but the left eye is red.......do you have a magic eye by any chance?
　As it was, she was looking at us, but when I spotted something disturbing behind her, I pulled out the brunnhilde at my waist and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
　A shot rang out, and with a thud, a man fell from a large tree behind the dragon race. He fell while paralyzed by a stun bullet. When I headed to the spot where he fell, I found a powerful bow and arrow in that guy's hand. This guy had clearly been aiming at the dragon race woman earlier.

''Do you recognize her?''

　I ask the dragon tribe woman standing behind me, pointing to the fallen man.

''It's one of the tribes we just played against.

　I see. So it's a grudge, huh? Or is it revenge for losing? The Jajahs of the Tribe of Judgment came and dragged the motionless man away.
　Although this "pruning ritual" is often accompanied by blackmail, there are, of course, painful penalties if it is discovered. That is the suspension from the next Pruning Ceremony. After being confronted with such disgrace, the tribe's anger is directed at the culprit, and expulsion from the village is a certainty.
　He would be kicked out of the village and live alone in this great sea of trees. That would be the punishment.

'I am saved. My name is Sonia Paralem. I am in trouble with the Lursh.

　Saying that, the dragon race woman, Sonia, lowered her head.

''My name is Rengetsu. Thank you for rescuing Sonia-san from a dangerous situation.

　The skin-headed stick-artist also learns to do so and bows his head. I don't know if it's the black hair, or the hair itself, so I don't know. Ah, but if you look closely, your eyebrows are black.

'Rengetsu-san, where are you from?'
'What? Yisheng, but so what?

　Thank goodness. It's something of a hassle when you're Euron. As was the case in Yachen, many Euronians love to travel, and many of them travel around the world as warriors.
　On the contrary, the Euronians don't do much touring around the countries. In the past, it was difficult for them to travel to other countries due to their national government. It was difficult, or rather, they had to go through a lot of troublesome procedures, and I don't think they ever thought of going abroad until they had to do so. It seems that there were all sorts of information restrictions in place.
　Well, that has already collapsed, so refugees are leaving the country one by one and flowing to other countries. In terms of numbers, most of them have been killed by the Freys, so apparently it's not that much, but it must be a headache for the country that receives them.

I'm Fuyuya Mochizuki. I'm a guest of the Lauri tribe, eh...?

　I was about to introduce myself and Sonia stared at me again. Huh? Is it possible that I'm triggering some sort of enchantment?

What is it?
''Well this is the kind of thing I'm asking, but why do you see a woman like that?''

　Huh? Could it be that "Mirage" isn't working? I asked Sonia in a sneaky whisper, and she gave a small nod.

''Oh, no. I knew there were people with that kind of taste, but I was a bit surprised...''
'No, no, no, no, no, no! It's not! Because you're wrong!

　As it is, I'll be perceived as a man with a taste for cross-dressing. It's not so much cross-dressing as it is an illusion. I took them to an unpopular place and explained to them.
　I'm not competing as a Lauri, so I'm not sullying my tribe's pride. It doesn't matter if I divulge it, because if other people find out about it, I won't be able to watch the game. There's also a way to use Invisible to turn invisible when the time comes.

Or is it because of your magical eye that your magic doesn't work?
''Yes. My magical eye has the power to counteract illusions and other illusions. The visual effects of magic don't work on this right eye either.

　I see. The right eye is the only one that can be cancelled by light magic to blind the eyes with a flash of light magic? No, it won't be activated all the time, so it might work if you're caught off guard.

'Well, it's not a big deal, but I'd appreciate it if you kept quiet.
Well, since you were the one who helped us earlier, I guess we're even now.

　Oh, you know what I'm talking about. Surprisingly, these two seem to be easy to talk to and have a calm personality. According to what they told me, they are adventurers and are training to be warriors. It is said that during the trip, two of the contestants of the Rurush tribe's "Pruning Ceremony" who got into trouble became ill and were unable to attend, so they offered to help instead.

''I was shown Fuyao-san's hand-to-hand match just now. Like Fuyao-san.......who is the other person?
"Ah. That's Morobane's sister my second sister. To be honest, it's impossible to beat her. If it's only a sword, she's the strongest.
Is he the strongest...

　Isn't that an exaggeration to you two? He looked at me and said, "Well, you will. But it's true.
　At any rate, we parted from the two of them in a mutual exchange of ale, saying hello to each other tomorrow, if I hit it then.

'There you are,'
Hmm? Pam.

　Pam came in after I left them. In the moonlight, her figure emerged vaguely in the darkness.

'So the Barum tribe has been defeated, so that's a relief for now.
'Well. But I want to make a foothold for the next Pruning Ceremony. I'd still like to have a Touya boy...
We won't win the championship.
I know. The Lauri cannot go back on their word.

　Pam turns away with a puffy look on her face, as if to say it was out of the question.

'The law to add is still flying the Barum people to the backcountry, isn't it?
That's okay, though. It's a good idea to have a different set of rules. Of course, it should be for the benefit of the Lauri people.

　Pam says and ponders this. It's to the benefit of the Lauri tribe.... Does that mean it's usually a code that favors women? The Lauri tribe is in direct opposition to gender equality. It would be nice if the tribes of the Great Sea of Trees could be governed through discussion, regardless of gender.
　To begin with, the only tribes that are that different between men and women are the Lauri and the Barum.
　But if I had to say, women are in a weaker position in the other tribes as well.

Should we just make it so that only women can participate in the pruning ceremony?
Bullshit. There's gonna be a riot.

　Well, I guess so. The other tribes won't be silent. There are a few tribes where women are strong, but the majority of them are mainly male.

Maybe we should have separate pruning rituals for men and women.
Hm? If it's separated by gender, at least in the women's division, our Lauri tribe has a significant advantage.......

　Pam began to mumble and think. Oh come on, are you serious? Well, men and women fighting on the same field isn't really familiar to us in our opinion. Even the Olympics are held separately for men and women. Men and women are structurally different to begin with, so that can't be helped. Discrimination and distinction are not the same thing.

'But if that's the case, other tribes will be competing in the male and female divisions, maybe both. The Lauri and Barum can only participate in one of them, is that okay?
No problem. I mean, I hope. Because once this is in place, no other tribe will be able to neglect their women.

　Ah, I see. That's one way to think about it.... Women will be required to be strong, so to speak, and given a place to play an active role.
　If women from other tribes awaken to their own strength and seek a place to make use of it, they may naturally flow to the Lauri. This would also strengthen the Lauri tribe.......not bad.
　 I may have made an unnecessary suggestion.
　For the spirits of the Great Tree, it would mean fulfilling two laws, one for men and one for women, but, well, that part should be fine.
　Even if we say we're going to fulfill them, the spirits will only approve them, and it's actually a decision between everyone.

''Alright, let's go make a suggestion to all of the tribe. This could change the 'pruning ritual' a lot.

　As Pam joyfully ran out of the room, seriously wondering if she had done something unnecessary, before she knew it, the spirit of the great tree was standing beside her. It was still emitting a green phosphorescence.

''It might not be a bad suggestion. And this might make the position of the Great Tree Sea women a little better. If it goes as far as the Lauri tribe, it might be a bit too much, but that's also the tribe's personality.''

　No. I guess so. I guess there's no answer to these things. It's not a matter of which one is better or worse.
　I've decided to return to everyone's home while carrying complicated anguish in my arms. It's also important to note that the spirit of the big tree has disappeared before you know it. It's a good idea to be able to have a good idea of what you're looking for when you're in the market. I've heard that I'm a bit of a leaker. If you don't learn that much, I think you're going to have more trouble.
　On the way home, I looked around and saw several figures going into the depths of the forest, opposite to me. Is that.........the Rivets? There aren't many tribesmen who wear masks like that.
　I didn't mind so much at the time, thinking that I was going to do some errands. In hindsight, I was wrong.