'Are you sure, Your Majesty? It's not too late to stop.

　Just before the match between Gullum and Raspberry Bell took place, Squire Klaus asked Mine, who was sitting on his throne, with a grim look on his face.

'As I have said many times before, there is no stopping it. It's that Second's recommendation, isn't it?'
But her entry, diplomatically ......
That's not a good idea, but I don't want to do anything about it.

　Mine laughed in a resigned manner and popped his hand with an 'oh'.

'Yes. Let's open it up, Klaus.
Is ......?
I don't care what she does after being sent to Second-san's home with Rock'n'Chair Kongo's help. Whether or not her whereabouts are exposed, or even if the remnants of the Kamel God State try to take her back as a result of that, if you still want to participate in the Issenza fight, then please do what you want with .......
You said it was your responsibility.
Because it's the only way. Helping a revolution of that magnitude without telling me a single word in such an obvious way, forcing me to cooperate with the steam frontier count, and finally bringing a saint to the kingdom after a successful revolution, is the kind of thing an idiot would do.　I won't be able to keep up with you if you keep pushing me around at every turn.
...... I'm sorry to hear that you've been accumulating so much.
'I don't particularly like the fact that you don't know how hard I've been working behind the scenes and still think you haven't been exposed as a hero of the revolution. You could come over and show me your face with a few words of thanks: ......

　Looking at Mine, who is mumbling and complaining, Klaus gives a small smile, "Oh dear.

　At the end of the day, this young king is just sulking over his friend who hasn't heard from him for six months.


...... By the way, hasn't Klaus become an apprentice yet?
''There is a condition that I must participate in the Ikusenza Battle. If you're sent to deal with the aftermath of the divine Kingdom so much, it's not hard to imagine that you won't have time to gain any experience.
Ironic, isn't it? You've come to be quite good at that.
No. It's just a statement of fact.

　And Klaus was also sulking.

　He had been looking forward to his apprenticeship with Second so much, but he hadn't been able to take as much time as he would have liked to meet the requirements, and as a result, he had been forced to forgo his participation in the summer title fight.


　As the two men were criticizing each other in a roundabout way and exchanging words, the crowd suddenly stopped buzzing - and soon after, there was a great excitement with a throbbing sound.

''Is it ...... the entrance of a saint?''
Yes. She's so good-looking, you'd think she'd be crazy not to be noticed.
Plus, you're the only woman in the Flash Tournament.
I feel sorry for Garam, sir.

　The flow is completely on Raspberry Bell. It was not only Klaus, but Mine as well, that Garam would be hard to fight.

　However, Mine sensed an even deeper meaning in Klaus' words.

　Garaam was formerly Klaus' mentor. The sad battle between Garaam, who had been taken hostage, and Klaus, who had realized his vizier's betrayal, had been the parting of the mentor and student.

　Hopefully, I would like to decorate the end of my master and student in a different way. Klaus must have felt that way.


...... I'm sorry, brother. I'll do my best to make sure that during the winter season, I'll do my best to make sure that that's my brother standing there, that's the one who gets that ovation.

　From time to time, the King of the Kingdom of Castal goes back to when he was the second prince.

　Soft, timid, withdrawn, yet very kind-hearted, to Klaus' brother.


"...... notwithstanding. I'll do it my way and compete in the winter and become the apprentice of a second triple crown. You can go ahead and be the king.

　It's not a good idea for a king and a squire to be ...... remembering that Klaus is also an older brother and speaking to his brother.

　It's a good thing that the approaching of the king and the squire brought the two former enemies closer together.

'And when I become his apprentice, it will be easier for you to meet him.
Oh, brother!

　Klaus laughed in amusement as he watched his brother blush and fumble.





'Garam-han, if you please.
My saint, it's my pleasure.

　The second round of the tournament to determine the Ichibenzza challenger, Garam vs. Raspberry Bell.

　The two men walked out to the center of the arena and greeted each other as they received the dueling crowns from the referees.

　Then Raspberry Belle heard Garam say, "Saintess," and suddenly showed a disgusted expression.

'Oh no.'
Have I done something rude?
No politics in the title game.
...... This is very rude.
In the first place, status and background have nothing to do with the sword. Right?
'Ha!　You're right.
That's good. I'm glad you understand.

　Raspberry Belle is smiling, and Garaam looks relaxed.

　At first glance, a peaceful scene.

　But the game had already begun.

　Raspberry Belle knows. 'A title fight is not so peaceful and sweet,' she said.

''I heard that. 'Garam-han, I heard you were going to use a big sword.'
Yes. But a certain someone advised me not to do so.
Oh, you didn't give up?

　Raspberry Belle gets into position without breaking a smile.

　Garam also got into position, feeling good about himself.

'Bow to each other!'

　The two men curtsied as the ref calls out.

'Take a stand!'

　At the second command, Garam drew his long sword and held it at the ready.


　However, ...... raspberry bells are not poised. Besides, he doesn't even take the sword out of his inventory.


''......?　What: ......

Start.


　Shortly after Garam has his doubts, the signal to start the match is given.

　Next moment.


'......?'


　Garam's entire body's skin was milky.


　The gentle woman who had been smiling there was gone.

　The cold, expressionless face that froze to the very core of her body. Raspberry Bell was staring at Garam with eyes that looked like they were looking at trash.


''Tch!''

　Garam has a hunch, and he immediately regrets it. That all that gentle conversation was an off-the-board tactic. He thought he had fallen for it.

'Go ahead,'

　Raspberry Bell took the lead.

　Garam gets even more upset.

　In swordsmanship, the rear hand basically has the advantage. Although this common sense has been overturned by the second, Garam thought that the rear hand advantage was still alive and well. Especially against swordsmiths other than the Second.


　But it was strange. The raspberry bells in front of him didn't have any hesitation at all, and he closed the gap between them without even holding his sword.


　...... anomaly. However, the abnormality was somewhat familiar to Garam.


　The slightest unrest, the slightest break. There, deliberately created, Raspberry Belle moves to thrust her blade mercilessly into it.


''!

　He closed the gap, stepped to the right once, stepped to the left twice, and turned backwards once ...... that, immediately after.

　Everyone in the hall was astonished, except for one person.


　Raspberry Bell - took out a large sword (...) as tall as her body from her inventory.


　A huge gain, unimaginable from her previous swift movements.

　Garam was brilliantly caught off guard. No, he was caught by surprise.


"That's how you use a big sword.
Nah, oh, ......!

　Raspberry Bells moving while making another turn in the horizontal direction.

　Garam's 《Silver General Sword Art》 cut the sky without looking.

　Everything was in the palm of Raspberry Bell's hand.

　The amount of information in his instantaneous decision was too much.
　The upset caused by the saint's gap, the upset of the first move, and the biggest upset of all, the great sword.

　There was no way Garam could be able to produce his true ability.


''Gugu!''

　The "Infantry Sword Art" with the great sword of the side-leave bites into his thigh, and he takes three steps backwards.

　Raspberry Bell's ruthless pursuit. A combination of 《Silver General Sword Art》 and 《Katsura Ma Sword Art》 pierced Garam's abdomen.

　Without taking a moment, he slammed the large swinging 《Flying Car Sword Technique》 against the downed Garam.

　The large sword is very unwieldy due to its heavy weight and slow movement, but its reach, power and impact are the greatest among the many swords. In other words, as long as you invent a way to use it to take advantage of it, it could theoretically be called the most excellent sword (・・・・・・) ......, Raspberry Bell thought so.

　Also, as her growth type was 'Supporter', her STR was very low even if she had all her [Swordsmanship] skills at the ninth level. It was also a great sword to compensate for that.


''--That's it!

　The judges give the verdict.

　Only twenty seconds until the end of the match.


It's ...... ............

　Someone lets out a voice.

　Starting with that, doh--, the crowd erupted.


　The crowd cheered for the first time since the second honored Raspberry Bell for its overwhelming strength.

　The elements that stand out are all there. The elements that make a player stand out are there: status, good looks, gender, and strength.


　But behind the scenes, many title contenders were shivering.

　...... calculated out, and.


　Raspberry Bell's path to victory. From her pre-fight conversations, to the way she closed in on her pacing, to the timing of her big sword, it was clear that it was all her calculations.

　Looking at her status alone, she was not strong. Rather, it was clearly the lowest value among the participants in the Battle of the One Flash Zodiac.

　That's why she made the calculations. Based on the thorough gathering of information, she would seek out an exorbitant method of victory and execute it without hesitation.

　That means she knows how to win (...).

　The Raspberry Bells know the title game better than anyone else in the room except the second.



　　* * * *.



He's saving his ass.
What?

　At my muttering, Sylvia said, "Really? I reply.

'It was such an overwhelming experience, I thought you were going all out from the beginning.

　In the past, if Sylvia and Eco had slaughtered an opponent that they had lost together in the past with such ease, it might not be surprising to think so, but ...... it's outrageous that that was an all-out effort (・・・・・・).

''Oh, well, that's what I would call a surprise attack last time.
Hm, the one we used.
He also uses off-the-board tactics to ensure the element of surprise. That's what he's always done.
Off-board tactics. I hadn't noticed that.
'He basically has a straight face before, during and after the game. You don't see him smiling like that very often.
'Ummm, I wonder. That ...... is pretty disgusting.
You're the type who'll do anything to win.
It sounds good to say so: ......

　Are you trying to say that it is similar to Elnte?
　That's a big mistake.

'I'm not like that old man. There's no point in actually playing a hand off the board like the old man. Doing everything possible means not to interfere in any way. It's about making the most of your advantage within the rules. You have to study your opponents, cut your cards in order, and calculate your chances of winning. If you can do it, I'm telling you, do it. I can't do it.
'I see. The option of off-board tactics is also a natural card to cut since it's in her hand from the beginning. So, in other words, it's like playing cards in her mind.
...... Yeah, I think you might be right.


　It was supposed to be a "game" called "net game" to begin with.
　Maybe Raz was just playing it like a game at first.

　But it's a strange thing, no matter how much you know it's a game, or maybe it's because it's a game, you just want to win. I'm dying to win.
　You want to win, but you can't help it.
　You will do whatever it takes to win. Anything you can do.

　Off-the-board tactics. I'm too dumb to do it, but she's smart enough to do it. So I guess I'll just have to do it. If I were her, I'd do it for sure.

　That's Raz's strength. She was born with a good head on her shoulders, the speed and accuracy of her calculations, and her superior thinking skills. And she doesn't overthink it, she's bold at times, decisive, competitive, knowledgeable, and skilled.

　A weakness is that type of growth.
　But she could turn even those into strengths.


She's a force to be reckoned with.

　He's completely out to get my head.

　He blew up Garaam without even revealing his true colors.
　That's why you're playing off the board, isn't it? As usual, he does it well.

　As a result, Ra's saved both his fixed trajectory and his fighting techniques, and passed the first round without even showing any swords other than the Great Sword.


　...... The big one, I guess.

　Rave vs. Jerez is next. After that, it's Rothman vs. Raz.

　Now, let's see what happens--.