Then you two will be presented with your awards and prizes by the tournament chairman!


I left the waiting room and took up a position in front of the stage.
I can't see Amelia's face from the waiting room, but she is smiling and waving at me on the shiny stage.
On the shiny stage, Amelia was smiling and waving at me.
I responded with a little smile.
The men around me mistakenly think I've been dumped by them and cheer.


'Well then, the 256th Annual Beauty Contest, Grand Prize winner in the beauty category, Princess Amelia, Rusty. You have been awarded the 256th Beauty Contest for your brilliance in the beauty category. Therefore, I hereby commend you. Chairman of the Competition Committee, Lapin.


The spotlight shone brightly, illuminating the two men and the rabbit beastman tribe as they received their certificates.
The beastman tribe, still covered in fat sweat, handed over the certificates to the two with a slightly trembling hand.
Is your name Lapin?


''Well, the prize for the winner, but it was delayed in arriving, we can give it to you tomorrow, is it okay?''


I saw Amelia nod at those words without a second thought.
Her eyes sparkled with the search for the unknown food.
So that means we're going to stay here today?
I wonder if there's an inn I can get now: .......
There are only about five hundred people in this town, but there's no guarantee that people won't trickle in from other towns, and at least half of the contestants will be staying here, so if we're not good, we'll be in the field.
Me, Amelia and Amelia, I'm used to the night, and aside from Ziel-san, who was the deputy knight leader, and Crow, who was an adventurer, will Kyousuke and the others be okay?


''I'll be fine too!''


Following Amelia, Lattisnail also smiled and agreed.
It was an exceptional tie for first place, so they were probably missing one of the prizes they were preparing for.
The rabbit beast race makes a relieved face.


''You look ...... disgusting.''


The rabbit's face did not look like something meaningful.
It's a kind of prophetic premonition that I've been feeling ever since I came to this continent.
I've been tangled up in weirdness, Amelia has been kidnapped, demons have flooded the labyrinth, I've fought demons and nearly died, brave people have come, I've had to participate in a contest, and I've made the acquaintance of the Demon King's daughter .......
It's stepping on and off.
I'm sure there's no one in the world who gets into more trouble than us.
Who's the plague.
...... It's me.


'And with that, I'd like to close the contest! Thank you all for joining us! Next year's event will be held in the human territory, Leytis Country!''


I blurt out.
The country of Leytis is the one we were summoned to, the one I was framed for, and the one where most of my classmates are still around.
It's the largest nation in the human territory, and it would certainly be a good place to hold a big contest or something.
I think there was some greenery and a beautiful lake.
It's a very beautiful country now that I think about it.
To be honest, though, as long as that king and princess are around, I'll never like that country.

I suddenly felt the presence of people in front of me and looked up.
It's my weakness that once I'm thinking about it, I can't see my surroundings.
But fortunately, the people in front of me were Crow and Ziel, who were where they had been all this time.


'Hey, we need to talk to you for a minute. Let's go.

Hey, man.


The two of them forcefully took me by the hand and we headed to a dimly lit place in a little alleyway.
It was a dank and damp place, far removed from the glittering atmosphere of the contest.
They let go of my hand as they came to a position out of sight of the contest site.


'...... What do you want, here?'


Their brows wrinkled in frustration, and they looked at each other before speaking.


'Actually, we were looking for a place to stay ahead of time, figuring we'd be staying there anyway.

I heard a rumor out there that you were having a bad day. I thought you should know about it.


I shut my mouth to thank him.
What is a good rumor?
At least, if it wasn't heard by me, who was out front, it must be behind-the-scenes information.
Behind-the-scenes information is the information sold by informants and assassination operators.
They can't live day to day without being sensitive to information.
So it's highly credible and the information is always fresh.
I should be on their side, but for some reason I am on the front side.

Nodding to me, who guessed it in an instant, Crow proceeds to speak.


'It's just a coincidence that I got this information, but apparently the winner of this tournament goes missing every year. And the people living out front don't know that. I suppose that's why there's that amount of participants, but still, don't you think that's a bit odd?


More than a little.
It's very strange.


'Most of the people who live in the back, but most of them work with the front. So why hasn't the word spread?


I say and they both frown.


'And it's funny that I here didn't know about it. No matter how much I've been hiding out, I've been keeping up with the information, both in front and behind the scenes. ...... means that the rumors only circulated to a select few who knew about the information that I hadn't gotten a hold of. The information is controlled so that it doesn't flow easily behind the scenes as well. And when it comes to information I haven't gotten my hands on, I have a pretty good idea.


When I asked him what it was, Crow gave me a disgusted look.


'It's human trafficking related,'