"That was a fairly impressive display. ...And yet, it is a disgrace that they are companions of Crimson, despite being adventurers of the Bestia Empire."
As the battle between Ruzy and Rezulta came to an end, a voice echoed through the VIP room.
The other nobles present raised their voices in agreement.
"Precisely. Just as Count Schwindel says, those are the very people who will bring ruin to the Bestia Empire in the future..."
"Indeed. After all, they were the ones who inflicted such devastating casualties upon our army at the Seremuse Plain. How loathsome."
"What on earth are those people from the Requiem Bell doing? Crimson's Gryphon—a massive portion of his strength—is currently in the stables. His power should be significantly diminished right now."
Listening to his companions’ complaints, Count Schwindel watched as five management committee members carried Rezulta off the stage. The man was completely unconscious.
Even compared to Ruzy, Rezulta was of a similar build, and because the staff had to move his heavy armor and glaive as well, it took quite a group to haul him away.
(Wind Dragon Fang... is it? According to the reports, they weren't particularly famous here in the Imperial Capital, but that was only because their base of operations was elsewhere. They are well-known in several cities outside the capital. I suppose their versatility—having a warrior, a thief, and a mage—is the reason for their success.)
Since the number of mages was so small, it was rare for an adventurer party to actually include one. Thieves were also somewhat scarce, though not as rare as mages; it wasn't uncommon to see a party consisting of four warriors alone. Usually, such parties would include an archer to provide long-range attacks, but a true thief or mage was a luxury.
"At any rate, the members of Crimson's Gang still remaining in the bracket are the Son of the Axe of the Thunder God, Ruzy, and Crimson himself. ...Though I expect Ruzy will fall in the next round."
The other nobles nodded in agreement at Count Schwindel's assessment.
Ruzy's next opponent was Noise, the S-Rank adventurer who was the pride of the Bestia Empire. There was simply no way a man like Ruzy could hope to stand against him.
"I heard word that the Requiem Bell would finally be making its move soon."
"Oh? Is that true?"
The noble who had just been lamenting the organization's incompetence spoke up, his voice a mix of lingering resentment and newfound relief. Count Schwindel nodded.
The fact that the Moonlight Bow was also active had complicated things, but more than anything, the Requiem Bell had been focused on gathering information. In that sense, the Fighting Tournament was an ideal venue for intelligence gathering.
"Regardless, while there are various others making their moves, we will be the ones to take Crimson's head. I trust you all understand that."
The nobles nodded as one.
Mixed within their expressions were flashes of excitement and a deep, underlying dread. If they succeeded in killing Crimson, the Emperor would likely turn a blind eye to their methods. After all, they would have eliminated a major threat to the Bestia Empire. If anything, they might even be rewarded.
But if they failed...
(We would undoubtedly be discarded. They would cut off our heads and hand them over to the Kingdom of Mireana as a formal apology.)
There were many nobles in the Bestia Empire. Men of their rank were expendable, easily replaced by countless others. Knowing this, the nobles in the room felt their resolve harden.
The only way for them to survive was to bring back Crimson's head.
(It was a blow to have our movements discovered by His Highness Cabajid. No, perhaps that was a blessing in disguise. Because His Highness knows of us, we have been able to receive covert aid from behind the scenes.)
In the arena below, a new match was beginning.
While keeping an eye on the stage, Count Schwindel and the other nobles continued to discuss their plans against Crimson. For the most part, their strategy of leaving the actual combat to the Requiem Bell remained unchanged.
However, because the organization's movements had been sluggish for a time, some of the nobles were beginning to doubt their reliability. Since it was an underground organization to begin with, total trust was impossible, and that skepticism was only deepening.
Watching his companions’ reactions, Count Schwindel hid his hatred for Crimson behind a neutral mask and reached for his glass of wine.
"Here I go!"
With a sharp cry, a woman in her 20s gripped her longsword and closed the distance.
Waiting for her was Noise, his posture so relaxed he appeared almost defenseless.
For a fraction of a second, his gaze flashed sharply. In the next instant—faster than the eye could follow—the woman's longsword was severed at the hilt, and a blade was pressed against her throat.
"Eh?"
A single, stunned sound escaped the woman's lips.
She truly didn't understand what had happened. Considering she hadn't felt even a hint of impact in her sword hand when the blade was snapped, the sheer level of technique required for such a feat was staggering.
"What will you do? Shall we continue?"
Under normal circumstances, the match would have ended the moment the sword tip touched her neck. However, Noise withdrew his blade and asked the question.
"...I'm not finished!"
The woman shouted, drawing a dagger and taking a fresh stance.
A faint smile played across Noise's lips. Even after being shown such an overwhelming gap in power, she refused to break. The sheer tenacity she displayed in the face of an impossible opponent was refreshing to him. Compared to his first-round opponent, who had surrendered without putting up any fight at all, he found this woman much more admirable.
"Very well. Come."
"Hyaaaaah!"
With a piercing cry, the woman unleashed a flurry of dagger strikes. Since the blade was shorter than a longsword, her attack speed was significantly faster. Having made it to the Second Round of the Main Tournament, her skill was undeniable. She thrust, slashed, and wove martial arts into her combos, throwing out kicks and elbows.
Noise evaded or parried every strike with the absolute minimum amount of movement necessary.
(She has a promising future.)
While Noise felt that way internally, impatience began to gnaw at the woman's heart. No matter how she attacked, he blocked or dodged effortlessly. What was worse, he hadn't moved a single step from his original position since she began her assault.
(Immovable... I never imagined he would be this strong. I knew an S-Rank would be on another level, but this? Still!)
She understood she had no hope of winning. Even so, she wanted to land at least one blow to save her pride. As he evaded her next dagger strike, she channeled magic power into the hilt.
In that instant, the blade part of the dagger shot forward like a projectile.
If Rei had been watching this closely, he would have thought of the Spetsnaz Knife he had seen in media back in Japan. While those used a powerful spring mechanism, the woman's weapon was a magic item that launched the blade using magic power.
Though it had the drawback of being useless once the blade was fired, it was a devastating weapon for catching an opponent off guard. Furthermore, because it was controlled by magic power, the speed could be adjusted. Facing an S-Rank adventurer like Noise, the woman didn't hold back; she used her maximum magic power to fire the blade at its highest possible velocity.
(Did I get him?!)
Even if it didn't defeat him, surely it would leave a scratch. She would have at least one small victory. Or so she thought.
"That was a clever attack."
Noise stood before her, completely unscathed. He still held his longsword in his right hand, but his left hand was raised in front of his face. Pinched between his index finger and thumb was the woman's dagger blade.
"No... way..."
The woman murmured in disbelief. He had caught a magic-propelled projectile launched at maximum speed with only two fingers. It was impossible. She didn't want to believe it.
Seeing her trump card so effortlessly countered, the woman's head drooped in defeat...
"Don't you dare give up!"
A voice from the stands made her snap back to reality. She recognized that voice instantly. It belonged to the man she was in a party with—her lover, the man she planned to marry once the tournament was over.
(That's right. It doesn't matter if I lose. But... but!)
Hearing his voice, she felt a fresh surge of fighting spirit.
"I won't... I can't just quit! Not if I want to meet your parents with my head held high!"
Shouting her resolve, she lunged at Noise with her bare fists. Noise let out a small, amused huff and sheathed his sword, meeting her attack with his hands. He parried, diverted, and dodged her desperate strikes.
The man in the stands continued to cheer loudly, drawing many jealous glares from the surrounding spectators.
"Hyaaaaah!"
She swung her fists, threw kicks, and struck with her knees and elbows over and over. Noise remained entirely on the defensive, until finally...
"That should suffice. Sleep now."
With those words, the woman's consciousness vanished, and she collapsed onto the stage.
"..."
The crowd was stunned into silence. One moment, the woman had been attacking relentlessly, and the next, she was down.
A similar thing had happened during Rei's match, but this was different. Even the stronger adventurers in the audience couldn't fathom what Noise had done. Almost no one in the vast arena could truly grasp the depths of the man's strength.
(A single knife-hand strike to the neck. And he held back significantly. If he hadn't slowed down the instant before impact, he would have decapitated her with his bare hand.)
Rei, one of the few who could perceive the movement, muttered to himself from his seat in the stands. His five senses, honed far beyond human limits, had allowed him to follow the strike.
However, that was only because he was watching from a distance. If he had been on the stage himself, he wasn't entirely sure he could have reacted to that speed. He wouldn't be paralyzed, but reacting perfectly was a gamble. It felt like a fifty-fifty chance at best.
(Still, that's only because it was the first time I've seen that speed. Now that I know what to expect, I'll be ready for it.)
Once he had seen a technique, Rei was confident he could handle it. He clenched his fist beneath his Dragon Robe. In terms of pure physical ability, they were roughly equal—perhaps he even had the edge. But in terms of pure technique, Noise was still far superior.
He had four matches left before he would face Noise. His victory or defeat would depend on how much he could close that gap in skill. Since his own training wouldn't be enough, he needed more experience. Specifically, he needed live combat.
(The Moonlight Bow? Maybe I should focus on luring them out, along with the Requiem Bell and anyone else targeting me. I can use them as live combat practice.)
He considered the idea for a moment, then shook his head. Even for practice, he needed opponents with a certain level of skill. Fighting weaklings would be a waste of time—it might even be detrimental to his growth.
(I don't need a Rank A, but if some Rank B or C assassins come after me, I'd certainly welcome the practice.)
With thoughts that would have surely enraged the members of the underground organizations if they could hear him, Rei turned his back on the crowd cheering for the hero Noise and left the arena.