"Now then, at long last, it is time for the opening of the golem competition—the Gonpetition! I am your host, Emsaston, better known as MC."
"And I am the commentator, Tolfedest, better known as Tolf."
"Tolf-san, it’s a pleasure to have you with us today."
"The pleasure is mine."
"Since this is the very first Gonpetition held in our kingdom, could you give us a brief overview of the event?"
"Certainly. In short, it is a competition to determine the superiority of various golems. Allow me to explain the events."
"Please do."
"Broadly speaking, the events are divided into those that test physical ability—strength and speed—and those that test precision of movement. Examples of the former include the short-distance sprint and the weight throw. The latter includes tasks such as coin stacking."
"Thank you for those clear examples."
"Finally, we have the mock battles, but I imagine those require no explanation."
The announcers continued to outline the rules and proceedings in this manner.
"Now then, everyone, let us move on to the specific event details. While we will provide a deeper explanation before each start, here is the general lineup. Tolf-san?"
"This is Tolf. First, we have the track and field staples: the short-distance sprint, followed by the high jump and the javelin throw."
"That is easy to follow. One can easily imagine the nature of the competition."
Jin noted that while the Shouro Empire had utilized a weight throw in their past events, the Celuroa Kingdom had opted for the javelin throw instead.
"And as for the precision movement competition..."
"Something like the coin stacking you mentioned earlier?"
"Indeed. However, since coin stacking isn't particularly visually exciting, we have designated it as a 'target strike' event."
"I see. So the golems will compete by throwing objects at a target to test their accuracy."
"Exactly."
Listening to the broadcast, Jin thought the variety sounded quite entertaining.
"All of those events will take place today, while tomorrow will be dedicated to the mock battles."
"Understood. Thank you very much....Now then, it appears the participants are ready. We have a total of forty teams consisting of creators or owners and their golems. Each has been assigned a bib number."
"It seems the numbers were assigned based on the order of application."
"We also have invited contestants among the ranks today. Everyone, please welcome our athletes with a round of applause!"
The doors to the waiting room swung open, and the golem wearing bib number 1 emerged alongside its owner. They were followed by number 2, number 3, and so on in numerical order.
"Bib number 1, an invited contestant from the Shouro Empire: Mr. Erich Siflo! His golem is Stahl Ritter!"
Applause and cheers erupted from the stands. The golem possessed a lean, muscular build that gave it an air of sophisticated refinement.
Erich Siflo? I don't know the name, but that golem is quite well-made, Jin thought.
"Bib number 2, an invited contestant from the Kingdom of Egerea: Mr. Yaruidare! His golem is Bella!"
If I recall, he's the magi craftsman who created Zingel, the singing golem from the Golem Party. So that’s what he looks like.
Because the singing golem had left such a strong impression on him, Jin remembered the name. At the time, he had only known that the unit had been commissioned by Finance Minister Braorot; he hadn't learned anything about the creator himself. He was pleased to finally put a face to the name in such a place.
"Starting from bib number 3, we have the contestants from our own kingdom..."
The introductions continued, but Jin didn't bother trying to memorize every single name. He had been provided with a printed list of contestants, so he could simply refer to that whenever necessary.
"...And finally, number 40: Mr. Donald Callow, who once went by the name Alpha! His golem is Alte Krieger! That concludes our forty entrants!"
"Jin-nii, I think I've seen him before."
"I’m sure you have."
Indeed, it was Donald, the number two of Nostalgia. He was participating under his individual name with the full backing of the Nostalgia organization.
"...I see. This should be interesting," Elsa remarked.
"Yeah," Jin agreed.
Since it was someone they knew, both Jin and Elsa felt a spark of anticipation. With the introductions complete, the competition finally got underway.
"The short-distance sprint is a five-hundred-meter dash to determine the fastest golem!"
"There will be four qualifying heats of ten golems each. The top two from each heat will advance to the finals."
As he listened to the commentary, Jin found himself reminiscing. Reiko could clear that distance in under two seconds, Marcus’s golems usually took about twelve, and most standard golems averaged well over twenty.
"Three... two... one... Start!"
"They're quite fast! Everyone is performing excellently!"
The winner of the first heat was Erich Siflo’s Stahl Ritter, clocking in at approximately ten seconds. Taking second place by a hair was Yaruidare’s Bella.
As I suspected, that golem is capable of shifting its power distribution.
By "that golem," Jin meant the Stahl Ritter. His keen eyes had already dissected its mechanical characteristics.
He surmised that its power source was a mana tank, and by freely reallocating that limited output, the unit could adapt instantly to different requirements.
It’s a clever idea...
For this race, it had likely funneled its output into leg strength. It was much like how a professional runner has leaner arms compared to a gymnast. By contrast, Yaruidare’s Bella—befitting its creator’s reputation as a "magician"—didn't seem to be a pure power-oriented model.
While Jin was lost in analysis, the second heat finished. He felt there wasn't much to see, though the crowd roared with excitement for number 16, a golem named Blue Knight.
The knightly aesthetic is nice, but it lacks raw power, and the distribution is poorly managed...
In Jin’s mental ranking, he placed it in the lower-middle tier.
The third heat passed, and then came the fourth.
"Oh, here we go," Jin muttered.
"...Number 40, Mr. Donald Callow and Alte Krieger!"
"Mr. Donald Callow is the same man who recently retired as Alpha. We have high hopes for this run."
"Despite stepping down during the change in sovereignty to make way for the younger generation, the former Alpha’s skill remains legendary. Expectations are high!"
Jin focused his attention on Donald’s golem. Its power balance was superb and its movements were fluid. It felt even more refined than it had during his time with Unifilar.
"...Start!"
...Thought so.
"Oh! Alte Krieger is incredibly fast!"
"This is the true power of a former Alpha!"
Alte Krieger left the other nine golems in the dust, crossing the finish line in a mere seven seconds.
Finally, it was time for the championship race.
"The favorites are definitely numbers 1, 2, 16, 35, and 40!"
"I agree. While the invited contestants are at a high level, our kingdom is well-represented by number 16, Blue Knight, number 35, Iron Warrior, and of course, Alte Krieger."
"The finals will likely be a battle decided in the ten-second range. The tension is palpable!"
The countdown for the start began.
"Five... four... three... two... one..."
"Wait," Jin murmured.
"...Start!"
A black shadow suddenly blurred across the track from outside the arena.
"What?! What is happening?! This is unbelievable! A mysterious golem has joined the race as a wildcard! And it’s fast—blindingly fast!"
Appearing out of nowhere, the mysterious golem surged past the eight contestants who had already started, overtaking them all in a single breath to hit the finish line first.
While no official measurement was taken, it was likely a record of roughly five seconds.
"F-first place goes to the wildcard entrant! Second place is number 40, Mr. Donald Callow and Alte Krieger! Third place goes to Mr. Yaruidare’s Bella, and fourth is number 1, Mr. Erich Siflo and Stahl Ritter!"
The host was visibly rattled. Considering that the second-place Alte Krieger had run even faster than its qualifier with a time of about six seconds, the speed of the mystery golem was staggering.
That’s the one...!
Jin stared at the track. The wildcard golem was, without a doubt, the mysterious unit that had been reported in the Kingdom of Egerea.