I’m... starving...
My stomach gave a loud rumble.
There were six of them. I didn't want to fight—mostly because I didn't have the calories to spare.
The complexions of the Ogre God Nation soldiers changed.
"H-Hey! Big Brother Leo... isn't your stomach growling?"
"I'm pretty sure... we were told never to attack him when he was hungry or sleeping."
"Listen, he's muttering 'Yakisoba, yakisoba, yakisoba...' under his breath..."
Katori-sensei was breaking into a cold sweat herself.
"Okay, does anyone know what happened to Leo?" she asked instinctively.
Wifey stepped in to provide an explanation.
"Lord Groom vowed to eat exactly what the people ate until the food shortage in Chronos ended. He has lost six kilograms. Consequently, he is in a state of constant starvation."
Katori-sensei looked troubled for a moment but pushed forward regardless.
"Just fight for now... Begin!"
Grrrrrrrrrr...
I’m so hungry...
The elite unit of the Ogre God Nation looked like live bait thrown into a predator's cage. But I didn't have the luxury of showing mercy. I was so hungry I felt like I was going to collapse!
I lunged.
"Huh?"
I caught one in a grapple, threw him to the ground, and pinned my wooden sword to his throat. One down.
"H-Hey! Did you see that just now!?"
"I didn't! That wasn't human movement!"
"Who was the one saying we could win now because he's weakened!?"
The members of the elite unit were in shock. The stadium fell silent.
I moved on to another member.
My first blow was a diagonal strike. The opponent reacted instinctively but couldn't fully defend. I managed to break his posture.
For the second blow, I thrust at the off-balance opponent, stopping just short of his throat. Two down.
I spun around and delivered a strike meant to cleave a man from crown to crotch. I shattered the wooden sword of an elite soldier trying to attack from behind. Technically, mine was also a wooden sword, so "shattered" was probably the more accurate way to put it.
The soldier's battle cry died in his throat.
"Did you... see that?"
"No... not at all."
"I... I don't feel like I can win..."
The Ogre God Nation soldiers chattered nervously while keeping their distance. So, I closed the gap instantly.
A thrust!
"Nuuuuuuuun!"
He was a veteran chosen by Katori-sensei. He dodged, but I pulled back the wooden sword and simply overwhelmed him with weight.
"U-Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!"
Another down!
"H-He's like a wounded beast! Everyone together—"
I landed a heavy strike to his torso. Like I'd let them gank me!
Finally, only two remained. Since the two of them cut at me simultaneously, I dodged by rolling on the ground.
"His guard is down! Now's our chan—ce!"
Naive.
I sprang up mid-roll and slashed across his torso.
I handled the last remaining one normally. He tried a diagonal strike, a thrust, and an elbow strike into a grapple. I defended up to the elbow strike and then crushed his grapple attempt from above. It was pure brute force. I grabbed his belt with one hand, hoisted him up, and threw him. Finally, I gave him a sharp smack on the butt to end it.
The audience was stunned. Ogre God Nation soldiers were said to be the strongest in terms of individual combat power, especially feared for their raw strength. And yet, I had just out-muscled and tossed them around.
They had just witnessed a ridiculous match. Then again, I hadn't fought properly in a while.
"Alright! Leo! You're up against me next!"
Katori-sensei was beaming, her eyes sparkling with excitement like a young boy's. But I couldn't meet those expectations.
"Sensei..."
"What is it?"
"I've hit my limit. Mainly regarding blood issues."
Seriously. The markers on my Augmented Reality display were screaming with hypoglycemia alerts. On top of that, I had anemia and dehydration. I'd skipped breakfast so I could pig out at the stalls later, and it was backfiring.
"Ah... Everyone, it’s a Doctor Stop. Somebody! Check on the Lord Groom!"
My vision flickered. I saw a mosaic-like pattern with green edges. Kevin came over and handed me some juice. My brain felt like mush.
"My head hurts... I feel sick..."
"I'm not surprised. Here, lean on my shoulder."
I was laid down at the edge of the stadium.
"Ah... Leo, what am I supposed to do?"
Katori-sensei asked. Even she probably didn't realize I was actually at my limit.
"...Go play with Edy and the others."
I was spent.
One last word: "You Ogre God Nation soldiers I fought... listen. Go buy me some food..."
Then I collapsed. I was conscious, but my head was fuzzy. They put me on an IV. After a while, things started to clear up.
"Honestly! You're always overdoing it!"
Kevin scolded me.
"I didn't mean to do an exhibition match. I thought I'd eat at the stalls and recover. I was going to drink juice after the greetings. I had to hold out until the ceremony was over."
I'd planned to declare "We have plenty of food!" right as the ceremony ended. Since everyone had been holding back, I wanted to lead the way by eating freely. That was going to be the announcement for the end of the Official Price for domestically produced staple food and the deregulation of sales volume.
I could have eaten if I'd gone to the shopping district, but it was expensive since it was all imported from Latarnia. Since I was in the Palace, I'd been eating the same calories as the average commoner. I just went down because it wasn't enough to sustain my needs.
"Leo... I hate to tell you this."
"What?"
"The mic is still on."
Uh-oh.
"King! King! King! King! King!"
A thunderous chant erupted.
Did I mess up again? I wanted to say it was an accident. A total accident. I wasn't at fault.
Apparently, Edy, Isono, and Nakajima did pretty well too. Even Katori-sensei said, "I still have much to learn. I'm going back to train."
Later, one of the Ogre God Nation soldiers came back with a sparkle in his eyes. "Big Brother Leo! I bought you some yakisoba!"
The yakisoba was amazing. It tasted just like Ha-san's. I kind of wanted to make some myself.
"Here, Leo, eat this!"
When I returned to my seat, Kevin was still looking after me, constantly telling me to eat. Wifey also had a "you're hopeless" expression on her face. Honestly, if I ate any more, I'd probably just throw up.
So, the festival began with a case of malnutrition.
And yet, I never expected some people to see me in this state and think, "He's weak" or "This is an assassination opportunity." I mean, what's the point? It would just make people hate them. It’s not like I’m actually helpless, anyway.