As Kaori-san finished presenting her gift and returned to the group, the winner of the second tournament was crowned.
I had only been catching glimpses of the final match while chatting with Kaori-san, but it turned out the victor was Isis-san.
"Isis-san, congratulations on your win. You were amazing, especially since this was your first time playing."
"……Thank you…… yes…… but this game…… is wonderful. Even when we are far enough apart…… that the Magic Power of Death doesn't reach anyone…… being able to play together…… makes me happy."
Perhaps because our conversations usually revolved around books, I don't believe I had ever played a game with Isis-san before. This tournament was her first experience with it.
Even though she had practiced a bit during the first tournament, the fact that she had improved enough to win the whole thing was incredible. From what I saw of the finals, her skill seemed to have reached a level comparable to Lilia-san's.
Kuro and Alice had mentioned that the Six Kings were clusters of talent on par with Lilia-san, and it felt like that potential had been fully unleashed here.
"If you like it that much, I should have invited you to play sooner."
"……That's not true…… getting to play with Kaito like this…… with such a fresh feeling…… makes me so…… happy…… so this…… was for the best."
Isis-san’s bashful smile was heart-meltingly adorable; she looked like a literal angel. Regardless, we couldn't stay stationary forever, so it was time for the exhibition match to begin.
Since the gap in our skill wasn't as vast as it had been with Kuro in the first round, Canalis-san set my character's stats to roughly double her own. This resulted in a very close, exciting match.
I had the edge in experience, but Isis-san’s pure reaction speed was superior, so a twofold or threefold adjustment seemed to be the sweet spot for a fair fight.
In the end, I won by a hair, but Isis-san looked like she enjoyed every second of it. She hadn't been holding back, yet she seemed genuinely delighted that I was the one who had won.
"Now then, since the Second Exhibition Match has concluded, the break for the first tournament finalists is over! Please note that the second tournament finalists will now take their one-round break. Registration for the Third Tournament begins in five minutes!"
With the exhibition match over, the crowd’s attention began shifting toward the Third Tournament. Having seen the first two rounds, the participants seemed to have gotten the hang of the mechanics, and both the players and spectators were growing more animated.
As for me, I spent a few minutes talking with Isis-san after our match.
"Are you going to enter the next round, Isis-san?"
"……No…… with so many people gathered…… it is already…… difficult…… to keep enough distance…… so the Magic Power of Death won't hurt them."
"Ah, right. Five meters is a lot of space to maintain in a crowd like this."
I wanted Isis-san to enjoy herself more, but the logistical hurdles of her aura made it difficult.
"Indeed. And that is exactly when an incredibly convenient God appears!"
"……Canalis-san?"
"Taha~ I like to call myself a thoughtful and capable subordinate, and I have just the item here to solve your troubles."
Popping up out of nowhere, Canalis-san handed a bracelet to Isis-san.
"……What is this?"
"This bracelet confines your Magic Power of Death to a radius of about fifty centimeters around your body. With this, I believe the proximity issue will be largely resolved. Taha~ I mean, I could do many other things with my God Power, but any further suppression would require making actual modifications to your soul... To borrow a philosophy from Nebula-san, simply giving someone everything isn't always for their benefit. Unless there were no hope of you mastering it yourself, it would be a different story, but in your case, you will eventually be able to control your power on your own. If I were to do too much for you now, it would rob you of that growth. So, I settled on this."
"……Eh? ……Ah…… then…… if I wear this…… as long as I stay fifty centimeters away…… no one will be afraid?"
"Yes. It's a guaranteed God Product, so you can trust its effectiveness."
"……Th-Thank you……"
"If you want to offer thanks, please give them to Kaito-sama instead of me~. If Kaito-sama hadn't been worrying about how he wanted to help you, I wouldn't have lifted a finger... Taha~ I'm sorry that I'm actually quite detached in that regard! Well then, I'm off~"
After making that cheerful exit, Canalis-san vanished. Isis-san gently hugged me, her eyes shimmering with tears.
"……Kaito…… thank you."
"It's really more thanks to Canalis-san than me... but still, I'm so glad."
"……Yes…… it's because of Kaito…… thank you…… I love you."
It wasn't a total cure, but shrinking the range of her aura to fifty centimeters opened up a world of possibilities. It meant we could go on a Town Date together, something that had been nearly impossible until now. Just thinking about it made me excited for the future.
I felt nothing but gratitude toward Canalis-san; I would have to find a way to properly thank her later.
Serious-senpai: "...What have you done, God... Don't you go adding the Town Date route for Isis..."