Kuro, who had held a perfect score until the very end, missed the final question... or rather, she had charged full-tilt into the Baby Castella option. As a result, I was the only participant left with a perfect score. In other words, I had officially won the quiz tournament.
"Now then, let's move on to the results! Taking the glorious first place with twenty-five out of twenty-five correct answers is... today's guest of honor, Kaito-san!"
"Ooooh, so the perfect scorer was Kai-chan! Kai-chan, that's incredible!"
"Well, I'll admit I made the questions slightly favorable to Kaito-san since I was the one setting them. But as you can see from the crowd gathered here today, Kaito-san has an incredibly broad circle of friends. He listens to stories from people in every field imaginable, so he possesses a wide, general range of knowledge. He's quite formidable in a quiz like this that requires a bit of everything."
"Ah, now that you mention it, he’s an otherworlder, so he knows about his own world. He also has more knowledge about the God Realm than most Humans or Demons. Plus, since he’s attended festivals and events all over the place, his general knowledge is quite vast."
"Exactly. He had a favorable foundation to work with, but the high-difficulty questions were still genuinely tough. Finishing with a perfect score is nothing short of impressive."
It was true; having connections in all three realms and knowledge of the other world definitely gave me an edge. Some of the questions even touched on things about my own home...
"Since it’s a special occasion, let's hear a few words from Kaito-san. How was the experience overall?"
Following Alice's prompt, Ein-san handed me the amplification magic tool, just as she had when I was explaining the answer to Shiro-san's question.
"Well... the high-difficulty questions were truly challenging, and there were definitely parts where I was saved by luck. Between desperately recalling things I’d only overheard in passing and narrowing down choices based on the information I had, I ended up having a lot of fun. I'm really happy I managed a perfect score."
"Thank you very much. For our first-place winner, Kaito-san, we have this commemorative trophy and a subsidiary prize!"
"Kai-chan! It's me! Congratulations!"
While Alice explained, a trophy appeared on the monitor. It was designed after the black cat kigurumi Alice usually wears, complete with a silk hat and a thumbs-up... I really felt like she could have done something better with the design. Still, I was genuinely happy to receive it, so I decided I’d find a spot for it in my room.
"Moving on, in second place with twenty-four out of twenty-five correct answers is the Underworld King herself, Kuro-san! Kuro-san is involved in all sorts of things and has incredibly deep knowledge, so she’s always been good at these types of quizzes."
"But Kuro-rin, you answered that final high-difficulty question without even hesitating, didn't you? How did you know the answer?"
"Oh, that? The boy in the Hero-role from twenty-nine periods ago—his parents were Bizen ware craftsmen. He loved pottery himself and studied it quite a bit. Yohen Tenmoku was one of the things he taught me about. You see, I've made sure to talk with everyone who has held the Hero-role to some extent."
"Ah, I see. That's why you're so strong on the otherworld questions too."
Come to think of it, just like Kaori-san and Akane, Kuro was on speaking terms with most of the former Heroes. She was practically an otherworld expert herself.
While she occasionally remembered things a bit incorrectly, she was likely the most knowledgeable person in all of Trinia when it came to matters regarding the other world. From that perspective, her high ranking in this tournament was almost inevitable.
"Well then, let's get a comment from Kuro-san as well... How did you find it?"
"It was fun. A lot of the questions were very interesting. It felt like Shaltier's handiwork—enjoying a quiz while naturally broadening your horizons. Though, I do think that trap on the last question was cruel."
"Excuse me, but you were the only person who got that last question wrong, Kuro-san. You saw a landmine in plain sight and decided to dive onto it with everything you had."
"The moment I saw Baby Castella as an option, I pressed the button before I could even think. I have no regrets! Even if that same question appeared a hundred times, I would choose Baby Castella every single time!"
"Right, sure. Can I move on to the next person now?"
"You could show a little more interest..."
"No way. Do you have any idea how many times I've been forced to listen to your nonsense about your 'Baby Castella Love'? When it comes to that topic, it’s best to just treat you dismissively."
When the topic shifted to Baby Castella, Alice was incredibly reliable. She said exactly what I was thinking with total precision; it was actually quite refreshing.
Then again, Kuro and Alice were close, so I'm sure this was just their way of playing around.
Serious-senpai: "With the performances wrapped up, is Kaito's birthday party finally coming to an end? This time, Lilia seems to have escaped the usual stomach pains... but I have a feeling someone is about to get a punch to the gut. Or rather, a punch from a Berserk Gorilla..."