Preliminary Round (3)
The swordsmanship competition is held over two days.
From noble mtl dot com
Of course, we are talking about the finals, and since we had to filter out the number of participants, we had to start with the preliminary rounds.
The preliminaries are just a week before the finals.
A huge crowd gathered at the arena of the Shureid Imperial School where the selection took place.
Among them, Samhal was a participant, and the rest consisted of family members and friends of the participants, ordinary people who came to watch, and merchants who did not miss the opportunity to sell food or hats.
It was obvious that such a large-scale spectacle was not common in Findel, so it would be crowded.
The number of participants was around 200, which was very small considering it was an imperial competition, but there was a good reason for that.
Since this was the first competition, awareness was low, the fact that only 11 to 14-year-olds can participate, and the fact that the application period was not too long, etc., were many reasons for the small number of participants.
All of that meant that this tournament was just being held as a demonstration, and that a proper tournament would be held then in conjunction with the Shureid Imperial School, which opened next year.
So, most of the participants this time were children living in Findel, and I couldn’t help feeling that the scale was very small for an imperial contest.
Maybe that’s why the atmosphere of the preliminaries was a little lighter than I thought. Even the children taking the preliminaries together were busy laughing and chatting with each other.
Rize, who had been scanning the participants and the audience all the way, looked up at me with a slightly stiff face unlike them.
“Dad, there are so many people.”
“Are you nervous?”
“no it’s okay. During the finals, a lot more people came to see it than now, right? You’ll think of it as a rehearsal for that time.”
“Yes, even if we don’t talk to Rize, it’s easy. How is the qualifier? Are you confident?”
To my question, Rize didn’t answer right away, but slowly looked over the participants for a moment, then nodded confidently.
“Yes, I will definitely pass. By the way, if Master is going to be eliminated in the preliminaries, don’t even think about seeing his face.”
“That nobleman… … .”
If that was the case, what would the person who would come running right away say?
I didn’t come with them, saying I didn’t need to watch the preliminaries, but it was obvious that I was hiding in the crowd.
As I was looking around for Douglas for a while, I saw Lize looking around like me.
“Are you looking for someone?”
“Um, I just wanted to.”
Rize shook her head as if she wasn’t sure.
Were there any peers in Findel that Rize could be interested in?
Wasn’t there a lot of talented people before entering the school?
No, stay still.
Obviously, the winner of the first swordsmanship competition… … .
“Ah, from now on, the preliminaries for the swordsmanship competition hosted by the imperial family will begin, so please gather all the participants in one place, and all the spectators please go up to the seats and take a seat. I’ll say it again. From now on… … .”
A person who came up to the arena said so through a loudspeaker, and the people hummed and moved little by little according to the guidance.
“Rize, do you have to do well? Understand? Don’t get hurt?”
“Yeah, Dad. I’ll smash them all!”
Aww, it’s also trustworthy.
“We prepared a barbecue to commemorate passing the preliminary round. Be sure to win, lady.”
“Wow! I’ll win soon! I’m looking forward to it, barbecue, hee hee.”
After cheering for Irina, the two of us came up to the audience and took our seats. Naturally, I sat in the front seat so I could see Rize up close.
After waiting for a while, only the participants were left below, and only after the clamor of the people had subsided, the man who seemed to be the host opened his mouth again.
“hello? First of all, thank you to all the participants who participated in the preliminary round. My name is Nelson, and I am the moderator and referee for the qualifiers. i look forward to.”
Applause filled the air at his words, and he walked around with a friendly smile and bowed in all directions.
After that, people’s eyes were focused just right, and Nelson continued to speak through the loudspeaker.
“Then, before we begin, let me briefly explain the qualifiers. This qualifier is to select 16 people who will participate in the finals that will be held in a week.”
It started in the round of 16.
This was like any other competition.
“I’m sorry that I couldn’t judge one by one because more people gathered than expected. So the way we prepared is a series of duels.”
At the word “continuous duel,” the participants as well as the audience started buzzing, and Nelson waited for a while for the fuss to subside before opening his mouth again.
“First, two people duel one-on-one. Afterwards, if a winner or loser is determined, the winner remains and the duel continues with another contestant. If you get 3 wins in a row like that, you will be recognized as passing the preliminary round.”
Some of the participants raised their hands to ask questions, but Nelson calmly raised his hand to stop them and added an additional comment.
“Even if you lose a duel, you can duel again later. The preliminary round ends at the moment when all 16 people are filled in the order of first-come-first-served basis. Also, during the duel, if you ignore the referee’s instructions or threaten the other person’s life, you will be disqualified. Do you have any additional questions?”
After Nelson said that, once again the participants eagerly raised their hands and asked questions, and Nelson calmly pointed out each one and gave answers.
Weapons are free, but use prepared ones for practice, pass the preliminary round even if there are no challengers before 3 wins, there is no rest period during the duel, and if you get hurt, the priest will heal you, etc.
As soon as the details were explained, all participants lowered their hands, and Nelson nodded and explained the most frequently asked question but had been delayed.
“The conditions for winning a duel are determined by the opponent’s declaration of defeat, off the field, by the act of missing a weapon, or by my judgment as a referee. And finally… … .”
Nelson paused, took one look at the contestants, and smiled broadly.
“As I said upfront, cheating like match fixing will not be tolerated. If you don’t want to be embarrassed in front of the finals, there will be a lot more people coming to see you than the people here right now. I hope you will have a fair duel.”
While the faces of some of the participants stiffened, applause started everywhere, and Nelson bowed again, wet his throat with a sip of water, and raised his voice again.
“Then, let’s start the preliminaries for the swordsmanship competition! First of all, let’s start with the two who will be the first to duel! Any applicants?”
It was common to avoid the first duel due to the nature of consecutive duels where you had to take care of 3 wins. If you show even the slightest loophole, eminently talented players will challenge you right away and make you a victim.
Also, there will be some participants who planned to participate in the second half, aiming to weaken them.
In addition, due to the nature of continuous duels, it was self-evident that if you continued to show yourself fighting, your weaknesses would be revealed, so the burden was inevitable at first.
In the end, the moment when the contestants fight with each other.
“I will duel!”
Rize was the first to raise her hand and shouted.
As if he hadn’t considered any of the aforementioned things, his eyes were twinkling at the thought of just having fun.
When Nelson gave permission, Rize stepped onto the arena with light steps, and everyone’s eyes were drawn to her at once.
It was also the first participant in the long-awaited swordsmanship competition, but it could be said that it was a natural reaction since our Rize was so good that it caught attention.
Despite receiving such gazes, Rize remained calm.
As I was listening to the sound of Irina taking pictures of herself from the side, Nelson raised her voice again.
“Then let’s fight a duel together… … .”
Before he could finish talking, one of the participants raised his hand.
Somehow, desperate determination could be seen in the way he clenched his fists.
The child who came up to the arena with such confident steps was a boy who looked about the same age as Rize.
He was a bit bulky, and his posture was quite well-kept, as if he had trained himself.
As I was nodding my head, I saw that Rize smiled and waved at her opponent.
“Hello, Victor?”
“you… … !”
It seemed like they knew something from a long time ago.
I glanced to the side and saw that Irina was still preoccupied with taking pictures, so I turned my gaze back to the arena.
“how is it? Did you practice a lot?”
“I’ve been waiting for the day I’ll insult you. That will be today.”
“I look forward to that. Um, no. don’t mind.”
“What nonsense are you talking about again… … !”
There seems to be some kind of bad relationship, but I don’t know at all.
They tried to continue the conversation, but when told to choose a weapon, the two of them grabbed wooden swords of similar length from the place prepared on one side of the arena and returned to their original positions and stood facing each other.
Looking at the posture, it was clear that the boy had learned swordsmanship as well.
“Then are both contestants ready?”
Rize and Victor nodded their heads together, and an atmosphere that seemed to boil at any moment calmly spread over the arena.
The audience who saw the confrontation raised the atmosphere through cheers and applause as if cheering, and Nelson’s hand slowly went up.
Rise’s voice on the arena was also drowned out by such a commotion, but there was no way I could miss that sound.
“I apologize in advance. Sorry.”
“shut up. Today I will definitely win.”
“My master told me to win the first game quickly and overwhelmingly.”
“what?”
While Victor was making an absurd expression at those words, Nelson’s hand went down.
“start!”
As soon as the horse fell, Rize kicked off the ground and quickly closed the distance.
Victor put on a puzzled expression and reflexively took a defensive stance, and Rize, who had stopped just before, swung his sword with all his might.
Bahah! Courage!
With the sound of wooden swords clashing, Victor flew out of the arena and rolled coolly on the floor.
A heavy silence fell on the surroundings at the sight that unfolded in an instant, and Rize, who was not even breathing, turned around and then looked at me and drew a V with her outstretched left hand.
“Wow!”
“Did you just see that?!”
“I-I couldn’t even see properly!”
“I thought my opponent flew away.”
Right after that, cheers erupted and words of praise for Rize continued.
I also applauded and congratulated Rize’s victory, and Irina, who was next to me, was shedding tears once more.
You might want to make a fuss about your first victory, but the first time was the most important thing.
Victor, who had flown away, seemed to have passed out and did not move, and Nelson called those who were waiting and sent Victor on a stretcher.
Nelson then sent Rize back to the original position, but the cheers still continued, and when Rize raised the wooden sword, even louder applause erupted.
It took a while for the turmoil to subside, and Nelson, who managed to catch the loudspeaker, opened his mouth.
“Then, do you have a challenger to challenge the winner to a duel?”
Was it because Rize showed too much overwhelming skill? Or is it because it is still in its infancy?
Participants looked at each other, but no one raised a hand.
The moment I thought the passage was confirmed like this, one person raised his hand with strength and, following Nelson’s instructions, came up to the arena.
She looked like she was two or three years older than Rize.
As expected, the boy picked up a wooden sword and stood still to catch his breath.
The eyes staring at Rize were very sincere, and I could feel her will not to fly empty like Victor did earlier.
Even to me, he seemed a bit more capable than Victor, but… … .
“start!”
Aww! Courage!
As expected, he ended up falling out of the arena. Was it comforting that he only rolled less than Victor and did not pass out?
Cheers erupted from the audience again, and of course no one challenged Rize anymore.
That’s how Rize easily passed the qualifiers in her hands.