Perfect Plan (2)
Time flies and it’s Friday.
“Wow!”
The exam is over.
Exclamations of excitement at the end of this year’s classes are heard here and there, as if they are feeling refreshed. The smiles on their faces were not just due to the official end of class.
Even though the exam is over, there are still mandatory missions to complete before winter break.
But that didn’t diminish the upcoming festival.
Just like the festival… no, on a larger scale, the Merkava Academy will be open to the public.
A big event shared by the entire country, including parents who come to see their children, tourists, and city citizens.
‘In other words, it is a time when tight security becomes lax.’
Considering the events that will occur throughout the fall harvest festival, things will get busy in many ways. Well, I’m just preparing.
‘Is it okay if I just follow the previous episode?’
I’m a little skeptical. This is because, unlike the previous episode, the current situation has changed so much.
Anyway, you need to be prepared. There may be some kind of butterfly effect, but this is the turning point. The strongest paddles are ready.
Anyway, everyone leaves school quickly due to the end of exams. All special dormitory residents also returned to their dormitories.
Everyone gathers in the sunroom one after another because of what they heard from Madame Josephine earlier. Marie waved her hand.
“Corin! This way…! The seat is empty!”
Marie pounding the bottom of the sofa. This is a signal to sit next to me. I was going to sit next to her as usual…
“······.”
The gaze behind my back stings. It was a Dutch war. As I tried to ignore it and sat down, Hwaran followed and sat down next to me.
“Keuhum······.”
Flowers in both hands unintentionally. But seeing the two people on either side of me staring at each other without saying a word made me break out in a cold sweat.
“You’re already showing a really good performance.”
Mrs. Josephine, the head of the special dormitory, entered the sunroom, clicking her tongue.
“······Help me.”
“It’s karma. Endure it.”
Madame Joséphine pushed up her glasses with her finger and left me coldly. I had to endure this uncomfortable situation without moving until Len and Ron arrived.
“Everyone has arrived.”
“Hmm? What about Princess Estelle?”
Excluding Ren and Ron, the residents of this dormitory are two princesses.
Miriam is in the royal capital, and Estelle also took the test today.
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“I heard that Estel students apply first through the tournament application form. This does not apply to Estel students, so there is no need to wait.”
Anyway, it seems like everyone who needs to come together for this has gathered. Josephine began her presentation in front of the residents.
“Starting today, we will prepare for the harvest festival and at the same time, preliminaries such as tournaments will be held.”
“Originally, I wouldn’t have given students different orders like this, but due to a series of events, the topic of Mine has become hot.”
“Except for the students of Corin, everyone here is called a Mine and is feared by the public. It’s unfortunate, but this is reality.”
“As you know, Dutch and Marie students had to be under strict surveillance in the first semester last year, to the extent that they were restricted from even leaving the campus.”
“Now there are no restrictions on your movements, and you can freely participate in any competition you want.”
“As you know, a large number of civilians come to the harvest festival. Coupled with the free atmosphere, accidents often occur. People from all walks of life gather here, and sometimes there are people with impure thoughts or prejudices, so please refrain from unnecessary conflicts. .”
It was a long speech, but the main point was to not cause an accident. It’s like when you’re on leave from the military and you’re told that if you fight with civilians, you’ll only lose.
“then······.”
Madame Joséphine looked at the audience to see if she had finished speaking, and then concluded elegantly.
“I hope everyone enjoys a fun and happy harvest festival. That’s it.”
Fall Harvest Festival.
This concludes the second year episode of ＜The Legend of Arhan Heroes＞.
It’s a festival that everyone enjoys, but for me, it was also a big issue that made me nervous at the end.
Only when all of this is over will we be able to get a proper rest in the coming winter.
I also have to start preparing in earnest starting today.
Hunting competitions, auctions, cooking sales, magic fairs, and even mock trials. In addition, I looked for competitions worth participating in, but it was difficult because some of the competitions were held in overlapping time zones.
The cross-dressing contest is an unpopular contest that accepts applicants until the very end, but… no, I think it’s just piling up flags for itself.
Somehow… I feel uneasy. My always-perfect plan took a strange turn.
“Wow, it’s almost a harvest festival. How about Korin? Is this the first harvest festival in Merkava?”
“Yes.”
Marie said she wasn’t planning on participating in any competitions other than the Woman of Autumn and was just going to watch them. Well, there are usually a lot more onlookers than participants.
“I have friends going to the tournament, so I should go cheer them on.”
“Really? Then shall we go together?”
“Of course. Oh, that’s right.”
Just in case… Just in case. No, I’m not saying I will do it.
“Sir, what do you think people will think if I do something like cross-dressing?”
“Huh…!”
Marie pursed her lips as if embarrassed by my sudden remark.
“Uh, um… I understand! Yes, people have strange hobbies too! Yes, yes! Well, that’s possible! I… but you’re not doing that with a guy… that’s a sin! Not as much as that. It’s okay!”
“Why do you say such a disgusting thing!”
“Whew… that’s good. Yes, if Corin dresses up as a woman… well, I can understand!”
Hmm, are people from the South, like Marie, conservative?
It’s a surprisingly fun competition, though.
The days continued like this, and the day arrived when the preliminaries for the tournament began.
* * * *
There are many events at the Harvest Festival, but the tournament, which is the highlight, requires preliminaries.
First of all, there are a lot of participants, and the participants are narrowed down until the 32 finalists are selected for the round of 32, which can be considered a full-fledged attraction.
“Corin, are you going to watch the tournament? Here, I made it myself.”
“Oh, potato chips.”
Marie handed me some homemade potato chips. When I take it with my mouth, the salty and crunchy taste lingers in my mouth.
“It’s busy, but we should go first. A lot of our kids are going out too.”
Including Alisha, Doron, Cranel, Yuel, Ren, Ron, Rashid, and Germain… Half of all students participate because the prizes are good just by advancing to the finals.
“That’s right. I’m also the vice-captain, so I should go and support him!”
While saying that, he gives me a subtle look. I took it without notice.
“Shall we go together?”
“Yes, yes! I prepared something to eat while we looked around!”
Marie quietly shows off her favorite basket. It looks like they are well prepared.
The stadium is the so-called Colosseum Stadium, located in the center of the academy site.
It is a familiar place as it has been frequently used recently for midterm exams, final exams, and various events.
“There were eight preliminary rounds, right? Two for each grade?”
“Yes, I also participated in the preliminary round when I was a freshman.”
“That must have been spectacular. Did you win?”
“hehehe, we came in second place in our group!”
“No. 1 is, of course, Beajacker?”
“Yes. That guy is strong in melee.”
Beajacker.
He was a friend who would become one of the central names in the player’s third year episode.
Coincidentally, during the process of subjugating the Magic Tower, I happened to meet a half-giant clan from where he came from.
Well, before that, I was quite close with him in the previous episode. I was also introduced to my younger sister.
For reference, in the previous round, I was eliminated from the preliminaries in 15th place in group B of the second grade.
At the time, I was a semi-1st level strong, but the preliminaries were still a bit harsh.
As I was about to enter the stadium with Marie, the familiar sound of footsteps and a cheerful voice that seemed to tear me apart attacked me.
“Corin dongsaeeenn!”
Come from behind! Estelle wraps her arms around him. The soft material touching my back was crushed by the close skinship that did not leave even a millimeter of space.
“······I told you not to do that in front of people.”
“Heehee! Are you here to support your sister?”
“I’ll do it both ways.”
Estelle laughed heartily and pressed her cheek against my face. People around me are already starting to say ‘bastards’ out loud.
“Corin… are you okay?”
“Keuhum…!”
At Marie’s cold voice, I immediately escaped Estelle’s back hug. Then Estelle looks at me and Marie alternately.
“Marie junior, won’t you come to the tournament?”
“That’s a shame,” Estelle smiles. You can tell without looking that the gaze is provocative.
“I’m going to win today, so cheer for me!”
After saying that, poof! Estelle leaves.
“······.”
Marie remained silent, as if she was reluctant to say anything. Is it because of my mood that it feels like a volcano before it explodes?
·········
······
···
The preliminary round will be held over a total of 8 rounds.
Approximately 100 people participate in one game twice at a time for each grade.
“In the second year group A, Arisha and Cranel are participating!”
There were many familiar names among the preliminary contestants in the same grade.
Arisha, Yuel, Doron, Cranel, Jaeger. When I founded the Guardians, I prioritized promising talents, so they all belong to my Guardians.
They can be said to be actual second-year aces, and they are strong players who can easily advance to the finals…
“Hmm~ Is Alisha going to be first in the preliminaries?”
“well.”
Excluding me, Alisha was the strongest second year student. The second year students who can compete with Arisha in hand-to-hand combat are Nana and Doron.
“It’s possible that it will disappear in the beginning. At least Cranel is likely to disappear within 10 seconds.”
“······I guess so.”
Marie agreed. This is probably because she also participated in the tournament preliminaries when she was a freshman.
I know because I experienced something like that when I was in second grade. Only those who have experienced this know.
「2nd grade Group A preliminaries please enter the stadium.」
Soon, second graders flocked in following the host’s progress. As many as 110 students filed into the stadium.
That’s not the end. Since there are a total of 220 participants, it will be divided into two rounds. There are limits to the size of the stadium.
“Ah~ Hey, it’s Arisha and Cranel. Cheer up, you two!”
It looks like there are no Doron or Yuel in the same group. Arisha, who stood out especially in the stadium, saw me and waved.
“Oh, it’s not time to worry about this.”
“······I know.”
Marie and I looked at Alisha, who was smiling innocently, with the same sentiment.
The atmosphere of the stadium as seen from the audience seats… was clearly directed towards one person.
Unlike other academy exchange festivals, the Fall Harvest Festival tournament focused on efficiency and time reduction.
This is because, unlike festivals, there are many other events, so it is not possible to fully concentrate on them.
Therefore, with the exception of the final matches starting from the round of 32, there is a strong mood to finish the preliminaries quickly.
In other words, more than a hundred participants are gathered together and have a battle royale.
If you faint, you are eliminated, and if you leave the stadium, you are eliminated.
There are 8 finalists in each grade. In the case of the second year, 220 students were divided into 110 groups, so only 4 students from each game could advance to the finals.
Of course, the standard is until 4 people remain in the game.
Okay, so there are 110 people in the stadium. What do you think will happen?
The answer is simple.
“Screw him first!”
“Smash it before I summon the golem!”
“Uh…?”
Beat it all together.
It is an extremely reasonable and natural idea.
First of all, Cranel was eliminated.
This was so crazy that I wondered if it was going too far.
* * * *
Before the game starts. Alicia made a firm determination.
This tournament. I will win with flying colors and give Corin the prize.
‘You said the saint would also appear.’
I don’t want to lose. The person who was asked to do it was himself. So, I will definitely win.
Of course, it will be in the finals that we will meet her. If I was confident enough, advancing to the finals would have been an easy win, so I wasn’t too worried about the preliminaries.
‘Luckily, Mr. Doron is in another preliminaries! Mr. Cranel knows the strategy! That super golem can’t be used without Yuel, so we can win somehow!’
There was a time when I thought that way.
“Catch Alisha first!”
“Hit everyone!”
“hahahahaaan… Stop chasing me! Why are you the only one who is doing this to me?”
The tournament preliminaries are a battle royale in itself, with more than 100 students in one stadium and four successful candidates selected.
In short, if you are among the final four, you will advance to the finals.
However, most of these participants were mid- to low-level guardians of level 3 or 4. They know very well that they cannot beat high-level guardians one-on-one in the round of 32 of the finals.
Yes.
The only chance to drop a high-ranking guardian is in the preliminaries. Everyone understands it naturally.
‘If you drop Arisha Aden…’
‘If Cranel Luden is eliminated…’
”Could I advance to the finals?”
The same atmosphere will occur in other groups, so surprisingly, there are fewer high-ranking guardians advancing to the finals than expected.
Because it becomes a public enemy.
“You’re really saying this!!”
Thanks to this, Alisha ran away throughout the preliminaries and barely made it into the top 4.
“hehehehe… hehehehe…! I was scared…”
In the previous episode, Corin was eliminated by Daguri, but Alisha was better at escaping than Corin.
············
·········
······
After going through the tournament preliminaries with shock and fear, Alisha now became a spectator and watched the next preliminaries.
“This preliminary round is for 3rd year group B! “We ask that all participants stand in the stadium.”
3rd grade group B. There is a particularly noticeable presence there.
“Hello everyone~”
Estelle Hadassa El Ras stands calmly and delicately despite everyone’s wary gaze.
That noble status is usually the object of reverence, but when it comes to the stadium like this, the story is different.
Not much is known about the saint’s power.
She is a prayer, not a fighter.
The woman closest to God who heals the sick and brings about miracles that heal the polluted land.
Is it strong? Wouldn’t it be stronger if I did that? I heard it’s strong, but all I can say is questions and answers.
‘Because Beajacker is in Group A…’
‘Marie doesn’t have one either, but among the third years, the saintess is the strongest enemy.’
‘I don’t know, let’s catch it and see.’
In tournaments, the winning prize is the winning prize, but quite a few prizes are given just by making it to the finals.
The 3rd grade preliminaries who had their eyes set on the prizes were saints, but there was nothing in sight.
“I’m sorry, Lady, but this is business.”
Even before the game starts, everyone’s eyes are on the saint. Even with Alicia, as soon as the game started, about 50 people clung to her.
It is a similar level for saints. No matter how strong you are, if there are more than 50 people involved, it will be extremely difficult.
They either have AoE abilities like Corin’s Sun or have overwhelming defense like Hwaran.
“I didn’t bring a weapon because I thought I would get hurt.”
“Ready for the match!”
“Hold on for 10 seconds.”
“start!”
Right at that moment. A mad energy is held in the palm of the saint’s hand.
“The Lord does not give us trials we cannot bear.”
Third graders rushing in at once. They didn’t realize. The more phrases ‘praying to oneself’ come from the saint’s mouth, the more.
“The trials I face will be very, very small trials that cannot be overcome.”
Fingers folded. A very natural action to make a fist. However, it was compressing the air of the world.
“This is not your will, but mine.”
＜Holy Burster – Semi open IMPACT＞
A fist slamming down. When the fist filled with power beyond imagination touches the stadium floor──
■■■■■■■■■■■────!!
The world has lost its voice.
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“Eh?”
“······Eek?”
The audience is engulfed in silence.
Overwhelming destructive power beyond imagination. The stadium was covered in dust caused by the enormous explosive force.
After a while. The sight of the stadium slowly clearing of dust was devastating.
“What is that?”
“No, what is this…”
The stadium was completely destroyed as if a great magic trick had been unleashed. There was no over-the-counter selling or anything like that.
Most of the preliminaries in the stadium who were in close contact and rushing towards each other died along with the stadium.
Alicia, who has good eyesight, witnesses Estelle scratching her head and sticking out her tongue at the tragic scene.
“Amen~”
‘Can I beat that…?’
I don’t think I can win…