NOVEL NEXT Chapter 311 - Before the Opening Ceremony
Before the Opening Ceremony
“Wow, the tournament venue is so big…”
The day has finally arrived! We, all the Ortus members, have arrived at the venue, and I’m currently standing in line for registration, gawking at the building. It’s incredible!
“We haven’t been here before, have we?”
“Yeah, all we did was go to the food stalls and walk around town. We just went back and forth between here and the training grounds.”
Asuka, with his hands clasped behind his head, answered Schlie-san. We decided to put it off because we’d be coming here anyway, and then, we ended up coming on the day of the tournament.
“Next up… oh, it’s Ortus, huh?”
“Haa, the Schutor people have no manners… but at least they’re properly sitting down and working.”
Oh, it seems like our turn in the registration line has arrived. A man, with a somewhat ruffianly appearance, was resting his cheek on his hand, guiding us. I see, this is an event that’s being held in Sainsley, so the registration staff is from Schutor. Dad had worriedly said that they’d probably have problems with customer service. But he properly checked us and handed us a pamphlet, so it looks like he’s doing his job.
“The underage division starts right after the opening ceremony, so please just wait at the spot written there.”
It’s not like he’s being lazy or anything. It’s probably better to think of it as, “He’s trying his best to use polite language.” Schlie-san sighed.
It’s true that their attitude towards us is a little worse than the other guilds, but it can’t be helped. Because Schutor invaded Ortus, when they were under Nemo’s leadership. It turned out to be a futile endeavor, though, because we repelled them and it never became a big deal… That’s right, that’s the time when they attacked because of me. I wasn’t in Ortus at the time, so I don’t know the details.
Well, at any rate, the Schutor people seem to have a sense of rivalry, or hostility, towards Ortus, ever since then. They’re not going to be fighting each other as guilds though, because the leader of Schutor is Mara-san now! I think they just don’t like us, or something. They’re even more worked up because Ortus doesn’t really care about them.
“Haa, I hate opening ceremonies. Why do we have to go in front of everyone?”
We, well, everyone except Dad, began heading for the Ortus viewing area. Because Dad has to attend the ceremony, just like he just complained. And then he’s going to be stuck in his office.
“It’s because he’s the representative of Ortus.”
“I know! Don’t tell me again!”
Kei-san, resting his index finger on his lips, said that, which was completely reasonable, and then Dad, scratching his head roughly, answered. He can easily handle the behind-the-scenes stuff, but he doesn’t like being in front of people.
Well, it can’t be helped. He’s the leader of the guild that’s organizing this tournament. And I’m sure the Demon King, Father-sama, will be in front too… It’s easy to imagine that he’d stand out, so I couldn’t help but to smile wryly.
“Only Mara-san will be giving a greeting, so it’s fine, right? The Don just has to stand there.”
“That’s true, but I can feel some malice in the way you’re saying that, Schlie.”
I burst out laughing at the words, “just has to stand there.” I was then glared at by Dad. Sorry, sorry! Just then, I noticed a woman, radiating a beautiful aura, walking towards us from the front. You can tell, even without knowing. That’s definitely the organizer of this tournament!
“Mara-san!”
“Meg, it’s been a while.”
It’s Mara-san, the High Elf. I heard her voice at the meeting, but this is the first time I’ve actually met her in a really long time! I gazed at her, mesmerized by her beauty, which is unchanged from the last time we met, and then rushed towards her.
“It’s been a while! How have you been? You’ve been busy, haven’t you?”
She’s the organizer, so she must have been incredibly busy, with the procedures, the progress of the preparations, and negotiating with the important people in Sainsley. I was worried, so I first confirmed that she was alright.
“Fufu, you’re worried about me. Thank you. But I’m fine. I’ve actually never had such fulfilling days, I was even enjoying it.”
Mara-san, smiling gently, said, “Meg’s so kind,” and then lightly patted my head. Ehehe.
“She was enjoying it, huh… what a terrifying woman.”
Dad muttered that, as if he couldn’t believe it. Ah, well, I guess he knows how incredibly busy she was. And he’s terrified that she was able to enjoy it, even after that. Okay, I get it now.
“What about you, Meg? Was your recuperation in the High Elf Village alright? Did Schel cause any trouble?”
Mara-san, after smiling at Dad, immediately turned back to me and asked. Dad, who’d been smiled at, made a strange noise, “Ugh,” but… I think he was just saying what he was thinking.
On the other hand, I feel an unfathomable fear from Mara-san, just from her smile, without her actually saying anything… ! I-I’ll try not to think about that and answer her question.
“Actually, it was incredible! And thanks to Pipi-san’s help.”
“Oh, well then, it’s all sorted! He can’t even go against Pipi anymore.”
Mara-san chuckled at my report. Apparently, Pipi-san was furious when she found out that Schel was also mentally interfering with her during the High Elf Village incident, even though she was his mate.
“Schel’s reaction back then… fufu, he probably learned his lesson. Pipi’s watching him, so I’m sure nothing outrageous will happen. Don’t worry about it.”
H-How did she scold him? I can’t imagine! It’s an unknown world! I unconsciously looked at the adults around us, but they all shrugged. Even you guys don’t know? I see…
“Meg, could you lend me a hand?”
“Eh? Yes…”
Mara-san said that, so I placed my right hand on her outstretched hands. When she said the other one too, I placed my left hand on hers. Mara-san’s hands wrapped around both of mine. They were warm. But what’s this?
“I can only help you a little, but…”
“Eh? Ah…”
I instantly felt the warmth of her magic. And then I felt something leaving my body. Ah, I know what she’s doing! She’s trying to release some of my magic power, to make me feel better, because I have so much that I might lose control if I try to release it myself.
That’s amazing! My magic power’s decreasing. It feels like my body’s gotten a bit lighter. I thought it was fine, but I guess I had accumulated a lot of magic power. But even though it’s decreasing, it still doesn’t seem like it’s going to run out. It feels like when you suck the water out of a pool, with a hose. But I’m incredibly grateful, and I’m just letting her do it.
But Mara-san suddenly swayed. Eh!?
“Mara-sama!!”
Just as I thought she was going to fall, a blue shadow appeared and supported her. Ah, that’s right, this is the…
“Razzy… sorry. Thank you.”
“No, it’s fine. Please don’t overdo it, Mara-sama.”
Razzy? No, I’m sure… yeah! It’s Razield! I don’t interact with him much, so I barely remember, but I think that was his name. Razield, a Blue Flame Oni with those unique blue waves in his hair. He’s an incredibly strong and large Demon.
“…Schel’s granddaughter, she really is dangerous.”
I was staring blankly at the two of them, and then those orange eyes pierced me, with a cold glint. I-I’m clearly being targeted! Heh~.
“Oi, Razield. Even if you try to do something to Meg, you won’t succeed!”
Juma-nii suddenly stepped in front of me. Gil-san pulled me back, bringing me closer. When I looked, Dad, Saura-san, Schlie-san, Kei-san, Ronny… everyone was standing, protecting me. And they were all glaring at Razield. I-Is this also scary!?
“Hmph, the weakest Heaven Soaring Oni.”
“Th-This guy! You lost to me! Just call me by my name already!”
“Someone who’s strength fluctuates isn’t worthy of being called strong.”
“You think so? Take that!”
It feels like the point of this argument is completely off! I can’t figure out why Juma-nii’s so angry. Just as I was tilting my head, Saura-san explained, with a sigh.
“Haa… Onis don’t call each other by their name, unless they acknowledge their strength.”
“Eh? But Juma-nii calls everyone…”
“The strongest person to Juma is the Don. And the Don said to call each other by name because they’re comrades. Onis see what the strongest person they acknowledge as absolute.”
I see. So Juma-nii’s angry because Razield won’t call him by name, because he doesn’t acknowledge his strength. Onis are strange!
“Stop it, Razzy. I’m sorry, everyone.”
Just as it seemed like things were getting heated, Mara-san stopped them. Razield then retreated behind her. I see, she’s the strongest person he acknowledges. That’s easy to understand.
“There’s no way I’m apologizing. I’ll personally beat the crap out of you if you do anything to Meg. More importantly, are you okay? You took too much.”
“Yes, it was stronger than I expected, so I got careless. Meg, you must have been startled. It wasn’t your fault, so don’t worry about it, okay?”
Mara-san seems unwell… Dad said she took too much. So basically, it means she didn’t release my magic power, she absorbed it? She didn’t just control it and release it? Ah, but if she’d released it here, with this many people, it would have been dangerous… so she absorbed it.
But I’m wondering, how could she even do that? And I’m also feeling incredibly guilty.
“I-It’s my fault…”
“It’s not your fault, Meg. I did it on my own. I’m the one who’s in this state. Your magic power is not only abundant, it’s also pure. Apparently, I was not a proper match to absorb it.”
I’ve heard that magic power varies, not just in amount, but in quality. It would be difficult to do it directly, especially if you’re transferring magic power that’s already been released into the air. It’s not impossible for you to get sick, if you try to absorb a different kind of magic power. And yet, she still tried.
“…She was trying to change the quality of your magic power while absorbing it, so it wasn’t the absorption itself that made her feel unwell. The difficult part was changing the quality of your magic power. It was so demanding that it caused her to instantly become exhausted.”
Gil-san, crossing his arms, explained, staring at Mara-san. She nodded and said, “That’s right,” so it really is just exhaustion. I’m relieved to know that she’ll be fine if she rests… but still…
“Mara-san, thank you. I feel a bit better. But please don’t do that again? I don’t want to make anyone suffer because of me…”
I stepped forward and said that. Mara-san widened her eyes for a moment, then smiled softly and spoke.
“…Yeah, I’m sorry. I was trying to help, but I shouldn’t have done it without explaining.”
“N-No, it’s not like that. It was incredibly kind of you! But I don’t want you to suffer because of me!”
If I say that, then I’m the one who’s ultimately at fault for making everyone worry. I have to graduate from relying on people!
“I’m not that weak. I can fight too!”
I’m talking about… my strength. I’m asking you to have a bit more faith in me. I might not seem reliable, but I’m also saying this to everyone, not just Mara-san. Just as I was staring into her bright blue eyes, they seemed to shimmer, a bit teary.
“Ah… you’re like Yenna, a child with a strong will.”
Mara-san smiled and said, “I believe in you,” and that smile was the most beautiful smile I’d ever seen.