Let’s go.
“Hm.”
We had plenty of time before Fran’s match, but we had to be there early. She would have to wait thirty minutes for her fight.
“That looks good.”
Are you sure you should be eating ribs so close to the fight?
“I’ll be fine.”
Fran showed no signs of anxiety. In fact, she was more herself than ever. This time, she had the chance to look around the food stalls. She sampled a bit of everything as she made her way to the arena.
This place is huge.
The venue resembled a Roman colosseum, albeit on a slightly smaller scale. I could hear the excitement even from a distance. Spectators cheered and roared, their voices echoing from the great circular arena.
Fran went around the back and made her way to the waiting room. This venue employed a proper receptionist, and they made no attempts to stop her. When she entered, everyone in the room stared in surprise, condescension, and distress. Fran took her seat and paid them no mind. She was used to this by now.
There were five waiting rooms, and the combatants for each round were spread out among them. The idea was to prevent fights before the bouts began.
“What’s a kid doing here?!”
But idiots were still aplenty. If this one had stopped to think about it, there was no way that an ordinary child could even survive the first round. The man pulled up a chair and sat next to Fran with a mocking look on his face.
“So what’d you give them to let you in here? Huh?”
“…”
“What? Can’t say?” the man jeered.
He could have been lashing out from nervousness. Either way, Fran wasn’t happy about it. But what could we do? We weren’t allowed to fight in the waiting rooms.
“Shut up.”
As I considered our options, Fran unleashed her Intimidate skill. A wave of pressure washed over the room, catching everyone inside it.
“Urk!”
“Eeek!”
“Guh!”
One combatant turned pale and fell off his seat. One let out a high-pitched shriek. One drew his weapon and fell into a battle stance. For a moment, everyone in the room panicked.
That was too much, Fran.
“Hm?”
One look at their terror was enough to tell she’d gone overboard—and they only suffered the aftershocks. Fran’s main target was sitting on the floor shivering, looking like he was about to pass out.
“Hm.”
“Eeek…!”
A mere glance made the man scurry away. He backed off until he hit a wall. After that, his only recourse was to curl up into a ball. Fran might have overdone it, but he had brought this on himself. In any case, silence returned to the waiting room, and I could only mentally apologize to everyone who got caught in Fran’s menacing onslaught. Fran bowed her head at the innocent parties and the situation was defused, but everyone was on guard after that. Fran’s menacing aura had made them aware of their weaknesses. The silence was so heavy that the cheering of the spectators seemed distant.
And Fran was still innocently going through her lunch! She even took the time to access her Pocket Dimension to get some juice.
Finally, a woman entered the room and broke the silence.
“What’s this? Is that the Swordceress I see?” she said casually.
“Hm? Lydia?”
“It’s been a while. I didn’t expect to find you here.”
Lydia was an adventurer we met in Bulbola—a cool, expressionless girl. She belonged to a party called the Crimson Maidens, who acted as our salesgirls during the cooking contest. It felt like we’d only said our goodbyes yesterday. I wondered if the rest of her party was participating in the tournament, too.
“Where’s Judith and Maya?”
“They’re fighting, too. Maya’s at the other venue, but Judith should be in one of the waiting rooms here. I sure am glad to see you.”
“Why?”
“Means I won’t have to fight you.” Lydia sighed with relief. She had already seen what Fran was capable of. “I just want to get to the main event.”
“And not win?”
“Oh, no. I know my limits. Besides, how am I supposed to win with people like Colbert and Forlund around? I’m just here to build up my reputation—to remind people not to underestimate me just because I’m a girl.”
Not everyone was out to take first place. Some, like Lydia and the greenhorn from yesterday, just wanted to make a name for themselves. The publicity and sheer number of spectators would make that easy. Lydia’s dreams of fame aside, she had mentioned some familiar names.
“Colbert and Forlund are here, too?” Those two would make tough opponents.
“Yeah, and don’t smile like that. It’s a little off-putting.”
Fran grinned with genuine joy. Her blood knight tendencies kicked in at the thought of fighting senior adventurers.
“By the way, congratulations on your promotion. Can’t believe you’re a C-Rank already. You’re blazing your way up.”
“Thanks.”
“If we happen to get matched in the main event, please go easy on me. I don’t wanna get hurt.”
“Hm.”
“Promise me, okay? I’ll be super mad if you don’t hold back.”
Lydia’s frankness might be considered a kind of strength. She and Fran talked until it was finally time for our bout.
“I’ll be going now,” Fran said.
“Good luck. Not that you need it.”
“Thanks.”
Fran left Lydia and walked down a narrow hallway for a short distance. Eventually she came to a doorway, where the blinding lights of the arena flooded through.
Are you ready, Fran?
“Hm.” Fran nodded, looking straight ahead.
If you lose here, the Beast King won’t pick up your scent.
His Majesty would most likely be watching the main event. We suspected him of endorsing slavery through his Blue Cat lackeys. And he was strong; too strong for us. If Fran did well in this tournament, chances were good that he would notice us.
It’s not too late to drop out.
“I won’t.”
A chance encounter with the Beast King had shattered Fran’s will. She’d spent the rest of the day cowering in fear for what might have been the first time since we met. No…that might’ve been the first time in her life that she was overwhelmed like that. The encounter was unfortunately unforgettable.
The Beast King might make you his
