Hilt and Fran’s gazes clash.

Even at such distance, they seemed to be able to feel each other’s fighting spirit. Hilt then left the stage without a smile after looking at our direction.

「…I’m looking forward to our match」

『But there’s an opponent you have to defeat first, you remember?』

「I know」

We also don’t know if Hilt will even make it to the finals in the first place.

『Next up is Clicker against Barbaros』

I have never heard of either of them, but it was said that Clicker was a mercenary and Barbaros was an adventurer.

Fran was unusually surprised when the match between the two began.

「That was…」

『Yeah. It’s probably a skill that affects others’ perception』

This Clicker, she utilizes some strange combat tactic, wasn’t she? She must be specializing in stealth.

After all, she could perfectly avoid her opponent’s attacks, and countering them with her rapier while aiming at the vital points.

Barbaros on the other hand, though his name gave the impression of some tough and buff guy, was in fact a slender magic warrior. He seemed to have many moves on his hands and his wind magic and short spear attacks’ combination were quite fast.

It’s not at a level that couldn’t be avoided by Fran though. However, I was surprised that Clicker, who should not have the same physical ability as Fran, was able to avoid all of his attack.

Her reaction speed was also incredible. The ordinary people might think that it was because she was fast, but she shouldn’t be able to move like that if she didn’t have perfect grasp of her surroundings. It’s already as if she had eyes on her back.

Until the very end, her opponent was not able to land even a single hit on her.

She must be a scout from her skill set, but her fighting ability was also incredible.

And it wasn’t only because of the interesting match that we paid attention to her.

(As expected of Sibylla’s companion)

『Yeah. Urushi, you sure she’s the one with Sibylla?』

(Woof!)

Urushi had told us that Clicker was one of Sibylla’s companions.

Someone at Sibylla and Clicker’s level should already be aware that they were being monitored. But don’t they know that they’re just exposing themselves by participating here?

I wonder if their reason to act so openly was to make us believe that they didn’t know that we were monitoring them. But if that was the case, they must have prepared an escape plan already…

『Well, I think it’s better to leave capturing them to the authorities』

Diaz must have prepared something for them too. So, let’s not interfere with the guild’s operation any further.

『From watching them, I wonder if many knights of the Kingdom of Raidos are a specialized types』

(Nn)

Biscot specialize in defense, Clicker specialize in scouting, and Sibylla specializes in destructive power. Well, Sibylla is also good at defense, but she seems to be better at attacking.

They have many weaknesses as individuals, but when considering them as a party or a unit, they would be incredibly solid.

In this light, their true value may lie not in their individual battles, but in their group battles.

「Neidhart came out」

『Elsa too』

Next up is the match between the two people we know. The mantis-head man, Neidhart, and the feminine onee-san, Elsa.

Elsa then held out her hand, and Neidhart reflexively shook it. Shaking hands before a match are pretty rare in this martial arts tournament. But this is probably because Elsa is very close to people while Neidhart is basically a nice guy.

「Ara? You’re quite a nice guy, aren’t you?」

「…?」

「What’s wrong?」

「Nothing. I was just a little surprised because I didn’t think you would say something like that」

「Ufufu. I like your voice too, maybe I could ask you for a little hug after this?」

「H-haha. Please be gentle with me」

Neidhart, who is known for his experience in hundreds of battles, is perplexed even before the match. As expected of Elsa.

What’s more surprising is that Elsa seemed to be serious when she says that the mantis-headed Neidhart was a nice guy. I’m starting to wonder if her strike zone even has a limit.

It’s not like I was being racist against the insect-kin, but I think there should still be a limit, right?

「Here I come~!」

Elsa with her mace, and Neidhart with his twin sword.

Elsa is not only robust, but also has a habit of enjoying the pleasure from taking pain. She even possesses skills related to it. I was hoping to see how Neidhart would handle that, but――.

「Uoooh! Spiral Thrust!」

「Eh――」

Immediately after the match started, it was settled with just a single blow.

Neidhart, which had closed the distance in an instance, pierced Elsa’s stomach with his twin sword, and a large amount of blood then began to gush out from her back.

「Haha… Amazing, you got me~…」

After saying that, Elsa then collapsed with glimmer of tears popped at the corner of her eyes.

I wonder why can’t she stop being overdramatic even at her last moment…

「You see that?」

『Just barely. Maybe because we were so far away. If I had been at Elsa’s place, I might have gotten a good look』

「Nn…」

It seems Neidhart had done some research on Elsa’s fighting method and abilities in advance, so as the result, he had chosen the tactic of striking her with powerful attack right from the start. Well, it also seems that the information he got about her haven’t included much detail about her personality as well.

『I think it was the effect of his unique skill, but I never thought that it would be this incredibly fast…』

It may be even faster than Fran in her Brilliant Lighting Rush state. That’s just how fast it was. Elsa’s defenses could not even withstand the technique that concentrated the super speed and the strength peculiar to the insect-kin that attacked on a single point.

After receiving some treatment, Elsa got up and approaches Neidhart, which he then scuttles in a panic to get away from her, making his cool image as a strong person from a moment ago crumble into pieces.

Still, he is unquestionably one of the strongest participants in this tournament.

(…I want to try fighting him)

『I figured you’d say that, but we’ll have to see what will happen next first』

There’s still Hilt on the other block, and that certain person will appear after this.

The winner of the last match of the day and the winner of the one before, Neidhart, would fight next. And just as I predicted, Fermus won the last match with a complete domination.

「Neidhart vs. Fermus!」

『I seriously don’t know who will be the winner of this one』

Fran’s eyes sparkle as she thoughts about the matchup between those two. She would like to fight them herself, but she is also looking forward to a match between the two strong men. I also feel the same way, so I can’t say I don’t get her.

Next up in the quarterfinals, the Cradle of Time that was donated by the Beast King, will finally makes its appearance, and thanks for its resurrection ability, there will be no limitation for getting out of the stage. In a sense, this was the start of the main event.

『Before that, we need to defeat Sibylla first』

「Nn!」