Kays Translations
Just another Isekai Lover~
Chapter 172: The Power of the Dragon
Normally, this would be the time to take a short break, but since we already had the preliminaries earlier, there wasn’t much time to rest.
And so, the semifinals were set to begin immediately.
The matchups for the semifinals were decided by drawing lots.
In the first match, it would be Mika-san vs. Ashros-san.
Naturally, the second match became Silva-san vs. Lime.
Both were excellent matchups, and it was impossible to predict who would win.
“Wow, I get to fight a Dragonkin? Lucky! I’ll definitely win!”
“For the pride of the Dragon Clan, I cannot allow myself to lose.”
Even before the match began, sparks were flying.
Both wielded one-handed swords.
With two pure offensive fighters facing off, the excitement was through the roof.
“Then—begin!”
At the referee’s signal, Mika-san was the first to rush in.
Ashros-san, meanwhile, just like in her fight against Drake-san, immediately activated Dragon transformation from the very start.
“Seeing Dragon transformation up close—it’s so cool!”
“Enjoy it while you can. That won’t last long.”
Ashros-san muttered that and took an iai stance, slashing at Mika-san who had recklessly stepped into range.
A strike too fast for the eye to follow.
Even I, watching from a bird’s-eye view, couldn’t track it—so I was sure Mika-san had taken the blow.
But somehow, she had barely managed to dodge it.
No—more than that. She had countered the lightning-fast iai with perfect timing, throwing Ashros-san off balance.
“You—you actually saw that?”
“Nope, I didn’t see it at all! I could tell the direction of the attack, so the rest was just instinct!”
“In… instinct?”
Ashros-san wore the most shocked expression I’d ever seen from her.
Mika-san, meanwhile, looked like she was having the time of her life. It felt like she had broken through to another level.
From there, Mika-san activated a skill to boost her physical abilities, and the two clashed at close range.
The level of swordsmanship was so high that the audience fell silent, the only sounds being their breathing and the ringing of steel.
From a novice’s perspective, Ashros-san had the advantage in both raw ability and skill.
But Mika-san’s sudden, unpredictable movements threw her off, and finally, with the same dance-like flurry of blows she had used against Sheila-san last year—Mika-san claimed victory.
“Winner—Mika-san!”
“Yesss! I won! That was so much fun!”
“I… I lost. You were very strong.”
“No, Ashros, you were stronger! You just got shaken up too much after I countered your iai slash.”
“That strike was meant to decide the fight from the outset—it should have been unavoidable. I never imagined it could be countered. Was it really just instinct?”
“Yep! Pure instinct! Lately, whenever I’m in a pinch, my instincts get super sharp!”
Ashros-san’s eyes widened again at that answer.
Losing to something that felt like pure luck—it was no wonder she looked so stunned.
Donny-san had said Mika-san’s growth was incredible, and this match made me truly understand what he meant.
Her so-called “instinct” was undoubtedly the driving force behind her rapid improvement.
“Mika-san, Ashros-san—thank you both. That was an incredible match, so exciting to watch.”
“No, thank you. This tournament is far more high-level than I imagined. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt my blood boil like this.”
“I’m glad to hear it. Yato-san was cheering so loudly her voice nearly gave out.”
“Really? Then I’ll go thank her personally.”
Ashros-san’s eyes lit up, and she ran straight toward Yato-san.
“Sato, thanks! How was it? Pretty cool, right?”
“Yes. That was amazing. Do your best in the finals too.”
“Uh-huh! Leave it to me! I’ll make it exciting and then take the championship!”
With that, Mika-san skipped over to Yui-san.
Taking their place on the field were Silva-san and Lime.
As for this match, it wasn’t just that I couldn’t predict the winner—I couldn’t even imagine how the fight would unfold.
I had the feeling Silva-san hadn’t revealed his true strength yet, making this another highly anticipated match after the first semifinal.
“I knew there were monsters participating, but never did I expect I’d be facing a slime in the semifinals.”
“Please understand, Lime isn’t a dangerous slime.”
“Ho-ho-ho. I know. I only came because I heard a tournament with people from another world was being held, but this place has turned out to be far more entertaining than I imagined.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Please enjoy your fight with Lime as well.”
He had already fought Mash in the first round, so he knew, but I reminded him anyway that Lime wasn’t a threat.
There were so many things I wanted to ask Silva-san, but that could wait until after the tournament.
For now, I should push all that aside and simply enjoy the match.