Chapter 168: The Day of the Duel
In the early hours of the day the long-awaited duel was to take place.
At the inn reserved exclusively for the Hero’s party, a place that the Kingdom of Garcia had completely booked out to ensure privacy and security, the morning air was crisp and cool. Pale light from the rising sun had only just begun to creep over the rooftops.
Within the spacious inner courtyard—
“Fuh…! Fuh…! Fuh…!”
The sharp, rhythmic sound of steel cutting through the air echoed repeatedly.
There, standing alone beneath the dim morning sky, Miyamoto Takeshi practiced his sword swings.
Again and again, he swung his blade in precise arcs. Each motion was deliberate, powerful, and unwavering. His breathing was steady but intense, vapor escaping his lips in short bursts as the cold morning air brushed against his skin.
He had clearly been at it for quite some time.
Just then, by pure coincidence, Hero Amane happened to walk past the courtyard.
She paused, leaning slightly toward one of the nearby royal knights.
“Hey… how long has he been doing that?”
The knight bowed his head respectfully.
“Umm… Takeshi-sama has been swinging his sword since before the sun rose.”
“…I see.”
Amane folded her arms and gazed at the tireless swordsman for a moment. The determination in his movements made the atmosphere feel tense even from afar.
Then she straightened.
“I guess I’d better start refining my mana through meditation too. Today isn’t the kind of day I can afford to slack off.” Her voice hardened with resolve. “You—go wake up the other idiot. I’m sure he’s still snoring like a pig.”
“Y-Yes, ma’am! At once!”
The royal knight saluted sharply and immediately sprinted off toward Hero Kaito’s room.
“I’ll borrow the courtyard too, Takeshi.”
“…Amane.”
Takeshi lowered his sword slightly and glanced toward her.
A faint breeze stirred the quiet courtyard as the two Heroes faced each other.
Amane’s eyes shone with fierce determination.
“Today, I’m absolutely going to win.”
Her lips curved into a confident smile.
“After all… I have to claim Ryoma for myself.”
Takeshi’s grip tightened around the hilt of his sword.
“Yeah. I’ll seize victory no matter what.”
His voice was low, yet filled with iron resolve.
“For the honor of the Heroes… I will not lose.”
To defeat the resurrected Demon King, they needed Ryoma’s power.
For the sake of humanity’s future—
Today, they had to defeat Ryu.
No matter what.
◇◇◇
“Nuhohoho~! This Snow King Bear cream stew is absolutely delicious! The meat is so juicy, but the moment it touches your tongue it just melts apart so tenderly~♪”
Ryu spoke cheerfully while scooping up another mouthful of the steaming dish.
Across from him, Ryoma replied casually.
“The chef said he used the premium back-loin cut.”
“Well that explains it! Of course it tastes amazing! Kakahaha!”
The dining room was filled with the warm scent of rich cream stew and fresh bread.
The rules of the duel were simple.
If Ryu won, he would receive all the dungeon intelligence gathered by the Hero party.
If Ryu lost, then Ryoma would join the Hero party.
That was the agreement.
However—
Not a single person in this room doubted Ryu’s victory.
Not one.
After all…
There was simply no way he could lose.
Still, under normal circumstances, the morning of a duel would make anyone nervous.
Especially when the opponent was the Hero.
Yet the person at the center of it all—
Ryu—sat there with his usual messy bedhead, casually slurping stew like it was any other ordinary morning.
Only Alice seemed visibly surprised by that.
“Um… Ryoma-sama,” she asked hesitantly, lowering her voice. Doesn’t Ryu-sama do any warm-up exercises beforehand?”
Ryoma tilted his head slightly.
“Hm… now that you mention it, I can’t recall seeing Ryu do warm-ups very often.”
Alice sighed faintly.
“That’s exactly why people like him are called physical monsters…”
“Ah, you mean Physimon, short for physical monster,” Ryoma said with a thoughtful nod.
“…That nickname somehow sounds kind of cute.”
“Okay then, Onii-sama!”
Lena suddenly appeared behind Ryu with a comb in hand.
“Please stay still while you eat. I’m going to fix your hair.”
“Oh? Thanks. It’s been ages since someone’s done my hair… probably not since I lived back home.”
Lena smiled brightly.
“From now on, I’ll fix it for you every single day!”
“…Yeah, no. I’ll pass on that.”
“Ehh? Onii-sama, you’re so stingy!”
“Then I shall style his hair in your stead!” an old voice chimed in.
“That’s an absolutely terrible idea,” Ryu replied instantly. “You’d probably sneak some weird experimental drugs into my hair while you’re at it.”
“Hmph! How rude! Just what do you think I am?!”
“A perverted loli-loving mad scientist.”
“Don’t call me a loli-lover!”
“So you’re fine with the ‘perverted mad scientist’ part…?”
Meanwhile—
Homura and Axel were still sleeping peacefully on the bed, curled up like plush toys.
“…zzz…”
“…zzz…”
They didn’t stir in the slightest.
“Ryu-sama,” Alice said after checking the time, “it’s almost time to depart.”
“Got it.”
Ryu stood up from the table and stretched his shoulders.
“Alright then, let’s go. Wake up, you stuffed animals.”
“Gyau…”
“Brrr…”
The two beasts sluggishly raised their heads.
“Should I prepare the carriage?” Alice asked.
“Nah. We’ll walk.”
“Understood.”
She hesitated for a moment, then added gently—
“Before leaving… would you like to speak privately with Ryoma-sama?”
Ryu shook his head immediately.
“No need. Things are fine the way they are.”
There was no room to doubt the victory of one’s best friend.
And because of that—
There was no need for special words.
No dramatic farewell.
Just the same casual atmosphere as always.
That alone was enough.
Ryu slid Kurikara into the sash at his waist and rose from his seat.
His quiet composure…
It carried the presence of a Dragon God.
◇◇◇
C-Rank Dungeon — Mad Bull Great Plains
With a thunderous crash—
The dungeon boss, the Mad Bull, collapsed heavily onto the ground.
Standing beside the fallen monster were the Grandmaster of the Adventurers’ Guild and his beautiful secretary.
“…Good. That takes care of any monsters that might interfere with the duel.”
The secretary glanced at him curiously.
“It’s rare for the Grandmaster to defeat a boss personally.”
“That’s because today is an important day,” he replied calmly.
“The day when the fate of Sakamoto Ryoma will finally be decided.”
“Indeed. Even now, people all across the capital are watching closely.”
That being said, the time and location of the duel were classified information.
As a result, the capital itself continued on as usual, with no signs of anything unusual.
The Mad Bull Dungeon, which had been sealed off under the pretense of maintenance several days ago, contained only these two individuals and a handful of guards stationed at the entrance.
“We’ll make one more full round of the dungeon,” the Grandmaster said. “Just to confirm it’s completely safe. If some assassin were hiding here, a duel would be the least of our problems.”
“Of course. I’ll accompany you.”
The Grandmaster was familiar with the Heroes.
He knew their personalities well.
But when it came to Ryu, he knew absolutely nothing.
He had ordered his subordinates to investigate, but all they had managed to learn was the inn where Ryu was currently staying.
(Just who exactly is this man called Ryu…?)
(He isn’t even registered as an adventurer. There’s practically no information about him at all.)
(The girl named Alice seems to be an Imperial noble… but I’m not well-versed in Imperial aristocracy.)
There were countless adventurers who came from noble backgrounds, so the Grandmaster didn’t think too deeply about Alice’s status.
In truth, even if he had pursued the matter further, he would never have reached the Viscount Arden family.
In that sense, his lack of curiosity was actually the correct choice.
“Grandmaster,” the secretary asked playfully, “which side are you cheering for?”
“As the referee, it wouldn’t be proper to favor either side,” he replied thoughtfully.
“But if I had to choose…”
He paused.
“…the Heroes.”
The secretary smiled.
“Fufu. I thought so. I feel the same.”
After all—
Those three Heroes were practically raised under their watch.
The protectors of humanity.
It was only natural to support them.
(Well then…)
(Let’s see how this turns out.)
◇◇◇
Gran Federation Capital — Herz
Clan Street
Inside the clan house of the dark guild Golden Snake—
“Clan Master… the day has finally arrived.”
“Yes. I’ve been waiting long enough.”
The clan master leaned back in his chair.
“The man from the Empire should be arriving any moment now.”
Just as he said that—
“Sorry to keep you waiting, Orochi Python.”
“Oh! Speak of the devil.”
“It seems the people from the Principality are making their move today as well.”
“Of course they are,” Python said with a grin. “Today is the perfect opportunity.”
“They’ve probably hired other dark guilds too… but when do you think they’ll strike? During the duel itself?”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” the man scoffed. “You know as well as I do how rotten they are at the core.”
“There’s no way they’d fight fair and square.”
“Hehehe. Then our timing will probably overlap,” Python laughed casually. “If we’re lucky, we might even trap them in a pincer attack! Wouldn’t that be fun?”
Orochi Python chuckled lazily.
“That would actually work in our favor.”
“Huh? I thought you’d say something like ‘We can’t let the Principality beat us to it!’”
The man’s eyes darkened.
“As long as the Hero dies… nothing else matters.”
“That’s the top priority.”
“Wow… so that’s how state organizations think,” Python said lightly.
“In the end, all people are children of the god Eld,” the man replied calmly. “There’s no real difference.”
“Hmm… I see.”
(Then the Heroes are children of Eld too, aren’t they?)
(These Eldorado believers really are blindly convenient fools…)
“Well then,” Python said, clapping his hands.
“Shall we begin preparing as well?”
◇◇◇
Meanwhile—
Lily’s group had finally arrived at the capital.
“Woooow! So this is the Federation capital, Herz?!”
Lily’s eyes sparkled as she looked around excitedly.
“There are three huge buildings! That’s incredible!”
“That’s quite the childlike impression, Captain Lily,” one of her subordinates said dryly.
“…Herz, huh. Brings back memories,” muttered Louise, the former A-rank adventurer swordswoman.
“I spent quite a bit of time in the dungeon here.”
For her, this city was deeply familiar.
“Alright! First stop—let’s head to that inn the Kingdom reserved!”
“Hopefully the Heroes haven’t left yet to conquer a dungeon…”
None of them knew about the duel.
“Hey! Don’t say things that make me anxious!” Lily cried. “I’ve had this terrible feeling in my chest for days now, and it’s already making me panic!”
“Yes, yes,” her subordinate replied calmly. “But thinking realistically is important. Now that you understand that, let’s hurry to the inn.”
“Hey! You’re treating me like a child! You’re totally treating me like a child just now, weren’t you?! Isn’t that mean, Louise?!”
“You’re as energetic as ever…” Louise sighed. “Are you a carefree three-year-old or something?”
“Louise is bullying me too! That’s so mean!”
“And our captain is also a beautiful woman whose ‘years without a boyfriend’ equal her actual age…”
“WAAAAAAAAAAAH!”
An hour later—
They arrived at the inn in question.
“I’m terribly sorry,” a royal knight explained politely. “But the Heroes left several hours ago for a duel.”
“D-Duel?!”
Lily’s eyes widened.
“So my bad feeling was right after all…”
“Where’s the venue?”
“The location is classified. Even we have not been informed.”
“That’s not good at all…” Lily muttered nervously. “Is there anyone else who might know?”
“The Adventurers’ Guild headquarters might,” the knight replied, “but they likely won’t disclose the information.”
“Yeah… that figures.”
She grabbed her head.
“This is really bad! What should we do?!”
“Then… is there anything that’s publicly known?”
The knights exchanged glances.
“Well… we did hear something through rumors.”
“A rumor?”
“Yes. Apparently the name of the opponent.”
“That’s already valuable information! Please tell me!”
“The duelist’s name was… if I recall correctly…”
“…Ryu.”
“…Eh?”