Chapter 151: A World Where Only Kobayashi Gets Hurt is Complete
At midnight, the bell rang.
The first night of the Night Party was over.
Kobayashi, using magic, had achieved a crushing victory, shattering the "Sword Emperor's" undefeated record in practical combat and shattering the perceptions of all the students watching. Like a dark horse, he had unreasonably burst into everyone's line of sight.
The strong contenders at the top of the ranks grew wary. The weaker ones at the bottom trembled in fear.
And at this moment, the other protagonist of the battle, the defeated Loki, was dragging his exhausted body alone to the academy's guard room. After a full discussion with the guard, he was led to a quiet room.
As soon as he entered, he saw a figure with its back to him.
Without any opening remarks, the voice questioned, "It seems to be over. I received a telegram. The result is that you lost."
"...Yes."
Hearing his father's question, Loki, who was standing behind him with his head lowered, clenched his fists in frustration.
At this moment, his nose was bruised and his face was swollen, his clothes were tattered and torn. He had none of his previous handsome, chuunibyou style, and was completely different from the stately gentleman in front of him who was elegantly drinking black tea.
And he was Frey and Loki's father, Bronson, who had once touched the throne of the Wiseman.
"I didn't expect you to lose."
Bronson raised his teacup, his eyes glancing sideways at his son, and said coldly, "You were supposed to be my most proud son, yet now you've lost so completely. I am very disappointed."
"...Please, please give me another chance!"
Loki pleaded in a low voice through gritted teeth, his unwilling tone echoing in the silent room.
Tap— tap— tap—
Bronson did not answer, but just kept his back to him, his fingers continuously tapping on the tabletop. The surface of the black tea rippled, and Loki's heart also grew tense.
The atmosphere was incomparably oppressive. The continuous tapping sound hammered at his heart.
The son, who did not dare to resist, was afraid that his indifferent father would say the word "dispose," and then stop his heart.
Don't be fooled by Bronson saying Loki was his proud son. In the eyes of this man who had already fallen into madness, anything without use-value meant it could be thrown away at any time.
After a long while.
Bronson slowly opened his mouth. "I am not angry that you lost, Loki. I am angry that you lost in such a pathetic and ugly manner."
For a noble, death was not frightening. To be humiliated in front of everyone was the most unacceptable thing.
But Loki knew that Bronson was by no means a person who was obsessed with superficial elegance. Because he knew full well how dark and terrifying the truth hidden in the orphanage was, saying this was clearly to reprimand him for not showing the strength of the angel-type automaton, and for being defeated in the very first match.
Loki was silent.
Bronson turned around, his face sinking. "Most importantly, why did you do such a thing on your own?"
"Er..."
For a moment, he couldn't answer. Cold sweat broke out on his palms.
"I am asking you," the gentleman said in an incomparably icy voice. "Why did you give up the seventh-place position and downgrade yourself to ninety-ninth?"
Goosebumps rose on Loki's neck. He forced himself to keep his voice from trembling and said, "...Because I judged it to be a necessary action for the plan."
"Oh? What do you mean?"
"The possibility of Frey winning is less than one in ten thousand. If we are to compare the performance of [Garm] and [Angel], then we must eliminate that guy first."
"Hmph. And the result is that you lost?" Bronson's voice grew even colder.
"I'm sorry."
Loki apologized readily.
Bronson was a results-oriented person. If he could achieve victory, he could magnanimously forgive any mistake. But if not...
Loki's heart leaped into his throat again.
Just as he thought the punishment would come down directly, he instead heard him ask strangely, "Why didn't he take your glove? Was it simply to humiliate you, or is it that..."
He had already investigated the relationship between Kobayashi and Frey and was very interested in this guy who had suddenly appeared claiming to be able to use magic.
"Forget it."
Beyond all expectations, he was not blamed. Instead, he narrowed his eyes and said, "Loki, you should be glad that your glove was not taken. Otherwise, your heart would have been stopped by now."
"...Yes. Thank you very much."
"Not thanks, Loki. But repayment."
Meeting his gaze, which held a strange meaning, he said, "You are my proud son. I will forgive you this time. And tomorrow is Rabi's battle with that person... or it should have been. But your Gabriel has not been heavily damaged, so I demand that you participate in the Night Party tomorrow and face that man together with Rabi."
Whether it's what he thinks or not, he'll just have to observe carefully tomorrow night.
"Loki, I have expectations of you. You should go all out. That is also for Frey's good."
"...Of course, Father."
It's unknown if Bronson had noticed, but Loki's brow twitched slightly.
"You may leave."
Hearing the command, he gave a respectful bow and left the room. As he turned his back to him, he clenched his jaw tightly, so tightly.
"Why didn't you take his glove! Are you an idiot? You must be an idiot!"
The tsundere girl leaned in close to him, her beautiful eyes filled with obvious anger, accusing the man before her who had missed a great opportunity and didn't even know it.
"First, I'd like to ask if you know the rules of the Night Party."
"A sequential mêlée format, right? Don't treat me like that idiot Akabane-kun," he muttered.
"That's right."
Charlotte said, "As long as one side snatches the other's glove, the battle is over. And no matter what, the next day, the 98th-ranked person will fight. And the night after that, the 97th. Like this, a new enemy will appear on the battlefield every night. Except for periods of interruption, this rule will be strictly enforced."
But it wasn't always a one-on-one battle situation.
The time limit for a battle was twelve o'clock... When the clock tower showed midnight and the bell rang, that was when the ball was over. If a winner wasn't decided before then...
"You should know what that means."
"The battlefield will become even more chaotic."
"And as it happens, the 98th and 99th are that brother and sister..."
"Frey won't use her right of non-participation?"
"Do you think that's possible in this situation?"
His rather naive words made the tsundere girl roll her eyes.
Right of Non-Participation
—This refers to when the 99th-ranked person is not defeated by the 100th, and the 98th-ranked person is participating in the Night Party, they have the right to refuse to enter the field. The premise is that the 98th-ranked person... that is, the higher-ranked one, has not issued an invitation.
"Don't be so angry, Charlotte," Sigmund said, jumping down from her head. "You should know how strong Kobayashi is. And while I understand you're worried about the man you fancy, at the very least you should trust him more now."
"Wh...! Th...! Id...!"
Charlotte's face turned bright red, and the words she wanted to say got stuck in her throat.
Sigmund bowed his head in apology. "My apologies. It seems that sentence was too much of a tease. But looking at you lately, this matter has you more focused than staring at a fire."
"Shut up! Be careful I don't change your lunch chicken to milk powder!" she said, extremely embarrassed.
Sigmund revealed a bitter smile and covered his face with his tail, pretending not to have heard. She, on the other hand, began to sulk and couldn't help but forcefully pull on his wings as punishment for his slip of the tongue.
In the end, it was Kobayashi who saved him.
He said to the worried tsundere girl, "Rest assured, I won't lose. Even if they both come at me, the result will be the same."
Short, but very confident.
Charlotte looked at him seriously and, seeing that he was serious and not joking, she turned her head away with a cold snort, letting him off the hook.
"...Don't die."
"I won't."
Receiving a definite answer, she turned and left.
Sigmund, who was being held, said, "Although I have confidence in your strength, please be careful. Charlotte is very fond of you."
"...What are you blabbering about, Sigmund! I'll change your lunch chicken to sand!" Charlotte, who hadn't gone far, turned into a bristling golden kitten upon hearing her dragon's words.
Sigmund held his forehead with a wing and said in a low voice, "Finally... has my lunch gone from edible food to inedible things?"
"It's not a big problem. I'll secretly feed you," he said, tapping its dragon head.
Sigmund nodded with satisfaction. "As expected of the man I fancy. It wasn't in vain that I've been putting in a good word for you in Charlotte's ear."
"...Your doing that was completely unnecessary."
"Really?"
He asked in return, and without waiting for an answer, he broke free from the embrace, flapped his wings, and chased after the striding Charlotte.
Kobayashi scratched his head.
Although he knew that Sigmund was old, and his voice and tone had a sense of maturity, what was with this secret matchmaking between his "daughter" and someone else?
Why do I have this sense of déjà vu? Has a certain hellhound done this before?
In this complicated mood, the second day of the Night Party arrived.
It's unknown if it was deliberate or accidental.
Today was Monday.
Although the Night Party had opened, it was only a matter of concern for a portion of the students. So, naturally, classes at the academy were held as usual.
However, the opening of the Night Party on Sunday had brought the atmosphere to its peak. Therefore, after all the classes were over, as the sun set and the time came to six in the evening, the students once again gathered by the side of the Night Party's combat field.
Some were here to see the spectacle they had missed, and some were here for the purpose of research.
In any case, it was even more lively today than yesterday.
Tonight was the night for "Silent Roar"—Frey—to make her appearance.
And Kobayashi had arrived at the battlefield early to warm up. The students who were watching saw this and began to whisper among themselves.
"Look at that guy, he's full of motivation."
"Ah. After all, he defeated the Sword Emperor. He's not a man to be underestimated."
"A dark horse! An absolute dark horse!"
While the students were discussing among themselves—
"Shh! Silent Roar is entering the field!"
The chatter subsided. Kobayashi also followed their gaze in the direction they were looking.
A very frail-looking female student with flowing pearl-colored hair walked over. Behind her followed a dog-type automaton with the fur of a wolf-dog.
It was Frey.
Although she was a year older than Charlotte, she didn't have that feeling of an elder at all... except for her chest.
The Night Party had no starting signal. The duel began the moment one stood on the battlefield.
But he did not attack immediately.
He looked at Frey and said with a smile, "As I thought. Just saving Yomi wasn't enough, was it?... Well, I can probably guess how that man is threatening you."
"...I'm... sorry..." she trembled, lowered her head, looking very apologetic.
He shook his head. "I don't mean to blame you. Everyone who stands here has their own principles, so you don't need to feel sorry. It's just that..."
He looked at Rabi, who was beside her, and at Yomi, who was not far below the stage. He was a little curious.
"Why didn't you bring Yomi along? Don't tell me you're embarrassed?"
"...No... because Yomi... he temporarily can't... adjust... well..."
This was the drawback of the dog-type automaton. It couldn't be prepared as quickly as the angel-type, Gabriel.
At this moment, Loki also entered the battlefield from the other side. Apart from a few bruises on his face, he had completely recovered.
When he saw Frey, his eyes became incomparably cold. She couldn't help but shiver.
Loki said coldly, "I didn't expect you to appear here. I thought you would avoid this battle."
"...I... I wouldn't do that," she retorted in a low voice.
"That's why I'm surprised. This isn't like you at all. Since you were a child, you've been slow, clumsy, and quick to give up at everything you do. Whenever you were scared, you would hide behind me. And a person like you now wants to join this battle?"
His younger brother's questioning made his older sister fall silent.
After a pause, she finally said, "Loki... has always been very capable since he was a child. You were always so lively... your mind was so good... you were so strong... and you were so agile. All I had to do was follow behind you... and hide behind you."
Then, to her brother's curiosity, she gently shook her head. "But, now... I am also... a student of this academy... a puppeteer... aiming to be the Wiseman!"
She forcefully raised her head and met his gaze head-on.
Loki was startled. The weak atmosphere she had just now had disappeared. The current her looked very resolute, even full of dignity.
...That being said.
"I say, it's great that you're having a sibling bonding moment, but can you consider my feelings? The way you two are, doesn't it make me look like the villain? But I'm the protagonist," he couldn't help but complain from the side.
Loki ignored him and said in a low voice, "Heh. It doesn't look like a weakling's bluff? But do you really have the resolve?"
"Loki... maybe... you hate me... it's not certain. But... I will... fight. Because... if I just hide behind you, I can't protect anyone," she said, patting the fullness of her chest that made Charlotte extremely jealous, showing the appearance of an older sister for the first time.
"Protect? Who are you talking about?" he said, as if tsundere and annoyed.
He couldn't help but raise his hand and interrupt them. "Um... how about you consider my feelings a little? I'm really not the villain."
"Shut up! You'll be defeated by me! Gabriel, spin!"
"I will protect Loki! Rabi! Howling Cannon!"
In this moment, the hearts of the twisted siblings were connected. They joined forces to deal with the tricky enemy.
And so, a world where only Kobayashi gets hurt was complete.
"—So I'm telling you, I'm really not the villain!"
His grievance pierced the heavens.
(End of Chapter)