Chapter 20: Registration for the Competition
Ren, on the other hand, was amazed by the King's swift intelligence. He had only been in the city for an hour, but his and Erza's actions at the gate had already reached the King's ears. To be a King in a place surrounded by demon beasts, to develop his country to such prosperity, and even dare to plot to slay a dragon... this King Reno was indeed not a simple man.
Erza, however, quickly recovered from her shock at the tournament proposal and focused on the core problem. "Since Your Majesty the King is already prepared with a plan and a tournament, why issue an SS-Class Quest and entrust it to us Mages? What is our role in your plan?"
The King's expression became grim once more. "The purpose of the entrustment is simple. The sealed location of the Demon Dragon is deep within the Demon Beast Great Forest. The demon beasts in that region have been affected by the Dragon's leaking magic power for years, all transforming into terrifyingly powerful monsters. I once sent my strongest troops to suppress them, but we suffered heavy losses. Without eliminating those monsters, it's impossible for our champion to even reach the temple."
"Is our job to clear out those demon beasts?" Erza asked.
The King nodded. "Yes, but that's not the main task. Your main task is to protect the Dragon Slaying Swordsman—or more accurately, to protect this sword. You are to act as an escort, to ensure the wielder and the blade arrive at the temple safely."
Erza fell silent, processing the immense danger. Before she could speak, she thought of one more thing. "Begging your pardon, Your Majesty, but since this is a Demon Dragon—a threat to the entire continent—wouldn't it be more reasonable to report it to the Magic Council?"
Erza, as an S-Class Mage of Fairy Tail, still held a fundamental (if strained) respect for the continent's governing magical body. A Dragon was certainly under their jurisdiction.
When the Magic Council was mentioned, the King's expression soured, twisting into a look of undisguised disdain. "The Magic Council? Hmph. I reported it to them two years ago. And do you know what solution those fools in Era offered?"
Ren and Erza both looked at the King, curious.
"It was to use Anima."
The word hit the room like a physical blow.
"Anima!!"
Erza's expression changed drastically, from serious to horrified. Her body tensed, her hands clenched into fists at her side, and Ren could feel a wave of suppressed, violent magic rolling off her. The name Anima was, for her, tied to her darkest memories—to Jellal, to the Tower of Heaven, to the attempted sacrifice of her own life.
[Akarin's Note: Anima is a massive-scale magic developed by the Magic Council. It is, in essence, a magical interdimensional satellite weapon capable of absorbing all magic (and life) from a target area in Fiore and dumping it into the parallel world of Edolas. It is the magic Jellal used in the Tower of Heaven arc.]
"Exactly!" the King spat. "Those cowards! Not to mention whether Anima can even kill a Magic Dragon, once fired, this city... my entire kingdom... could be in danger of annihilation. And even if it doesn't affect this city, the Demon Beast Great Forest would certainly be destroyed. That forest, while dangerous, is a crucial strategic resource for our country! Our entire economy, our entire culture, is built on the materials and the challenge it provides! Destroying the Demon Beast Great Forest would be destroying our livelihood! As King, how could I not be furious with the Magic Council for such a 'solution'?"
Ren thought for a moment, and it was indeed true. The King was trapped. This country bordered the Demon Beast Great Forest and was very dangerous, but it had also grown strong amidst this danger. The Magic Council firing Anima would be the equivalent of ruining the country's entire future.
"Both of you," the King said, his voice softening as his anger passed. "I have truthfully told you all the details of this Quest. What do you think?"
The King's gaze fell upon Ren and Erza.
Erza looked at Ren and said: "Ren, what do you think?"
Ren also pondered slightly. He knew how terrifying the strength of Dragons was. A dying camel is still bigger than a horse. Even if a Dragon was in a weakened state, it was not something an ordinary human Mage could contend with, because Dragons have strong resistance to human magic. And a Dragon's body possesses super physical resistance, inherently being impervious to swords and spears.
Without that sword, the probability of humans winning would be less than one-tenth. But with this Dragon Slayer Sword... the human's chances of winning should reach three-tenths.
Three-tenths, seemingly low, was actually quite high when talking about killing a Dragon.
Logically, if the chances of winning were less than fifty percent, it would be safer to give up. However, Ren could feel his blood boiling, his heart leaping. Dragon slaying. Just those two words were enough to excite any young man.
What's more, there were also the two ten-pull rewards on the system panel.
"I think we can try it," Ren said simply.
Erza looked at him, surprised by his quick decision. "Ren, this is an SS-Class quest. It's not the same as the Phantom Bandit Gang. This is a Dragon."
"I know," Ren said. "But His Majesty the King definitely won't give up on this plan, and it's true as he said, if the Demon Dragon emerges and recovers its strength, it will certainly retaliate against humanity. At that time, there will surely be heavy casualties. We can't just stand by and do nothing."
Erza looked at Ren, then back at the King. She, too, had come to the same conclusion. Her duty as a Fairy Tail Mage wouldn't let her walk away when so many lives were at stake.
"Your Majesty, we have discussed it," Erza said, stepping forward.
"What is your decision?"
"We have decided to accept this Quest."
"Good!"
Upon hearing Erza's words, the King was very pleased. "Excellent! Anyone capable of taking on an S-Class Quest... and in your case, Sir Ren, completing one... must be an extremely powerful Mage. In that case, the probability of the Dragon Slaying plan succeeding will be even greater."
"Both of you, please stay in the palace for now. Tomorrow, the preliminaries for the 'World's Strongest Swordsman Tournament' will be held. If you are interested, you can also participate. The prizes for the winners are very generous. After the winner is decided, we will then proceed with the Demon Dragon's subjugation."
Erza declined: "No need for the trouble, Your Majesty. We will stay in a hotel outside. It's a good opportunity to experience the local customs and culture of this city."
The King nodded: "That's fine too."
Ren and Erza left the palace and found a nearby inn to stay.
Three days of long-distance travel, coupled with the mental drain of the day's revelations, had left Ren a bit tired. After checking into the hotel, he quickly fell asleep and slept straight until the next morning.
Upon waking, Ren found that Erza was not in the room. Her mountain of luggage, however, was still there, so she couldn't have gone far. 'It seems she went out shopping,' Ren mused.
Ren also wanted to go out for a stroll and perhaps buy some local specialties. He was, after all, a tourist in this new city.
As soon as he stepped out of the inn, Ren saw the streets were even more bustling and chaotic than the day before. Everyone—men, women, and children, all carrying swords—was heading in one direction, a palpable excitement in the air.
Ren also overheard other people's conversations. He then remembered that the preliminaries the King mentioned were starting today, and these people were all going to watch.
'A swordsman tournament, huh...' Ren thought. He had absorbed Yoriichi Tsugikuni's memories and skills, but this did not affect the fact that he, Ren, was a complete novice in swordsmanship. He wouldn't overestimate himself and make a fool of himself.
However, he was very interested in such large-scale events. He followed the crowd toward the massive arena he had seen yesterday.
After a while, Ren arrived at the entrance. It was a colossal structure, similar in style to the Roman Colosseum, and it was packed. The roar of the crowd inside was already deafening.
"Registration deadline for the preliminaries! Only ten minutes left! Those who haven't registered, hurry up and do so!"
As soon as Ren reached the entrance, he heard someone shouting from a registration desk set up near the gate.
"I heard His Majesty the King has offered a very generous prize money for this competition," a man in the crowd next to Ren said to his friend.
"How much prize money?"
"I heard the first place winner gets 20 million J."
"20 million J!! That much!!"
"Yes! That's why it has attracted sword masters from all over the country, and even many from abroad, to participate!"
Ren froze.
'20... million... Jewel?'
His S-Class quest had netted him 6 million. This tournament prize was more than three times that. He had just spent 3 million on his house, leaving him with only 3 million. He needed more money. And more importantly... he needed to test his new power.
He had Sun Breathing. He had the muscle memory of the strongest swordsman who ever lived. But he had no real experience. He couldn't just rely on his Take Overs.
This was the perfect opportunity. A way to train, to test his limits, and to get paid an obscene amount of money for it.
At this moment, at the registration desk, the attendant was packing up. "Hmm... time's almost up. No one else should be registering."
Suddenly, a voice rang out: "Wait! I want to register! I want to register to compete!!"
Ren ran up to the desk.
The attendant looked up, annoyed. "You're just in time, kid. What's your name."
Ren paused. He couldn't use his real name. If Makarov found out...
He thought of the power sleeping in his soul. He thought of the man whose memories he had inherited. A small, confident smile touched his lips.
"Your name."
"Yoriichi Tsugikuni."
[Akarin Note:
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