Eora Champion

Thanks to Ichinose eating up my time, I couldn't fight any more that day, so my E-Class promotion got pushed back two days.

My savings had shot up all at once and were sitting at around 1200G.

E-Class, ranked 580. HP 14. Slave-holding cap of 5. That was my current status.

So that day, Lyuka brought me to the town with the E-Class battleground.

Eora was considerably bigger than the two towns I'd been to so far.

This region, the place we got transferred to, was apparently called the Eora region of the Mikuriya Kingdom.

Eora was the central city of the region, and since it had both an E-Class and a D-Class battleground, it was the kind of town you could use as a home base from E-Class through D-Class.

A region's central city was generally set up that way, apparently.

The thing was, the atmosphere here wasn't exactly the kind that made you want to stick around.

Compared to where I'd been, it felt sort of decadent. Or "lewd" might have been the better word.

What stood out was the sheer number of men walking around town with Garumon in tow.

Especially the ones who'd dressed their Garumon up in erotic outfits.

Bikini armor was on the modest end; quite a few of the girls had their nipples on full display.

Naturally, with Masters groping their Garumon's chests and getting touchy-feely wherever they pleased, a vulgar atmosphere had spread through the streets.

They weren't going as far as having sex right in the middle of the road, granted. No, scratch that, when I peeked into a side alley I spotted Masters going at it.

What was the public order around here even doing?

If Yukishiro-san, our class disciplinary officer, ever saw this, she'd be running herself dizzy trying to crack down on it all.

Incidentally, the Garumon they had with them included a lot more "wow, she's beautiful," eye-grabbing stunners and pretty girls.

Apparently for an E-Class Master, it wasn't strange to be holding R-Class, value-1000-range Garumon.

D-Class, I'd heard, became a contest of how many value-2000s you had, with the top dogs holding SR-Class value-3000s.

Value-1000s were the kind of beauties and pretty girls who'd make you catch your breath if you ran into them in town.

So, the upshot was, the streets themselves naturally looked more glamorous and beautiful.

No, seriously, having a parade of pretty girls like that flashing huge amounts of cleavage was an outrageous feast for the eyes.

Looked like that night was another night I'd have to have Leone-san take care of me before I could sleep…

That kind of thing was on my mind, and my expression must have gone a little slack.

"… What are you thinking about?"

Of course, that face of mine got caught by Kazami-san. I mean, by Kanan.

"No, nothing in particular…"

"… Tch. So you were ogling those slave women who were just flashing their tits? When you've got a transcendent beauty like me and Adelia at your side…"

She said it like she was jealous, like she wanted me to look only at the two of them.

This person, too, said the kind of things that occasionally made me wonder if she had feelings for me.

"We're finally fighting in E-Class. Let's tighten up and head in."

Anyway, I tried not to dwell on it and changed the subject.

"Huh? With me and Adelia, it's an easy win, right?"

Kanan wore that confident expression of hers.

"… Hahaha. You're sure of yourself, huh."

"Hah? Is there any element here that would shake my confidence? We've won every single fight we've been in. Not a single loss. I've finally caught up to Adelia in LV, too. We're going strong in E-Class as well!"

"Nya, do my best, nya～!"

The two of them raised their hands together. They were getting along better and better. It was heartwarming.

"The day I catch up to Adelia in Value isn't far off either! … Honestly, what is this Value thing? Why am I 500 lower than Adelia?"

"Adelia's race, Nekomata, is one of the seven top-tier Beastfolk subspecies, and let's see, I think it was Nekomata, Inugami, Yoko, Gyuuki, Werewolf, Weretiger, and Moon Rabbit. Apparently it's a really excellent race. That nets you +500 Value."

For reference, Leone was an Inugami. Same top-tier rank.

"But aren't otherworld Garumon even rarer than that? In which case, there's no reason for me to lose!"

"No, otherworld Garumon apparently means 'jobless.'"

"Hah? What does jobless mean?"

"Have you played games before? While you're jobless, you can't do anything, but once you become a warrior you can equip weapons and armor and use techniques, and once you become a priest you can use healing magic. Basically, having a job, a class, makes you stronger. If your opponent is a knight, you're like, 'Crap, this guy's gonna guard, that's a pain,' right?"

"Ah, I see. Got it. So all I have to do is take some kind of job. How do I do that?"

"They said you raise your level. There are cases where you class-change at LV10, 20, 30, and so on, but apparently when you class-change varies from person to person."

"Then for now, LV10 is my first chance, isn't it. Fighting in E-Class will get my LV up no problem. All right, let's go!"

"Nya! Adelia will work hard and grow too, nya!"

By then, Kanan had adapted fairly well to this world's battle system.

She'd gotten completely hooked on Garumon Battles, and was actually getting into them and enjoying herself.

That day, too, she was getting fired up about fighting unknown strong enemies.

Of course, I couldn't deny that I was enjoying myself too.

Kanan and Adelia. Maneuvering these two beautiful fighters, who used all kinds of techniques and superpowers, to take down enemy after enemy…

That intensity, that thrill, that excitement. It wasn't even comparable to a game.

Honestly, it was incredibly fun!

Wanting to enjoy a game in real life. That was a dream that had just come true.

I wouldn't have been a gamer if I hadn't gotten excited about that.

And on top of that, I was winning, so of course it was nothing but fun.

Granted, the moment I lost, the hell of losing Adelia and Kanan would be waiting for me.

"Up till now, even when there was an LV gap, the rarity difference let us steamroll, but from here on the rarity gap is going to shrink. I don't think we'll be able to win as easily as before, so be careful."

"Hmph, I don't need you to tell me that. As long as your instructions are sound, we won't lose. If you let me lose, I won't forgive you!"

"Yeah. Of course, I have no intention of losing."

We were burning with fighting spirit.

I didn't mean to be conceited, but this game of issuing instructions in battle… I might have been unexpectedly good at it.

There was no doubt the two of them were excellent Garumon with outstanding talent, but I thought the fact that my instructions were sound was also a non-zero factor in our wins.

I wanted to keep up that pace and climb all the way to C-Class in one shot.

And so, on to the E-Class battleground.

This place was also a forest with poor visibility. We hid in the trees and used eyes, ears, and the system map to search for other Masters.

The promotion conditions out of E-Class were: at least 50 fights with at least an 80% win rate. Five losses in a row, and you got demoted.

I had no intention of losing once, but we still had to fight 50 matches no matter what, so things were going to be busy.

Before long, I spotted a Master walking with an erotically dressed Garumon.

"Found one. He's headed by a Value 1400, with three R-Class total. LVs are 30."

For reference, LV and average stat values are roughly the same. In other words, with Kanan and Adelia at average stats around 15, we were going to be fighting opponents with average stats around 30.

"This one's expected to be tough. Let's go!"

"Yeah!"

I challenged him to a 2-vs-2 battle.

… Start.

The other side sent out the knight Linan and the swordsman Sarasen.

So Linan was the defender and Sarasen was the attacker, huh.

Naturally, Kanan ended up matched against Sarasen, and Adelia against Linan.

Because of the LV gap, Sarasen moved first.

"Heavy Slash!"

He swung his sword up and brought it down. If she'd taken it head-on, that would've been a pretty big hit, but…

CLANG!

She blocked it easily. Kanan's Wind Shield didn't let physical attacks through.

"Nya, Mad Slash!"

Adelia attacked, but…

"Shield Guard!"

When Linan said that and braced, Adelia's attack got pulled toward Linan.

But it was 0 damage.

Aggro pull plus damage nullification, huh. This was troublesome.

"Kanan, can you trip Linan with your whip?"

"I'll try! Hah!"

CRACK!

She lashed his legs. But Linan, braced in Shield Guard, didn't trip; it was like he was rooted to the ground.

"… No good. Looks like that Shield Guard can't be broken."

"What do we do?"

"If we can't break the attack, we have to wait for the technique uses to run out. Air Blast on Sarasen."

"Yeah."

I thought it might get pulled in again, but this time Linan didn't use Shield Guard.

Maybe it couldn't be used on consecutive turns.

Sarasen's HP was halved.

"Demon Slayer!"

Sarasen's follow-up attack. A wide open, big swing.

"Kanan, back step!"

"Yeah!"

Tap.

Kanan jumped backward at the right moment and dodged the attack.

Sarasen's blade cut only air.

If it's an attack you can dodge, dodging is better. If they whiff, you save uses on Wind Shield.

"Defense Charge!"

Linan came barreling in with his shield up.

He was aiming for Adelia, but I anticipated that with the back step. Kanan was now in the path between Adelia and Linan.

"Wind Shield."

"Yeah!"

CLANG.

Defended again.

"Adelia, Mad Slash on Sarasen!"

"Nyaaaaa!"

Slash! Slash! Slash! Slash!

With all four hits landing, we managed to knock Sarasen's HP down.

"All right, now we just chip the rest down and take him out."

If Linan didn't move, he'd Shield Guard. There was no need to attack.

"Kanan, Adelia, stand by."

Right, if there was no need, you could just do nothing. Obvious, right? That saved technique uses.

"Defense Charge!"

If he came at us…

"Kanan, whip his legs!"

"Yeah!"

CRACK!

Granted, not every time, but one out of two stuns.

"Adelia, Will-o'-Wisp!"

"Nyaaaaa!"

Whoosh!

… Yeah, since that was my first E-Class fight, I described it, but I could've skipped most of it.

Honestly, no struggle at all. Total cakewalk. The defense was a pain and we wasted some turns, but still.

Shield Guard was annoying too. It pulled our attacks in and blocked them. It could only be used every other turn, but on the turn it was used, our attack was completely shut out.

Which meant, if you put two knights up and have them Shield Guard alternately, we'd be totally shut down, wouldn't we?

I made a mental note: never attack a pair of knights.

Even so, the high stats on their side were perfectly nullified by Kanan's Wind Shield, so it was meaningless.

I picked up 420G in just one fight, and I was glad the efficiency had jumped compared to before.

Linan was pretty cute. She was wearing erotic bikini armor too. Even if I had her guard Adelia and Kanan, she wouldn't have looked out of place. So I hesitated, just a little, on whether to take her, but before I knew it, I'd selected "No."

This world's system was set up to make you steal each other's girls as slaves.

But I didn't want to play along with that.

I did think this world was incredibly fun as a game, and I understood that this Garumon stealing functioned as a game system.

Even so, ignoring girls' human rights and stealing them from each other was just unthinkable.

For someone born and raised in Japan, where awareness of human rights had been cultivated, that was a line I couldn't cross.

That said, I did at least have the principle of not treating my own party members as slaves.

So I figured that by making them part of my party, I could save those girls. Or so I told myself, anyway.

So, the conditions under which I'd be willing to follow this game's rules and add a girl to my party would be:

• The girl wishes for it herself, and I want to save her.

• I fall for her at first sight and want her from the bottom of my heart.

I'd settled on those two. Realistically, only the latter was going to happen, though.

If I'd come to like someone, then trying every means I could to make her mine had to be allowed, right.

Well, it was a personal rule I'd set up to justify the fact that I'd ended up with Adelia, anyway.

So my basic policy was: don't add anyone to the party you can't truly say "I want to save this girl, I want this girl" about.

After that, we racked up several more matches, but, well, E-Class was kind of a letdown, in a way.

Value-1000-range R-Class opponents. They were pretty cute and good-looking, and the enemies had decently powerful techniques like Shield Guard. So we were struggling to a degree, but overall, nothing dangerous.

Maybe it was the element matchups.

Kanan's wind and Adelia's fire combination was unexpectedly good, and both of them had decent physical attack power as well. We hadn't run into anyone resistant to all of those so far.

Apparently Dragon-element was strong against pretty much everything except Ice-element, but Dragonkin types were themselves super-rare, and you didn't run into them much at the E-Class level.

Demon-element was also strong against wind and fire, I'd heard, but Demon types had low physical resistance, so you could just level up and beat them with physicals.

Or rather, they weren't all that common either, so we didn't actually run into one.

So between the two of them, they covered each other's weak points, and we kept piling up wins.

Like that, we went 7-0. We were steadily approaching D-Class. It was the first day, so that was probably good enough.

In E-Class, the reward was 30%. So in a single day I racked up 2000G all at once, more than my total savings up to that point.

The two of them had finally hit double digits at LV10. And their skill counts had grown to five.

I'd thought you had to forget one once you went over four skills, but apparently you could learn up to eight.

You selected four on the status screen and used them in battle.

Kanan's newly learned Wind's Blessing was a buff-stacking effect. I wouldn't really know until we used it.

But the new skill Adelia learned, Flame Claw. That one looked plain ridiculous. E-Class battles were about to get even easier.

"At this rate, we'll be in D-Class in another five days, I'd say."

If we did seven fights a day like that day, it'd be six days, but we should've been fine pushing the pace a little harder.

My rank had jumped all the way up to E-Class 300, but did this rank actually mean anything?

If you decided promotion happened after 50 wins, the rank seemed irrelevant.

Or maybe wins against opponents far below you didn't really count.

Well, I'd keep an eye on it just in case.

"As expected of Goshujin-sama, nya. Even E-Class is an easy win, nya."

"That said, normally we would be ultimate-rare Garumon worth more than 5000 in Value, the kind of talent only a B-Class or higher Master would have, right? In that case, easy wins at this rank are only natural. You'd better not let this much go to your head."

It had been five days since I'd gotten there. I'd asked Lyuka and Leone all kinds of things at the start, but Kanan had also got more chances to talk to various people, and she'd come to understand the rules of this world quite well.

Well enough that it just slipped out of her in casual conversation.

I wondered if she was getting used to calling herself a Garumon, too, without it feeling that strange to her anymore.

"Here he comes, this is it!"

"Will the new champ defend his title? Should be a sight!"

When we got back to the town of Eora because our skill uses had run low, the streets were buzzing.

"What's this?"

"Um, what's a 'champ'?"

I called out to a man who'd looked like an NPC.

"Ah, you a Master from out of town? The town governor here is the Champion. The Eora Champion Tournament is held for D-Class Masters only. The winner of that tournament has a Garumon Battle with the current town governor, the Champion. If they win, the championship changes hands. This tournament happens once a month. A new Champion was just crowned last month. So everyone's watching to see if he'll defend the title this month. The Champion's match takes place in the arena, so you can watch it too!"

He kindly explained.

Now that I'd thought about it, I'd barely watched any of the other Masters' matches.

"Should we go take a look?"

"Sure. Let's go see."

And so, without much thought, we headed out to spectate the match.

It was a venue that looked like a pro wrestling arena. There was a circular stage in the center, set up so that it was easy to watch from any angle.

"And now, finally, the championship match. The winner of this month's D-Class-only Eora Champion Tournament is the previous Champion's son, Glade! Today, at last, he challenges for the Championship! Will he avenge his father?!"

Whoa…

The one who emerged from the west to a wave of cheers was a fairly muscular, handsome man. He had three pretty girls with him.

"And now, the Garumon Glade leads: LV34, Wind User Eria, Value 2500 LV35, Martial Artist Nellie, Value 2400 And the leader, LV40, Light Swordswoman Alice, Value 2900!"

"…! She looks so cool…"

The gap between low-ranking E-Class and top-tier D-Class was night and day. You could tell at a glance. They were strong.

Especially that female knight, Alice. Kanan and Adelia as they were now probably couldn't beat her.

"And now, his opponent, the Champion. He's a most unusual otherworld Master!"

"…!?"

I reacted to the words "otherworld Master." Could it have been a male student from Reido Academy?

"The current town governor and D-Class Champion, Noda… Masaomi!"

"… Noda-kun!?"

"You said Noda…!?"

That name was awfully familiar to us. He was one of our fellow slaves.

A classmate, the fat, sneaky guy who was always glaring at me with his dark eyes.

On top of that, he was vulgar and lecherous. Not many redeeming qualities. The one thing he had going for him was his PC knowledge, maybe.

I once disinfected a top-of-the-line PC he'd built for Kanan.

When you put it that way, he was pretty pitiful too, but I wasn't in a mood to sympathize.

He was high-handed and underhanded in the way he tormented me.

He clearly worshipped Kanan, but he couldn't hide his blatant lust, and once when she struck him with a whip he came in his pants, which left even Kanan weirded out.

She, who normally called her slaves by their first names, called only Noda by his last name to keep her distance.

I'd think, why someone like him? But apparently he was the son of the president of a decently sized company, and there were connections between the parents.

"That Noda… is the D-Class Champion? What on earth is going on…"

"A-anyway, for now, let's just watch his match."

But we'd come to regret deciding to watch it.

"And now, Champion Noda. Entering in his usual style, with slaves attending to him!"

And then a palanquin was carried in, and I twisted my face in disgust.

That person was indeed the Masaomi Noda we knew. There was no mistaking that face, that build.

But what he was now was completely different.

The ones carrying the palanquin were three female Garumon. All of them were quite beautiful, but they were stark naked.

What's more, Noda himself was naked, exposing his fat, hideous body.

And he had three women attending to him there.

The two he was holding under each arm were probably Beastfolk like Adelia. A pair of cat-eared pretty girls.

Their faces resembled each other, so they might've been sisters.

And in Noda's crotch area, another woman. I could only see her from behind, her glossy black hair on full display. Even from that angle she was clearly a stunning beauty, but I couldn't see her face.

Because she had her face buried, single-mindedly, in Noda's crotch. From the way her head was moving, what she was doing was obvious.

But there was something familiar about that back of hers.

A back I could never forget. Beautiful, and yet, my heart refused to believe it.

"… Noda-kun…"

"That bastard Noda. Just because he came to this world, he's making the most of it. What an ugly piece of trash. To think someone that revolting was once one of my slaves…"

Kanan's face was twisted in disgust.

But after the Ichinose incident, we'd known what happened to a man who came to this world.

Noda riding high like that fell well within our predictions.

Which was exactly why Kanan granted me some, however small, recognition for not turning out that way.

… Thunk…

Then the three slave girls set the palanquin down and stationed themselves behind it.

And the two Beastfolk girls who'd had their breasts fondled at Noda's sides stepped forward into the arena.

Both of them had their boobs completely out in erotic form, but they were wearing bodysuits on their limbs and crotches, so they at least looked a little like combat outfits.

… No, those completely exposed breasts were erotic, though.

Both had normal-sized, pretty breasts.

"And now. The Champion's usual battle style! The rules say 3 vs 3, and yet, the first ones he sends out front are the twin Beastfolk sisters, Eine and Kleine! Many a challenger of three has fallen before the combination of these two! Now then, can the challenger break through this wall of Eine and Kleine?! Now, ready… go!"

And the match began.

"Haaaah!"

The Martial Artist Nellie and the Light Swordswoman Alice slashed in, the Wind User Eria provided support, and they all charged at the twin Beastfolk.

But the twin Beastfolk's movements were spectacular.

They sprinted around at high speed, swapped places freely, and if you concentrated attacks on one, she'd go down easy, so they didn't allow that.

They looked like very well-trained Garumon.

That, Noda-kun trained them…

"Uh, ohh…"

He was just panting in pleasure, not giving any instructions.

Ugh, I shouldn't have watched.

Well, he was apparently a fairly accomplished gamer.

Since we'd been on bad terms, I never went head-to-head with him, but I'd seen him passionately bragging in spit-flying detail to other otaku friends about his exploits in online games and competitive games, getting them to roll their eyes.

For this kind of game-system world, this should've been a strong suit of his.

It was a world gamers would drool over. I got the feeling perfectly well.

That said, three on two was apparently overplaying his hand.

The three of them steadily took damage, but eventually Alice's killing-stroke sword caught one of the twins, Eine.

Once one fell, the cooperation no longer meant anything.

Even the other twin, Kleine, fell before Nellie's strike.

But there wasn't a trace of relief on the challenger's face. He was tightening his expression even more, instead.

"They did it! Magnificent, challenger! For the first time in a long while, the two-Garumon wall before the Champion has been defeated. Now then, this is where it really begins!"

The announcer also fanned the situation, hyping it up.

The audience was the same. Their eyes were shining with anticipation.

What was going to happen?

Just as I was watching Noda-kun closely, the moment…

"Uh… uuh… uuuuuh!"

Spurt!

His body convulsed, twitching, and then went limp. It was clear at a glance that he'd come.

Ugh, I saw something I shouldn't have.

"Now, preparations are complete! At last, she's coming. The strongest Garumon, the one who made this Champion the Champion! A fellow otherworlder, like the Champion. Her Value is an extraordinary 6400! And her overwhelming beauty fits that Value! We must thank the gods that we get to see her fight! The Black Snow Dancer!"

And then she stood up.

Fwoosh, her black hair fanned out and spread. And then, like snow, white things fluttered through the air. The moment I realized that they were the white liquid that scumbag had let loose, disgust welled up immediately, but in the moment I saw it, it almost looked like something beautiful.

"… Maika Yukishiro!"

Yeah, that was, without a doubt, the one I'd long been secretly carrying a torch for, the one I'd admired.

My classmate, Maika Yukishiro-san…!

What she had on her body could practically have been called nothing. A black full-body suit, but it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was cut out in the opposite pattern from a swimsuit.

In stark contrast to her purity, her splendidly large, erotic breasts were almost completely on display.

Because of that, the white, full beauty of them and her glowing, cherry-pink nipples were in plain sight.

It was a perverted, erotic outfit, but ah, those gentle eyes, that pure, lovely beauty was, without a doubt, no one else but Maika Yukishiro-san…!

Whoooooaaaa!

Maika! Maika～!

The audience chanted her name. Without my realizing it, in this town she had already become a celebrity, an idol-like presence.

Did he say she became Champion last month? Then that meant Yukishiro-san and Noda had come to this world at least over a month ago.

And then, at Noda's hands, she had been enslaved, and was being forced to fight in that getup.

"Huh, Maika Yukishiro-san!? Why is she in this kind of state…!"

Kanan was surprised too. She and Yukishiro-san had been in different classes and probably not directly acquainted, but as two of the academy's top-tier beautiful girls, they weren't complete strangers either.

I clenched my teeth and balled up my fists.

And then she alighted on the arena without a sound.

And then…

Sharan… shara…

She started moving her hands languidly, slowly.

… Beautiful… A dance.

Like the meaning of her name.

Like ballet dancing. Her breasts jiggled and bounced and were erotic, but more than that, they were beautiful.

Like it had some kind of magic, it bewitched the hearts of us spectators.

My heart was burning hot, my crotch was standing up, and yet my hands and feet were going cold.

"…! It's the Dance of Frost! Don't watch, you'll be unable to move!"

"Not watch? That's impossible! Such a beautiful dance, I'm being drawn in like a curse…"

In the arena, the Garumon girls were in a panic.

They were supposed to have been Garumon of decently high rarity in their own right too. But before Yukishiro-san, they were nothing more than presences who blurred out all at once.

"In any case, attack! That dance is powerful, but it takes several turns for the effect to activate. Take her down before then! Air Blast!"

Boom! And then, the Wind User Eria used what was, as of now, Kanan's killing-blow magic.

In that instant, Yukishiro-san evaded it like a phantom.

"Shadow Step! She'll trigger that even on magic!"

"No good, my fists won't hit her either!"

"Don't give up! No matter how strong, she's still a Garumon. There's no way there's an opponent we can't beat. My Light Sword won't be deceived by her Shadow Step. It can cleave through to the truth alone! It's over, Maika Yukishiro! Big Master's enemy…! Light Sword!"

Alice swung her sword down.

Slash!

"… Ah… ngh."

"Yukishiro-san!"

At her voice, leaking the sound of pain, my own voice slipped out before I could stop it.

"… Eh…!?"

In that instant, our eyes met.

"…"

"…"

It was only an instant, but we definitely held each other's gaze.

"…"

The various words conveyed in that moment, were they nothing more than my delusion?

Akai-kun!? Why are you here?

I'm so embarrassed!

I didn't want you to see me like this…

Don't look. I've already… been tainted.

… Help me…!

I imagined her teary form, and…

"Yukishiro-san!"

I called out to her, strongly, again.

WHAM!

In that moment.

"… She kicked!?"

Yukishiro-san unleashed a kick and sent Alice flying.

"… I'm sorry. I can't afford to lose. Especially now, because a precious friend has come… I have to show off the cool side of me, too, don't I."

Looking down, she murmured that, and then she lifted her head.

"Watch me, Akai-kun. I have grown stronger."

And then, Yukishiro-san smiled, purely, fleetingly, and yet somehow bewitchingly.

"Accel Mirage."

Bashu!

She started moving at a speed my eyes couldn't follow.

"Ngh… Accel Mirage, attacking while accelerating! The countermeasure for this technique is…!"

"In any case, we have to catch up, attack, and stop her movement!"

Bam! Bam!

But under her continuous attacks, all three of them got sent flying.

While that was going on, the elegant, splendid movement of her hands and feet continued. She was fighting while dancing.

"H-haa, haa…"

"Ngh… ah…"

"D-damn…"

Before they realized it, the bodies of the three of them had turned white and frozen, and their movements had slowed. No, they could barely move at all.

"The effect of the Dance of Frost is already…!"

The challenger's instructions had become nothing more than spiritual cheerleading: stand up, get up.

If you couldn't move, there was nothing you could do.

"… Blizzard!"

Centered on her, an intense, wide-area ice-type magic activated.

The freezing chill ate at the three who couldn't move…

And just like that, drained their HP gauges overhead to zero.

What absurd destructive power.

"Total domination! Stronger than any, more beautiful than any! This is Maika Yukishiro! The Champion has successfully defended her title…!"

Whoooooaaaa!

The crowd was beside itself with excitement. Indeed, she was strong, beautiful, and cool in the way she fought.

Even if I hadn't been in love with her, hadn't admired her,

just by watching that fight, you could fall for her with no trouble at all.

As long as, after the fight, she didn't drape herself back over Noda's crotch, that was.

Granted, if she hadn't done that, we would've ended up with no choice but to look directly at Noda's filthy thing.

"And so, the Champion can promote to C-Class if she defends her title next month. The Eora Champion can refuse the promotion and stay in D-Class to remain town governor, but the Champion has indicated her intent to advance to C-Class. Which means we only have one more chance to see Maika Yukishiro fight up close! I can't wait for next month's defense match!"

Whoaa…!

"Yukishiro-san…"

While I was off acting carefree, she was here in this place, going through that.

I had to save her.

That was my decision.