■ Gav Dropout □
The new technique, Wind Current Pill (風流丸), is a kind of timed bomb.
It’s a remodeled version of the Hexa Spell “Magnificent Gust” that I’ve often used before. Not only have we succeeded in miniaturizing the projectile, but now delayed explosions are also possible.
Unlike the instant-cast magic Magnificent Gust, Wind Current Pill involves throwing a ball containing trapped wind at the target, which then explodes at the caster’s desired timing, dealing significant damage.
Just like right now.
KWAHAAAAAAAA!!
The Wind Current Pill I threw into the gaping maw that was trying to swallow me whole exploded with a thunderous roar just above its head.
The resulting backlash was incredibly powerful. While attempting to hold my ground by bracing myself with both arms, I was ultimately sent flying backward like a piece of paper until I managed to barely avoid being knocked out of bounds by grabbing onto a brick that had popped out of the floor.
Immediately afterward, Gav’s massive body crashed onto the stage, sending up a large cloud of dust.
GUGUGUGUGU!
Fortunately, he fell closer to the ground; otherwise, if he’d fallen from high up in the sky like before, there might have been collateral damage among the audience as well.
Thanks to being hit directly twice by the Hexa Spells, the giant body of Gav lying on the stage didn’t even flinch.
“…Did I finish him off?”
I muttered unconsciously upon seeing the scene, only to quickly cover my mouth when I realized I had misspoken.
THUMP—
Right at that moment, Gav’s tail, which had previously gone limp, suddenly moved.
Had he regained his senses? Slowly rising from the crater while wobbling, Gav swung his head violently left and right once, then began laughing loudly.
[This is it! This is exactly what I wanted! A battle where our lives burn like dry grass! How long has it been since I’ve felt this sensation?!]
He is truly unreasonable.
No, how can someone who has endured this much simply pretend to fall over already?
Why does he keep getting back up like an otter?
Sensing that the fight might go all the way, I hastily checked the remaining amount of mana left in my body.
‘…If I push myself to the limit, I might be able to unleash one more big attack.’
While thinking this and preparing to recast Whirlwind Dreg Bone, which I had momentarily held back, Gav suddenly raised his short forelimbs, each having only two claws.
For a moment, I thought it might be some kind of warning, but upon closer inspection, it seemed like he was signaling for the referee.
And just as I noticed the gesture late, the referee, who had evacuated to a distant place to avoid being caught in the aftermath of the fight, rushed towards us.
“Wh-What is the matter, Mr. Gabriel?”
Gav, who had been staring vacantly at the panting referee who had arrived breathlessly, placing his hands on his knees, suddenly started emitting light from his body.
The enormous dinosaur-like body gradually shrank in size, and after the light faded, he returned to the human form I knew.
Although dragon scales and a tail still remained on his body, so technically, he could be described as a dragon-human hybrid.
Anyway, after using Polymorph again, Gav crossed his arms and spoke confidently.
“I’m withdrawing.”
“Huh?”
“I said I’m withdrawing.”
That single sentence uttered nonchalantly by him caused quite a stir within the arena.
The sudden withdrawal of the champion, who was thought to still be capable of fighting, left many people dissatisfied with the anticlimactic ending.
People gathered en masse to ask Gav why he chose to withdraw.
His response was this:
“If we continued fighting, it would probably turn into a fight to the death. That doesn’t align with the purpose of the tournament, which is to discover new generations of demons, does it? That’s why I withdrew first. Besides, I passed out twice, but the other side remained fully conscious, so clearly, it’s a judged loss anyway.”
An unexpectedly logical answer.
Still, there were plenty of people who couldn’t accept it, but when Gav mentioned the precedent he set during the final match of the previous tournament where he made his opponent surrender, those who had come chasing after him, claiming the tournament was a joke, had no choice but to return without any rebuttal.
As a result, despite putting forth my best effort in the fight, I ended up feeling like I had received the championship title for free.
…What is this uncomfortable feeling?
The ceremony for transferring the title of champion took place under the watchful eyes of all the spectators.
Originally, it marked the appearance of a new owner for the throne that Gav had held for 50 years.
Draped in what appeared to be ceremonial red fabric, Gav personally placed the laurel crown on my head.
I heard it’s a tradition passed down through the demon tribe from long ago.
I asked Gav, who was grinning broadly, “Is this fine?”
“What is?”
“I mean, handing over the position of champion to me.”
At this, Gav tilted his head in confusion as if hearing something incomprehensible.
“Well, it doesn’t really matter to me. I kept the champion’s seat because there was no one who could beat me, you know.”
Since the person involved says so, there’s nothing I can say about it.
After sitting in the exclusive seat for champions located at the highest point of the arena while wearing the victor’s emblem, the laurel crown, the spectators watching cheered and applauded thunderously.
Even though the end was somewhat awkward, everyone knew that Gav and I fought on equal terms.
That’s why they acknowledged it.
I responded by waving my hand appropriately to the crowd.
I couldn’t find Camilla earlier because she was in a blind spot, but this time, I clearly spotted her sitting in the audience.
Her usual expressionless face was clapping harder than anyone else, which felt both touching and amusing.
“How’s it going? The view from this seat?”
I shrugged casually in response to Gav’s unexpected question beside me.
“Not bad.”
Being treated this way is quite novel for me, as I’ve always been a hero.
A feeling that comes with living a long life.
“GYAHHAHAT, you’ll have to get used to it from now on.”
“Why is that?”
Then Gav patted my shoulder and said,
“Because I don’t think anyone stronger than you will appear anytime soon.”
“…….”
Do I have to do this again next year?
After all the events of the martial arts tournament were concluded, I was invited to Gav’s mansion.
Originally, I should have gone alone, but when I asked if I could bring the others along, he readily agreed.
Since the visit to his mansion was scheduled for evening, there was still plenty of time left.
Thanks to this, I was able to return to the contestant waiting room and catch up with Ozma, who was there.
“I didn’t expect you to actually win.”
Feeling somewhat abashed, as if bowing deeply, I scratched the back of my head and laughed awkwardly.
“To be honest, it was pretty close.”
If Gav hadn’t withdrawn and we had fought until the end, I might have lost.
Because there was no way I could think of to defeat a monster that wouldn’t fall even after being struck by hundreds of millions of volts of lightning and having a pressure bomb detonated inside its mouth.
If only I had wiped out the Fat-Man from the start, it might have been different, but that spell, although powerful, had too wide a range of effect to use.
In many ways, it was a nominal but ineffective magic.
However, in Ozma’s eyes, it seemed like I was being modest, so she smiled bitterly and fidgeted with the teacup in her hand.
“Kaldrathsch, you’re different from me. Since Gav recognizes you as someone worthy, it’s better for you to carry yourself with confidence.”
I quietly observed Ozma’s profile beside me and asked,
“Will you honor our agreement now?”
To which Ozma nodded straightforwardly.
“It seems so. After all, I did make a promise.”
Her attitude suggested that it wasn’t entirely agreeable, so I decided to mention it anyway.
“I genuinely believe, Ozma, that you will be able to defeat Gav someday.”
“Me?”
I nodded.
“It doesn’t matter what experiences or paths you’ve taken so far. I’ll make sure you win.”
“But it’s something I’ve failed at for 35 years. Who knows how many more failures lie ahead?”
Shaking my head after hearing her words, I replied,
“In my opinion, Ozma, you’re an incredible gemstone. It’s just that your benchmark has been wrong all this time.”
“Wrong benchmark?”
“That’s right. Isn’t Gav called a mature dragon? If he’s around two hundred years old, there’s no way someone with merely 35 years of training could catch up to the experience he’s accumulated.”
I heard that Gav’s current age, calculated according to typical demon standards, would be about mid-twenties, but that’s a flawed calculation.
Living for hundreds of years is not the same as living for twenty.
The experience and skills amassed over such a long period do not fade away.
“On the contrary, the fact that Ozma has reached beneath Gav’s chin with far less than half the time he’s lived is almost cheating. I believe that someone like you will eventually surpass Gav and become a great demon.”
“…Is that so?”
Ozma’s expression finally brightened a little.
Truthfully, my words were mere sophistry.
No one can guarantee that more diligent practice will allow Ozma to defeat Gav.
But it’s not entirely impossible either.
When she reaches the Sword Master level by breaking through her limits,
and ascends to the sixth tier like me,
she might really be able to defeat Gav someday.
For the present-day Ozma, that hope alone seemed sufficient.
“Then there’s nothing I can do.”
Ozma said this as she stood up, brushing herself off, and extended her right hand to me.
“I look forward to working with you in the future. Teacher.”
I shook her offered hand and said,
“Leave it to me, Princess.”
Though said half-jokingly, surprisingly, Ozma blushed but didn’t get angry.
