"Osiria!"
I finally found you! god you troublesome kid, I'm never letting you out of my sight again!
"uhh... Liliya, You're killing her"
"this is nothing to Osiria, isn't that right?"
"mommy... she's... right..!"
"a-ahh! sorry! Rin! why didn't you tell me sooner!?"
"but I did... well anyway, why don't we finally attend the tournament? since we already found Little Lily, why don't we head there now? of course, me and Osiria will be watching, as you know, fighting isn't my strong suit"
"yeah, I still remember when you were so shy and in just 6 years, you started to get depressed and lost all will to do anything"
"H-Hey! compared to earth years! 6 years is practically 6 decades!"
"mommy... what's a tournament?"
"ahh? a tournament is where people attend and join a one on one or a group fight to see who's stronger, your father and I are going to attend since we're here, the mission's already finished thanks to Ingrid and Arie taking over, we did uncover one major truth though"
「bye Nick, we'll be going now」" sorry, you guys were saying something?"
"ahh, nothing, anyway looks like the 2nd generation finally took a rest"
"I could tell... well, we're here!
Rin was talking to Nick for quite a while... I wonder what they were talking about... besides that, Osiria seems to be quite excited today, probably because of her finally seeing her parents fight
"you excited finally seeing your mother and father fight?"
she nods her head in silent, still a child kid as ever...
"you two better not slack at the fight, Nick said that these survivors or what they call it are stronger than anything we fought here, they're considered as one of the strongest here and we'll be joining their ranks thanks to these recommendations by Nick"
"of course! it's a tournament and I really doubt that Naoya would pull some punches"
"well... you got that right"
Naoya's been fighting people of different races for decades, even without a weapon, he can distinguish what kind of fighting style the other race will use, but being in a different world has piqued his interest quite a little. thanks to that, Naoya's been training quite a few months for this
(Note: few months is what she said but that's only because Laplace has more days, 2 years is the exact number)
. . .
we finally arrive at the grand arena, it's large! nothing like the arenas in Laplace!"
=welcome to the Grand Tournament A5! I'll be your host, and commentator, the 5th greatest magecrafter and survivor! Mariel Aphrodite! well, of course, that's not my real name! that aside, it seems that we have some special guests today! Julius Vera, why don't you introduced ourselves?=
in the middle of the arena, the man who was said to be Julius took the device and properly introduced himself, along with that, 2 more others introduced themselves as one of the strongest of the survivors, and in turn, called in Rin
=now you see this woman here and her company? they are the people who gave us these powers! Mana! Magic! everything you use in this ordeal! of course, we would believe them to be the strongest! though, please shout if you feel any hostilities towards them=
with the last word she said, a large crowd, about 1/3 of the whole arena (around 20,000 people) shouted, although, we don't understand why, I feel a bit of hostilities
=now, now! everybody! I want you all to listen! I'm not one of them but I'm in favor for them! and we have a proof of that! Rin! why don't you take the mic!=
Rin took the Mic and began to shout with a proud persona
=listen here everybody! I am not their people! I was not born from their grounds! their planet! but why do I have their style? their clothing!? well I tell you this! I was reincarnated to their side!=
silence filled the room
=now! want some proof? well then, I'll tell you! [you guys are complete idiots!]=
"!? u-uhh... Rin?"
"hahaha... just kidding, c'mon! they won't even understand it, just go with the flow"
both me and Naoya began to chuckle a bit, even my child, Osiria was laughing, silently might I add
=now see?! they're laughing! like us! we have emotions like you and right now! both of them want to learn how we fight! I still have m faith in humans today so I just want to ask this! ARE WE THE STRONGEST RACE?!=
the whole arena started to scream, I can definitely say that she succeeded in tempting the whole crowd, our whole point of this was to take the trust of the people here so that we won't have any trouble in the near future and it looks like she succeeded, of course, we were ordered by Mei to do this... seriously... she may be our eldest but we still can't get a hold of her personality
"what did you say Rin?"
"ahh? that? I just spouted some nonsense I can think of on the spot"
"wh- what? are you crazy!?"
"probably... but hey, it worked"
I take a look from the crowd and every single one of them seems to be cheering... well... I guess it did work...
「haahhh... thank you miss Rin, I couldn't have gotten that much of a crowd without you」
「no problem! although, half of it didn't really make sense to me, I just spo-」
=well without further ado! let's start the Grand Tournament! winner takes the highest spot except for these three of course, and will also get the grand prize of 10 million bits gathered by our one and only! our Guild Master! Nick Astra!=
the lights showed a direction to where the glass spectating area is, it seems to be a VIP spot, showing that place, we see a glimpse of both Nick and Lin, so it's those two huh?
the tournament starts off with a group of people vs another group of people... I don't quite understand what they're saying but with their looks, it seems like they're having a friendly bout with each other
=as the light of mana shines the sky and pierces the heavens. dignify the start of the battle! START!=
as soon as her last word was stated, the ground began to shift and transform into a grassland, bushes and trees were scattered with mountains as a source of barrier, this is nothing like the arenas that we have in Laplace!
the groups infiltrated each other resulting in a one on one fight while the people on the back giving them support on the rear lines- oh/
=oohh! now that's what you call a backstab! no? wait! it was their enemy in disguise! their rear line is incapacitated! it seems like the wretched plug is losing this! without their support healing and defending, it seems like they have lost this! oh? what's this!?=
the support that was incapacitated was being engulfed in some vine-like things, this... is the magic of earth!?
=it seems like their support isn't still out! 5 hounds of treants have been summoned! no one has ever seen this kind of magic! is this a new revelation!?=
the hounds are definitely stronger... stronger than them at least...
=one by one! the pulsing dragons are losing its members one by one and the wretched plugs have one! congratulations! you now proceed to the next set!=
this... this certainly something useful... if someone were to abuse this it would be a cause for concern...
. . .
. . .
. . .
the group fight has finished its first set and this time, the duo battles are about to start, this is where we finally start
"you ready for this Liliya?"
"mm! of course I am! just watch us here Osiria, why don't you enjoy it with your auntie?"
"so you're also with calling me auntie? well... stop..."
=this time! we're in the second batch of the tournament and we're now starting of with our strongest fighters! what will be the winners of this fight!? the visitors or the Home! well then? why don't you all chant it with me!?=
=as the light of mana shines the sky and pierces the heavens. dignify the start of the battle! START!=
the ground shifted into the grasslands but there's no trees or such, it's just the mountains around us, and we don't even see nor hear anything in the outside... it's just the clear blue sky...
「it seems like we're going to be first...」
「well? be polite at least! I know they won't know what we're saying but it's best to bow to them at least!」
both of them bow and we so to, I guess this is their etiquette? well then?
"why don't you charge off first Naoya? care to show them your power?"
"sure"
Naoya began to walk with his dual short scythes, Laurenyoran
Naoya's equipped with his oldest equipment with minor improvements, the burned one that was his former cloth, and even without the bandages in his chest from the past, he's still quite formidable, if not... quite seductive...
「looks like he's first... probably sizing us up, why don't you go Francis?」
「fine then, I'll show you results, Julius」
"a one on one in a duo fight... seems like this will go well"
the other one's holding a long sword, it seems quite unconventional but in Naoya's case, range is everything... well... if it was him from the past
immediately, the sounds of scraping metal were heard immediately, fast slashes from Naoya were enough to stagger his opponent, if he was using dark Strega then this would've ended faster...
「Francis! that's enough!」
「Y-yes!」
the opponent suddenly retreats, then the other one, who introduced himself earlier is next... he's using a katana... with light clothing too... he's probably the same as what we know from the human country as samurai or something...
"well then? Liliya, you're turn"
"gotcha, what should I use Naoya?"
"same thing, Jaded Fel"
"that greatsword?! well... if you want then"
I summon my sword from the Ethers and also summon my old battle wear, the one that Kirin gave us as training equipment
"although this was modified to suit my size... it still feels too short... but it is nostalgic"
"hahaha, it does, huh? without the bandages, it does feel a bit airy without it"
"Well then, I'll be taking the center for now then"
「so it's the lady I'll be fighting? I wish it was the other guys since I don't hit ladies but this is a tournament」
"I get that look a lot, don't worry, I won't fail your expectations"
we both bow and he began to size me up, looking quite cautiously at every movement I do, it's nothing like fighting with the military here.
"let's start it off with the minor, let's see how you'll react to this"
I generated a forest of petals and somehow, the grasslands that we were in turned into a patch of flowers?
"hmm? I never had this ability... well, it's still a great improvement"
I can control the flower patch, this... is might be better than I thought
「flowers ehh? I guess your name's proper enough to have a skill like this, why don't I cut it all? huh?」
he began to slash on the petals but everyone in my world knows that doing that will only worsen it, there's not much reason to do it either
「drat, I didn't think of this... burn like the flaming sun! Corona!」
a huge heatwave brushed the arena burning every flower but not the petals
"I see... so the flowers aren't with one with the petals... then what about this"
「Impossible! no one would've been able to resist that hot heatwave!」
"why don't I start attacking now, I'll put my trust on you, Jade"
I attacked through the petals and with the petals on the battlefield, this would be a lot easier. his blocking every hit I give him but even he can't follow my attacks, most of it barely blocked, being pushed back in the corner
「shit! I'll help you Julius!」
"Naoya!"
"on it!"
with both of us fighting at the same time, we could finish this quicker than expected. Naoya began to use his bone manipulation as armor while I still fight with graceful and flawless styles, not even allowing a single counterattack
「damnit... Francis! step back!」
「yes!」
"haahhh... phew, wasn't that fun Naoya?"
"I'm a little glad that I used this battle wear, this heatwave is close to the heat of a star honestly..."
"hahaha, if it wasn't for my petals we would've needed to finish it off in one strike"
the one I was fighting grab hold of one of the petals, he seems to be analyzing it, smart move but it won't work
「these petals... it's coated in some liquid substance... so that's how they could survive this heatwave... are you okay Francis?」
「yeah... mind turning your Corona off? honestly, a normal human wouldn't be able to survive in this god damn heat」
「a-ahh right... if it doesn't work then don't use it huh...」
we can feel the place getting somewhat colder... wait... probably too cold... lights that look like our northern lights... I see...
「it's technically a blizzard... but since you'll be changing the temperature again, why not lead you?」
"This isn't the byproduct of the cold breeze... Liliya, watch out and don't touch the lights..."
"gotcha"
he began to dash through with the petals giving him way, our opponents' vision is hindered terribly thanks to this but...
"I see... so this is his magic huh?"
「thanks Francis... I'll take care of this one」
「gotcha, now that we can use this to our advantage」
"Alright! Naoya! try summoning Osiria now!"
"you sure about that? is that even allowed?"
"why don't you call Rin?"
"Alright then..."
I'll distract both of them in the meantime
「their planning something」
「I know! target that guy first!」
Osiria's ability... the power to strengthen a whole crowd she deems to be her allies, it's our trump card but... we honestly don't need it, we just want her to have fun with us
"It's fine as long as it was summoned by magic. it seems to be the norm here"
"you serious about that? then summon our daughter! let her have fun with this"
a light shown in my back, after it dimmed down, a little girl, our daughter is revealed.
「y-you serious? why a child!?」
「keep your guard up!」
"mommy... why am I here?"
"wanna have fun with us? I'm sure you'd want some experience? don't worry, your father and I will protect you"
she seems to be determined... well... she's always like that, her smile puts me in a good mood
"Alright Osiria! why don't you start with a strengthening wind!"
"yes.."
a tailwind formed towards our favor, and with it, also strengthening us and turning the petals into a torrential breeze of sharp petals
「Shit! Francis! defensive position!」
"it looks like everything's set up properly. Naoya, Osiria, would you two amuse me with the final hit?"
"mm... as you say, mommy"
with a silent chant, a closed, white flower protruded in the middle of the arena
"Osiria, you've trained for this harder than even your parents, as your father and as a captain lieutenant of the soldiers of Laplace, I'm proud of you"
blushing quite slightly, steeling her nerves and further strengthening the flower, she finally executes it and blood poured from the tip to the ground
「shit! Francis! take the air! now!」
「y-yes!」
"haaahhh... this... has never been much more joyous than before!"
with the face of a predator, blood began to envelope Naoya and formed a long sword in his hand"
"NOW!!"
. . .
. . .
=T-... That's the end! the Fallen has won the first match! and probably the last match...=
the match ended with no casualties, despite the huge slash in their abdomen, it was shallow enough thanks to Naoya's blood manipulation"
「hey, you're Rin right? boy! that was a great match, I would've never thought that there were people capable of doing that」
「hahaha, well, it's just a normal match for them, compared to fighting in their world, I would say that they were holding back」\
「a-ahh!? is that so... hahaha, now I feel so weak, I'm a survivor, the highest-ranked adventurer but I still feel somewhat low when I'm compared with them」
"so Liliya? Naoya? how was the fight?"
"you should tell that to our child here"
"o-oh! that's right! little Lily, why didn' you tell your auntie about that?"
"because... I want it a surprise"
this child... the blood rose was her strongest ability, if it wasn't for us, I couldn't think of her ever using the ability "the bleeding flower patch"
"mind telling me more of this Liliya?"
"ahh! of course. Osiria's support blood-wind art is called the bleeding flower patch. like mine, the bleeding flower patch has the ability to support friend and foe alike, but thanks to Naoya's mixture with the blood pool around him, he can easily control it even if there's another blood art manipulator, but the bleeding flower patch isn't supposed to give blood in the first place, its primary function, as to what Mei said, was to produce hallucinogenic spores and many other but with a few modifications with Naoya's blood pool, she can now use it like this, further improving her ability"
it's honestly quite baffling that Mei has completed the skill modifying equipment years after Kirin's death but if it's for our improvement, then I could say it's a great change
"maybe I'll ask Mei for one..."
"no can do, if you want, you'd need consent from the other party if they want it since modifying an art or a skill of a person needs another skill that has the similar attributes the other person wants"
"yeah... and thankfully, both me and my child are extremely compatible with each other, now that I don't need to bleed that much to release my blood art"
Naoya's other remark pointed out what something I also missed. blood modifying also needs compatibility of the other person and after a few research, it's been stated that the chances of a person having a compatibility rate is extremely low
「so? how was the fighting Rin?」
「they seem to strengthen a bit, thanks for your help Mariel, or should I call you Chelle?」
「no, not a great name, but anyways, it was nice seeing you again, with magic none other than that, mind Introducing me?」
"they seem to be in their own conversation"
"agreed, we only looked at their strengths as Ether users, I believe that we have no other reasons to stay here, what about you Osiria?"
"I'll... stay with father... I want... candy..."
this kid... "well, I'll be going back to report to Mei, I suppose you two will stay on the inn? or rather, the hotel?"
"yeah, Osiria might need some sleep too, be careful out there"
Naoya's always so cautious and protective when I'm alone by myself, it's his cute side when he's the serious and stern Naoya in the sidelines.