Tenkomori: The Homecoming Club Conquers Another World
Chapter 127

Chapter 127.2. The Third Year at the Academy - Martial Arts Tournament Preliminaries (2)

Calmly attending lectures, I spent my free time crafting magical tools, brewing potions, and honing blacksmithing skills.

Time passed, and February arrived, marking the first day of the martial arts tournament.

Dressed in newly tailored noble attire, I arrived at the Laruluk Academy grounds in a hired carriage.

Heading to the arena's waiting room, I found it packed with participants in a spacious interior.

This year, 251 third-year students were competing in the tournament.

February was for preliminaries, with the main matches starting in March.

The final day, in mid-March, featured a mock battle between the third-year swordsmanship champion and the upperclass champion.

The magical showcase was held before the mock battle, so progressing smoothly would mean a hectic month and a half.

After waiting a while, an attendant came to announce the opening ceremony.

As we entered the arena, applause greeted us, but compared to two years ago, it felt noticeably subdued.

The heavy snowfall seemed to have had an effect here as well.

While weak sunlight trickled down today, the clouds were dense, and the temperature remained low.

Even Laruluk's cheering squad lacked their usual vigor.

The headmaster of Laruluk Academy, Bens Palux, took the stage and declared the event open.

It seemed the real show began with the main matches, as the council chairman was absent.

Instead, an unfamiliar lecturer took the podium to read out the tournament rules.

Weapons must be blunted or non-lethal.

Any armor, except magical items, was allowed, but falling while wearing heavy metal armor without getting up would count as a loss.

All magic was prohibited, including attack-type skills resembling magical effects.

For me, that meant no [Wind Fang Rush].

Targeting vital points was also forbidden, as was attacking the head with anything other than martial arts.

That about summed it up.

In short, fight nobly like a knight or noble, without dying.

The matches in the first round of preliminaries were ten minutes long and held in four split arenas.

From the second round, matches extended to thirty minutes with two split arenas, and after that, matches were held one at a time with the same time limit.

It was a measure to speed things along, though in the past, when there were more participants, they resorted to a battle royale format for initial screening.

After the ceremony, participants not in the first match were sent back to the waiting room.

With the freedom to do as we pleased, I decided to watch from the stands.

"I'm nervous,"

Hearing the voice, I turned to see Elliot and Nils standing there.

"That's surprising. You get nervous too, Elliot?"

"Of course,"

Elliot nodded with a stiff smile.

Beside him, Nils anxiously glanced around the waiting room.

"Relax a bit. With your skills, you won't lose easily."

"Thank you. But... Tarvitt is in the seeded group..."

"I have Lambert! There's no way I can win against him!"

Elliot groaned, while Nils chimed in with his own bad luck.

I sighed before speaking.

"Sure, they're strong, but there's no such thing as a guaranteed outcome. Don't give up before you try."

"True. Luckily, we don't face Alter until the main matches."

"Exactly! No way we're up against unbeatable Alter yet!"

"You two..."

Watching them nod to each other, I pressed my forehead with my hand.

The academies of the previous year's champions and the three major academies were granted seeded positions.

For us, that was Lambert and me.

Though I felt bad for them, my bracket lacked any renowned skilled opponents.

It seemed I'd have to wait until the main matches for a proper fight.

As a seeded participant, I had no matches on the first day.

After wishing Elliot and Nils luck, I made my way to the stands.

Since we were participating, Ted and the others had come to watch for the first time in our three years.

Naturally, Quince and the others were there too.

Looking around the stands, I saw Quince and Kyle waving energetically.

Heading over, I took the seat Elphimia had saved for me.

They were unusually quiet, and when I glanced over, Ted and the others were focused on the match.

The one fighting was—Karmal.

Swinging an unfamiliar one-handed sword, he somehow managed to fend off attacks with his footwork and shield.

While he held his own, his opponent seemed to have the upper hand.

"Something feels... off."

Ted murmured his observation, and both Gemma and Nails agreed.

Elphimia, Lola, and Lily, unfamiliar with close combat or battles, exchanged puzzled looks.

"Really? It looks normal to me."

"He's not good with [one-handed swords]."

Lola and Lily nodded as if they understood, while Elphimia prompted me with a glance.

"A scythe?"

She whispered softly.

"Most likely, that's his specialty."

"[One-Handed Swords] are rank 1 too, though."

"After all that training, that's where he's at. He's just making do with [Shield 1] and [Martial Arts 2]."

"Not exactly knight material, huh?"

"Not gonna sugarcoat it, no."

In the end, Karmal fought until the time ran out but lost the match.

Afterward, Felix, Elliot, and Nils competed, securing safe victories.

I watched for potential dark horses, but none surpassed them.

The first round of preliminaries would last several days.

There were bound to be hidden talents, but—

If so, they were likely seeded. Like Tarvitt.

◇◇◇◇