Chapter 15 - Substitute
My member, the warrior Jouga, has won against Jake from the Black Dragon Slayer.
I was happy to see that my stake had increased by a large margin.
My plan to let the flesh cut the bone, and to target Jake after he attacked, was probably a success.
However, I was worried about Jouga, who was bleeding profusely after being stabbed in the neck and forcing himself to move.
A few of us went to the infirmary to check on him.
「Sorry, brother, I told you I could still do it.」
said Jouga, who was lying on the floor with a bandage on his neck.
It's a good thing he won, but I guess he's still seriously injured.
I heard that the decision will not be overturned with Jouga's victory, but the doctor has stopped the next match.
「Well, don't push yourself too hard, because if you beat A-ranked Jake, you're already big deal.」
「Heh, right. I've heard that Jake has won before, and he's another challenge.」
「Yeah.」
The smiling Jouga is also very positive. Even if he doesn't win today, he can do it again next time.
「I mean, it really doesn't make sense. I think it's natural to be careless when attacking from there. Isn't the decision strange? Isn't it strange?」
Jake, who is also lying next to him in a cozy bed, complains in a cowardly way. I don't think he's going to die at this rate.
「All right, Jake, go talk to the judge. Juga is disqualified, so you can move up to the finals as a loser.」
I say.
「What? No, I can't get up right now. ......」
「Then, sleep quietly. You should get over your injury as soon as possible and win the next round. Besides, a man who gracefully admits defeat and praises the winner must be cool in the eyes of women.」
「What!? Oh, that's right! Jouga, you're a great guy. Nice guts to attack from there!」
You're not so tough. I'm sure Jake won't resent me for this.
「No, no, no. I'm as good as defeated. You're really strong, Jake.」
You want to be popular too, Jouga?
「Look, the two guys fighting in the finals are that joke! If you don't get excited here, who will? It's the King's order, do something about it.」
「No, we can't do that, Your Majesty. ...... No matter how much His Majesty's orders, we can't do that.」
There seemed to be some kind of dispute between the king and the attendant in the hallway outside the infirmary.
Ugh, I made eye contact with the attendant.
「Alec-san! If you know His Majesty, could you please tell him?」
He's coming towards me with a stern look.
「What do you mean? I'm only an acquaintance of His Majesty the King, and I'm no servant of his.」
「How dare you? You're the only one who talks to me like that. Alec.」
「Your Majesty, that's... that's a rude thing to say.」
「Well then, this is a rude situation. Listen to my idea and agree with me, Alec. It's that simple. No, you don't have to hear it, you can just agree with it.」
The king smirks, though.
「That's absurd. So what were you trying to order me to do?」
「The final. It's the finals, and with both of the Mad King's potential opponents in this state, it's not going to be another match. I've heard that the semi-finalist, Ione, is out of sight.」
「She's out of sight? Didn't you order Ione to do something?」
I've got a bad feeling about this, so I'll point out the king's evil plan to expose it first.
「Don't speak ill of others. Ione's absence is quite convenient for me, but I'm not going to set it up. Since you're the leader, go find Ione. If you don't find her by the next match time, my plan will work. Am I right?」
The attendant who looked at the king wiped off his sweat with a handkerchief and shook his head.
「No, Your Majesty, I'm afraid the match is canceled. ......」
「No, you can't cancel that! If the match is canceled for such a trivial reason, the audience will be angry.」
「Sigh」
「What's more, it's the final match.」
「Saki, go find Ione and Serina as soon as you can.」
I'll instruct her since the situation it's getting suspicious
「Roger!」
「Don't rush. Take your time.」
The king is going to say something unnecessary, though.
「You know, Your Majesty, the plan you have in mind is different from ...... the Mad King's uncontested victory, isn't it?」
Hannah ask him, but you shouldn't ask him that. The king's eyes lit up with joy. I've been trying not to ask him.
「Oh, I'm so glad you asked, Hannah. Of course you did. The audience is there to see the battle. No one wants to see a no-win situation, except for those who bet on the winner. My plan is to have a substitute fight the final. Well, don't worry, even if he wins, he won't steal the championship. It's an exhibition match. Fortunately, we have a famous and skilled warrior here.」
「So, who's going to be his agent?」
I asked, bracing myself to tell him that if he asked me to do it, I would absolutely refuse.
「It's me.」
The king says with his chest out.
「「「 Eeehhh? 」」」
The strongest "Mad King" who has killed many opponents, and the king himself is challenging him?
「Gareth, that's the part you have to stop His Majesty. As the Guard Chief.」
I say to the guards who stand aside and keep quiet.
「Sigh, I already tried to stop him, but he said he would fire me right here and now if I refused. Then he have to appoint the next Guard chief, but now there is a complicated factional dispute, so it is not easy to do ......」
Is that what you're worried about?
The funny thing about this country is that they expect the king to survive even if he fights the Mad King.
And I don't mind if it's a country I don't care about, but I'm still rather fond of the Kingdom of Grandsword. Including the king.
So this is the only solution to this problem.
I sighed and opened my mouth.
「I had no choice. If it's an exhibition match, then it should be me or Sarah, who is A-ranked opponent. You don't think you're going to abandon your position as king by leaving your seat in the final of a public game, do you? I know a decent king when I see one. That's not exactly a match for the King.」
「Umuu, It hurts when you hit me like that. But if I stand on the ring and look at it, isn't it possible?」
「「「 No, sir 」」」
We all say it clearly in unison.
「I can't help it. I'm not going to force you to do something that no one else agrees with. But, Alec, you're the one who raised the objection. Why don't you ask Sarah to do the same?」
「Well, that's fine. Let's go back upstairs.」
「Tsk.」
The king clicks his tongue deliberately, but it doesn't sound like he's really angry, but more like he's in a caring mood, so I'll let it go. He had a little grin on his face, though.
「Oh, Alec, how was Jouga?」
When I returned, Sarah asked me with concern.
「The doctor had to stop him, but he'll be fine in three days.」
「I'm glad to hear that he's okay. I can heal him faster with recovery magic, but I'm sorry, I don't think it's a good idea to borrow the power of the gods unnecessarily.」
Sierra said, but Fianna was just looking out for her like that. We don't have any plans to fight for a while, and the other members can cover for us, so let's let Jouga rest. We're not in a dungeon, you know.
「Sarah, I need to talk to you about something.」
I've decided to talk to her about the finals.
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