Since Vigdis and Liolikin belonged to Groups 9 and 15 respectively, there was a long gap in the middle.
So, we made use of this break to have lunch and even sparred a bit.
For the record, only Reysir, Vigdis, and I participated in the sparring. Just the three of us.
Liolikin hadn’t competed in the preliminaries yet, so instead of joining in recklessly, he just sat still to conserve his strength.
But that didn’t mean Liolikin got to rest comfortably.
“LFotot…!”
“Eek…!”
As you can see from the dialogue above, Liolikin had to undergo training that involved facing an even greater fear(?).
You’d think he’d be used to it by now.
But the fact that Liolikin still trembled at Yor’s gaze made me wonder if there was any point in continuing this so-called training.
‘Still, since Yor stepped up for my sake, I’ll keep my mouth shut!
Anyway, if Liolikin gets eliminated in the preliminaries, that so-called training ends today too.
If that happens, I’ll just tell Yor, ‘You did your best,’ and comfort him.
After listing all that, I wonder if it sounds like I’m certain Liolikin will be eliminated?
Correct. That’s exactly what I expect.
It can’t be helped…
‘Liolikin’s never once managed to attack during all his sparring matches!
Of course, no matter how well you defend, you can’t win a match by just blocking.
And actually knocking your opponent down physically is even more impossible.
Liolikin himself seemed to know his own problem, as his face had turned ashen by the time we returned to the auditorium.
He looked even worse than when he’d been threatened by Yor(?).
“Hey, after this tournament ends, should we go hang out again? By then, Liolikin might not be with us anymore. Still, let’s have even more fun than last time.”
Reysir said this just as the final match for Group 14 was about to begin.
At first glance, it sounded rather heartless.
But in truth, it was clearly meant to give Liolikin motivation.
In other words, Reysir was expressing his hope that Liolikin would achieve something in this tournament and be able to stay with us.
‘Whether he admits it or not, Reysir must have gotten attached to Liolikin.’
If Reysir’s words could help Liolikin pull himself together, that’d be good news for me.
After all, that means I get a usable shield.
That’s why I decided not to say, ‘Once the tournament is over, we’ll have to start preparing for finals, so there won’t be any time to play.’
“Uh… so, you mean… without me…?”
“If you don’t want that, just fulfill the condition Karbaldr suggested.”
“Th-that’s…”
“You know what it is, right?”
“Y-yeah, I know…”
With Liolikin mumbling and trailing off, their conversation came to an end.
Not long after, Liolikin’s name was called.
“Uh, um, well then… I-I’ll be back…?”
“Be brave..!”
“If you can’t do that, at least try to muster up some desperation.”
Vigdis was the first to respond to Liolikin’s clear expectation for words of encouragement.
She couldn’t hide her worried expression as she carefully cheered him on.
Reysir followed up with a bit of advice.
“Do whatever you want, whether you try hard or not.”
“Yaoong nyaaa myaaa.”
I spat out words that fit my character.
When I said stuff like this, Reysir took it as tsundere-style encouragement, but Liolikin just looked hurt.
I have no idea what he was expecting from me.
Soon after, Liolikin stepped onto the arena.
We could watch him up close, as most of the students had left the auditorium since the preliminaries were nearly over.
Only the participants from Groups 15 and 16, and a handful of friends who stayed to cheer them on, were left.
“Don’t get scared just from appearances. Your opponent is a useless coward….”
We could clearly hear Liolikin’s opponent muttering to himself.
“I remember that guy from the Martial Arts Lecture.”
Reysir recognized the face of Extrac, who had stepped onto the arena.
If he attended that lecture, he probably saw Liolikin making a fool of himself and getting thrown out during sparring.
Considering he’s now facing Liolikin’s intimidating appearance with a huge shield and mace, it’s no wonder he’s feeling bold.
“Hiyaaah!”
Extrac shouted as he swung his weapon at Liolikin.
Maybe he thought there was nothing to gain from provoking the survival instincts of a timid giant—he didn’t even bother to channel Aether into his weapon.
-Clang!
Apparently, the sparring so far hadn’t been completely pointless, as Liolikin managed to raise his shield and block the attack.
But the problem was, he couldn’t counterattack after that.
Liolikin glanced at his opponent, but when their eyes met, he let out a squeak and shrank back.
Exactly the same as when he sparred with us.
Seeing Liolikin act so pitiful, his opponent’s expression grew more confident.
Extrac spent five minutes merrily banging on Liolikin’s shield, and the professors awarded him a victory by decision.
“T-this is, uh… a problem…? W-why? How? Why?”
Liolikin trudged off the arena, mentally shattered.
He seemed frustrated with himself for not taking a single step forward during the match. He even had tears brimming in his eyes.
I could read both unfairness and frustration on his face.
‘Well…, it’s not like Liolikin is timid by choice!’
The real culprit is the settings decided by Senna, the author.
Come to think of it, in the original work, Liolikin never had a scene where he attacked. Even though it was mentioned he carried a mace.
Realizing he was just being toyed with in the palm of the author’s hand, I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Liolikin.
“Kyaooo~!”
“Eeeek….”
Suddenly, Yor got angry.
Really angry.
“Ooooooo-!”
“Hiii….”
“Oooooooo―”
“Uuugh….”
“Ooooooooooo―.”
“……”
Did he realize I was feeling sorry for Liolikin?
Or was he just displeased that, despite all his hard training, Liolikin still hadn’t overcome his fear?
To me, Yor still looked cute and adorable, but even so, the aura the baby dragon gave off seemed unusually intense.
If I felt that way, imagine how it must have been for timid Liolikin.
He looked more terrified than ever, his body hunched and trembling.
With Liolikin in such a state, it was no surprise that the professor overseeing the preliminaries turned his gaze toward Yor and me.
“……”
Fortunately, Yor stopped growling before the professor could give him a warning.
Then, as if he’d never threatened Liolikin at all, he started rubbing his head against my face and meowing cutely.
It was pure instinct for me to stroke Yor’s fluffy mane. Who could resist petting such an adorable baby dragon when he acts all cutesy?
Apparently, Yor’s harmless act worked, as the professor’s gaze shifted from us to Liolikin.
A look of disappointment appeared on the professor’s face.
It wasn’t just the professor. Even the participants from Group 14, who were scheduled to compete with Liolikin, and the few spectators remaining, all seemed to view him with disappointment.
‘If the preliminaries end like this, with Liolikin accomplishing nothing, he’ll be branded a laughingstock in no time…’
To sum up Liolikin’s situation in a word, it was like he was sitting right in the middle of a last-ditch stand.
But the one who set up that desperate stand wasn’t Liolikin himself, but my baby dragon.
“Tsk…. If he just gathers his courage and charges in just once, he’d realize it’s nothing special….”
Pretending to talk to myself, I dropped a hint.
If he still couldn’t muster up the courage to try just once and kept cowering in place, there was nothing more I could do for him.
“Really, Karbaldr, you…”
“……?”
“…Nothing. Never mind.”
Reysir suddenly spoke up, but then closed his mouth without getting to the point.
I was sure he opened his mouth intending to tease me about how kind I was or something, but he must’ve lost the mood halfway through.
I didn’t know why, but since it was better to let things be, I decided not to pry.
There were other things that needed my attention right now.
“J-just once…. It’s nothing special anyway….”
Liolikin began to mutter those words over and over, breathing heavily.
Maybe he’d finally realized that avoiding small crises only brings bigger ones down the line.
For some reason, I had a feeling things would turn out differently this time.
But it seemed Liolikin’s next opponent didn’t share my thoughts.
You’re just going to cower and lose by only defending again—so why bother getting up on the arena at all?”
The opponent openly mocked Liolikin.
Usually, when an Extrac says stuff like that at this timing, he gets what’s coming to him—that’s the classic pattern.
Which is why I could predict the outcome of this match faster than anyone else.
“Uh, anyway…. Compared to Yor-sama, you’re not scary at all, n-not one bit…”
I didn’t expect Liolikin to mutter such an absurd retort and talk back.
Anyway, the match began, with Extrac charging at Liolikin and swinging his weapon.
Up to that point, it was no different from the previous match, but what followed was completely different.
“U-uaaaaah…!”
It was weak and shaky, but what mattered was that this battle cry actually came from Liolikin.
Liolikin raised his shield and charged at his opponent.
Not only did the opponent’s weapon get blocked by the shield, but even the opponent’s body crashed into it.
As a result.
Just as cliché dictates in this world, Extrac went flying out of the arena with a loud ‘thud!’
Judging by how he twitched on the ground and then went limp, he had clearly passed out.
The students let out a collective gasp.
A healer, who’d been on standby in case of an accident, rushed out and started using healing skills.
“K-Karbaldr-nim! D-did you see?! I won…! I actually knocked my opponent d-down…!!”
Regardless of the commotion below the arena, Liolikin was busy waving his unused mace around, boasting of his achievement to me.
His innocent attitude made Liolikin look even scarier, but there was no way I could show that.
“There are still two left.”
“T-two? You mean….”
At my words, Liolikin glanced over the two other remaining participants from Group 15 whom he hadn’t fought yet.
Then, with a sly smirk creeping up his lips, he grinned—a truly fiendish sight.
There’s no need to describe the rest of the matches. Faced with Liolikin’s menacing smile, the two students trembled and immediately forfeited.
•With this, Liolikin also secured a spot in the finals, so I’ll end the preliminaries part here.
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.