Sorcerer, Ray Starling
In the end, we left the auction without a worthwhile weapon.
There were some good ones that came up, but they were all greatswords and the like—categories Nemesis was strictly opposed to.
We did help Max get the item she wanted, though, so I still felt that going there was worth it. She was now about three hundred million in debt to me, but as a duelist in the rankings, she shouldn’t have much trouble paying it back. The ranker world was full of people like Shu, who’d once spent three billion on just a single battle.
Also, Max wanted to test her new katana, so I let her use our arena and gave her the key.
“I feel like that is far too much money to lend a friend,” said Nemesis. “Then again, it is certainly a better use of money than gambling. Without anyone to hold you back, you would spend everything you had betting on those duels.”
“Huh? I am about to do just that. I’m gonna put all my money on Figaro.” Silence. “He’s the clear favorite, so you gotta bet a lot to— Guh...!” My words were cut short by Nemesis’s fist sinking into my side.
“Gacha, duels, combat... What is your fascination with risky bets?!”
“You got it all wrong! This isn’t really gambling—Figaro is one of us! I just believe in him, that’s all!”
“Yet you did not bet on Fujinon. What would she think if she heard you say that?”
That was our conversation as we walked toward the Central Arena. There, we’d take a look at the people who made it through the prelims, set our bet, then watch the fights. Marie had reserved our clan a box for the whole ten days, so we didn’t have to worry about seats.
On the way there...
“There you go. Wow, you eat a lot.”
...we stopped and stared at something that we just couldn’t ignore.
The scene wasn’t all that special by itself—a man was just giving snacks and pets to a white dog.
The strange thing was the man’s appearance. He had black hair, a coat like the night sky, and kept one of his eyes closed.
That look was all too familiar to me. He was...
“...KoL. What are you doing here?”
King of Light, F—the pre-Superior who’d tried to cause an incident in Gideon and ended up fighting me because of it.
“Oh? Ray Starling,” he said. “It’s been a while... One moment.”
He gave the remaining jerky to the dog, patted it, and stood up with a disappointed look, as if he wanted to pet it longer.
The white dog grabbed the jerky in its mouth and ran off. It looked like it was shaking for some reason.
“Oh dear. There it goes,” F said.
“No, really, what are you doing here?”
“Oh, it just so happens that I’ve met that dog before, but I didn’t have any snacks for it back then. I’d been carrying some in my Inventory ever since, and I finally got my chance to give it some.”
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“You like dogs?” I asked.
“I do. You?”
“We got a pug at my parents’ place.”
“Wonderful. There’s something uniquely adorable about pugs. Even the way they snore is charming.”
“I get what you mean.” Wait, what kind of conversation is this? I thought. I decided to change the subject. “Why are you in this city again, anyway? Don’t tell me you’re planning something funny for the event.”
“Perish the thought,” he said. “I’m simply gathering reference material. I don’t have to lift a finger to make The Tournaments worth watching, and this day should be especially diverting.”
“That so? Well, as long as you don’t do anything you shouldn’t.”
“Mm-hmm.” He looked like he had something to say to me.
“What is it?”
“Oh, don’t mind me. More importantly, are you sure you have time to waste here? They’re about to stop taking bets for the day. If you’re betting on the ultimate victor, you can’t do it after the first match—and you’re planning to wager a lot of money today, aren’t you?”
“Ah!” His words made me realize that betting was going to close in less than five minutes.
A part of me wanted to ask how he knew about my bets, but with the first match drawing so close, I had to hurry up.
“You better not cause any trouble!” I admonished him as I left.
“Don’t worry. I won’t do anything today.”
The way he said it made me raise an eyebrow, but we chose to ignore it and rushed to the Central Arena.
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Gideon, City of Duels, Main Street
“Take care,” F said with a smile as Ray ran off. “What luck, though. He’s actually online.”
It wasn’t clear what was going through his mind as he said that or who exactly was lucky in this situation.
Regardless, the setup was now complete. Now, with just a bit of guidance, the actors gathered upon the stage would put on a wonderful impromptu performance.
“His attitude toward me is quite interesting. I gathered as much from his relationship with the Superior Killer, but it seems that he doesn’t cling to the past.”
F had once used Hannya to cause a major incident in Gideon.
When Ray had faced him back then, he’d been overcome by a powerful rage, but it didn’t seem that he felt any enmity toward him now.
“He feels anger, but doesn’t hold grudges,” F said to himself. “What really matters to him is your role in whatever tragedy is unfolding at that moment, right before his eyes—whether you’re the one behind it or someone standing against it. That is what truly sways him... I see.”
If they were on the side of tragedy, Ray wouldn’t even hesitate to fight against those he called friends—like how he’d faced Hugo during Franklin’s Game.
And if they stood with him against the tragedy, he could fight even alongside someone like Marie, who’d killed him, or Tsukuyo, who’d kidnapped him. Which meant that...
“If I approach him from that angle next time, I may see a new side of him.”
F was in the process of arranging a new plan for Ray—this wellspring of inspiration and reference material.
“Well, today’s event comes first. Though... Heh heh. How troubling. I can hardly decide what to watch with my own eyes.”
Cracking a joyful smile, F looked at the Central Arena at the end of the main street.
“There are too many things to witness today,” he said, thinking about the wonderful surprise that awaited there.