“Guooogh!!!”
He desperately flailed about in the air, but went smashing into the edge of the dohyō, then bounced off and landed amid the ringside seats. Arima instantly caught him.
The whole building went silent.
“Winner!!! Floortje!!!” announced the gray referee, raising his hand high to the east.
As the audience exploded in cheers, cushions came flying through the air.
Haah... Haah...
Using a divine skill as a human had exacted a terrifying toll on me. The muscles all over my body had been ripped to shreds and were the source of intense pain. I was only able to keep standing in the ring through sheer willpower. It was a little different from the events described in Records of Ancient Matters, but this skill had probably been the one used to secure control of a country.
I’m so tired...
“Floortje!!!”
The prince came running over, tears in his eyes. Don’t you cry now.
I collapsed on the dohyō, caught by the prince in his arms. They were so warm.
“Adela! Get a potion, quick!!!”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
Tears in her eyes, Adela tried to make me drink the potion. But it wouldn’t have helped. Alchemy could never fix the impact a god’s skill had left on my body. Sorry.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness... I’ve brought you grief.”
“Forget about that, Floortje—you were amazing! You were just incredible!”
“Milady...”
“I’ve made a lot of trouble for you too, Adela. Thank you for everything...”
“Milady! You can’t die on me!”
I sensed a pleasant smell. Was it the smell of sumo Valhalla? I wondered whether going there would let me fight the splendid rikishi of old.
On the ceiling of the Martial Arts Hall, a gold flower bloomed. Countless other flowers followed it, and the venue was filled with gold pollen.
Oh.
I got up. All of my pain was gone.
“Holy shit, my broken arm fixed itself!!!” shouted the Demon Lord, surrounded by his team.
“That’s Yggdrasil’s healing pollen! Amazing!”
“You know of it, Uta?” asked Kukuri.
“Yes. Once in a thousand years, Yggdrasil pollinates to make flowers bloom. If that pollen lands on you, it will heal any illness or injury. Isn’t that great, sir?”
“Like hell it is! I wanted to take pride in the scar left by that awesome skill.”
“Heh heh, I know you’re happy yokozuna Floortje didn’t die.”
“Eh, guess I’d be up for another bout.”
“Your third form is really against the rules, though.”
“Y-Yeah, even I thought bringing it out was immature.”
I could feel my body healing. My torn muscles and overloaded nerves were returning to their normal state. It appeared I would live to do sumo another day. I would get to walk by the prince’s side.
“Thank goodness! Thank goodness!”
“Milady! Milady!”
“Thank you, both of you.”
I hugged the two of them.
Thank you, Yggdrasil.
You’re welcome—came the reply.
I looked up from the dohyō. The glittering pollen dancing in the air made the whole scene feel like a dream. It fell seemingly without end on the black-and-white dohyō, the walkway smashed by the Demon Lord, and the excited elves cheering with hands raised, painting the world in gold.
“It’s beautiful, Floortje.”
“It is, Your Highness.”
We sat in the ring with our shoulders touching and looked upon the gold Martial Arts Hall.
Still in his fenrir form, Ulupano leapt from the VIP seats onto the dohyō.
“I am Fairy King Ulupano!”
“Hey, Fairy King!”
“The thousand-dorell star!”
Incidentally, the dorell was the currency of the Elven Forest Republic. One dorell was roughly equal to thirty thousand yen.
“We have witnessed a magnificent bout. It was a ferocious contest during which both the victorious yokozuna Floortje and the defeated Demon Lord surpassed the limits of their existence. Let us celebrate their valiant efforts!” Enthusiastic applause enveloped the hall. “The sumo team competition with this town at stake, held between the Aryakan rikishi and those of the Demon Lord’s army, has concluded in the former’s favor. You will uphold your end of the deal, won’t you, Demon Lord?”
“Yeah, I’ve got no choice after a human risked her life to use a divine skill on me. We’ll be leaving these lands, for now.”
“I appreciate that. Also, I have a proposition.”
“What? You want reparations?”
“Would you be interested in holding sumo tournaments here once every four years?”
“Heh. With you elves?”
“Between Aryaka, the Dwarven Great Caves, us, and you. A world cup in sumo featuring four teams.”
The Demon Lord fell into thought.
“That does sound fun. Let’s do it! We’ll cover the operating costs and hire the staff.”
“The dwarves are in favor as well! We will show you the secrets of Dwarven Sumo!” shouted Chief Jörd, getting up from his VIP seat.
“Aryaka has no objections either. Chief, let us lay the rail tracks all the way to this town,” added King Arvi.
“That is a splendid idea! We’ll lay them to both Aryagard and here!”
How wonderful it was that the four capitals would be connected by the magic railway, allowing easy travel to one another’s countries. We could do Grand Sumo in each of the four towns. Frequent travel would boost trade and bring people of different nations together. With the help of the Magic Train, the entire eastern side of the continent could become one large trading area.
“Looks like we’re entering a Pax Sumonara, Floortje.”
“Indeed, Your Highness. Let us win friendship between nations through sumo.”
It probably wouldn’t be all sunshine and roses. There would surely be disputes born from mistrust for each other, and all sorts of vices would develop in the process of cultural exchange. But it was still far preferable to being merely connected by rail and not having any cultural exchange at all. It would be fine—sumo would make everyone friends and put smiles on everyone’s faces. That was the mysterious power of sumo, and I had faith in it.
Carrying a trophy made out of a large tree, Jomin descended from the VIP seats.
“Bravo, Floortje. I was wrong. Sumo truly is incredible.”
“Thank you, Jomin.”
“This trophy was made by Yggdrasil. Take it.”
“I am most grateful.”
I accepted the large wooden trophy. Made out of a tree with bright bark, it was carved with images of humans, elves, dwarves, and monsters all doing sumo. It was a wonderful trophy indeed. As I raised it overhead, a storm of applause erupted from the audience.
✦ ✦ ✦
What a fun sumo journey it had been.
“Well then, with a promise to hold a Yggdrasil Cup in Grand Sumo in this place every four years, it is time to wrap up the very first of them!” announced the fairy king.
Surrounded by everyone’s cheering, I was happy. The friends who had fought together with me were my treasure.
As we descended the dohyō, only Jomin was left standing on top of it.
“Now, though this comes after such a splendid performance, we must judge a criminal today.”
As I wondered what this was about, a tied-up Chancellor Mickaël was brought onto the dohyō.
“Mickaël,” she continued. “Your discontent with the government of the Elven Forest Republic led you to usurp the country with both the aid of revolutionary elements as well as your allies, the Demon Lord’s army. Any objections?”
“I... Though it caused me great pain, I started this revolution for the sake of everyone’s happiness. This government that had grown so rigid over a thousand years was in need of progress.”
“Uh-huh.”
“The blame lies entirely with this system of government not ever having any vacancies! It wasn’t my fault! I am the savior of the elven race!”
“Uh-huh.”
“It is not too late! Why, if you untie this rope around my hands and entrust the government to me, I shall ensure the human nations, the demonic realm, and those blasted dwarves’ caves all come under elven control. We shall impose our will upon the entire eastern part of the continent.”
“How interesting. If you do not seal those blabbering lips of yours this instant, I shall place a curse on you such that you may never speak again.”
“O Jomin! Please don’t, I beg of you!”
“Silence. I have no interest in what you have to say. Elves are not shameless enough to seek to reign over other races.” Jomin took a scroll out of her pocket and spread it out. “You have brought suffering to the elves. You have led an army of demons and monsters into this town and set fire to it—in addition, you almost burnt down our ancestor Yggdrasil. For your crimes, you deserve to die a thousand times over.”
“It’s all a misunderstanding!”
“Here in this place, the Elder Council sentences Mickaël to banishment from the elven forest! No water in this forest shall flow for you; no tree in it shall give you its fruit. The elven forest rejects you!”
“Ahh, but what am I to do?!”
“Leave the forest, for you are banished for a thousand years.”
“I wonder what happens when an elf gets rejected by the forest.”
“It’s only the elven forest, milady. Things won’t be any different outside this country.”
“I see.”
“This does mean he won’t be able to make use of the special treatment elves get from the elven forest. Other forests don’t have as many spirits as this one.”
“So he won’t be able to use spirit magic, right?”
“Yes. For a thousand years he will be forced to roam other parts of the world.”
I wondered how far an elf rejected by the forest could wander. Would such an elf end up like the half-elves in human towns? How pitiful.