Chapter 62
"Dammit."
Little Earl Shaya resigned herself to her fate.
She slumped back into her seat and adjusted her mask, making sure it sat properly.
Truth be told, the thing was quite effective—so much so that even Hero Xiarette, standing right here, couldn’t draw the surrounding nobles to approach and make small talk. Even though they normally never had a chance to meet the Hero.
Wearing a mask and still trying to chat? That would just look like asking for trouble, backfiring completely.
These amusing little customs of the human race... were surprisingly useful, huh?
"The match hasn’t started yet, huh?"
"Almost."
Xiarette stood beside her chair.
She subtly used her knee to push it closer toward Sheffy’s, until the two chairs were snugly pressed together.
"I figure it’s about time... oh, just said it—and here we go."
"Hmm? Where? Which side?"
Before Xiarette could even point toward the direction where the contestants would be entering—
The light magic crystals circling the arena began to flicker erratically.
Amidst the crowd’s thunderous cheers and applause, the crystals focused their beams onto the center of the stage, illuminating a man in a tuxedo holding an amplification magic crystal.
From the looks of it, he was tonight’s host.
"Friends! Welcome to tonight’s event, and a big thank you to the merchants who’ve financially supported this gladiatorial competition! Let me tell you all in advance—tonight’s match will be especially thrilling, because tonight’s contestants... include mysterious masters the likes of which we’ve never seen in past competitions! Stay tuned!"
Hehe, truthfully, none of this joy was the real joy.
The real joy—undeniably—was that she got to eat and drink for free!
As everyone knew, eating well without spending a coin was the finest pleasure. She strongly recommended the arena boost their efforts and expand the menu.
Focused on savoring the complimentary delicacies, Miss Shaya would only lift her adorable little head to glance at the stage and see who was getting beaten up when the audience’s cheers reached a peak.
"Tsk tsk tsk, Xia, look at that Lizardfolk. Totally lacking martial ethics. That guy on the other side is already running with his head down, and what’s the lizard doing? Still chasing him down like mad. He doesn’t realize that karma’s a real thing for folks who don’t fight fair. I bet he’s about to get countered."
"Ha... with such an overwhelming advantage, I doubt he’d—uh, oh, wow."
【Oh-ho! Audience friends! The Lizardfolk Zoide continued his pursuit—only to walk straight into a trap! Turns out Hakiku had already laid a magic trap on the field to bait him in! Taking a direct hit from the Flame Burst Stream, Zoide’s down!! The referee’s stepped in to check—if he can’t stand, this match will go to Kingdom Knight Hakiku! As expected of our kingdom’s knights! Truly courageous and clever! In comparison, Zoide the Lizardfolk was far too reckless! What a pity, what a pity!】
Hey now... seriously? That host sounded a little too biased, didn’t he? Saying "what a pity" while laughing like crazy? Did the poor Lizardfolk eat your family’s rice or what?!
Poor Zoide the Lizardfolk—mocked for his looks the moment he entered, then tricked by his opponent’s dirty tactics and blasted half to death. Even as he was carried off by the medics, not a single kind word was said about him.
Kingdom Knight Hakiku, clad in radiant platinum armor, raised his sword high to greet the crowd’s cheers, thoroughly capitalizing on his home-ground advantage.
Miss Shaya didn’t think his win was all that glorious—just that the match was indeed a great accompaniment to her food.
In the matches that followed, though Sheffy still watched half-heartedly, she was surprisingly accurate in predicting each match’s outcome.
This prompted Xiarette to click her tongue in amazement.
"Amazing, Shaya. How did you know that Merfolk contestant was going to surrender just now? The match had barely started."
"Wasn’t it obvious? Merfolk are still fish, right? Her opponent was from the Fire Cat Clan. They’re pros at fishing and masters of fire magic. Not surrendering would’ve just meant getting grilled. She drew a bad match—that’s just bad luck. Remember this, Xia: if you ever run into the Fire Cat Clan, grab the basket on their back. I guarantee it’s packed with big fish!"
"Don’t grab it! Ugh... anyway, I get the whole racial weakness thing, but the other matches didn’t have that dynamic. And you still called the results?"
"Ah? Now that you mention it... I don’t really know. I guess... just intuition? Shouldn’t be that hard, right?"
"......"
Not... hard? Intuition?
Xiarette quietly shook her head, completely unable to grasp Sheffy’s explanation—after all, this was an ability that defied common sense.
Even as a Hero, Xiarette couldn’t accurately judge the strength between two opponents. What she could do was gauge strength during her own battles—sensing whether the enemy or herself was stronger. But as a spectator? That was a whole different matter.
Take her fight with Jeffriel, for example. Xiarette had felt a clear and present danger—an “intuition” unlike anything she’d ever experienced in battle before.
No wonder Sheffy had warned her against directly confronting a Six-Winged Demon... there truly was a reason behind it.
For Sheffy to predict outcomes just by observing with her eyes—her combat intuition far exceeded normal boundaries...
Simply put, she wasn’t just strong—she was smart too.
All Xiarette could say was, Sheffy truly lived up to her name...
"Sheffy, you’re amazing."
"Eeek!!"
That quiet whisper from Xiarette sent a chill shooting through Sheffy Harl from the tips of her toes to the crown of her head!
"Shaya? What’s wrong?"
"N-Nothing! Ahem, don’t just sneak up and talk to me like that! I’m watching the match!"
"But you weren’t even watching earlier..."
"Then I’ll watch now!"
There was no way Xiarette understood the power of those words.
But for the victim Sheffy Harl, they were unforgettable!
Eeek... last night... oh, last night! Every time their "battle" reached its peak, Xiarette would lean in close and softly exhale into her ear, whispering that exact line—"Sheffy, you’re amazing."
Now, just hearing those words made Sheffy reflexively curl up in self-defense.
Strong combat intuition? So what?
If the "battle" took place on a big white bed, even the invincible Sheffy would tremble. Last night had proven it—she couldn’t win against the overwhelming opponent who had toppled her.
Would that count as a kind of battle intuition too?
"Sheffy, what exactly are y—"
"Aaahh! No more of that topic...! Eat your doughnut!"
"Mmph...?!"
Despicable Sheffy—always able to land a critical hit with a doughnut at the perfect moment.
Xiarette struggled to swallow the doughnut shoved into her mouth, just about to say something—
—but the announcer’s voice suddenly soared, drowning out all other sounds in the arena.
【Here it is, here it is...! Tonight’s most high-profile contestant—let’s welcome with a round of applause and cheers, His Highness, the Second Prince of the Kingdom of Aurus, Milh Aurus!!】
Whether the clapping was genuine didn’t matter.
The moment that name echoed through the venue, the common folk hurriedly clapped their hands together with force.
The dignity of royalty was absolute. Applauding at a time like this wasn’t about respect—it was a matter of survival.
The nobles in the front rows took it even further—not only clapping, but also standing up, grinning with feigned enthusiasm and clapping furiously, as if they wished to tear their own hands apart. Such sycophantic behavior was a common sight in noble circles of any nation.
And with those mixed cheers and shouts, the person slowly emerging from the eastern tunnel was indeed His Highness the Second Prince.
Clad in a gilded noble robe, gold-trimmed tailored trousers, a longsword fastened at his waist, with jet-black hair and a straight, upright posture, he waved confidently and cheerfully at the audience with a broad smile.
Needless to say, neither Sheffy nor Xiarette joined the applause.
Miss Shaya’s hands were fully occupied by doughnuts—not much free time for irrelevant affairs like this.
Xiarette, meanwhile, was busy poking her forehead, telling her to eat less. How could she go on a binge right after the kind of topic they’d just been discussing?!
The two of them only realized belatedly that such a “high-profile figure” had entered the arena.
"Ha... your arena really lets princes enter the fight? That’s pretty laid-back, huh."
"This... I think that’s the Second Prince, Milh Aurus. Princess Livra’s second brother."
"Is he really that confident in his strength? Or just playful like Livra? Normally royalty doesn’t join these kinds of events, right?"
"Well... if I’m not mistaken, the Second Prince is only Third-Rank. Princess Livra’s also Third-Rank, but she might actually be stronger than him."
"He can’t even beat Livra?! Then isn’t he just here to get his face smashed in?!"
"Well... mm, you’ll see for yourself in a moment, Sheffy. I guarantee your eyes will be opened."
"Then I’ve got to see this."
Sheffy Harl proactively widened her eyes, ready to have them "opened"—always aiming to maintain the upper hand.
And stepping out of the western tunnel—was the prince’s opponent.
That guy looked familiar.
Wasn’t that the same Kingdom Knight Hakiku who’d used underhanded tricks to knock out the poor Lizardfolk Zoide earlier?
"Looks like we’re in the second round now," Xiarette explained, lightly tapping Sheffy’s shoulder. "When royalty or special guests enter, they’re allowed to skip straight to the second round. That’s how he ended up matched with someone who already won the first. But... whether that draw was truly random, well, who knows?"
Before Xiarette had even finished speaking, the referee announced the start of the match.
Second Prince Milh Aurus drew his sword with elegance, stepping toward Knight Hakiku one pace at a time.
Hakiku, meanwhile, acted as though he were terrified and struggling, raising his greatsword to meet the prince’s blade and retreating step by step with a pained expression.
In his earlier bout with the Lizardfolk, Hakiku had retreated as part of a strategy—but this time was clearly different. He wasn’t employing any tactics. He was simply being overwhelmed and beaten down. Even when he tried to counterattack, Milh effortlessly deflected it.
Aside from the nobles in the front rows cheering nonstop...
The common spectators were bewildered, murmuring in confusion.
"Hakiku’s performance this round is awful... could he be holding something back again, like he did against the Lizardfolk?!"
"Is the Second Prince really that strong...? His skills seem at least on par with a Fifth-Rank Warrior. He’s actually suppressing a Kingdom Knight—Hakiku’s supposed to be Sixth-Rank..."
"I don’t buy it. It’s obvious Hakiku’s throwing the match. He probably got paid off and now he’s just..."
"Shh!! What are you saying?! Do you want to die?!"
Amidst the rising tide of whispers, on the stage, Second Prince Milh had already pressed his sword tip to the throat of the seated Hakiku.
Hakiku, face full of panic, raised both hands in surrender.
At that very moment, the referee’s voice rang out through the arena!
【Victory goes to His Highness the Second Prince...! His Highness Milh Aurus has advanced to the semifinals—let us congratulate His Highness—glory to the prince!!】
Led by the nobles, the commoners stood up and applauded.
The Second Prince sheathed his sword with flair, tossed his black bangs back, and waved to the crowd once more before turning and walking off the field without a second glance.
As it all concluded, Xiarette let out a soft sigh and looked toward Sheffy, who was still in the middle of her “eye-opening” experience.
"Well... did you figure it out?"
"Bought his victory, obviously. But hey, that knight’s pretty committed. His acting wasn’t half bad. Haha...! Look at him crawling off the field! I’m dying!"
Sheffy was certainly getting an eyeful—but not of a match.
The way both sides behaved made her feel like she was watching a primate performance—absolutely ridiculous.
Xiarette wholeheartedly agreed.
"Mm... sometimes the arena matches end up like this. If royalty or high-ranking noble heirs want to build their reputation, winning here is an easy shortcut. This arena’s a perfect stage to show off power to the masses. So they use money or authority to force opponents to go easy on them, earning fake glory."
"They think the common folk are stupid or something? They actually believe these phony matches?"
"The common folk just don’t have enough information. All they can really see is who wins and loses. And as you saw, that knight acted well enough to fool most. More importantly... even if someone can see through it, they wouldn’t dare say anything."