The two of them started moving at my call. The distance from the starting line was a bit far, and I had to close the gap to engage in close combat. However, the result of our sparring match came out sooner than expected.
“—Match. I didn’t expect such a large difference in strength.”
“Thanks. …Haaah~! I-I won…! I was able to show a good performance in front of Kelvin-sama…!”
“…Seriously?”
“Whoa, Oddrad defeated in one hit, what a lady has appeared.”
The winner of the spar was Suzu, winning within seconds of the start. However, it wasn’t as if Oddrad did nothing. Looking back at the match, it went something like this.
“—Bee Sting Needle!”
As soon as the sparring match began, Oddrad thrust his right index finger with all his might and aimed it at Suzu. It was a thrust that likely wouldn’t reach from the starting position, but Oddrad’s aim wasn’t for a direct attack, but surprisingly, a long-range one. The invisible lump of air generated by his unusually developed muscles. Oddrad unleashed it towards Suzu, who was charging forward.
Despite emphasizing his muscles so much, his opening move was quite technical. I was pleasantly surprised by this. However, I felt like I’d seen this technique somewhere before. While I was thinking about it, the air bullet was about to collide with Suzu.
“—Willow.”
Just before the collision, Suzu’s form blurred for a moment. Oddrad’s air bullet passed through Suzu, leaving no impact on her, and continued on its way.
“—Nngh!?”
Evade, or be blown away. Even if he had predicted it, Oddrad’s thoughts were probably along those lines. As Suzu approached as if nothing had happened, Oddrad’s expression was one of surprise. The air bullet, by the way, hit the wall behind him, making a considerable impact sound. It seemed it wasn’t lacking in power.
Meanwhile, Suzu’s forward speed was quite fast. By the time Oddrad’s initial attack failed, the two were within striking distance of each other’s fists.
“—Then try this! Wrathful Ogre Annihilation Fist!”
“W-Whoa, that’s going too far, Oddrad!”
Shinjir stood up from the spectators’ seats and raised his voice. This meant that this technique was Oddrad’s finishing move. However, Oddrad didn’t stop. The rush attack with Oddrad’s fists, a technique whose name I felt like I’d heard somewhere before, began. He continued to unleash powerful blows, one after another, with incredible momentum. Seeing that his previous attack had failed against Suzu, he must have judged that there was no need to hold back against her. And that judgment was correct.
“—Circle.”
Suzu deflected all of the onslaught that was about to rain down by drawing a circle with her hand at incredible speed, sending it outwards. Witnessing this technique, clearly a martial art, up close, Oddrad’s face contorted. Suzu was now right in front of Oddrad.
“—Thunder.”
Suzu’s downward heel kick, delivered as if falling from the heavens to the earth, landed perfectly on Oddrad’s head. Despite being an attack with a large range of motion, its speed was several levels faster than Oddrad’s continuous attacks. By the time I called out “Match,” Oddrad’s face was deeply embedded in the floor—that was the sequence of this spar.
In the end, as I had initially predicted, Suzu was overwhelmingly victorious. However, the gains from this spar were very significant. Having been so thoroughly defeated, Oddrad wouldn’t be able to complain from now on, and his combat style’s future direction became clear. Despite his defeat, Oddrad himself possessed potential strength for the future.
And Suzu, who achieved a splendid victory, had completely become the dark horse of this event. Suzu’s status was hidden by her “Concealment” skill, so I couldn’t see her stats with my “Appraisal Eye.” I was already quite excited at this point, and the result did not disappoint. I can confidently say that she currently possesses strength that is one step, no, even more, above the other candidates. The techniques she uses are all interesting.
“Oddrad, are you okay?”
I helped Oddrad, whose face was buried in the floor, up and used magic to heal him. He seemed to be conscious.
“…I don’t think I lost in terms of power. No, if it was just power, I should have been overwhelming. But at the same time, I felt something that surpassed my muscles. Heh, heh, heh, it felt like I fought a Gordiana with no muscles at all. I surrender completely!”
Oddrad admitted his defeat gracefully. Though his words were in “muscle language,” he seemed to be praising Suzu.
“O-Oddrad-san’s strength was also incredible. Um, by any chance, have you learned the ‘Gordia’?”
“Ah, I was curious about that too. The techniques you used earlier, Suzu, they all resembled those used by the Gordiana, but were you Oddrad’s disciple?”
The technique names were completely different, and I thought I’d seen them somewhere before that.
“Hmph, I wish that were the case! By the time I knocked on Gordia’s door, the recruitment for disciples had already ended! So, I had no choice but to imitate Gordia’s techniques in my own way! Well, I’m just a copycat with a similar exterior! And I can’t feel any sign of being able to wield an aura, the ultimate secret of Gordia!”
“I see, imitation. Oddrad, your training policy seems to have been decided.”
“What?”
“When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” It would be best to call an expert who is nearby.
“Next, Suzu. You also used a technique I’ve never seen before, but did you learn that through self-study? Dodging Oddrad’s attacks, deflecting all his attacks in an instant— Ah, that’s right. Your final heel kick was also incredibly fast.”
“Yes, yes, that’s right! Every single movement was invisible! What was that mysterious technique!? Perhaps it was a combination with magic!?”
“No, I didn’t feel any flow of magic power at all, so I doubt it. It felt like for a very short period, you reached maximum speed in your movements. Is it like putting the Korō-ryū iaijutsu into practice with your body? I can’t articulate it well, but that’s how I felt.”
“A-aah, I-I’m being analyzed by Kelvin-sama…!”
“Um, Suzu-san?”
Suzu put both hands to her mouth, causing her entire body to vibrate intensely. Because the vibration speed was too fast, wasn’t she lightly creating clones on either side?
“S-Sorry, I got carried away and lost my composure. Um, it’s generally as Kelvin-sama says. I combined the techniques of my father, who has the special profession of a ninja, with my mother’s foreign martial arts, and refined them in my own way. It’s like self-taught, but not really self-taught because there’s a foundation…”
“Hoh, that’s interesting! I’ve never heard of ninjas before! And you mentioned foreign countries, so it doesn’t seem to be Traage martial arts, but from which country is it!?”
“T-That country, I don’t know. My mother said it’s a very, very distant country. It’s not in the Eastern Continent or the Western Continent, so perhaps it was an island nation. Oh, by the way, these clothes are the traditional ethnic clothing of my mother’s country. My mother gave them to me, and I only wear them on special occasions like this.”
“Hooh, how unusual!”
“…”
Oddrad nodded deeply in admiration, but on my end, I had a thought. Both of Suzu’s parents might have impressive origins. No, my excitement is starting to affect my inner monologue.
“Suzu, by any chance, what is your mother’s name?”
“My mother?”
“Ah, I’ve traveled to many countries, so perhaps I can identify her birthplace by her name.”
“N-No way…! Um, her name is Rinrin. It’s a very unusual name, but how about it?”
“…Sorry, I don’t think I’ve heard of it in this world.”
“No, no, please don’t worry about it! It’s probably a very distant small isolated island that even the Adventurer Guild doesn’t know about! Please, really don’t worry about it.”
Well, it’s correct that it’s very distant, but I don’t think it’s an isolated island.
