“You want to enter the Martial Arts Tournament?”
Sieg and Fried’s offer caused Lovisa and Barra to blurt out questions in return.
Their sons nodded vigorously.
The Martial Arts Tournament was a no-holds-barred competition, and it was indeed quite suitable for them to participate.
Incidentally, Marius and Auraniess were forbidden from entering.
To get back to the point, Lovisa asked the two boys why they had brought this up.
“Why did you decide to enter?”
The two boys fidgeted, but eventually, Sieg looked up decisively and answered.
“We want to test how strong we’ve become.”
“To be honest, we don’t really know within this country…”
Fried continued, and everyone who heard him, including the maids, thought, “That’s true.”
In this country, there was Marius, and there was Auraniess.
There were also Sophia, Iris, and Zofi – individuals whom ordinary people would have no match against. Above all, Nergal was completely out of the ordinary.
Even those accustomed to the presence of Marius and Auraniess were shocked that Zofi, who had become the Demon Lord at the age of two, could not even land a blow.
“Giving them an opportunity might not be a bad idea.”
“Indeed.”
The two of them discussed it.
It would be fortunate if their sons could gain confidence, and even if not, it would be beneficial for them to learn about the vastness of the world.
With such expectations, they decided to grant permission.
A certain woman, upon hearing about Sieg and Fried’s participation, said:
“Oh? In that case, shall I train you?”
“You’ll die, so stop.”
Thanks to the boys’ father immediately stopping her, a certain catastrophe was averted.
As for the father, he was basically in agreement.
“Actually, I’m curious about how strong you guys are compared to people from other countries.”
He showed no signs of worry about anything happening to the two of them.
Their younger sister, who had heard about her older brothers’ participation, watched with envy.
“Big brothers are so lucky, Nergal wants to go too.”
“No.”
Marius rejected it instantly.
“Okay!”
Nergal looked disappointed but obeyed obediently.
It was unnecessary to explain why her participation was forbidden, but the moment she entered, the championship would be decided.
To fight her seriously, one would need at least Iris or Sophia’s level of skill.
It would be too harsh to demand such a strong individual from abroad.
“Then, on the day of the matches, we’ll all go watch, shall we?”
As Marius said this, Sieg and Fried looked up at the sky, and Nergal replied cheerfully, “Okay!”
There was a slight disturbance when they applied to the host country, Filat, but it’s irrelevant, so we’ll omit it.
Time flows so quickly, and the Martial Arts Tournament was suddenly upon them.
This time, the group coming to Filat consisted of the two participants, along with Lovisa, Emma, Marius, and Nergal.
For Lovisa and Emma, it had a homecoming aspect.
Auraniess, who was told she couldn’t come, was very dissatisfied, so perhaps she might come on her own.
At least she would arrive much faster using her own abilities than by carriage, a fact no one would point out anymore.
Sieg and Fried were captivated by the foreign scenery, which they rarely saw.
“It’s amazing.”
“Yeah, our country seems… a bit behind…”
They honestly voiced their impressions, eliciting wry smiles from the adults.
The Kingdom of Tubant was merely a new nation born from a fallen kingdom, recruiting immigrants. Compared to the ancient and great nation of Filat, it was naturally at a disadvantage.
Building structures, cultivating fields, and increasing greenery all required time for a nation to develop a sense of character.
“You two, study various things and improve our country.”
Marius said with a smile, and the two princes nodded with solemn expressions.
They were a bit too serious, but they were both pure and straightforward.
As Princess Lovisa was returning home, the royal family came to welcome the group.
Her father, Bernhardt III, had also aged considerably and was thinking of handing over the throne to his son soon.
(Ah, I had a younger brother…)
That was Marius’s honest thought.
Besides Lovisa, Emma, and Bernhardt III, the only other person who remained in his memory was Yaders.
He had absolutely no recollection of Lovisa’s siblings.
When Sieg, Fried, and Nergal offered their greetings, the current King and the Crown Prince of Filat beamed.
“Is Nergal not participating in the tournament?”
The King’s question was natural for someone who knew nothing.
Before the adults could say anything, Nergal herself answered.
“You know. If Ner enters, the championship is decided, so it’s no good!”
“Oh. I see.”
Bernhardt III briefly considered, “What is this girl saying?”
However, he quickly remembered that this girl’s father was Marius.
If she inherited the most from her father’s power, it was understandable that she would boast like this.
In fact, it might even be preferable for her not to participate.
Thinking this with his aging mind, he decided to quickly move on to the next topic.
Since Princess Lovisa had married into their family, the Kingdom of Tuban could be considered a strong ally.
Furthermore, with Princess Barra of the Kingdom of Ranleo also marrying in, the Kingdom of Ranleo was also an indirect ally.
Such considerations were quite commonplace on this continent.
The children were led to a separate room by the maids before they became bored.
Sieg and Fried, however, refused.
“We would like to learn various things for the future.”
“We’re curious about what the Kings discuss.”
The Filat side’s eyes widened at the proposal of the boys, who could still be considered young.
Bernhardt III was particularly shocked.
While it was a joy to see his grandchildren growing up well, it was also complicated to acknowledge they were not from his own country.
Without paying much attention to the adults’ reactions, Sieg and Fried continued their studies.
And then the Martial Arts Tournament began.
There were no age restrictions, but one of the participation requirements was that participants would not complain if they died or were seriously injured.
Warriors gathered from various countries, determining their victories and defeats.
As expected, most participants were in their twenties to forties, possessing the imposing demeanor and physique one would expect.
Sieg and Fried, mere boys among them, stood out for the wrong reasons.
No one deliberately provoked them, but there were quite a few who cast openly contemptuous glances their way.
“Whoever faces them is lucky. It’s practically a forfeit win.”
“What was the organizer thinking? If they wanted to create a bonus stage, there were other ways to do it.”
The voices, intentionally loud, reached the two boys’ ears.
Sieg and Fried remained calm, waiting for their turn.
Compared to these people attacking them en masse, an angry Auraniess or a temper-tantrum-throwing Nergal would be far more terrifying.
This thought gave the two of them a strange courage.
Eventually, Sieg’s turn came.
“Oh, that kid is lucky.”
One of the contestants let out a condescending laugh.
Without paying it any mind, Sieg entered the arena, separated from Fried.
As he entered, a buzz arose from the spectators.
From worried voices like, “Is that child alright?” to mocking ones like, “Have they come to die?”
“Ranleo Kingdom, Gares Schneider!”
“Ooh!”
The opponent, Gares, roared at the call of the referee.
The audience joined in with applause.
“Tuban Kingdom, Sieg von Tuban!”
“Yes.”
When Sieg replied politely, the surroundings fell silent.
His opponent, Gares,’s eyes widened, his jaw slackening as if it would fall off.
“Tuban…?”
A voice was heard from somewhere.
To the people of this continent, Tuban referred to a certain man.
And hailing from the Kingdom of Tuban, it was impossible not to associate them.
“Ah, Marius is my father.”
Sieg, unfortunately, explained politely.
“Whaaaaaaaat!”
A deafening roar echoed through the venue.
Marius and the others had properly shielded themselves with magic, and Sieg covered his ears with both hands.
While it was known that Marius had sons named Sieg and Fried, their appearance in a tournament like this, in person, was beyond anyone’s surprise.
As a result, Sieg won without incident, but he himself was not entirely satisfied.
A doubt crept into his mind: was it due to his father’s prestige?
Fried’s situation was similar, but the reaction was less intense than the first time.
And although he also won without incident, he felt a sense of something unsettled.
When the brothers reunited in the waiting room, they began to whisper.
“It felt like they were hesitant because of Father’s name.”
“My opponent was the same.”
As they said this, they sighed in unison.
They wondered what their parents’ intentions were in allowing them to participate in this tournament.
They had wanted to test their pure abilities, but it had become far beyond that.
Afterward, they both lost amicably in the quarterfinals.
The winner was Ritter of the Kingdom of Boltner.
“Once it devolves into a brawl, no one can beat a Boltner.”
“At least among humans, it’s difficult.”
Marius and the others evaluated.
They accepted their sons’ defeat calmly.
They were still just boys, so advancing to a certain extent was already commendable.
However, there was an exception:
“Unsatisfactory for Marius’s son! I’ll re-train you!”
Someone declared with fervent spirit.
However, that person was forcibly removed by Marius.
The adults greeted their sons cheerily, apologizing for failing to win.
“You did admirably.”
Praised by their father, the two beamed and nodded at each other.
“Hey, big brother. Shall Ner go and defeat the people who beat you two?”
Their younger sister suddenly said this.
She likely meant it as a way to avenge her brothers.
But what would happen if she actually did such a thing?
“Stop it, or there will be deaths.”
Marius, fearing this, averted Nergal’s threat.
But that wasn’t all.
The King of Tuban winked mischievously at his daughter and said,
“Besides, we’ll handle our own revenge. Right, the two of you?”
Startled, the two were addressed by their father, but they reflexively nodded.
“I see. It’s not good to steal someone else’s prey.”
Nergal seemed to understand and smiled innocently.
Hearing this, Marius’s expression became serious, and he mentally called, “Auraniess, come here a moment.”
And so, Sieg and Fried’s first challenge came to an end.
Volume 4 of the novel is scheduled for release on September 29th.
Thank you for your support.
