Ive lost count of how many tis weve done this, but I still dont get why we have to co to my room every ti we have a eting.
The five mbers of Survivors were gathered in Tiannas room, and
Sorry.
Eh, no, I didnt an to sound so upset.
Tianna was flustered when Nick got down on his knees and lowered his head.
Im not talking about your room, Im talking about the ss Ive made with that duel.
Ah, that. Its fine isnt it?
No, I dragged you into my personal fight
Nick
Tianna let out a big sigh.
I dont know about that Steel Tiger Crew or whatever, but if our leader was the kind of person to bow to those idiot scamrs, I wouldnt be in this party.
But still
If anything, I question why they havent been hauled off to jail yet. If the guilds people noticed they could be witnesses too.
Well, people say that it takes two to quarrel Also, if we were going to sue them, we wouldnt take it to the guild, we would take it to the order of the sun.
Order of the sun?
Repeated Tianna.
Its the chivalric order in charge of safeguarding the public order of the Labyrinth City. Theyre under the direct control of the lord of the city.
Arent you going to file a complaint with them?
Ive thought about it
Nick placed his hand on his chin. He could search for other victims like the young man of the armor and equipnt store, file a complaint together, and then the chivalric order would start investigating. There was even a chance that they already were, but
Who knows how long that would take. They might even ask to help, and that would leave with less ti to work. Thats why most adventurers tend to not bother dealing with the chivalric order and solve their problems with duels instead
The old woman probably realized it would only prolong this problem too.
In this country, duels had legal binding force.
Whether it was about making soone a slave, a quarrel about about money exceeding a certain amount, etc, solving it by unlawful ans would surely not be valid, but as long as it stayed within the limits of the law, no one would complain.
If anything, so people would even praise it as an act of manliness. Adventurers in particular had to display their strength, so they had a very big inclination towards solving their problems in this manner.
But they could have at least asked what happened.
I think thats what wouldve happened if I didnt take out my blade too, but I acted on impulse Thats what turned it into an it takes two to quarrel kind of situation.
So thats why theyre telling us to duel?
Im going to the guild again to explain what happened. Maybe they cheated more adventurers, but Im going to hold off on going to the chivalric order for a while longer.
Why?
Theres a good chance theyll cancel the duel. Ill think about going there after we beat them.
Tianna and the others smiled broadly.
If youre doing it, you better win. I an, Im sure well win!
Yes! We cant let them look down on us like that!
Thats right, lets teach them a lesson!
T-thanks but I want to explain exactly how it happened. Still, you guys dont seem all that surprised that this turned into a duel.
Ah, about that
Tianna looked at Bond.
It is because I heard everything.
Heard? You werent there in the alley were you?
I was not.
So
Nick realized what happened.
You cheated again didnt you?
It is not cheating!
Angrily said Bond.
I told you that my hearing and eyesight are very sharp.
So you heard what happened in the alley?
Do not tell it is not good to eavesdrop or anything of the sort. When it beca two against one, Karan looked like she was on the verge of tears.
Wah wah! I didnt cry!
Ah, well
Nick had a strange expression on his face, which Bond found amusing.
What?
Sorry I said you were cheating.
Alright then.
Bond proudly puffed out his chest.
So, did you call that old woman, I an, Wilma?
I did not. By the ti I realized a fight was breaking out, the guilds people were already on the move
Really? I guess soone saw us, or
Nick started thinking, and after a while, he slapped his knee and looked at everyone.
Are they in in cahoots with each other?
Said Tianna while frowning.
I dont think so. Maybe if we were talking about high rank adventurers or nobles, but were all just interdiate adventurers. If soone has the power and influence to make the guild join their side, they would have no reason to be an interdiate adventurer.
Thats true.
Anyway, we need a concrete plan. Sorry, but were going to have to postpone next weeks adventure.
Yes! Understood. Got it. I guess there is no choice, is there?
Karan, we need to prepare for the duel.
Yes!
We really need to drill this stuff into your head, Karan. At this point, Sem and Tianna are related to this as well, so were going to need your help too. Is that alright?
Y-yes.
Karan resisted the urge to step away from Nicks dangerous look.
I see.
H-how is it?
Karan was solving problems in a cafe with private rooms.
She was solving math problems that appeared in other duels in Fishern. Basic arithtic operations, distance and ti, percentages, geotry problems to pick the shortest route, etc. Nurical calculations related to issues that an adventurer might have encountered while working.
You answered about 70% correctly.
I-I see
Karan sighed.
Well, theres no need to aim for perfection. Lets just try to pass without issue.
Said Sem calmly, after checking Karans answers.
The test portion of the duel wasnt decided by comparing the two and seeing who had the highest score.
A terrible result ant failure, but if both had acceptable results, the match would be decided by the fist-fight.
But if I cause Nick trouble
Nick isnt concerned about that.
But, depending on the difference in points, there would be a handicap added to the fist-fight.
For that reason, Karan had to beat Claudine.
Good grief, you really should just rely on . Are you really that naive?
Complained Bond as he sat in a chair with his back arched.
There was a way to make sure Karan won, by using the Sword of Bondss Search and Telepath to let Bond solve the problems, it was possible to cheat without getting caught.
Everyone noticed this thod when they were talking about the duel, even Nick, who had completely lost his cool.
Nicks fight with Leon would still be up for grabs, but the math problems would be completely in the bag.
Nick and the others decided not to rely on Bond as much as possible.
If push ca to shove, they would disregard the rules to prioritize their own well being, but they didnt want to rely on foul play before it was actually necessary.
Nick thought this might actually be beneficial to Karan.
There was a reason why the adventurer guild did this. There were actually a lot of people like Karan, who left their hotowns and were deceived upon reaching the city. There was a huge difference between the education in rural areas and cities, and a lot of people couldnt read and could only do the most basic calculations.
They were perfect targets for people used to life in the Labyrinth City. Their lack of knowledge ant these people didnt even know how to report or ask for help, and their fate was usually tragic.
For this reason, the adventurer guild would keep an eye on parties that took in people that were clearly from rural areas, and tried to educate and guide them.
That was why they did things such as force math into duels, to try to correct the behavior of people that had a tendency to rely solely on violence.
At that point, they couldnt say that this problem had been completely dealt with.
When Karan was in the party, White Hellan, they didnt let her do anything other than fight, and would even try to avoid letting her have any contact with guild employees.
Well, its not like this is aningless.
But is it not better to rely on unfair ans rather than let yourself be tripped up over sothing trivial?
You do have a point.
Sem didnt raise any objections and just nodded.
Hm? Then why not use ?
Nick says its better to leave your trump card to the end. And
And?
This is just my opinion No matter how great you are, its hard to say for sure that no one is going to notice. We cant rule out them knowing what Telepath is, and there is always the possibility that they might sense that sothing isnt right. I agree that you should be our trump card, and that we should get by for now without using you.
Hmph Alright.
Bond reluctantly agreed, but Karan whispered with an anxious tone.
But Sem.
What is it Karan?
Will I even get to do anything? If Nick defeats Leon then thats the end of that right?
I dont know about that.
Is that Leon Really that strong?
A question mark circled Karans head.
There was no way Nick would lose a hand-to-hand fight to just so adventurer.
He went crazy on that ogre when they fought one on one, so there was no way that tiger person nad Leon could beat him.
When they fought in the alley, Nick wouldve definitely beat him had it not been for the interference from Leons fellow party mber.
I dont know about strong or weak, but before Nick left, he said you would definitely play a part in the duel, so you should get ready.
Well, then Ill do my best
Karan, do you know what is our objective?
To win the duel?
No, that is just a ans to an end.
Then Defeating those people, and make sure they cant do bad things anymore
Yes, those people are just going around doing as they please. We have no reason to hold back do we?
Sem had a sinister smile on his face.
In any case, we need you to study so we can thoroughly beat them, so lets do our best.
Now that I think about it, where are Nick and Tianna? They said they were going out to train but
They should be reaching the Dark Wolf Cave.
Uu I wanted to go explore a labyrinth too
Lets take a break after you solve this problem. Im going out tonight too.
I wish I was as carefree as you Ahh
Thats not it, I have sothing I have to do as well. In any case, lets keep going Karan.
Yes.
And then, Karan focused all of her energy on solving problems.
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