Chapter 85 : The Seaborn Martial Tournament
Chapter 85: The Seaborn Martial Tournament
Squirm. Squirm.
Deep beneath the abyss, a creature was writhing. It was a grotesque being that could hardly be called a normal lifeform.
A spine bent at unnatural angles and an asymmetrical skull. Tentacles grew haphazardly from various parts of its body, and its entire form was covered in scales.
Beneath its abdomen, something was squelching and spilling out. Fragments of flesh scattered in all directions, only to reassemble once more.
They reshaped themselves into the form of the creature humans called a Sea Horror.
The being that gave birth to Sea Horrors muttered after peering into fragments of a dead Sea Horror’s memories.
-Found it. So it was on land.
The creature soon moved its body, heading toward the shore.
-Now then, let’s go kill our brother.
Behind it, countless Sea Horrors that had blackened the reefs began to writhe madly.
* * *
With the confirmation of John Hopkins Nix’s existence, Lucian gradually began to believe that Yul’s hypothesis might be true.
“I still don’t understand how that bookstore employee had a book from the future, though.”
“I don’t know either. Maybe there’s some clue in the first unique magic that created the Sanctuary? The employee talked about it as if it were a book written long ago.”
The secret of the Sanctuary could not yet be unraveled.
“Then it’s decided. I'll buy a ship and head out after graduation.”
“Didn't you say you were going to do something else? Like starting a company.”
“That was just a wish. But I don't have time now, and I don't think I'll have any time then either.”
“Then wouldn't you need a lot of money to buy a ship?”
“I can never get it on my own; even our family's ships are operated by leasing them.”
“You mean you need a ship of your own?”
“Yes. I need a ship with as much high performance as possible.”
“Let’s think about it carefully—where to raise the funding.”
Yul recalled the heaps of gold likely sleeping near his island.
They were stored safely in the deep sea. Being underwater wouldn’t cause them to rust or anything. He had even specially ordered gold bars made of over 24K pure gold specifically to store them in the ocean.
“I’ll think about it within the next two years. Getting investors would probably be best.”
“But if you buy a ship that way, you’ll spend years paying back investors’ money, won’t you? I do have a good idea, actually.”
“Really?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
After all, we’ve bonded through a solid friendship—so wouldn’t it be perfect if, for my sake, you became the captain of my ship?
* * *
The Weimar Wigma Autumn Festival.
It was the first festival to be held since the academy had moved out to sea, but the tradition itself was extremely old, having been maintained even before the relocation.
Countless ships gathered. During this period, large numbers of ordinary civilians also visited.
Weimar Wigma, Britain’s finest academy, built atop the rolling waves of the sea, was an object of admiration for many by its symbolism alone.
Wealthy families and nobles who wished to enroll their children at the academy would also come at least once, combining a campus tour with enjoying the festival.
There were even rumors that members of the Britain royal family disguised themselves as commoners to participate in the festival.
And each large-scale club decided what it would do during the festival.
“Do we not have to do anything?”
“Our club only has the minimum size of five members, so we don’t have to. If you have fifteen or more, you usually get assigned work during the festival.”
“Then why is the squirrel so busy?”
“Frenda is a first-year student in the Department of Magic Engineering, and she’s on the festival committee. Unlike me, she has lots of other friends too. Apart from her delicate appearance, she seems like a person one can rely on mentally in many ways.”
Judging by his sparkling eyes as he spoke, he seemed completely smitten.
‘Looks like the two of them have feelings for each other. Whether I’m around or not, things will progress on their own.’
At this rate, they’d confess, uh, date for a bit, uh, get married, uh, have kids, and live happily ever after.
(T/N): there’s really ‘uh’ in the raws lol
The moment he heard that, Yul found himself thinking about his own loneliness. Living as an evolving deep sea creature was far more frightening and empty than one might expect.
No one could understand Yul, and Yul could not understand anyone else.
‘Will I ever have a companion?’
The thought crossed his mind, but it would be difficult. And if it were a human, it would be sad. They would live a much shorter life than Yul’s lifespan.
‘In that case, it’s better to have none at all.’
In his past life, he had thought about raising a dog. But he soon gave up on the idea.. Because one day, it would leave him.
Since he was not prepared to part at the final moment, he would not even meet them in the first place.
“Why do you look so serious? Should we try doing something during the festival too?”
“That’s not why I got serious. Well, anyway. So what does ‘participating’ mean?”
Lucian silently handed him a pamphlet.
“Huh? A martial tournament?”
“Yes. The Seaborn Martial Tournament! It’s a new festival event created since the academy relocation. And if you get first place here, the prize money is a whopping 1,000 ducats!”
“That’s enough to earn tuition, huh?”
“We’ll use the 1,000 ducats as seed money, invent various magic engineering items, then sell them to make more money.”
“No support from the family?”
“I don’t plan on borrowing my mother’s money. You can already tell she’s stretched thin just running the family.”
The Beltein Family’s financial situation didn’t seem as comfortable as expected. Still, seeing him already determined not to borrow money from his parents was admirable.
“So, anyway, you’re saying we should enter this tournament?”
“Yes. It’s hosted by the academy, not a club, so it’ll be large-scale and fairly administered. And it’s not just for the prize money.”
“Then what is it for?”
“They say you need to fight more Seaborns to raise your Communion Level.”
“Really?”
“Apparently, if you win duels between contracted Seaborns, you gain experience. That’s what I heard from a student in the Department of Communion.”
The Department of Communion. It seemed they explored deep information regarding Seaborn there.
“Alright, let’s do it. We just beat everyone senseless, right?”
“Killing is an automatic disqualification.”
“Don’t worry.”
* * *
Several days passed after the festival began.
The day of the Seaborn Martial Tournament.
They had applied long ago, so all that remained was to compete.
At the center of Weimar Wigma, built in a circular layout, there was a vast open space large enough to accommodate thousands of people.
The central area, where the headmaster’s podium for speeches had once stood, had been dismantled, and a square martial arena had been installed instead.
Near the center, numerous mages were reinforcing and maintaining the enormous arena with various spells.
The arena was filled with water, with portions of land deliberately constructed within it.
A massive crowd had gathered to watch the Seaborn duels.
Yul and Lucian were also observing the arena together before entering.
“Wow, there’s an insane number of people.”
“The arena’s filled with water. That’s unusual.”
From afar, a guide was shouting.
“Participants for the Seaborn Duel, please gather over here!”
“Me!”
After confirming that Lucian was a participant, the guide led them inside.
Following the guide, they arrived at a waiting area that was slightly submerged in water. Inside were various sea creatures.
“Seaborns, please wait over here, and Sinkers, please wait over there. The duel rules and match brackets will be announced shortly.”
While Yul stood grumbling in the waiting area, where the water reached his ankles, Lucian stood among the guides.
Looking around, he noticed that most of them were wealthy students from the Department of Communion.
‘Do Seaborns really cost that much money?’
Yul felt out of place, but it was said that most students buy their Seaborn.
After all, it wasn’t exactly feasible to capture a Seaborn yourself.
So most were raised from infancy, or if they were gentle even when fully grown, they could establish communion immediately.
On top of that, you needed the wealth to feed your communion Seaborn expensive Skill Fruits.
“Alright, everyone, are you all gathered? We’ll be handing out the rules and match brackets now.”
As Lucian read the paper handed out by the guide, various voices could be heard nearby.
“This’ll be an easy win. Most of them are below the Rare rank.”
“Don’t get careless. Even Rare rank ones can have powerful skills. I’ve heard some special Skill Fruits grant unimaginable power.”
While listening to a pair of twin brothers talking like that, Lucian spotted a familiar face.
“Oh? Miss Yera?”
“Ah. Club president.”
Among the Sinkers, she was the only woman wearing a dress. As always, she greeted Lucian lightly with her languid eyes.
“Are you participating this time?”
“First years in the Department of Communion are automatically entered. It’s such a hassle.”
“So that’s why there are so many people. Looking at the bracket, it’ll be a while before we meet.”
“I’m planning to hold back a bit and quit midway. I’m not aiming to win anyway, so there’s no need to push myself.”
“By any chance, do you know anyone strong in the Department of Communion?”
“No idea. I’m sleepy, so I’m leaving.”
“Eh? Ah. Yes!”
Just then, someone appeared beside him. At first, Lucian felt intimidated by the man’s large build, but when he spoke, Lucian felt bewildered instead.
“I-I’ll, ex-explain it? F-for you?”
His voice was high-pitched, completely mismatched with his physique. On top of that, he stuttered as if excited.
“Ah, hello. I’m Lucian.”
“I… I’m Foren. Uh, I like… explaining things, you know?”
“Yes? I’m curious—could you explain?”
“To be recognized as strong in the Department of Communion, reaching Hero rank is basically the minimum. The difference in weight class is huge.”
As he explained, his speech became faster and clearer. Lucian found this person quite fascinating.
“The strongest is Murray Carlson. His Seaborn, Lostura, is called the strongest Seaborn. And after that is Yuk’s Gideon…… but he’s been pretty lackluster since getting injured fighting the Silver Sperm Whale.”
“Ah. I see.”
“And someone you should w-watch closely is th, the woman you were just talking to…….”
“What? Miss Yera?”
“Y-Yes. Yera Mull’s Seaborn is Rare rank, but incredibly strong. And extremely cruel……. But since she doesn’t reveal her true skill, most people don’t know.”
Normally, she just lazed around with dull eyes, idly stroking her carbuncle, so Lucian had never imagined she was that strong.
“Are you participating too?”
“I-I’m weak. My Seaborn is Normal rank. We’ll either just fight in the first round or withdraw.”
“I see…….”
“Y-Your Seaborn is strong too, r-right? Th-that gentleman.”
“Ah, you mean Yul?”
“Yes, yes. In the D-Department of Communion, people are skeptical about the rumor that Gideon lost. Not many saw it themselves. But if you show your strength today, everyone will go crazy.”
“Thank you.”
Lucian sensed kindness and sharp analytical ability in Foren. For some reason, he felt like becoming friends with him.
“The Seaborn Martial Tournament will begin shortly! Please check the bracket and confirm your order. If you fail to enter the arena when it’s your turn, you’ll be counted as withdrawn, so be careful!”
Lucian checked his position in the lineup. It was farther back than expected. Since it was a tournament format, his turn would come soon enough anyway.
‘If things go according to this schedule, it’ll get tougher the further we go. Will Yul be alright?’