Chapter 14
I can't help but hum a tune, realizing how cheerful I am right now.
"Were you really that happy?"
"Yeah, I am! I finally got what I've been waiting for, so it's no exaggeration to say that I'm finally ready to start leveling up!"
The Key of the Weak is a cheat item that, by synthesizing the Mark of the Weak and the Dungeon Key, allows it to be used repeatedly instead of being a consumable, enabling multiple dungeon challenges.
Although the reuse time and recast time vary by class, it's practically useless for the weakest Class 1, the Mochi Dungeon.
"But that's the Mochi Dungeon, right?"
"Yeah."
"Then, isn't leveling up there not so great?"
"Fufufu, good question."
The recast time is an astonishing five minutes.
It's incomparably faster than the recast times of other dungeon keys.
There are other advantages too.
"This is..."
"Hey, wait!!"
Who dares interrupt this explanation?
This is where the real deal begins, but it's rude to ignore someone who calls out.
Reluctantly, I turn around.
"Ugh."
"Ah, what do you want?"
There stands Dasse and his entourage, who should have left earlier.
Avoiding trouble at the shop was smart, but waiting here is just the same.
I was about to explain the cheat of this key, but being interrupted, I can't help but feel a bit annoyed.
Talking in such a high-handed manner won't make any girl turn around.
"I don't care about you!! Hey, Nel!"
"Don't call me by my first name!! I have no business with you. Let's go, Liberta."
Even if you keep talking, Nel, clearly fed up, tries to pull me away.
I also think it's troublesome to get involved and want to leave, but...
"I said wait!!"
These kinds of guys always run up and block our way.
It's like those forced encounters in games that lead to battles.
Is this that kind of situation?
"What! Don't get in the way!"
"It's your fault for not listening to me!!"
No, it's not good to mix games with reality.
This is reality, and though the conversation sounds like a lovers' quarrel, it's clearly a girl trying to escape from a guy she dislikes.
"Okay, okay, don't resort to violence."
Blocking the way and trying to grab Nel, I stop him with a bamboo spear.
"Violence against girls is not okay."
Dasse's equipment is just a dagger and that accessory from earlier.
The presence or absence of stats changes the trouble level slightly, but the stat difference isn't significant.
"You've been in the way since earlier!! Can't you see this!?"
"In the middle of the street, you can't just draw that."
Frustrated to the max, Dasse draws his dagger from its sheath, revealing a dull blade, poorly maintained.
He probably drew it to intimidate, but I can sense the surrounding commotion.
"Shut up!! I've always disliked you!! Why are you always with Nel!! If it were an adventure, it should be me!!"
Even if he's a child, having stats makes him a formidable force.
That's the norm in this world.
I can hear voices in the distance calling for the guards.
"Don't involve Liberta!! You've been saying nonsense since earlier! What do you want!?"
I think the adult soldiers will come soon, but Nel, could you not pour oil on the fire here?
If this continues, he'll just be taken away and that'll be the end.
I'm not saying to empathize with his feelings, but...
It's easy to punch reason into an emotionally unstable child, but it's meaningless if they can't control their emotions.
Even if Nel asks for a reason, it's hard for him to articulate his feelings clearly.
Listening to Nel, he stammers and opens and closes his mouth, unsure what to do, then points at me with the hand not holding the dagger.
"A... a duel!! You!! Fight me, and if I win, stay away from Nel!!"
Probably in the last few seconds, he desperately thought that eliminating me would solve everything.
"Huh?"
And Nel, don't look at me with that confused face.
I understand his emotional state mentally, which makes it even more unbearable.
"Uh, well."
But, being pointed at so directly, how should I respond?
If it's PVP, I have the right to refuse, but in this reality, would there be any disadvantages to refusing?
Troubled, I look at Nel, who nods as if understanding.
Good, I'm a bit unclear about the common sense here.
Any hint would be helpful.
"Then, if you lose, never show up in front of me again!!"
No, no, that's not it, Nel.
Why are you leaning towards accepting the duel with such determination?
Wait, is it that in this world, you must accept duels?
This is a common sense I'm unaware of.
Please don't look so smug.
"Why would I..."
"Oh? Are you scared? You challenge to a duel and then tuck your tail and run?"
"Th-that's not it!!"
Romantically, never being able to meet again is too much of a disadvantage, so he hesitates momentarily, but having initiated it and being provoked by Nel, he seems resolved.
"Dasse! It's okay! You defeated a goblin with that dagger before and leveled up to five!!"
"That's right!! Dasse has sword skills, and that skinny guy will be taken down in no time!!"
On top of that, his entourage is hyping him up like crazy.
"Y-yeah!! There's no way I'll lose!!"
Pumped up, Dasse is breathing heavily, but...
"Nel, are we doing this here? We're getting glared at from inside the shop."
The shopkeeper's annoyed gaze from inside the shop is painful.
"It's fine! There's a square for duels. Let's go there!!"
"There's such a place?"
To escape the gaze, we're led by Nel to what should be a game-like square.
From behind, the noisy voices of Dasse and his entourage about what they'll do if they win are annoying.
From my perspective, with my current equipment, I don't think I'll lose to an initial character equipped with a dagger.
Thanks to the entourage, I know Dasse's strength.
Even assuming his stats are at their highest, with that setup, he can't win against a spear.
"Here we are!"
"Here, the Adventurer's Guild?"
We've been brought to a building I know.
Even in the game era, after becoming an adventurer, I would accept quests here.
It's a place I've frequented both offline and online, more familiar than my parents' faces.
"Excuse me!! We'd like to borrow a duel piece!!"
A duel piece?
Can you duel here?
Was there such a system?
I don't know.
This is where the differences start.
"Oh, a duel?"
"But they're just kids."
"Boring."
"But hey, one of them is the kid of that annoying Dondon, right?"
"Huh? The kid of that irritating Dondon guy?"
As Nel calls out loudly to the guild reception, the adventurers around start to murmur.
Their equipment isn't that great.
There are quite a few people I can't beat with my current stats, but no one seems unbeatable.
Most look like rough characters, and though they're interested in our duel, being kids, their interest might wane quickly.
"Fufun!"
Thanks to Dasse puffing out his chest confidently, attention is gathering.
No, your dad is pretty disliked, huh?
He's definitely not famous in a good way.
"Who are you betting on?"
"Are they fighting, that girl and Dondon's kid?"
"No, the girl isn't armed, so it's the kid with the bamboo spear?"
"...Weapon-wise, the kid with the spear is better, but with that physique, his level can't be that high, right? Even so, he's a soldier's kid. I'm betting on Dondon's kid."
"Idiot, that's not a bet!"
"I'm betting on the spear kid."
"Deal!!"
In this world, even kids' fights are entertainment?
As the noise grows, the story spreads, and soon bets are being placed.
"Liberta, come here!"
"Okay, okay."
At this point, whatever happens, happens.
Called by Nel, I go.
"Is he the one fighting?"
"Yes! We want to do it under the oath of the Duel God with the terms we discussed earlier!!"
It seems the paperwork is already done, and as I'm called over, a beautiful woman, out of place in this ragtag space, is there.
"...Ouch!?"
"Don't leer!!"
An elf woman with beautifully tied golden hair and an ample figure, whom one can only praise as beautiful, makes me stare, and I get my cheek pinched.
"Sorry."
The guild receptionist chuckles, and Nel's mood sours.
With my cheek still pinched, I glance at Nel, who looks nothing but angry.
"...I too."
"Did you say something?"
"Nothing!!"
This must be what they mean by not looking elsewhere.
I thought she said something, but since she told me not to pry, I won't delve deeper.
For a moment, I thought Nel looked down at her own undeveloped plains, but it must be my imagination.
"Okay, then your duel has been accepted by the Adventurer's Guild. We will now proceed under the Duel God."
The adult elf receptionist gracefully ignores our exchange and proceeds with the purpose of our visit.
"Ah, yes."
"Yeah!!"
Is there nothing to say about kids dueling?
No, in this world where strength is everything, is it common for kids to duel?
This is where Japanese common sense holds me back.
Dasse is full of fighting spirit, so perhaps it's me who's being unconventional.
"Training field three is available, so let's head there. I will oversee the duel."
Upon hearing the venue, the onlookers start moving, each holding a drink or a plate of snacks.
I almost want to quip if it's a baseball game, but I hold back, and we follow the receptionist.
We're led to a place about the size of a tennis court.
It's long from side to side, surrounded by wooden fences.
Directly opposite the entrance stands a beautiful statue of a goddess holding a scale in her left hand and a sword in her right.
"Accompanying persons, this is as far as you go. Beyond this point is the dueling ground judged by the gods, and no one but the combatants is allowed to enter."
Though simply made, everyone here, including the receptionist, recognizes this place as sacred.
"Liberta, do your best!!"
Nel's accompaniment ends here; I enter through the gate opened by the receptionist, wave to Nel's cheers, and head to the center.
"Dasse, beat that guy to a pulp!!"
"Don't lose to that skinny guy!!"
Unlike Nel's cheers, the other side is quite rowdy.
"Of course!! Watch me!!"
In contrast, my quiet wave seems pitiful.
"Come on, come on! It's a duel between boys who might become future adventurers!! Odds are in favor of Dondon's kid, Dasse!! Closing soon!!"
"Two hundred on Dasse!"
"I'll put three hundred on Dasse!!"
"A thousand on the little guy."
"OOOOOHHHH!!!!"
Um, isn't this a sacred duel?
Isn't that statue representing a god?
Is it okay to openly gamble in such a place?
"Five hundred on Liberta!!"
Wait, Nel? You're a kid, right?
Gambling... is that okay?
So kids can gamble too, huh.
Don't look at me with those eyes saying I can't lose.
If no one stops it, it must be okay.
Being a spectacle isn't pleasant, but this is my first PVP in this world.
I'm a bit excited about that.