This Novel is not my Novel

Anyway, the results of the training would naturally be mentioned while narrating the martial arts tournament. Because going on and on about the training process in detail would only make readers feel bored for no reason.

The penalty for overusing the Thought Acceleration Skill, the influence event involving the original protagonist that I unintentionally succeeded in, and the opportunity that made Ríolíkin vow to change.

Having narrated this much, it should be fine to move on to the next chapter.

Thus, while boldly skipping the subsequent training process, I will change the subtitle and shift the spotlight to Saturday, November 29th.

Why specifically this day?

Because the preliminary rounds of the martial arts tournament are held over two days, the last Saturday and Sunday of November.

Under normal circumstances, I would omit even this and restart the story from the main competition.

But because I placed a condition on Ríolíkin:

"If you want to be with me, defeat at least three people, including those in the preliminary round."

Because of that, it has become an event that must definitely be touched upon.

"Huff, huff... Lord Ka, Karvaldr... I'm so t, tense..."

Ríolíkin took a deep breath to try to shake off his tension, voicing his state of mind.

With a huge tower shield in one hand and a mace in the other, his appearance while breathing heavily looked extremely vicious.

Adding his fierce impression to that, I even harbored the suspicion that his trembling stemmed not from nervousness but from anticipation for blood and violence.

'...Of course, there's no way that's true.'

I could see the surrounding extras making an effort not to meet Ríolíkin's eyes.

If I didn't know how timid the giant in front of me was, I too would have been lowering my gaze with a humble attitude like them.

Repeating inwardly not to get scared, I strove to speak in a calm voice.

"Do not make a fuss over a mere preliminary round."

"A, as expected of Lord Karvaldr. You d, don't get nervous... and remain c, calm as usual..."

"Do not use flattery either. I have no intention of relaxing the conditions because of that."

"Th, that's not why I s, said that..."

Even if it wasn't empty praise but sincere admiration, I had no intention of being thankful.

Therefore, instead of asking Ríolíkin what it was if not flattery, I ignored him and continued surveying the surroundings.

'There really are a lot of people...'

The students present here right now are all first years, and the preliminary rounds for the other academic years are proceeding simultaneously in other locations.

Even so, the number of students visible is substantial.

According to the participant list released in advance, the number of first-year applicants is 80.

Since the total number of first-year students is 180, it means nearly half of them have thrown down the gauntlet.

Though I don't know for sure, the number of those who applied lightly just for fun probably isn't small.

The preliminary round is a process to sort out such chaff.

Therefore, unlike the main competition, which is held publicly while even renting out the Coliseum, the preliminary round proceeds in a private format at the academy auditorium.

The fact that the concepts of victory and defeat by decision exist due to the five-minute time limit per match can also be called a difference from the main competition...

'If we're talking about the biggest difference, it would be that the main competition is a tournament while the preliminary round is a league.'

There are 16 groups made up of 5 people each.

Since each student fights 4 matches, the top two people from each group advance to the main competition.

If the win rates are the same, those advancing to the main competition are decided according to the professors' evaluations.

"Karvaldr! I checked the groups, and we're all in different groups! Isn't that truly fortunate?"

Students were swarming in front of the bulletin board where the group assignments were posted.

Because I didn't want to get squeezed and bumped around in that crowd, I was postponing checking the assignments and waiting for people to clear out.

Reisir must have gone and done exactly what I expected would be unpleasant.

"I am in Group 1, and you, Karvaldr, are in Group 3. Vigdís and Ríolíkin are in Groups 9 and 15 respectively."

As expected, it was a good thing that I didn't go check the assignments myself.

If I had heard that after struggling through the crowd, I would have felt it was unfair.

'If the assignments are like this, Reisir and I will have our preliminary rounds today. Vigdís and Ríolíkin will have theirs tomorrow.'

It is a good thing.

Things like this are best finished quickly for peace of mind.

But Ríolíkin, who had come carrying the heavy shield and mace, seemed relieved simply because he didn't have to fight today.

Even though it's bad, since the number of days he has to spend trembling with tension has increased by one.

"Everyone was here...! Did you check your groups? I just came from seeing them, and fortunately, none of us ended up in the same group."

Vigdís appeared a beat late.

Through that line, I learned that she too, like Reisir, had gone to check the assignments despite having to push through the crowd.

"We were just talking about that."

"Reisir was in Group 1, right? You'll be going through the preliminary round first."

"Since it turned out that way, cheer for me a lot!"

"Yes! I wish you good luck."

Warmth colored Vigdís's voice as she spoke with Reisir.

'Come to think of it, I heard she went out to buy clothes with Helga a few days ago, just the two of them.'

Because she could freely build friendships and enjoy the swordsmanship she liked to her heart's content, perhaps her oppressed nature had awakened and she had discovered the confidence hidden within her.

'On the other hand, Ríolíkin's stuttering shows no sign of improving...' 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

It seems this side can't be helped because his innate personality itself is simply like that.

Still, he never missed the sparring gatherings held every Sunday, and seeing that he never talks about withdrawing despite trembling violently, I think that counts for something.

'Since in creative °• N 𝑜 v 𝑒 l i g h t •° works, stuttering is often used as a device indicating timidity and a lack of confidence. If Ríolíkin doesn't run away and continues overcoming his fear, the stuttering will gradually be alleviated as well.'

As I finished that thought, the Thought Acceleration Skill, which had activated of its own accord, terminated, and time began to flow again.

The voice of the professor standing on the rostrum and explaining the rules and precautions of the preliminary round entered my ears.

Since the contents had already been written on the handout distributed in advance, I listened only half-heartedly, but Vigdís and Ríolíkin listened attentively while stiff with tension, even though neither of them would be participating today.

"Karvaldr, aren't you nervous?"

Reisir went beyond simply ignoring the professor's words and even attempted small talk in a whisper.

The way he smiled brightly when our eyes met looked far from nervous to anyone watching.

That must be proof that he had that much confidence in his own skill.

"Isn't it merely a preliminary round?"

"Oho~, you must be confident?"

As explained earlier, since the preliminary round consists of a total of four matches, a single defeat does not result in elimination.

This means there is no reason to desperately risk life and limb just because I'm facing the youngest young master of a ducal family with a terrible personality.

Isn't it stranger to be nervous when you know that?

Instead of voicing this thought and correcting his misunderstanding, I snorted.

"Hmph!"

Then I turned my head away.

I am aware that this action could make me look like a tsundere.

However, there was nothing better for immediately cutting off the conversation without dragging it out.

Since breaking the perception of "Karvaldr = Tsundere" that had become lodged in Reisir's head had already become an impossible task.

I judged that it would be better to make use of it to reduce the frequency of conversations with the original protagonist.

"Anyway, so aloof."

"......"

This treatment is still embarrassing, but there is only about a month left until the graduation ceremony anyway.

I decided to endure it until then.

"...This concludes the announcements. Students scheduled to fight tomorrow may leave now, or you are welcome to stay and observe the preliminary rounds before leaving."

As the professor's explanation ended, quite a large number of students left the auditorium, voicing their dissatisfaction.

"If it was going to be like this, they should have formed the groups in advance!"

They had come fully prepared with nervous hearts.

Since they were told to either go home or watch before leaving, it was only natural that they would be upset.

'The fault lies not with the professors but with the original author who wrote things this way...'

In the original work, it was only briefly mentioned that the preliminary round proceeded as a league.

Because Reisir had been assigned to Group 1 in the original work as well, he left the auditorium immediately after securing qualification for the main competition.

Because of that, it was narrated as if the preliminary round ended in a single day.

'In reality, there's no way that's possible.'

If five people hold a league match, the total number of matches per group is ten, and each match lasts five minutes, yet there are sixteen groups.

Considering the time needed to call students and prepare various things, it would take roughly sixteen hours.

To finish all of that in a single day, everyone would have to stay up all night without even eating.

'It's just that the original author set the preliminary round rules and participants without actually doing the math.'

Since the original work never directly stated that the preliminary round ended in one day, a gap was created that allowed enough flexibility to extend it to two days.

But not releasing the group assignments in advance was something that appeared in the original work, so this disaster ended up happening.

In short, the original author's sloppy handling effectively made the students run around in circles for nothing.

"We will now call the students belonging to Group 1. Students whose names are called, please move to the arena prepared in the center."

The professor standing on the rostrum firmly called the names of the students assigned to Group 1 one by one, even while hearing the students' complaints.

Among them was Reisir's name.

"Then I'll go now?"

"Whatever."

"Hahaha!"

It's not as though I had said anything funny.

I don't know what on earth the protagonist of someone else's novel found so amusing, but he laughed cheerfully and headed toward the center of the auditorium.

When all five students, including him, had gathered, the professors handling the proceedings placed two of them onto the temporarily installed arena.

Soon, the preliminary round began in earnest.

Perhaps because it was the first match.

The two students merely exchanged minor attacks and defenses while feeling each other out, and being unable to determine a winner even by decision, ended with a draw.

Then, in the second match, Reisir stepped forward.

'The result, well, is obvious.'

The original protagonist knocked away his opponent's weapon and sent it flying, winning in just one minute after the match began.

After that, students of average skill continued competing.

Most of the students who did not belong to Group 1 looked away from the arena and occupied themselves with other things.

Then, the moment Reisir stepped onto the arena again.

All the students focused their attention on him in silence.

It showed that everyone had begun paying attention to the greatness of the original protagonist after just that one previous match.

Whether Reisir's opponent felt pressured or not, the moment the match started, he not only wrapped Ether around his weapon but also activated his attribute ability.

Reisir responded only by wrapping Ether around his spear.

He did not imbue it with the Lightning attribute.

Even so, he completely overwhelmed an opponent who was giving it his all.

It was hardly surprising that his next opponent lost the will to fight and withdrew.

The fourth opponent still fought the match, but the result was likewise as expected.

Reisir secured qualification for the main competition with a record of four wins from four matches.