It Seems That the Demon King Is Among the Members of the Hero’s Party

59. Martial Arts Tournament 3rd Round

I was able to easily defeat my opponents in the first and second rounds. My first-round opponent was already intimidated when they faced me, and I finished them off with a swift strike.

My second-round opponent was a muscular, skin-headed old man who exclaimed, “It’s an honor to fight against Lord Kyle! I’ll cherish this memory and use it to motivate myself!” His words sent shivers down my spine, and I ended up taking him seriously.

Today, I just have one more match left. Considering the number of participants and the time each match takes, it’s going to be a long day.

Some matches, like the ones I’ve had, end quickly, while others drag on. But what the audience wants to see is a closely contested match. A match that ends in an instant isn’t entertaining to watch.

Eclair is also advancing smoothly. She doesn’t seem like she’s going to lose. Unlike me, she’s been keeping her holy sword in the waiting room. That sword is impossible for anyone else to wield, not even her friends.

I wonder why it’s so heavy. It’s not just heavy; it’s as if some kind of power is at work. Even five macho men couldn’t budge it.

Despite its weight, the sword doesn’t leave any marks on the floor or the bed, so it’s clear that only the chosen one can wield it. It’s a magnificent holy sword with incredible defense capabilities.

If Eclair and I keep winning, we’ll meet in the semifinals. It’s unlikely that we’ll meet in the finals.

There’s another person I’m interested in, someone I’ve been keeping an eye on since I saw the tournament bracket. They’re also advancing smoothly, and if I were to face them, it would be in the final match after I defeat Eclair.

—Natsume Shinonome. They’re in the opposite block, and we’ll likely meet in the final match.

I’ve never heard of this name in this world.

Is it Shinonome Natsume? I wonder what characters are used to write their name. I recognize “east cloud,” but “Natsume” is difficult. Is it “summer” or “jujube”?

It doesn’t matter right now. I think they’re probably a reincarnator or someone related to a reincarnator.

I’d like to talk to them, but our waiting rooms are different. Maybe we’ll have a chance to talk after the tournament is over…

The door to the waiting room opened.

“Kyle, it’s your turn.”

“I’m ready.”

This is our third exchange. I’ve gotten used to it, so I know the way even without a guide. It’s impressive, just like the dwarves’ country. The craftsmanship is evident even in the corridors, and the magical lighting is well-done.

After walking for a while, I saw the exit of the corridor. A staff member was standing there.

“Kyle, are you ready?”

“I’m ready.”

“Then, please enter the arena.”

I followed the staff member’s instructions and walked straight ahead. Natural light, not magical, illuminated the stage where we would be fighting.

I saw the dwarf judge standing near the center of the arena. I was surprised when I first saw him.

Why is the chief judge officiating? When I asked, he said he wanted to watch the match up close. He smiled and said that if anything happened, he could stop me right away.

“‘From the east, the strongest swordsman of the Brave Party, ‘Sword Saint’ Kyle Grafem!'”

The female announcer, who was standing near the chief judge, exclaimed excitedly, holding a magical megaphone-like device. It seems like they can project images with this technology. I’m impressed by the dwarves’ technological advancements.

A man with a nihilistic smile was walking towards me from the opposite exit.

“‘From the west, a member of the peacekeeping guards who has risen to the rank of captain at a young age! The elite of the elite, Moude Banaiyo!'”

When I looked at my opponent’s face, I could see that he was overflowing with confidence. He must have faith in his sword. Well, I have no intention of losing, and I’ll try to finish this quickly.

“And now, Kyle Grafem vs. Moude Banaiyo! Let the match begin!”

“Wait! I have something to say to him!”

The chief judge’s signal to start the match was interrupted by a loud voice. The man was pointing at me and shouting. What does he want to talk about?

“Kyle Grafem, I’ll say it beforehand. Surrender before you get hurt. You can’t win against me. I’m the strongest swordsman worthy of the title ‘Sword Saint’!”

He’s started talking, and it’s going to be a long speech. I’ll just let him talk until the announcer gives the signal. This kind of guy usually doesn’t have anything meaningful to say.

—By the way, when I was researching reincarnators yesterday, I stumbled upon something interesting about Takeshi-san. It seems there’s something suspicious about his relationship with Sasha.

“It’s because the tournament was held in Arcadia that you were able to get the title of Sword Saint. I wasn’t able to participate in the tournament because I had work. Of course, if I had participated, I would have won.”

Sasha seemed to know about Silvy being sealed in the Regu Ruins and that Durandal was used as the seal. However, no matter how much I read about Takeshi-san, I couldn’t find that information.

It was written that Takeshi-san was the wielder of the demonic sword Durandal, but after the demon king was defeated, it seemed that Takeshi-san had abandoned Durandal. There were many books that wrote it that way.

Sasha’s mother, Clona Lucifel, was the one who sealed the demon in the Regu Ruins. Not one of the Four Heavenly Kings, but a demon. It’s unclear whether the information was inaccurate or intentionally hidden. Probably the latter.

That information wasn’t in the book either. Did Sasha’s mother tell her directly?

If not, there would be no way to know about Silvy or Durandal. I investigated using the book owned by Maxwell-san. Sasha’s knowledge must have come from there too.

“The Sword Saint at that time was Kyle Grahem! He praised you quite a bit, but if I had to say, your sword is so weak it can’t even kill an insect!

You’re different from me, I have power. Look! At this well-trained muscle! Your physical strength is far inferior to mine!”

When I investigated further about Hero Harold, I found some suspicious points. As I’m sure you know, the 5th demon king was sealed by Hero Harold.

Although he was able to seal it, the entire Hero Party except for Harold was wiped out. After that, Hero Harold reported to the king that he had sealed the demon king, but the exact location was unknown.

When I investigated, I found out that Hero Harold had an excellent intuition, but he was also extremely directionally challenged. On top of that, his explanations were ridiculously bad.

When the king asked him where he had sealed the demon king, he explained it in a roundabout way, saying things like “Leave the capital of Arcadia, turn right, go a bit, then turn right again, and then…” The king was furious. I would be angry too.

It sounded like he was making excuses for not being able to seal it, saying that the demon king was sealed and the damage stopped. After that, the demon king’s presence suddenly disappeared, and the damage ceased, so it seemed like the demon king was sealed.

The news that the demon king was sealed spread throughout the world, but since Hero Harold couldn’t explain where it was sealed, no one else knew. So, there was an opinion that they should ask Hero Harold to guide them, but he was directionally challenged, so he couldn’t lead them to the same place. As a result, the story that the demon king was sealed spread, but no one knew where it was sealed.

“If we had fought at the Arcadia tournament, you would be lying on your bed by now. You wouldn’t have lasted even a minute. Your scrawny arms couldn’t even block my sword!”

Now, the problem is the rumor that suddenly spread 5 years ago. The demon king has revived, and now the demons that were hiding are moving simultaneously.

One question is who started that rumor. The demon king revived. To spread that rumor, you would need to have seen the demon king or know that the seal was broken. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense.

The problem is that no one knows where the seal is. If no one knows where the seal is, how can they know that the demon king’s seal was broken?

If someone had seen the demon king, the rumor of its appearance would have spread, but that’s not the case.

The person who started the rumor hasn’t been identified.

“It’s frustrating that I didn’t participate in the tournament and you became the Sword Saint. It’s supposed to be me who receives the cheers as the Hero Party! That’s something I should have gotten, but you took it because I wasn’t there!”

Right now, I suspect Sasha and Tra-san of being the demon king. As for Sasha, I was able to gather information by talking to the receptionist and the mages affiliated with the Tower of Wisdom.

Sasha has been a disciple of Maxwell’s and a member of the Tower of Wisdom for 500 years, often going out to drink and doing magic research.

I also heard an important testimony. Sasha was seen at the Tower of Wisdom and the Dwarf’s tavern 100 years ago, and 10 years ago, when the demon king was sealed.

That’s something that a sealed demon king can’t do.

That means the demon king candidate is narrowed down to Tra-san.

“I was happy to hear that you were participating in this tournament. I thought I could finally awaken the masses and show them my skills! Don’t lump me in with the opponents you’ve had until now, who tremble at the mere mention of the title of Sword Saint. You can’t win against me!”

Now, let’s go back to the topic of the seal. One hypothesis is that it wasn’t actually sealed. Is that possible?

It was a fierce battle where the entire Hero Party except for Hero Harold was wiped out. Did they bet their lives to seal the demon king? Or was it just Hero Harold alone?

It’s unlikely that Hero Harold alone could seal the demon king. If that were possible, the entire party wouldn’t have been wiped out.

It’s possible that the demons’ situation was desperate, so they pretended to seal it and hid, and the demon king gave orders to its subordinates. In that case, the demon king candidate would be Sasha alone. Only Sasha was born 300 years ago.

However, that’s just a hypothesis. It’s better to investigate who started the rumor that the demon king revived and who knows the truth.

We can’t move forward if we don’t know the truth.

“Hahaha! Now, I won’t keep the audience waiting any longer. Let’s see! Kyle Grahem, defeated by me! The true Sword Saint will show you!”

“It seems like the long talk has ended, so let’s proceed.

Kyle player vs. Mowde player!

The match is starting!”

Ah, it looks like the conversation has ended. That’s good timing, I was just about to stop thinking about it. I’ll think about it again when I’m calmer.

I still need more information to search for the demon king. The nihilistic Mowde player is charging at me, pouring magic power into his sword.

`Instant kill!

This is the Sword Saint! This is the strongest swordsman! Did you see that? This is the strength of our party of brave warriors!

Winner! Kyle Grafem!!!!!`

───What was that guy.