The Failed Swordsman Who Became the Strongest After Spamming the 100 Million Years Button-Novel

89. Top Secrets and Thousand Blade Festival [6] – part 2

When I snapped out of my thoughts,

「What’s up, Allen?」

Ria peered into my face with a worried expression.

「Eh, ah, sorry… I spaced out for a while.」

「Was it something painful? You had a very sad look…」

「Sad look?」

That’s strange.

I was thinking of the fun and happy『now』a while ago, though…

「Do you want another one?」

RIa offered her choco banana.

(It’s rare for Ria to share her food.)

Apparently, I had a very heartbroken expression on my face.

「Thank you. But just your feelings are enough. More importantly… It’s the Thousand Blade Festival after all. Let’s look around another place!」

I tried to be cheerful to blow away the slightly gloomy air.

「Un, that’s right!」

「Aa, let’s do it!」

Then we played a lot of things, such as ring toss and lottery, stamp rallies, and so on.

Meanwhile, candy apples, corn, hot dogs, crepes, and everything else that caught Ria’s eyes, ended up in her stomach.

It is very impressive that she can eat so much and still maintain such a beautiful figure.

「Ahaha! This is fun, Allen!」

「Fuu, festivals are a very good thing.」

Ria and Rose were constantly smiling and enjoying the Thousand Blade festival from the bottom of their hearts.

As we went around a variety of activities,

「What is that?」

Ria saw a crowd in the middle of the schoolyard.

「Right, what is that?」

There was a special stage which was set up in the center of the crowd, and two swordsmen were glaring at each other on it.

「Fumu, it seems to be the class activity of Year 3 Class B called『Dojo Yaburi』.」 1

Rose said, looked at the pamphlet.

「「Do-Dojo Yaburi…?」

「Aa. It says win a『luxury prize』if you beat Year 3 Class B Jean Bael, the pride of Swordsmanship. In a nutshell, it’s an activity where you can experience dojo yaburi.」

「I see…」

『Dojo Yaburi』,huh…

That phrase piqued my interest as a swordsman.

「Fuu… It sounds a little interesting, let’s go!」

「I’m a little curious about how skilled they are…」

As swordsmen, Ria and Rose’s eyes became sharp.

They seem to have been drawn in by『pride of Swordsmanship』just like me.

「Yoshi, let’s go see the dojo yaburi!」

「Un!」

「Aa!」

We passed through the academy building of Thousand Blade Academy and arrived at the special stage in the center of the schoolyard.

And then,

「Gaha!」

「That’s enough! Winner, Jean Bael!」

It looks like a match just ended.

「Amazing… Forty-nine battles, forty-nine wins.」

「Strong… The title of『Head of Swordsmanship Club』is not just for show.」

「Shit, you don’t have any intention of giving away the prize at all.」

A few complaints were mixed in with the cheers.

The people who complained – were all wounded.

They probably tried their hand at dojo yaburi and lost to Jean Bael.

(But, forty-nine battles forty-nine wins, huh…)

Complete victory in all the fights.

In addition, it was forty-nine consecutive battles.

(…The pride of Swordsmanship part seems to be true.)

When I was thinking about that,

「…Ah! Look, Allen!」

Ria suddenly raised her voice and pointed to a transparent box that read『Luxury Prize』behind the special stage.

Among them, various items such as gift certificates and swords that gave off a sharp vibe were contained.

(If I remember correctly… The person who succeeds in dojo yaburi gets to choose one of their favourites from among them.)

As I looked through the luxury prize blankly, recalling that,

「…Aa, that.」

I soon realized what Ria was excited about.

「Hippo…! It’s a stuffed hippo!」

She excitedly pulled the sleeve of my clothes.

「Ahaha, that’s right.」

Ria is a sucker for cute things.

She especially loves stuffed animals. Her room is decorated with tons of them.

Sometimes I encounter her talking to the stuffed bear which she loves the most.

At such times, I silently leave the dorm pretending I didn’t see a thing.

And then,

「Ne-Nee, Allen… Can you get that stuffed animal for me?」

Ria requested with a downcast look.

And,

「Nn? Can’t you win it yourself, Ria?」

Rose asked the right question.

「I-I want Allen to win it for me… a-and present it to me!」

Ria shouted, with her face blushing red.

「A-Ahaha. Understood, Ria. I don’t know if I can win or not, but I’ll try my best.」

「…! U-Un, thank you!」

Then, I pushed through the crowd and went to the dojo yaburi reception desk.

「Excuse me. I’d like to try this dojo yaburi.」

When I called out to the male student at the reception desk,

「Allen Rodore?!」he sprang back with his eyes open wide.

「Eh?」

When I was confused by the situation,

「Chief! He came as expected. It’s him, Allen Rodore!」

The receptionist shouted, and the eyes of the people in the surroundings concentrated on me all at once.

And then,

「Hou, so you did come after all. As rumored, you are a sucker for money.」

Jean Bael, the swordsman standing on the stage, said that while looking straight at me.

(S-Sucker for money?)

Another ridiculous rumour is circulating now.

My rumors were so exaggerated that they were all simply absurd.

(In the beginning, I tried to correct them, but…)

Lately they have been spiralling out of control, and I just completely left them as is.

「Now, come on to the stage, Allen Rodore. I’ve been wanting to exchange swords with you at least once.」

Jean-san said, staring straight into my eyes.

The moment I went up to the special stage, the commentator woman raised a loud voice as though she had been waiting for it.

「HE IS FINALLY HERE! The challenger, I’m sure everyone here knows – Allen Rodoreeeee! He is so powerful that he defeated the『Prodigy』Idol Luxmaria of White Lily Academy! Many are calling him the『Strongest First Year』, and he is the swordsman who represents Thousand Blade Academy now!」

And she went on to introduce Jean-san

「On the other hand, Year 3 Class B, the Head of Swordsmanship Club – Jean Bael! Forty-nine battles to forty-nine wins so far! A super-skilled swordsman who takes pride in his overwhelming swordsmanship!」

When both our introductions were finished, she began to explain the rules.

「The rules are easy! One-on-one serious match using bamboo swords! However, the use of soul dress in consideration of safety is prohibited!」

The explanation was finished, and a bamboo sword was handed to me by the receptionist.

「Are you both ready? Well then – Begin!」

Thus, a serious match with Jean Bael-san, the Head of Swordsmanship Club, began.