Chapter 85: The Seaborn Martial Tournant
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 asymtrical skull. Tentacles grew haphazardly from various parts of its body, and its entire form was covered in scales.
Beneath its abdon, sothing was squelching and spilling out. Fragnts 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 fragnts of a dead Sea Horror’s mories.
-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 so 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 sothing else? Like starting a company.”
“That was just a wish. But I don't have ti now, and I don't think I'll have any ti 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 an 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 beca 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 extrely 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 co at least once, combining a campus tour with enjoying the festival.
There were even rumors that mbers 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 mbers, 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 Departnt of Magic Engineering, and she’s on the festival committee. Unlike , she has lots of other friends too. Apart from her delicate appearance, she seems like a person one can rely on ntally in many ways.”
Judging by his sparkling eyes as he spoke, he seed 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 mont 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 mont, he would not even et them in the first place.
“Why do you look so serious? Should we try doing sothing during the festival too?”
“That’s not why I got serious. Well, anyway. So what does ‘participating’ an?”
Lucian silently handed him a pamphlet.
“Huh? A martial tournant?”
“Yes. The Seaborn Martial Tournant! 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 tournant?”
“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 Departnt of Communion.”
The Departnt of Communion. It seed 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 Tournant.
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, nurous 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!”
“!”
After confirming that Lucian was a participant, the guide led them inside.
Following the guide, they arrived at a waiting area that was slightly subrged 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 Departnt 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 imdiately.
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 so 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 ti?”
“First years in the Departnt 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 et.”
“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 Departnt of Communion?”
“No idea. I’m sleepy, so I’m leaving.”
“Eh? Ah. Yes!”
Just then, soone 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 Departnt of Communion, reaching Hero rank is basically the minimum. The difference in weight class is huge.”
As he explained, his speech beca 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 soone 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 extrely 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 an Yul?”
“Yes, yes. In the D-Departnt 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 so reason, he felt like becoming friends with him.
“The Seaborn Martial Tournant 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 tournant format, his turn would co soon enough anyway.
‘If things go according to this schedule, it’ll get tougher the further we go. Will Yul be alright?’
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