Chapter 260: A Battle with a Slave Gladiator, and the Outcome of the Match

"It is a draw."

I smiled at the two and said that.

"Eh? Eh? Master? Why are you here?"

"W-what is going on?"

The two, in the same postures, turned eyes opened wide in surprise at me.

"If continued like that, Sara’s torso would have been split in two. Regina’s head would have flown too."

I made the two stand and explained that.

"N-no, um, until just now you were there...???"

"W-why can you stop in such an unstable posture???"

Whether they heard my explanation or not, the two’s confusion did not seem to settle.

No, I had only run at full speed, and only pressed normally.

Sara and Regina both looked only at me without looking at each other anymore, so I looked at Nikolaus, the judge, to have him declare a draw, but he too opened his eyes and looked this way in surprise.

I looked around, and not only Ivano, Freit, Lotte, Laura, and their guards wore expressions of astonishment.

My Dules too, Cathy, Rina, Helma, Ilma, Yuki, Sheena and so were blank, but the others who had experienced battle were surprised too.

Only Muriel, Sophia, and Rosina seemed resigned, and Tiria innocently repeated amazing, amazing.

"W-what are you doing!!"

While I stood frozen wondering what to do, the voice of Nikolaus, who had come to himself, echoed in the arena.

"It is a draw! If continued like that both would have received fatal wounds!"

I, who unlike Nikolaus was not using magic, said in a loud voice so Nikolaus and Ivano in distant places could hear.

"That is so, but... but both are Dules, so if revived..."

"Ah, right. This side had no problem even if broken, but that side made a problem of it. And if that side joined the fight that is a foul. That side loses."

Ivano, who had recovered from surprise before I knew it and approached this way, wore a stern face, interrupted Nikolaus’s words, and claimed that.

I turned, and Freit smiled wryly and shook his head sideways.

Had I done it...

No, if I had not stopped there Sara’s head would have flown.

I did not want to see such a thing anymore.

I felt I had done something bad to Sara, but I thought that.

"Understood. Fine as our loss. But if I win next, have Sara returned."

"Of course. If you like I will attach Regina too. I will lend for the number of Dules."

When I accepted and restated the bet portion, Ivano accepted too.

"W-will I fight this one... this person!?"

But Regina seemed dissatisfied.

"Ah, right. The talk just now, did you not hear? You can win, right? Even that match, if you had gone all out from the start..."

Ivano talked at length to Regina.

"You did well. But if continued like that you would have been badly injured. In actual combat if you do not get injured you can connect to the next plan, so be careful."

"Yes... I am sorry."

I too had a light reflection meeting with Sara.

I did not think I had scolded that hard, but Sara bowed her head and apologized to me looking crushed.

Had losing to Regina been that frustrating?

When I first asked about Regina it had not been so.

I looked at Regina’s side, and while receiving sticky scolding from Ivano and wearing a frustrated expression, she looked this way and glared hard.

No, she seemed to be glaring at Sara, and when her eyes turned my way she looked awkward and averted her eyes.

"Are you listening!"

Ivano raised his voice and shouted.

At that Regina shrugged.

"Well, about that. Then from when will you do it?"

Freit, looking fed up, put a crosswise into Ivano’s "reflection meeting."

"Hm, right. Can it be done from now?"

"Y-yes."

"So she says. How about that side?"

Ivano asked Regina in a cold voice, heard Regina’s fearful answer, and asked back this way.

"Yes, fine."

"Then shall we begin."

Hearing my answer, Freit sent a signal to Nikolaus.

Come to think of it, Nikolaus had been standing at the commentary seat the whole time.

"Then please prepare."

Hearing Nikolaus’s words I nodded and stood where Sara had been just before the start.

I drew the bastard sword belted at the left waist with my right hand and swung it lightly.

I tried to draw the bastard sword belted at the right waist with my left hand too, but thought a little and stopped.

This one alone would be enough.

I looked ahead, and Ivano was still lecturing Regina.

No, Regina seemed to be asking something, and Ivano was showing reluctance to it.

In the end, a little later Ivano nodded, and Regina removed the chains connecting the nipples and pauldrons, and the chains connecting the clitoris and ankles, and handed them to Ivano.

As expected, wearing those chains would lack concentration.

Ivano pinched them with index finger and thumb, held them away from his body as if disliking, and walked to the wall side over there.

Regina saw that, dropped her shoulders, but faced my way and looked at me with eyes filled with hostility and took a stance with the greatsword.

Eyes that had been directed at Sara at first, now looking at me.

When putting in spirit to fight, did it become like that?

But the greatsword was held in seigan, and unlike before, somewhat defensive.

"Lord Asahi, is it fine not to take a stance?"

Nikolaus asked, seeing me with both hands lowered without taking a sword stance.

I raised my left hand and made Nikolaus wait, and called to Regina.

"You may use magic like just now."

"!!"

Regina wore an expression like momentary indignation, but soon returned it and thrust the sword into the ground, muttered something, and drew a magic circle with her right hand.

Unlike with Sara it seemed a complex magic circle, and the words were long.

A little later, maybe finished chanting the magic, she took a breath and drew the greatsword thrust into the ground.

Then she took a high stance with both hands and swung down.

It could be understood several stages earlier than before.

I see. She had enhanced not only the legs but the arm muscles too.

Regina held the sword under the arm.

I too put my right foot forward, became half-body, and held the bastard sword with only the right hand and took seigan.

"Then, begin!"

With Nikolaus’s signal, Regina grinned and came toward me while dragging the greatsword the same as with Sara.

But incomparably fast.

And this too, in the middle she took the greatsword high, and swung down before me.

That riding the momentum approached my head several times faster.

But I grabbed the base of the guard of that greatsword with my left hand, became half-body, and turned it without reducing the strength.

"Guh!"

Regina braced her right foot to stop the momentum and tried to lean her body back, but could not oppose the strength I pulled down, rotated once, and rolled to the ground from the back.

There, without giving time for Regina to recover from the impact, I pointed the tip of the bastard sword at Regina’s throat.

Regina, who recovered from the impact and grasped the situation, made a sound in her throat and held her breath.

"T-that is enough!"

After the place quieted for a while, Nikolaus declared the end.

I withdrew the sword and returned it to the sheath, and held out a hand to the fallen Regina.

Regina, who hesitated a little, still grasped my hand and stood.

Her face wore a frustrated expression.

Someone came while applauding, clap clap clap.

"A little anticlimactic, but Lord Hiroyuki’s win, is that fine?"

Freit spoke so Ivano, who had his mouth open enough for his jaw to dislocate over there, could hear.

Maybe having heard that, Ivano who came to himself ran this way.

"Haa, haa, haa, kuh, haa, haa, th-that is, a-a foul, haa, haa, haa..."

The moment he arrived, without time to settle his breath he found fault.

"Why is it a foul?"

"Haa, haa, fuu. In a match using swords, throwing techniques are the height of heresy!! First, fighting with the same sword as this side, and moreover..."

When Freit asked, Ivano who took a breath reeled it off like that.

True, the match of Sara and Regina had used throwing techniques too.

"What is it?"

When Freit looked fed up at Ivano further lining up pretexts, Nikolaus walked this way.

"Lord Ivano insists that was a foul."

"A foul? Why?"

When I told Nikolaus, Nikolaus tilted his head.

"So, using a throwing technique to make the opponent unable to move, and finishing is... the same sword... armor is..."

Freit, who had turned it to Nikolaus, sighed and came this way.

To that Nikolaus, Ivano explained the same things he had talked to Freit.

"No, no, there was no such arrangement at first. The first fight did not make a problem of it either, right?"

Nikolaus, having heard all of Ivano’s talk, properly explained that there had been no problem.

"That is that, this is this, the talk is different."

"How is it different?"

Ivano pressed in, but even so Nikolaus firmly listened to the talk.

Was he used to handling this sort of claim?

In the end Ivano accepted reluctantly, and my win was decided.

"Um, I will borrow for fifteen days."

"Do as you like. Hey! Hurry!"

Ivano, who answered carelessly, drew Regina, who had dropped her shoulders, close.

Regina, brought out before me, looked at me, bit her lip hard, and began removing the armor she wore.

Freit and Nikolaus watched that silently too.

Ivano glared while biting the nail of his right thumb’s thumb as if frustrated.

"Sara."

"Eh? ...Y-yes!"

I called Sara, signaled to Regina with my eyes, and maybe she caught my intent, answered and entered the waiting room.

Eventually Regina removed everything including the armor under, became fully naked, and bowed her head to the ground before me.

"F-for a short time, please take care of me."

Regina doing dogeza fully naked before everyone.

"Then with this. Let us go!"

Ivano glanced at Regina, and took the guards who had put the armor Regina removed into a bag, and left the arena.

At the same time Sara, who came out from the waiting room, ran this way and looked at me.

When I nodded, she put the large cloth she held on Regina.

Regina, who raised her face, was surprised, but soon dyed her face red and wore an expression of anger.

"I do not want sympathy from you!!"

Regina shouted that and shook off the cloth put on her.

Eh?

Regina and Sara should have been old acquaintances, but had they been on bad terms?

Come to think of it, during the fight too Regina had glared at Sara.

Having Sara put the cloth on had been a mistake.