――And so, my objections were completely ignored, and Rafine and the others ended up fighting after all.
"Haa…"
From the improvised spectator seats, I watched Rafine energetically warming up on the circular arena field and I let out a disappointed sigh.
"Jirei, you don't have to look so worried. The girls will be fine." Aldi said.
"…I'm not worried or anything."
Aldi looks at me and laughs heartily. "Jirei is so overprotective~" …That's not true.
"…In the first place, I was planning to go to the Magic Library alone, so there's no need for me to be here doing this."
"Ah, that's right… um, well…"
"? What is it?"
Aldi mumbles, clearly having trouble saying it.
"…Well, you'll find out soon enough anyway, so it's fine. More importantly, there's no need to worry that much. Eve and the princess have a very good chance of winning. Above all, you should respect their determination."
"Well… that's true, but…"
I glance at Rafine, who looks extremely motivated and full of fighting spirit.
Certainly, that determination is impressive. Very few people have the resolve to stand up against someone overwhelmingly stronger for the sake of their unshakable beliefs. Even I can understand that much.
However…
"..."
I silently scratch my head.
I get it… I really do understand, but for some reason I just can't calm down. The moment I imagine Rafine and the others fighting, my head gets all foggy and restless.
Actually, despite what Aldi said, I'm not really "worried".
Regardless of Eve, Rafine can neutralize most opponents without even touching them using Kotodama (Word Spirit) magic. There's no way she would lose easily.
To begin with, Rafine is not some frail little girl. If she were that weak, I would have forcibly sent her back to her country long ago—even if I had to tie her up. It's far too dangerous for a princess to wander around alone like this.
So… I'm not especially worried.
I've been fidgeting and shifting around for a while now, but it's definitely not because I'm worried.
There's a safety mechanism on the battlefield, so even if someone dies it's okay… but if they don't die instantly, they'll feel pain, and maybe we should stop the match—seriously, it's not like that at all.
"――Aldi-san, just to confirm one last time. The rules are 'the one who surrenders voluntarily or becomes incapacitated loses', and 'anything is allowed: magic, weapons, sorcery…' correct?" Rafine asks.
"No problem. Same rules as the Magic Tournament."
After receiving Aldi's answer, Rafine nods seriously.
"Understood. Then I'm ready whenever."
"Got it… Wisdom, you're okay too?"
"Yes. I'm fine."
Aldi confirms both sides are ready.
"Alright then—let's begin!"
He activates the large orb he's holding in both hands — the magical tool "Battlefield" — and tosses it high into the air.
"The battle between the [Attack] Hero Party and the [Talent] Hero Party — begins!"
At the same time as his shout, the activated "Battlefield" deploys magical power, enveloping both Rafine and the wolf beastman Wisdom who stand within the circle. In an instant, both of them disappear.
Immediately after, Aldi throws up another magical tool, projecting an image into the air — the interior of the battlefield: a lush, dense forest.
"…A forest, huh."
I mutter while looking at the projected scene.
"Battlefield" is a type of "otherworld" magical tool that transports designated targets to a different terrain in a separate dimension.
Forests, volcanoes, snowy mountains — almost any environment can be recreated, and the terrain that appears is real, physical, not some intangible illusion.
This time it seems the terrain was chosen randomly…
"This is bad."
Without question… this is an overwhelmingly disadvantageous field for Rafine.
Fighting a werewolf beastman with exceptional physical abilities in a forest full of trees… even an A-rank adventurer would struggle.
Moreover, the opponent has a physique far tougher than your average wolf beastman.
There are two A-ranks… no, three. It's finally time for her to prove herself.
It's true that Rafine's Kotodama magic is powerful, and I don't believe she would lose, but still——
"――Stop."
The moment the match began, Rafine used Kotodama on Wisdom, who had instantly moved to hide among the trees.
"! Manipulation magic—no, this is… word magic."
Wisdom, whose physical freedom had been stolen, froze exactly as ordered and calmly analyzed the situation.
"There's nothing you can do anymore. Surrender."
Rafine orders him to surrender without even using Kotodama this time. However…
"…I cannot do that."
Wisdom, head lowered while restrained, refuses. Rafine's expression stiffens slightly.
"I've already won. Just surrender quietly—"
"For us members of the Edel Knights, surrender does not exist."
Wisdom straightens his large body as much as the restraints allow and continues.
"'Even if both arms and legs are lost, bite into the throat and seize victory' — that is the teaching of our order. Defeat is only acknowledged when one has used up every last ounce of strength and died."
The massive, restrained body creaks. Sharp fangs glint ferociously from his mouth.
He exudes the wild, bloodthirsty fighting spirit of a beast that might tear out your throat the moment you let your guard down.
"Hah…"
Rafine seems slightly overwhelmed and takes a few steps back.
…Well, that's understandable. Simply being able to stand while facing this kind of pressure is already impressive. Normally one's knees would buckle, magic would dissipate, and the will to fight would collapse.
"I truly apologize for troubling you. However… once the battle has begun, I cannot afford to lose until I am defeated and killed."
"…But you can't do anything anymore."
"Then either kill me, or give the order. 'Kill yourself.'"
"But…"
Rafine is at a loss, confronted with Wisdom who has not lost his will to fight at all.
…She hit his weak spot, his pride.
Indeed, Kotodama magic is powerful. Against those with little magical power or low magic resistance, it can completely control them.
However, it's meaningless if the caster cannot bring themselves to give the order.
Aldi, who had suddenly sat down beside me to watch, crosses his arms.
"Well… it's probably tough. Even if death on the Battlefield is safe, killing someone still requires tremendous resolve. And when it's a kind-hearted princess… it's even harder."
Looking at Rafine frozen in front of Wisdom, I grimace.
…She probably thought too naively.
That if she restrained him and rendered him powerless, he would surrender.
Having lived a life completely disconnected from killing, it's understandable she would think that way.
In fact, the idea of someone as seemingly gentle as Rafine killing without hesitation is actually scarier.
But——in this particular situation, that was the worst possible miscalculation.
"55, 56… that's five minutes——"
After counting something to himself, Wisdom slowly raises the face he had kept lowered.
"Black-haired lady. I have one request. Will you surrender?"
He says something completely unthinkable given his current situation.
"…Of course not. The one who wants the other to surrender is me."
"I see… then it can't be helped."
Wisdom distorts his ferocious face regretfully at Rafine's reply.
――In that instant.
"Then I shall persuade you… with force."
The body that was supposed to be restrained leaps forward in the blink of an eye, appearing behind Rafine.
"っ!? Wha——"
"Please do not move."
The hooked claws that could easily tear Rafine's soft skin with the slightest swipe are pressed against her throat.
"――Jirei, no interference during the match, okay?"
"…Ah, yeah… sorry."
Being told that by Aldi beside me, I finally notice that I had unconsciously started gathering magical power.
I force my standing body to sit back down and once again bitterly watch the projected battle.
The situation shown has completely reversed from moments ago — now overwhelmingly hopeless.
The hooked claw is just barely touching her throat; a thin line of red blood trickles down Rafine's white skin.
…What the hell is going on? Why did Rafine's Kotodama suddenly——wait, no way.
"How… is this possible? I should have restrained you with word magic."
"Did you really think I wouldn't prepare countermeasures? This is the first time I've faced word magic… but the problem has already been solved."
Hearing those words, I became certain.
"――Anti-magic."
"Whoa… as expected of Jirei. You figured it out from that?"
Aldi whistles in admiration. …This bastard knew all along, didn't he.
"Despite how he looks, Wisdom is actually a mage who specializes in anti-magic research. He's terrible at other magic, but anti-magic is his forte——"
"Yeah yeah, whatever."
"Oh…"
Aldi looks dejected. Don't tell me things I didn't ask for.
It's most likely an absorption-type anti-magic based on the structure.
From his earlier statement… it probably takes about five minutes of continuous exposure to take effect.
In the first place, anti-magic isn't normally used as a spell — it's usually enchanted onto weapons or tools.
Even when nullifying enemy magic, the procedure is extremely troublesome. It's far easier and more practical to directly interfere with the opponent's spell formula and dissipate the magic.
That's why I know how to use it but almost never do. The situations where it's useful are just too limited.
Most anti-magic only temporarily nullifies spells.
However, the anti-magic Wisdom is using——
"But if I restrain you again… 'Kneel down!'"
"Useless."
Even when Rafine tries to use word magic again, Wisdom doesn't bow his head; he simply states it calmly.
"…Aldi. Why didn't you say anything?"
"Hm? That Wisdom is an anti-magic specialist?"
"No. Why didn't you tell me from the beginning… that Rafine had no chance of winning."
I glare and press him.
Wisdom, who has mastered "permanently nullifying" anti-magic, is an absolutely terrible matchup for a Kotodama user like Rafine. Despite that——
"No chance? Nah, I don't think so. You understand it too, right, Jirei — the true essence of Kotodama magic."
Aldi grins mischievously, swinging his legs and saying "This is gonna be fun~"
Right now I seriously want to punch this magic maniac in the face.
"…There's no way she can do it."
Suppressing the urge to hit him, I turn my eyes back to the projected image.
…Indeed, if one could truly use Kotodama magic in its "real" sense, a situation like this would be trivial.
But that's an impossibly high hurdle.
Kotodama is already an extremely difficult magic, and reaching that level is said to take decades of training.
"――I ask that you surrender. You don't want to feel pain, do you?"
Wisdom presses the claw harder against Rafine's white neck, drawing a thin red line.
Blood flows red down her neck. Rafine bites her lip, face twisting in pain, unable to do anything else.
To anyone watching, it was clearly defeat.
A defeat brought about by her own naivety.
"…I just hope it doesn't become a trauma for her."
Watching Rafine hang her head in frustration, I mutter to myself.
…Maybe it really would be better to forcibly send Rafine back to the Uniwellcia Kingdom.
No matter how powerful Kotodama is, unexpected situations like this can always happen.
If that's the case, it's better to send her back before she really gets seriously hurt.
…Well, whatever happens to Rafine doesn't really matter to me, but if she keeps following me around and something happens, I'll be the one who suffers.
It's just annoying. Seriously.
Rafine has no chance of winning anymore.
So this match will end with her surrendering and losing.
――That's what I thought.
"…I refuse."
Rafine clearly said those words.
"I will not surrender."
With a firm tone, Rafine rejected the idea.
Blood is dripping quite noticeably from where the claw has cut into her neck, staining her white clothes red.
"…Why won't you surrender?"
I let out a bewildered voice, unable to understand.
There's no way she isn't feeling sharp, unbearable pain right now.
She should want to surrender immediately and escape from this.
"I have decided. I will stay by Jirei-sama's side… and support him.
I absolutely refuse to become a burden."
Rafine speaks slowly, word by word.
Her voice is strong; I can tell there is something she absolutely will not yield on.
"That's why… I will never give up. And I will never surrender."
Those were the words of someone with unshakable conviction.
Wisdom's ears twitch slightly. He relaxes the claw pressed against her neck.
Even with a beastman's hard-to-read expression, his clear agitation is obvious.
He takes a small, quiet breath, then says:
"…It can't be helped. I'll try to make it as painless as possible."
Wisdom releases the restraint on Rafine and steps back.
Freed, Rafine collapses to the ground, hands on the dirt, coughing painfully.
"I… I'm strong. So… there's no way I can lose."
Rafine forces herself up and bravely faces Wisdom's gigantic body, several times larger than her own. She's saying this mantra of hers.
Wisdom says nothing, only sharpening his claws against each other.
…He's probably planning to finish it in one blow.
"I'm strong. Much stronger than you. More powerful. Faster… I am strong. I am strong——"
Rafine mutters to herself repeatedly, head lowered.
"――It's over."
Wisdom kicks off the ground.
In an instant, the huge body appears right in front of Rafine.
A sharp, enormous hooked claw is raised.
A single thrust through the heart — instant death without pain.
Then the "Battlefield" would release and the match would end——
"…Huh?"
――It didn't happen.
Wisdom's face warps greatly in shock.
What his eyes see is not Rafine's corpse pierced through the heart — but Rafine standing there perfectly unharmed, all limbs intact.
Beside me, Aldi jumps up so violently that his chair topples over with a loud clatter.
I can't see his face, but I'm sure he's wearing an excited, childlike grin right now.
"No way…"
Even I can't help but stare in astonishment. This is impossible.
Even if she trained from childhood, reaching that realm——
Kotodama (Word Spirit) magic is magic that manipulates the target.
It is often confused with Manipulation magic due to similar effects, but in truth they are completely different.
Manipulation magic forcibly injects the caster's own magic power into the target to control them.
It cannot touch the mind/will of the target — only the physical body, the "shell".
That's why if someone tries to interfere while manipulation is active, the target can't withstand the magical current and explodes.
When the target has a will, only simple movements are possible.
Only puppeteers bother trying to make complex actions on will-less dolls.
In contrast, Kotodama is slightly different.
It infuses one's magic power into words to forcibly manipulate the target. Up to that point it's similar.
However, unlike manipulation magic, Kotodama does not flow magic power directly into the target's body.
Instead, it transfers magic power to the spirits said to dwell within words, allowing them to intervene and produce the effect.
Therefore, in its original and true form, Kotodama is capable of far more things — things that go beyond mere physical manipulation.
For example——
"I am 'stronger than you'."
"Guh…!? Why is this body of mine——!?"
――Strengthening one's own body to gain greater physical power than the opponent.
"I am 'faster than you'."
――Gaining speed to move several steps ahead of the opponent.
The price is enormous magical consumption proportional to the content declared.
Without tremendous magic reserves, one can't even maintain it for a few seconds.
Using Kotodama for anything beyond simple manipulation is extremely difficult.
Most people only manage to use it even slightly after decades of training.
That's why, in general society, Kotodama is only known as "magic that controls targets".
Many practitioners themselves don't know its true nature.
Only an extremely small handful both understand its essence and can actually use it.
…Yet the Rafine shown in the projection is using Kotodama on her own body, gaining overwhelmingly superior strength and speed, completely toying with Wisdom.
"――I… by such a small girl…"
By the time anyone realized, the one collapsed on the ground was Wisdom.
Rafine stood there perfectly unharmed, without even a scratch.
"Please… surrender."
Rafine gently places her hand on Wisdom's neck, softly urging him to give up.
"...Impossible."
But Wisdom will not nod.
"Is there really no way?"
"…Yeah."
After Rafine murmurs "I see…",
"...I'm very sorry."
With a voice that sounds almost like she's about to cry, she apologizes,
then slowly strengthens the delicate white hand placed on Wisdom's neck.
That slender hand… was trembling, just a little.
◇
"――The winner is Her Highness! Princess, if I could just study that Kotodama magic a little closer, I'd be super happy——"
"I'm very sorry. I'm not feeling well… May I be excused to rest?"
"Ah… (realizes) …Sorry."
After the match with Wisdom ended, and after the overly excited magic maniac made another tactless remark,
Rafine came back to the spectator seats with her head down, then sat quietly beside me.
"…You okay?"
I chant Create Water and hand her a cup of water.
Rafine gives a small, happy "…Thank you" and accepts the cup, drinking it down in small gulps.
I watch her from the side for a while. Once her breathing calms, I speak.
"I had no idea… that you could use Kotodama at that level."
I speak honestly, my voice filled with both admiration and astonishment.
…Reaching that realm requires an absolutely tremendous amount of training and effort.
I never imagined someone as young as fifteen-year-old Rafine could possibly do it.
When I praise her frankly, she responds in a slightly troubled tone.
"Yes… I was surprised too."
"…Huh? You mean you weren't using it on purpose?"
"No, I've been training constantly, but… this was actually the first time I managed to do it. So I was really shocked myself."
An astonishing truth is revealed. Seriously?
With a somewhat tired expression, Rafine gives a small smile.
"I understood the theory, but I'd never seen anyone actually use it, so I was always anxious——"
"…I see."
In any case… everything came down to Rafine's effort and refusal to give up.
She was able to defeat Wisdom because she refused to give up and kept facing him.
The fact that she managed to elevate Kotodama at the very last moment was because she fought without ever bending her beliefs.
"…? What's wrong?"
"っ… N-no, it's nothing."
Rafine tilts her head curiously. I hurriedly look away.
…I really don't get it. Why go that far?
Surely, probably, the root of that conviction is——
"..."
I shake my head vigorously to banish the thought, then pointedly turn to look at the scenery.
It doesn't matter. It's got nothing to do with me.
Even though I know that perfectly well——
Until Eve's match began… for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to look at Rafine's face.