"P-please save me. Just once, please save—. Ah, I'm really begging you to save me—!"
The owner of the voice heard from the forest was running to avoid arrows flying from behind. Perhaps because he had lived his entire life as an errand boy in back alleys, fortunately he had some skill in running. However, since the pistol he had brought as a weapon became useless in this match, he was reduced to a fugitive whenever he encountered anyone.
Even now he was being chased by a group, and while they usually gave up after some distance, these guys were extremely persistent. Moreover, unlike the first half of the match which had been mostly individual battles, now that they had entered the second half, everyone was forming teams to survive, making it even more maddening.
The fugitive held his bag under one arm while gripping his bullet-less pistol like a club in his hand. He was about to use the muzzle to push away tree branches blocking his view.
"Aaaaah!"
One of the pursuers who had been waiting beyond the drooping undergrowth swung a gleaming blue-bladed axe.
Five surrounding trees were cut down in one strike. The fugitive, who barely avoided it, rolled on the ground and crawled down the sloped hill.
However, his position was already exposed and he was outnumbered. His stamina was completely drained, and he had even lost his sense of direction about where he was heading. So there was no way he could realize he was being herded. The fugitive was driven through the jungle by his pursuers until he reached a dead end below a cliff.
Panting and looking up at the towering cliff, he felt presences from all directions. Looking to both sides, he saw a mage chanting spells on the left and a bandit with a huge axe on the right. From behind, a hunter with a drawn bowstring was slowly approaching.
Cornered, the fugitive pressed his back against the cliff and shouted in a trembling voice.
"Damn persistent bastards... If I were you, I'd be looking for other flowers at a time like this!"
"Why look for flowers? You're carrying the last crystal that will let us pass."
The arrowhead adjusted its direction and aimed at the fugitive's bulging clothes.
"And you're just as persistent, aren't you? Cockroach-like bastard, disgustingly fast. If you had handed it over obediently when we asked nicely, we could have saved each other time, right?"
"Am I crazy? Do you know how I got this! I'd rather throw it away than give it to you—"
"We don't want to hurt people either."
As the three surrounded him from three sides and approached, the fugitive trailed off and glanced up at the cliff. It was too high to climb. But for a frontal breakthrough, they had ranged weapons. Before he could escape their range, an arrow or fireball would hit his torso first.
As evidence for this prediction, the fugitive's clothes were already singed and torn to tatters. However, he absolutely wouldn't let go of the bag containing the crystal. Having entered the second half, if he lost this, he would lose even the possibility of negotiating with other participants.
"Come on, hand it over. I can't shoot your head, but I can cut a tendon or so."
The three pursuers giggled while looking at the rat in a trap. At their approach step by step, the fugitive denied reality and squeezed his eyes shut before opening them.
'It ends here?'
Where would there be anyone who wasn't desperate to be here, but he absolutely had to make it to the round where betting began. He had made up his mind and even obtained a used pistol sold in the black market... He couldn't be eliminated here. The fugitive gritted his teeth and rolled his eyes. Hadn't they said that even if taken by a tiger, you live if you keep your wits about you?
At that moment, an unidentifiable silhouette flickered from atop the cliff. The fugitive shouted at the top of his lungs with the desperation of grasping at straws.
"Ah, anyone is fine, anyone who needs white or red ones! I'll give this to you, so please help me!"
Shouting like a madman toward the empty air, the three pursuers momentarily hesitated. However, they soon snorted and shook their heads.
"Give it up, who would come for that? There are three of us here."
"Don't needlessly increase the competition and just quietly—"
At that moment, a faint wind blew between the fugitive and his pursuers. In the instant they reflexively blinked, a man was standing before them.
The four people in confrontation were momentarily speechless. All the grass at the man's feet was lying in one direction. It seemed crushed by some pressure, but there had been no sound of footsteps. No approaching presence or movement had been visible either.
It was natural for the pursuers, startled by the ghostly appearance of this third party, to step back.
"Wh-what? Who is this bastard?"
"Hey, do you really have white ones?"
Regardless, Leonardo pressed his palm beside the fugitive's head and got straight to the point. The fugitive, who had been standing dumbfounded, blinked and stared at the face thrust toward him.
"Wh-whoa!"
He couldn't suppress the instinctive sound that burst out and sat down on the ground. In that position, he raised his guard awkwardly while bowing his head, yet scanning his opponent up and down. The first place his gaze reached was naturally Leonardo's jacket pockets, bulging thickly on both sides.
Match assistance items could only be carried one per person. So what filled those pockets must surely be crystals. Having many crystals collected definitely meant he was strong.
The fugitive, developing thoughts that didn't connect smoothly, was soon nodding his head vigorously.
"Yes, yes, big brother! I have one white and one red, two total!"
He instinctively knew this man was his savior. Soon he showed Leonardo the crystals he had hastily taken from his bag. Pure white with no dimming or fading of the surface, an unquestionable white. Leonardo's lips curved up at seeing a white crystal with his own eyes for the first time.
"If I save you here right now, will you give that to me?"
Loosely curved eyes and a confident tone. It was an attitude proving his strength, but that didn't mean it inspired trust.
The fugitive swallowed dry saliva while stealthily putting the crystal back away. Then he smiled awkwardly and answered as humbly as possible.
"J-just like that would be a bit difficult, and if you could take me along too..."
"Hey, what are you doing right now? That's originally ours. We're the ones who drained all his strength, but it's troublesome if you suddenly appear and butt in."
One of the pursuers, who had been watching the strangely developing situation, cut off the flow. Leonardo glanced to the side, then looked down at his opponent again and asked.
"They say it's theirs? Is that right?"
"Huh? No! I found it and those guys are trying to steal it from me!"
The fugitive protested as if extremely wronged. Leonardo rubbed his chin with an "Hmm." But soon he shrugged as if it didn't matter. He grabbed the fugitive's forearm, who was still sitting, and forcibly pulled him up. Then he dragged him to his side, put his arm around the opponent's shoulder, and declared to the pursuers who were keeping them in check.
"Look elsewhere. This guy has to come with me."
The pursuers looked at each other as if bewildered. On one hand, they silently pointed at the opponent's jacket pockets with their eyes. They seemed to think 3 to 1 gave them enough chance of winning.
Soon, without anyone taking the lead, they all rushed at the two people in the encirclement. Leonardo, who had roughly expected this, let out an annoyed sigh while gladly responding. It didn't take very long to clean things up.
* * *
"Big brother, you're really my savior! Until this match ends, no, throughout the entire league period, I'll serve you with all my heart! Whatever you command, I'll dedicate this body and work hard—"
"Hey, be quiet."
Leonardo, who had been crouching and looking around, turned back with a furrowed brow. His temporary collaborator, carrying a heavy bag, closed his mouth upon seeing his gaze. Yet worried about being left behind, he busily followed and smiled, showing all his gums.
"Sorry, big brother."
Leonardo looked his unsatisfactory partner up and down, then turned his head and slightly lifted his hat. After brushing back his sweat-dampened bangs, he sighed silently.
'I think I chose wrong somehow...'
The two were currently on their way to the stamen tower at the center of the island, avoiding other participants' eyes. Flying across the sky at once would save much more time, but Leonardo judged that being exposed to all 87 remaining competitors at once would be recklessness, not boldness.
Moreover, since his collaborator's abilities were unremarkable, Leonardo had to protect both their safety and all the crystals.
Though it was too late to regret now, he should have brought one of the three guys he had knocked out who might have been helpful. Though none of the three looked very strong, they seemed capable of at least taking care of themselves. Why had he brought this guy...
'No, right. At least he has good stamina. And he doesn't seem that clueless either.'
Leonardo repeated this to himself, trying to mentally package his chosen partner well. A fawning guy was better than someone arrogant or rigid. While thinking this, his partner stealthily brought his face close and whispered in a lowered voice.
"But big brother, you were really cool earlier. How did you handle those three guys all at once, pow, bam, whoosh—"
"Ah, please just—"
Leonardo squeezed his eyes shut. He could no longer deny that the being he had picked up was Package 4.
The fugitive who had been chased by pursuers introduced his league alias as 'Joker.' He proudly explained the reason for choosing his alias, saying he would be the joker of this game. Then, seeing Leonardo's expression that seemed to have much to say, he smiled sheepishly and revealed another name, 'Erwick.'
"Please feel free to call me Ero, big brother. What should I call you? The strongest man, Mask Man?"
Ero. Was he saying Error? He didn't have the hobby of calling a man by a pet name at first meeting, but having picked up Package 4 by mistake, it was a name that stuck in his mind.
Leonardo thought the name suited him quite well and cleanly ignored the latter part of his words while answering.
"Lion. That's my league alias."
"Lion? Wow, the king of the jungle! Truly brave beyond measure like our big brother! Then would it be okay if I call you Lion big brother familiarly? Lion and Ero, the fantastic combo that will dominate the league!"
He had sold the name Teo too much, and when he was a low-level merchant member in Frost territory, that name had been mentioned several times during investigations, so unfortunately he decided to bury that name temporarily during the league.
Actually, Leo and Lion were pretty much the same, so Council officials might be able to deduce his identity from Lion alone... But perhaps there was a bit of hope mixed in that the Commander would recognize him.
Anyway, since when had he become 'our big brother'? Ero joked around while swearing to become his faithful right-hand man. While doing so, he described Leonardo's movements in dealing with the pursuers almost like reciting sacred scripture.
At that time, Leonardo had put up a barrier in front of Ero, then caught the axe flying toward him first with his hand. Soon he threw the caught axe toward the arrow flying from the front. The axe blade precisely split the arrowhead in half, then flew aiming for the hunter's head, but stopped in mid-air before embedding in his skull and knocked him unconscious.
Then when the bandit-like giant rushed at them after losing his weapon, Leonardo lowered his stance, touched the ground, and kicked the giant's jaw from bottom to top. With the sound of the jawbone crumbling, as the giant floated up in the air, Leonardo moved to mid-air in the blink of an eye and struck down on the back of his head with his heel, burying his face in the ground.
The last remaining mage stepped back while hastily casting Fireball. The moment the fireball formed in his hands was about to fly forward, Leonardo, who had instantly approached the mage, caught his wrist. Then he quickly extinguished the flickering flame while murmuring a line.
"'Sorry, but that level of flame doesn't work on me.' Wow—! I seriously almost cried then! How can every single word be so precious?"
Leonardo dry-washed his face at Ero's excited appearance as he recreated the situation dramatically. Rather than praise, his excessive fuss made it seem like he was mocking him indirectly. Even if thrown in water, only that mouth would float.
Leonardo stuffed grass from the roadside into Ero's babbling mouth, meaning please shut up.
Even while doing so, he looked at his palm where a tingling, hot sensation had been occurring.
'Why is this happening?'
It seemed that magic was cast on participants' personal weapons brought into the league to prevent others from possessing them. The moment he grasped the flying axe, strange pain arose in his hand. He had thrown it away immediately so there shouldn't be any problem, but the unpleasant sensation continued to linger in his arm and spread throughout his body.
Perhaps because he had been traversing the island for several hours, he felt like his body temperature was gradually rising, and from that point, the heat seemed to intensify even more. It surely wasn't a cold, so did Plarinerus have toxicity? Anyway, since he had obtained both a partner and crystals, it seemed he should end this match as quickly as possible.
'That way I can at least see his face once before the opening ceremony ends.'
Leonardo unconsciously quickened his pace. Ero, who had been spitting out the grass from his mouth and making a crying face, just then closely followed behind him and asked.
"But big brother, is it really okay to entrust all the crystals to me? Ah, of course, I'm very grateful since it means you trust me... But what if I run away with all of them?"
Ero stealthily tested Leonardo while holding out the bag where crystals rattled. Leonardo glanced at him and casually asked back.
"Are you going to run away?"
"Huh? No way! Why would I do such a thing? Isn't it my mission to stick right beside big brother and assist?"
"Run away if you want to. I don't trust you anyway."
"Huh? Then why the crystals..."
"It's heavy carrying that around. It gets in the way when fighting too. And even if you run away, I'll catch you quickly, so don't worry. I'll find you somehow and break your limbs and beat you up."
"...."
"But if you're still okay with it, go ahead and run."
Leonardo, who had laid out scary talk without changing his expression, still watched the surroundings warily, monitoring competitors' movements. Ero, who had been looking at him like that, smiled broadly while sweating profusely.
"I'll serve with loyalty, big brother!"
The two hurriedly moved and quickly approached the Great King Plarinerus. When they had left about 1km distance from the petals, smog began rising from the stamen tower. The sky near their destination slowly began to darken.