Published: August 25, 2025
We moved to the knight apprentice’s specialist building. During the journey, Rufen, who seemed to have been thinking about various things, suddenly lifted his head with a start.
“All right, this time let’s compete with treasure-hunting Ditter! Recently, we’ve only been racing for speed, and haven’t done treasure hunting for a while, so I’m really looking forward to it. When I was young, the teacher used to…”
Rufen seemed very enthusiastic, but it didn’t look like he was trying to make Dunkelfelger win; rather, he just genuinely wanted to do Ditter.
As the dormitory supervisor of a large territory, even if he appears to be carefree, perhaps he has deep plans. Or maybe he simply doesn’t consider that Dunkelfelger might lose at all.
At my muttering, Hilsure lightly shrugged his shoulders.
“Rufen probably can’t wait to do Ditter with Lady Rosemine, who is Lord Ferdinand’s beloved disciple. Although he was surprised by how frail she seemed in the innermost chamber, treasure-hunting Ditter allows you to see one’s tactical skills. I think he wants to confirm whether Ehrenfest will be a threat in this year’s territory competition.”
It seems Rufen is burning with great enthusiasm for victory in the territory competition’s Ditter. That’s why he’s wary of me, who is supposedly the high priest’s disciple creating a legend.
“Doesn’t it sound like Rufen’s intentions have nothing to do with this matter?”
“That’s right. Whether Lord Restiraut becomes the main user of the library’s magic tools isn’t particularly important to Rufen; exploring Ehrenfest’s strength is more crucial. …There are a few students whose mana capacity growth is extraordinary, and this year’s academic progress is impressive to all the teachers.”
I feel a piercing gaze glance over at me. I tried dangling some bait and pushing gently from behind, but regarding academic grades, it’s all down to individual effort. I’m not very involved.
More than that, I imagine Rufen’s face shining brightly with excitement, requesting a rematch after Ehrenfest wins, and I feel a bit disheartened.
“If we win this match, Rufen-sensei will probably become very troublesome. But, is it really okay for me to win?”
“What are you saying, Lady Rosemine!? If we don’t win, Schwarz and Weiss will be taken by Lord Restiraut!”
…Even Hilsure-sensei gets heated because of the research.
It’s decided that we’ll win, which is fine, but I’d prefer a win where I don’t stand out too much. Hopefully, the knights blessed with blessings can handle it, but since they’ve never really devised a proper strategy, I wonder if they can win a game like treasure-hunting Ditter that aims to outwit the opponent.
…A game that aims to outwit the opponent. Indeed, that sounds like something the high priest would excel at.
I desperately search my memory for any useful notes in the high priest’s tactical reference books on magic warfare. Before long, we arrive at the arena.
…It’s huge!
The circular training ground, designed with the assumption that people ride mounts and fly around, seems about the size of a baseball stadium back in Reno’s days. The sky is covered with gray clouds dusted with snow, making it appear like an outdoor arena, but I can neither feel wind nor snow. It’s as if there’s a transparent roof.
Having entered straight from the corridor connecting to the main building, the spot where I stand seems like a viewing area. I can only guess because the surrounding viewing section isn’t arranged in tiers or slants, making it hard to watch. So, I can’t definitively say it’s a viewing area.
The competition area is considerably lower than the viewing section I’m walking on. Within it, I can see several large circles drawn.
Rufen stops in the viewing section, turns around with a lively expression, and surveys the knight apprentices of both Dunkelfelger and Ehrenfest before speaking.
“I will explain treasure-hunting Ditter. It’s different from the usual Ditter we train, so be careful.”