Ossan Saikyō Chapter 11 Part 03
After that, nothing of note happened, and shortly after noon on the 4th day, we arrived at the provincial capital, Balbadoza.
As the capital of the Count's domain, it was without question the largest city I had seen since coming to this world.
Its walls were vastly taller and grander than those of Euron in Viscount Varius's territory, and I realized that this was also the first time I'd seen a moat and a drawbridge since arriving in this world.
There were, as expected, several settlements outside the walls.
Unlike Bartlan, however, none of them were near the main road leading to the front gate.
Perhaps the local administration had made an effort to keep that area under control.
Needless to say, the Count's entourage was waved straight through the gate.
In fact, the guards lined up in formation to welcome him before escorting the procession toward the Count's residence in the center of the city.
The Count's residence was practically a castle.
Viscount Varius's manor had still felt like an especially luxurious mansion.
Seeing this made it painfully clear what separated an upper-ranking noble.
Naturally, the estate itself was enclosed by a second ring of walls, and we, the escort adventurers, were dismissed at the main gate.
“Here are your certificates confirming the completion of your escort duty~. Tomorrow, His Excellency will submit a direct request for〈Saul's Guidance〉through the Guild~, so please accept it there~.”
After receiving Reisei's official notice, we headed straight for Balbadoza's Adventurers Guild.
Compared to the Guild in Euron, everything in Balbadoza was about one and a half times larger.
There were also far more adventurers gathered there.
Like〈Dawn's Thunder〉, who had escorted the Count alongside us, there were several B-Rank parties present.
Some of their equipment was obviously on an entirely different level.
Most adventurers, however, appeared to be around E-Rank.
Apparently, in a large city like this, the gap between adventurer ranks was much greater.
The fact that Balbadoza was surrounded by dungeons ranging from F-Rank to B-Rank probably contributed to that.
Mariane went straight into the back office before returning to the counter to process the completion of our escort request.
As we received our adventurer cards back, the leader of〈Dawn's Thunder〉approached us.
His name was Garen; a huge, dark-skinned, bald man.
Despite his rugged appearance, he gave off the impression of being rather intellectual.
Then again, perhaps that was simply what one would expect from a B-Rank adventurer trusted by a Count.
“Hey, Soushi. I never would've guessed that beauty over there was your dedicated Guild representative. As expected, someone who defeats one of the Twilight Kin gets special treatment.”
“I suppose that's how it looks.”
“By the way, did your rank go up? Leaving you at C-Rank would be ridiculous.”
“It seems word of the subjugation hasn't reached the higher-ups yet. Besides, we've only cleared one C-Rank dungeon so far, so even if I became B-Rank immediately, it wouldn't make much difference.”
“Even so, I think you'd better become B-Rank as soon as possible. Otherwise...”
Just as Garen was about to continue-
“Hah!?”
A furious shout echoed from somewhere behind us.
Turning around, I saw Sphenia standing in front of the request board.
Facing her were four adventurers.
At their head stood a silver-haired young man glaring at her with obvious hostility.
“We're inviting you to join our party. Ignoring us is pretty damn rude, don't you think?”
“I already declined once. I didn't think there was any need to answer again.”
Sphenia replied without changing her expression in the slightest.
Apparently that only irritated the young man further.
“A C-Rank turning down an invitation from a B-Rank party? That's ridiculous. Instead of hanging around with that old man over there, join us. Just shut up and do what you're told.”
“I refuse.”
“The hell did you just say!? You think you can embarrass me and walk away without consequences? In the adventurer world, strength is everything. You know that, don't you?”
(E/N: Get this small fry a glass of milk, Ossan boutta make him cry 😂)
Ah...
This was a type of adventurer I hadn't encountered before.
Not like〈Supreme Radiance〉.
He claimed to be B-Rank, so he was probably quite capable.
Still, since most high-ranking adventurers I'd met so far had been surprisingly reasonable people, his behavior came as something of a surprise.
In any case, I couldn't just stand there watching, so I started walking over-
“Strength... Hehe.”
Sphenia suddenly let out a small laugh, as though she couldn't hold it back any longer.
“What're you laughing at?!”
“It's just... I find it amusing that someone who can't even compare to Soushi-san would claim that strength is everything.”
Sphenia casually tossed a bomb into the conversation.
I stopped dead in my tracks.
Behind me, Rani burst into laughter.
Even Freynil let out a quiet giggle.
...Were the girls in my party actually the type who enjoyed provoking people?
“W-What!? You saying I'm weaker than that C-Rank old man!?”
Naturally, the silver-haired youth became even angrier.
Fortunately, he couldn't exactly lay a hand on Sphenia in the middle of the Guild.
Which meant...
His attention shifted exactly where I'd expected.
“Hey, old man. You heard that, didn't you? Let's settle this with a contest of strength. Whoever wins gets the girl. Deal?”
...Of course it would come to this.
“Hey, Nielsen. Don't be ridiculous. You know private fights between adventurers are forbidden.”
“Shut it, Garen. Stay out of this. If a B-Rank backs down after being mocked by some C-Rank nobody, then he doesn't deserve the rank!”
Even Garen's attempt to stop him only made things worse.
Well...
I understood how a young man could become too proud to back down after being humiliated in front of a beautiful woman.
I really did.
The problem was that everything about this situation was so one-sided.
“This man defeated one of the Twilight Kin with his bare hands. His strength is at least A-Rank. Are you still going through with this?”
The moment Garen said that, murmurs spread through the surrounding adventurers.
Nielsen frowned.
Then...
“So what? You expect me to back down because of some ridiculous fairy tale? Garen... are you out of your damn mind too?”
He clearly had no intention of listening.
Just as the atmosphere became completely unsalvageable-
Mariane stepped between us.
“Private duels are forbidden. However, if it's training inside the practice hall, there won't be any issue. Of course, it will have to be bare-handed. Using weapons would be too dangerous.”
**...Shouldn't she be stopping this altogether?
Then again...
Judging from Nielsen's attitude, nothing short of a fight was going to end this.
◇◆◇
In the training hall, I stood facing the silver-haired Nielsen.
Officially, this was simply a sparring session.
In reality...
It was basically a duel.
A crowd of adventurers had gathered to watch.
They looked as though they were eagerly anticipating some long-awaited entertainment.
“Sorry about this, Soushi. That guy's always been a troublemaker. Honestly, it'd do everyone a favor if you taught him a lesson.”
That came from Garen.
He had tried to stop things once already, so he wasn't simply being irresponsible.
More than anything...
It struck me as odd that he took it for granted I'd win.
Once Garen stepped back, Nielsen rolled his shoulders and spoke.
“You understand, don't you, old man? Winner gets the girl. Got it?”
“I refuse. She was already a member of my party to begin with. More importantly, that's not something either of us has the right to decide.”
“Huh? You trying to run away?”
“Choosing which party to join is her decision. Neither of us has the authority to decide for her.”
“Shut up. That's something the stronger person gets to decide. Weaklings just obey.”
...Yeah.
There was no helping this.
Honestly, I couldn't understand how someone with that mentality had managed to become B-Rank.
(E/N: Must be nobility 😒)
Perhaps gaining status had simply changed him.
“Fine. If the stronger person decides, then she's already a member of my party. If you win, you get her. But if I win, I gain nothing. Isn't that right?”
“Then name your prize. Doesn't matter, since you won't get it anyway.”
“I see. Then if you lose, give up your rank and start over from F-Rank.”
(E/N: Shi, 🤣)
“Heh. Say whatever you want. Fine by me. Now hurry up and let's get this training started.”
Grinning confidently, Nielsen assumed his stance.
As expected of a B-Rank adventurer...
There wasn't a single opening.
“Begin.”
The moment I raised my guard, Mariane gave the signal.
Instantly-
Nielsen's fist shot toward my face.
A punch augmented by【Dash】.
He clearly intended to finish things in a single blow.
Strangely enough...
It looked incredibly slow.
“Tch!”
Realizing his surprise attack had failed, he immediately transitioned into a relentless combination.
Punches.
Kicks.
One attack flowed seamlessly into the next.
His【Martial Arts】skill had clearly been trained extensively.
He wasn't all talk.
Even so...
For some reason, I could see the trajectory of every single strike.
“Damn it! You're one tough old man!”
Several of his attacks landed.
Or rather...
They bounced harmlessly off my guard.
The power behind them was certainly respectable.
But...
**Is that all?
I forcibly knocked aside a punch aimed at my face and countered with one of my own.
Nielsen reacted quickly enough to dodge.
Yet the instant he did, the color drained from his face as he leapt backward.
The confident grin from moments ago had vanished.
Instead, he stared at me with a stiff, bewildered expression.
“What the hell are you...?”
“I only threw one punch back.”
“That smug look... pisses me off!”
He charged again with【Dash】-!
Then suddenly changed direction.
【Whiplash】?
No...
【Nimble】.
I ducked beneath the high kick coming from my right and drove a counter straight toward his solar plexus.
“Guh!?”
He twisted his body, trying to avoid it.
He almost succeeded.
Almost.
My fist still slammed into his side.
I braced myself for a counterattack...
Instead...
He simply flew backward and collapsed onto the ground.
Judging from the impact, he probably possessed skills like【Steel Body】and【Steadfast】.
Even so...
Surely that wasn't enough to end it.
I waited for him to stand back up.
He never did.
Mariane crouched beside him, glanced at his face, and calmly announced,
“He's unconscious. Training ends here. Someone from his party, please heal him.”
“...That's it?”
The words escaped my mouth before I could stop them.
Weren't B-Rank adventurers supposed to be much stronger than this?
Zaikal had been far-
...No.
Comparing anyone to one of the Twilight Kin wasn't exactly fair.
Still...
If the difference was truly this enormous...
Then Zaikal really had been an unbelievably powerful opponent.
Looking back on it now...
I was amazed I'd managed to defeat that guy at all.
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E/N:
One punch, man! 🤣 Did this guy not see the absolute "bringer-of-destruction" mace Ossan was carrying? Pride is really something huh…
Also you might wonder why the delay in uploads. I've had to temporarily move to another city for training purposes and I am not liking the place I'm staying, so far. Well that's my problem to handle or get used to, so…
Stay tuned!
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