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Chapter 273 – Wraith Party VS Jack Party (Part 1)

273 – Wraith Party VS Jack Party (Part 1)

『Hey hey hey! The time has finally come! The All-Heaven Festival Contest second stage that is happening simultaneously in all four cities! The finals! What will be decided on this very ground is…the champion of the Black groooouuup!』

The voices of the live commentator and the audience can be heard as we walk through the corridor meant only for contestants.

The disjointed sounds of cheers echoed all the way here.

『Both sides have defeated many powerful foes to make it this far! Especially the Water Hero Wraith! He has fought extremely interesting and formidable foes on his way here!』

『How so?』

『His first was during the tenth stratum of the Raid Battle! He fought the Immortal Demon Bennu, a Majin who has power equal to that of a Demon King! That Fire Magic is said to be no less powerful than contestant Flame Hero Fenix’s! Contestant Wraith was the first to fight this strong fire user and was beaten!』

『In the preliminaries of the All-Heaven Festival Contest, he was in the same venue as the Flame Hero contestant Fenix, yes?』

『But then he and his allies clashed with the Scales of Justice contestant Astrea, who leads a party of Knights Order knights! Contestant Astrea’s Spirit Magic just so happens to be the strongest of Earth Magic! When speaking of Earth Magic, there is the world’s 9th ranked Earth Hero Contestant Vale, but a powerful contender not to be outdone by him has appeared! The Wraith party was embroiled in a fierce battle with a strong earth user and passed the preliminaries!』

『Ah, I see! You’re saying that contestant Wraith has experience with fighting some of the strongest users of fire and earth, two of the Four Great Elements?』

『That’s not all! His defeat of the Demon King party in the Black group’s second battle became a hot topic! Fighting the Asmodeus party, he defeated the Devil of the Aquarium Crocell, who is said to nullify all Water Magic, with…well, Water Magic! He proved to the world that his Spirit Magic surpassed that of the innate magic of the Demon King party!』

『That was quite the surprise. When I think about how he could overcome such powerful magic that can interfere with water, I could sense the rank and pride befitting of a Four Great Spirits contractor who did not let it interfere with his Water Magic.』

『Then, in the semifinals, he faced off against the world’s 10th ranked Hero of the Surging Sea Bloom party, once famed to be the strongest Water Magic-user!』

『It was a unique battle where the Field ended up being half-submerged in water. The Bloom party had the upper hand up to the halfway point, but then the tables were turned when contestant Wraith overpowered contestant Bloom in a fierce Hero showdown. The Wraith party attained victory.』

The Bloom party is special among the top ten parties of the world.

Most would choose a Dungeon after considering one’s own strengths and the affinity of the Dungeon, but the Bloom party only challenged Dungeons that had places with water.

If all they wanted to do was incline towards specific Clears, anyone can do that.

But the audience would get easily bored.

There is a very special feature to the Bloom party.

They ride the waves.

Bloom, the leader, has a surfer side to him that loves the waves, and he normally controls both naturally produced waves and waves produced as an Adventurer in a Dungeon fight.

He enjoys the big waves created by the aquatic Monsters, rejoices in the storms created by magic, stands undaunted in gales, is not disheartened in thunderstorms, defiant against even attacks from underwater Monsters. He, and his party, simply ride the waves.

Maneuvering on his board-shaped Holy Sword, Bloom’s allies are male and female inheritors of mermaid blood, they look no different from Normals, and two Wizards.

The Wizards specialize in Wind and Water Magic respectively, and together, they make the world slippery.

There are times when a wave covers the head of a surfer as a big raging wave comes crashing down.

This is the fury of nature that makes one worry about being swallowed up.

Monsters in Dungeons, and possibly his ally Wizards, sometimes create more than that.

The sea below you, an ocean before you, and a sea in the skies above.

Strange situations like the sky itself turning into a sea is possible in the world of magic.

Surfing because it is a Dungeon Clear.

At the same time, it is a Dungeon Clear that can only be done by them.

The 1st ranked party that takes part in Adventurer training, the Storm Hero Aerial party.

The 2nd ranked party that participated in the Original Dungeon Clear, the Jet-Black Hero Ex party.

The 3rd ranked party who escorts merchant troops under the guise of helping an ally with their business, the Hero of the Cursed Sword Hervor party.

The 4th ranked party that rose up the ranks unprecedentedly fast and has exceptional good looks that made them popular for all sorts of commercials – excluding me, of course – the Flame Hero Fenix party.

The 6th ranked party whose leader is a world-famous picture book author, the Snow-White Hero Snow party…etc, etc.

There are those who devote themselves to the Adventurer business, and those who diversify their portfolio or have a talent in a different field.

The Bloom party is said to be the polar opposite of that combination.

In the Wraith party, there are two prodigies named Wraith and Fran.

Their combat prowess can be said to be world-class while being only ten years old.

That’s precisely why they made it this far, but conversely, it also makes them stand out.

Melania and Josh are promising, but if you asked me if they have what it takes to be high-ranked, I’d be hard-pressed to say yes.

I know how high that wall is purely because I have been an Adventurer.

It’s not a wall that can be scaled easily in a day.

Even then, you have to win the match.

And I’m here to make sure they win.

I took part in this tournament to win with my allies.

In the end of the battle with the Bloom party, everyone was defeated except for Wraith and Fran.

Melania, Josh, and I were defeated.

But not because we were inferior in terms of combat ability, it was the outcome of the challenge.

After the battle with the Six-Horned Demon King Asmodeus party, Fran, Melania, and Josh came to Wraith and me for advice on how to become stronger.

There are no shortcuts that will make you stronger right away, but there are techniques you can become aware of.

As expected of the allies hand-picked by Wraith, everyone got stronger terrifyingly fast.

We will be able to show the results of their efforts as early as this match.

I was defeated in the battle with the Bloom party too, but I was able to support my leader at the very last moment without using the horn’s Magical Energy.

『And here are the contestants!』

While I was deep in thought, the commentators have been talking about the Jack party’s past victories.

Before I knew it, it was time to enter the field.

The opponent side goes first.

The Jack party has a no-nonsense team composition as Adventurers.

Or rather, I should say it’s a steady or classical approach to composition.

『First up is the ever-reliable vanguard! A giant body that has been trained so much, it resembles that of a Giant! The battle-ax he wields is as large as a tree! Not to mention his steel-like defense! He can cut even a dragon’s neck! It’s plain and simple! If someone with a large, trained body, wields a large weapon they’ve trained with… they are strong! It’s the Strongman Heavy Warrior Contestant Goliath!』

Goliath is a giant of a man brimming with muscles.

His arm is as thick as a log, and his sturdy body looks like it won’t be easily budged.

While not as tall as a Giant, even I have to crane my neck to look up at him.

His imposing presence isn’t due to just his height. His body is covered with scars, piled up by the hellish training he must’ve endured. His skin, tanned by the sun. His hair, short. His face, scary.

And then there’s his battle-ax. It looks like it could crush the gates of a castle in one swing.

That’s the overwhelming pressure it gives out when it’s in his hands.

Looking into his eyes, be you child or adult, you would cry in fear… well, that may have happened once or twice, but he’s actually a gentle man who likes to laugh.