Arc 27: The Reverse World
Chapter 285: Shogi tournament, and the first festival
I’ve finally managed to regain my composure after we’ve drunk some tea that was brought to the balcony of the Paluf castle.
Come on now, it’s all because I’ve fallen into that trap of self-hatred since a while ago. Still, I reflected that I had gone over the board. I was probably hated for it, that’s for sure. Oh well, it’s not a problem even if I am hated. It is not.
「For the discourtesy my cousin Rachel has shown you on this occasion… Please forgive us」(Lucienna)
「No-no. She’s a child, after all」(Touya)
I think that her rudeness was appropriate, but I wonder what sort of narrow-minded person would say “What insolence! Decapitate that child immediately!” That person would probably be a tyrant. I don’t want to become that kind of person. They are the worst.
「That match had nothing to do with our social standings after all. Therefore, I had dismissed any notion about raising a complaint or something right from the start. I do not mind」(Touya)
Well, It will likely be unreasonable for the other side to go and forgive me just like that though… She’s a child, after all.
「It’s a good thing for you to be able to say it. I am thankful for today and Ernest would be delighted as well!」(Lucienna)
「Speaking of which, what do you think of the king of Paluf, Your Majesty The Dukedom King?」(Cloud)
Two people, who are sitting at the round table on the balcony along with me, then turned their eyes to me.
「Let me see… He seems to be an obedient kid. I am a bit worried about his retrospective way of thinking, which may be due to his lack of confidence」(Touya)
In short, he’s thinking negatively. Well, it’s not that bad of a thing, and it’s probably much better than having a character that is similar to what the Duke princess has.
When I think for a moment that their characters are the polar opposite of each other, I get a bit scared. They also seem to act in a way without paying mind to social positions, namely the king standpoint and whatnot… which is something I can’t talk about. I am as well allowed to act as I please.
「Does the king of Paluf have any specialty he’s good at?」(Touya)
「A specialty, you say? Nothing of sorts… that child isn’t good with either swordsmans.h.i.+p or magic. He can play flute a little, but not so much as it to be called his ability」(Lucienna)
Uumu. So he’s a mediocre boy, huh? No, he’s not too mediocre at least because he’s a king.
That reminds me, there was an old novel that began with something like “I am Senkogu Kamui, A typical high school student!” and then there was a retort like “Where the h.e.l.l are you typical? With a name like “Nameless”… Somehow the feeling is about the same. … Wait a minute.
「Ah, but…」(Lucienna)
「Is there something?」(Touya)
Princess Lucienna looked like she just remembered something, so she then went back inside from the balcony and brought a small box and a folded board. Eh, could it be that this is…
「Is this… shogi?」(Touya)
「Yes. Is Your Majesty The Dukedom King familiar with it as well?」(Lucienna)
Well, it’s not that I am familiar with it. You see, it was me who brought the game to this world.
putting away the plates, we placed the box on the table and took out the pieces. As I thought, it was indeed shogi.
「Does the King of Paluf play it?」(Touya)
「Yes. There was a time when he played from morning till evening. However, he seemed to be troubled about not having a suitable opponent 」(Lucienna)
Well, there was probably no way that the king would try to catch a maid-san and have her play shogi with him. If I am to take it further, it would’ve likely been difficult for him to even start talking about that, given the character he has. He’s shy towards strangers, isn’t he?
「His opponents were mainly me or our esteemed uncle. Naturally, I turned out to be too weak of an opponent」(Lucienna)
「Hasn’t he played with the young Rachel?」(Touya)
「He has, but Rachel utterly lost to him, knocking over the board, and never played it again ever since…」(Lucienna)
Are they children? Aah, yes they are. It’s clearly seen during scenes such as that.
Still, I should make time for a game of shogi then? I am interested just how much skill does the boy king have.
Unsure if he knew about my thoughts or not, the aforementioned boy king entered the balcony.
「I am sorry for making you wait!」(Ernest)
「No-no, do not mind it. Has Rachel managed to calm down?」(Touya)
「Yes. Well, somewhat. She has shut herself in her room, but she always does that when she’s in a bad mood, so…」(Ernest)
Uumu. She should be alright. Though I will be troubled if she turns into a shut-in.
「Hm? Isn’t this…」(Ernest)
The boy king takes notice of his shogi set in my hands.
「Aah, I’ve heard from princess Lucienna that Your Majesty has a huge interest in it. As a matter of fact, it was me who produced this game. I was surprised to find out that it has reached even Paluf」(Touya)
「Is that true?!」(Ernest)
「How about it? Shall we play a game?」(Touya)
As soon as I, out of petty curiosity, proposed a game to see how much skill he has in it, the King of Paluf swung his head back and forth with sparkling eyes.
Since it will be hard to play it at the roundtable, we sat down opposite each other at a small table in the room and lined up our pieces.
Now then, shall I give it a go? It’s been a long time, but I should be able to manage somehow.
~~~~~
「… It’s my defeat」(Touya)
「Thank you very much」(Ernest)
I lower my head first, to which the king of Paluf lowers his as well. Ye-ep. This is my third loss in a row.
I don’t want to boast, but I am strong at shogi, to begin with. However, I now truly understand how strong my opponent really is. This kid is quite tough, isn’t he?
「You are quite strong. Out of all the opponents whom I had fought against, you have the ability to come out on top 」(Touya)
「R-Really? I have mostly only played with Uncle-sama though」(Ernest)
Does that mean that Duke Rembrandt is that powerful himself?
Fumu. This may be a bit interesting. I may be able to have this kid gain self-confidence. A few moments later, I started to talk about the idea that popped into my mind.
「As a matter of fact, Brunhild will be holding a shogi tournament in ten days. Would Your Majesty like to secretly partic.i.p.ate in it?」(Touya)
「Eeh?! B-but, is it really fine for someone like me to partic.i.p.ate?!」(Ernest)
「It’s of no problem. In addition to you, there will be n.o.bles and royalty of other kingdoms partic.i.p.ating in secret as well. Your safety is absolutely guaranteed」(Touya)
I’ve thought about the tournament itself just now, but people like the King of Belfast and Duke Ortlinde will likely partic.i.p.ate in it. Or perhaps I should say that if I withheld the news about opening a tournament from them, I would definitely receive a complaint from them later.
I will make the people who seem tough as seeds, and then the tournament should gain its form by itself if I collect free partic.i.p.ants.
「Wha-what to do…」(Ernest)
Next to the nervously pondering king of Paluf, his sister Lucienna began to talk to him.
「Isn’t it fine to not think too deeply about it? I think it’s fine to go on a trip to Brunhild for a bit. It will also be alright to take me with you, you know?」(Lucienna)
「… Then, then I would like to partic.i.p.ate…」(Ernest)
「It’s settled then」(Touya)
We clapped our hands in positive affirmation.
Looks like we’re going to be busy. Oh well, it’s likely to be fun even if we include all the troubles, so it’s fine.
~=~=~
「… It may be sudden, but I’ve decided to hold a shogi tournament」(Touya)
「It’s sudden alright」(Doran)
In the town of Leaflet, in the head office of “Silver Moon” inn, the one in front of me is a red-headed and bearded man. It’s Doran-san, the father of Mika-san.
「So you say that you want us to partic.i.p.ate in this tournament as invitees?」(Doran)
「Well, it’s not like being invitees is that advantageous, you will just be exempted from partic.i.p.ating in preliminary matches」(Touya)
In addition to Doran-san from “Silver Moon” inn, I would like Balar-san from Weapons Shop “Bear Eight” and Simon-san from the second-hand shop to enter as the seeds. With them being players from the early days of shogi in this world, they should be at least more skillful in it than me.
「So, will you partic.i.p.ate?」(Touya)
「d.a.m.n right. We will uphold the name of Leaflet as the original land of shogi and aim for overall victory」(Doran)
When did they attach that name? At least he’s correct in one thing, this town IS where shogi first appeared.
「Moreover, how many people are going to partic.i.p.ate?」(Doran)
「Aside from several invitees, we haven’t decided yet, but just so you know, every one of the invitees is considerably strong. We plan preliminaries for the first day and main matches for the second day. Since Doran-san and the rest will be partic.i.p.ating right from the second day, it’s okay for you to come late on the first day. What do you think?」(Touya)
「Do not joke with me. How can we allow ourselves to miss the matches of those who may turn out to be our future opponents? We will come on an opening day! As for the inn, Mika can manage it」(Doran)
So he says. I then inform them that I will pick them up on the day of the preliminaries and then leave Leaflet.
Upon my return, I called the King of Belfast, Duke Ortlinde, as well as the other rulers and solicited them as candidates.
We will also be conducting a baseball tournament and a martial arts tournament at the same time, so I asked the knights of each country to support and partic.i.p.ate in it if possible.
The reason why I adopted other compet.i.tions because of the suggestion that having only the shogi tournament would be plain, and it was lacking to get fired up.
As the result, The lineup of players has turned out be unbelievable…
「What the h.e.l.l, with those partic.i.p.ants…」(Touya)
「Yep. Oh well, I can understand their feelings」(Yumina)
Seeing the list that I’ve a.s.sembled, Yumina floats a stiff smile.
■Partic.i.p.ation applicants for the shogi tournament
King of Belfast (Belfast)
Duke Ortlinde (Belfast)
Emperor of Regulus (Regulus)
Monarch of Reefreez (Reefreez)
King of Paluf (Paluf)
Duke Rembrandt (Paluf)
Statewide Governor of Rodomea (Rodomea)
■Partic.i.p.ation applicants for the martial arts tournament
Beast King of Misumido (Misumido)
Knight King of Restia (Restia)
Commander of the Knight Order Gaspar (Regulus)
General Leon (Belfast)
Knight Lyon (Belfast)
Commander of guards Garun (Misumido)
Baba n.o.buharu (Brunhild)
Yamagata Masakage (Brunhild)
Kokonoe Juutarou (Ishen)
■Partic.i.p.ation teams for the baseball tournament
Brunhild
Belfast
Misumido
Regulus
Restia
Reefreez
Rynie
Rodomea
It turns out this way only with the staff (acquaintances) from each nation. A bit unexpected.
「Will the security be okay? 」(Yumina)
「There will be no oversight. Excluding particular people like kings, others will be asked to wear an artifact that can be seen by other people. The guards from each nation will also be attached so that they don’t stand out. We will also, naturally, do our own guarding in secret as well. Even the cat squad, which is lead by Nyantaro, has been asked to provide help」(Touya)
I have also requested the help from familiars of Kohaku’s group of divine beasts, so we should be well covered in terms of security. What worries me more is how Professor Babylon hasn’t yet started talking about partic.i.p.ating in shogi tournament while Moroha-nee-san and Karina-nee-san don’t speak about the martial arts tournament.
I will somehow request them to give up on that somehow, but I am also a bit scared on what unreasonable demand they may ask of me in return.
「It certainly looks like a festival with how things are going」(Yumina)
「Well, there is no mistake in what you’re saying. Street stalls will also be lined up, and there will be various trifling events happening. It’s just unfortunate that our preparation period was so small」(Touya)
Everything started out as just an idea, after all. It’s bad that everyone got rolled in it, but at least it looks like everyone looks forward to the end result in their own way, which is helpful. If we’re going to do it the second time, I will make it so that we have a bit more time to make preparations.
As for people like Kousaka-san, they grumbled complaints that we would’ve been able to gain much more revenue if only we had at least a month of time in advance and advertised the festival outside of the country too. Well, I understand them.
「Yae-san, Hilda-dan, and Elzie-san seemed to want to partic.i.p.ate in the martial arts tournament as well 」(Yumina)
「That’s because I’ve asked them to help with security this time. I should ask them to patient」(Touya)
Those girls should already be considerably strong. They are being trained every day by Moroha-nee-san who’s a sword G.o.ddess, and they are also receiving the effect of “Divine Protection” in addition to it. What I say is probable, but they may receive divine protection from three people, namely Moroha-nee-san, Karen-nee-san, and me.
If I try to describe it, it’s like being under the patronage of a G.o.d. One receives various graces and can acquire abilities that separate them from ordinary people.
However, while it’s true that they receive a divine protection of a sword G.o.ddess, the effects are not those that directly raise their skills with swords. There seems to be an infinite variety of effects, depending on each individual. For example, Yumina here seems to be able to look several seconds into the future. This may be the divine protection which I have bestowed, but I don’t quite understand why it was that ability that revealed itself in her.
I feel it would be unfair for people like that to appear in the martial arts tournament. I would like everyone who has been gathered to partic.i.p.ate to enjoy themselves, so I must show restraint, although I feel bad for the girls. If I don’t, then the meaning behind not letting Moroha-nee-san partic.i.p.ate will disappear.
As for Baba-jii-san and Yamagata-ossan, they’ve overcome my opposition with the pretext of protecting an a.s.sembly hall. Well, there is certainly no limit to the number of fellows who may hold no-good ideas towards the partic.i.p.ants, that’s for sure. So what they’re doing is necessary. We plan to sort out everything with barriers and artifacts in that regards, but I can’t call those measure absolute.
「Aah, there is more. Her Eminence The Pope of Ramishu and Karen-ane-sama say that they would like us to lend them a church in the castle town」(Yumina)
「A church? Are they going to pray there?」(Touya)
「It appears they are going to establish a consultation office there to listen to people’s worries. And speak with Kami-sama」(Yumina)
Listen to people’s worries, huh? I don’t mind something like that. They are the kind of people who seem to be able to give an advice on love, life, and stuff like that. However, will Her Eminence also conceal her social standing and partic.i.p.ate in it?
As I inclined my head while pondering about it, the smartphone in my pocket started to vibrate. Hm? A call?
I took out the device and read the screen. It says “Incoming: Kami-sama”. Ueee?!
「H-h.e.l.lo?」(Touya)
『Ooh, Touya-kun. Would it be fine if I partic.i.p.ate in this festival as well? How about it? I just want to sightsee for a bit, and speak in the church about trivial matters. There won’t be any troubles 』(Kami)
「Seriously?…」(Touya)
『I also want to meet with the G.o.ds who’ve descended. Please take care of that one』(Kami)
As I listened to the laughing voice on the other side of the smartphone, I suddenly felt like I have a cramp on my face. … This is bad. The unthinkable has happened.
The strongest protector, in a certain meaning, will make his descent. Will it turn out okay… for this festival? Though there is no way he would be coming as a G.o.d, naturally.
Not good, now it seems like gathering the kings of each country here incognito is but a trifling matter…
What exactly am I going to do now…