Episode 116: Gyro’s Magnificent Debut

Norbu

“Now, let’s begin the fifth match of the preliminaries!”

Upon the referee’s declaration, the players on the stage of the match all start moving at once. Some aim for the players with their backs turned, some target the weaker ones, and some intentionally expose their weaknesses to lure their rivals.

Among them, Gyro’s chosen action was very simple.

“Let’s goooo! Flame Dashhh!!”

As Gyro shouts, flames overflow from the two protrusions slightly sticking out from the back of his armor. The flames spread like wings and in an instant, Gyro’s body is pushed forward as if blown away.

“Oraoraoraaa!!”

The sword thrust forward breaks through the equipment of the players in front, tearing through them like pieces of paper. It reminds me of the horde of Evil Boars that once attacked us, and I can’t help but feel a little uneasy.

The players in front are blown away by Gyro in an instant, and he jumps out of the group… but.

“Gyro, watch out! Watch out!”

“Hehehe, what kind of… huh? Ohh?!”

I’m not sure if he heard my voice, but Gyro noticed the scene in front of him and let out a surprised voice.

And no wonder, what was in front of Gyro, who broke through the chaos of the players, was the edge of the stage. If it continues like this, Gyro will be disqualified for going out of bounds!

“What the hell?!”

When Gyro raises his voice, flames burst out from the soles of his feet and lift his body up into the air, avoiding going out of bounds. And while drawing an arc in the air, he slowly returns his body towards the center of the match venue.

“Phew, that was close. I almost lost in the preliminaries alone.”

It’s true, please don’t worry us too much. We managed somehow thanks to the new equipment, but if things had gone wrong, Gyro would have been out of bounds.

The flames that burst out from Gyro’s armor are purely the flames of his flight magic. Since the magic that worked well with him was of the fire attribute, it seems that it is easier for him to fly while blowing out flames.

However, Gyro is a bit unpredictable, so flying with the power of flames is incredibly powerful, but it seems that control is difficult. That’s why Rex added a flight magic assistance function to Gyro’s new armor.

Apparently, the armor automatically senses the direction the user wants to go and adjusts the direction from which the flames erupt. So Gyro said it’s really easy because it does it on its own without having to control the direction the flames blow out.

… Yeah, it’s really an incredible function, isn’t it? It’s hard to understand how the armor automatically senses the user’s intention. According to Rex’s explanation, when using flight magic, the magic power is unconsciously released in the opposite direction of the direction the caster wants to go.

But it’s only on an unconscious level, so it doesn’t release enough magic power to actually move. However, the armor senses the movement of that level of magic power and guides the magic power properly.

… I understand the theory, but when I think about how it’s actually executed, it’s mind-boggling to think about the incredible technology used.

I’m a priest, so I’m not familiar with anything other than divine magic, but it was impressive to see Mina’s expression change to one that shouldn’t be shown in public while listening to the explanation…

“W-What is that flame… is that magic?”

“I’ve never seen magic like that!”

“And that kid, he’s flying in the air!”

Not only the players on the stage, but also the players watching around are surprised by Gyro’s appearance. That’s right, it’s normal to react like this.

“Heheh, don’t be scared, guys.”

Gyro is delighted by everyone’s reaction.

“Kuh, in that case, I’ll target that brat! Hey, you guys, lend me a hand if you want to win!”

“Tch, don’t give orders!”

“But he’s right. We have to do something about that brat first.”

The players who saw Gyro as a threat form impromptu cooperation and attack him.

“Heh, it doesn’t matter how many small fries gather! I won’t change!”

Gyro, we were also small fries just a few months ago, so it’s better not to get too cocky. Look, we know that there are always people stronger than us.

“Don’t underestimate me, brat!”

The players all attack Gyro at once. It’s a simultaneous attack that would hurt each other if he dodges, and it can’t even be called cooperation.

The pressure from attacks coming from all directions is quite something. Even I, watching from the outside, can’t help but sweat in my hands.

“Heh, thanks for coming at me all at once! It saved me the trouble!”

However, Gyro shows no signs of being flustered. On the contrary, he smiles confidently as he sheathes his sword and the magical power condenses on the blade. The magical power is converted into a bright red flame, and by compressing the magical power further, its color changes from red to blue.

“W-What?! The sword is on fire?! And it’s blue?!”

“Isn’t that dangerous?!”

The players are taken aback by Gyro’s suddenly burning sword. But their momentum, which had already started, doesn’t stop.

“Take this! Melt Slashhh!!”

With a shout, a ring of flames is drawn around him. And in the next moment, the weapons of all the players attacking Gyro are severed.

“Wha-?!”

The players are frozen in confusion, not knowing what happened. It’s only natural, as in an instant, their weapons were destroyed, leaving them bewildered.

Melt Slash, it’s a close-range magic for weapon destruction that Gyro, who is not good at using magic as a projectile, learned from Rex. Its content is simply compressing superheated flames onto the blade of a sword to burn through the opponent’s equipment.

Just saying that makes it sound very simple, but in reality, it’s an extremely difficult technique to fight with such concentrated high heat in a very narrow range.

And to burn through the enemy’s weapon means that the flames have to reach a temperature equivalent to that of a blacksmith’s forge that melts iron… no, even hotter, as it needs to melt it in an instant. Furthermore, the caster must be careful not to get burned.

Rex solved all these problems by modifying a certain magic item.

Tinder Knife. That’s the name of a magic item that Rex received from a certain adventurer. Originally, it was supposed to be a magic item that only produced a spark for starting a campfire, but Rex modified that magic item and created Gyro’s sword.

Yes, a knife turned into a sword. It’s not just a modification, it’s like a brand new item. I think so too.

But according to Rex, he said it’s a modification because he reused the components of the magic circuit used in the Tinder Knife. It seems that for Rex, the magic circuit itself, not the knife itself, is the main part.

According to Rex, “Well, with the materials I had on hand, this was the best I could do. If I had a better workshop and materials, I could have made something even better, but this time, please be satisfied with this, Gyro.”

So, a modest magic item that only produced sparks has transformed into an incredible weapon that burns through and renders the enemy’s equipment useless.

… It’s really incredible, isn’t it?

“Hahaha, yes! Did you see my power?! Surrender now, old men, while you still can!”

The players whose weapons were destroyed were thrown into disarray, and Gyro confidently declared his victory with a smile. But that was a mistake.

“Don’t underestimate us, kid!”

“Don’t get cocky!”

The players, angered by Gyro’s provocation, discarded their destroyed weapons and attacked him barehanded.

“Whoa?! Are you serious, old men?!”

Although caught off guard by the sudden unarmed assault, Gyro quickly smiles.

“Heheh, you’ve got guts!”

As soon as he says that, Gyro dodges the attacks of the players while sheathing his sword and starts fighting barehanded himself.

“… Wait, why did he take off his armor?!”

When did that happen?!

“Heh, I don’t want to be thought of as winning with the power of weapons! I’ll make sure to teach you guys my true strength!”

“You’re so full of yourself! Let me show you the power of adults, you brat!”

What on earth is happening, the match stage has suddenly turned into a brawl in a tavern. Even Gyro, who is not using weapons and fighting against this number of people, is reckless and takes several good punches.

“And wait, when did he take off his armor?!”

What on earth happened?!,”Haha, yes! Here I go!”

“Bring it on! Take this!”

One punch was thrown and one punch was returned, one person was hit and another person was hit. Before they knew it, not only Gyro-kun, but also the other players around them were caught up in the brawl. And so, as the players fell one by one, until only five remained, the referee declared the end of the match.

“…What are you doing, Gyro-kun?”

“Ah, sorry, sorry. I just got carried away.”

As I expressed my dissatisfaction while casting healing magic on Gyro-kun, he didn’t seem to reflect at all and apologized.

“Ah, sorry, but can you also heal the injuries of those old men?”

After the treatment was done, Gyro-kun asked me to heal the other players as well.

“Is that okay? They were our enemies until just now, you know?”

“It’s not like we were killing each other, so it’s not a problem, right?”

“…I understand.”

I think this is amazing about Gyro-kun. After a fight, he treats the opponent as if nothing happened, whether he wins or loses. According to him, “It’s fine because we fought and settled things.”

Because of that, I can’t help but think that he’s the leader of our group.

“Hey, old men! Let’s go eat after we heal our injuries! Tell me a good restaurant!”

…Well, isn’t he a bit too carefree?

Noble in the capital city

“It seems that a player with tremendous skill has appeared in the preliminaries. Not only is he skilled in swordsmanship, but he also uses magic and possesses powerful magic items.”

We were surprised when we heard the report from the assassins we sent to the match venue.

“To be able to hold his own against dozens of people alone, could it be that he is the Dragon Emperor?”

“We can’t conclude that yet. The match has just begun.”

“That’s right, there’s also the possibility that he is a skilled traveler, or that he is a countermeasure sent by a force hostile to us.”

Indeed, the tournament has just begun. It would be premature to make conclusions at this point.

“By the way, it seems that despite being a skilled player, he was also quite a troublemaker.”

“Troublemaker? What do you mean?”

“Apparently, after destroying the weapons of the other players, he fought them all barehanded without finishing them off.”

“What!?”

Why would he do such a thing!? Is he an idiot!?

“It seems he didn’t like being thought of as winning because of the power of his weapon.”

A comrade reading the report furrowed his brow, seemingly struggling to understand. I can understand that feeling.

Even though he had gained an advantage, why would he throw it away himself? He must have been an idiot. There is no other explanation.

“Well… that man is probably not the Dragon Emperor.”

“Yes, that’s probably true.”

It’s common sense to think that such a foolish person couldn’t be the Dragon Emperor. After all, if he were to lose, he would lose everything.

“Then let’s remove that player from the Dragon Emperor candidate list.”

“No objections.”

Once again, another Dragon Emperor candidate was eliminated in an instant.