By Zephyria Leonardo’s eyes moved to the number of the Mana Orb.
‘20% of the number?’
In the moment of blankly calculating the weight, the guide grabbed his hand and dropped the Mana Orb he was holding on top of it.
“Uh-oh!”
It wasn’t really dropped, but it felt that way. The heaviness that came down before he could even prepare himself was even somewhat threatening. Leonardo, his eyes widened for a moment, hurriedly supported the bottom of the Mana Orb with both hands.
“No, you should have warned me―.”
“The first thrown Mana Orb must leave the participant’s hand before entering the desert. You may start when you are ready enough and when you wish. There is no time limit for each part, but please allocate your time appropriately, considering that there is a third part.”
The guide, cutting off Leonardo’s words, put his hand on his chest and bowed politely.
“Then I wish you a safe passage.”
Then he moved to another place. Leonardo looked at him with an absurd expression, and Ero grabbed him as if he had something to say, saying, ‘Wait a minute!’, but he didn’t look back anymore. He only approached the newly summoned passers and repeated the explanation of the second part with a smile.
Leonardo and Ero, who were left behind, stared blankly at each other.
In the meantime, Ero’s posture, standing awkwardly with his legs shoulder-width apart, was very unsightly, but Leonardo realized that it wasn’t just him when he looked down at his legs.
He straightened his back, which had been bent in embarrassment, and grumbled while looking at the guide’s back.
“You should have told me about this sooner so I could have collected Tokens appropriately. More than that, how did that guy hold this?”
“Brother, are you sure that’s over 100kg?”
Ero asked in disbelief, and Leonardo shifted the Mana Orb he was holding with both hands to one hand. Then, he tossed it lightly upwards and caught it three or four times. Each time the Mana Orb settled in his palm, the veins on the back of his hand and wrist bulged.
“Yeah, about that much.”
“And you’re lifting it so casually?”
“It’s not light. Want to try?”
Leonardo offered the Mana Orb without much thought, and Ero took a step back as if afraid to touch it.
“Didn’t you say that others can’t make physical contact with the Mana Orb? You might be disqualified!”
“Ah, right. Anyway, it’s not too heavy to lift.”
Back in the day, as part of training, they used to carry a 600kg wooden log in pairs without any equipment. Compared to when his arm and shoulder muscles were on the verge of rupturing, 100kg was relatively cute.
Frankly, Agrizendro’s weight must be more than this. The weight he pressed down with during battle would be close to 1 ton, to exaggerate a bit.
‘Ah, Signe was really heavy when I carried her the other day.’
Leonardo, having withdrawn his hand, concentrated Magic Power in his palm and subtly levitated the Mana Orb. Perhaps because of its considerable weight, the Magic Power consumption felt significant.
Unless one knew how to use telekinesis itself, one usually utilized acceleration and inertia when moving objects. He himself belonged to the latter. Since the competition in the second part was ‘throwing’ the Mana Orb, walking while holding the Mana Orb would violate the rules. If so, to advance while conserving throws, he had to maximize acceleration… The problem was how much this Mana Orb could withstand.
Leonardo raised the temperature in his hand to about 800 degrees, and the Mana Orb instantly turned reddish. However, it didn’t melt and flow down. He clenched his fist in that state, but the surface didn’t soften or crumble. That meant it could withstand at least up to the melting point of steel or titanium.
‘But is conserving throws really a good idea? Since there are many throwing opportunities anyway, would it be more advantageous to drop it on the ground a few times to reduce its weight?’
As doubts continued to arise, a commotion was heard near the starting point. Leonardo and Ero naturally turned their eyes to where the people were gathered.
“Oh, brother―.”
Ero was about to show a welcoming expression but stopped, realizing something. At the end of their gazes were Leonardo’s partners, whom they had met briefly before the start of the match.
Leonardo maintained a blank expression but slightly raised his eyebrows. He wasn’t worried that they’d fail the test, but he was concerned that they weren’t meticulous enough to memorize the route or find shortcuts. However, they passed before him, which was unexpected.
Gillian was at the center of attention, his attire significantly disheveled, as if he had already revealed ‘that form’ once.
He seemed to have chosen the simplest method, not caring about people’s gazes. He held the Mana Orb with just three fingers, took a stance, rotated his shoulder muscles, and then threw it straight into the desert.
“Wow—.”
“Did you hear that sound?”
Cheers rained down at the sound of the Mana Orb cutting through the air. Around them, Mana Orbs that hadn’t gone far were scattered on the ground like children’s toys, but Gillian’s Mana Orb boasted terrifying propulsion and had already disappeared into the desert.
Meanwhile, not far from him, Beatrice grabbed the doll’s legs and spun around as if dancing.
“Morbang, throw it!”
Morbang, who had suddenly become a gyro machine, released the Mana Orb he had been clutching with both hands at the right moment. The sphere, powered by rotation, traversed a considerable distance due to centrifugal force, though not as far as Gillian’s throw. Compared to the dummies scattered at the starting point, it was overwhelmingly superior.
Following that, Beatrice took out opera glasses from who knows where and checked the location where the Mana Orb had fallen. Then, she jumped onto Morbang, who had completed his mission, and, in her usual princess pose, embraced him and extended her arm forward with charisma.
“Charge!”
Encouraged by her command, Morbang strode forward with his long legs and plunged into the desert beyond the mirror.
Ero, who had been exclaiming in admiration, prepared to step up himself.
“Wow, as expected, you guys are amazing, you know? You’re already way ahead!”
He briefly put down the Mana Orb and loaded an unidentified bullet into his pistol.
Other participants put the Mana Orb into a cannon as big as a person and fired it, or attached a small glider they had worn for flight to the Mana Orb and sent it flying.
Some threw the Mana Orb into the air with all their might and then swung the Greatsword in their hand to hit the Mana Orb in the air like a baseball bat. It was a fairly common method. Everyone used their own methods to move forward, but apart from his partners, no one stood out significantly. Leonardo, having assessed the situation, concluded that they should proceed quietly while controlling their power.
“Let’s go too.”
“Yes, Boss! Oh, but by any chance….”
Huffing and puffing, Ero picked up the Mana Orb and sidled up to Leonardo, whispering close to his face.
“Are you acquainted with Council officials? They keep staring over there.”
“What?”
Leonardo asked, puzzled, and followed Ero’s gesture to shift his gaze. Turning around, the first thing he saw was the League staff busily moving around the stadium. There wasn’t anyone he particularly knew among them. Instinctively, his gaze went further, drawn by an inexplicable pull.
Slowly raising his chin, Leonardo stared at the spectator seats, which should have been empty.
His Gold Eyes narrowed. That direction was definitely the place where he had felt a strange gaze and turned around before going down to the entrance of the maze.
Two people were standing there, where his gaze rested. Among them, one person, who appeared unusually tall and large despite being seen as small as a dot, particularly caught his attention.
Even though their features were completely indistinguishable with ordinary human eyesight, Leonardo could tell who he was at once.
“…Hugo.”
Hugo, who was standing far away with his hands behind his back, raised one hand towards Leonardo. As he waved it lightly, Leonardo’s hand awkwardly rose and waved back slightly.
It was an unmistakable gesture for Hugo, even if it wasn’t for Leonardo. He had artificially formed an image by collecting moisture in front of his retina, then looked into Leonardo’s face, greatly magnified like the lens of a telescope. Thanks to that, he could see his surprised face, the subtle movements of the muscles trying to manage his expression, the corners of his lips trying to rise despite his efforts to hide it, and even his ears subtly reddening.
A smile spread across Hugo’s hardened lips. He waved his hand for quite a while, then barely managed to withdraw his acknowledgment, worried that it might interfere with Leonardo’s match.
As he put his hands back behind his back, Leonardo also lowered his hand. He couldn’t take his eyes off him for a while, then belatedly came to his senses at Ero’s question about who it was.
But Leonardo’s mind was already preoccupied with one thought.
“Hey.”
“Yes?”
“Change of plans.”
Ero tilted his head for a moment.
“Plans…? Was there a plan? I don’t remember hearing about—.”
“No matter what, I’m going to win this match.”
In the Gold Eyes that turned to face Ero, a fighting spirit beyond mere will sparked like flames. Ero swallowed hard at his abruptly changed demeanor.
“Uh, right! If it’s you, Boss, winning is a sure thing! But… this isn’t a first-come, first-served basis, so you don’t necessarily have to come in first….”
“No.”
Leonardo struck the back of Ero’s hand, launching his Mana Orb into the air. Then, in the blink of an eye, he grabbed the pistol Ero was holding, aimed it together, and pulled the trigger, hitting the Mana Orb.
Bang—!
“Boss!”
Before Ero could stop him, flames and a whirlwind erupted from the fired bullet. The Mana Orb, pushed by it, temporarily floated in the air. Following that, Leonardo threw his own Mana Orb above his head. Then, with his palm extended, he waited for the moment when the two floating Mana Orbs were in line with his arm.
Before long, his pupils, contracted by the sunlight, accurately targeted the object within range.
Intense energy condensed in Leonardo’s grip, and hot steam scattered in long streaks along with the hot wind.
In today’s match, he had to be incredibly cool, more than anyone else.
‘Because that person is watching.’
Sizzling sparks flew in all directions.