Swordsmanship Genius Sees the Future

Chapter 49 - A Night Out Together (2) 

"Yeah. That's right. It's here."

Froggy led the way down the stairs.

Even though the entrance was shabby, a surprisingly vast new world unfolded a little further down.

"Blanche! Kuroru! Everyone doing well? Oh! Mibel, long time no see!"

The entrance to the Black Market was filled with poisonous frogs, whose import volume had apparently increased recently.

Froggy greeted each frog in its cage, excitedly leading the way.

"Hey! Froggy! Don't tell me the fun thing you were going to show me was poisonous frogs?!"

Phil, sensing something ominous, immediately ran and grabbed Froggy by the scruff of his neck.

"Cough! Uh, huh? No?"

"What do you mean, no? Huh? Look at this guy, his mouth is practically hanging off his ears just from seeing frogs!"

"No. Of course, it's good to see the frogs, but that's not why we came here. Follow me. We have to go a little further. Let go of me."

Froggy slapped Phil's hand away and continued walking.

Phil stood frozen until I approached him.

"…Ray."

"Huh? What?"

"That guy just used Aura."

"Huh?"

"He used Aura when he slapped my hand away. That guy's scary, isn't he? I felt some killing intent. Is he doing that because I'm pressuring him to pay back the money?"

"Don't be like that. He's not in a hurry for money right now. He said someone he knows sent him living expenses earlier, didn't he?"

"Really? Well, then it doesn't matter…"

Phil frowned and continued walking.

Froggy was already far ahead.

From here, the path was unfamiliar.

The goods being sold around them gradually began to feel more dangerous.

Not only sharp weapons and armor, but also powerful poisons that would warrant immediate arrest were openly being sold.

That dried scorpion over there openly smelled of the North.

If you asked if these were enemy spies, that wasn't exactly the case.

People who practiced poison arts had a peculiar, melting stench about them.

But the merchants' bodies didn't have that smell.

"Then what are they doing with this…?"

"Huh? What did you say?"

"No, I was just wondering what they do with things like those scorpions."

"Aren't they making medicine?"

"Medicine?"

"Yeah. I don't know much, but they say good medicine contains dangerous ingredients, right? But Froggy, how far is that guy going? Was there a place like this in the Black Market? He's not going to capture us and sell us somewhere, is he?"

"No way…"

Just then, Froggy leaped up in the distance and shouted.

"Here! Here!"

It was a place with boundaries obscured by tents, even though it was underground.

As we approached, a signboard nearby caught my eye.

Fighting Arena Back Entrance.

"…Fighting Arena?"

"Yeah. It's fun here. The match starts soon, so come in and watch. The entrance is on the opposite side. This is the ticket."

Froggy wrapped a green band around my wrist and Phil's.

Then he slipped inside alone.

When Phil tried to follow, a shriek came from inside, and he was bounced out.

"The entrance is on the opposite side!"

"Hey! Argh! What the—!"

Phil, who had fallen, dusted off his pants and stood up.

Then a large man I hadn't seen before came out and blocked the door.

"This is the back entrance. The Fighting Arena entrance is on the opposite side. Customers, please enter through that side. This area is restricted."

"No, why can that guy go in and we can't?!"

"That person is staff. Those who are not staff cannot enter through here."

"No… Hey, Ray. You say something too."

Phil had a bewildered look on his face.

I walked to the opposite side without a word.

"He said the entrance is on the opposite side. Let's go there."

"Hey, no, that's not the problem right now. Why can he go in and we can't? At least give us an explanation!"

Phil furiously shook the band wrapped around his wrist. Indeed. It would have been nice if he had explained it beforehand.

"Froggy is just like that. His mental world is unique… We have to understand him."

"Ugh, understanding is all well and good, but wasn't he the one who dragged us all the way here in the first place? We followed him all this way, and what is this? It's annoying to be discriminated against. Does he think he's someone special? Maybe it's a facility run by his family's Merchant Guild, so he can enter as staff, but if that's the case, couldn't we just say we're staff friends? Wouldn't it be nice if we all went in together? Or is he, like, a fighter? Huh? Is he hiding his identity and fighting as a player in the Fighting Arena? Huh?"

Phil's complaints became reality.

"Blue Corner! Age 15! Record 14 fights, 6 wins, 8 losses! There may be losses, but no despair! The mysterious green warrior! Green Fighter!"

"Whoa!"

Froggy, wearing a mask, ran into the Fighting Arena.

Phil, sitting next to me, gasped in astonishment, his mouth wide open.

"My goodness. He's really a fighter…"

"And facing him in the Red Corner! Age a full 16! Record 19 fights, 18 wins, 1 loss! The absolute strongest in the youth division! The champion of the youth division! Red Snake!"

"Woooooow!"

Cheers erupted from the stands.

Although there were fewer than thirty spectators in total, he seemed quite popular.

"Hey, look at that. His opponent is much bigger, isn't he? He looks incredibly strong. Isn't Froggy going to get completely thrashed? Something serious might happen… There must be a doctor or something on standby nearby, right?"

Phil bit his nails, fretting.

Where had the guy who had been spewing all sorts of insults just a minute ago suddenly gone?

"There's probably a contingency plan, right? Something like this wouldn't be established without one."

"Right? I hope so… Wow, look at that champion's forearm. Isn't it cheating to use Aura with an arm like that?"

"The non-title match for the under-16 youth division begins now!"

With the arena announcer's shout, the match began.

Phil clenched his fists and shouted towards the arena.

"Win, Froggy… No, Green Fighter! If you lose, I won't let you off the hook!"

About 20 minutes after the match ended.

"…Were you waiting?"

Froggy, his eyes swollen black and blue, held out a pouch.

"Here, this is 300 Sil. I'll pay back what I borrowed before. Still 200 Sil left, though."

"…"

I couldn't bring myself to take the pouch.

Fresh bloodstains were clearly visible on the pouch. Is this what they call blood money?

"I don't think I can take this…"

"What are you talking about? I have to pay back what I borrowed. How was it? Was the match fun? I fought hard, you know."

This was also a difficult question.

Froggy had been badly beaten and lost.

If I said it was fun, I'd be a madman.

Conversely, if I said it wasn't fun, I'd be a cold-blooded person ignoring my friend's efforts.

"Hey! If you were going to do this, you should have told me beforehand! I almost had a heart attack watching it!" Phil solved the problem for me.

Froggy, half-leaning against the back door of the Fighting Arena, looked at Phil with a dazed expression.

"What are you talking about? Didn't I tell you? I said I was fighting as a player in the underground Fighting Arena?"

"No, you didn't!"

"Really? I thought I did… Sorry. I guess I just said it in my head. Hehe."

"Ah, damn it, don't laugh. Your lips are bleeding."

"Really?"

Froggy wiped his lips with his sleeve. I sighed, turning away from the money pouch.

"I'll just consider this received. You worked hard fighting the match."

"Eh? You can't do that."

Froggy forced the money pouch into my hand.

"Just take it. Don't feel burdened. I had fun fighting too. I do this as a hobby. It's fun and I earn money."

"…Really?"

"Of course. If you fight as a player, there's a Black Market premium too. They give you free tickets, and the Fighting Arena people give you Black Market information in advance. That's how I was able to buy Antoarica right away. Hehe. Otherwise, would I have fought more than ten times?"

"You fought a lot. When did you start?"

"A little over a year ago. You can start fighting as a player in the youth division from age fourteen."

"Are you okay? You just went in after the match without getting treated earlier?"

"No, there's a doctor and medicine in the player's waiting room. I got treated and came out. And youth division fighters don't get hurt that much. You can't fight as a player if your Aura reaches 3-star."

Despite that, it was a fierce match with blood flying and flesh tearing.

The audience's response was good too.

"So that's why you fought so well in the inter-class competition."

"Of course. I almost won, but it's a shame I lost. If I had won, I would have paid back all the borrowed money at once."

"How much do you get if you win?"

Phil cut in and asked.

Froggy held up six fingers.

"600 Sil."

"Oh, double? No, that's not the problem right now… Are you really that broke? Isn't your family a pretty well-known merchant guild?"

"That's right. So?"

"So what? Doesn't your family give you allowance?"

"They do. But more money is always better, right? And…"

Froggy looked around the Fighting Arena and smiled.

"Hehe. Sometimes I just want to fight. Even if it's not just for money, when I'm down, fighting makes me feel better."

"You beat people up when you're down. I guess I shouldn't mess with you in the future."

"Aw, don't be like that. This is quite fun once you get into it, you know? It really gets your blood pumping. Want to try it too?"

"Absolutely not. I just got into the Academy, do you want me to get caught and expelled?"

"It's okay if you fight with a mask. Use a fake name too. How about it? Ray, you think so too, right?"

Froggy looked at me and asked.

I didn't know how to answer, so I just smiled.

And at that moment, an illusion overlapped Froggy's innocent face.

A future illusion.

A young man with long limbs leaps towards a group of enemies.

It was Froggy.

Froggy, looking about twenty years old, covered in enemy blood, shouted.

"Run! Ray!"

At that moment, a doll-like monster holding a shield pressed down on Froggy with its entire body.

Bang!

I actually heard that sound.

It sounded like a frog bursting when its cheeks are puffed up.

All that remained was scattered blood and flesh.

"Froggy…"

"Huh? What?"

The illusion vanished instantly, and a younger Froggy answered instead.

"…"

My palms were damp.

It was a short illusion.

But I knew everything I needed to know.

Froggy would still be my friend about five years from now.

Froggy would die fighting an enemy by my side.

Even telling me to run away.

No.

That can't happen.

He's the friend who stayed by my side when I fainted.

Even if he's going to die, he shouldn't die like that.

"…Fighting with a mask would be fine."

"Right? Isn't it?"

"Yeah. But before that, there's something we need to do."

I looked directly into Froggy's eyes.

"Froggy. From now on, let's train together."

"Huh? Train? Me?"

"Yeah. You."

"Why? Weren't you just talking about Phil?"

"Phil is already doing it. So let's train together too. Thinking about the future, I think it would be good to do it no matter what."

"Why the future? Oh, are you talking about the inter-class competition?"

"The inter-class competition, and if you train with me, you'll be able to fight better in the underground Fighting Arena too. Even if it's just for fun, 6 wins and 8 losses isn't good, is it?"

"9 losses."

"Huh?"

"I lost today, so it's 9 losses. Actually, it's a bit risky. If you lose 10 times, you almost get expelled. But the underground Fighting Arena is bare-handed combat, so we can't use wooden swords. What kind of training will we do?"

"Well…"

When he asked that, I suddenly had nothing to say.

All I could teach was swordsmanship.

I knew nothing about bare-handed combat using Aura.

But I had to get Froggy involved somehow.

By any means necessary.

Suddenly, the frog I saw on the way here came to mind.

At the same time, my mouth reacted before my head.

"Should we buy one more poisonous frog?"

"Huh?"

"One is lonely, isn't it? How about buying one more and making a friend for it?"

"Great! But I don't have any money now?"

"I'll buy it. So, you'll train with me in the dormitory courtyard whenever you have time. How about it?"

It was a proposal close to a stream of consciousness.

Even I thought it made no sense.

"Great!"

But Froggy cheered, even raising his hands in delight.

"Absolutely great! Let's train together! We're making a friend for our Antoarica!"

"Hey… You guys…"

Phil had a look that suggested these guys had gone mad collectively.

I turned my body and started walking.

"Then let's go back. Wow, look at the sky. The weather's nice today, isn't it?"

Even though we were still underground.

Anyway, it was a nice and peaceful day.

Even though my friend had fought fiercely to pay back money and handed over blood-stained money, it was still peaceful.

Even though I saw an illusion of that friend dying horribly in the future, it was still peaceful.

At least for now, nothing serious would happen.

If it were, I would have seen that in an illusion first.