“Ah, chew!” Rai sniffled.
“Ever since you got stung, you haven’t been looking too well,” Lily remarked, examining Rai's wound.
“I’m fine,” Rai insisted, his gaze fixed on the game unfolding before him.
“Okay,” Lily said. “What did you think of the Anthem in the beginning?”
“Meh,” Rai said.
“Hm, well I loved it,” Lily said.
A resounding horn marked the end of another competition, inciting cheers from the spectators on the surrounding bleachers.
“Ah, come on! I almost had it that time,” Eiji said as someone strolled by and snatched his losing tickets.
The group traversed the dusty grounds, pausing at a hotdog stand.
Lily noticed hostile glares from a few onlookers. “Sheesh, try not to make it too obvious?” she said, looking away.
“Looks like we’re going to be here for a bit,” Rai observed, surveying the line ahead of them.
“Mind if I run to the restroom really quick?” Lily asked.
“Sure, we’ll be waiting here,” Rai replied.
Lily walked past a group of girls leaving the restroom. As she passed, one of them slightly bumped into her, giggling and looking back periodically as they continued through the crowd. Seated in the restroom stall, Lily glanced up to find graffiti spelling phrases like ‘F Farians’ and ‘Fur Fuckers.’
“First time at the rodeo?” an older couple approached Rai and Eiji.
“You can tell?” Rai responded.
“Your friend makes it a little obvious,” the lady remarked, gesturing towards Eiji’s pants tucked inside his cowboy boots.
Eiji, noticing their attention, proudly said, “You like,” extending his leg for a better look. “Made for more than just walking,” he said.
“They look great,” the woman complimented, taking a sip of her beer.
“Yeah, if I wasn’t breaking them in, I’d probably be out there myself,” Eiji admitted.
“Hey, guys,” Lily rejoined the group, now sporting a cowboy hat.
“Whoa, you look amazing,” Eiji gushed, his jaw-dropping in admiration.
“So, you ride professionally?” the husband inquired.
Confused, Lily exchanged a glance with Eiji.
Eiji, hoping to salvage the situation, asserted, “I don’t mean to brag, but I’ve had my fair share of experience with things much more difficult than this,” he replied, inspecting his fingernails as if they were freshly coated. “I could beat these guys with one arm tied behind my back.”
“Care to wager on that?” a tall, rugged man in a cowboy hat approached. “I’ll even keep a slot open for you.”
“Kantar,” the couple said in excitement. “We came to see you at MFR!”
“MFR?” Lily asked.
“Mantical’s Finals Rodeo,” he said, leaning in close, causing Lily to blush lightly. “You’re cute.”
Alerted by his sudden forward approach, Eiji stepped in front of Lily. “I’ll take you on,” Eiji declared firmly.
“Yeah?” Kantar snickered. “Okay, if you win, I’ll lend you my very own mantical, but if I win,” he glanced over at Lily, “your girl’s got to go on a date with me.”
Lily’s face flushed red, “His what?”
“Deal!” Eiji shouted, shaking it, before they both walked off, determined to win.
“Since when did I become someone’s bargaining chip?” Lily asked, flabbergasted.
As Eiji prepared, Rai and Lily found a better bleacher spot, each enjoying a hotdog wrapped in foil.
“Smells like the village back home,” Rai said, sniffling.
“Smells in general,” Lily remarked, covering her nose, observing the cows I’m behind them.
“Ah, come on, it’s not that bad,” a random bystander commented.
“You get used to the smell,” the guy’s girlfriend next to him said. “Where are you guys from?”
“I- Uh…”
“We’re from out of town, a small village you probably wouldn’t know of,” Rai responded on Lily’s behalf.
“Do I know you?” the girl’s boyfriend asked, leaning in curiously. “Yeah, from the exam, I’m sure of it. Babe, he was in the exam – what, almost two years ago?”
“Uh, I don’t think so,” she replied.
“No, I’m sure of it,” he said, peering closer at Rai.
Chuckling, she responded, “Sweetie, that day you had shotgunned three beers back-to-back with Justin the moment we got back from the river - where you were also drinking since the morning,” lifting her finger matter of factly.
“Fair enough,” the man replied, taking a sip of his beer.
“Hey look, it’s starting!” someone shouted.
Many riders approached on their manticals, including Eiji. They were each given a starting spot within a pen, far away from the numerous rock pillars at the center of the ring. They were spaced out evenly, and a single-colored rope was placed on each one.
“How does this work exactly?” Lily asked staring into the large field of rocky pillars.
“You’ve never heard of Rick Rock Rope?!” the couple responded in unison.
“No sorry,” Lily said.
“It’s a game Rick Rickiddy made up many years ago, and it’s like the main event here now,” the boyfriend stated.
“I think I understand how it works,” Rai said, having observed it on TV. “If my guess is correct, the goal is to either get the most points by lassoing the mantical they are riding or by lassoing and pulling opposing riders from there. Touch the floor and you’re disqualified.”
“Yep, that’s the general gist. Each rope is color-coordinated based on the number of points they award for roping another contestant or their mantical. On the outside of the rock pillars, you will mostly see yellow ropes. They’re worth 1 point. Then as you move on, the ropes transition to blue, which are worth 3 points. Lastly, in the center, there are a couple of ropes that are worth 5 points,” the boyfriend explained.
“And if you rope a person, you also get one point, but you get three if you get their mantical,” the girlfriend added.
“But wouldn’t that hurt the mantical?” Lily asked, concerned.
“More worried about the manticals than the actual people, dang,” someone interrupted in the bleachers beside them; he was intoxicated.
“My buddies have roped me countless times, not to mention I’ve roped many cattle myself, and everyone’s okay. They’re big, strong animals,” the boyfriend reassured.
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“So, to sum it all up, the winner is either the last man standing or the guy cashing in on the points,” Rai said, arms folded. “I wonder if Eiji is aware of these rules.”
Eiji, like many others, was fixated on a starting spot, waiting for the race to start.
“I’ll even leave a slot open for you,” Eiji mocked Kantar. “Come on Manty, let’s show this guy who he’s dealing with,” Eiji said, patting the head of the creature.
Manticals are agile creatures, usually domesticated for herding more challenging animals that a horse normally couldn’t handle. Their large snouts are covered in a thick layer of bone since they are known to butt heads with their kind, similar to rams.
“Rider ready?” a man in front of Eiji’s pen asked.
“Actually, I was wondering, how exactly does this work?”
“One rope at a time. Catch people or manticals,” he said unenthusiastically before walking to the next pen.
“That seems easy enough.” Eiji looked around for Lily, curious as to where she and everyone else were. “I wonder where they are?”
A ringing sound went off and the gates swung open simultaneously. Everyone took off!
Surprised by the sudden start, Eiji tried kicking the sides of the mantical to get it to run forward, but instead, it started to jump and thrash around wildly the moment it exited the pen.
Kantar, at the forefront of the charge toward the approaching pillars of rocks, shot a confident glance backward, a sly smirk gracing his face.
“Kantar takes an early lead!” proclaimed the announcer’s voice, resonating through the air from the speakers along the bleachers.
Eiji grappled with the rowdy mantical, but catching sight of Lily and his friends observing from a distance. It wasn’t easy, but with a bit of his Nefarian strength, he was able to regain control over the beast attempting to throw him off, though it still wasn’t happy. “Hey there,” Eiji addressed the Mantical softly. Recalling his lessons in animal handling, he carefully placed his hands along the creature’s neck, guiding them toward the sturdy tip of its snout. The creature seemed at ease. “Now, let’s do this, Manty!” The creature elevated on its hind legs before accelerating at an astonishing speed.
“Look at that!” said Lily from the audience. “Eiji’s mantical is taking off.”
“No kidding,” Rai added.
Surpassing almost every other mantical, Eiji gradually closed the gap between himself and Kantar.
“They’re nearing the first wave of ropes,” announced the commentator.
Kantar surged past the initial wave, opting to press forward towards the blue ropes.
Eiji, conflicted but determined, also chose to skip the first set of ropes.
“You’re in way over your head,” Kantar taunted Eiji from ahead.
“Say that again once I've pulled you from your mantical,” Eiji shouted, positioning himself right next to Kantar. A red rope appeared ahead, and while Eiji was determined to seize it first, Kantar maintained a slight lead.
Just as they approached the red rope, Kantar abruptly veered left, allowing Eiji to snatch the rope triumphantly.
“Why did Kantar steer the mantical away when he could have had it?” Lily questioned.
Eiji brandishing the red rope in the air said, “Woo! Looks like Kan-Tar, can’t keep up!”
“Get him!” a voice yelled from behind Eiji, prompting him to glance back and discover multiple riders in hot pursuit.
“Why are they going after me?!” Eiji said.
A rider swung his rope overhead, the loop expanding before throwing it and zeroing in on Eiji. Pressing a button attached to the rope, the lasso quickly tightened around him.
“Gotcha,” declared the man, but before he could pull Eiji off his mantical, a yellow lasso wrapped him, forcefully yanking him away.
“They’re all targeting Eiji,” Lily said.
“Kantar purposely avoided the red rope,” Rai explained, his nose sniffling. “Achew!” Rai wiped his nose before continuing, “Or rather, it would be better to say he baited Eiji into it. By going for the rope with the most points, you make yourself a target for everyone else,” Rai informed.
Eiji skillfully dodged and evaded numerous lassos thrown over his head. Observing other contestants racking up points, he realized he had yet to score one himself. His eyes locked onto two rock pillars that were closer than the others. Swiftly removing the rope around him, he expertly tied it with the one he had acquired earlier, creating a significantly longer rope. With precision, he lassoed a rock pillar, gracefully twisting around it before turning to face his pursuers. Eiji held the extended rope firmly in his hands as he navigated through the competitors. One by one, they were unseated from their manticals as the rope hit them.
“Eiji with a fantastic move, removing nearly three other contestants,” the announcer said.
“Alright!” cheered Lily, pumping her fist.
“Unfortunately, you don’t get any points without lassoing, so Eiji remains at zero,” the announcer added.
“Ah, come on!” Eiji said, snagging another hanging rope.
Scanning the field, Eiji spotted Kantar targeting another person. “You’re next,” he declared, directing his mantical towards Kantar. Closing the gap, Kantar turned a corner, but Eiji successfully followed suit. From a distance, Eiji noticed a person yanked off their mantical, struggling to reach the safe zone.
“My ankle,” the man groaned, limping to the safe zone.
“You okay man?!” someone shouted from the safe zone.
A nearby mantical rider threw a lasso at Kantar, who skillfully ducked under it. Approaching him, Kantar surveyed the surroundings before ramming into the rider, causing the person to fall off, while their mantical headed directly towards the injured man. Rock pillars on each end blocked Kantar’s crude actions to most.
“Is he allowed to do that?” Eiji wondered aloud.
“Dirty move!” Rai said.
Before the mantical could collide with the man, Eiji’s lasso wrapped around him, yanking him out of harm's way.
“Get to the safe zone,” Eiji instructed as he passed by on his mantical, dropping the rope beside him, before veering around the corner of another pillar.
“I guess you don’t get a point for lassoing anyone already off their mantical,” Lily said
“Numbskull, behind you!” Rai shouted.
“I told you,” Kantar remarked, throwing a blue rope at the legs of the mantical Eiji was on. Pressing the button, the lasso tightened, securely binding the creature’s legs, crashing into the mud. “You’re way in over your head,” Kantar shouted.
“Manty!” Eji’s mantical slid against the dirt, launching him headfirst over it.
“No,” Lily said, but in mid-air, Eiji executed a flip, and utilizing the rock pillar in front of him, launched off, landing on the back of a nearby rider’s mantical.
The rider, readying a yellow rope, turned around confused by Eiji’s unexpected appearance.
With a hesitant chuckle, Eiji swiftly looped the man’s rope around him, tapping the button to tighten the lasso, and gave him the lightest shove.
“Hey!” the guy blurted before falling off.
Glancing at the scoreboard, Eiji saw two points appear. “Yes!” he said.
Kantar seeing this scowled in frustration, lowering his head slightly as he moved on to his next target.
The opponent Eiji had thrown off hastily gathered himself, dashing into a safe area designated for eliminated participants.
Gradually, contestants were knocked out of the match until only a handful remained. Kantar leads with Eiji trailing in fourth place.
“If Eiji does happen to win, this would cut the trip by nearly half,” Rai said.
“Do you think he will?” Lily asked.
Rai smiled, “I know he will.”
Rounding a corner, Eiji’s mantical collided with another, sending his opponent airborne while Eiji instead flipped over onto their manticals mount. Lifting his hand, Eiji discovered a blue rope, but it had already been used. “This is a lot tougher than it looks,” he remarked, huffing while perched on the back of the mantical. Glancing at the clock, he realized he had only one minute left. What should I do?
Elsewhere, the contestant in second place grabbed another blue rope, saying, “Yes, I’ll be able to pass Kantar with this!” However, as he turned around another pillar, a yellow lasso snared him off his mantical.
“Keep dreaming,” Kantar sneered. “With that, there’s no one else who can take first in points. Now I just have to avoid the rest, and the win's as good as mine.” Activating the button, the rope lassoed into a knot, which Kantar then casually tossed on the ground.
“This isn’t good,” Rai remarked from the crowd.
“Yeah, everyone’s getting off their mantical,” Lily observed, watching riders giving up.
“They ran out of ropes,” someone pointed out. “Their points are too spread out for anyone to pass someone else up to.”
Ropes whose buttons were pressed couldn’t be used anymore, so when the ropes were all used up, it was usually a matter of waiting until the time was up.
Kantar looked over at Lily, giving her a wink.
Shivers ran down Lily’s spine, and she crouched behind Rai. “Hide me,” she pleaded.
“Oh, did you see that? He just winked at you!” a group of girls said behind them, excitedly jumping up and down.
Checking the time, Kantar noted there were nearly thirty seconds left.
“It’s not over yet!” Eiji declared, appearing from behind a rock pillar with a rope in hand. He threw it, but Kantar took off, narrowly avoiding the lasso hovering above his head.
That was a close one! Kantar looked behind him in shock as Eiji was in hot pursuit—with yet another rope in hand! “But how?!” Kantar pondered, convinced he had eliminated all the ropes.
“You guys are so used to lassoing with a button; that you assumed the one I threw was done the same way!” Eiji shouted, chasing after Kantar.
“The ropes he used earlier,” Lily pointed out, recalling Eiji’s strategic use of ropes to knock off a couple of contestants. There were two of them, and he never employed the button to lasso the rocks.
“Since everyone else got off their manticals, if Eiji can manage to get Kantar to the floor, he’ll win!” a couple next to them stated.
Standing on the railing with snot dripping from his nose, Rai shouted, “Alright! Eiji, show him what you’re made of!”
“Watch it, we can’t see,” someone yelled.
Meanwhile, Kantar was sweating, he was directly in Eiji’s line of sight!
Reading his lasso, Eiji tossed it forward.
Kantar, using all he could muster, leaned into his left, maneuvering his mantical in a sharp turn behind a rock, effectively dodging Eiji’s final attempt to catch him. “HA!” Kantar shouted looking back. However, facing forward, Kantar’s smile immediately vanished. Another mantical was waiting in front of him, held in place by a blue rope fashioned as a leash, pinned into the rock pillar with a dagger. His mantical collided with the other, causing Kantar to be launched off, his face smeared across the muddy floor.
The loud ringing sound signaled the end of the competition. The crowd erupted in cheers for the winner, Eiji, who posed proudly atop his mantical. “I’m starting to see why the Elder rolls around like this,” Eiji remarked.
“Yeah!” Rai shouted.
Lily giggled, enjoying Eiji’s many glorious victory poses.
“He’s such a dork,” a girl commented.
“Yeah, but at least he isn’t afraid to show it,” another girl added.
Hearing this, Lily’s eyes briefly dropped to the floor, but then she looked back up, confidently removing her hat and revealing her cat-like ears.
“Uh! You’re a Nefarian?!” the couple beside them said, surprised.
Lily smiled brightly, “Yeup.”