A few hours later, Cycelia takes a deep and slow breath, then sits up.

《What's wrong with me? I made a complete fool of myself, just because of one compliment from Straf not directed at me… Was it the wine, or the dragon in my blood after all?》

She sighs, then winces as an onset of sharp pain in her head turns dull.

「Ow…」

Cycelia puts her fingers on her brow, in an attempt to soothe the discomfort.

《I drank way more than the usual, too… Ahh… I should tell Straf I'm up, but I don't want to show myself to him after all of this… I'll just cross my fingers he forgot.》

She sighs again, and realizes she's not wearing her boots. It causes her momentary confusion, but she quickly finds them laying on the floor. Cycelia puts her footwear on and stands up. She lets out a fatigued sigh while leaning onto the wall with one hand, then exits her room. She steps over to Straf's door and knocks her pale knuckles against it.

「Yeah?」

Straf's muffled voice asks.

「It's me, Straf…」

Cycelia answers meekly, playing with her medallion.

「Ah, you're up? Come on in if you want to.」

Hearing Straf allow her in, she opens the door. Cycelia finds Straf laying on his bed, although in an unusual manner. He's throwing and catching a gold coin with a huge smirk on his face, resting his head on one of his hands, and his feet are on the floor down the bed's footboard.

「So? Are you able to get to the arena? I don't mind if you spend the day being a NEET.」

Straf asks, and catches the coin in a stylish manner, barely paying attention to it as he's looking at Cycelia.

「Yes, I'm mostly fine…」

She pushes the door shut with her back and leans onto it, fiddling with her gemmed medallion.

「Did you pass the princess exam, then?」

Straf asks, then throws the coin up again.

「Huh? Princess exam?」

Cycelia shakes her head slightly in confusion, her brows also lightly furrow.

「Y'know. Vomit on the bed, the floorboards, the sweater?」

Straf catches his coin then glances at Cycelia again, gesturing with his coin hand as he speaks.

「Huh? No.」

She shakes her head again, first in confusion, then as a response.

「And… I don't have a sweater…」

Cycelia adds, looking down and fingering her silver medallion.

「Yeah, it's a shame. I think you'd look nice in one.」

Ba-dump.

Straf shrugs, and throws his coin again. A huge smile forces its way onto Cycelia's face as she looks away, but it is short-lived. A pang of pain shoots through her skull, forcing her hand to her head again.

「Owww…」

She groans out quietly with her eyes closed. Straf catches his coin and looks to her with his brows raised.

「Head hurts, huh? That's why a good rule of thumb with booze is, stop drinking when you can't taste it anymore. Think you can manage to get to the arena like this?」

Straf sits up, hunching lazily with his elbows on his legs.

「I'll be fine… I don't want to miss your match. Not the last one.」

Cycelia lowers her hand as the pain subsides.

「Yeah, while I think it would be absolutely hilarious to end the tournament arc on just upping and leaving, I want a hoard of gold. Just to look at it, honestly.」

Straf pockets his gold coin and gets up, walking to Cycelia at the door.

「Are you sure you are not a dragon, Straf?…」

She jokes meekly, and pushes herself off the door. Straf swings it open.

「Yup. Can't transform at all. I'm just a static one-dimensional character. No development for me.」

Straf walks out the door with Cycelia following beside him. She tilts her head out of confusion, and winces again. They head down the stairs to the tavern area. The innkeeper's face makes him look like he's in a sour mood, and the forgetful barmaid quickly approaches Straf and Cycelia as they walk in.

「Good morning. Are you going to return?」

She asks with a smug smile on her face.

「Yeah, I guess we'll stay over for another night and we'll be off. What's with the face?」

「Oh, I'm just unfired.」

She announces proudly, pushing her large chest out with her chin lifted.

「Huh? You're really smug about basically licking his boot-」

「Oh, no, I've had enough of that. I've demanded a fifth of the daily profit, he said that usually amounts to 4 silver coins or so.」

The barmaid puts her fists on her hips and Straf mirrors her pose, nodding his head in approval with a somewhat impressed grimace.

「Wow, look at that. You did it. And you didn't even need to unite with smelly people who never worked a day in their life. Or fight off mercenary detectives. Good for you.」

「Hm?」

She tilts her head a little.

「There are very few things I hate more than unions. Labor, Soviet, European, Nations, States… Doesn't matter. If it's a union of any form, I hate it, and you should too.」

Straf enumerates on his fingers, then shrugs with his hands and shoulders.

「…What?」

Proper confusion sets on the barmaid's face as Straf continues.

「Good job. See you.」

Straf walks off without elaborating. Cycelia bows her head, and quickly catches up to his side. They leave the inn and head towards the arena.

「Ahh… Not this guy again.」

「Ah! Mr. Straf!」

「Really want to cement your place as a side character, huh?…」

Louche runs up, having spotted Straf and Cycelia walk out of the inn.

「I thought you might be staying in that inn!」

The young man declares, adding a nod of his head to his statement and clenching his fist as it's held high.

「…Why?」

Straf asks with suspicion on his face, and in his voice.

「Because no one would think princes-! Er, Lia? Would stay there!」

Louche glances at Cycelia standing beside Straf, and quickly corrects himself to not unmask her identity.

「That doesn't answer the question, Charles.」

Straf's mouth takes an annoyed slant.

「I'm Louche! And it's because that inn is known for being the shoddiest in town!」

「Wait, really? Shit. I mean, that was obvious but, still… Shit. Anyway, what happened to your sister and the wheelchair? Met her tragic end, after you wheeled her into a river?」

「I would never!」

Louche shakes his head and denies. Straf's eyes widen, and his brows rise.

「Wow, I was just joking, you psycho bastard. You actually did it?」

He incredulously asks with his fists on his hips.

「What!? No! Millie is back at home, I gave the wheelchair back to the wagon wright for adjustments!」

Louche explains himself, clenching both of his fists and adding another nod full of conviction in.

「Oh. Well, don't blame me, Occam's razor is banned by Murphy's law around these parts. In that case, I assume your cripple sister had a great time staring at flowers, and then something bloomed between you?」

Straf shrugs, then stares down at Louche with a condescending smirk.

「Yes, she looked really happy for once! Thank you, Mr. Straf, it wouldn't have been possible without you. All of it.」

Louche nods with a huge smile on his face, clenching his fist again with a nod of his head. His smile slowly turns into a more serious expression as he thanks Straf.

「Don't pin your fetishes on me.」

Straf points down at him with disdain.

「Huh? Anyway, I also wanted to apologize, Mr. Straf. We tried to watch your match, but…」

「Let me guess, thwarted by the stairs?」

「Yes, how did you know?」

Mildly surprised, Louche furrows his brows.

「Tragic. Build awareness around this unique societal issue affecting a minority of people without me.」

Straf walks around Louche, surprising both him and Cycelia.

「Bye. Say hello to Millie for me.」

Cycelia nods towards Louche, and rejoins Straf's side as he's walking off.

「See you later, Mr. Straf! I'll try to catch your match!」

Louche swings his arm at them as Straf and Cycelia depart…

…

Though Straf is walking towards the arena, he detours towards a marketplace.

「Straf? Do you need to buy something?」

Cycelia leans forward, taking a look at Straf's face as he's walking with his hands in his pockets.

「Buy? No, but I thought it'd be a good idea to stock up.」

「Okay…」

Cycelia meekly accepts the explanation. Straf proceeds to spend next 15 to 30 minutes completely pilfering the merchants' stalls of thread spools, leather, yarn, various chemical powders or vials of liquids, tar, oils, cloth… Simply, miscellaneous items that either have many uses, or a single very specific one.

「Straf, do you really need all of those things?」

Cycelia asks as they depart from the market.

「Probably. At some point.」

Bored, Straf shrugs with his hands in his pockets.

「I can't think of a thing, that would need over 15 thread spools…」

Cycelia looks at the ground with her brows furrowed.

「Honestly, me neither. But I don't want to have to run to town to buy them, or pray that some bandit just happens to have one in his pockets.」

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

Straf shrugs again. Confused, Cycelia stares at Straf, blinking, as if she was trying to ask 「What?」 in Morse code with her eyes.

《But where the shit do I find metal fragments? What are metal fragments!? Do I just rip something metal apart? Don't tell me I need to hit a rock with a pickaxe!》

Straf thinks, as they head towards the arena…

…

Not too long after, they arrive to the lobby. While the sun is still not at its zenith, the heat is already becoming terrible. People are flooding into the lobby despite the relatively early hour.

「Ah! You are contestant Straf Katastrof Vindict, aren't you?」

A woman asks as she jogs up to Straf and Cycelia.

《Fuck. Fangirls already?》

Straf rolls his eyes.

「Yeah, and? What's it to you?」

Straf turns his gaze to the woman, glaring at her.

「Um. Since it's still early, could you join us for a little interview? Your answers will be announced before the match. It's your chance to say something you want everyone to hear.」

The woman gets visibly uncomfortable from Straf's cold glare. She meekly explans herself, and Straf's eyes gradually soften.

「Oh. Yeah, I guess I can. To pass the time.」

He shrugs his shoulders, then turns his head to Cycelia beside him.

「Lia, are you going to be fine alone?」

「Huh!? What!?」

Fear sets on Cycelia's face, and she grips onto her medallion.

「I'm asking if you'll manage to find a seat, and won't pass out and fall down the stairs, or something.」

Straf explains further, and Cycelia's panicked eyes calm. She exhales with relief, and nods.

「Yes, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me, Straf. Just give it your best. And stay safe.」

She excitedly clutches her fists in front of her and nods again when encouraging Straf.

「Right. There's no danger to me, so relax. See you after I'm done. Wait for me in the lobby here, and remember what I said.」

Straf says, and walks off with the woman.

「Got it. Good luck Straf!」

She shouts out at his back, and Straf lifts his hand without turning around, then places it back in his pocket as he walks through the empty side hallway with the interviewer…

…

Straf and the interviewer enter a bare room, featuring only a desk, two chairs, and a wooden cabinet behind the desk.

「Have a seat.」

The woman points to a chair in front of the large oaken desk, and she sits down behind it. Straf plops down in his seat and slouches back.

「So, first off. Where do you come from?」

Without a moment's delay, she asks the first question, holding a quill in her hand, ready to note down the answer on the paper in front of her.

「A distant place.」

Straf returns a noncommittal answer. She grimaces.

「…Could you specify?」

「Nope.」

Straf answers in a similar manner, and the interviewer sighs.

「Well, could you at least tell me something about your home?」

「Like what?」

「If it was a peaceful place, or troubled by something… And such.」

She shrugs her shoulders, still having written nothing.

「Hahaha, ohhh. No. It wasn't peaceful. At all.」

Greatly amused, Straf outright laughs in her face. She scribbles something down.

「Really? So there was a war in your kingdom when you left?」

The interviewer asks, finally gripping onto a tangible answer.

「Oh, no. We weren't at a war for a long time.」

「Huh? So it wasn't wars causing a problem? What was it, then?」

The interviewer gets slightly surprised, and writes the answer down. She asks another, and Straf laughs in her face again.

「Oh man. What wasn't causing a problem?」

「Did you have a monster problem, then?」

She notes down the answer.

「Oh yeah, there were some monsters alright. The biggest problem-makers were the ones looking like humans.」

Straf shrugs, and crosses his arms.

「Vampires? Demons?」

She notes down, and asks.

「Yeah. And the media.」

Straf smirks.

「Huh? Media? What's that?」

She notes down Straf's reply.

「Brain parasites. They turn you stupid.」

「Wow. That sounds terrible!」

「Yeah, it is.」

Straf nods, and the interviewer hastily scribbles more notes, striking-through a line.

「Though there were some cool monsters, too.」

「Like what? Those weren't causing problems?」

「Hahaha, oh no, they were causing a fuckload of problems. It's just they only come out during wars.」

Straf laughs again. She writes the reply down.

「But you said wars weren't a problem?」

「Yeah, they weren't my problem.」

「I see. So what were those monsters? Can you describe them?」

She taps her quill idly on the corner of the paper in anticipation.

「Yeah, the coolest one is made of metal, is deafeningly loud, flies through the air and it kills with a farting sound.」

Straf grins as he describes the monster. The woman energetically nods as she writes down his words, but then pauses and looks up from the paper with her brows furrowed.

「…With a farting sound?」

Suspicious, she asks.

「Yeah. It goes like fwoooooosh… Brrrrrrrrrrrt!」

Straf hovers his hand through the air, and imitates the sound of the metal beast while diving his hand at the desk. He pulls it up, then crosses his arms again.

「I… See…」

She writes his explanation down.

「There were also other ones made of metal, but on the ground. They went boom real loud, and could level an entire house. Think something like a pig, with a head of a mosquito on top of it, and it was as big as 4 horses in a rectangle.」

「…What? And it was made of metal?」

「Yeah. Real hard metal, too. It took another one of those to kill it. Or a special stick that went fwoosh, boom!」

Straf imitates another sound for the interviewer.

「Um… A lot of things in your kingdom are made of metal, and go fwoosh, or boom, or fwoosh and boom, Straf.」

The interviewer writes down his answer, and notes the consequences of the industrial revolution in Straf's world.

「It is what it is.」

Straf shrugs with his hands.

「Okay. Um. Tournament. Are you at all concerned about contestant Sturm? He killed Klaw the Head-taker in his bout. Are you not worried you might be next?」

She writes down the answer, and changes the theme of the questions.

「Nope.」

Straf shrugs.

「…Can I ask why?」

「I'm just not worried.」

Straf answers, and the reply makes the interviewer blink at him with a blank stare. After a pause, she writes it down.

「We've heard a rumor that you are quite popular with the gambling crowd. We've also heard another rumor, that you have no intent to bet on yourself. Is that true?」

「I'm not betting because I don't feel like it.」

「Your opponent Sturm has not failed to bet on himself even once. Do you suspect he'll bet on himself in the last match too?」

「Probably.」

Straf shrugs.

「Do you not feel like it because you think you may lose-?」

「Lady, is this an interview or interrogation? It's my money. I do what I want.」

The woman takes some time writes down his full answer.

「Very well. That brings me to another question. Doing what you want. Why did you join the tournament, Straf?」

「Money. Duh.」

「And what do you plan to do with that money? The prize money is a considerable 50 gold coins. Even if you lose, you stand to win 10 gold coins as the second place contestant. Provided that you survive, of course.」

「None of your business.」

「…Fair enough.」

She writes down Straf's non-answer as well.

「I have another, perhaps a little intimate question. Questions like this please certain spectators very much. There is another rumor of you appearing in the arena with a woman. In fact, I saw one with you just now. Her name is Lia, isn't it? Who is she to you? Your wife?」

She taps her quill on the side of the paper as she stares at Straf intently, waiting for his answer. He rolls his eyes with his arms crossed.

「No.」

「Girlfriend?」

「Ye-」

As Straf is about to answer, the door behind him swings open. A large man in a sleeveless leather chestpiece with a scar across his face is standing in the doorway.

「There he is. Erika, let this guy go. It's time for him to head to the arena. And if you see that Sturm guy, don't hold him up and tell him to go there as well.」

「Got it.」

She nods her head at the man, and he leaves without shutting the door. Her eyes turn to Straf.

「Well, it seems we've ran out of time. Please head to the arena, and good luck in your fight.」

She wishes Straf luck as he gets out of his chair, and Straf scoffs.

「I have more than enough.」

Straf smirks, looking her in the eyes. He leaves as he arrived, with his hands in his pockets…