Chapter 3, The boy decieded_Teleportabduction

Chapter 3,

"I do think that, you know, I want my children to choose the path they want to take in life," said Tomoko, echoing words she had spoken to her surroundings before when Yae was in his first year of junior high.

It was the final day of summer term tests, and Yae had returned home before noon, ending up somewhat forcibly at a lunch gathering with Tomoko's friends. Initially, they were concerned about Yae being bored with all the adults around, but as the conversation turned to the future of children, it gradually became an adult-only discussion.

"So, my daughter started saying she wants to be a singer."

"Ah, there it is! Well, Matsumoto-san, your daughter is good at singing."

"Good at singing, you say, She's a “good karaoke kid” at best."

"Well, lately, there are a lot of kids who sing well. I remember that just the other day..."

Speaking of Matsumoto-san's kid, she is a senior in Yae's grade. As soon as Yae thought of her face, he felt like he was hearing something he shouldn't, so he inexplicably averted his gaze outside the restaurant. He spotted a shrine across the road and silently prayed to the gods that the conversation wouldn't turn to him. However, either because there were no convenient gods or because Yae didn't usually pray, his prayer went unanswered, and Tomoko began her speech to everyone.

"But you know, parents helping their children in their lives is the best thing. It's not our lives, it's their own lives. And if we give up before they even try, they'll complain forever, you know?"

“But even Yae-kun might say he's going to be an idol, you know?” Yae vehemently denied Matsumoto-san's jesting words in his mind.

"Well, that would be a bit of a problem. Of course. But, I do think that, you know, I want my children to choose the path they want to take in life."

Here, Tomoko's words from earlier were spoken. The adults around them exclaimed, "Oh," and praised Yae, saying what a good mother he had. Yae himself, who had wanted nothing more than to leave the meal as soon as possible earlier, felt a little happy at these words and felt proud of his mother. He could choose the path he wanted to take. If he did, his mother would support him wholeheartedly. Although his future dreams were still vague and undecided, Yae felt as if his path had been cleared.

Perhaps his mother's words weren't lies, or maybe she truly believed them herself. However, since the beginning of this year, Yae learned the reality of the situation. For a brief moment when Yae spoke about his career path, his mother's reaction would have been different from the ideal mother she had imagined for herself.

After being released from intense fear, Yae suddenly found traces of his mother in Kise. If there were no other options, Yae wished he had been commanded, like Caroselo, to participate in the bouts, albeit unfairly. Though he didn't want to participate if given a choice, the mere glimpse of a slight hope that he might refuse made the burden of anxiety even heavier.

In this round of bouts, a round-robin tournament involving the fourteen nations on this continent is taking place. Such a large-scale event has not occurred since two lifetimes ago for Yae, and the entire country is buzzing with excitement. Already, two bouts have taken place, each turning into a major event attracting spectators from across the stars. With one bout happening each day, Yae's debut match will be the seventh and final bout of the first round. In other words, there are only three days left for preparation.

Feeling disheartened upon learning that he must learn combat techniques during the preparation period, Yae was further dismayed to find out that the one teaching him would be none other than the burly man who had approached him angrily at the Ninth Street ruins.

Currently, the two are inside a facility referred to as the training ground. Despite being indoors, the premises replicating the Ninth Street ruins, which served as the venue, were vast. Due to the identical dilapidated structures seen earlier, it was unclear to Yae how far it was to the opposite wall.

"All right, then grab that," ordered the same large man named Dadara, prompting Yae to pick up a gun looked like a small sized bazooka weapon from among the multitude of weapons lined up. Dadara seemed to notice Yae's attraction to the weapon, resembling a large sword, and admonished Yae in a voice befitting his large stature.

"It's reckless for you to handle that with your short reach. Amateurs should keep quiet, follow my instructions, and train as I say. That's the limit of what you can achieve in this short period."

Yae felt like retorting that they should have given him a bigger body, but refrained. Even though Yae's current body was a few centimeters larger than an actual physique, he still couldn't grasp the sensation and had stumbled several times. Acquiring a body larger than an actual physique would require significantly more time to acclimate to the sensation. However, realizing that he didn't have that much time, Yae reluctantly decided to listen to the instructions for using the designated weapon.

"The Ninth Street ruins have significantly more cover compared to the venues selected by each country this time. As a petite individual, your most reliable tactic is to hide behind buildings, shoot bullets, hide again, and run away. This gun can shoot a single bullet when you pull the trigger."

As Dadara said this, he aimed the gun he held in his right hand straight ahead, demonstrating its power to Yae. A hole with a diameter of about twenty centimeters opened in the wall of the simulated broken building, just ten meters away from the two. From pulling the trigger to the hole appearing, it was so fast that Yae perceived it simultaneously.

"The power..."

"Your body is somewhat sturdy. It won't make a hole with just one shot. Well, you wouldn't know until you've taken a few. Want to give it a try?"

Dadara laughed heartily, as if his statement was the height of comedy, but Yae found nothing to laugh about, just staring at the gun. Apparently dissatisfied with Yae's attitude, Dadara, in a frustrated manner, set down the gun and picked up the giant sword-like weapon Yae had desired earlier."

"From here on out, it's training. There's no time to teach you everything from scratch. We'll identify the issues through practical exercises. Attach the pointers provided there to a total of ten places on both shoulders, elbows, wrists, knees, and ankles. You should have heard me, but in actual bouts, the outcome is determined by either rendering the body unable to continue or destroying all those pointers."

"I haven't heard about being rendered unable to continue."

"I just told you. Stop talking back and attach the pointers quickly. I'm going to chase after you now and destroy your pointers. While avoiding that, destroy mine."

Yae realized it was futile to say anything and resignedly followed the instructions, attaching the pointers as directed. The ring-shaped pointers with some parts missing fit snugly into Yae's joints.

After attaching the final pointer, Yae voiced the question that had been bothering them the most since earlier, as if it were just a small query. They were worried that if they showed any anxiety, Dadara might find it amusing and not answer.

'By the way, what happens if someone becomes unable to continue during this bout?'

'Just focus on winning.'

Yae's hopes were dashed, as Dadara had no intention of answering the question in the first place.

'When you hear the sound ten times, I'll start chasing you. Hurry up and run away.'

As Dadara said this, a beeping machine noise started from his side. With about five seconds between the second and third beeps, Yae finally understood that the training was starting just before the third beep. They hurriedly began running. With his running speed, Yae realized for the first time that his physical abilities were far superior to when hi was in his original body. Trying a full jump, he effortlessly landed on debris over twice his height. Thinking he might be able to escape with this agility, Yae sprinted around, and by the time the tenth beep ended, he had hidden in the shadow of a wall near the opposite wall from the starting position, able to catch their breath.

'Damn it, you're so advanced in your civilization—'

Before Yae could finish expressing all his criticisms about the inhabitants of this planet, he suddenly felt a strong push on his back, accompanied by a massive sound of destruction. Despite involuntarily letting out an "ouch" at the abrupt sound and sensation, he felt no pain in his body. However, he realized he was being propelled into the air along with the wall he had been leaning against just moments ago, due to the rapidly approaching ceiling. His body began to rotate slowly, and the view of the ground gradually entered Yae's eyes from the edge of his vision. Standing there was someone wielding a giant sword, striking a pose as if they had just finished swinging a baseball bat. Immediately after recognizing that he had been sent flying by Datara, Yae collided with the ceiling, experiencing another jolt of impact throughout his body. Despite the absence of pain, his thoughts remained calm as he attempted to counterattack. However, he soon realized the difficulty of wielding a gun while falling through the air, a skill he had seen in movies but found to be quite challenging in reality. With his limbs flailing helplessly, Yae's body, aided by gravity, accelerated towards Datara, who was readjusting his stance with the sword. Without even a moment to pray to the gods who had never granted him anything before, Yae's body was once again propelled away from the ground, accompanied by another intense impact.

Kise was in a corner of the secretary's office, analyzing Yae's training data. A full day had passed since the training began, but Yae's progress was far from smooth. The target values for the training had been calculated based on Yae's original physical and cognitive abilities, but in most aspects, he fell short of them. Considering the body Yae inhabited and the performance of the weapons he used, the problem seemed to lie in his mental state. It was evident to Kise that Yae lacked positive feelings towards both the training and the upcoming match, but Kise knew she didn't have the power to change those feelings within him.

"Have the analysis results come out? "

Datara, who had returned from the training ground quite some time ago and was lounging alone, asked without even looking at Kise. While Yae continued to undergo training with the combat robots, Datara sat on the sofa, having a meal. Although their container bodies didn't require food, there were plenty of data mediums for enjoying flavors on this planet – they referred to them as "food." They mimicked the act of eating by placing this "food" where a human mouth would be and enjoyed their meals.

"Yes, here they are."

Kise projected the data she had been reviewing onto the main monitor in the room. Datara quickly scanned through the entirety of the data and forcefully tossed the container of food he had been holding into the trash bin mounted on the wall.

"I told them to pick the previous planet."

"But sir, that planet had a civilization level that was too low."

"So what? From our perspective, they're both like animals."

"And besides, he—"

"Silence!"

Datara interrupted Kise's rebuttal with a forceful tone, jabbing his thick finger in front of Kise's eyes. When Kise recoiled, reminded of the incident at the Ninth Street, Datara chuckled with satisfaction at the expected reaction.

"You dare to give me your opinion, of all people."

Datara infused each word with intimidation. After a brief stare-down, Datara slowly lowered his finger from in front of Kise's face and turned his body away, avoiding eye contact entirely.

"Where are the other secretaries? "

"Right now, they're accompanying Minister Caroselo and heading towards the Prime Minister's residence."

"So, I'm stuck with babysitting duty, is that it?"

Datara tapped the wall, trying to contain his frustration. But apparently, violence alone wasn't enough to vent his annoyance, so he added a jab at Kise.

"Minister Caroselo sure has peculiar tastes. Employing someone like you."

Feeling pleased with the lack of response from Kise, Datara started to move towards the door. However, he noticed footsteps approaching from the far end of the corridor. Normally, visitor information would be displayed on the monitor before they arrived in this room. But the absence of that indicated the arrival of someone of such authority that such procedures were unnecessary – likely Minister Caroselo himself. Datara decided to open the door and respectfully welcome him. His assumption partially turned out to be correct. When the door opened, there stood Minister Caroselo, the chief secretary, and even the Prime Minister. Startled by the sudden appearance of the Prime Minister, Datara quickly raised his right hand to his forehead in a salute.

"At ease."

"Yes, sir!"

Datara released the salute at the Prime Minister's command.

Meanwhile, Kise immediately dropped to both knees and bowed deeply, but the Prime Minister paid her no attention and addressed Datara.

"How's the ‘thing’ going so far?"

"It's currently undergoing voluntary training."

"We've just received the data a moment ago, but I haven't had a chance to review it thoroughly yet. How are the results?"

Datara considered that the data in question was probably the same as what he had seen earlier, and he desperately tried to come up with an excuse. However, no matter how much of a novice in combat one might be, the numbers were just too poor.

"Well, um, that... It's not going as well as..."

"The training has just begun today. It's challenging to see noticeable growth so soon," Carosello takes back the words of his subordinate, who seems uncomfortable answering the Prime Minister's questions, and begins to speak.

"However, due to the higher level of civilization on this planet than any other we've encountered, it seems that his understanding and analytical skills, as indicated in the data we've received, are quite high. That should compensate for his physical shortcomings. Right?"

"Yes, indeed."

Datara regretted having unintentionally made a strong assertion when his boss abruptly brought the conversation back to him. As someone who had been involved in combat education for newcomers even before the non-aggression treaty was signed, Datara could see Yae's lack of combat talent at a glance. Unable to honestly convey this to the Prime Minister, yet unable to see a clear path to train Yae effectively in the remaining two days, Datara felt the weight of responsibility and tried to avoid the worst-case scenario by continuing his words.

"However, only three days is indeed a very tight timeframe."

"But that's problematic. When we brought that thing here, there were still five days left. Why did it get delayed by two days?"

Though inwardly cursing at the fact that it wasn't just a matter of two or three days, Datara was pleased that the conversation had shifted focus, and his response became slightly hurried.

"Well, I received a sudden order yesterday, so..."

"Minister Caroselo?"

As Datara had hoped, the Prime Minister turned to Caroselo. Unlike Datara, Caroselo maintained a calm demeanor.

"I deeply apologize. I didn't expect it would take two days to persuade him."

"Who is this subordinate you speak of?"

"Right there."

Caroselo pointed at Kise. Kise still maintained her bowing posture. The Prime Minister finally caught sight of her straightened posture and forcibly suppressed the anger that briefly surged up.

"I see, it's her... Well, it can't be helped."

"It's quite troublesome indeed. However, rest assured. Datara will train him with confidence."

"I'll do my best."

Despite Datara's futile efforts, the blame game among the three ultimately circled back to him. While once again assuming a salute posture towards the Prime Minister, Datara's hand was clenched with strong force.

"Then, since time is of the essence, may I proceed with the training immediately?" Datara asked the Prime Minister and Caroselo while maintaining his salute posture.

"Yes, please. ...Huh?" The Prime Minister, shifting his gaze, stopped at one of the data items of Yae displayed on the room's monitor, raising a question.

"You haven't taken any breaks since the start of the training, have you? Stop it right away!"

"But, we were just about to—"

"Right now!"

Datara felt intimidated by the Prime Minister's forceful voice, which he heard for the first time. Despite affirming his understanding, he hurried to the training ground without even bidding farewell.

Even after watching Datara's pitiful departure, the Prime Minister, unable to mask his usual gentle tone, interrogated Caroselo.

"This is troubling, isn't it? I can't help but think that the management of subordinates has been lax."

"I apologize."

"If we continue training without recording any breaks until the match, what will the Association say...? Please be sure to be more careful from now on."

"I understand."

As a sign of apology, Caroselo kneeled before the Prime Minister, bowing his head. It was rare for him to show such a gesture to others. However, he wasn't genuinely apologizing here. For him, as someone of low social standing, assuming such a posture wasn't a significant issue, but he understood the usefulness of rarely displaying it to others.

As expected by Caroselo, the Prime Minister appeared taken aback by his gesture, showing signs of embarrassment as he struggled to regain composure, realizing his emotions had been running high.

To dispel the awkwardness, the Prime Minister extended his finger in front of his face, bringing up a monitor visible only to himself. Finding a suitable reason to excuse himself from the situation among his incoming messages, the Prime Minister turned to Caroselo, offering an apology without bowing his head.

"I apologize for my somewhat rough language."

"No need to apologize; it was my oversight."

Caroselo gracefully responded while reorganizing the apology structure.

"I'm afraid our time has been cut short, but it seems the chairman of the bout association will be arriving at the official residence shortly. With that, I shall take my leave."

"Understood. Please leave everything to us. We will clear our name."

"Thank you. I'm counting on you."

With those words, the Prime Minister departed with the secretary he had been waiting for outside, leaving the Ministry of Defense behind.

Caroselo glanced at the monitor displaying the entrance and confirmed that the Prime Minister had boarded the teleportation machine. Then, still in the posture of respect, Caroselo approached Kise and silently kicked her in the side. The force of the kick from the former war hero was tremendous, sending Kise flying into the wall and sprawling on the ground.

"I told you to manipulate the training time."

As Caroselo slowly approached, Kise attempted to regain her posture while responding.

"Yes, but the security of the data under the association's jurisdiction is very strong—"

Before Kise could finish, Caroselo delivered another kick.

This time, Kise was propelled right to the door. Attempting to regain her stance from the prone position, she tried to extend her right arm, but the second kick had damaged it, rendering it immobile. Losing balance, she collapsed once again.

"When Datara returns, tell him to send a message."

With those words, Caroselo trod on Kise's body and left through the door.

Recalling Caroselo's schedule confirmed earlier in the morning, Kise slowly rose, still using her intact left arm. Thinking that Caroselo's destination would be the border of the tenth district, Kise raised her left hand to her face, checking the repair shop's business status.

Her demeanor was so remarkably calm, despite having just been kicked, that even if someone else had been present, her feelings toward Caroselo would have been inscrutable. Without displaying any anger or fear, Kise resumed working on Yae's training data.

The Ainque Republic's Third Street is the busiest district in the country. Positioned at the center is the First Street, which houses the political heart of the nation, surrounded by streets numbered twenty-four. Except for the Second Street, which is lined with research facilities, the lower the number of the street, the more developed it is in this country. During the bout period, this street was bustling with the largest crowd it had seen in decades.

That's what Yae had heard, but his first impression was that it was less crowded than expected. Despite hearing about the decrease in population on this planet due to the previous war, this scene was enough to make Yae truly feel it.

By the time he lost track of how long he had been training without rest, Yae was finally granted a break, much to his relief—even though Datala seemed displeased. Although he no longer felt physical fatigue thanks to his new body, since it was his brain that controlled it, prolonged periods of thinking were still exhausting. Even though he knew there was nothing in his head, Yae lightly massaged the front of his head with his fingers.

Accompanied by Kise, who had brought him to the city for a break, Yae came to Ainque's Third Street for repairs to his body. However, as the representative athlete of the nation, his body seemed quite robust, as all repairs were completed before Kise. Then, with Kise's permission, Yae was now taking a solo stroll through the city.

To be honest, Yae's dissatisfaction with Kise was not completely resolved, but he had decided to come to this place to escape the reality of returning to that training ground as soon as possible and for as long as possible. Surrounded by so many intriguing things, Yae could only walk around and observe.

At the repair shop, Yae had seen Kise manipulating something in the air with her fingers, so Yae asked about her actions. It was a behavior he had actually been curious about since the first time he teleported with Kise. To summarize Kise's explanation, it is said that each person is operated by displaying a kind of application set on their body, which can be used for everyday things such as shopping and communication, or even to make weapons appear if the person is an important person. On the other hand, the only abilities Yae could use were translation and communication, and even then, his only contact was Kise. So, to escape his reality of returning to training in a few hours, Yae decided to make the most of his only ability—translation—by eavesdropping.

"Did you buy the new Slonsu?"

"No, not yet."

"Huh? That's unusual. You're here in Third Street."

"Well, you see, they ran out of Dlanku."

Near the teleportation machine, there was a spot resembling a meeting place for people, so Yae leaned against a wall that seemed least obtrusive. The people on this planet took light naps to rest their brains, standing inside individual storage spaces when they did so. However, perhaps because of the lack of physical exertion, the act of sitting down does not seem to be necessary, and there are no chairs or benches as far as the eye can see. Amidst various oddities in the city, Yae listened to the trivial conversations of the people with amusement. Initially, he found joy in the fact that even in such an advanced civilization, people's conversations were not much different from those of his own kind. However, due to their banality and occasional use of incomprehensible proper nouns, his interest gradually waned.

Deciding to stretch his legs a bit farther, Yae moved away from the wall when he suddenly caught a woman speaking loudly, despite being alone. At first, he thought she might be an eccentric person making a fuss by herself, but judging from the lack of attention from those around her and her manner of speaking, it became apparent that she was having a phone conversation with someone. Intrigued by her flustered demeanor, Yae eavesdropped, learning from her leaked conversation that her caller was running late for some appointment and might be late for a reservation. Yae sighed, thinking it was just another trivial conversation, but before he knew it, he found himself not only listening but also glancing at the woman. Just then, as the woman ended her call with "Okay, hurry up," their eyes met directly.

"Oh, I'm sorry for being noisy."

"No, not at all. Don't worry about it."

Expecting to be scolded for staring, Yae was relieved when the approaching woman spoke to him in a friendly manner. Her voice sounded about the same age as his grandmother, a memory tucked away in the corner of his mind.

"Oh? Are you a foreigner?"

"Huh? Oh."

At that moment, Yae remembered that he and the woman were speaking different languages. Wondering if he should come up with some excuse, the woman spoke amiably.

"Don't worry about it. It's not like we ordinary citizens have anything to do with the bout, right? But still, your body looks similar to ours, it's unusual."

"Is that so...? Are you meeting someone?"

From the woman's words, Yae inferred that each country had distinct characteristics for these vessel bodies. Recalling the gaze from the observatory the other day, he decided to change the subject, albeit somewhat forcibly.

"Oh, it's my son."

"Your son?"

Yae only intended to repeat the woman's words as a form of acknowledgment, but it seemed she interpreted his tone differently.

"It's odd, isn't it? Nowadays, with sons and mothers. My son often tells me, 'Stop it, it's embarrassing.'"

No children had been born on this planet for over a century. Yae realized that was one of the various oddities he had sensed in this city earlier. While there were people walking together in groups, there were no signs of familial or romantic relationships. Everyone seemed to regard each other as mere acquaintances, individuals. In such a society, Yae thought the woman who so clearly spoke of "motherhood" to a stranger like him was indeed peculiar. Drawn in by her frankness, Yae, who was usually shy, took the initiative to continue the conversation.

"Why do you... continue being a mother?"

Yae almost accidentally said, "Why do you ‘want to’ continue being a mother?" drawing parallels to his own mother, but he managed to rephrase it in time. However, upon hearing the woman's "Huh?" in response, he wondered if the question had been too intrusive. Yet, before Yae could retract the question, the woman, interrupting him but allowing him time to think, responded slowly.

"It's not about continuing or anything, it just feels... weird to stop being a mother."

With a slightly playful tone, the woman's words were far beyond Yae's expectations. He couldn't quite understand them, but they had an intriguing quality that didn't make him uncomfortable. And it felt like there might be a clue to resolving the lingering resentment he had held against his own mother for the past few years.

Struggling with whether he should also open up his innermost feelings in response to those words, the woman turned her gaze toward the warp machine and called out, "Hey." From her line of sight, a man who was likely her son finished teleporting and began walking towards them.

"Sorry to keep you waiting. I accidentally went to Thirteen Avenue."

The man spoke with a cheerful voice.

"You really haven't changed since forever... Some things never change, huh?"

The woman spoke to the man in a motherly tone, different from when she addressed Yae. The man chuckled sheepishly, then noticed Yae standing next to the woman. Understanding the situation from the woman's explanation of how they met, the man politely greeted Yae.

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"Thank you for keeping her company."

"No, not at all..."

As the translation of Yae's response registered with the man, he seemed about to say something for a moment but stopped, instead inviting the woman to head to their destination. After exchanging farewells with Yae, the woman began to walk, followed by the man.

With nothing particular to do, Yae absentmindedly watched the two of them walk away. Soon after, the woman's son approached her, said something, then turned back alone. Wondering what it could be, he quietly asked Yae something so the woman couldn't hear.

"Did she say anything weird earlier?"

"Weird?"

"About being a mother."

"Oh, yes. You're her son, right?"

Yae's words were casual, but the man seemed greatly flustered.

"Uh, yes, but... Is it okay in your country? I mean, families and all."

"Huh?"

"Oh, no, it's fine then. You have them, right? Some places ban things like that because they could become a source of conflict."

"Oh, I see."

Yae, of course, had no idea, but he went along with the conversation.

"Truth be told, I'm in favor of it. Talking about families and such after living for so long, I find it a bit odd, you know? So, sometimes I wonder if this country will lose in the next bout and undergo significant changes like that."

As Yae struggled to react, the woman shouted loudly from afar, informing him that they were running late.

“Got it! ...Sorry for the sudden barrage. Well then, excuse me," the man said before hurrying off to the woman.

Left behind, Yae stood there alone, pondering the meaning of the man's words. If he disliked being a son so much, why didn't he stop meeting her? Was the mother's sentiment from earlier in vain? Yae's thoughts gradually shifted from those individuals to the impact the bout would have on this country and its people. For Yae, the bout was nothing but a source of coercion, the root of all the worst training. Though it seemed festive on the surface, Yae hadn't deeply considered that for the citizens of this country, the bout, as a proxy war between nations, might not be so simple. What would happen if they won everything? If they lost everything? What did a country with such a high level of civilization seek beyond this? Yae couldn't imagine.

Lost in such thoughts, the word "bout" from a nearby people’s conversation suddenly caught Yae's ear. He moved to the shadow of a nearby pillar and decided to eavesdrop once again. Even if the content wasn't significant, Yae realized there was too much he didn't know about what he was involved in.

"Actually, how much can we win?"

The man, holding something resembling the drink Yae had seen earlier, spoke to the woman standing opposite him.

"I have no idea. Our players are still undisclosed."

Yae noticed he was being discussed and, though knowing there was no way he'd be caught, he instinctively crossed his arms and looked down to conceal his presence.

"Well, that's true. But even so, what if we end up at the bottom? What will happen to our lives?"

The man's voice was genuinely anxious.

"Well, we might not be able to play so leisurely anymore."

"I didn't expect it to start during the current prime minister's tenure. Honestly, he seems unreliable."

"Well, he is a kind person. But when it comes to the bout..."

"So, it all depends on how well Caroselo performs, right? If they deliver here, the next prime minister is guaranteed, right?"

"Seems likely. He has a different track record of doing things for our country."

"Yae," Kise called out to Yae, who had been listening in on the conversation between the man and woman while looking down.

Yae was so surprised that his nonexistent heart felt like it might leap out of his mouth. He managed to suppress his voice, but instead, he vigorously bumped his head against the pillar.

"Are you okay? I'm sorry," Kise said.

"No, it's fine. Nothing's wrong," Yae replied, though he couldn't be sure. After all, it would be too silly to develop a new malfunction while in the town for repairs.

"I kept you waiting. I think it's time for a little nap, so shall we head back? Are you okay?"

Truth be told, Yae didn't want to return ever again. But knowing he had no choice, Kise's question stirred up a sense of unease deep within Yae. Even though he felt irritable, Yae replied, "Yes." Kise seemed to notice the undertones in Yae's voice and spoke gently with a hint of sadness.

"I'm sorry. Yes, I shouldn't have asked if you're okay."

Feeling that his behavior was childish, Yae felt immediately sorry.

"No, it's nothing like that..."

Without knowing how to break the silence, the two walked toward the nearby teleportation machine. But just a few steps away, Yae stopped. Kise, who had been walking ahead, immediately noticed and turned back to look at Yae.

"What if! What if I lose? What will happen to this country?" Yae asked before Kise could inquire about his well-being.

The question seemed to catch Kise off guard. She replied in a voice barely audible to Yae nearby, it was clear that the question was quite unexpected.

"That... isn't a pleasant topic."

"I'll be fine," Yae replied immediately. It wasn't that he had resolved himself to something; he just didn't want to remain ignorant. Even in that short moment, Yae had glimpsed someone whose future life depended on the outcome of the bout. He knew he could find more anxieties if he looked. Inside Yae's mind, there was a mix of feeling sorry for himself for reluctantly engaging in the fight and the injustice of having to endure hardship for it. To Kise's firm response, Yae felt a bit relieved but also a bit nervous.

"...I see. Depending on how badly we lose, if our final ranking is lower than in previous bouts, we may have to cede parts of our territory to other countries or provide resources. That would be the biggest issue. Much of the prosperity you've seen in this country is sustained by these means. If lost, some might even have to go abroad for work or something," Kise explained.

"I see..."

"And if we keep losing, there might be a restructuring of the upper echelons."

"Like Caroselobecoming prime minister?"

Kise hesitated for a moment, leaving Yae unsure of the reason.

"That's right. The closest figure would be Minister Caroselo. The prosperity of our country now is thanks to Minister Caroselo's past contributions in wars and the previous bout. However, since Minister Caroselo is also the one overseeing your involvement, I can't say for sure how any outcome will impact us."

The image of the mother and son from earlier came to Yae's mind. If Minister Caroselo were to take the lead, it might make the scrutiny on family relationships stricter, possibly even rendering that pair completely unrelated. And somehow, Yae felt like Minister Caroselo might just do something like that. Thinking about that woman, Yae found it a bit unsettling. Sensing where Yae's emotions were coming from, Kise hurriedly reassured her.

"But you won't be held responsible for any of this. It's our country's issue to deal with. You should focus on returning safely."

"Yes. But I'm glad I asked."

Despite speaking with optimism, Yae ultimately couldn't bring himself to dedicate his efforts to this country and its people. The resentment towards the injustices he faced prevailed, and he had no sense of attachment or gratitude towards the country. Yet, knowing that his actions had meaning felt much more reassuring than blindly forging ahead without understanding anything.

With slightly lighter steps than just moments before, Yae headed towards the Teleportation Machine. First and foremost, he thought he needed some rest.