A week had passed.
It went fast. A little over two more weeks until the festival.
Honestly, the "Great of Browns" was nothing more than a festival in my mind.
That wasn't wrong, and most people probably saw it the same way.
It wasn't like it had nothing to do with me at all.
The Witch was a first-class delver, and I was her disciple.
But I wasn't directly involved, so I didn't think it really concerned me.
Right now, my goal was to beat Averld.
The daily lectures had continued since then.
Although the number of takedowns had been reduced to ten in the morning and five in the afternoon.
"...haa... haa-haa..."
Lately, I'd stopped collapsing.
And Shaldina, who fought about once a day, would sink into the ground.
I'd beaten her, but she was completely unharmed. Something felt off about that.
Normally, a horn or something would've been broken.
"...Has she gotten stronger or something?"
There shouldn't have been any difference in combat power with Minosdor.
Yet today she only watched, but it was still a tough fight.
Ugh — at that moment...
S
h
a
l
d
i
n
a
's
eyes
meet.
Huh, why are her eyes open?
The other Minosdors keep their eyes closed.
They don't need to open them since they have no sense of sight.
And yet Shaldina was glaring at me.
Pale, life-filled pupils. No way.
(...Next...I will...push you...down...)
Eh?
"Huh?"
And then she vanished.
Minotaurs disappear after a set amount of time once defeated. That's fine.
"…………"
That thing was probably... No, never mind. Let's stop thinking about it.
I can't keep up with everything that keeps coming at me one after another.
Anyway, there's no particular reason. No reason, but still.
I'm going to have to forbid Munieka from bringing out Shaldina.
Now then, it's noon. Before that, I'll take a bath and wash off the sweat.
After that, Munieka's lunch awaits.
Her cooking is delicious. And the repertoire is extensive.
When she brought out the 17-year-old Minotaur, she explained it to me.
She said it was from back when she traveled the world honing her cooking while working as a delver.
She also said that at the time, she hadn't yet discovered her true calling as a maid.
That hasn't changed now either— When I got out of the bath, the Witch had come back.
Everyone was in the dining room, and huh? What's going on?
It wasn't a scroll. Everyone was looking at pieces of paper.
The Delvers' Guild had abolished scrolls and switched to paper over a decade ago.
In the archives, they were apparently still in the process of copying the old scroll records onto paper.
"…Everyone?"
Something seemed off, so I asked hesitantly.
The Witch, Shiro, Chive, even Munieka — they were all staring intently at their papers.
If everyone has the same paper, it must be about the first-class delvers.
I'm curious what's written on it, but it has nothing to do with me.
I'm hungry, so I take my seat.
Lunch is already laid out. Everyone turns to look at me at once.
"Um, uh, what...?"
Everyone has a troubled expression, like they don't know what to do.
And they're all bristling at each other.
I felt the same atmosphere as when Munieka called me "Master."
What's going on? The Witch happened to set her paper on the table and looked at me.
"Now then, young Wof—"
"Attendant—"
"do you know what that is?"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
That came out of nowhere.
"Then let Kon explain."
"An Attendant—"
"is, in the Great of Browns, an assistant or errand-runner assigned to a first-class delver. They're together throughout the entire tournament."
"I see."
"Well, it's usually subordinates, friends, family—that kind of thing they pick."
"Pick?"
"The
retainers
are chosen by nomination. When you nominate someone, their name appears on this wish list."
"Oh..."
"Please take a look too, Master."
So Munieka made the air around us quiver as she held the wish list out to me.
Let me see.
Great Oberbrowns.
Retainer
Nomination Wish List.
"Grand Guild Master" Alhazad-Abramilin (Wof)
"Sword of Swords" (Celeste)
"Witch of the Canopy" (Wof)
"Auto Doll" Munieka-Eldorado (Wof)
"Ruin Bringer" Alverd von Luttbelt (Leold)
"Sea Duke" Gymnema-Sylvester (Guild)
"Immortal White Rose Princess" Shiro-White-Weiss-Blanc-Album-Sephiroth (Wof)
"Beast of Good Sense" Chaibe (Wof)
"Fairy Empress" Ruriha (Mineha)
"Silent Musician" Dimelo-Silence (Paprika)
"Second Coming of Generosity" Narses-Utopia (Wof)
"Dungeon Shop Owner" John (Dido)
"Heroine of the Dragon Eye" Droloff-Flametongue (Cherveni)
"Guardian of the Green" Zerena (Guild)
"One-Slash Bisecting Hall" Kaede-Akima (Kogarasumaru)
"Nightmare Parade" Crow-Dista (Guild)
"Wandering Bard" Saaoin (Chikichita)
"Afterlife Vision System verβ" (Guild)
"Dancing Princess of Water and Wind" Lorif-Gilbarand (Gilbaldo de Gilbarand)
"Clay-ha" Dokkha (Guild)
"Thousand Faces" (Guild)
"Commander of the Delvers' Knight Order" Peony-Monkshood (Hals-Bindweed)
"Strange Chef" Jeff (Guild)
"Six-Attribute User" Zyx (Ea)
"Breezy and Towering" Kessai (Guild)
"Human Fortress" Vauban-Fortress (Guild)
"He Who Gained Great Power" Grabis (Guild)
"Doom Sword" Agaro (Arifa)
"Black Devourer" Megadia-Megapolis (Pakira)
"Abyssal Bottom-Crosser" Ens-Hyrelant (Axe)
Thirty people total. There are a few entries that catch my attention here and there.
"...Um, so this blank here is the person who was designated as a
designated companion.
What about the Guild part?"
"Oh that, that's just a Guild employee. When there's no particular designation, that's what it says."
"I see, I see... Huh, so Megadia designated Pakira. Ah, Mineha's is because of her mother... Wait, Axe's name is on here too?"
Ensu? Based on the ordering, they must be one of this round's promoted delvers.
Why would they designate Axe?
"Witch. Why Axe?"
"Oh, oh, yeah, yeah. That's something you'll find out soon enough, so I can't say anything right now."
"I see."
What's going on?
"Hey, Wof-chan. You've got something that's bugging you the most, don't you?"
Chaibu pressed the matter while Shiro let out a sigh.
"I'll say it plainly — this is completely unprecedented."
"I've never seen anything like it either."
"............"
"Well now, well now, what exactly is going on here, eh?"
The Witch spoke not to me but to the other three. All three fell silent.
I accepted my fate.
"Why is my name popping up everywhere..."
All told, six people had nominated me.
One was a man, and five were women.
And four of those five were right here.
"Shiro told me. I remember — just the two of us, she said she'd decided on you."
"That's right, she did."
She'd told me after dinner.
Oh. So that's what this was about.
"I said it too, when it was just the two of us — that I'd nominate you~"
"You did."
That was during the hot-spring bath.
To the both of you — I would appreciate it if you'd stop emphasizing the "just the two of us" part.
Munieka said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
"I did not say so."
"Well, say it!"
No, that wasn't the point. This wasn't about whether she said it or not.
Munieka bowed her head politely.
"I'm terribly sorry. As you are my master, I assumed the bond made it unnecessary to say."
Wait — for that matter, wasn't the master-servant thing something she'd decided on her own too?
"Kon is Kon — unlike those other people, there's no need to say anything, see? Young Wof is Kon's apprentice, see! Kon's apprentice, see!"
I said it twice. Or was I just imagining things?
The witch looked somewhat flustered.
But she was right.
There we were, deliberately ignoring Narcissus.
"So, so, why is that old geezer from Abramilin calling us out, huh?"
"Ah, who knows, really—I mean, seriously."
"Even Shiro was surprised."
"I couldn't help but do a double take myself."
"...Why?"
Seriously, why?
And this wish list was held by every Rank I delver.
Which meant every Rank I delver knew about this.
Ugh. This is the worst.
Late at night.
The black sofa in the living room had completely become my bed.
Its wide breadth meant I could sleep on it without any discomfort, which was part of its charm.
"...?"
Suddenly sensing a strange presence, I opened my eyes.
The witch was there.
She had her hands and feet planted on the black sofa, looming over me as she looked down.
Hm?
"…………"
Hm?
Huh?
Huh?