Vol. 15 - Ch. 17 - Ultimate Clan Battle – Qualification Rounds (17/22)

"Luke-san! A-Are you okay!?"

Lielle ran over to Luke, who had been thrown against the wall by Dairon's attack and had collapsed unconscious on the ground. I rushed over with Ryuka and Seira, who specialize in healing.

"I don’t see any major injuries, but..."

Seira placed her hands on Luke to assess his condition, while Ryuka created a glowing barrier around him to scan for any internal issues.

"Lielle, please don’t worry. He’s just unconscious."

"It seems he took a strong hit to the face, which probably rattled his brain a bit, but it’s nothing serious."

Hearing that, Lielle let out a relieved sigh. Since it wasn’t bad enough to need Ryuka’s resurrection magic, Seira used her holy magic for some quick first aid.

"Need help carrying him to the medical room?"

Ryushin walked over, offering to carry Luke there.

"Thank you, Ryushin-san."

Seira decided to go with them, while Ryuka stayed behind in case anyone else got injured during the upcoming matches. As I watched them leave, Johann, the referee, turned to me.

"Can we move on to the next match?"

Looks like I’m up next.

If no one else wanted to fight Mother’s team, I’ll be taking the fifth match. Right now, we’re at one win and three losses... I’m pretty sure after my match, Mother’s clan will forfeit, and we’ll take the win. But if possible, I’d like to secure at least one more victory first.

Winning because the other side forfeited wouldn’t feel that satisfying. Plus, I want Mother to see how much I’ve grown.

I headed back to my team and let everyone know I was going next.

"Be careful, Halt-sama."

Kikyou, Sitri, and Akari all gave me words of encouragement. Looks like they’ve realized just how strong Mother really is.

"Try not to cause too much collateral damage, meow."

Merdie, Youko, Luna and Leaffa still seemed to think Mother was just an ordinary human. Well, since she’s my mother, they probably expected her to be a little strong, but they clearly don’t realize how much.

With my team cheering me on, I stepped onto the arena.

"...I guess this was inevitable."

Standing in front of me was Mother.

"Of course. I gathered everyone here because I wanted to fight you. But don’t you think it’s a little early for you to come up?"

"Well, since no one else wanted to fight, I figured we might as well end it here. It’s your fault for recruiting such strong fighters, you know."

I never expected us to get through this tournament completely unscathed. Even in the prelims, warriors from all over the country had gathered, so I knew we’d face some tough battles. But this was way beyond what I’d predicted.

The strongest opponent on their side, the Ancient Dragon Soryuu, would probably injure anyone who fought him. Sarion is also incredibly strong. My sister, Charles, is probably about as strong as Merdie. My brother, Leon, doesn’t have any special skills, but his swordsmanship is on par with Cain’s, meaning only someone like Ryuushin could take him on.

Looking at the remaining members on Familia and Mother’s clan, it was clear that more injuries were inevitable. Sure, we had healers, and even if someone died, we could bring them back, but since everyone here is a friend or family member regardless of which team they were in, I really don’t want to see anyone get hurt.

"I’m glad my son turned out to be such a kind boy."

With a playful laugh, Mother reached into the air and pulled out a sleek white sword from thin air. I summoned my greatsword, Hakoku, which Dairon had just returned to me.

"Uh, this looks kinda bad, so I’m gonna back off as soon as I give the signal. If possible, can you wait until I’m outside the barrier before you start fighting?”

Johann said.

Honestly, he could just stay outside the arena from the start and call the match from there... But I guess he’s the serious type who wants to do his job properly.

Up until now, he had always stayed inside the magic barrier, even during the intense battle between the Four Great Spirits and the Celestial Spirit King. He was probably determined to step in and stop the fight if necessary to prevent bloodshed.

But this time, he’s retreating behind the barrier. As an adventurer, having a good sense of danger is crucial. And honestly, I’d feel better if Johan was outside the barrier too.

Because my instincts are telling me that [it’s fine to go all out].

For the first time since I fought the Evil God, I’m going to unleash my full power.

"Alright then, the fifth match of the first round of the Ultimate Clan Tournament... begins!!"

The signal was given.

Neither Mother nor I moved.

Once Johan makes it outside the barrier, the real fight will begin—our first full-power parent-child battle.

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