Moreover, if he were to take care of things here, then he might just be able to muddle up accounts of what had occurred earlier, at the reception desk.
That makes this a real opportunity, doesn’t it?
In an instant, Suimei concluded that even if Dorothea hadn’t added fuel to the fire by making provocative statements, the end result would still be the same.
“Although this is probably asking a bit much, but… I want to fight both of them. At the same time.”
“—Ohh?”
“What?!”
Lefille’s interest seemed to have been piqued by his answer, while Dorothea shouted in surprise.
The expressions of the other pair, the ones he had just challenged, also changed.
“…Huh? You want to fight us at the same time? You punk, are you really serious?”
“Hmph. I hate jokes that aren’t funny.”
Unsurprisingly, Suimei’s calm words only served to worsen Raikas’ already extremely foul mood.
“Maybe if you had the strength of that woman, but a weak little mage like you thinks you can beat us? Don’t tell me you let sending that guy flying earlier go to your head?”
“…”
Enmarph’s gaze was piercing, easily a match for Raikas’ visible outrage. Suimei had already anticipated this reaction. For adventurers as confident in their abilities as these two were to be challenged by a green brat blowing hot air, of course things had taken this turn.
However, they’d been showing him disrespect since the very beginning. As such, this was nothing more than giving them a taste of their own medicine. Perhaps an outsider would have seen such a choice as despicable, but he had his own goals to achieve, and in light of that, he wasn’t going to place that much emphasis on worrying about how other people felt.
Sensing the tension in the air, Dorothea, unable to control her voice, asked, “Um, Suimei-san. Are you really sure about this?”
“Ah, yeah, this is what I want. I have to go look for somewhere to stay after this, so I’d like to take care of things as quickly as possible.”
“That’s not what I meant—”
“You have the confidence to beat us quickly, do you?” Raikas interrupted, cutting Dorothea short.
“Yeah.”
“What a ridiculous claim.”
“It’s not really that big a deal. Just like you guys have confidence in your abilities as adventurers, I have pride in the path I’ve walked to get here. Excessive modesty isn’t good for my mental health, after all.”
“…You little brat. If you continue to overestimate your own strength, then you’ll be beaten to a pulp. Take back this stupid joke and choose your opponent. You can still be forgiven.”
Raikas again threatened Suimei, warning him to take back his words. Suimei, having said this much already, wasn’t about to give up so easily though.
“No. I will not. And I have no intentions of seeking your forgiveness.”
“…You’ll regret it.”
“I appreciate the warning.”
“Hmph. Enmarph, we can’t let this little punk look down on us like this. Let’s crush him!”
“…Got it.”
Suimei’s uncaring shrug enraged Raikas beyond all reason and provoked a furious response from Enmarph. Raikas, meeting his partner’s eyes, sent a murderous glare Suimei’s way. Enmarph’s gaze was no less penetrating. In this manner, the two walked over to the center of the training field.
(…)
…He’d been the target of their anger from the very beginning. That said, he had also ignored their goodwill, and stubbornly boasted of his own ability. By the time he’d noticed, things had already gone past the point of no return. If he kept this up, then eventually there would come a day when his actions would come back to haunt him.