■ Opening Ceremony □
The day after meeting Gav at the hot springs.
The inter-tribal exchange event was finally held. The number of tribes participating in the exchange event exceeded thirty, and seeing so many members of the Demon Tribe gathered together like this was a first since the Human-Demon War.
Fortunately, the Dragon Tribe’s village was fundamentally designed with Dragons in mind, so everything was large enough to accommodate this vast number of attendees. However, if the exchange had been held in an Imp village, where the average height is 150cm, there would have undoubtedly been significant issues with conducting the event.
The start of the exchange began with figures presumed to be the leaders of each tribe ascending the podium to recite a declaration promising that everyone would remain unharmed and enjoy themselves during the event period. It felt somewhat like opening a cultural festival at school.
Once the opening ceremony concluded, everyone dispersed to enjoy the various pre-prepared programs.
True to its reputation as the home of Dragons, who are also masters of magic, the village was filled with over-the-top technology that made it hard to believe we were in a medieval era. Bringing even one researcher from the Magic Tower here would likely cause them to faint.
Here, artificial elemental technology, which was still under active research elsewhere, had already been commercialized and mass-produced.
As I watched in amazement at the artificial elementals flying around in the sky, Ozma, standing beside me, gave me a reproachful comment.
“Hey, look ahead of Partarth.”
Because there were many people around who might hear or see us, we decided to use the alias “Partarth” instead of my real name, Caldlasth. These days, I’m called Partarth more often than my real name, leading me to consider changing it officially. But honestly, it wasn’t bad—it felt like a cool code name straight out of a spy movie.
Ozma’s preliminary matches for the martial arts tournament were scheduled to begin at 3 PM, so we had plenty of time before then. We decided to spend the time exploring the various attractions set up around the village.
Among them, the most popular attraction was Dragon Riding. Participants could experience riding on the back of a returned-to-true-form member of the Dragon Tribe, enjoying both the thrilling sensation of almost falling off and the overwhelming speed. Groups of Imps, regardless of gender, gathered around playing rock-paper-scissors to decide who got to ride first.
Though personally interested in Dragon Riding, the extremely long line meant it would take up the entire morning, so I reluctantly decided against it.
Other popular attractions included a gyro-drop-like free fall using wind magic and an ultra-long roller coaster offering panoramic views of the rugged Dragon Mountain range. Each of these attractions provided a thrilling experience, perfect for inducing heart attacks among the elderly.
‘Besides, isn’t this supposed to be an exchange event?’
It felt more like a school field trip to an amusement park.
Since all the fun-looking attractions had long waiting lines, we debated and eventually chose a relatively quieter option: an archery practice range.
At the stand, participants used bows and arrows to shoot targets, accumulating points that could be exchanged for souvenirs. As expected, the higher the score, the better the prize.
The grand prize, only obtainable by hitting a perfect score, was a jewel bracelet made from minerals found in Dragon Mountain. Considering the second prize was a stuffed bear, it seemed more like a bait-and-switch tactic. There was no way the price gap between the first and second prizes could be so extreme otherwise.
When we entered the building, a servant who had been quietly guarding the stand stood up and asked,
“Would you like to try the attraction?”
Without much thought, I nodded and handed over three silver coins as the entry fee. Despite being a potentially popular activity, the archery range lacked visitors due to the exorbitant participation cost—a tragedy brought about by the Dragons’ skewed economic sense.
They failed to realize that, while the locals may be wealthy, three silver coins (equivalent to about 30,000 won) was a considerable amount for regular folks just looking to casually try their hand at archery.
I handed the bow and arrow given to me by the servant to Ozma. Surprisingly, she accepted it with a bewildered expression.
“Am I supposed to do this?”
“Since we’re here, you should give it a try.”
Seeming to find merit in my words, Ozma nodded and picked up the bow. Apparently having learned some archery skills from Swordmaster Barnett during her knight duties, her shooting stance was quite proficient.
Ping!
The arrow flew swiftly and hit the nine-point mark on the target, located 100 meters away. It was impressive accuracy.
With this skill level, she could achieve a fairly high score.
“Pity.”
Out of ten attempts, Ozma scored two tens, five nines, and three eights. Though she clicked her tongue in disappointment as she put down the bow, her total score of 89 points was sufficient to win the stuffed bear, available for scores above 80.
“Congratulations.”
The servant, who had been quietly observing Ozma’s performance, handed her a large stuffed bear while congratulating her. Initially surprised, Ozma’s expression brightened when she realized how pleasant the texture was.
I pulled out more silver coins from my wallet and asked,
“Camilla, would you like to try?”
Behind us, Camilla shook her head and replied,
“I’ve never handled a bow, so I’ll pass.”
“Fair enough.”
Not wanting to force anyone, I handed the silver coins to the servant.
“You get ten tries.”
“That’ll be plenty.”
I aimed the bow at the target and almost instantly released the arrow.
Ping!
Flying 100 meters, the arrow struck the very center of the target, trembling slightly upon impact. Ozma, watching from the side, showed a startled expression. Given that I hadn’t even properly aimed, her reaction was understandable.
In truth, I had subtly guided the arrow with wind magic. Neither Ozma nor the servant seemed to notice my trickery, allowing me to brazenly cheat.
As a result,
“It’s… a perfect score.”
All ten arrows hit the bullseye, earning me the grand prize: the jewel bracelet.
Whoever owns this place must be feeling quite regretful now, leaving such matters to the servant while they wandered off carelessly.
I carefully examined the jewel bracelet handed to me by the servant. It was indeed a high-grade artifact.
Equipped with automatic protection and healing spells, it activated whenever the wearer was in danger. Embedding multiple spells into a single artifact was incredibly difficult, which is why such items were known as High Artifacts.
Technically, the sword Stormbringer that I melted in a forge last time also fell into this category, but its arrogant ego drove me to destroy it in a fit of anger. Now, I somewhat regret not even checking what spells were embedded within it.
After inspecting the bracelet, I glanced at Ozma, who was awkwardly hugging her stuffed bear.
I offered her the bracelet and said,
“How about we exchange this for your bear?”
“What? What kind of talk is that?”
Startled, Ozma questioned me, but I calmly explained,
“This artifact isn’t particularly useful for someone like me. It’d be more fitting for a frontline fighter like you, but I don’t feel right giving it away for free.”
Upon hearing this, Ozma looked at the bear in her arms, then at the bracelet in my hand.
“Hmm. Guess I have no choice. Kabas.”
Had she already named the bear? With a soft murmur, Ozma hugged the bear one last time before handing it to me.
I gave her the bracelet, and Ozma nodded in satisfaction. Clearly, this artifact, akin to an extra life for someone pursuing strength to become Demon King, was highly valued.
After witnessing this, I handed the bear I received from Ozma to Camilla without hesitation.
Surprised, Camilla looked at me, and I shrugged nonchalantly,
“Consider it a gift.”
She alternated her gaze between me and the bear before smiling warmly and nodding.
“I will cherish this bear as if it were you, Caldlasth.”
For some reason, this made me feel embarrassingly awkward, and I couldn’t bring myself to look directly at Camilla until we left the building.
Apparently, doing something out of the ordinary isn’t always easy.
