When I said, "You can be a hero," to a child with no talent, he really started to become a hero, so I acted like I knew what I was doing, like I was a wise master.

When I said, "You can be a hero," to a child with no talent, he really started to become a hero, so I acted like I knew what I was doing, like I was a wise master. - Chap 23: Advancing to the Second Round!!

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Will won the first round. No, I really didn’t expect him to win, especially since his opponent seemed to be somewhat strong.

“He won, didn’t he, that kid.”

“Yes, indeed he did.”

Lin, sitting next to me, casually starts a conversation while eating the fries. Did she really like the fries I bought? She’s reaching for them and eating without any hesitation.

As for Will, I’ll praise him later, and I’ll say something like I knew he would win from the beginning… The next match is for Eugene.

“Ah, the next one is coming up.”

“Seems so.”

If it’s Eugene, he should clear the first round. His skills are more than adequate, and his opponent is also just E-rank.

So, shall I observe Eugene’s match…

By the way, Eugene and I are quite similar, both having a narcissistic demeanor. I had this feeling that Will also somewhat resembles me. That’s one of the reasons why I thought they might become the successors of the hero…

I wonder how Lin sees those two?

“Um… Lin-san?”

“Hm? What is it?”

“Don’t you think the kid in the current match, Eugene, and the kid from the previous match, Will, resemble the Hero Dan a little?”

“Eh? Eugene, the one with the bad look in his eyes? And also the timid-looking kid from before?”

“Yes.”

“I don’t think they resemble him.”

“You think so?”

“Yes. They don’t resemble him at all.”

Huh? I thought they resembled him, but it seems Lin doesn’t think so. I thought she would say they do resemble him, just like I did. I thought our senses would be the same since we’ve been traveling together for so long.

“Indeed, that Eugene kid does give off the vibe that he’s trying to imitate Dan, but he doesn’t actually resemble him.”

“Ah, I see? I personally think he does.”

“Oh, really? It’s complicated when you say that… Anyway, what about Will?”

“He doesn’t resemble him? Not even in his way of fighting?”

“No, he doesn’t. If anything, that kid is the complete opposite, isn’t he?”

“Huh, really? The complete opposite, you say?”

Could it be that people’s sensibilities really change depending on the person? Or maybe Lin, being a member of the royal family, doesn’t understand commoner-like senses. In the past, she didn’t understand the market rate for meals and ended up overpaying, scaring the shop owner. So, maybe her being a bit insensitive can’t be helped.

“…If I had to say, you might be the one who resembles him the most.”

“Me?”

“Yes… You do resemble him.”

She’s incredibly sharp… That’s so like Lin.

“No, what do you think? I don’t believe I resemble him.”

I don’t resemble him because I am him. Because I’m the person in question, I don’t resemble him. In other words, I’m not lying. It’s a vague way of speaking that indirectly suggests I am the person without actually saying it. Heh, this should fool Lin.

“Actually, now that you mention it, you’re right. You don’t resemble him.” (Well, you don’t resemble him because you are him, after all.)

Ah, while we were talking, Eugene won. Congratulations, this was truly as expected. And Alfred, Tessie, they also splendidly advanced past the first round.

“The first round has concluded for all participants. We will have a short break before proceeding to the second round.”

One of the event staff informs us about the tournament schedule. Well then, should I head to the restroom for a bit?

“I’m going to pick some herbs.”

“I’ll go buy some food.”

Lin and I part ways for a moment. This world has strange expressions. In my previous life, going to the toilet was referred to as ‘picking flowers,’ but in this world, it’s called ‘picking herbs.’ Makes no sense to me.

After taking care of business, I hear voices as I’m heading back to my seat, coming from a corridor-like area of the colosseum.

“Hmph, I’m amazed a dropout like you managed to get through the first round.”

“…Shut up.”

Huh? Isn’t that Eugene? He’s being badmouthed by someone. The person standing in front of Eugene and taunting him is… who? He seems to have a resemblance to Eugene around the eyes, although I’m not sure…

Could this be Eugene’s brother? I heard that Eugene is the fourth son of a well-known noble family considered among the ‘Four Great Nobles’ in the Trellberna Kingdom and is considered a dropout. He’s pretty much disowned by his brothers, too.

“Get lost, Rude. I have no business with you, you’re not even worth considering.”

“…You’ve gotten bold. For a weakling… I could remind you of your place right here, right now.”

“Try it if you can. If you stand in front of me, whoever you are, I’ll just scatter you to the winds.”

The atmosphere is quite tense. It might be a sibling quarrel, which I’d usually leave alone, but it would be pitiful if it escalated to the point where they were disqualified from participating…

“Hey, Eugene!”

As I was contemplating what to do, I heard Will’s voice. Nice timing, Will. Waving his hand and smiling, Will ran up to Eugene.

“Tch, someone’s interrupting.”

“Hmph, get lost quickly.”

“My father once said, if you flaunt your weakness, you’re not of our clan.”

“I have no interest in the family name. I’ll continue proving my strength.”

The man named Rude, who appears to be Eugene’s brother, walked away somewhere.

“Eugene, congrats on clearing the first round! That was awesome. The crowd was pumped!”

“Is that so.”

“Yeah! Let’s both keep doing our best!”

“Indeed.”

Saying that, Eugene also walked off somewhere. His responses were so curt. Could he be feeling down? Normally, he would at least make some sarcastic comments.

Curious, I followed him and found him sitting on a nearby bench, staring up at the sky. Maybe I should strike up a conversation to lift his spirits.

“Hey, Eugene!”

“What do you want?”

“I heard you passed the first round, so I came to congratulate you.”

“…It’s not a big deal. I need to get stronger, much stronger… I’m still far from being like Hero Dan.”

“If Hero Dan saw you, I think he’d praise you.”

“Not for this level of performance, he wouldn’t.”

“Really? Compared to me, you still have a long way to go… but you pass. Don’t you think he’d say at least that much?”

I tried to imitate Hero Dan’s confident tone. I doubt he’ll figure out it’s me, but it would be nice if it cheered him up a bit. It would be a problem if the morale of his successor dropped.

“You can’t be serious. Was that supposed to be an impression of Hero Dan?”

“Yeah, it was.”

“Then I’ll have to kill you.”

“What? Why?”

“You’re not even close. You’re making a mockery of the hero. Dan is more composed, carrying an air of dominance around him. Besides, his obsession with strength and his sense of norms are fundamentally different. What can you possibly appreciate about clearing the first round of a tournament like this? To him, it would be nothing more than a sword-swinging contest for weaklings.”

“Wow, you think so?”

I was actually giving some credit, though. I wonder how Eugene sees me?

“Anyway, I have to go.”

“Ah, good luck in the second round.”

“Of course.”

As if nothing had happened, Eugene walked back in the direction of the Colosseum. It seemed like he wasn’t feeling too down after all. Maybe he was just focusing before the match?

I decided to head back to the match to watch as well.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes?”

“Here you go.”

Just as I was about to leave, an unfamiliar person handed me a leaflet. She was a suspicious woman dressed in white robes.

“Recently, a new religious organization has been established. We would be honored if you would join us. You look like you could use some happiness.”

“Uh, what?”

When I looked at the leaflet, it read “Church of Hero Dan.”

“This is a new faith community founded by the famous Hero Dan himself. You’re guaranteed to find happiness.”

“Oh, is that so? Well, I must be going.”

“Hero Dan has given several speeches as well, so please do consider attending one.”

It’s a religious group I’ve never heard of. The note says Grand Sage Lin Lin will also participate! I’ll ask Lin about it later.

“Hey, Ban. Where have you been?”

“Ah, Lin.”

It seems Lin was just around the corner. She rushes over with two crepes in hand.

“Well, you know, various things.”

“Come on, the match is about to start. We better go.”

“Um, Lin.”

“What?”

“Do you know about this? It’s apparently called the Church of Hero Dan.”

“…Huh? What’s this? I never planned on participating.”

“I’ve never heard of it either.”

“You’ve never heard of it either? Hmm… who handed this to you?”

“Some woman in white robes.”

“…Hmm, is it that woman over there?”

“Ah, yes, that’s her.”

“I’m going to follow her for a bit; this smells fishy. Ban, you go back to the arena and watch the matches.”

“No, I’ll come with you. I’m a little concerned about this.”

“Alright, let’s go together then. We can still catch the rest of the matches if we return quickly.”

“Sounds good.”

Lin handed me a crepe, and we decided to tail the woman in white robes.

“Did you know that it’s generally best to have two people when tailing someone?”

“I’m aware of that.”

Well, of course Lin would know; it’s a foolish and pointless question to even ask. We’ve done this before, and I remember saying that having two people is the basic rule of tailing.

“Right, you’re legendary after all. You must be used to this sort of thing. But I’ve never really done this, so my heart is racing a bit.”

“Enough with the useless chatter, let’s go. Don’t let your guard down, and don’t lose focus.” (Is this technically a date…? Well, I’m a little happy, maybe. Thanks to this mysterious religious group, I suppose.)

Who would’ve thought I’d be eating a crepe while tailing someone… Let’s make sure to head back quickly for Will’s match.