## Chapter 783 – Kingdom Martial Arts Tournament

“Rachel Curbaine, ring out! Confirmed!!!”

The announcer’s voice echoed.

“The Dancing Paladin grabbed Rachel Curbaine’s rapier with his bare hands, subdued her, and then threw her out!!! Just how strong is he?! This battle defies reality!! This is a first for me in this tournament!!!”

After shouting that, the announcer, just like yesterday, approached me and held out the microphone. This lady is really just going to run around screaming throughout the entire tournament, isn’t she?

Being a tournament announcer must be a tough job.

Anyway, I grabbed the microphone, looked around at the audience, and shouted powerfully.

“As long as the blessing of the Verdian God is with me, defeat does not exist!!! A stronger opponent!! Is there no one strong enough to satisfy me!!!! I want a stronger opponent!!!”

—Kuaaaaaaaaah!!!

“You are all certainly strong, but that’s not enough to satisfy me right now!!!! Be enraged by my provocation!! Be enraged and come up to the arena!! This Paladin will be waiting here forever!!!”

Exploding fighting spirit!!!

Raising my hand, I shouted!

“Where is the opponent who will defeat meeeeeee—!!!!!!!!”

I want a stronger opponent!!!

Not these little baby chicks, but someone stronger than me! That’s what will make this martial arts tournament even hotter!!

My shout echoed through the arena.

—Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!
—Iyaaaaaaaaaao!!!
—Uwaaaaaa!!!

Cheers erupted from the stands.

Even those who were screaming yesterday are now shouting enthusiastically. Swept away by my entertainer’s sense, the enthusiastic atmosphere is gradually spreading.

This era craves the strong.

And I’m not just strong.
Being a Paladin from barbarian origins only makes me more eye-catching.

“U, unbelievable fighting spirit!!! And blind provocation! But he can say that because he has the skills to back it up!!!”

The announcer was also astonished.

“I doubt there is anyone who can defeat this Celestial Dancer!!!”

That makes it to the quarterfinals.
With that, I went down below the arena.

—Uooooooooh!!!!
—Banzaaaaaaaaaai!!
—Paladin!!! Paladin!!! Paladin!!!

Yesterday, dancing around in my underwear and beating up Fileader was too bizarre, but today, grabbing and subduing Rachel Curbaine’s rapier with my bare hands was a true feat that no one could do.

The Dance Demon’s Cheonma B-boying is bound to be shocking from a general point of view. So today, I `saved` some of that frenzied dance and fought properly in my own way.

It worked perfectly.

The sense of a tournament superstar is still alive.

“I want to see his real swordsmanship skills!!!”
“I’m sure of it! Even the Royal Knights can’t handle him!!!”
“It’s not too late! We have to stop the tournament now!!! Ending this madness is the only way to maintain morality!!! Call the guards now!!”
“I bet 30 silver on Curbaine!!!”
“That destructive move! It’s etched in my mind and I can’t forget it!!”
“How can a person do such inhuman rotations!!”
“This is definitely a nightmare!!!”

Coming down from the arena, I could hear the shouts of the nearby spectators more clearly. They were cheering wildly at me, while others were tearing at their hair and shedding tears.

I guess I’m still terrifying.

“Dejaaaaaaaaaaaat!!!!!!”

I waved my hand at them and let out a shout.

“Heok!!”
“He’s too charming!!!”
“If this goes on, I’ll be eaten by him!! I have to run away!!!”
“Save meeeeeee!!”
“Kyaaaaaaaaaaak!!!”
“Please look at meeeee!!!”

Crazy bastards.

I only need to win two more times to get to the finals. Until then, I’ll dye all the spectators 100% in my color and turn them into frenzied cheering machines.

Frankly, those two games don’t seem like much, and I’m not particularly looking forward to the young genius of the Royal Knights who will come up to the finals.

—Glance.

I glanced at the upper seats as I entered the arena.

—…

My enhanced vision allows me to recognize the face of the Sword Master sitting in the far upper seats. She was looking at me with her arms crossed. Our eyes met for a moment, and then I moved inside.

Sword Master… I’ll be able to see her up close at the awards ceremony, right?

It would be a good experience to see that ultimate slayer.

“Paladin! There’s a flood of meeting requests!!!”
“Meeting requests?”

As I entered the waiting room to pack my things, the dedicated staff member shouted loudly. Meeting requests? Who is requesting to meet me?

“Yes! Numerous noble ladies are requesting to meet the Paladin! If you have time, it would be good to meet them!”
“Noble ladies?”

The noble ladies of the capital want to meet me?

Ah.

This is that.

You know, the gladiators of Rome enjoyed wild nights with noble ladies after their matches. It seems that women who were charmed by me have requested a meeting.

Damn, I don’t care.
I’m going home to play with my women.

“Usually, players who advance to the main rounds get fans like this! It’s even more enthusiastic if it’s an attractive member of the opposite sex! It’s a kind of tradition, so, how…”
“Tell them I’m too busy.”
“Neeet?!”

I answered while putting Garros’ leather into my backpack.

I should just wear this and fight from now on.

A bare upper body with wolf skin is such a specific image that it’s firmly embedded in the brain. People in this era are too weak to staged images.

Most of them will faint just by wearing this and shouting.

“B, but! They are all nobles…!”
“Hehehe, to me, who serves the Verdian God, anyone but the king doesn’t matter. Did you perhaps receive a bribe from them?”
“T, that’s… it’s a kind of tradition…”

They must have bribed this staff member while requesting a meeting with me. Of course, there’s no reason to waste my time.

“Still, what can I do if I don’t want to? I’m going back now. I’ll be back tomorrow morning, so just prepare the bracket.”
“…Understood.”

The staff member bowed his head deeply and left.

I immediately grabbed the shirt I had put in my backpack to get dressed. Now, let’s get dressed and go home to rest. To be honest, there’s almost a festival going on around the Grand Arena right now, but there’s nothing to see.

Resting at home is the best.

—Knock, knock, knock.

The sound of knocking on the door came just then.

“Who’s coming again?”

—Creak.

The door opened without my permission, and it was none other than the blonde, busty beauty… Saintess Kadia.

“Paladin…”
“Oh, Saintess?”

I immediately stood up and approached her.

“Wow, what brings you to a place like this?”
“…”

Ah, she must have come after watching today’s game. I haven’t been to church at all lately because of the recent games, so she must have come to give me some praise.

“Hehehe, did you come to see my game?”
“…Ah. J, just a moment.”
“Yes?”

As I approached the Saintess, she took a step back.

“F, first put on some clothes, Paladin.”
“Ah. I wasn’t wearing them yet. I’ll put them on right away. I just finished the game and came in. I was talking to the staff.”

I immediately wrapped the white dress shirt I was holding around my body. After buttoning it up, I closed the door of the room and pulled up a chair and handed it to the Saintess.

“Anyway, Saintess. Did you see my game properly?”

I pulled up one of my chairs and sat down.

“…”

The Saintess, sitting in her seat, stared at me and tried to say something.

“Saintess?”
“Paladin is really… haa.”
“Yes? Why the sudden sigh?”

Suddenly, she sighed and took out a cigarette case. She naturally took out a cigarette and lit it.

“I saw the shocking game very well, Paladin. Yesterday and today. I’ve had a rare experience that I’ll never have again.”

What?

“This Saintess doesn’t know how to accept this… That’s what I’m thinking. Paladin. Do you know how many letters have come to this Saintess from yesterday to today?”

She said that with a troubled face while smoking. A shocking game… Could it be that she didn’t like it!

That can’t be!!!

“What kind of letters came? How many?”
“A whopping thousand.”

A thousand.

“A thousand. Yes, winning is good. Showing overwhelming power is also good. It was very good. It must have been a great promotion. But suddenly tearing off your clothes and doing such a bizarre dance… This Saintess thought the Paladin had stirred up some kind of hornet’s nest.”

Oh dear.

Everything else was good, but the Cheonma B-boying was a bit of an error. No, Lady Isvant loved it.

After all, the reaction is a bit different depending on the person.

Of course, I had thought about this possibility. Of course. It’s the `dance` I’m doing. It’s natural to keep such basic things in mind. The Dance Cheonma of Love, who has transcended the true dancer, understands the ripple effect that `dance` can bring better than anyone else.

—Radical shock.

Some people may not be able to accept it.

But.

Even if it’s anyone, I’m confident that I can persuade them and make the public enthusiastic. The antics I’ve done will eventually shine when I win the martial arts tournament.

—It’s like a butterfly that metamorphoses beautifully.

The completion of Beautiful Butterfly Cheonma.
When that time comes, everyone will be enthusiastic about my dance.

“Saintess. It’s a performance, a performance. Didn’t you hear the shouts I shouted after winning?”

I looked into the Saintess’s eyes and explained confidently.

“…You showed such a thorough faith that I could believe you were a Paladin of the Order, not a Paladin directly under the Saintess. This Saintess was also very impressed.”
“That’s right. The audience saw that shocking dance, but above all, they paid more attention to my shouts. The promotion is certain. There’s no problem. I’m an expert in this.”
“An expert?”

I can’t leave out this story.

“Actually, when I was an adventurer, I worked as a gladiator in the Isvant Arena and became a superstar.”
“Gladiator…? No, really…”

The Saintess is confused.

“What can’t the Paladin do?”
“Nothing. Anyway, if I win just three more times from now on, the shocked audience will all be enthusiastic. To put it bluntly, everyone is hooked on my dance, my power, and my body. In fact, more than half of them are already enthusiastic about my game.”

More than half are already reacting positively.

“…I see.”

—Hoo.

The Saintess exhaled and continued.

“In fact, the promotion is already certain. Still, it was a bit shocking, so I came down to try to restrain you. A thousand letters. I haven’t checked them all, but the ones I checked were almost all inquiries about joining the church, information about the Paladin, or praise for the Paladin’s power.”

Already, in just one day, they were intoxicated by my game and sent a thousand such letters. Of course, some of them may contain criticism of my dance. However, I am confident.

There are more positive ones.

Anyway, promotion is the most important thing.

“See? That’s the advertising effect of Paladin Kim Kat. Even people who weren’t particularly interested in the Brass Saint Society will become interested in this.”

No one in this world understands `advertising` more deeply than I do. I’m from the modern capitalist world where multimedia advertising is rampant.

Paladin is money.

“Isn’t that right?”
“This Saintess also knows that. Anyway, you’ve really had a hard time… I came down to say this. The Paladin has done better than this Saintess thought.”

The Saintess praised me.

“So, even if you refrain from the bizarre movements a little, I will give you permission to do the rest as you see fit. Work hard to spread the name of Verde. This Saintess believes in the Paladin.”
“Of course!! I am a Paladin who grows by eating faith! Don’t worry! We will win this tournament.”
“Heh, you’re still full of confidence.”

The Saintess, who stood up from her seat, smiled and said.

“This Saintess also likes that about the Paladin. People who act with absolute confidence… are not bad after all. Even more so if they have the ability to do so.”
“Hehehe, a man should have confidence. But are you going back now?”
“Not right away, but I’m going back to the Great Temple soon. So you don’t have to see me off. Get some rest and prepare for tomorrow’s game.”
“Understood.”

The Saintess left first, and I got dressed and went home.