I couldn't believe what was happening; they were weaker than the bandits, although they weren't beginners either. I had a lot of fun even though I expected more pressure, but it was a good experience. I fought them several more times since they kept asking for rematches. Normally I would get bored or annoyed if I didn't feel any pressure.
But with them it was different; it was like when my master taught me, with the only difference being that they weren't my students, and besides, they already knew how to defend themselves. After that, we returned to the tavern again and spent a long while talking. Ever since we started our adventure, it was the first time we talked with strangers—well, we talked to strangers before, but not in that way.
I really liked how they always added "human boy" in their phrases. It felt different from when they called me by my name, and from my master who always calls me "brat." We kept talking and talking, and before we noticed, it was already the next day. There were also other people who stayed until dawn, although most had left the night before.
After that, the beastmen said goodbye to us. But before leaving, they told us that there would soon be a tournament here in the city and that we should stay a little longer so we could participate, and that with my abilities, winning was practically guaranteed. They said it wasn't a big tournament like in other places, but that there were many talented participants.
I would be lying if I said I didn't get excited, because that would be my first time participating in a tournament. So I told them it wouldn't be a problem since we were planning to stay a bit longer anyway. And then they left.
—Alright Lilia, we'll enter that tournament.
—And we also have to be the winners.
(5 days later)
—Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to this tournament where your skills are put to the test and you learn from your flaws.
—Without further delay, let's begin right away.
—For the first match we have…!!! Wait, that's a girl—what is a little girl doing here? Well, whatever, we have Lilia, who will be facing Gallo. The match begins!
—You brat, I don't know where you came from but I advise you to run away right now, or else you'll have a very—Aaaaagh!! She burned me, I'm burning!
—You talk too much.
—What a surprise, she's a mage.
—Well, we have a winner. Lilia wins.
—Third match, Lilia wins.
—Fifth match, Lilia wins.
—Seventh… match, Lilia wins.
—And lastly, we have Lilia versus Aito. Unbelievable—the finalists are two kids!
—Aito, I'm going to surrender, there's no need to fight.
—Don't say that, Lilia. Hey, I surrender.
—Whaaaat… They didn't even fight and he already surrendered! Well, I guess it's understandable. So the winner of this tournament is Lilia!
After that, they gave us the prizes for first and second place. I wanted to fight Lilia, but we couldn't cause that much trouble in that tournament since it wasn't a big event.