Very quickly, the time came to the next day.
Early in the morning, Eriri brought everyone from her household, including over one hundred artificial maids, and headed for the Martial Arts Tournament World.
Aside from her household, D from the So I'm a Spider, So What? world, who lived as a shut-in, and Haruna Sairenji and Tearju from the To Love Ru world, also came to the Saekano world early in the morning. Together, they followed Eriri to the Martial Arts Tournament World.
Even Shiraori and Mirei Shinohara were dragged back by Eriri from their otherworldly travels, and even the Reincarnators had their missions forcibly paused by her.
When Eriri and the others appeared in the Martial Arts Tournament World, they were greeted by Shirahoshi and the mermaid girls Eriri had once brought over from the One Piece world.
Of course, not all mermaids came to greet them, only some representatives who welcomed everyone's arrival.
As permanent residents of this world, their role was like that of hosts, welcoming all the guests who arrived. But in their hearts, Eriri would always be the true owner of this world.
After a year of development, the Martial Arts Tournament World had undergone many changes.
The seaside buildings and scenery were more or less influenced by the mermaids, as that was where they lived. However, the massive central arena and the surrounding housing used during the tournament had remained unchanged.
Not long after Eriri and her group arrived, other group members also came one after another, each bringing their own friends and family through the World Gate.
Of course, some had arrived even earlier than Eriri and were already exploring this world.
The schedule for this Martial Arts Tournament was nearly the same as the previous one: the first day was for free activities, the second day marked the official start of the matches between group members. After the matches between group members, there would be a free sparring session for non-members, followed by a day-long victory banquet.
After the banquet, the Martial Arts Tournament would officially be declared over.
Compared with the first tournament, this time there were far more participants, which meant it would last longer.
Fortunately, the group members could freely pause the flow of time in their own worlds, otherwise many would not have been able to endure the extended schedule.
...
The next morning, after breakfast, everyone gathered at the arena and took their seats in the stands.
Not only were there far more participants this time, but also the number of spectators had multiplied by dozens. Just the thousands of mermaids alone were enough to make the stands lively and crowded.
As in the first Martial Arts Tournament, Eriri sat in the center of the crowd with Ophis in her arms, surrounded by Arifureta, Shinobu, and the others.
Even with thousands of mermaids present, compared to the vast spectator stands, they were still pitifully few. Together, they occupied less than one-tenth of a single side of the viewing area.
Filling the stands entirely would take many more years of accumulation.
Once all participants had gathered, the host, Aoi Kujou, appeared hovering above the arena. Soon, her cold voice rang out:
"Welcome, group members, and your friends and family, to the 'Second Multiverse Same-Sex ♀ Friendship Group Martial Arts Tournament,' hosted by my lady."
"The rules of this tournament are basically the same as last time. All participants' power will be restricted to Level 4, Stage 1, and weapons used cannot exceed Level 4, Stage 1."
"All group members will face off in one-on-one duels. If the number of participants is odd, a bye will be drawn, allowing one participant to advance directly to the next round. In the end, the top three and the overall champion of the Martial Arts Tournament will be decided."
"In each duel, once a participant loses the ability to resist or voluntarily surrenders, they will be eliminated."
"As for the rewards for this tournament, aside from the 100 million, 50 million, and 10 million group points for the top three, the rewards for other participants have been slightly changed."
"The participation prize will still be 1 million group points. However, each time you successfully advance to the next round, your reward will increase by another 1 million points, continuing until the top three are decided."
As Aoi Kujou finished her opening announcement, a wave of noise immediately erupted from the viewing stands.
The voices mostly came from group members, since this advancement reward system was something they were hearing for the first time. Eriri had never mentioned it in the chat group beforehand.
But this sudden change instantly boosted many members' enthusiasm.
Originally, aside from the top three, everyone else only received the 1 million points participation prize. Many who thought they had no chance of reaching the top three planned to just go through the motions and be done.
Now that advancement came with additional rewards, their attitudes changed. Winning just once would double the prize. That was much easier than competing for the top three.
For members badly in need of points, like Natsuki Minamiya and Kyoko, this was without a doubt their best chance to earn more.
Aside from Eriri and Gabriel, who had no real interest in fighting, every other group member signed up for the tournament. Even Mine joined in.
Including Akame, who had been brought into the group by Mine over half a month ago, a total of fifty-six members were participating.
Since the number was even, there was no need for a bye round in the first stage, unlike the previous tournament.
As two transparent illusory figures appeared above the arena, the first match of the Second Martial Arts Tournament officially began.
The two figures were none other than Kureha and Chika Fujiwara.
"Eh? Why am I the first one up again?! And my opponent is Kureha…"
Looking at her projected image on the arena, Chika Fujiwara, sitting with her sisters, felt a wave of gloom.
Especially seeing that her opponent was Kureha, a master of swordsmanship, her pretty little face collapsed instantly.
Though she had shouted in the group about seizing first place in the Martial Arts Tournament, that was nothing more than her usual empty boasting.
She was very clear about her actual combat abilities.
Perhaps her practical skills had improved a lot compared to last year, but against true experts, she was still far behind.
Seeing her sister like this, Moeha Fujiwara spread her hands helplessly and said:
"Chika-nee, I told you not to brag in the group. Now look—you're definitely going to be instantly defeated by Kureha-onee."
Hearing her little sister's words, Chika Fujiwara immediately protested.
"Moeha, you're underestimating me too much. As long as I pay attention, I definitely won't be one-shotted."
On the side, Toyomi Fujiwara only smiled, gently patting Chika's head in comfort.
"It's fine. As long as you try your best, it's enough."
Meanwhile, on the other side of the stands, Flare was raising her small, white fist with a pure expression, cheering adorably for her sister Kureha.
"Sister, do your best in the match!"
"Mhm. I'll be going now."
Kureha smiled and stroked Flare's head, then with a flash appeared on the arena.
Moments later, Chika Fujiwara's figure also appeared, standing opposite Kureha.
"Chika-chan, I'm sorry, but this is where your journey ends."
Kureha looked at her seriously, right hand gripping her sword hilt, ready to draw at any moment.
Since the match gave five minutes of preparation after the participants were confirmed, she didn't immediately strike.
Seeing this, Chika Fujiwara's heart jumped wildly, and she quickly said:
"Hey, hey, Kureha, do you really have to be this serious?"
Kureha only shook her head with a smile. "I've always been serious when it comes to battle."
From the memory footage, Chika had seen Kureha's swordsmanship clearly.
Facing such speed and skill, she knew that at her current level, she had no chance of victory.
Imagining the scene of her opponent's sword cutting into her body, Chika Fujiwara couldn't help but shrink her neck.
She had no idea what it would feel like to be slashed by a blade, but just thinking about it made her certain it would be unbearably painful.
The thought made her want to surrender immediately.
But surrendering before even fighting would be too humiliating, so she quickly dismissed the idea. If she was going to give up, it would at least be after the fight had started.
She pulled out a longsword from her storage system, preparing herself for battle.
Before long, the five-minute preparation time ended. With Aoi Kujou's announcement, the match officially began.
Kureha wasted no time. She drew her sword and charged at Chika with blinding speed.
Chika hurriedly drew her own sword to defend. In an instant, their blades clashed, producing an ear-piercing screech.
Both swords carried their users' power, and at the moment of impact, waves of force spread in all directions.
Fortunately, the arena floor was reinforced with powerful protection, so their blows caused no damage to it. Instead, dazzling rings of energy rippled out around them.
Though Chika had learned the Flower Breathing style from Kanae Kocho for a while and gained some understanding of swordsmanship, she hadn't studied it diligently. Very quickly, she fell into disadvantage, barely able to block Kureha's strikes.
And she knew she couldn't hold out much longer—her defense might collapse at any moment.
At that point, she gave up resisting and shouted loudly:
"I surrender!"
The moment her declaration rang out, Kureha's blade, which had been on the verge of breaking through, passed harmlessly through her body like it had sliced only air.
Neither of them was surprised. That was part of the rules—once someone surrendered, their opponent's attacks could no longer cause harm.
"Kureha wins!"
With Aoi Kujou's announcement, the viewing stands erupted into thunderous cheers.
Unlike the crowd's excitement, Chika turned toward Kureha with complaints.
"Kureha, you really went too hard. If I hadn't been quick-witted, I would've been split in two just now!"
Hearing this, Kureha showed an apologetic smile. "Sorry, sorry. But since it was a match, of course I had to be serious."
"Forget it, I'm just complaining. Don't mind me."
Chika waved her hand carelessly, then broke into a smile and congratulated her opponent.
"Kureha, congrats on making it to the second round."
"Mhm. Thanks." Kureha's face also lit up with a happy smile.
The two of them didn't linger in the arena and quickly returned to the stands.
The entire first match—from pairing to conclusion—had taken less than ten minutes.
Since there were many participants in this tournament, there were no intermissions this time, regardless of how long each match lasted.
Thus, right after Chika and Kureha returned to the stands, two new illusory figures appeared above the arena.
"The second match of the first round will be between—Kanae Kocho and Shinobu Kocho. Participants, please take the stage. The duel will begin in five minutes."
Hearing Aoi Kujou's announcement, the sisters, Kanae and Shinobu, exchanged glances, both showing expressions of surprise.
...
Half an hour later, the second match ended with the elder sister victorious.
Though Shinobu's talent in battle was no less than Kanae's, the years of difference in training—and the fact that Shinobu was raised by Kanae herself—made victory difficult.
For a disciple to surpass a teacher of equal talent was not an easy feat.
Over the next period, twelve more matches were held, completing half of the first round.
Aside from those matches where the difference in strength was overwhelming, most took several times longer than the first match.
By the time the final match of the day concluded, it was already past six in the evening.
The list of the fourteen winners who advanced was officially decided.
Among them were Kureha, Kanae Kocho, Miko Yotsuya, Echidna, Natsuki Minamiya…
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