Tl note:

again, this is rushed lol.

Next day.

Having worked our team play as much as time would allow, the four of us now set out for the BATTLER venue.

If it was just Rin-chan and me, we could have taken the train, but we took the car to be safe since there were two more people with us today.

Naturally, the car we were riding in is Rin-chans private shuttle. It was funny to see how Suu-chan got anxious while she rode in the luxurious car.

But still, I wonder if we can win today.

Well, well make it work.

Rin-chan responds to Touka-chans relaxed attitude as she sips her apple juice. The good thing about Touka-chan is that she has a calm mind not to get too nervous at times like this.

But I dont think its fair to say that our coordination skills have improved.

Suu-chan was dominating yesterday, wasnt she?

Uuh sorry.

Its okay. Thats what we expected.

Thats right.

Yesterdays team practice was mostly about Suu-chans domination.

We played 15 rounds, Suu-chan took the top spot in 13 of them, and she took more than 90% of the kill scores.

I spent a good amount of time running around the field that I saw in the video while taking notes and trying various guns. It was a productive time for me.

Rin-chan and Touka-chan couldnt do anything, and to be honest, it wasnt a good team practice.

I was not really interested in how we functioned as a team from the beginning. Nana and Touka are the only ones who are suited for that kind of style.

I was surprised, too, because I thought Nana was an assertive player.

Well, its in the past, but I basically played as support to Rin-chan.

At least up to middle school, the only time I played games was when Rin-chan asked me to.

There were times when Rin-chan tried to come up with a plan to film Zero Wars where we wouldnt stop until we lost.

In VR games, you have to move your own body at will, so Rin-chan, who is not very athletic, tends to settle for the rear-guard position, but Rin-chan-chan basically prefers an aggressive style of play.

Considering that I decided to support her, so I dont think its odd that Im comfortable in team games.

Speaking of the old times, have Rinne and Nana known each other long?

Pretty much, I guess? Weve known each other since we were three years old.

Since that early??

Oh, you dont know about them, Suupaa?

Yes, I wasnt that interested in the private lives of the team members.

Fufu, so now youve become interested?

Probably. Maybe thats what I feel right now.

Touka-chan and Suu-chan have good chemistry, and the conversation is proceeding smoothly.

It is not strange that she is not so interested in us, just as I only know about Suu-chan from an online video. Still, I think its nice that she wants to.

Well be at the venue soon. First, lets go over our plans for the day.

As I was telling Suu-chan about our relationship, Rin suddenly handed me a piece of paper.

Listed in it was a summary of the conventions guidelines and schedule. The contents are summarized in an easy-to-understand way.

The number of participants in Battler is very large, so we have four type of rounds to shift through. It will be easier to understand if you think of it as a first-round, second-round, main round, and final round, respectively. We will be starting from the second round.

Oh, we dont have to do the first round?

Correct, our team is exempted from the first round. The reason is that we are [Rinne] team that is officially competing as HEROES, and all we need to do is to attract customers. They dont want us to be disqualified in the lower qualifying rounds.

Rin-chan said this not to brag or anything but simply to state a fact.

Why Rin-chan get special treatment?

I hate to put it this way, but she does affect the venue quite a bit; Rin-ane-sama has a wide range of fans.

I see. I guess we have Rin-chan to thank for that.

You can thank and worship her instead.

Haha~

Suu-chan then joins us to worship Rin-chan.

But Rin-chan immediately pulled us back to the main topic that had derailed.

The second round is a one-shot competition; you play one match, and the three teams that survive to the end in each block simply move on to the main bracket. The main round is a two-match point competition, and from this point on, the top three teams will go to the finals. The point is based on the number of kills per match and their survival ranking. In the end, well have 12 teams playing three matches in the finals, and the top two teams will advance to the WGCS main tournament.

Lets see, then six matches in all?

Thats right.

As for the exemption from the first round, lets just accept it with gratitude.

But for the second round, we will have only one match that will decide the outcome.

Because only the surviving team gets to go to the main tournament, there is a possibility that they can win even if they dont beat any of the other teams.

In the second round, you can try to have your teams will desperately hide and survive until the last three teams are eliminated. Such a strategy should be seen as effective.

But after this point, the number of kills directly counts as points.

For example, one team took first place in the survival standings both times. However, the second and third-place teams had many times more kills than the first-place team.

Even though the team was coming in first in survival points, the team could end up third in the overall ranking because of a lack of points for kills. This can happen from the third tournament onward.

Conversely, if a team gets a lot of kills and is tearing up the field, there is a chance to make it through to the finals even if the team is wiped out in the middle of it.

Do you choose to get points by surviving or by getting kills?

This balance was going to be important in this point match fight.

But with this system, the biggest upset probably will happen in the second round.

Thats certainly where the giant-killing is most likely to happen; however, the match on the second round is still at a very low level, so its not something to worry about.

I see. Well, I got the idea, so I guess Ill be okay.

Is Suupaa okay?

Yes, I am, I understand the rules. There are a few names I know, so Im a little excited about the finals.

Hee

Suu-chan spoke as if she had already won the qualifying rounds and proceeded to the main tournament, but we, who knew her battle prowess yesterday, could not see it as an insult or pride.

Well, well have to be flexible. And our team will use the machines set up at the venue for the games.

What do you mean by [our team]?

It would cost a ton of money if all the teams attended the venue. Only the teams with a good reputation will play at it on the first day. Its not about how good you are. Its about how many people you can attract.

It sure seems like a lot of money, considering the scale.

Even this already costing them a lot of money.

ahahahaha.

It may not be the high-end bed-type diving machine that costs tens of millions of yen that we use because even a regular headgear-type machine costs a quite big amount of money.

I was sure that at least 48 devices for the 12 teams that would be used in the finals would be prepared for the event, so the price was not unreasonable when those were taken into account.

While we were talking about the tournament, Suu-chan suddenly asked a question.

If you are exempted from the first round, you wont have much time to spare after you arrive at the venue, right? Can I just take it easy and go around the venue?

I guess so. You cant practice at the venue, so I think its a good idea to have a little fun. Here, Ill give you some pocket money.

Rin-chan handed her the money as if she were giving a New Years gift to a relatives child.

Was it probably 100,000 yen? From Rin-chans point of view, it would be a small amount of money, but from the junior high school student Suu-chan, it would be quite a large sum of money, wouldnt it?

It appears that Rin-chan must have intended to give it to her, as she had prepared it in an envelope.

Suu-chan looked at the contents of the envelope curiously, and then her face turned pale.

No need!! I brought my own money, I am sorry!!!

Thats okay. Its the leaders duty to boost the morale of his team members. un, Touka, can you guide her? Im sure shell be reluctant to use it anyway, and Im afraid to let her walk around the venue alone.

Okay~ from now on, Im your guardian.

Uuu

Needless to say, Rin-chan is rich, but Touka-chan is also very rich.

If anything, Touka-chan is even more of a lady than Rin-chan. Although she is always candid when shes with us, Touka-chan in her [lady-like] mode, is a charming girl in a different sense.

After watching confused Suu-chan put the envelope in her bag, Rin-chan adds as if she had just remembered.

Oh, yes, Nana has another business to attend to.

Eh? About what?

I hadnt heard anything about that, nor had I considered it.

Its a demonstration of the exercise corner, a tradition at sporting events.

ookay?

I tilted my head at Rin-chan, who was smiling broadly.

===*

A note:

I cut the practice scene! So we can arrive at the venue as soon as possible.