I Can Make Everything Level UP

A fighting tournament… considering things like the way the barbarians fought, Billy wasn't sure if weapons were allowed… that would increase the death rate quite a bit. Also, magic probably wasn't allowed if weapons weren't. In any case, putting aside Jean's comment, Billy was pretty sure that Svan wasn't looking for an excuse to have his revenge. He didn't seem that type of person, still, that seemed like a waste of time, even if there was a prize.

"I think I will have to pass, because…" Billy said.

"That sounds interesting, what are the rules?" Natalie suddenly appeared and asked.

Natalie was completely in shape again. In fact, she trained even harder than before. She even visited the dungeons under Vaguard's control now and then to sharpen her fangs. Still, that made Billy sigh. Natalie couldn't go alone, she would have to bring Hector with him, and so Billy will have to accompany them. Otherwise, the trip will last for months. Alexander will probably try to participate as well… and eventually, the whole group will have to head there… It was truly a pain in the ass.

"No weapons, the fight ends when one of the fighters falls from the ring or drop unconscious on the floor," Jean said. "No judges as well, to prevent suspicious victories."

"I suppose they don't fight with weapons to avoid deaths, but even a few punches in the head can be lethal," Billy said. "Those guys are pretty big, after all."

"Yes, apparently, unfortunate accidents happen from time to time…" Jean said.

"You heard him, Natalie," Billy said. "It would be too irresponsible for us to participate since we are parents now."

"You don't have to worry about hits, if you avoid them," Natalie said.

"Getting carried away, aren't we?" Billy asked and then sighed. "Besides, can you even fight by relying on punches and kicks alone?"

"Do you want to see that firsthand?" Natalie asked.

"I'd rather not…" Billy replied.

Since she wasn't just telling her that she was going, it meant that Natalie was being conscious of her position as a mother, but that didn't mean that she didn't want to voice her thoughts. Knowing Kate, she probably would agree that a trip right now would be a good change of pace. While they were happy with their current lives, they still were adventurers, and that part of them would never die.

"I suppose sending some of our people would be a good diplomatic move, yes?" Billy asked. "Considering the distance, I would say that most people would need to travel for two months without a break to reach their territory by using the best horses available…"

"Yes, and they understand that," Jean said. "They only sent the invitation out of good will since they knew that the two way trip would be difficult. Even though the prize is another massive sphere of gold. I assume that it is the same as the one you found a while ago."

Billy wanted to ask if they were found under the same conditions as the one he did it. However, that would be too suspicious, and Jean probably didn't have the answer. If he wasn't worried, then he probably assumed some old civilization made those and buried them to hide from their enemies.

"... I will talk with the others," Billy said after a long sigh. "I suppose they might want to come, even if more than half of us don't want to participate. I also owe a visit to Svan. Hopefully by now, he should have given up on arranging the marriage between me and his daughter."

"This is the first time I am hearing about that," Natalie frowned.

"Well, you never asked…" Billy shrugged.

Natalie gave Billy a look for a while, and Jean decided to leave thanks to that. The third marriage was probably out of the question, even though Billy wasn't interested in it anyway. Those three months passed in the blink of an eye, but Billy hoped that he would have a lot more time of peace with his family… that kind of event was pretty stupid from his point of view, even though he didn't want to think lowly of the customes of other people.

"A trip to the barbarians state? That sounds like fun," Lily said.

"I might learn one thing or two by watching them fight," Alexander said.

"A trip will be good for the kids, they need to see more of the world," Kate said.

"For obvious reasons, I can't participate in such a tournament, but we are a team, so I want to go as well," Sarah said.

Billy sighed… He didn't even know why he was surprised. His friends were that free-spirited, after all. While he couldn't see the point of his kids having a trip that they won't even remember next year while watching fights with punches probably won't make Alexander learn anything while watching people beat the crap out of each other wasn't actually fun… Billy just decided to shut up and begin his preparations.

Billy headed to his hometown and asked if the others wanted to go with them. The tournament will take place in two months, so everyone has time to prepare for it, after all. Even if they didn't want to participate in it. In the end, they decided that they wanted to go… Everyone. It was a rare opportunity, after all.

"Don't worry, Hector, Christina," Billy said. "While your mothers can't use the few brain cells that they have, I will make sure to give you two others and better opportunities to travel around the world. You just have to love me more than them."

"We heard that," Kate said.

"He gets worse with every passing day…" Natalie said and then sighed.

Scolding Billy was only making things worse, so those two were hoping that he would get his act together when Hector and Christina grow more to the point where they won't forget most of the things that they experienced.