Chapter 54

Thank you for reading.

(This is based on the author's setting for the "Territory Game" in the story. There may be some unclear points... If you notice anything, please feel free to leave a comment in the review section.)

I will post again at around the same time tomorrow.

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Zeraphi was actually appreciated by the other prisoners.

The previous cell warden was violent, and many prisoners had been assaulted. Food was stolen, meager personal belongings were broken or taken, and letters from family were torn up. The violent warden's henchmen also acted arrogantly, and as a result, the death and injury rate among prisoners was high. The guards were also under a lot of stress. It was a notorious workhouse. That's why Zeraphi was put in there.

She had taken down that warden.

"Zeraphi was arrogant, but she didn't do anything terrible. She just lived her life as she pleased.

It was about three weeks after Zeraphi came to the mine, I think?

The previous warden ordered her to 'kneel and greet me,' and Zeraphi retorted, 'Why should I greet a rotten-eyed, mean-spirited woman like you?' They had a big fight, and Zeraphi won.

It was amazing. I've never seen such a powerful showdown, even in a theater. Everyone was stunned and watched.

After that, the warden became completely docile. After all, she and her henchmen were badly injured.

Zeraphi was almost unscathed.

Then, only Zeraphi was put in the punishment cell. It's a hell of heat in summer and a hell of cold in winter. But Zeraphi came out with a calm face.

She probably didn't get much food or water.

Then, Zeraphi said, 'I ate my own hair, so I'm fine'...

When everyone was surprised and wide-eyed, she laughed and said, 'It was just a joke. Laugh. Believe me. I wouldn't do something that stupid.'

Everyone was wide-eyed, thinking Zeraphi might actually do it.

She took down that warden because

'I wouldn't be a servant to a creature like a female orc, of course.'

I thought the new warden was also violent, but she wasn't at all. She just occasionally took the meat from our meals.

I'm glad it was Zeraphi.

It was quite fun. Zeraphi was always all-out for events.

There are a few events each year. Ball games, costume races, and so on.

The previous warden was good at fighting but had poor motor skills, so she would interfere with these events. We couldn't enjoy them. But Zeraphi declared, 'Sluggish guys, practice like your life depends on it! If you hold us back, you won't eat meat for a month!' and made everyone practice costume quick-changes.

It was a troublesome warden, but it was fun.

During the costume race, Zeraphi's impersonation of a prince was brilliant.

'Zeraphi, earth magic nourishment is not the same as spreading manure.'

That line was a hit, a big hit.

Really? I thought it was funny.

Plus, she drove away the abusive guards.

There was a nasty guard. Every time she saw Zeraphi, she would spew venom, saying, 'I was a woman who was going to be a queen. I have connections everywhere. I'll socially destroy you.'

That guard quit. She apparently developed bald spots from stress.

Our warden is quite something, isn't she?

That Zeraphi is dead... It's really sad."

Noelle, who read the report, hung her head again.

She couldn't count how many times she had hung her head.

"...Impersonating a prince... is disrespectful..."

Sirius chuckled and shook his head, and Noelle was at a loss for words.

"There's no crime of disrespect for something like this. If we make a fuss over this, it will only draw more attention. It's best to ignore it if it doesn't cause harm."

"...But, it's pitiful for Lord Sariel..."

"Sariel won't mind. Besides, Zeraphi didn't clearly state that she was the prince's fiancée.

She would boast, 'I was a woman who could have become a queen,' but her fellow prisoners didn't take it seriously. It was unclear who Zeraphi's fiancé was, or if it was the prince. So no one cared which prince she was impersonating or if she was really impersonating a prince.

The guards had the information, but they didn't tell the prisoners.

You don't need to worry about it, Noelle."

"Yes..."

Noelle then looked at the materials about Zeraphi and the events, and hung her head again.

◇◇

Zeraphi was in the 6th Prison in a town called Janine.

The 6th Prison had a women's workhouse right next to a men's workhouse.

The women's workhouse was much smaller in scale. The ratio of men to women was about 8 to 1. The number of prisoners was that much higher for men.

In any case, the women's facility was attached to the men's facility. Both were surrounded by high walls, so they couldn't see each other under normal circumstances.

Once a year, the iron gate separating the two workhouses would open.

That was during the "Men vs. Women Territory Game Tournament."

◇◇

Events were held in both the men's and women's workhouses to release tension.

One of them was a costume race.

Participants would dress up and run a relay, and the last runner would perform a one-shot act to finish. It was very exciting.

This event was held once a year in each workhouse, but it was not a men vs. women competition.

The "Territory Game" was a men vs. women event.

Noelle knew about the Territory Game. She had played it at the academy.

In simple terms, it was a "ball-throwing battle."

There were rules such as "you can't step into the enemy's territory until you eliminate all their 'infantry.'"

Each territory had a "King's Area," "Commander's Area," and "Infantry Area," and you had to advance while defeating the enemy.

A long rectangular court was divided by a line in the middle, with one side being the enemy's territory and the other being your territory.

At the far end of each territory, a circle about two meters in diameter was drawn, which was the "King's Area."

The "King" was guarded by one or two "advisors," and the area around the King's Area was the "Commander's Area."

Outside the Commander's Area was the "Infantry Area."

The players were the "King," "advisors," "commanders," and "infantry."

The "King" could move from the "King's Area" when certain conditions were met.

The "advisors" were always with the King and could not move on their own.

The "commanders" and "infantry" could advance into the enemy's territory after eliminating all the enemy infantry.

The enemy side had the same setup. The enemy king's circle was at the opposite end of the diagonal.

The game started with a draw to decide who would have the ball first.

Various types of balls were used for the territory game.

At the academy, they used balls that were fast but had shock-absorbing features to prevent injuries.

The game began with players throwing the ball at each other.

The infantry would fight first.

This was a ball-throwing battle within each territory.

If hit by a ball, a player had to leave the court.

There were ways to revive through penalties, but generally, being hit meant the end.

There were rules against holding the ball for too long, so players had to keep attacking.

Passing to teammates was limited to once, so the game was non-stop attacking.

This made the game very fast-paced.

There was no time to dawdle.

The climax of the game came after eliminating the enemy's infantry.

The allies' "commanders" could also leave the "Commander's Area" and advance into the enemy's territory.

The goal was to defeat the enemy's "commanders" and "advisors" and finally take down the "King."

Noelle was surprised that such an aggressive game was played between men and women.

However, the only way to attack the enemy was by hitting them with the ball. The teams were separated by their territories and areas.

Each area could not be entered until the enemy "infantry" or "commanders" were eliminated, so there was no direct contact.

The penalty for breaking the rules and touching the enemy was severe, which might be why it was allowed.

The balls used were the same "shock-absorbing" type as at the academy. They were thrown at high speeds but with reduced impact.

The game had been played for decades.

Over the past few decades, the men's team had almost always won the men vs. women matches, even with a handicap.

The winning men's team would play against the winning women's team, which had a handicap of more players.

Even with the handicap, the men's team usually won. The difference in strength was significant.

However, when Zeraphi became the "King" of the women's team, they started winning.

Noelle was unsure if she could genuinely be happy that her sister's team had won.

"...Is it okay?"

"Of course, it's fine.

They fought and won fairly."

Noelle picked up the materials again.

"The 'Men vs. Women Territory Game Tournament' with Zeraphi was so much fun.

It was incredibly exciting.

I haven't felt that excited since I lived outside the walls.

After Zeraphi became the new warden, she asked about the events. By a stroke of luck or misfortune, Zeraphi had already given birth.

We were scolded.

'What are you all being so lazy for? Do you have the confidence to win? If you lose, I won't accept it! Are you prepared to live without meat until you win next year?'

Wasn't that unreasonable?

After that, it was all practice, every break.

It was unbelievable, but it felt like we were living our youth.

When it came to deciding the team members, Zeraphi laughed when she found out about the handicap in numbers.

'Putting a handicap on us is so presumptuous! I'll make you regret it.'

Still, we had to practice.

As our strength improved, Zeraphi was in a great mood and even did the prison work for the members who were too tired to move. So the guards didn't complain. Thanks to that, we had a lot of fun.

Then, the day of the match arrived."

---

Side note.

The reason for the men vs. women matches was that a few decades ago, the warden conducted a survey to plan events to deal with the bloodthirsty prisoners. The most popular and feasible suggestion from the men was a competition against other prisons. The women wanted a visit from handsome actors. The warden decided to hold a men vs. women match, which was well-received and had no issues, so it continued.

Noelle thought the women's survey results were ignored, but Sirius casually suggested that there were handsome prisoners back then.

Noelle suspected that the warden just wanted to deal with the bloodthirsty male prisoners and didn't care about the women. It was just a guess, though.