"This. is. amazing!" shouted Mia as they looked at their surroundings.
"The view here is quite something" said Kay.
As they looked at the lush green forest on one side, and the marvelous ocean with a beautiful beach on other, the only words that came out of their mouths were praises for the beauty of nature.
"This is very nice indeed" said Rimuru, remembering all the fun times he had with his people in Tempest.
"Alright students, you are free to play around for today, and from tomorrow we are going to engage in various activities with the other academies. Be sure to give it your all" said the teacher and went away.
"Yosh! So then what would be better than freeball in a place like this?" shouted Jordan.
Freeball is a ball game similar to dodgeball, in which there are no teams. All players are on their own. Once a player gets the ball, he has to throw it at someone without moving from his place. If he manages to hit, the target is out and whoever catches the ball next gets a chance to throw it. At the end, there will only be one winner left.
"Yep I am in!" said Nikki.
"Well it sounds like fun. I will join in as well" said Rimuru, which drew everyone's attention.
"Um... If Rimuru san agrees then,"
"Yep we are going to play as well" said Helena.
As soon as Rimuru agreed, more than half of the students joined in.
"Looks like you are the one who is popular with everyone" teased Ryzen.
"Heh I suppose I do look pretty cute" said Rimuru.
"Its not just that. You do realize you are unofficially the no.1 student of our academy right now, right?" said Kay.
"Lets just hurry up and play already!" said Mia.
"I guess I will pass" said Ryzen.
"Don't be like that! Lets have some fun!" said Rimuru.
"B-but-"
"Come on Ryzen. Lets do this already" said Mia.
"Ugh fine" said Ryzen unwillingly 'I can just throw the game afterall'
'Hehe let me make this more interesting' thought Mia with an evil smile.
"Listen everyone! Rimuru and Ryzen have said that whoever manages to knock them out will get to be in their team for tomorrow's treasure hunt!" shouted Mia, which made the crowd fall in chaos.
"T-the same team as Ryzen sama? I am in!" said Hina.
"Yeah. Lets get this girls!" said Aya.
"Yosh! This is our golden opportunity to get close to Rimuru san!" said Jordan.
"We are going to give it our all boys!" said Toril.
"Hey Mia!"
"Heh. You better give it your all now if you don't want to be stuck with one of them tomorrow" said Mia while pointing towards a Hina and her gang.
"Ugh. I will remember this!" said Ryzen with an annoyed face.
"Ho this is quite interesting. Alright lets do this" said Rimuru as the match was about to begin. 'Not like anyone of them can get me anyway'
With that, the match began.
*catch*
Rimuru caught the ball that came flying at him.
"We can use magic to reinforce the ball right?" asked Rimuru.
"Yeah you can use magic while throwing to reinforce the ball, and while catching to counter it. Any other from of magic is not allowed" said Kay.
"I see. Well then-"
Rimuru held the ball in his left hand, raised his right foot, and *swoosh*
*boom*
The ball went straight ahead, knocking out 20 students in its way, and crashing on to a huge boulder and cracking it.
'Yikes. Looks like I overdid it again'
"R-Rimuru san is awesome!" said Jordon as he rushed to pick up the ball, but Hina got it first.
"Well then, lets get to it girls!"
"Yeah" said Aya
And the three of them started chanting a reinforcement spell.
The ball is now covered in multiple magic circles.
"Now then, escape from this if you can Ryzen san"
*swoosh*
"Mystic wall"
Ryzen created a defensive structure of mystical flames, and countered the ball and caught it.
"Alright then, here goes nothing. Aura Blaze!"
The ball flew, knocking out 4 students in its path until-
*catch*
"You are not getting the better of me Ryzen. I am the no.3 student of this academy" said Iris as she caught the ball and threw it again. Ryzen barely dodged the throw aimed at him.
"Looks like I really will have to get serious"
And so, the game went on for another half an hour.
The only remaining participants are Rimuru, Ryzen and Iris and Jordan.
"You can do it Iris-san!" shouted Hina.
'Easy for you to say, but the ball is Rimuru's hands' thought Iris as she looked at the predicament in front of her.
"Hey Iris, lets team up. There is no way we are beating any one of them on our own" said Jordon.
Iris thought for a moment and agreed.
"Yosh. Now I will end this in this strike!" said Rimuru as he took position, and threw.
*clash*
The two of Jordan and Iris casted a combined defensive spell, and barely managed to change the trajectory of the ball and avoided annihilation.
'Looks like I held back a bit too much'
"No problem. I will end it" said Ryzen as he picked up the ball and immediately threw it.
"No way! We don't have time!"
*smash*
Ryzen's full power strike smashed the duo's incomplete barrier and knocked them out. The ball bounced back to Ryzen.
"Looks like its just the two of us now" said Ryzen as he casually picked up the ball.
"Well then, hit me with your best shot. No holding back" said Rimuru.
"Alright"
With that, Ryzen started chanting a long spell. The ball is now covered in a dark crimson layer which looks majestic.
"That's Ryzen sama's signature move. No one has been able to stop it until now. Even some of the teachers find it too difficult to deal with" said Aya.
"If Rimuru manages to block it, it will seal her position as the official no.1 of the academy. I am really interested to see the outcome" said Iris.
"Here goes nothing"
*swoosh*
*catch*
"What the, who's that?"
As soon as the smoke was cleared, a fierce looking majestic beast, with long shining golden hair and a dazzling aura around her appeared, holding the ball.
"That's the no.1 of the Mythrill Academy, Nina!"
"I see. So that is her infamous Royal Beast transformation. It looks even more majestic in person" said Iris.
"I see you have improved Ryzen-kun" said Nina.
"What the hell? Don't tell me you are one of the academies who came with us in this trip?" asked Ryzen with an annoyed expression.
"Don't be like that Ryzen-kun. I know you are happy to see your older sister after so long" said Nina.
"WHAAAAT!"
Hearing that, everyone was shocked.
"So the infamous 'Golden Beast' Nina is Ryzen-san's older sister? That's a surprise" said Jordon.
"Hi there everyone. I am here as a representative of the Mythrill academy. I hope we will get along and enjoy this trip together" said Nina while reverting to her normal form.
"I see. So you are Ryzen-kun's sister. Its a pleasure to meet you" said Rimuru while holding out his hand for a handshake.
"And you are?"
"Oh my apologies. I am Rimuru Tempest. I just transferred here a while ago, so you may not have heard of me" said Rimuru.
"I see. Well then. Nice to meet you too" said Nina and shook Rimuru's hand.
As soon as she touched Rimuru, she felt an intense presence and removed her hand instantly.
"Come on Rimuru sa-n You don't need to bother with her. Lets go" said Ryzen and took Rimuru away.
"That's rude you know? Alright then I will see you in tomorrow's treasure hunt" said Nina.
Author's note: I enjoyed writing this chapter a lot. Hope you enjoyed reading it as well :)
Do tell me if you like these type of chapters.