Volume 6 - CH 7

Due to the change in the number of matches, the third round was moved up. Because that information dribbled out, things were greatly disordered. It was particularly important for the contenders of the second round. After all, it was the general rule that each contender would have one fight per day. Now that assumption had been overturned suddenly, and they would be forced to fight repeatedly instead. Basically, the second round would be held at 9AM, and the third at 6PM. Being told to free up that time was like dousing hot rocks with water. Naturally, there was protest. From those related to the contenders of course, as well as audience members who had already made reservations for the final day and the local businesses who had made plans for catering to Festival customers efficiently. But the administration committee did not make a satisfactory explanation, and this shortening of the schedule was forced through.

In this confusion, the second round of the 62nd Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival began. What the heck was the administration committee thinking?

—What Ikki and the others knew of this state of affairs was that in A Block's second round, Sword Emperor of Wind Ouma Kurogane and Panzer Grizzley Renji Kaga had won their respective matches. Afterwards, they joined Kagami Kusakabe of the Hagun Academy Newspaper Club.

"Ahh, there they are! Yoohoo, hey everyone!"

"Oh my, isn't it Kagamin?"

"Good afternoon, Kusakabe-san."

Having found Ikki and the other contenders, Kagami noisily ran up to them, speaking loudly.

"Haha, congrats on getting the win, all of you! Who would've though that Hagun Academy's reps would all make it through the first round! It's the first time in Hagun's history! Brilliant work, brilliant! Actually, I wanted to congratulate you yesterday, but it was frantic putting together all of the data sent to the school, and by the time I could get a break, the sun was already up~!"

"You sure are lively despite that."

Arisuin rebutted so with a light smile, and Kagami puffed her chest proudly.

"Obviously! What kind of reporter sputters out because of an all-nighter? Besides, isn't 『Hagun's Representatives All Win Through The First Round』 the most uplifting kind of article? Who'd get tired with something that fun and happy? Oreki-sensei told me everyone back at the academy were also celebrating loudly all night!"

"What would they be doing at school if they weren't already considered adults?"

"Ahaha, yeah really. But isn't that fine anyway? It wasn't just us yesterday. Everyone was up. Stella-chan in particular! Did you know? The percentage of people who were watching that one-on-four bout! Eighty-two percent! Even more than for the KOK A-League finals! What a shock! It was like New Years Eve! …Oh, huh?"

Kagami's machine-gun chatter came to a stop.

Because the topic, Stella, was…

"...Auu~"

...curled up with her back against the fence, groaning.

"...Doesn't Stella-chan seem out of it? What happened? Is it that day of the month?"

Arisuin bopped the top of Kagami's head at her unrefined comment, then told Stella's reason for balling up like this.

"It's because she kicked around everyone else in B-Block, so she feels responsible for making Ikki fight more than once a day even though he can't do it."

Hearing that, Kagami's face changed in agreement.

"Ahh… I see. That's true. Senpai's ability is a huge problem in consecutive fights, isn't it…."

Whether Ittou Shura or Ittou Rasetsu, Ikki's Noble Arts didn't leave any magic power remaining once used. And he needed a day to recover enough to use them again. Undeniably, his available tactics were limited. That was drastic.

"I told her I wasn't that worried about it though. It's not like I'm the only one who has to fight multiple times. And first of all, it's not like she could predict a special exception would be made like this."

As Ikki said, this kind of decision wouldn't usually be made. The number of days in the event was abruptly truncated despite the match venue's contract and security schedule already having been set. The Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival was not just a contest for students, but an entertainment business. The administration committee's decision this time had broken every possible operation scheme surrounding the Festival. Normally, the number of matches not being enough wouldn't lead to such an unreasonable decision. So to blame this effect on Stella would be too unfair. Instead, as far as Ikki was concerned, he'd rather she reflect on betraying him by bargaining with Sara last night, but….

"…Kusakabe-san. Since you have access to the mass media information network, do you know anything about this? Why would the administration committee send down such a decision?"

"Hmm… well…. If you ask me, I could tell you, but…."

While giving that vague response to Shizuku's question, Kagami made a troubled face. And with a fleeting sideways glance toward Stella, who had been emitting such gloom this whole time that she was practically a humidifier, she spoke.

"But it's hard to say it when it might be Stella's finishing blow."

"Huh? Th-Then it really is my fault? I'm the bad one!?"

Jumping up with a bang, Stella approached Kagami blue-faced. Facing that, Kagami shook her head frantically to deny it.

"No no no! That's not it! You didn't do anything wrong, Stella-chan! This is all due to the adult world's money getting entangled in everything. But… well, you've been caught up in it."

"Kagami-san, it can't be helped if you're worried about finishing your statement here, so can you tell us anyway?"

"This is a secret, you know?"

In response to Ikki's demand, Kagami said only a few words.

"The Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival is by appearance for students and for business, but money changes hands when Blazers fight. The cost of reserving the venue. The cost of repairing damage to the facility. The cost of ensuring the audience safety. The cost of transportation maintenance or committee personnel fees or everything else—it wasn't awful without a great amount of money, but the wheels wouldn't turn without that money either. The revenue from spectators or and sponsorship advertisements was good, but not enough. So the Japanese branch of the League of Mage-Knight Nations who controlled the performance of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival had auctioned off its broadcast rights. And with that revenue they had worked out a way to deal with various expenses. In truth, this was a festival for the youngsters who would carry the burden of this country's future, so they had not prepared the broadcast rights ahead of time, but the main headquarters of the League hated to interfere with the Japanese government's knight training, thus they had a rule which forbade accepting support money from the government. This means they won't be able to hold the exhibition. That makes all of this inevitable. But even with this situation, they still managed to make such a splendid show!"

"Through investors, right?"

"Exactly. The reason the administration committee forced this schedule shortening was because investors made an explosive objection. 'We didn't hear anything about B-Block's second and third rounds not being held! You're breaking the contract!'. And so on."

"...How difficult. In a contest between fellow humans, so it seems rare for any to abstain and lessen the number of matches."

Kagami nodded to the amazed Arisuin.

"Well, yeah. So usually neither the administration committee nor the main HQ that's backing them would listen to this kind of objection, and usually the investors wouldn't make such a nonsensical fuss in the first place. But this year is a bit different."

"Different?"

"Yeah. …I just said that they auctioned off the broadcast rights, but in practice—and this is definitely a secret—the broadcaster for the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival rotates every year, by secret agreement with the key bureau members. The main League HQ pretends to protest, but since it's an important national event, they say it's to make handing out the broadcasts fair. That's why the bidding price hardly ever changes. For the last decade, it's been kept at about five billion yen each year[1]. This has been funds the Festival administration committee uses every year. …But this year is different. This year's committee… to put it simply, the money they made by auction was one hundred billion yen[2]!"

"A-A hundred billion!?"

"Wh-What the heck, isn't that twenty times the usual amount!? Why would it be so…."

At the extreme jump in cost, Arisuin and Shizuku almost screamed. But Ikki immediately considered the reason for this price inflation.

"—Ah, I see. That's how Stella is caught up in this, huh?"

"Your judgment is good. That's exactly right, Senpai."

"Huh? Wh-What do you mean!? Why am I involved with this money?"

Stella was bewildered, not following the conversation. Kagami explained it to her.

"It's because you're a huge world star, Stella-chan. You're a princess and a knight. That would be enough as a reason. And yet you also have an A-rank magic capacity, the highest level in the world. If we add your exceptional beauty, enough to be a national idol, it'll jump past three-of-a-kind and full house right to straight flush, you know!? Having you here completely changes the essence of the Festival show. The Festivals in the past were certainly popular, but only within Japan itself. But if the Crimson Princess Stella Vermillion, who all the world has its eyes on is attending, it's not just a performance for Japan anymore. All the countries under the League would be dragged into it as well. Naturally, broadcasters overseas would bring in money endlessly too, to get television rights!"

But in cases of large amounts of money, investors must be able to collect their money seriously. They wouldn't be working with the usual sort of finance contracts. This was a contest they couldn't afford to lose.

"In this big show, One of the main players, Stella-chan, wouldn't have some of her matches. There would be two days where Stella wouldn't show up. For investors, this is something they can't look past. So they objected. No, not something as halfhearted as objecting. Money is money. They were on the level of screaming. And the only thing the administration committee can't take is a one-sided attack regarding money."

If it's like that, then no joke, there would be deaths. And not just one or two people.

"So that's why from last night to this morning, they've been loudly disputing things, and in the end to the bidders who won broadcasting rights, the administration committee… that's to say, one day's worth of the price out of five was returned to each country, and on top of that, the schedule was condensed to remove one of the days without Stella-chan appearing. Plus one of the days schedule for the finals was changed to an exhibition match with A-League mage knights. And probably sometime today, Stella-chan will get a request to participate in that exhibition for some reason or other!"

"...I didn't know that what I did was going to have this kind of result."

Hearing that her action had triggered such huge mayhem, Stella seemed like she was about to sob.

"How should I take responsibility…?"

But to Stella who mumbled this….

"No, you're wrong!"

Kagami declared so with an unusually strong tone.

"K-Kagami?"

"It wasn't your fault that the Pierrot broke the rules, and you shouldn't feel obliged to anything just because the other two from Akatsuki decided to withdraw on their own! The administration committee recognized that this was an irregular match to begin with, and still formally permitted it. And besides… everyone at school was really happy, including me!"

"Happy…?"

"Because, Stella-chan, to beat our enemy without letting them get away, you took on such an unreasonable match, didn't you? Even though this competition is so important to you, you took on such a risk and fought for the rest of us who were too weak to do anything. When we saw you beat them up, our mood re~ally cleared up!"

Saying so, Kagami hugged Stella without holding back.

"Thank you! I like you more and more!"

"Kagamiii… yeah, I like you too."

Stella also answered Kagami's embrace.

Because of that sunny expression, she seemed freed from the unnecessary sense of responsibility—that was good. Ikki believed so from the bottom of his heart as he watched the two of them. In the first place, students shouldn't have to worry about their sponsors. Kagami who didn't fail to miss that wasn't being smooth-tongued. They simply had a good friend in her.

Ultimately, thanks to Kagami-san, Stella is fine now.

In that case, after this—is the series of mayhem. Should they go and watch how this all played out?

「And so… and so… hurt more. Bleed more. Cut more. I will cheer for that Ikki-kun until I grow hoarse. I want to see you break, break, and break as you keep on defying your fate!」

Remembering that voice, a creeping fear pricked up and down his body. Ikki knew someone who was capable of creating this kind of chaos.

"...Onii-sama. Could this be…."

It seemed that Shizuku had also reached the same guess. With a stiff face, Ikki looked up. In response, he nodded.

"Yeah, that's what I think too. He hoped for me to be at a disadvantage yesterday, didn't he?"

"Hmm? Senpai, what are you talking about? It sounds like your insinuating something."

"…As a matter of fact, something happened yesterday—"

"The ability to make any wish come true… what the heck. Isn't that absurd…!?"

"But that kind of ability is consistent with the mysterious battle record, right? I see, I see."

The conversation with Amane, and the misfortune he created for the White-Robed Knight Kiriko Yakushi; after hearing about all of that, Stella and Kagami frowned.

"Hey, Kagami. If we informed the administration committee about this, can't we get Amane disqualified? Is interfering with an ability from outside a match the most forbidden of all?"

"Hmm… that's a strict rule, but anyway it's impossible."

"Why!?"

"We don't have any proof. Regarding everything that's happened with the money behind the scenes up to the administration committee's forced decision, there's been some irregularities, but it's still more or less within reason. That's how it's been going so far. So there's no way to produce evidence that his power intervened, even if Shinomiya-kun really did do so."

"First of all, if Amane-kun really does have such power, then any action to get him disqualified would definition end in failure."

Stella groaned at the words added by Ikki, looking as if she was going to stomp on the ground in frustration.

"Ahh~so-a-nnoy-ing! Even though he called himself a fan of Ikki, all he does is get in Ikki's way…! Since we're supposed to have time between matches, maybe we should go beat him up…!"

"If you did something like that, you'll just get disqualified yourself, you know."

"Ugh."

At Shizuku's serene voice cutting in, Stella moaned.

But exactly as she said, Stella's elimination would be the only result for such an action.

"Well, there's no need to worry about every little thing with Onii-sama, Stella-san."

And Shizuku, who had been needling Stella, declared so.

"Because in any case, I'll kick him off the stage in this afternoon's third-round match."

Hers was a tone that flowed with confidence.

"Will you be okay, Shizuku? I don't know how we're supposed to fight something on the scale of granting any wish, so I don't have any plan. Besides, like we just heard with the White-Robed Knight, we might not know how that power manifests in battle…"

"My my, Stella-san, could you be worried about me? How surprising. Do you appreciate me now?"

At the blunt teasing, Stella's face reddened like an explosion. From anger, obviously.

"Wha!? D-Don't be stupid! That's impossible! Who'd be worried about a sister-in-law like you!? I just wanted to shut that big mouth full of confidence, so I asked if you had any basis for it!"

"Of course I have some basis. If I didn't, I wouldn't have said it."

"Huh!? Really!?"

"Yes. I've already envisioned a way to defeat his Nameless Glory."

Ikki was astonished to hear that Shizuku had already found somewhere to start in defeating Amane, but Stella showed even greater surprise, and immediately asked.

"A-And how—"

"I won't tell you."

And against Stella who was asking with all her might, Shizuku responded with a hard voice that she would say nothing more, then stuck out her tongue. Instantly, Stella's hair stood up in fiery radiance.

"Ikki—your little sister's personality is horrible! How exactly was she brought up!?"

"Hahaha… She used to be a good and meek little girl though."

"That's not true, Onii-sama. Shizuku was only ever a good girl in front of you."

Hearing something he didn't want to hear so bluntly, Ikki was just a little bit dejected. And at that exact moment—

「An announcement for all C-Block contenders. After ten minutes of intermission and clearing of the ring, the C-Block second round matches will begin. C-Block contenders, please gather in the waiting room. Again—"

The announcement resounded through the venue. C-Block was the one with Ikki registered.

"I see. Since there's no match for B-Block, after A-Block comes C. Then I should get to the waiting room."

Saying so, Ikki took a step away from the group, and all of his friends gave yells of support.

"Onii-sama, I'll pray for your success."

"There's more than one fight today, so ration your strength carefully."

"Do your best, Senpai! I'm looking forward to some good photos!"

Returning a smile to those cheers, Ikki looked toward Stella last. Stella… chewed her lips with a downcast look, wondering if she should apologize for the issue with the matches.

"...Ikki, umm…."

How should she cheer him on, when she bore some part of the responsibility for putting him in this situation? Stella was probably roiling in that complicated question.

Ikki guess so—and spoke up himself.

"It's a sign of good fortune that we're thinking the same thing, right?"

"Ah, umm, yeah?"

Her thoughts cut through unexpectedly, Stella stared back with a blank face. She probably didn't understand any part of his statement. But as far as Ikki was concerned, it was neither accident nor fluke. Because—

"We didn't expect for the final battle we wanted so badly to move up by one day. What's that, if not good fortune? All this time, whenever I see your face, I can't help but boil inside… and aren't you the same?"

Ikki said these words with a quiet fighting spirit burning blue in his eyes. At those words, Stella widened her scarlet eyes at once.

"Yeah, of course!"

She replied with a shining smile. Her scarlet irises were no longer averted, staring straight at Ikki with emotions aflame. And Stella, with her tone back to normal, tapped Ikki's shoulder with one fist.

"I know you won't lose!"

"Right… I got it."

And so Ikki strode forward to his match, to the stage of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival's second round—

In the Bay Dome where the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival was being held, there were two gates facing each other, one red and one blue. The Festival contenders were divided evenly between the two gates, held in the respective waiting rooms behind each gate to await the announcer. The decision of which gate a particular participant would go to was sent each morning by mail from the administration committee. In Ikki's case, he had been behind the blue gate yesterday. Today was red. It was a bit inconvenient to change the appointed place every day, but this was just a match formality, and it couldn't be helped that the room he'd be waiting in and the people he'd be waiting with changes every time—yes, in other words.

This sort of thing would inevitably happen, huh~

While sitting down on a folding chair in the dreary waiting room, Ikki nervously and hesitantly peeked at the situation. It was a seven-by-fifteen meter bare concrete room. There, a bare-chested young man with a death's head tattoo was plopped in a folding chair, his legs crossed—Donrou Academy third-year, Sword Eater Kuraudo Kurashiki. The one who the girl named Ayase Ayatsuji had been locked in battle with, and Ikki's fated opponent. Furthermore, with the eight original people of C-Block reduced to four, and the four divided between the two gates, there was nobody else in the room. Two opponents fated to meet in furious combat, alone in the same room before a match. Naturally, there wouldn't be any conversation… the atmosphere was as heavy as lead. Besides—

Umm… he's been glaring this way the entire time.

Kuraudo had been scowling in Ikki's direction with his brow creased since Ikki entered the room. Even if Ikki couldn't read his mind, the veins bulging on his forehead were plainly visible.

He… he's not going to charge at me, right?

Ikki, who knew Kuraudo's wild temperament and had earned Kuraudo's hate, was in a state of tense suspense. And after spending about an hour in that state of both mental and bodily disquiet….

「An announcement for contenders standing by in their waiting rooms. The time has come for C-Block's second round matches to begin. Contenders Sara Bloodlily and Kuraudo Kurashiki, please proceed to your respective gates.」

…the announcer invited the contenders to their match. Finally, the tension of being in the same cage as a hungry lion was released. Thinking this, Ikki heaved a breath of relief—

"Haa…."

—and at the same time, Kuraudo also released a huge sigh.

"…Finally, I can get outta this room, huh?"

As if Kuraudo was revealing relief from the bottom of his heart. Maybe he was just as hesitant toward Ikki as Ikki had been toward him… no, that wouldn't be the case.

"Man, it sure was hard stopping myself from beating you to death the second I saw your face."

Eek!

Hearing Kuraudo's real reason made Ikki's complexion turn bad.

"…Thanks for your patience."

"No problem. I already decided getting disqualified here would be a pain in the ass. There's just one fight between now and us going at it today. I'll butcher you then…!"

"You're surprisingly confident, but shouldn't you be thinking about your current opponent? Sara Bloodlily is from Akatsuki… in other words, she's a terrorist from Rebellion. She's not someone you can deal with normally—"

"That's none of your business."

Kuraudo declared so with no hesitation in his voice.

"I don't care about who or what that girl is. That ain't important to me. The only thing I'm here for is my match with you."

In an instant, Kuraudo's body erupted in fighting spirit and magic power that raised goosebumps all over Ikki's skin.

"I came here to fight you. I've been training for two months to pay you back. Getting stronger to win against you…!"

The rising fighting spirit and magic power grew with the voltage in Kuraudo's words, changing in color as he focused it in his right hand.

The magic power filled with the intent to do battle took shape for combat, into a skeletal sword made of bone formed like a great serpent—the Device Orochimaru.

"Wha…!?"

Ikki unintentionally released a gasp upon seeing the Device. Why? This wasn't the first time he's seen Orochimaru. The reason was in Kuraudo's left hand. Somehow, Kuraudo was holding a Device of exactly the same shape in his left hand as in his right.

"T-Two sword style…!?"

That was impossible. Certainly there were Blazers who could develop their Devices, but that was because those Devices had that kind of nature. Sword Eater Kuraudo Kurashiki's Device Orochimaru was a single sword. It wasn't like Arisuin's Device that could be split into multiples. If that had been the case, Kuraudo would certainly had fought Ikki previously using two sword style. After all, Sword Eater's Marginal Counter would be much more suited for two blades than a single one. Furthermore, if one looked carefully, one could see that the Devices themselves had changed. Previously, Kuraudo's Orochimaru had saw-tooth edging on one side, giving it a shape close to a hatchet. But now, Orochimaru had an edge on both sides, like a Western blade.

—The Device had changed this much. It was beyond common sense, because a Device reflected a Blazer's inner spirit, his personal values and aesthetics, his personality and lifestyle—how could it be changed to this degree? It couldn't be. Imaging the determination and the kind of training Kuraudo had undertaken to abandon all he had been, to kill off all he had been so completely was…!

But he must have done so. To win against Ikki. To catch up to Ikki.

"Kurogane… you better make it. I'll be waiting. Once you get there, we're gonna have another go. We're gonna have that kind of fun again…!"

Ikki's lips curled upward. His chest grew hot. He was happy. Someone had gone this far to win against him. In that case—

"Yeah, I will. Definitely."

There was no reason to refuse this challenge.

"…Ha ha ha."

Hearing Ikki's answer, Kuraudo laughed in satisfaction, turned on his heel, threw open the door to the entrance gate, and left the waiting room. The sword spirit swelling from his back was already no longer that of a delinquent. It had been honed to that of a top-grade swordsman. Ikki, for verified this, quivered.

"The Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival really is the best."

Not a single person here was simple. Not a single person here was halfhearted. There were only battles where not even a bit of complacency was permitted. And so, he would face off with all that he had. Ikki decided this, gazing at Kuraudo's distant back.

「Ahh… thank you for waiting! The contenders for the first match of C-Block's second round are now heading for their gates!」

At the announcement, cheers swelled through the venue. Amid the gushing applause—

「First to appear from the red gate is Donrou Academy third-year contender, Kuraudo Kurashiki! His Marginal Counter is an impregnable defense that surpasses natural limits! His flexible serpentine Device Orochimaru gives him mastery of range! Having taken countless victories with these two advantages, he was named "Sword Eater"! Will this bloodthirsty wolf's fangs cut his enemies to pieces today as well!?」

Amid the cheers of the great audience, Kuraudo walked to the ring's perimeter with strong steps, then stepped onto the artificial grass. Seeing that, Stella who was in the audience suddenly tilted her head in confusion.

"Huh?"

"Did something happen, Stella-san?"

"...That guy is… using two swords…."

"Oh my my? That's certainly strange, isn't it? And I get the feeling that his Device is different from what's in my information."

Carried in Kuraudo's hands were two bone swords. But they were inconsistent with his weapon in Stella's recollection. It was the same for Kagami. That's why the two had confused expressions, but—

"Aren't you worried? I hadn't heard of a Device changing like that."

"I heard that sometimes a Device changes because a knight lost his memory during an incident. Well, it's not a common thing. Maybe we're misunderstanding it? Or maybe he always could use two swords, but didn't back then?"

Arisuin and Shizuku, who had not been a part of the matter with Ayase Ayatsuji, did not feel the same confusion. Indeed, it was not common for someone to change his own soul's nature by will. But Kuraudo decided to do so, simply to win against Ikki. But Stella and Kagami did not judge it this way.

"Huh? Is that how it is? I have a hunch that's not the reason though."

After considering the question, Stella gave up thinking about it. It wasn't necessary information at this point. And anyway, another Blazer had appeared in the ring at this time. From the ink-like darkness, there came a swirl of unkempt blonde hair. That was—

「And now! From the blue gate, Akatsuki Academy first-year contender, Sara Bloodlily! As usual, it's hard to find an appropriate place to look! It's like she'll become naked if she moves even a little bit suddenly. Will the broadcasting code allow it!? This looks to be a match that a portion of our audience will have to skip watching!」

"What's this announcer going on about?"

Stella coughed in exasperation at the juicy commentary. And Kagami added some of her own.

"No, no. Sara-chan is surprisingly popular in online forums, you know? For her amazingly provocative attire of course, but also for her charisma."

"…Somehow I don't think I get understand how the world thinks."

While useless conversation continued above, the two people in the ring came to their starting positions.

「Now then, the first C-Block match for the 62nd Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival's second round, Contender Kuraudo Kurashiki versus Contender Sara Bloodlily!」

「LET'S GET STARTED—!」

The signal to begin the match rang loudly.

"Ha ha!"

The one who moved at the same time as the starting signal was Kuraudo. Swinging the two blades of Orochimaru, he crossed the twenty meters separating him from his opponent at the beginning of the match.

"Jakotsu Soujin—!"

The paired blades of Orochimaru moved as if they had wills of their own, and approached Sara's neck.

"Brush of the Demiurge."

Sara dabbed paint from her palette and scattered it on the ground at her feet.

"Jakotsu Soujin—!"[3]

With speed that the eye could not follow, he sent his blades through those twenty meters in an instant. Indeed, his Device Orochimaru can stretch and contract at will. Everything with the hundred-meter diameter ring was within his range. The paired blades of Orochimaru moved as if they had wills of their own, and approached Sara's neck. The saw-teeth edges turned as they flew the course toward taking Sara's head from her shoulders.

But Sara also moved.

"Brush of the Demiurge." [4]

What manifested was a palette of colored paint and a worn-out brush stained with pigment. This was the Device of the Bloody Da Vinci, Sara Bloodlily, Brush of the Demiurge. Sara dabbing a spot of light blue paint from her palette—

"Color of Magic—Aqua Blue of Water Surface."[5]

—and scattered the paint on the ground at her feet, turning the green of the ring there blue. In the next instant—her body submerged into the aqua blue with the sound of a water droplet.

A moment later, the bone blade aiming for her neck struck in vain. Kurauda strained his eyes searching for the enemy that had disappeared in an instant. But in another instant, something burst out from the water behind him in his blind spot with a splash. Of course, it was Sara Bloodlily who had disappeared into the aqua blue before. She had been swimming across the ring using Color of Magic, and got into Kuraudo's blind spot, and—

"Color of Magic—Fire Red of Brilliant Blaze." [6]

Dabbing scarlet paint with the tip of her brush, she swung her arm and threw the paint at Kuraudo's back. Despite the amount that she threw from her brush, what poured onto Kuraudo seemed to be a paint bucket's worth of color. But—

"Ha!"

To Kuraudo, who had been born with the superhuman reflexes called Marginal Counter, surprise attacks were meaningless. Even if one came from behind, even if it attacked his blind spot, Kurado's more than capable of evading. He dashed away from that spot, dodging the descending paint. Paint was once again scattered upon the ring. And as it flew, the magma-like color spurted fire, disintegrating the ring where it landed.

「Th-This is amazing…! An exchange of such dangerous techniques as soon as the match started!」

「Neither Contender Kurashiki who aimed to decapitate Contender Bloodlily, and Contender Bloodlily who responded with fiery Color of Magic, hesitated at all. This will likely be a hard match for the main referee to interrupt.」

"Hey, Kagami."

Suddenly, Stella who was watching the match from the audience seats asked something to Kagami who was sitting next to her.

"I haven't been paying attention to any matches besides the one I'll have with Ikki, but exactly what kind of ability does Sara have? She pulled out all kinds of stuff in an instant."

"Hmm, well, from the data while she was in Rokuzon, her Blazer rank was C. Her Blazer ability was manipulating concepts through color. For example, the exchange just now used aqua blue for water, a spell for creating a lake. And fire red for flame, a spell for invoking heat where she puts the color."

This was information that Kagami got by exchanging data with the Rokuzon Academy Newspaper Club. Since there was no reason for Rokuzon to hold back information on an Akatsuki member who had betrayed that academy, one could say this information was very likely accurate.

"That's very versatile, isn't it."

"True. She has as many abilities as she has colors. Because of that diversity in ability, Rokuzon Academy called her… 'Kaleidoscope'."

"What a pain…. I wanted to get this over with quickly…."

Standing in an untouched section of the charred ring, Sara muttered and gazed bitterly. A feeling of disinterest and boredom drifted from her entire body. That was only to be expected. Her head as currently filled with the thought of finally having found her ideal model. She wanted to study it closely. She wanted to touch and lick and eat it, as raw as possible. That interest was suppressing everything else, especially her inclination to dirty her hands with other matters. And this obsession was especially strong for an artist. She was already showing loss of control. For Sara, there was usually no chance that she would be so negligent in this kind of match.

"…Don't run around…."

So thinking only of ending this quickly, Sara once again took aim at Kuraudo who had dodged her Fire Red of Brilliant Blaze. However—

「What a haphazard attack from Contender Sara! Even though Color of Magic had previously been launched from a blind spot, this time she's throwing it all straight from the front! But how would it be able to hit…!?」

Exactly so. Even a normal person without Marginal Counter would probably be able to dodge such a sloppy attack. Naturally it wouldn't hit Kuraudo, who casually jumped to the side to avoid it,

"Ha ha! This girl's not even listening to—!?"

Suddenly, he pitched forward.

「Oh! What's this!? Contender Kurashiki was dodging, but suddenly stopped!?」

Why was that? Why did he stop his evasion? No. He didn't stop himself. Something stopped him. How it was done was instantly visible.

「Iida-san! Please look at Sword Eater's feet!」

There, a white line that no one had been aware of was connecting Sara straight to Kuraudo's feet.

"Color of Magic—Silk White of Steady Guidance."[7]

That was the concept of setting a path. It was a road of color that could not be stepped away from. And since the color of brilliant blaze that had been thrown before was used to completely surround this span of ground, Kuraudo was not able to dodge this. But—

"Then I just gotta run down this road—!"

Kuraudo wasn't the least bit hesitant. With his inborn reflexes and his highly trained body, he immediately recovered from his stumble, and immediately strode forward down the path spread before him! And against the scarlet color that was burning down on him—

"Hebigami—!"

—he swung his sword. It was Kuraudo's self-taught swordsmanship that had previously cornered Ikki, an instant counterattack that slashed from both left and right with the sword in his right hand empowered by his inborn Marginal Counter. But now, Kuraudo released it with both hands. Four instant counterattacks in total. The paint falling onto Kuraudo was slashed apart into a spray of color. No specks were missed by Kuraudo's vision, and as they spun through the air, he continued forward without trouble, charging toward Sara on the other end of the path.

Sara probably didn't consider the possibility that someone would be coming at her this way, advancing while warding off her attack. In her surprise, her movements became dull. Naturally, Kuraudo didn't miss this observation. Dashing down the white line with force, he swung his sword, striking Sara with all his might. Against that level of power and strength, Sara was knocked off her feet to spin in midair, and she flew for ten meters before rolling to a stop on the ground.

「Contender Kurashiki's Orochimaru has finally connected! He's made the first hit! Contender Sara goes down from a strike like a traffic accident! Was it fatal!?」

「…No, please look. She's standing up.」

As Muroto said, Sara stood up as if nothing had happened. Upon close inspection, her body was unscratched and not a drop of blood had been shed. How? The reason was on her left arm—where Kuraudo had struck, her arm was covered in paint.

"Color of Magic—Gunmetal Gray of Rigid Steel." [8]

Sara had turned her own arm into steel, and nullified the cutting attack. Bringing back his sword, Kuraudo who had tactile sense beyond that of other humans clicked his tongue.

"Tch. Weird techniques one after the next."

Against so many different techniques up to this point, how would he continue fighting? And yet—the one who got this far was Kuraudo. This fact gave him confidence, straightening his back. He would continue.

"I'll get through this!"

「Seeing an unhurt enemy, the Sword Eater begins again without hesitation!」

「Good judgment. The defense against the previous attack was exceptional, but it can't be maintained continuously. If one attack doesn't settle things, you can only continue attacking until it's done!」

Kuraudo displayed a persistent chain of attacks. Under that, Sara Bloodlily could be seen as being slowly pushed back—her face was lowered as if hanging her head without looking at Kuraudo pilling on force.

"…tating…."

She mumbled something. That voice—it spoke complaints like the dried lips of a ghost.

"…Irritating…. Even though I have a lot of painting to do, even though I have only seventy years of life or so to spend on all of it, there's been only nuisances. This is a nuisance. Even though I want to paint him even one minute, one second sooner… to study himmm… even though I don't have any interest in you….!"

In an instant, Sara's downcast face snapped upward.

Bloodshot eyes filled with hatred and lost patience stabbed toward Kuraudo, and a right hand holding Brush of the Demiurge moved so quickly that observers couldn't follow. With that, something was drawn in the empty air. It was a messy picture that a child could make with a crayon. But—everyone in the hall realized what it was instantly, because in the next moment, the image drawn in midair took on solid form, escaping from artwork into the real world and falling into Sara's left hand. What she now clutched was—no, what she had created, was—

"Purple Caricature—Thompson."[9]

It was perhaps the world's most famous drum-fed machine gun.

「Wh-What is thiiis!? I-It's a gun! Contender Sara drew a gun in midair, then made it real! What kind of Noble Art is this!? I heard she manipulates the concept of color, but there was no data about Kaleidoscope Sara Bloodlily having this kind of ability! This is a hidden power she's never shown before!」

「Hey hey, can you even do that!?」

「Her ability isn't just about colors!?」

Despite previously being known as part of Rokuzon Academy, the Bloody Da Vinci Sara Bloodlily as publicly showing her Noble Art, Purple Caricature, for the first time to the astonishment of the crowd. But the one most surprised was Kuraudo. And Sara aimed her Thompson at Kuraudo, pulling the trigger. When she did, the gun—as if it was no different from a real one—emitted intense muzzle flashes and resounded with explosions of gunpowder.

"Kuh!"

A stream of full-auto fire at a rate of eight hundred shots per minute. Had the Sword Eater stopped at a distance, he could have protected himself completely even from this. But—when he charged in recklessly, he put himself too close!

「Terrible gunshots we can hear even from the broadcasting station! Contender Sara fires ceaselessly without mercy! Contender Kurashiki will definitely die—n-no!?」

Unexpectedly, the announcer's tone flipped. Because—

"GRRAAAHHHHH!"

「A-Amazing! Contender Kurashiki took the attack! Swinging his two skeletal swords, he's cutting down all the bullets in a shower of sparks—!」

Indeed, it was true. Kuraudo had shortened the length of Orochimaru into two daggers, and deflecting all of the Thompson's full-auto shots at very close range. At this, even Muroto was at a loss for explanation.

「It really is amazing. A feat that only he, with Marginal Counter, could perform.」

And for Kuraudo who was enduring Sara's fierce attack with a heart-ripping scream, an opportunity came. Suddenly, a blunt click resounded, and Sara's barrage ended. There was no need to confirm the reason.

She's out of bullets!?

With this excellent chance, Kuraudo switched completely to offense.

"Extend, Orochimaru—!"

Growing from its shortest length, the blade of Orochimaru shot outward with great force, aiming at Sara's heart. Sara's physical ability was not at Kuraudo's level. She could not avoid the extending Orochimaru, which had just been able to keep up with her fast bullets. And yet—at the instant the point of the sword would have arrived at her heart, Orochimaru veered away in its trajectory, stabbing into the ground next to her.

"Huh!?"

Even Kuraudo was confused by this. He surely extended Orochimaru straight forward. Such strange behavior should not have occurred. So why did the trajectory change…!?

But Kuraudo instantly realized the answer. Upon closer look at the ground where Orochimaru was stuck, a bulls-eye target had been drawn there.

So it was pulled into the target…!?

Via the concept of "target" and "aim", Orochimaru had been forced to shift its mark. It was the same as with a gun. In other words…

This girl is definitely… not just using colors! She can manipulate any concept she draws…!

Illusions that paint over reality. That kind of artistry was not unlike divine creation. Demiurge's—a false god's brush. Wasn't it a very appropriate name? And Kurashiki's surprise didn't end there. Because—

"Purple Caricature—"

—the next illusion was being drawn at that very moment, aimed at him.

Floating next to Sara Bloodlily was a white and long pole-like thing. No doubt it was—

"—Tomahawk." [10]

—a missile. Naturally, there was no possible way for a pair of swords to deal with something like this.

A flash and a roar and an explosion of heat reached into the sky above Osaka.

At the moment of detonation, screams of agony sounded from all over the venue.

「D-Direct hiiit! What an immense blast from the cruise missile! It looks like the audience was protected by mage-knights, but the ring is so covered by flame and smoke that we can't see a thing! Is Contender Kurashiki safe…!?」

「No, he must be dead!」

「Even if that's true, there's no trace of him left!」

Naturally, because a Tomahawk was a cruise missile designed to destroy battleships or fortifications. It was not firepower for use against a single individual. A direct hit from that would leave not a single piece of meat behind.

And yet—

「Eh?」

As the black smoke cleared from the venue, it slowly became possible to see the ring, and both the audience and the broadcasters swallowed a breath. In the ring, Kuraudo was indeed not there. Well, that was expected. Anyone could've predicted that. But if so, then what was that?

Where Kuraudo had been standing, something that looked like a white cocoon was….

And in the moment everyone was thinking over the question, it was answered. The cocoon that had appeared in the ring began to come apart slowly. Layers upon layers of white ribbon separated with rustling noises. If one looked very, very closely, the ribbons that made up the cocoon… were blades. White blades of bone that didn't catch the light. And what came out of the cocoon was—an uninjured Kuraudo Kurashiki.

「Wh-What is thiiis!? Contender Kurashiki isn't wounded at all after taking a cruise missile's direct hit! How can this be!?」

「It appears that since the Device Orochimaru can be lengthened or contracted at will, he wrapped it around his body, and allowed it to absorb the explosion. Devices are not things that chip or break easily, so they can be used as shields to take blows.」

Indeed, what Muroto said was surely true. Kuraudo discerned that he couldn't use a sword to match a missile, so he drew Orochimaru as long and thin as he could to use as material for an improvised shelter. But this was also a feat that only Kuraudo with his Marginal Counter could perform. Actually, the timing was truly tight.

"…What a ridiculous thing to do."

Kuraudo scowled at Sara who must be standing in the drifting smoke. He was going after her life mercilessly as well, but Sara didn't have any concern for limits. To bring such massive firepower to kill a single person was—

As Kuraudo was cursing her, the black smoke in front of him shifted in the breeze, and he saw….

Muzzles of military machine guns were pointed at him by an army corps of over a hundred skeletons.

"Purple Caricature—Necro Battalion." [11]

"This girl… really is way too much…."

That instant, the hundred or so muzzles fired a storm of lead that couldn't be compared to the density or speed from before. All of it hit Kuraudo, to punch his body into a honeycomb.

"Wha…!?"

Gun barrels in formation. Seeing Kuraudo swallowed by the storm of lead flying from those barrels in unison, Ikki leaped up from his folding chair, sending it crashing to the ground. Was he seeing Kuraudo's gruesome last moments?

—No.

"I-It can't be…."

What spilled from his trembling lips was surprise. The bullets certainly hit. Such a dense barrage would definitely turn a human into not just a honeycomb, but ground meat. That was certain, but Kuraudo was standing calmly inside that storm of lead as if it wasn't affecting him at all.

「Wh-What is this!? Are we really seeing this, or is it a dream…!? Contender Kuraudo should've been devoured by the undead army's fire…! But he's standing! No, not just standing… he's walking! Inside the horizontal rain of lead, he's calmly continuing forward, approaching Contender Sara Bloodlily—!」

At this spectacle, even Sara was shaking with her mouth open. Inconceivable. It was a barrage of lead with no gaps to hide in. Kuraudo had blocked the automatic gunshots from the Thompson, but this was not an amount of bullets that he could deal with. No, Kuraudo wasn't even swinging his sword right now. He was only carrying Orochimaru in his hands. In other words, he was taking hundreds of machine gun shots without defending himself. Then how was he standing? How was he facing this?

The method—was something only Ikki Kurogane in the arena waiting room knew. Kuraudo was indeed not making any attempt to dodge, just as he appeared. His body was exposed to the barrage defenselessly. And yet the bullets were not gouging out his flesh—they were veering aside. The moment any touched Kuraudo's body, it glided past over his clothing, flowed around him without wounding. No—they were being made to do so.

...Kurashiki-kun figured it out somehow while learning swordsmanship. He realized that two-sword style was an excellent fit for his ability. There must have been someone to point it out, and more than anything his previous aggression and sharpness isn't there anymore. What's here now is a swordsman's well-honed spirit. But how… how can it be… the one behind Kurashiki-kun is… you…!?

Ikki knew. A certain genius swordsman's perfect defense of grasping the flow of everything in nature, perceiving their subtleties to ward off each and every attack, derived after half a lifetime of risk—

Ayatsuji Single-Sword Style secret technique—Ten'i Muhou.

…That's right, Ayatsuji-san said that she was going to spend summer vacation with her father while he was in rehabilitation, but he sent her away.

That's right. That's how it was. If he had a student like this, he'd instantly be sentenced to death as a matter of family judgment. To teach somone who had half-killed him, what was the Last Samurai thinking? Ikki couldn't get that far into his head, but even so—

"A-Amazing…."

At Kuraudo's talent, words of admiration spilled from Ikki's mouth. This was something he couldn't imitate. Ikki's Ten'i Muhou would never be able to divert this many bullets. In fact, back at the training camp while fighting the Pierrot's rock puppets, many of them had attacked him at once, and he had taken hard blows he couldn't dodge. Yet Kuraudo was eluding hundreds of attacks completely. This was a feat that his Marginal Counter allowed. Ten'i Muhou and Marginal Counter had great synergy. Ordinary attacks were now probably already unable to even scratch him.

"...Tch. After a missile, now it's a whole brigade. Coming up with this and that, are you Dora●mon[12] or something? This was a trick I finally managed to get so I could use it on that bastard in our match."

While calmly walking within the hail of bullets, Kuraudo spat bitterly. It seemed that he wanted revenge for having been knocked unconscious back then, coughing and pissing blood while undergoing hellish training that was likely potentially fatal, all for a secret technique that he finally mastered at the edge of death and sanity, for something to astonish Ikki with in their fight.

Against that, Sara's soldiers raised the density of their barrage even more. But—all of it flowed around him, and Kuraudo's skin wasn't even lightly torn.

"Useless useless useless! No matter how much lead you send flying straight at me, it's all wasted effort! That kind of thing's not gonna stop me!"

To give a swordsman clad in Ten'i Muhou a fatal strike, one must deliver a cut backed by skill and force. But Sara was a painter. Naturally, she could not use a sword, and so she couldn't stop Kuraudo's advance!

"Hey, you said something interesting a while ago, didn't you? That you weren't interested in me. That I was a nuisance. What a coincidence… I think the same thing. I only care about the guy after you. I'm not even thinking about a small fry like you. So—

—get the hell out of my way!"

With that roar, Kuraudo began rushing toward Sara who was still standing behind the skeleton army stretched out before him. Naturally, the undead soldiers descended upon him with bayonets to stop him, but—

"Mooovvveee!"

Kuraudo extended Orochimaru to great length, and cut them down in a single swing. One horizontal line. The bisected skeletons turned to ripped paper. The only enemy left in the ring was Sara—

"It's overrr!"

Kuraudo extended his sword again, aiming at his last enemy's neck. Against that, Sara didn't stay still. Moving her arm at a blurring speed once more, she drew something using Brush of the Demiurge. But whatever. Whether it was a tank or a fighter jet or a giant robot—it wouldn't be a match for Kuraudo. No matter what appeared, he'd cut it down! With such spirit, Kuraudo swung Orochimaru with all his might.

But—

*Clang*

The air rang with the sound of heavy clashing metal, and the white bone blade lurched back.

"….Wh…!"

At that moment, Kuraudo's expression was frozen in shock. His full-force attack had been blocked—no, it was more than that. It had been stopped by Kaleidoscope Sara Bloodlily, the lowest opponent. Now Kuraudo was confused to the point that he couldn't recover. And the thing so surprising that he couldn't breathe was—

The thing that had blown Kuraudo's full force attack back was a black-haired boy holding a glimmering black katana.

"Purple Caricature—Crownless Sword King." [13]

And Sara said this.

"If you want to fight him so badly… then you can do it as much as you like."

Instantly, the Crownless Sword King who'd pushed Orochimaru back lowered his waist.

Oh sh—!

"Ittou Shura."

Piercing the distance clad in a blue light that cut through the atmosphere, in a flash that no sword could keep up with, he cut deeply into Kuraudo's chest.

"Gaaahhh!"

An attack that sliced his exposed skull tattoo diagonally. The unexpected blade strike made Kuraudo stagger, his blood splashing. But his shock was greater than the damage of the wound. His eyes were locked wide open at the impossible reality before him, and he had no words for it. Nor was he the only one surprised.

「Wh...What is going on!? Contender Kurogane who must be in the waiting room suddenly appeared in the ring, and attacked Contender Kurashiki!」

「I-It can't be! Purple Caricature can even reproduce other Blazers…!?」

At Sara's incredible feat of recreating a Blazer and his Noble Art, the broadcasters and their commentary and the audience and everything else was frozen in disbelief. The Crownless Sword King created by Purple Caricature didn't let this good opportunity go. With sharp strikes that were surely no weaker than Ikki's own, he pressed the attack. Against them, Kuraudo wouldn't be able to counter—

「Contender Kurashiki is on the defensive! He can't make a move! Can he overcome this situation…!?」

「This is terrible for Contender Kurashiki, isn't it? The strength of his Marginal Counter is reaction speed above human norms and the movement speed it allows. Those two speed advantages provide him all kinds of front-line tactical choices. Originally, it would make him an even match with the Crownless Sword King using Ittou Shura, and he could probably stay defensive for one minute—but it seems dual wielding is too much. His reaction speed is still better than the Crownless Sword King, but the maximum acceleration of moving two swords can't keep up with Marginal Counter. At this rate….」

They gave way. The action progressed even faster than Muroto could explain it. Kuraudo's defense with two blades finally gave way, and the strikes from a glimmering black blade the same as the real Crownless Sword King's began to mangle Kuraudo's flesh. In the middle of the ring, fresh blood flew. The Crownless Sword King had been using Ittou Shura for less than twenty seconds. At this rate, Kuraudo couldn't possibly endure.

"Dammit…!"

This fact made Kuraudo grind his teeth.

Am I gonna lose again…!?

Even though he had coughed and pissed blood, worked himself with the intent to change his own soul's shape—

Can I—not beat this guy….

His mind seemed to fracture at this frustration. While taking one hit after another from the Crownless Sword King, his heart was cracking just like his bones. But in that situation, one man's voice consumed Kuraudo's mind. That was—

「Why do you want a rematch with Kurogane-kun this much?」

At the Ayatsuji dojo, he had confronted Kaito… to kneel before the man and beg for training. This had been Kaito's response. Kaito knew Kuraudo wasn't the type to lower his head for anyone, so Kaito asked what the reason was for going this far. Kuraudo's reply was—

「I'm the same as you.」

And his gaze shifted to what Kaito was holding in one hand.

「Even though you just got out of the hospital, and who knows how many years you've got left to live, you're spending another night in a dead dojo doing stuff like this so seriously. In other words, you—hate that you lost to me, and you're not gonna let it go, right?」

「—Right.」

「I'm no different. I'm not gonna stay the loser. My insides are seething—I'm not gonna sit around doing nothing!」

That's right. That's exactly right. He wasn't going to stand getting beaten. So he'll win. He came here to win against Ikki, nothing else. So—

"...Don't… fuck with me…."

He couldn't lose. He couldn't lose to this flimsy imitation…! That honest and straightforward-to-a-fault guy wasn't waiting around for even a second. That guy was rapidly, steadily moving forward, getting farther away at unbelievable speed. But Kuraudo didn't want to be left behind. Yeah, he wanted to be like that. For the first time in Kuraudo's life, he found someone worth admiring. So—

"I'm not gonna lose! To some damn fake!"

With that blood-drenched scream, he struck simultaneously from both left and right using Hebigami. But his counterattack was weakened; Kuraudo had already lost too much blood—

*Slash*

Kuraudo's counter was brushed away, and conversely his torso was cut deeply into. The spray of blood that followed was clearly fatal. His knee was broken and his posture collapsed. His body fell to the ring at last. And at the moment of his fall—

"Kuraudooo! Don't give uuuuuppp!"

A desperate yell of support entered his ears. It was the voice of a guy Kuraudo knew well. A voice he couldn't forget even if he wanted to. When he looked in that direction, indeed that guy was there. Under the red gate, hurry from the waiting room, it was the true Ikki Kurogane. That's right, that guy definitely rushed here, if only to give Kuraudo the slightest push just as he was about to crumble any moment. And that support certainly reached Kuraudo—

*Snap*

Something exploded in Kuraudo's head, in his heart. A blaze of fury and hatred ignited.

—Why? Why are you here? Why are you cheering me on? And with that desperate expression? Why? As if I need that kind of thing from you!?

"Don't look down on me, Kuroganeeeee—!"

Kuraudo's world turned red from outrage. The oxygen-carrying blood in his body started to move at an unprecedented speed, bringing unparalleled vitality to his near-crumpled body. His feet were once again planted firm on the ground, holding Kuraudo's body strong. At that moment, Kuraudo's spirit was surpassing his flesh due to the rage toward Ikki he felt. It was a miraculous moment in which he passed his highest limits. An impossible moment that would vanish like a dream if he took even a single breath more. But for Kuraudo, it was enough. Wagering all his soul, he struck the Crownless Sword King before him in that one moment—

"HAAAAA—!"

Moving his body with extreme speed, he made eight attacks with his own self-taught swordsmanship—Yamata no Orochi.

Kuraudo did so with two swords. In other words, a total of sixteen slashes! It too was different from what it was before, now a series of slashes refined by Kaito. It was the utmost extreme that a combat prodigy born with the natural ability called Marginal Counter could achieve at this moment. Using Ten'i Muhou to slip through it like Ikki had done before would be impossible, and even the world's strongest sword couldn't defend against sixteen strikes flying toward it in an instant—

The Crownless Sword King's body was chopped to pieces, his human shape turning back to mundane paper scattering to the wind—

Two black katanas pierced Kuraudo's body noisily.

Kuraudo stared with dry eyes. Before him, there stood two Crownless Sword Kings clad in blue light, their swords stabbed into him.

「…then you can do it as much as you like.」

Kuraudo now understood what Sara had meant back then. It had been neither provocation nor sarcasm. Its meaning was literal. Sara Bloodlily could do such a thing. She could draw however many dozens of Crownless Sword Kings that it would take until Kuraudo crumbled.

"...Ah."

A gob of blood spilled from Kuraudo's mouth. Twin swords of bone fell from limp hands.

—Battle was always heartless. No matter how strong the wish one held, there would only be a single victor in the ring. The desires of those who fall are left behind, with no one sparing them a backward glance.

"D...Dammit…."

Here and now, a single man's wish to catch up and surpass his foe came to an end.

「Contender Kurashiki falls in the ring, and the chief referee has stopped the match! It's over! The winner is Contender Sara Bloodlily!」

The name of the victor was declared by the broadcaster. But from the audience seats where excitement and accolades usually came, there was only a low rumble of confusion. It was because of Sara Bloodlily's overwhelming strength.

「Even though the battle is over, the venue hall is silent. There are only caught breaths and shocked gazes at the winner standing in the ring! But that is not unreasonable. Contender Sara's strength… doesn't seem to be C-Rank at all!」

「She was hiding her power, wasn't she?」

「Commentator Muroto, you do believe that's the case?」

「Yes, it happens occasionally. Blazers who have an overwhelming power, or those who don't wish for opponents measure their strength, purposefully restrain themselves to just barely qualify as Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival representatives, hiding their abilities.」

Yes, that does happen sometimes. First-class mage-knights don't want to show their hands. For example, Seven Stars Sword King Yuudai Moroboshi had once hidden the fact that he could disrupt Devices using his Noble Art Tiger Bite. However—

「…But even so, this strength is… abnormal.」

Muroto's grumbling voice was trembling. As a former KOK A-League member, he understood how strange Sara's ability was.

「The ability to not only manipulate color, but give a drawn image substance. That alone is extremely powerful. But Contender Bloodlily was born able to reproduce Blazers, and entire Noble Arts. In other words, if she wanted to she could use every Blazer ability….」

—Clearly there were no blind spots to that power. A method to defeat it would be impossible to find.

「Moreover, even while making that many weapons and soldiers, and creating Blazers as well, she did not run out of magic power… Contender Sara Bloodlily's rank must be revised immediately. She is undoubtedly a match for the Crimson Princess and the Sword Emperor of Wind, an A-Rank Blazer!」

In the smothering silence of the confused venue hall, Kuraudo who had used up all his strength and lost consciousness was carried past Ikki in a stretcher.

The Sword Eater was strong. He had attained a strength that couldn't be compared to what it was when they fought, holding talent enough to learn both two-sword style and Ten'i Muhou in a short time. And in this fight, he had displayed an outstanding battle sense… but even staking his soul on the match, he wasn't able to win.

No, that wasn't it. In the end, he hadn't even been able to give Sara a single wound.

"The Bloody Da Vinci, Sara Bloodlily…."

Ikki swallowed a breath as he watched Sara walk off. Indeed, the Beast Tamer had previously said as much without it seeming like flattery. Without a doubt, there were one or two in this tournament he'd have to fight with his true strength.

I have to go up against multiple monsters like that in a row…?

Ikki's shoulders sank at this heavy realization.