“Listen up, kids! Alcohol is a drink for cool adults, meaning anyone who can drink alcohol is an adult!”

Somewhere in northern Eurasia, under a gray winter sky in a snowy city, a red-haired girl, ten years old with a bottle of liquor in her hand, made an announcement to the congregation she’d gathered in the storage shed behind a church.

“Drink this,” she told them, “and you won’t be children anymore! You’ll join the ranks of cool adults like me. And cool adults never betray their friends! We don’t abandon the weak! This drink is a promise between friends. Are you two man enough to make that promise?!”

“Yes, we are!” the two boys before her, no more than five or six years old, replied loudly as they straightened their backs.

“Good! Then show me just how manly you are!”

“Yes, ma’am!”

The boys held out their small hands, using them to make bowl shapes, and the red-haired girl poured a bit of liquor into them. Bringing their hand-bowls to their lips, the pair resolutely drank the liquor…

“Bleeegh!”

…then vomited it right back up.

“Wh-What is this? So gross!”

“My throat’s on fire…”

“Looks like you’re not ready yet!” the red-haired girl said, laughing cheerfully as she looked down upon the sick boys, their hands on the ground for balance. “You can try again next year. Until then, you’re staying under the protection of Alice and me!”

“Aww…”

“Being a grown-up sucks, huh, Timur?”

“Teehee. The road to being a ‘cool adult’ is quite the long one, I suppose.”

Watching over the two, who wiped their mouths with snow as tears formed in their eyes, from afar was a little girl with darkish ash-blonde hair, about the same age as the red-haired girl. She was smiling with an almost motherly expression. Though she seemed impoverished at a glance, covered in soot and mud, closer inspection revealed chillingly handsome features. That child was Nagi Alisuin, the girl who would one day enter Hagun Academy.

“You’re not ready to be an adult yourself, Yuuri,” Alisuin—or rather, Alice—said to the girl who had just gotten done teasing the two boys. “Timur and Condra are only six years old. You had to know they weren’t going to be able to drink that stuff.”

“It’s fine,” the girl named Yuuri said as a wicked smile crept across her face. “Having them bite off more than they can chew will make them stronger in the end.”

Yuuri and Alice were street children, using the decaying storage shed they were in as the headquarters for the gang of children they led. Though the two were polar opposites in many ways, they did have one thing in common: the ideal of protecting the poor, weak children who couldn’t make it on their own. The daring and heroic Yuuri, the strict father figure, and the sensitive and gentle Alice, the caring mother figure, carried out their self-imposed duties well despite being young, raising the children on their own by providing them with protection and shelter.

The ritual they had performed was a sort of rite of passage for their gang. If a child could drink down all of the liquor that they had put into a green bottle, they would no longer be children under the gang’s protection; they would be adult allies.

They had no parents or other adults to rely on, so even if it meant doing more than they were capable of, the children had to mature and become adults as quickly as they could. With that belief in mind, Yuuri had started the ritual, even though she knew it was wrong for children to drink.

“Hey! Yuuri! Are you still giving those poor babies liquor?!”

“Crap, it’s the Sister! Everyone, scram!”

The sole devout nun who managed the church found them, prompting Yuuri and the two boys to scatter. The boys had great trust in Yuuri, as they dashed off the moment she gave a single order.

“Hold it, you naughty, naughty kids! If you don’t come back here this second, you’ll get no soup tonight!”

“Leader made us drink it!”

“It’s all her fault. We’re not bad kids, honest!”

That trust folded like tissue paper against the promise of warm soup, though.

“G-Guys?! I’m not gonna forget this!”

“Teehee,” Alice chuckled at the two boys as she stood up. The sun was setting; it was almost time for her to start her work.

Suddenly, three girls, about five, six, and seven years old, exited the shed. The oldest of the three, Anastasia, stood before Alice, her white cheeks as red as little apples.

“H-Hey, Big Sis Alice. H-Here…”

She timidly offered Alice a scarf she’d spent the past few days making, learning from Alice’s dexterity and using the yarn given to her by the nun. Alice assumed she wanted her to look at it, so she took it and looked it over.

“My, the knitting on this is very neat. You must have worked hard on it.”

She complimented Anastasia’s work and tried to return the item, but the girl pressed it into Alice’s chest.

“I-It’s for you, Alice!”

“For me?”

“Yeah,” Anastasia replied, her head bouncing as she nodded. “It’s because you’re always working so hard in the cold.”

“…That so?” Sympathizing with Anastasia’s feelings, Alice wrapped the handmade scarf around her neck. It mysteriously felt much warmer than the scarves she would pick up off the ground. “It’s quite warm. Thank you, Annie.”

“Heheh.”

Anastasia broke into a smile when Alice thanked her, warming not just Alice’s body, but her soul as well.

Frankly, life was difficult for them. Even if they had a storage shed to live in thanks to the nun’s kindness, there was a limit to how well two ten-year-olds could raise two boys and three girls.

Alice did work for the town’s mafia, but after paying her tribute, she was often left with very little. The children subsisted entirely on the nun’s occasional meals of soup and rock-hard bread stored in plastic bags, splitting the food evenly among everyone. It would be wrong to call it anywhere near enough for growing children, as their stomachs were constantly empty, but for Alice, it was a time of happiness.

There was less food for her than there had been when she’d lived alone, and she had to work more than ever to feed the children, but being able to love and be loved by others was so much more fulfilling than when she’d lived alone, hiding and stealing from others. She got to live with her beloved friends; she couldn’t ask for anything more than that. If only all of her tomorrows could be as peaceful as her todays. Yes, if only…

Late July. The rainy season was over, ushering towering white clouds into the blue sky. A semester of selection battles had passed in the blink of an eye, and summer vacation had begun at Hagun Academy.

With the long vacation, many students returned to their homes, leaving the campus sparsely populated. The only ones who remained were those who wanted to freely enjoy their summer in Tokyo, those who wanted to use the ample facilities on campus to train, and those who couldn’t go back home due to family issues.

Strangely, Ikki Kurogane could not be found among those who had stayed behind. His friends and sister were similarly absent. The reason: they had to prepare for the impending Seven Stars Battle Festival, which would begin in mid-August.

No matter what sport one played, it was common for athletes to attend a training camp before a major tournament. Hagun students were no exception, taking part in an annual Seven Stars training camp that consisted of ten days of focused training at a campground in Okutama. Professional Mage-Knights from the King of Knights league were called in to act as instructors for the camp, so there was a vast difference in potential between those who participated and those who did not. Naturally, Ikki and his friends—both the representatives themselves and those they’d chosen to help them with their training—were participating.

The training camp was moved from its usual venue, however, due to the incident with the rock giant. It had been filed as an unsolved mystery, and there were no further reports of the rock giant that had attacked Ikki, but that didn’t mean the area was safe. As such, Director Shinguuji had requested and successfully persuaded Kyomon Academy to allow Hagun’s students to lodge with them at their training camp in Yamagata Prefecture.

◆◇◆◇◆

Stella Vermillion, the Crimson Princess, had crossed vast oceans to reach the land of the samurai in hopes of reaching even greater heights. In Yamagata, far from her home away from home in Tokyo, she had found a difficult fight that would help her do just that.

“Ngh…!”

In a mock battle arena at Kyomon’s training camp, crimson flames and golden lightning clashed fiercely, sending sparks flying. The person controlling those flames as they enveloped her massive sword was Stella, whose peerless strength and overwhelming magical power made her a force to be reckoned with.

One could say that the knight known as Stella Vermillion had no weaknesses to speak of. Her offensive power was remarkably high, leading many to focus too much on it, but Stella was a master of every element of fighting. Offense, defense, and speed; her talent and abilities were virtually unmatched while remaining well-balanced. That was what made her a Rank A knight.

Even so, the opponent she was crossing blades with was holding their own against her ferocious assault. They used graceful parries to abate her rain of blows, but by no means were they forced to stay on defense, as they immediately put their well-honed skills on display by moving directly into a counterattack. There was more than enough power behind Stella’s attacks to batter the average person beyond recognition, so to successfully trade blows with her in such a way meant they were quite skilled.

It came as no surprise to Stella that her foe was so prepared to face her. The knight she was fighting was a volunteer coach from the student council and the greatest student knight in all of Hagun Academy: Touka Toudou, the Raikiri.

“Tch!”

In their swordfight, where every fraction of a second counted, Touka’s skills shined. With each clash of steel, she twisted her wrist to fend off the impact and redirect its force back toward Stella, causing Stella to lurch backward.

“Rgh!”

Stella lurched back to evade the attack, but her sword slipped as a result. Even so, Stella was a first-class knight; the pull of her sword wasn’t enough to endanger her balance. Her well-trained lower body had the tenacity to keep her firmly planted on the ground.

Raikiri had created an opening, though, and she wasn’t about to miss her chance. She quickly returned her Device, Narukami, to the black scabbard attached to her hip, then widened her stance and discharged electricity into the hilt.

“Ah!”

A shudder ran down Stella’s back. She knew what that stance foretold: Touka’s Noble Art and namesake, Raikiri. Her trump card, once unleashed, could cut down any foe in a single stroke. Though she had been defeated once, her strength in close quarters was nonetheless awe-inspiring. Katharterio Salamandra was vastly superior in terms of power and range, but speed was all that mattered against Raikiri, and even the Crimson Princess fell short in that regard. Stella had no way to fight back, her only option being to fall back the moment Touka took up her stance.

I’ve been waiting for this too! Stella thought.

Heeding the shudder that ran down her back, she kicked off the ground. All of her attacks had been for the purpose of entering Raikiri’s range and coaxing Touka into using it.

Raikiri was a quickdraw that used super-electromagnetism to eject Narukami from its sheath. The explosive propulsion it created couldn’t be stopped even by Touka herself; once she drew her sword, she had no choice but to follow through even if she didn’t hit her opponent. That was why Stella had intentionally put herself in the line of fire and leaped away once her opponent had prepared to use her trump card.

Despite her plan, however, that trump card was never used. Touka stood stock-still in her quickdraw posture, staring at Stella as she jumped out of range. Stella could only sigh inwardly in admiration of her opponent, whose vision penetrated through her actions.

Figures she wouldn’t fall into a trap like that so easily. Forcing her to whiff Raikiri was a plan that anyone could come up with; it was the most logical countermeasure. Touka had likely fought countless foes who had tried the very same thing, so of course she wouldn’t be baited into it. In that case, I’ll just have to go with a plan that only I can use!

Kicking off the ground once more, Stella put over thirty feet between herself and Touka. The distance between them was too great for lances, let alone swords. She had moved to long-range, the domain of bows, guns, and magic.

Stella wasn’t a one-trick pony who focused only on close-range combat; long-range was another area where she excelled. In long-range magic battles, the knight with the greater magic capacity had an overwhelming advantage, and Stella had the highest magic capacity of all registered knights.

Touka had long-range attacks as well, but she knew she would be overpowered by Stella’s sheer firepower if she were drawn into a battle reliant solely on magic. She rushed to clear the gap between them, but it was already too late.

“Haaah!”

Continuing to increase the distance between them, Stella focused even more magic into the Dragon Breath that enveloped her Device, Lævateinn. The flames devoured her magic, burning hotter and brighter than before. “Devour, Dragon Fang!”

Pointing the tip of her fiery sword at Touka, who continued to dash straight at her, Stella attacked. The fire gushing from Lævateinn’s tip quickly took on the form of a living creature—the form of a flaming dragon, with the long, slender body of a snake.

Opening its toothy jaws wide, it descended upon Touka. She narrowly evaded its deadly bite with a sidestep, but it wasted no time in twisting to the side, once again baring its fangs at her.

More than just a bombardment of flames, Dragon Fang was a guided missile that melted anything it touched as it endlessly pursued its prey. It was impossible for Touka to shake the dragon off; it would chase her until it could finally chomp down.

The whole of Stella’s staggering magic capacity was being channeled into her Noble Art; a half-baked attack would have no effect in the face of such incredible power. Thus, Touka responded to the approaching fire dragon with the only option available to her: her strongest, fastest attack.

“Raikiri!”

The plasma blade decapitated the dragon. As it did, Stella kicked off the ground with all her strength, like a burst of wind headed toward Touka.

Got her!

Caught in Stella’s trap, she had been forced to use Raikiri, and as a result, she had been forced to follow through with a full-power swing of her sword—in other words, she was completely defenseless. If Stella was going to settle the battle, there was no better time.

Not even giving Touka time to breathe, Stella used her explosive power to close the gap in an instant, swinging her sword for the match-deciding blow. Having just used her ultimate ability, Touka wouldn’t be able to react to the direct, vertical slash in time. At least, she shouldn’t have been able to.

“Huh…?”

Stella’s attack should’ve been a guaranteed hit, but in that fraction of a second, Touka moved in a way that Stella never expected. She had definitely followed through with Raikiri, but she didn’t stop as if she had.

She used the momentum from Raikiri to spin and attack again?!

The explosive propulsion from her super-electromagnetic skill allowed her to strike a second time after a high-speed spin. She had seen through Stella’s scheme, boldly using Raikiri to bait Stella into thinking she was defenseless and jumping in to attack, and Stella had fallen for it hook, line, and sinker.

“Agh!”

Though she was the one who had leaped in to deal the finishing blow, it was Stella’s own stomach that suffered a blow from Raikiri. The strike from Touka’s Phantom Form weapon didn’t physically wound Stella, but it did sap away her stamina, making her fall to her knees. The moment she did, Narukami was pressed against her neck and the battle came to an end.

“Nobody ever told me you could use a feint like that,” Stella lauded.

“That’s because this was my first time ever doing it,” Touka replied. “Searching for your opponent’s weaknesses is a good foundation in itself, but at the top of the nation, opponents will also know their own weaknesses and use them to ensnare you. That includes the Seven Stars King, Moroboshi, too. If you want to win against people like us, it’s important to manipulate our way of thinking. You’ve got a long way to go, Stella.”

Once Touka had explained to her redheaded underclassman why she had won, she offered a relaxed smile. That, however, merely frustrated Stella all the more, and she groaned in shame.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Did the Crimson Princess seriously lose?”

“What a joke.”

Two girls from Bunkyoku Academy, each wearing the yellow armband signifying their roles as members of their school’s newspaper club, sighed. They had come to the camp and watched Stella and Touka’s fight from afar in search of a scoop; the Seven Stars training camp was a rare chance to get information on students from other schools. It was an important event for journalists from all of the schools, and the girls had traveled all the way from Kyushu to write articles about Stella Vermillion, the legendary princess knight.

“Pretty lame, right?”

“It would’ve been way more exciting if we could’ve gone with the title, Princess Bests Raikiri!”

“Yet here she is, too weak to win! So much for our article.”

They had wanted to write an article that took advantage of Stella’s notoriety, but a front-page story about her losing would leave a lot to be desired. The club members were sorely disappointed to be so let down.

“Wow, Bunkyoku. Why are they zeroing in so much on who won?”

Hearing their grumbles from nearby, another girl with a yellow armband was astonished.

“Honestly. How can they call themselves journalists if they’re so blinded by the result they want that they can’t see the truth that’s right in front of them?”

Offering her agreement was Nagi Alisuin, who had been watching the mock battle alongside Kagami Kusakabe of Hagun’s newspaper club. The two of them had seen Stella fight in the past, so they knew the battle hadn’t ended as such due to Stella being weak.

There were others who could see the same thing as well, despite not being from the same school. A boy and a girl had also been watching the fight together, somewhat far away from Kagami and Alice.

“Wooow! That was an awesome fight! They should’ve charged for that!”

“Hagun’s bringing the cream of the crop this year, eh, Kusakabe?”

“Hey, Yagokoro, Komiyama,” Kagami responded with a smile as the pair approached them. “Were you spectating too?”

“Of course we were! Even if it’s just a mock battle, no journalist worth their salt would miss a fight between Raikiri and the Crimson Princess.”

“Absolutely.”

While Kagami greeted the pair, Alice tapped her shoulder from behind. She signaled a “What’s up?”, urging Alice to say what was on her mind.

“Who might these fine people be, Kagamin?”

It was then that Kagami remembered that Alice had never met these two.

“Oh, right, you haven’t been introduced,” Kagami said, finally realizing that Alice had never met the people she was talking to. “The lady here is Yagokoro from Bukyoku Academy’s newspaper club, and the guy is Komiyama from Donrou’s.”

“Nice to meet you, Alisuin.”

“Good to meetcha.”

“I see. So, you all share the same occupation?”

“Yep. We’ve got the same armbands, see?”

Alice finished their exchange of greetings by nodding in assent. As soon as she did, Yagokoro approached her, gawking.

“Man, I’ve heard rumors, but you really are one heck of a lady-killer. I bet you could get rich with a face like that.”

“Don’t be rude, Yagokoro,” Komiyama admonished as he nudged her in the ribs.

“Ahaha, don’t worry.” Alice smiled, seemingly unperturbed. “Much like flowers, women are meant to be admired.”

“‘W-Women’…?”

Komiyama seemed put off when he heard that word come from Alice’s mouth. He didn’t understand what she’d meant by it.

“Oh, that’s just who Alice is. Nothing to feel weird about, Komiyama.”

“I-If you say so.”

“Seriously, Komiyan? You didn’t know about her? Someone didn’t do their research.”

“Rgh. I don’t research people’s sexual orientations ahead of time.”

How in-character for him, Kagami thought to herself.

Journalists oriented themselves in certain ways too. Yagokoro and Kagami would write articles that included information about the subjects’ personalities and the like. Komiyama, on the other hand, gave direct, unembellished facts—the kind of reporting found in national broadcasts. For a journalist like him, there was little reason to research his subject’s sexual orientation.

“But Nagi, you’re a representative too, right? Are you sure you can hang out up here and not fall behind the others?”

“I just happened to make it thanks to the luck of the draw. As much as I’d hate to say it to the people I defeated, I’m really not all that interested in the Seven Stars; the only reason I’m even here is to keep my roommate company, so yes, I’m content with just hanging out.”

“‘Luck of the draw’? Sounds fishy. I can’t imagine ‘luck of the draw’ is how you won twenty consecutive battles.”

“Well, one way or the other, I won. There’s not much I can do about it now.”

“Everyone sees things differently, I guess. If that’s how you feel, then fine by me.”

“Ooh, I love open-minded men.”

“G-Gimme a break…”

Komiyama backed away, turning pale under the weight of Alice’s flirtatious gaze. Kagami stifled her laughter as she watched the two, then suddenly remembered something she wanted to ask the other journalists.

“By the way, you two, what did you think of the match?”

“You mean Raikiri and the Crimson Princess’ duel?”

“Yeah.”

“Huh? Let’s see… They were crazy strong.”

“Who was?”

“Both of them.”

Kagami grinned at that response. It meant the two of them understood. Yagokoro and Komiyama had correctly perceived the true reason that Stella lost her mock battle.

“Just like the rumors say, the Crimson Princess is ridiculously powerful. The power behind every blow, her instantaneous force… Incredible, top-class knights like her only come around once a decade. The Crimson Princess isn’t weak, Raikiri is just unimaginably strong. That’s the only reason she lost.”

“I was thinking the same thing. Komiyan and I are third-years, so we have information on Raikiri from last year, but she’s so much more powerful and skilled than last time. There’s no comparison.”

“She must have been honing her skills to finally defeat the Seven Stars King this year,” Komiyama added, “which makes it all the more unbelievable that she’s not a representative. Raikiri’s gotten so strong, but she’s only at this training camp as a volunteer coach, and even though she just proved she’s good enough to take down a Rank A knight, the one who took her place was a Rank F, of all people. That just adds insult to injury.”

Komiyama turned his attention to the edge of the training ground. There stood the man who had stolen Raikiri’s seat as a representative: the Worst One, Ikki Kurogane. Despite his status as a Rank F, the weakest of all knights, he had mowed down top-ranking knights one after another until he’d climbed all the way up to claim his seat as a Seven Stars representative.

“Speaking of, what’s he doing in the corner over there?”

“A mock battle, maybe? He’s holding Intetsu.”

“He’s with the Hagure sisters, two of Hagun’s other representatives.”

“Is he really having a two-on-one mock battle?”

“It’s Kurogane we’re talking about here. I wouldn’t be surprised in the least.”

Kagami’s assumption was correct. As the four watched, Ikki was in the midst of a mock battle with the twins Kikyou and Botan Hagure, per their request.

“I’ve got you nooow!”

With her lance Device in hand, Kikyou Hagure used her instant-acceleration Noble Art to charge at Ikki, approaching sonic speed. Ikki didn’t seem at all hurried despite her absurd speed, though. He let out a “Whoops” as he stomped on the head of her spear just before it reached him, stabbing it into the ground.

“Whoooa?!”

Kikyou, attached to the other end of the lance, launched into the air like a pole vaulter, guided by her momentum. She flew clear over Ikki and crashed straight into her sister Botan, who was in the midst of pulling the triggers of her two guns, aimed at Ikki’s back.

“Hngh!”

“Aaah?!”

“Are you okay?” Ikki asked the twins, worried after they’d rolled together across the sand.

“Oww… Yeah, I’m fine. You okay, Botan?”

“Ugh… I’m a little scraped up.”

“Shizuku!”

“Of course. Leave it to me, Big Brother.”

On Ikki’s command, Shizuku, who had been waiting in the wings, used her healing magic to mend the cuts on Botan’s knees. While she was doing so, Ikki addressed the Hagure sisters.

“Kikyou,” he said, “your speed is a great asset, but as a lancer, you can’t just charge at foes who have shorter reach than you. That’s essentially throwing away your advantage. I think you’d be better off adding a bit of patience to your battle plan. Also, if you’re going to fight together with your sister, you shouldn’t stand in her line of fire.”

Watching from afar as Ikki indicated the major problems in their strategy, Alice voiced her thoughts about the fight.

“Rather than a mock battle, it looks to me like Ikki’s just training the two.”

It was too one-sided to have been a mock battle. The Hagure sisters had asked Ikki to fight a mock battle in order to train them, however, so Alice’s view was more or less correct.

“‘Training’, huh? Still, he overwhelmed them. Worst One over there didn’t even have to swing his sword.”

“Kagami, are those two weak?”

“Definitely not,” Kagami replied, shaking her head in response to Yagokoro’s question. “A lot of people say they just got lucky to not have to fight people like Ikki or Stella, but they’re not weak. Both of them defeated knights from among the top ten in Hagun and have undefeated twenty-win streaks to their names. They’re probably not as strong as Raikiri or Runner’s High, but don’t go thinking they’re anything but tough.”

“Guess I’ve been treating them like children, huh? They’re a bigger deal than I imagined.”

“They’re definitely taking advantage of this training camp, though, training under him.”

“Kurogane just loves being overly helpful, doesn’t he?” Kagami asked. “Maybe it’s a nice mental break for him.”

“Well, he did beat all of Kyomon’s coaches within three days of coming here.” Alice spoke the truth. It was only the fourth day of their training camp, but Ikki had already beaten all of Kyomon’s professional Mage-Knight coaches in mock battles, leaving him nobody to fight with. Even Raikiri, the knight who was likely the most powerful coach at the camp, had fallen in a real battle against him. “And of course, Kyomon has already called in a special emergency coach to deal with him. Guess they weren’t too happy to be shown up by the Worst One.”

“Who do you think’ll come? I bet Director Shinguuji or Ms. Saikyou would have been willing to rush over here, but I heard they headed to Osaka to prepare for the Seven Stars and the KoK. Then again, all of the coaches here are ranked in the National League, so there’s no point in calling any normal Mage-Knight.”

“If they don’t call someone powerful like that, there’s a chance they won’t be able to keep up with the students.”

“Hagun’s so strong this year! Looks like those of us at Bukyoku had better watch our backs.”

Yagokoro praised Hagun’s representatives with a sigh.

“Oh, don’t give me that,” Kagami replied with a sarcastic grin. “We know good and well that you’re here to keep up your win streak. Besides, you’ve got someone who’s pretty tough even by Bukyoku standards this year, right?”

Bukyoku was a prestigious school among prestigious schools, having been hogging the top spot at the Seven Stars for the past several years. The school’s representatives were all incredible knights, and the reigning Seven Stars King, Yuudai Moroboshi, was so strong that his name was known around the world.

However, just before the tournament’s entry deadline, a certain man scoffed at the famed hero and became a representative himself. That man, the Gale Sword Emperor, was the only Rank A student born in Japan: Ouma Kurogane.

“For some reason, a third-year Rank A student who didn’t care about official battles in his first two years is showing his face now,” Kagami continued. “I was really surprised when I saw Bukyoku’s lineup.”

“Me too,” Komiyama said. “I didn’t think he would try to enter at this point. Maybe him going to the Seven Stars means Bukyoku’s putting everything they’ve got into this year’s Festival.”

Excluding the Crimson Princess, the Rank A from abroad, and the Worst One, the man who had defeated Raikiri with a single slash, there was an abnormally high number of nameless first-year representatives for the Seven Stars, all of them spread throughout the participating schools. The tournament hadn’t even begun, yet it was already progressing unnaturally.

Amidst the uncertainty that came with that unnatural progression, leaving Ouma Kurogane, a knight ranked higher than Moroboshi, idle would have been a senseless decision for Bukyoku to make. Komiyama and Kagami wondered if that was the reason behind his entry, but Yagokoro shot that theory down with a shake of her head.

“Nope. The Gale Sword Emperor isn’t the kind of guy to listen to what the school wants. Heck, he usually doesn’t go to school at all, or even let them know he’s still alive. He entered the Festival of his own accord; it surprised us just the same.”

“So the school didn’t order him to join?”

“Right.”

“I see. If it was his decision, I doubt the school would have any reason to refuse him.”

“Well, he challenged Shibata, Bukyoku’s sixth representative, to a duel with the Seven Stars rep spot on the line.”

“So Ouma won, then.”

“Honestly, it wasn’t much of a fight. He was way out of Shibata’s league.”

There was a look of pity on Yagokoro’s face as she explained it. Shibata must have been badly beaten.

“It’s a shame about Shibata, but isn’t the Gale Sword Emperor’s random whim actually good news for journalists like us?”

“Definitely. High-profile guys like him give us more exposure in the papers.”

“Everyone on the internet is expecting a fight between the Crimson Princess and the Gale Sword Emperor.”

“No surprise there. They’re all waiting for the first battle between Rank A knights since World Clock versus Demon Princess.”

Their battle was revered as legendary. Coincidentally, that battle was another Hagun versus Bukyoku fight, serving as a battle for supremacy between east and west.

“Sucks for us in Donrou, since we’re in Tokyo too.”

“But ever since my exposé on his fight with the Worst One, I hear the Sword Eater’s really been giving it his all.”

“That’s the only silver lining, really. We’re expecting great things from him this year. There are some problems with how the guy acts, but the Sword Eater’s got a mind for battle that’s second to none. Then again, even taking that into account, Worst One is really the person everybody’s got their eyes on this year.”

Komiyama expected great things from his classmate, the Sword Eater, but his journalist’s intuition was telling him that the real dark horse of the Seven Stars was Ikki.

“There’s been hushed speculation ever since his match with the Crimson Princess,” he continued, “but now that he’s defeated Raikiri and started to stand out on the national stage, everyone’s secretly wondering just how far this nameless Rank F can go against the strongest students in the nation. This is off the record, by the way, but all the networks are working to gather as much info as they can on him before the start of the Festival.”

“He’s the Gale Sword Emperor’s little brother, not to mention the man who defeated the Crimson Princess and took down the Raikiri in a single blow. How else would they treat him, right?”

Yagokoro’s agreement made Kagami smirk inwardly. It was very satisfying for her to see that the knight she had been following for so long was finally getting recognition from everyone, proving that she really did have an eye for talent. What made her all the happier was that everyone had come to know what trials the knight known as Ikki Kurogane had gone through to get to where he was.

Not that it was a great idea to get so invested in one guy, she thought, but what girl wouldn’t want to support such an earnest, trustworthy man?

She figured that since it was Ikki, she couldn’t help but to do so. It wasn’t her fault, she decided.

“Hmm?” Suddenly, when Kagami tried to look back toward Ikki, she noticed someone else in her periphery. Like her and the other journalists, an ash-blonde girl was watching Ikki from afar. “Is that the Icy Sneer from Kyomon?”

“Sure is. Maybe she’s here to scout the Worst One.”

“Let’s go.”

“We’ve definitely gotta get her comments on— Wait, Komiyama, you’re already going?!”

“Hang on, Komiyan! You can’t have her all to yourself! Oh, Nagi, I’ll come back for your interview later. Bye!”

Yagokoro and Komiyama ran after the knight, careful not to burn bridges with Alice all the while. Kagami, however, remained, because she had Alice with her. It would have been rude to leave her by herself, so Kagami started by asking for permission.

“Alice! I wanna go with them. You mind waiting here?”

“…”

Alice’s response didn’t come immediately. Her head was drooped down, her face looking as though she was lost in thought.

“…Alice?”

“Oh, uh, sorry, Kagamin. I was just daydreaming a bit. What’s the matter?”

Once Kagami finally received an answer, she explained that she wanted to go interview Icy Sneer.

“Go ahead,” Alice told her. “I’ll wait here for you.”

“Okay. See you soon!”

Kagami ran after the two other journalists, but on the way, her thoughts turned to Alice once more.

What in the world was she daydreaming about? Is she getting nervous about the Seven Stars too? In all the months they’d known each other, Alice had never just ignored someone talking to her. What’s more, she had been silent throughout the whole previous conversation. Was there something about Ouma Kurogane that bothered her? Well, I guess everyone daydreams sometimes.

While thinking such things, Kagami met up with Icy Sneer, so she quickly shoved the thoughts out of her mind. She happened to arrive just after Komiyama had begun his own interview.

“Hello there. I’m Komiyama of Donrou Academy News. Mikoto Tsuruya, what do you think of the Worst One—or rather, Another One, Ikki Kurogane? Do you think he’ll be able to compete with students in the top eight like yourself?”

“Hrm. You journalists certainly are impatient, aren’t you?” A very sudden interview, but someone as strong as Tsuruya was sure to be used to sudden attacks from the media; she wasn’t taken aback by the abrupt questioning. On the contrary, the calmness in her face was betrayed by a knowing grin. “So, what thoughts came to mind while I watched him? There’s little point in communicating that with words; for knights, results in battle are the only facts we need. The stage has already been set for battle. Whether he can compete with us or not will be made abundantly clear in due time. The truth will be made evident in the most merciless way.”

As she made that declaration, her lips curled into a smirk. The coldness emanating from her sent a chill down the backs of the three journalists who accosted her.

“Haha. Well, I’ll be taking my leave,” Tsuruya said, leaving the three frozen journalists in her wake as she headed toward the exit of the training field. She hadn’t given them a concrete answer, but she was so elegant and composed as she departed that her complete lack of doubt in her own strength was made crystal clear.

“Guess that’s the kind of dignity you’d expect from the top eight, right?”

“So much gravitas. It kinda scared me.”

Yagokoro and Komiyama were starstruck. Kagami felt similarly, but of the three, she was the one who had the most faith in Ikki. After all, he had already taken down the Sword Eater, a quarterfinalist, and Raikiri, a semifinalist.

You can’t keep feigning invincibility forever, she thought.

Of course, Tsuruya hadn’t made it to the quarterfinals of the previous year’s Seven Stars by being as naïve as Kagami thought she was.

“Hey, Miko.” One of Kyomon’s other representatives called out to Tsuruya at the exit of the training field. “What do you make of Hagun this year? Think you can beat ’em easily?”

“No way,” she proclaimed, flashing her trademark icy sneer. “Didn’t you see him crush three professional knights like it was nothing? That’s downright insane.”

Mikoto Tsuruya was much stronger than Kagami and the others had imagined, and that strength was precisely what made her so apt at judging the strength of others. The Icy Sneer herself perceived more acutely than any of the three that she couldn’t defeat the Worst One.

Groaning, Tsuruya leaned her back against a wall. As she did, she heard an uproar coming from the training field she had just left.

“Hey, isn’t that Torajirou Nangou?!”

“They called in the God of War to coach the Worst One?! How extravagant can you get?!”

“That’s downright insane…” Still leaning against the wall, Tsuruya slid down until she was sitting. There was only one thing she could wish for now. “Ugh, just don’t let me be up against that monster in the first round!”

The man who was once mocked as the Worst One had become known across the nation as an unorthodox genius. The Seven Stars King, Yuudai Moroboshi; the Rank A Crimson Princess, Stella Vermillion; the Rank A Gale Sword Emperor, Ouma Kurogane. Ikki Kurogane stood among them as a fellow favorite to win the Seven Stars Battle Festival.

How long could he continue to cut down such powerful opponents? Just how long could the uncrowned Rank F upset match after match? Knights and spectators alike watched each battle with bated breath, awaiting the unconventional sword master’s results.

◆◇◆◇◆

Kyomon’s training camp had nothing akin to a schedule. The coaches invited to the camp would give special lessons and the like, and each representative could decide for themselves whether they wanted to attend or not.

There existed as many Blazer abilities as there did Blazers. Among the countless distinct classifications, each one had its own optimal training method, so attempting a one-size-fits-all curriculum was likely to have a negative effect on everyone’s training. As such, the students were allowed to set their own schedules, either alone or with their friends.

Making use of that freedom, Stella invited Ikki on an evening jog to a downtown area six miles away from the camp. Even the twelve-mile round trip was too short a distance to be called “training” for the pair, however; it was more of a diversion than anything else. Stella just wanted to run and run, to distract herself from her loss at the hands of Raikiri.

“Ughhh! Argh! I can’t take iiit!”

In a park in the downtown area where they’d planned to turn around, Stella stomped her feet like a child as she sat, resting on a bench together with Ikki.

“Not even running helped make you feel better?”

“No! Not even a little bit!” Though she had run at twice her usual pace, and though she had washed her face at the park, the clouds in Stella’s mind hadn’t cleared in the slightest. Back during the incident in Okutama, and when she saw Ikki’s fight, she had a feeling that Touka was stronger than her but having that fact thrust into her face in such a palpable form made her so mad that she didn’t know what to do with herself. “When I fought her, I realized that she really is incredibly strong.”

“Toudou’s close-range fighting is pretty much impenetrable. It’s basically impossible to defeat her with normal tactics.”

“But you beat her, Ikki.”

“Well, I’m nothing but close-range. If I lose there, what do I have left?”

Seeing her boyfriend’s modest smile made her a little envious. Though she hadn’t a leg to stand on against Raikiri, that man, with his warm smile, had defeated her in the fairest fight imaginable.

Touka and Ikki’s one-second clash was still burned into Stella’s mind. She was proud of Ikki, but ashamed all the same, because he was at a place that she was yet unable to reach.

“And to think, she was only fourth place last year. Japan is definitely at a high level.”

“Well, it’s a tournament, so the matchups come down to luck. Toudou placed fourth, but that doesn’t mean she’s fourth-strongest. Didn’t she forfeit the match for third place because one of her relatives had a medical emergency?”

“That doesn’t mean it’s okay for me to lose to her. My main objective is to become the new Seven Stars King by beating you and everyone else, and since at least you and the current Seven Stars King have beaten her, I have to beat her too. And… there’s one other representative I’m nervous about.”

“Who’s that?”

“He’s from the same school as the Seven Stars King. It’s Ouma Kurogane.”

“Ah…!”

The moment Stella said that name, Ikki’s face visibly stiffened, confirming her doubts.

“Looks like I was right. You guys are related.”

“…Yeah. He’s my brother, a year older than me.”

“I had no idea you had a brother, Ikki. Actually, this is also my first time hearing that there’s a Rank A in Japan’s school system besides me.”

“Well, in the two years since he entered high school—no, actually, in the five years since middle school, he’s been missing.”

“Huh? Did he just completely disappear?”

“Not quite. It was rare, but he would contact us from time to time, and he showed up in public sometimes. He’d go missing again a day or two later, though, and he hasn’t had a single official battle in all this time. When we were kids, he was the champion of our elementary school league, so people really had their eyes on him. Still, no matter how talented you are, the world tends to lose interest when you go into hiding for five years. Shizuku is probably a way more noteworthy knight by now, so it’s not surprising that you don’t know about him, Stella.”

“I see. Yeah, I guess if you avoid official battles for five whole years… Wonder why he’s suddenly so interested in Seven Stars. Any idea, Ikki?”

“Nope,” he replied, shaking his head. “I’m completely in the dark.”

“Even though he’s your own brother?”

“I wasn’t the only misfit in the family,” Ikki chuckled, a smirk on his face. “Ouma was one too, so there’s almost no relationship between us. Honestly, he’s even more distant to me than my father, so I really don’t have any idea. But, well, if I had to speak based on my own impressions, he seems like a very stoic person.”

“What do you mean?”

“He’s the kind of guy who lives to become stronger.”

“…Are you sure that’s not you, Ikki?”

“He’s nothing like me,” Ikki said, shaking his head again. “Ouma is totally uninterested in anything besides getting stronger. He didn’t care about me or Shizuku, all because we were weaker than him. Same went for our father. At some point, he said in an interview that the reason he doesn’t do official fights like the Seven Stars is that nobody is worthy of being his opponent.”

“Pretty confident in himself, isn’t he?”

“He has the strength to back that up, though. If someone like him, who’s only interested in getting stronger, is entering the Seven Stars, it must be for the sake of getting stronger. And… This is just a guess, but I think he’s after you, Stella. You’re both Rank A knights; it would normally take at least a trip around the world to find someone like you. I can only imagine he wants to fight you.”

Stella couldn’t help but agree with Ikki’s explanation. It would have been a lie to say that she wasn’t interested in fighting someone like Ouma, who was as talented as she was. If given the opportunity, she would accept a challenge from him, and he most likely felt the same way.

“By the way, Ikki, how strong would you say Ouma is?”

“As strong as he claimed he is.”

“How strong is that again?”

“When he said nobody is worthy of being his opponent, he really wasn’t exaggerating.”

Ikki’s reply, somewhat strained with nervousness at the thought of his brother’s participation, sent a chill down Stella’s back. From Ouma Kurogane’s point of view, people like Raikiri and even the Seven Stars King were mere fleas compared to him. For Ikki to agree with a statement like that meant that Ouma was far from normal, and if someone that powerful was going to participate, it only furthered Stella’s need to win against Raikiri.

“That settles it!” she yelled, setting a new goal for herself. “I swear, I will become stronger than Touka by the end of this training camp!”

There were five days left. If Stella challenged her to a mock battle every day, then counting the one from earlier in the day, they would fight a total of six battles. She had to win more of them than she lost.

With her new goal clear in her mind, it was in Stella’s nature to feel an itch within herself. She didn’t want to sit around in a park any longer, so she hopped off the bench and rushed Ikki to do the same.

“Ikki! Let’s get back to the campground! After I get some food in me, I’m ready to keep traini—”

Grrrrr.

An adorable little growling noise came from Stella’s stomach, interrupting her. Since it wasn’t the time of day for children to be at play, the park was just about empty, making it sound even louder.

“Haha. That was a cute noise,” Ikki laughed, causing Stella’s cheeks to turn redder than apples.

“Hnnngh! I-I can’t help it! I’ve been exercising all day! It’s almost time to eat, too!”

“Yeah, you’re right. The fact that your stomach is empty is just proof of how hard you’re working. It’s nothing to be embarrassed about.”

“U-Uh, right. I’m glad you understand.”

“But it’s not a good idea to push yourself with an empty stomach. Let’s go have a nice meal first.”

“Ah.”

As he stood up, Ikki took the blushing Stella’s hand. The sudden gesture surprised her, but Ikki seemed not to have taken notice.

“I’m sure there’ll be something in the shopping district. C’mon,” he said, and started walking with a smile on his face and Stella’s hand in his.

◆◇◆◇◆

It was evening, so the shopping district was crowded with students on vacation and couples out to get dinner. Among it all, Ikki and Stella walked together, holding hands. As they did, however, they could hear murmurs about them.

“Isn’t that Princess Vermillion and the Kurogane kid from the news?”

“Sure is. They say he tricked her into sleeping with him, right?”

“I heard they made all that up.”

After their relationship was exposed to the world, Ikki’s face—alongside Stella’s—became known worldwide. That the two were in love was also made known, which meant that no matter how they felt about it, they stood out whenever they walked together.

“Look, they’re holding hands! They really are dating!”

“Whoa, the princess is even more ridiculously gorgeous in person.”

“Man, I wish I could bag a girl like that.”

“Hnnngh!”

Their curious gazes dug into Stella, causing her ears to turn a shade redder. She and Ikki had gotten used to being treated as a couple in school, but Stella still found it embarrassing to be seen like that by everyone outside of school as well.

Noticing this, Ikki asked,

“Hey, Stella? If you’re embarrassed, do you want to stop holding hands?” Ikki asked, noticing how she felt. It was the least he could do to help after realizing that she was red from how fixated she was on the fact that other people were looking at them.

“I-I’m not… embarrassed,” she lied in response. Despite her embarrassment, she loved holding hands with him.

“That’s good. Don’t push yourself, though.”

Ikki understood her inner workings well enough, but rather than prying, he offered her a smile and a tightened grip on her hand as he continued to walk, pulling her along once again.

Ikki’s changed, hasn’t he? Stella thought as she looked at his profile.

The Ikki Kurogane she once knew had never been so forward about their relationship. Like her, it was his first time falling in love or even dating, so with each and every step they took as boyfriend and girlfriend, they would both be strangely surprised by whatever they did.

Recently, though, something about him had changed. He was strangely assertive, like when he had taken Stella’s hand in the park. Holding hands was one of their favorite shows of affection, and they had often found themselves naturally, gently coming together often, but that was no longer the case.

It’s like he’s clenching it, or squeezing…

Instead of meeting naturally, Ikki was actively seeking out her hand to hold it. Even in the middle of the busy shopping district, he was holding her hand without a single sign of worrying over the glances from all directions. Discretion and sincerity were two of Ikki’s virtues; such a change in him not only surprised Stella, it occasionally made her feel apprehensive as well. Curious about what had caused his mental state to change, Stella decided to ask him point-blank about it.

“Hey, Ikki? You seem a little different.”

“Me? Different?”

“You’re more, um… assertive? Or maybe more dignified than before.”

Or maybe cooler and more manly…

For a moment, Ikki looked surprised by her question. He then scratched his cheek, seemingly a little embarrassed.

“Guess you would notice, huh, Stella?” His reply revealed that he had some knowledge of the change himself. “Sorry. I suppose I’m being a little greedy.”

“I-It doesn’t bother me or anything! I was just wondering why, is all.”

“Well, it’s not really anything worth mentioning,” Ikki prefaced his explanation before delving deeper. “It’s just, ever since I proposed, I’ve found myself becoming so much more attached to you. It even surprised me. I just can’t help how much I want to make it clear that you’re the woman I love. It just makes me want to hug you so badly. I realize that’s probably unethical, though.”

Though slightly ashamed of his inner feelings, Ikki told Stella why he’d changed, as she wished. The proposal after his fight with Raikiri served as a major turning point for him. To that point, he was certain that he loved Stella more than anyone else could.

With their intense love and mutual feelings for each other confirmed with the proposal, Ikki’s desire to monopolize Stella, to never let anyone else lay their hands on her grew far stronger. As a result, something budded within him: the acute awareness of his duty to protect his woman. That new awareness had made Ikki more assertive than ever before.

Ikki… You’re so cute, Ikki.

Stella felt her heart beat harder and faster at his confession, with each thumping beat bringing forth a ticklish adoration from deep within her heart. Her boyfriend had staked his claim, albeit indirectly, by stating, “You’re mine. I won’t let anyone else have you.” Simultaneously, he projected an air of coercion to the people around them, silently telling them, “This is my woman. Stay away from her.”

Stella hung her head to hide the grin that was threatening to force itself out. She couldn’t handle how adorable it was that, despite his inexperience, Ikki was trying to hog her for himself. She had no doubt that he would be loath to be found “adorable” for doing so, but to her, his actions were almost dizzyingly cute. As a woman—as his woman—Stella wanted to reward him, so she took the arm that held her hand and embraced it with her entire upper body.

“S-Stella?”

“Maybe if I do this, they’ll finally get that I’m yours, Ikki.”

Stella smiled and pressed her cheek against his arm. The stares of passersby had stopped bothering her; the desire to reward the boy who wanted to keep her all to himself was much greater than any such triviality.

For Ikki, however, just holding hands while they walked together made keeping a straight face almost impossible. With Stella having taken things a step further by clinging to him, it became painfully obvious that his mind was in a frenzy. Even so, he was the one who had wanted to stake his claim, meaning that it was hardly his right to ask her to let go.

“R-Right. Good idea. Yeah…”

Though Ikki was doing his best to remain calm and continue walking, his cheeks were red with embarrassment and sweat had started to slick the hand that held Stella’s.

Heehee. I’m so happy.

Ikki’s show of bravado was just too cute for Stella to handle, so she relaxed her legs and let herself be dragged along. Anyone who saw them would probably be grossed out by how lovey-dovey they were being, but Stella didn’t care. They were in love, after all.

Make me all yours, my prince. She whispered those words—words she’d be too ashamed to ever say aloud—deep in her heart. As she did, however, Ikki suddenly stopped walking.

“Hm?”

Stella thought that it might have been because he’d found a place for them to chow down, but quickly realized that was not the case. Ikki’s face, turned to look behind the two of them, had become disturbingly pale.

◆◇◆◇◆

“What’s wrong?”

“Do you see that guy in the coveralls who just went by?” Ikki asked, staring at a man who had just walked in front of them. “Don’t you think he’s walking funny?”

“Maybe he’s got an injury?”

“No…”

Ikki had thought the same thing at first, but quickly inhaled and sharpened his focus.

Probably not.

Based on the man’s stature and the width of his shoulders, his skeletal structure could be grasped. From there, Ikki could estimate how the man’s muscles were attached and how they would move his limbs, comparing the result to the way he was walking.

According to Ikki’s analysis, the man’s walking pattern was unnatural. Steps with his right foot were subtly different than steps with his left, but it didn’t seem to be due to injury or trauma. Each joint appeared to be working normally as they pushed him forward, but something alien, something that didn’t exist naturally as part of the human body, was disrupting his stride.

Judging by the wrinkles in his pants and the way he’s walking, there’s something in his right pocket.

The man had his hand shoved into his right pants pocket, but the way his pants creased made it clear that his hand wasn’t the only thing in there. He was holding something, hiding it. It was long and somewhat broad, in the shape of, perhaps… a survival knife.

He must be an electrician, based on his clothes.

It was normal for electricians to carry knives so they could peel the insulation off of thick wires. Ikki had a feeling that the man’s knife was a little big for that kind of work, but that could easily be explained by his own lack of knowledge or the man’s personal tastes. When they passed by each other, however, Ikki caught sight of a glimmer from under the brim of the man’s cap. It had come from his bloodshot eyes, like those of a beast hunting its prey.

There were plenty of people who couldn’t help but look unpleasant, and the man’s eyes could have been bloodshot from lack of sleep. Similarly, the object in his pocket could have been a tool for his job. Those were probably far more likely than the worst-case scenario that Ikki was imagining, and yet his heart wouldn’t stop pounding at the thought of that worst-case scenario.

“…All right.”

“Huh? Ikki? Where are you going?!”

“Wait here for a sec.”

He freed his right arm from Stella’s grasp and ran alone toward the electrician. His only goal was to confirm what was in the man’s pocket; if what worried him was his own rude assumption, he would simply apologize. If the man didn’t forgive him despite his apology, it was nothing more than an inconvenience if it meant refuting the scenario pervading his mind. That was what Ikki thought as he called out to the man in the coveralls.

When he was called out to, the man stopped walking. He had stopped in the very center of an intersection in the shopping district, the place where the largest number of people would be walking. Why would he stop somewhere like that?

“Tch! Hey, the heck?! Why are you standing around in the middle of the road, old man?!”

The answer to Ikki’s question became all too clear the moment the man ran into some middle school-aged kids.

“Hreeek!”

The man made a bizarre noise, perhaps a groan or a scream, and immediately moved to pull the item from his right pocket. The object the man had kept hidden there would finally be revealed.

Ikki watched closely with his honed concentration and kinetic vision, seeming to almost stop the flow of time itself, as the man acted. The moment the object peeked out from his pocket and began reflecting the lights of the shopping district, Ikki confirmed that it was, as he had feared, a thick survival knife. Given that they were in the middle of an intersection, there was only one reason to draw a knife: the worst-case scenario that Ikki had hypothesized was becoming a reality.

Once his biggest fear had been confirmed, Ikki leaped into action. He kicked off the ground and slipped into the crowd that was still slowed by his concentration, running to capture the man with the knife standing twenty or so feet away from him.

I can make it!

The gaggle of middle schoolers in front of the man still hadn’t noticed what he was doing, but only about half of the blade was out of his pocket. With Ikki’s speed, he had plenty of time to get there. As long as he kept running, he could strike the man in the back and knock him unconscious, ending things before the man could even finish drawing the knife. It came with the risk of causing an uproar afterward, but Ikki’s quick thinking and trust in the gut feeling he got from the split second when he and the man passed by each other would at least prevent any sort of tragedy.

Although what was happening was, to Ikki, the worst-case scenario, it still fell within the realm of what he’d expected. However, in the following moment, something unexpected occurred.

“Whoooa! Stop, stop! You can’t do that!”

A high-pitched, panicked voice—seemingly a girl’s—echoed through the intersection. Then, incredibly, the source of the voice latched onto the man’s arm.

Huh?!

Ikki, despite focusing his attention solely on the man’s pocket and making use of his incredible, time-slowing concentration, hadn’t even reached the man yet. The blade of the knife hadn’t even been fully removed from the man’s pocket. Nobody else should have been able to get to him before Ikki—not without having physical abilities equal to his own.

Ikki hadn’t even begun to expect that someone else would jump in; it took him completely by surprise. Worst of all, the girl’s sudden clinging to the man pushed him aside slightly, putting her directly in his line of fire.

“Tch…!”

Ikki couldn’t charge in with things the way they were. He had no other choice but to decelerate until he came to a stop, the situation continuing to transform all the while.

“You can’t do this, sir!” the girl, with her high-pitched voice, screamed at the man who was still shocked at her sudden appearance. “It doesn’t matter how much your company restructures and goes into debt! You can’t resort to murder-suicide!”

Thanks to her screams, the people around them began to realize what was going on around them. The knife was still partially hidden within the man’s right pocket, but once the gleaming blade’s existence had been hinted at, everyone took notice of it.

“Wha—?!”

“H-Hey! This guy’s got a knife!”

“Huh? Aaahhh!”

“Eeeek! He’s a murderer!”

The crowd went into chaos. Some people shoved others out of the way, some tripped and spilled the contents of their bags everywhere, but everyone scrambled away from the intersection. Just the man and the girl clinging to him remained.

“You can still get off with just attempted murder. Let’s go to the police, okay? Your mom out in the country would be so sad if you hurt someone. Don’t worry, though! As long as you keep on living, your luck will turn around someday, right?!”

The girl cheered him on, her pretty face soaked with sweat yet still wearing a smile. She seemed to want nothing more than to soothe the man, but he refused to listen.

“You stupid braaat!”

“Whoa!”

His hunt interrupted, the man roared at the poor girl and shoved her away forcefully, her slender figure so light that she was easily pushed onto her backside. Then, a shadow fell upon the girl—the shadow of the man wearing a demonic expression as he brandished his knife.

Wh-What do I do?!

Watching the scene unfold from within the crowd of fleeing innocents, Ikki was unsure of what his next move was. Normally, he would fearlessly jump in to save her, but there was one factor that made him hesitate: the girl herself, who had appeared out of nowhere.

Nay, they were actually not a girl. The cuteness of their voice and features would lead one to believe they were, but that was wrong, because they were wearing Kyomon Academy’s boys’ uniform.

Ikki knew the boy’s face, too. At first, he hadn’t noticed, but he remembered upon taking a closer look. After the selection battles ended, Kagami had shown Ikki a list of the Seven Stars Battle Festival representatives for the year. The boy’s face was on that list.

Someone like him wouldn’t go in without a plan.

Ikki couldn’t remember his name, but he was a strong enough Blazer to make it to the Seven Stars. He wouldn’t have shown up if he was going to be useless beyond spitting some cheap crime drama lines. He must have had some way, some ability to subdue the man, and as long as Ikki didn’t know what that ability was, it was possible that he would only get in the way if he wasn’t careful. That was Ikki’s analysis of both the boy and the situation.

I’d best leave it to him, then.

“S-Somebody help meeeee!”

Just as Ikki finished his thought, the blond boy looked up at the knife being swung down at him and held his head as he screamed.

He didn’t have a plan?!

Shouting internally at the shock of the unexpected distress call, Ikki immediately took action. He wouldn’t have made it in time if he ran, but because of the pandemonium the fleeing civilians created, items lay scattered all over the ground. Among those items was a bottle of lipstick, which he kicked as hard as he could toward the man, hitting the knife in his hands with it.

“Ngh?!”

The sudden impact caused the knife to fly out of his hands and fall to the ground. Meanwhile, Ikki broke into a sprint and put his fist square into the man’s face.

“Gah?!”

Blood gushed from the man’s nose, drawing a parabola through the air as he fell onto his back and stopped moving. That single punch had knocked him unconscious. Anyone watching from the sidelines would have seen it as a splendid display of Ikki’s skill. Ikki himself, however, was panting frantically, cold sweat trailing down his back.

Th-That was close! He seriously didn’t put even a little thought into what he was doing?!

If not for Ikki having clocked the man, the boy would’ve been killed. He had been completely defenseless as the knife came down on him. Fighting back might have been overkill, but he hadn’t even tried to protect himself with his Blazer abilities. All he did was freeze and cower in fear at the sight of the blade; his rash actions were even more horrifying than the knifer’s.

“Ikki!”

“Haah… Stella! Could you call the police and tell them I’ve caught a knifer?”

“O-Okay! Got it!”

With the late-arriving Stella contacting the police, Ikki turned back toward the boy, still sitting on the ground, ready to read him the riot act. The boy had only been trying to prevent a tragedy in his own way, however, so Ikki kept his complaints to himself and extended a hand.

“Are you hurt at all?” he asked.

“Oh, I’m okay. Thank you. You saved me.” Relieved, the boy smiled and thanked Ikki as he took the outstretched hand. “Huh?”

Suddenly, as soon as he got a good look at Ikki, his eyes went wide.

“…Uh, is there something on my face?”

“Ahhh! A-Are you Ikki Kurogane?!”

“Huh? Yeah, what—”

“Wow! Wooow! It’s the real Ikki!”

The second Ikki confirmed his identity, the very excited-looking boy, having not so much as finished standing up, pulled him into a hug.

“Wh-Whoa!”

“H-Hey! What do you think you’re doing, bub?!”

“I’m touched! I was already so eager to meet you, but here, of all places? How lucky can I get?!”

Ikki and Stella were equally confused by the abrupt embrace, but the boy, unmoved by their bewilderment, continued to express his excitement. He began hopping up and down like he’d been reunited with the best friend he’d lost contact with a decade prior, and beneath his long eyelashes, the tears threatening to spill from his bright-blue eyes betrayed his deep affection. He seemed truly, deeply happy to have met Ikki, but that made it all the more bizarre for the object of his affections.

Why would someone be so happy to meet me? he wondered.

“Who are—”

Stella acted before Ikki could finish his question, Stella jumped into the fray. Completely forgetting about calling the police, she ran over and grabbed the shoulder of the pretty-faced boy who had been clinging to her boyfriend. She then forced him back and stood between the two, protecting Ikki.

“What’s with you?!” she cried, glaring threateningly at the boy. “You’re wearing a boy’s uniform, right? Are you gay or something? Because you’re definitely acting like it!”

The boy was surprised at being pried away from Ikki so suddenly, but he quickly realized that the perpetrator was Ikki’s partner, Stella. It was easy for him to guess why she was so angry, so he offered an explanation and an introduction.

“Oh, sorry, Stella. And no, I’m not gay, I just got so excited about meeting Ikki for the first time. Nice to meet you. I’m Amane Shinomiya, a first-year student at Kyomon Academy. Like you two, I was picked as a Seven Stars rep… and I happen to be a huge fan of Another One!”

◆◇◆◇◆

Returning to their original objective after the police had received reports of the knifer and come to take him off of their hands, the trio entered a chain burger joint in the shopping district. The third wheel tagging along with Ikki and Stella was the boy who had introduced himself as Ikki’s fan: Amane Shinomiya. He had offered to treat them to a meal as thanks for saving his skin.

“Mmm♪ I’ve never been to this place before, but these fries are delicious. They’re so greasy and salty that I might just find myself addicted to ruining my health.”

“I like them too, once in a while. Are you sure you’re okay with paying for this, though?” Ikki asked Amane, who sat across from him.

“Definitely!” Amane responded, nodding emphatically with a cute, friendly smile. “I owe you my life, Ikki, so a meal at McRonald’s is just a pittance.”

By no means was “owe you my life” an exaggeration. Amane would have been killed if Ikki hadn’t stepped in. From his point of view, a meal to repay Ikki was the very least he could do, to stop himself from feeling awful about what had happened.

“…Then I gladly accept.”

Catching on to that much, Ikki accepted Amane’s goodwill as he unwrapped his burger and stuffed his face. The taste of it was so stimulating, yet still comforting. His and Stella’s standard meal plan was mostly based on dietary science, so he rarely got to taste greasier food.

“So, you said your name was Shinomiya, right?”

Having already finished her own burger long ago, Stella suddenly addressed Amane while picking at the fries scattered about her tray.

“You can just call me Amane. We’re in the same grade, after all. Besides, I should be the one addressing the princess respectfully; it feels weird the other way around.”

“‘Amane’ it is, then. So, you’re one of Kyomon’s representatives?”

“Yep, that’s right.”

“I haven’t seen you at the training camp. Where have you been?”

“Oh, I just wasn’t taking part in the training camp. I only just came out to this area today, so it’s no surprise you haven’t seen me.”

“I see. Does that mean you’re going to participate soon?”

“Nope. Soon as I bring some supplies to my upperclassmen at the camp, I’ll be going right back home.”

“That’s a shame. You came all this way, so you might as well try it out for a while.”

“Ahaha. Well, unlike you and them, Stella, I’m not all that interested in the Seven Stars. I’m really weak, and I don’t know any martial arts, so there’s no point in someone as useless as me taking part. I was only chosen because I happen to have a rare ability.”

He didn’t care about the Seven Stars, but he was chosen anyway. It wasn’t a rare situation for schools that didn’t use Hagun’s and Bukyoku’s systems, which involved real battle. Amane probably wasn’t just being humble, either.

“So the reason you noticed the knifer was because of your rare ability?” Ikki asked, joining the conversation.

“What makes you think that?” Amane answered with a question of his own, tilting his head with his small neck.

“Just the process of elimination. Judging from your reaction when the knifer was about to attack you, it’s clear that you don’t know martial arts. But despite that, you reacted abnormally fast—so fast that it would be impossible for someone who hadn’t trained themselves incessantly to do what you did. If that wasn’t the result of martial arts training, then I figured the only other possibility was a Blazer ability.”

“Wow, Ikki. The rumors about your insight definitely weren’t wrong if you could figure me out from just that.” A look of surprise spread across Amane’s face after hearing Ikki’s train of thought. Another One’s incredible insightfulness was sometimes said to be akin to an all-seeing eye, and Amane seemed happy to have caught a glimpse of it firsthand, as he spoke with wonder in his voice. “But I can’t tell you what my ability is. My teacher told me I can’t tell students from other schools about it. Sorry.”

“Oh, well, I don’t mind. We’re representatives too, so we get it.” The enemy knowing his ability could only be a bad thing, and Ikki had no intention of pressing him on it. “But Amane, if your ability isn’t useful for subduing an enemy, I’d suggest maybe being more careful next time. It’s your own life that’s at risk, after all.”

Ikki looked Amane in the eyes as he told the harsh truth, to which Amane nodded, dejected at Ikki’s sternness.

“Y-Yeah, you’re right… I got so frightened that I completely forgot about protecting myself with magic. If you hadn’t been there with me, Ikki, who knows what would’ve happened? I really was lucky. But…”

“‘But’?”

“Thanks to that, I got to see you, my hero, in the flesh! Maybe I actually made all the right moves♪ I’m serious, man, you were like an actual superhero out there!”

Amane quickly transitioned from being regretful to grinning effeminately. Ikki felt his head start to ache, faced with the thoughtlessly optimistic boy.

W-Well, at least he’s not a bad guy.

“Oh, hey.” Amane seemed to suddenly remember something, reaching into his bag. “You see, I actually knew in advance that Hagun was coming to Kyomon’s training camp. I got a little excited when I thought that I might actually get to meet you, and, um, I brought an autograph card with me. Would you, maybe… let me have your autograph?!”

His eyes sparkled with excitement as he presented a gaudy-looking autograph card, ready to be signed.

“Huh? Y-You want me to sign this?”

“Yes! Do you mind?”

“Well, I don’t not mind, but…” Ikki was unsure of how to respond. His first fight with Stella had made him pretty popular at Hagun, so it wasn’t like he’d never been asked for handshakes or autographs before, but nobody had ever brought him something that solely existed to be autographed. “I don’t think a signature like mine should go on something so nice…”

Ikki, a lower-middle-class student, was starting to lose his nerve. It felt wrong for him to sign such a thing, like it was something only entertainers were meant to do. While Ikki was busy making excuses, however, Stella chimed in with her own opinion.

“Who cares? Why not just write your name there?”

“But Stella…”

“This guy really looks up to you. There’s nothing wrong with showing him a little appreciation, is there? Besides, the one who decides the value of your autograph is the one receiving it, not you.”

“Ugh…” She was right. At the very least, Amane believed Ikki’s autograph was worth having; otherwise, he wouldn’t have asked for it. It would be wrong for Ikki to force his own sense of value on him. Thus, Ikki assented to Amane’s request. “But I really can’t do much better than just writing my name. Are you okay with that?”

“I don’t mind one bit!”

Once he had confirmed with Amane one last time, Ikki wrote his full name on the card. It couldn’t really be called an autograph, but it was his name.

“Wooow! Thank you, Ikki! I’m gonna frame this and treasure it for the rest of my life!”

Taking the signed autograph card, Amane nearly jumped for joy as he hugged it. Ikki chuckled at him, whose joy was similar to that of a child who had just been given the toy he’d always wanted.

He’s going to have my name hanging on his wall forever?

Maybe Ikki should have been proud that he’d earned the admiration of at least one person, but being treated in such a manner was too much for him, causing sweat to form on his brow. Before he’d met Stella, he’d lived a life in which praise and respect seemed like such distant concepts. That was why—to an extent, at least—maybe the deep discomfort he felt was natural.

But someone else had feelings very much unlike Ikki’s.

“You really do have a thing for Ikki, don’t you, Amane? Out of curiosity, what exactly is it about him that made you like him so much?”

Stella’s feelings were very unlike Ikki’s. The question she asked Amane centered the topic of conversation even more squarely on him.

“I like how he fights, and stuff. Using just his sword to cut through one powerful foe after another was really cool and stylish!”

“Wait, weren’t videos of the selection battles supposed to be banned from being shared?”

“They’re supposed to be, but there are heroes out there in every school who upload the videos for the rest of us. Bukyoku and Hagun make up almost all of the videos, seeing as they’re always fighting in front of big crowds. That’s how I’ve been able to watch all your fights from start to finish, Ikki! I downloaded them onto my student handbook, and they’re all on my heavy rotation with hundreds of views apiece! I even remember all of your lines! ‘I’ll use my greatest weakness to shatter your indomitable strength!’”

“Bah!”

Watching as his words and facial expression from his fight with Raikiri were replicated before him, it took everything Ikki had to stop the ginger ale he’d just drank from spewing out of his nose.

“Your catchphrase really gets me tingling! Oh, but I think I like the version from when you fought The Hunter more.”

“H-Hey, how about we change the subject? C’mon, let’s talk about something else! Okay?!”

“‘I’ll use my greatest weakness to take hold of your greatest strength!’”

“Aaahhhhh!”

“See, instead of shattering The Hunter, you took hold of him! It really packs a punch!”

“W-Would you cut it out?! I was just getting in the mood! When I’m in a battle, I just have to get in the mood, okay?! Please, just make it stop!”

Unable to take the embarrassment any longer, Ikki, his face so red that it looked like he’d spit fire at any moment, clung to Amane and pleaded with him.

“Aww, why?” Amane asked, seemingly disappointed by Ikki putting a stop to his fun. “I thought it was really cool. Right, Stella?”

“Y-Yeah, totally. Mm-hmm. Ikki’s sooo cool… Pfft!”

Stella, roped into the discussion, had to hold back her laughter, tears in her eyes.

“Stella, look me in the eye and say that again.”

“Hnnngh!”

She immediately looked away, but Ikki understood how she felt, so he couldn’t really complain. Somehow, he had said those lines without the slightest bit of shame. The heat of the moment was truly a powerful thing.

“You’re cool when you’re fighting, but…” Ikki’s fan, speaking highly of Ikki’s charm, conveniently ignored how he squirmed when reminded of his own words and actions. “I think you’re even cooler when you’re just about to head into battle.”

“When he’s about to head into battle? What’s that mean?”

“Right, so, it might be rude of me to say this, but Ikki really got the short end of the stick when it comes to strength as a Blazer. At the very least, he’s definitely not blessed with talent. Even so, he’s never complained about it even once. No matter how strong his opponent, no matter how much more blessed they are, he fights them with pride. The way he believes in his self-worth like that is just so incredible to me.”

Amane declared just what had drawn him to Ikki in the first place, his confession spurring more surprise than embarrassment within Ikki.

He really is watching me carefully.

Believing in his own self-worth. That was, in fact, the very truth within Ikki each time he headed out into battle.

“Ahaha. It is kinda embarrassing to say this to you in person. I can feel my cheeks burning up.”

“…Trust me, it’s worse for me.”

“Haha! Sorry.” Amane laughed it off and stood from his seat. “Well, I’d better get going.”

“Hm? You’re going to the campground, right? Let’s go together.”

“If I tried to keep pace with you guys on your daily run, I’d do more than just vomit up my food.” Amane declined Stella’s offer, also bringing up the fact that he hadn’t yet done the shopping for his schoolmates. Before he left, he turned to Ikki again and pledged his support with a smile. “Thanks for the autograph, Ikki. I’m always rooting for you to make it through every difficulty and stand at the top of the Seven Stars!”

It was quite strange to Ikki that he was being supported by someone whom he might end up fighting against during the Seven Stars. Considering how affable the boy was, though, Ikki saw no reason to mention that.

He’s honestly supporting me, so I’d better live up to that. Ikki smiled and went to thank him for his encouragement, but in that moment, a strange feeling welled up within him, leaving him speechless. H-Huh?

“Ikki…?”

“…Oh, uh, yeah. I’ll do my best. Thanks.”

After a moment’s silence, he finally squeezed out an answer.

“Well, later!”

Amane put on a dubious expression in response to the sudden silence, but Ikki’s reply must have satisfied him, as he grinned slightly and left the building.

◆◇◆◇◆

After Amane left, Stella was all smiles while she enjoyed his leftover fries.

“Heheh. Looks like you’re good enough to make fans even outside the school now. It’s pretty crazy, considering where you started.”

“Yeah,” Ikki responded with a slight nod.

“So, Amane had a total crush on you.”

“You seem surprisingly happy about that, Stella.”

“Yep, I am happy. Not just because people are finally seeing how strong the guy who beat me is, either. More than that, Amane wasn’t focused on just your obvious strength. Instead, he had his eyes on one of the reasons I fell in love with you. That’s what made me happy. I doubt you mind yourself, do you, Ikki? It’s rare to have someone really ‘get’ you and want to support you all the more for it.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I shouldn’t mind it.”

“Ikki?” Stella noticed the way Ikki’s voice had faltered, and looked up from the food to his face. He had turned to look at the doorway Amane had left through, wearing a strained expression, though perhaps “strained” wasn’t the right word. Sweat was visibly forming on his face, even in the air-conditioned restaurant. “What’s wrong, Ikki? You’re sweating so much.”

“Hey, Stella?” Ignoring Stella’s question, Ikki asked his own. “What kind of person did Amane look like to you?”

“What kind? Well, he seemed nice, he had a cute face, and most of all, he seemed like he was really paying attention to you. I’d say he seems like a pretty good guy.”

“Yeah, maybe… You’re probably right…”

Stella’s answer prompted a groan from Ikki, accompanied by a furrowed brow.

Of course. There’s nothing to dislike about him. Still, though, I just didn’t get a likable impression from him.

Amane Shinomiya. His adorable, girly looks, his kindness in risking his life to stand up to the knifer, even if he couldn’t avert tragedy alone, and above all, his admiration and respect for Ikki. They were all reasons to like him. He should have been likable.

Nevertheless, Ikki realized something was wrong when Amane had turned to offer his encouragement and thanks as he left. It took Ikki a surprising amount of effort to force a smile onto his face. Amane’s words, his expression, his puppy-like affection—it would all normally have been likable. Everything about Amane that Ikki thought to be likable had actually failed to resonate within him.

What did it all mean? Not even Ikki understood why he wasn’t able to muster up a single ounce of affection for the boy. The indescribable, uncanny feeling created by that lack of understanding adhered to and weighed on Ikki’s heart like tar. He couldn’t take his mind off of just how eerie it was, so he opened his student handbook and made a call.

“Hellooo?” The call was answered immediately. “I don’t usually get calls from you, Ikki. Something wrong?”

“Hey, Kagami. Is now a good time? There’s something I want to ask you.”

“Sure, I’ve got time. I’m just having a little tea party with Alice and the others. So, what did you wanna know?”

“Do you happen to investigate knights from schools other than Hagun?”

“Of course I do. I’ve taken a close look at every other school’s representatives, more or less.”

“Then do you know what Amane Shinomiya from Kyomon is like?”

“What he’s like? That’s a vague question if I’ve ever heard one.”

“Yeah, guess you’re right. Hmm…”

Ikki realized that his question was certainly too vague for her to answer, but what sort of knowledge about Amane would possibly help to soothe his unease? Unsure of exactly what he was looking for, Ikki labored over the question for a while.

“Well, it’s not a big deal,” Kagami told him after hypothesizing that he wasn’t sure how to proceed. “Everything I know about Shinomiya is just as vague.”

“Really?”

“There’s not much info on him. He didn’t even join his middle school leagues. What I do know, though, is that his Blazer ability is one of the rare types that can manipulate cause and effect; that’s why he was chosen as a representative. Actually, there are a lot of people like him—no-name first-years who didn’t fight in middle school—suddenly being picked as representatives this year. My only real impression of him was that he was one of those people. But now that you ask about him, I’m pretty interested too. Did something happen between you two?”

Ikki didn’t know whether to mention his discomfort. After all, not even he was sure exactly why he had that problem. He didn’t want to speak poorly of others without good reason, and most of all, he didn’t even have the words to express the bad feeling he got from the boy.

“Oh, no. I just happened to run into him while I was out on a run, and I got curious about what he’s like,” Ikki fibbed.

“Huh. I didn’t think he was at the training camp. Why’s he here in Yamagata?”

“Apparently, he was doing some shopping for his upperclassmen.”

“Maybe I oughta ambush him and get an interview. Heheh.”

“Ahaha… Well, don’t work too hard. Sorry for the random call.”

“No prob! I’m sorry I couldn’t help you out more. If I learn anything juicy, I’ll come to you first!”

“Cool, thank you. Bye.”

After thanking Kagami, Ikki hung up, unable to get any useful information. If even Kagami’s sharp ears had heard nothing of Amane, then there really must have been no info on him.

“You’re probably overthinking this. I bet you two just don’t mix or something. One of you killed the other in a past life, or stole their wife, or maybe even both!”

“You really think so?”

“Some people just don’t get along with each other. It happens all the time.”

“…Yeah, you’re right. It’s probably something like that.”

“Some people just don’t get along with each other.” Ikki wasn’t sure something so simple would be enough to assuage his fears. Even so, given that he couldn’t adequately explain the reason he felt the way he did, there was little he could do but to agree and give up on it.

Despite how Ikki tried to convince himself that he agreed with Stella, his words rang false; he couldn’t wash away the unease that clung to his heart. An ill omen took over his mind, an awful foreboding for the future. Continuing to stare at the entrance of the restaurant, Ikki’s sole thought was that he may have just run into something horrifying beyond words.