“…Mn.”

Far from the Festival, at Hagun Academy, a knight finally awoke in a hospital ward. She opened her heavy eyelids to find an unfamiliar white ceiling.

Where am I…?

She was taken aback somewhat by the sight. Not only was it exceedingly rare for her to be sent to a hospital, but her mind hadn’t caught up after she’d been asleep for so long. The first thing she did, as she still didn’t know what was happening, was to reflexively sit up. When she did, the creaking of the bed prompted the girl next to her, the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Kanata Toutokubara, to tear her attention away from the television.

“Touka! You’re finally awake! Thank goodness…”

She put a hand to her chest and breathed a sigh of relief.

“Kana— Ngh! Mah pung…” Upon seeing her, Touka immediately bit her tongue.

“Don’t expect too much from your body right now. You’ve been asleep for a very long time.”

“‘Asleep’?”

She didn’t understand. What could have caused her to sleep for so long that her motions were so heavy and languid? Touka tried to remember, reeling in the snapped line of her memories.

“The first round of the Seven Stars Battle Festival is already halfway over, and this match, the final match of block B, has drawn the most interest of them all! First up is a first-year student from Hagun Academy: the Crimson Princess, Stella Vermillion! Her opponent is a third-year student from Kyomon Academy: the Icy Sneer, Mikoto Tsuruya! On analysis, we have Coach Muroto. What do you think—”

“Ah!” The analyst’s voice coming through the television sparked her memory. During the attack by Akatsuki, she had led the student council in an attempt to stop them and protect Stella, but was defeated by the Gale Sword Emperor, Ouma Kurogane. Completely in the dark on what all had happened in the time since then, her face turned pale. “Kana, wh-what happened? Are Stella and Kurogane okay?!”

“Yes, they’re fine. Ms. Vermillion was protected by the Hagure sisters, and though he sustained some injuries, Kurogane recovered and went to Osaka for the Festival. We were taken down by Phantom Form weapons, so there were no major injuries. You and the vice president took the most damage, however, so you’ve been asleep for some time.”

“Uta has, too?”

“Yes.”

Kanata’s gaze moved behind Touka. Following her line of sight, Touka realized that Utakata was still in a deep sleep in the bed next to hers.

“Uta…”

“Like you, the immense fatigue has delayed the recovery of his consciousness. But that’s all; there’s no danger to his life. I’m sure he’ll wake up today or tomorrow.”

“I see. That’s a relief.”

After hearing the summary of what happened after she fell, Touka sighed deeply.

I guess I should be glad I at least managed to carry out my duty as the student council president.

If nothing else, they had avoided the complete destruction of Hagun. That was enough, in her opinion. It was all thanks to her friends who had stayed on the front line with her.

“Thank you, Kana.”

“Heehee. You should say that to everyone else, too. They’ll appreciate it.”

“Yeah. I’ll do that.”

As soon as those words left her lips, something happened.

“Uh-oh! We’ve got a major problem here, folks!”

The play-by-play announcer’s voice had risen to almost a scream.

“My, they’re in an uproar. What sort of trouble do you think they’re in?”

“I’m not sure. What could it be?”

Kanata’s and Touka’s eyes naturally fixed on the television. Onscreen, the person giving the play-by-play was sweating buckets behind his glasses as he described an unbelievable event.

“Incredibly, Stella Vermillion has yet to come to the arena! She’s not responding to the signal to start the match!”

“Whaaat?!”

◆◇◆◇◆

She’s not responding to the signal?!

Kanata had told her that Stella was safe, so the announcement surprised Touka greatly.

“Kana, you said Kurogane was at the Festival arena. Was Stella not with him?”

“I don’t know the specifics, but her defeat at the hands of the Gale Sword Emperor bothered her deeply, so she went to train with Ms. Saikyou. Perhaps that would explain why she was not with Kurogane.”

“Maybe. But if she was with Ms. Saikyou, then this doesn’t make sense.”

Why would that lead her to not being present for the start of her match? Touka and Kanata were worried and confused, but they quickly got an update through the television.

“Oh? We’ve just received word from the committee. Stella Vermillion’s train was delayed due to some issues along the route, so she will be arriving late.”

“That’s a shame. Still, this is why we had the party two days ago—to avoid things like this.”

“Right. If only she’d come to Osaka early with the other Hagun students… Hm? What’s this? Icy Sneer Mikoto Tsuruya is petitioning the committee for a victory by default!”

“Is Stella truly going to lose because of this?” Kanata asked as she stared at the screen, worried.

“No. I’m sure she’ll be fine.” Touka shook her head. Last year, she had participated in the Seven Stars as Hagun Academy’s team captain. Because of this, she had a good grasp of the Festival’s rules. “Showing up days in advance isn’t a rule at all. In fact, if a contestant is late to their match, the match is usually postponed.”

“Ooh! I’ve just received a message from the committee. ‘According to the rules, block B’s fourth battle will be postponed. Because of this, the request for a victory by default has been denied!’”

“Well, rules are rules.”

“Is there no penalty for being late?”

“In this case, no, because the committee has confirmed her story using the railroad’s schedule. That said, we have been pushing to make advanced arrival a rule in order to avoid incidents like this.”

At the Seven Stars Battle Festival, decisions were made by a meeting of the committee. Much like in other combative sports, once decisions were made, there was no overturning them. In other words, thanks to their decision, Stella would not automatically forfeit, prompting a sigh of relief from Kanata.

“Phew. I was getting nervous.”

“But if she doesn’t arrive in time for the delayed match, she’s out.”

She’ll be there by then, right? I hope so.

Incidentally, Stella’s match would have been the last of block B’s matches for the day. With block B technically complete for the day, an announcement rang through the arena.

“We have a message for everyone present: There will be a ten-minute intermission as we set up for future matches. Afterward, block C’s first match will begin.”

“So the first round is already halfway over. I can’t believe I missed it all. Hey, Kana? Has Kurogane’s match already happened?”

“No, his is the fourth match of block C. You’ve not missed a thing.”

“That’s great news.” As he was the person who had defeated her and taken her spot, Ikki’s was the one match she simply could not miss. “By the way, who’s his opponent?”

“Oh, that’s right. You can’t have seen the tournament brackets yet.”

“Nope. So, Kana, who is Kurogane’s opponent in his first match?”

“I think you, more than anyone, will find this matchup very interesting.” Kanata made a difficult expression, as if trying to stifle a smirk. That look gave Touka a bad feeling, which was quickly proven correct. “The Worst One’s first opponent is the Seven Stars King, Yuudai Moroboshi.”

“Kurogane’s in a tough spot right from round one, huh?”

“Yes. We should know as much from his selection battles, but he and good luck are unacquainted.”

“I guess you could say that legends often find themselves faced with greater trials.”

Initially, Ikki hadn’t been matched up against the Seven Stars King. The major reduction in contestants, however, had caused Moroboshi’s seeding, which had originally given him a first-round bye, to change. Ikki had certainly gotten the short end of the stick.

He’s like a black hole that draws in all sorts of bad luck.

“The Worst One and the Seven Stars King. How do you view this match, seeing as you’ve fought both of them?” Kanata asked out of the blue. Because of the intermission, the broadcast had been paused—perhaps she was simply bored.

“Well…” Touka closed her eyes, thinking for a bit before answering. “I’d say it’s sixty-forty in Moroboshi’s favor.”

“Sixty-forty is quite the narrow margin, considering who Kurogane’s up against.”

“It might be a crazy prediction considering their different standings in society, but there’s a good reason for it.”

“And what might that reason be?”

“Kurogane has a favorable matchup against Moroboshi. Do you know about Moroboshi’s Noble Art, Tiger’s Bite?”

“That’s the one that consumes other Noble Arts, yes?”

“Yeah. We Blazers can use Noble Arts, which are essentially magic. The ability to devour other Blazers’ magic like that gives him an incredible advantage over just about anyone else. Lorelei’s ice, the Crimson Princess’ fire, the Gale Sword Emperor’s wind—none of it works on Moroboshi. His Tiger King can just chew right through all of it.”

“As I recall, that’s what forced you to fight him at close range.”

Touka responded with a nod. One year ago, her lightning had been nullified entirely by Tiger’s Bite. Thanks to that, she had made no progress fighting from afar, leaving close range as her only option. She’d bet it all on her lightning-fast Raikiri strike, but Moroboshi’s adroit use of his spear had kept him out of her striking range until he’d won the match. The memory was still bitter for her.

“Hearing it again, it really is quite the unfair ability.”

“Yeah. Though its use is limited in non-Blazer battles, in exchange, it gives him an incredible advantage against Blazers. But that’s the problem: Kurogane isn’t the kind to rely on magic. His fighting style is extremely rare among Blazers, focusing more on physical combat. He only uses magic once a battle, and Tiger’s Bite is a Noble Art that only nullifies Noble Arts. It’s not meant as an offensive technique. Moroboshi’s going to be limited to physical combat—that is, his skill with the spear. He has the upper hand in terms of range, but an advantage as basic as that won’t be enough to stop Another One. Not by a long shot.”

In the same way that Raikiri had been at a disadvantage against Moroboshi, Ikki too would have to fight against the spear’s long reach. However, his mobility and foresight—along with his mid-range experience—far exceeded that of the average student knight. Even the Seven Stars King himself would have trouble keeping a swordsman like him at bay.

“Does that mean you think there’s a chance for a first-round upset?”

“Definitely.”

At the very least, Touka was certain that it wouldn’t be a one-sided beatdown. She had fought both the Worst One and the Seven Stars King, and the way she saw it, Ikki’s close-range fighting ability was definitely at the national level. There was no doubt in her mind that he had the strength to compete for the title of Seven Stars King.

Still, it’s still pretty awful luck to have him as your first opponent.

That didn’t matter, though. As long as Ikki was in good condition, it wasn’t out of the question for him to make an incredible upset.

“Go get ’em, Kurogane!” Touka cheered, sending her support all the way from Tokyo to Osaka.

◆◇◆◇◆

“We have an announcement for everyone present. Arena preparations have been completed, and we will now begin block C’s first-round match. Contestants in block C, please gather in the waiting room.”

The bowl-shaped Coastal Dome was informed that the ring in the center of the artificial turf arena had been readied for its next group of users. Among those who had heard the announcement were Ikki and the others, who had watched the previous match with such interest that they’d pressed themselves against the fence in front of them.

“I’d better get to that waiting room, then,” he said to Shizuku and Alice, who sat with him. He would be fighting in the fourth match of block C, so he had no reason to rush, but no reason to be late, either.

“Good luck, Ikki.”

“I’m rooting for you, Big Brother. What’s Stella’s deal, though? It’s one thing for her to be late for her own match, but she’s even late for yours.”

“I think you’ve got that backwards.”

“Time to put the murder methods I learned from The Mother-in-Law’s Guide: 108 Ways to Torment a Newly Married Woman to the test.”

“Haha… Well, take it easy on her. Later.”

After soothing Shizuku, who was irate that Ikki’s own girlfriend would be too late to cheer him on, Ikki left the two behind to head to the waiting room. All they saw on his face was a look of pure relaxation—a look too tranquil to belong to a man who was heading into battle.

“Good,” Shizuku sighed in relief after seeing him off. “He doesn’t seem as nervous as he was before.”

“Heehee. Well, of course he’s not. He went toe-to-toe with Twin Wings, you know. He’s beyond being afraid of someone like the Seven Stars King.”

Shizuku nodded, as Alice’s claim made perfect sense. Maybe their battle had started working in his favor. If nothing else, Shizuku had no reason to doubt as much.

“Hi there. You two remember me from yesterday?”

Suddenly, a familiar voice reached her ears. A girl in a white coat waved as she approached from the direction Ikki had left in.

“Kiriko.”

“Why, we certainly run into you often.”

“Aha, you sure do. Maybe it’s fate.”

“I’d rather not be drawn to the doctor by fate.”

Kiriko shrugged exaggeratedly at Alice’s joke before putting on a serious expression.

“I just passed by Worst One. Did something happen to him?”

“What do you mean?” Shizuku was the first to react to her disquieting question. “I thought my brother seemed very relaxed.”

She couldn’t figure out the basis on which Kiriko believed otherwise. In response, Kiriko agreed, taking it just a bit further.

“He’s too relaxed.”

“Huh?”

“I did a quick examination as we passed by each other. His pulse, temperature, and perspiration… even the hormonal balance in his bloodstream, it was all too normal. Usually, all types of people experience some sort of change in those levels before a fight, but his haven’t changed in the slightest.”

That was impossible for a human. The previous day, Kiriko had claimed that he was in a state of excitement when he was with Moroboshi. For some reason, however, all traces of that excitement had vanished from him.

“That’s a sign that he’s deliberately forcing himself to relax,” she continued. “He wasn’t like this yesterday; his excitement levels then were optimal for someone who was getting ready for a proper fight. Has something happened to make him uneasy?”

Big Brother is uneasy?

“A-Are you a hundred percent sure?!”

“My diagnoses never lie. Not that I know what it is that’s got him so worried, though.”

“Couldn’t it just be that he’s relaxing so he doesn’t overexert himself?”

“I highly doubt that. A reasonable level of excitement increases one’s ability in battle, and I find it hard to believe he’s the kind of knight who wouldn’t know that. It really makes you wonder.”

Kiriko’s grim diagnosis invited an uncomfortable silence to fall over the group. Amidst that silence, Shizuku thought back on her conversation with Kiriko from the night before, after Ikki had split off from the rest of the gang. She recalled what she’d been told about the Seven Stars King, Yuudai Moroboshi, whom Ikki would soon face in battle.

※ ※ ※

“And what does this ‘almost pitiful sense of duty’ entail?”

Shizuku couldn’t help but to pose her question in an interrogating tone. From her point of view, by claiming that Ikki couldn’t win against Moroboshi, Kiriko had just unfairly insulted her beloved brother. However, Kiriko did not make that claim without reason.

“You remember Moroboshi’s little sister from the restaurant, right? And you remember that she was mute?”

“I do, yes. The Seven Stars King told us that it was a mental thing.”

“It was because of Moroboshi that she became mute.”

“What?!”

“At least, that’s what he believes. I don’t really agree with it.” Kiriko began to tell Shizuku the origin of the feeling of responsibility that carried Moroboshi forward. Six years earlier, everything had started when tragedy struck Kansai’s greatest young knight, a boy known at the time as the Star of Naniwa. “On a weekend, Moroboshi and his family left by train for a park. However, there was an accident. It made national news, so I expect that you two know about it as well.”

Shizuku nodded, as she and her family had been watching the news as that story broke.

“I remember that hundreds of people died in the disaster. I never knew that the Seven Stars King was in it until my brother told me earlier today, though.”

“Yes. So many lives were lost in that awful tragedy. The fact that he’s still alive today may mean that Moroboshi is extremely lucky. But he was far from being uninjured. His sister and parents had gotten away with only minor injuries, but he wasn’t so lucky, and lost both of his legs.”

“He ‘lost’ them? As in, he was crippled?!”

“That’s right. Capsules, the pinnacle of modern science and medicine, can reattach lost arms, legs, and, depending on the situation, even heads. They’re miraculous, to say the least. However, they can only reconnect; they can’t recreate limbs that have been completely mangled.” In other words, Moroboshi’s wounds were beyond healing by even modern medicine. “Though he survived, the Star of Naniwa—hailed as the most talented knight in all of Osaka since the Demon Princess herself—was forced to withdraw before the final tournament of his Little League career.”

It must have been horrible for him, to the point that it was unbearable. But at the time, Moroboshi was crippled, unable to even walk. How could he have fought like that? It had to have been an awful decision to make, but that was his fate. His inherent cheerfulness had allowed him to adapt to his new life without knighthood.

“However, there was someone whose emotions could not adapt the way his did.” It was his sister, Koume Moroboshi, Kiriko explained. As for why, there was one sad reason. “The day of the accident, she was the one who had insisted that they go to the park.”

“Ah! Th-Then Koume…!”

“Correct. She blamed herself for it all.”

If Koume hadn’t pestered them to go to the park, her brother would have lost neither his legs nor the promising future he deserved. If she hadn’t been so selfish…

She continued to blame herself for what had happened to him, so much so that her heart broke. As a result, she lost the ability to speak. It was as if she had chosen to never force anyone to listen to her selfishness again.

“I had no idea.”

“Ailments of the heart and mind are complex. Unlike injuries or bodily ailments, the symptoms and treatments are far too individualized. We doctors are, unfortunately, powerless. One man remains, though, who continues to try to heal her ailment.”

Based on the sense of duty that Kiriko had mentioned, Shizuku knew precisely who that man was.

“That would be Yuudai Moroboshi, yes?”

“Yes. At the time, he’d given up on knighthood, but the calamity within her lit a fire inside of him.”

Kiriko then claimed that, not even six months after the accident, Moroboshi visited her after having somehow caught wind of her research on limb-regeneration magic through the use of cells from the rest of the body.

“Please, Doc! Make it so I can fight again!”

He probably hadn’t even told his family about his plan before he’d crawled his way from Osaka to Hiroshima. His muddied, tattered body had seemed to ooze determination.

“I willingly agreed to his request. Not because I was impressed by his zeal in any way, though; his appearance just presented a good opportunity for me. I’d been searching for a guinea pig, after all.” Her honest, straightforward statement was also rather alarming. “Teehee. You must think I’m horrid. At the time, though, I was certain that I could do anything—that it was okay for me to do anything. I didn’t hesitate in the slightest as I marched into God’s territory, creating limbs willy-nilly.”

“Then Moroboshi’s legs are…”

“Mm-hmm. I scraped tissue from all over his body, broke it down to the molecular level, and then formed it into false legs that would imitate his old ones.”

As a fellow water mage, Shizuku was aghast at the Medico Knight’s skill. There were probably fewer than three water mages in the world who could recover someone else’s lost limbs. Furthermore, using her method, Moroboshi’s body was the only source of tissue, removing any chance of his body rejecting the new limbs as foreign matter.

“Hmm. But if you used tissue from the rest of his body to recover his legs, which are almost half the body, wouldn’t that leave the rest of him in rather poor shape?”

Shizuku had also considered the question Alice posed. In response, Kiriko confirmed the pair’s apprehension to be true.

“You’re quite perceptive. Yes, he was in very poor shape. First, obviously, all of his muscles were deteriorated—to an almost life-threatening extent. Additionally, to make bones as big and durable as the femur, I had to drastically reduce his bone density, giving him osteoporosis.”

After the treatment, Moroboshi was so weakened that breathing alone hurt his sternum. The only time he had ever been that close to death was during the accident itself. That, however, was only the beginning.

To get his skin-and-bones body to move with the same freedom it had before the accident, he had to rebuild his musculature. He didn’t have time to waste, either, as if he didn’t do so quickly, his muscular atrophy would put his life in even greater danger. To prevent that from happening, Kiriko forced him to put his twig-like self through muscle training similar to that done by professional athletes.

“Of course, in his state, even that wasn’t going to be enough.”

His hollow bones would shatter. His muscles would snap in two. His tendons would constantly tear, causing nerve ruptures. He gritted his teeth as he ran with broken legs and lifted dumbbells with broken arms. Of course, every time he broke, Kiriko would use her recovery magic to bring him back. Yet that only meant that he would face the pain of breaking thousands of times.

The rigorous training he’d undergone was tantamount to torture. Vomiting and incontinence were daily occurrences. Kiriko recalled that Moroboshi’s rehabilitation was like a living hell.

“After three months, I was forced to give up.”

“No surprise there. He went through far too much.”

“I can’t believe he lasted that long.”

Alice and Shizuku figured that he gave up far too late, if anything. What he’d done no longer fell under the category of rehabilitation. Continuing that would have been the most bizarre thing one could have done. However, their expectations were betrayed.

“You’ve got it wrong. I was the one who gave up, not him.”

“Huh?”

“Just as I always do with guinea pigs, I kept a log of my observations. But clearly, he’s no guinea pig; he’s a human just like you and me. Watching a fellow human go through months and months of suffering like that made me feel like I was going insane. To be honest, I really believed I was. Even in my dreams, I could hear his cries.”

After three months, Kiriko could think nothing except that her research was the devil’s play. She had to put it to an end immediately; modern prosthetics were incredible enough. They wouldn’t be able to carry magic or function as smoothly as his old legs, and it would be impossible for him to revive his career, but at the very least, there were prosthetics efficient enough that they wouldn’t get in the way of his everyday life.

There was no reason for her to have him continue with his rehabilitation. Having decided as much, Kiriko finally proposed that they put an end to it and that she use her magic to return the makeup of his legs to his upper body.

“But then, Moroboshi told me something.”

Kiriko could recall the exact words Moroboshi had said to her. His face glistening with sweat, his breathing ragged, he pleaded with her to let him keep going.

“Doc, do you know what the last thing Koume said to me was? She was sobbing up a storm, and she just said, ‘I’m sorry’. Ever since that day, she hasn’t said a single word, and it’s all because I’m such a wretch, because I got hurt like this. I made her think she was indebted to me. I made her think her wanting things was a crime.

“So no, I’m not stopping now. I gotta tell her that there’s nothing to apologize for, that she doesn’t have to worry. But I can’t do that if I’m like this. Everything I lost in that accident—my legs, my strength, my status—I’m gonna take it all back and show her that I’m okay through results instead of words. If I don’t, she’ll keep blaming herself forever!

“That’s why, until Koume forgives herself and starts talking again, it doesn’t matter how many bones I break or muscles I tear! I’m never gonna let her see me hunched over in pain again! That’s what it means to be a brother!”

“After that, Moroboshi kept going with his rehabilitation. He refused to give up. And a few years later, his desperate struggle finally bore fruit. Yuudai Moroboshi, the Star of Naniwa, returned to center stage equipped with strength not inferior to what he’d had before.” He then climbed all the way to the peak of Japanese student knighthood, becoming the Seven Stars King. “But even then, Moroboshi hadn’t achieved his self-imposed duty. Until the day Koume speaks again, he’ll continue to struggle.”

Not even his desire for a real fight with Ikki was for the sake of his personal ambition; it was all for his sister. The driving force that had let him crawl his way up from the depths of hell, the willpower born from his brotherly duty, still burned unceasingly within him. Kiriko knew that full well, which was why she also knew about his strength.

“As someone who’s been watching him progress since day one, I can guarantee you this much: Yuudai Moroboshi isn’t the kind of boy who can be defeated by the simple ambition of wanting to win. Those who fight for people other than themselves are truly strong.”

◆◇◆◇◆

Their talk of memories and Moroboshi’s awe-inspiring eagerness to throw himself into battle sent a shiver down Shizuku’s spine. For the sake of getting his sister to speak again, Moroboshi had recovered from career-ending injuries and made a miraculous return to knighthood. His determination and tenacity as he overcame torturous rehabilitation were infinitely beyond the realm of the average person.

There’s no doubt that he’s strong. Both in body and mind. Shizuku couldn’t imagine that he would be bested by someone clouded by doubt. Big Brother, please! You have to get a hold of yourself!

With emotions almost akin to prayer, Shizuku gazed at the blue gate, where Ikki would at some point emerge from. Then, in her periphery, she spotted a tiny girl with bobbed hair seated directly above it.

“Ah…”

It was Moroboshi’s sister, Koume, staring at the red gate. She, just like Shizuku, was waiting for the moment her brother would emerge. Unlike Shizuku, however, she looked as though she was harboring a terrible pain.

“We have another message for everyone here today. We apologize for the long wait, but we will now begin the first match of the Seven Stars Battle Festival’s C block!”

The announcement heralded the start of the matches, prompting Shizuku to turn her attention to the arena, but she continued to think. If she were in Koume’s shoes, how would she feel? If Ikki had lost his legs because of her, and if he had surmounted so much pain and suffering just for her… and if all she could do was wait and watch as he suffered through a world of fighting, a world where everyone continually injured each other, how would she feel?

“…Nh.”

The result of that line of thinking was pain that threatened to rend her heart.

◆◇◆◇◆

Block C progressed smoothly, without any of the delay-related difficulties that block B had run into. While its battles were taking place, after some moderate warming up, Moroboshi lowered himself into a folding chair and stared at a single sheet of paper. On it, a message was written in cute, round handwriting.

“Go get ’em!”

The night before, Moroboshi had not returned to his hotel room. After sending Ikki off in the ambulance, he’d returned to the still-packed restaurant, helping out for so long that he decided to just spend the night at home. As a result, though, he’d received that message from Koume before he’d left home. After all, Moroboshi had asked her to write it before he’d left for the opening ceremony.

“Hey. Mind writing ‘Go get ’em!’ like you always do?”

It was like a good luck charm for him, so he would always make that request before his matches. Each time he did, Koume would look at him and frown momentarily before breaking out into a smile and writing it out for him. Just as she always did.

“…”

As he looked at the message, Moroboshi recalled his sister’s split-second frown. It seemed so apologetic, so pained. He knew exactly what she was thinking when she made that expression.

For so long, she’d known that her brother had made this comeback for her sake. Of course, not once had he acted like he was doing her any favors, but as they shared the same blood, she could understand his thoughts to an extent. That made her hesitate all the more to send him off with a cheer of “Go get ’em!”, as though her brother fighting for her was none of her business. Moroboshi could see through to that truth, and he chuckled softly.

“Silly.”

There’s nothing to be sorry about, Koume. You didn’t do anything wrong. She didn’t have to worry; all she had to do was to recover at her own pace. He didn’t care if it took years or even decades. Until you’re all better, I won’t lose. I’ll just keep on winning until you realize you haven’t taken anything from me, and you finally recover. Then, we’ll be just like we were in the good old days.

“To the fighters in the waiting room, block C’s third match has ended, and we will now begin the fourth match. Hagun Academy’s Ikki Kurogane and Bukyoku Academy’s Yuudai Moroboshi, please head to your entrance gates.”

“All right! Time to win this thing!”

Just watch, kiddo!

◆◇◆◇◆

“In the last match, we witnessed Byakuya Jougasaki’s strength as he forced his opponent out of the ring and held them there for ten seconds, resulting in a TKO. Quite the performance from last year’s runner-up, wouldn’t you say, Coach Muroto?”

“Absolutely. But I must say, it’s rather unsatisfying for a Mage-Knight to win that way. I understand that such a rule is in place to protect the contestants, but it does leave the viewer wishing they had settled it properly in the ring, haha.”

“I see. And I’m sure there are many spectators that would agree with you. In that case, we’ll just have to wait in anticipation for a fitting conclusion to the next match! Now, we’ve kept everyone waiting long enough. Our next matchup may be the most attention-grabbing one in all of Japan. Let the fighters enter the arena!”

The voice of the play-by-play announcer, Iida, was followed by the gates being lifted. Then, the two fighters for block C’s fourth match entered the arena.

“First, from the red gate, we have last year’s victor: third-year student at Bukyoku Academy, Yuudai Moroboshi! With his innate talent and superhuman skill with the spear, along with his ability to chomp away a Blazer’s magic, he climbed to the top of the tournament! However, the way up was not as easy as one might expect!

“An awful accident just before his final Little League tournament led to him losing his legs, an injury that would be more than enough to spell the end of a knight’s career. However, against all odds, he returned to us! He conquered injuries once thought unrecoverable, leaping from the depths of hell to the peak of Japan! A boy who knows both the glory and the frustrations of chivalry, Seven Stars King Yuudai Moroboshi! Today, he makes his appearance in a bid for the first-ever two-win streak at the Seven Stars Battle Festival!”

Instantly, the arena erupted with cheers.

“Boshi! Boshi!”

“Just listen to that crowd! The Dome is quivering under its mighty roar! That’s a hometown hero for you! His popularity’s through the roof!”

The shower of cheers sounded almost like the rumbling of an earthquake. No other student knight in Japan could hope to be anywhere near as popular.

“Hrrraaaaah!”

Faced with their overpowering expectations, Moroboshi materialized his Device, Tiger King, and pointed it upward as if to pierce the heavens. It was an act that seemed to say, “Leave it to me”. When he did so, the venue reached a fever pitch.

“Wooooooooooooooo!”

“This is incredible! Moroboshi, confronted with cheers loud enough to shake the earth, doesn’t hesitate for a moment! He’s not cowering in the slightest! He’s carrying all those hopes, all that anticipation on his shoulders with ease! What a man! What heroism!”

“This is just what people love about Yuudai Moroboshi.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“As you’ve said already, Iida, he made a comeback from impossible-to-recover-from injuries; I’m sure he’s more worried about his condition than any other fighter is about theirs. But he doesn’t show an ounce of discomfort as he carries the burden of all the hopes people have put on him. Not only that, but he’s been successful in meeting those expectations, too. It’s almost like he’s saying, ‘Don’t worry about me, I’m just fine’. Oh, and speaking of severe injuries, I actually once underwent the same type of procedure as he did.”

“I hear one of your legs is a prosthetic, Coach Muroto.”

“It is. You see, it’s common to lose body parts in the KoK. There’s a major demand for limb-recovery operations like the one he went through, but almost nobody—myself included—has seen success with them. Do you know why that is?”

“No, actually. Could you tell us more?”

“Well, the operation itself has nearly a perfect success rate, but nobody can keep up with the rehabilitation that comes after. The procedure uses flesh and tissue from existing body parts to form the missing ones. Afterward, the patient suffers severe osteoporosis and muscular atrophy, often leading to symptoms of organ failure or hypofunction. In order to recover your lost muscle, you have to do intense muscle training. In other words, to get your body back to normal, you have to train during your recovery period. You end up with thousands upon thousands of pulled muscles and broken bones over time. Even an adult like me just couldn’t take it. I was begging the doctor to put me back only three days in!

“Moroboshi, on the other hand, overcame that hellish rehabilitation, and with greater power than ever before. That’s not something you can do with just grit or resolve. Honestly, I can’t even begin to imagine how the King could lose here today. Every aspect of his abilities is at a higher level, and he has such raw courage and daring.”

“Interesting. It makes me all the more excited for his second consecutive victory! And look! The Seven Stars King’s first opponent has just entered the arena!”

In response to the announcer’s words, the whole crowd focused on the blue gate. Amongst all the attention, one boy walked coolly, armed with a black katana.

“This boy is showing up everywhere! He was the talk of the nation during the scandal involving the Crimson Princess, and now he’s here, the first Rank F to ever take part in the Seven Stars! Oh, but don’t let his rank fool you; his strength is very real! In his selection battles, he defeated Raikiri, Moroboshi’s most troublesome opponent last year, in a single blow! Plus, though it was an informal battle, he even defeated the Rank A Stella Vermillion.

“Known to some as Another One, the Uncrowned Sword King, he’s definitely got unorthodox strength! The true underdog of this tournament, the weakest warrior with the strongest sword skills, it’s the first-year from Hagun Academy, Ikki Kurogane, and he’s just made his way into the ring!”

Loud cheers arose from the audience, though they were nowhere near as loud as the ones Moroboshi had received. Everyone was eagerly awaiting the sight of just how much the unorthodox weakling could upset the stage where Japan’s strongest student knights fought for the top. Alice couldn’t help but to gasp at the sight of the crowd’s enthusiasm.

“The time has finally come for Ikki to stand on the national stage.”

An ill-starred knight, unappreciated and unfairly treated by all, now stood in the national arena, accepted by all as a powerful warrior. For those who had been watching him since his first selection battle, it was a deeply moving sight.

“Yeah. But Big Brother can’t lose here. He’s aiming even higher than that,” Shizuku replied firmly, then turned her attention to the doctor next to her. “Kiriko, how would you say he’s doing right now?”

“Hmm. Just a sec. Stethoscope.” As she said that, Kiriko closed her left eye, focusing her magic into her right to examine Ikki from afar. Afterward, she grinned ever so slightly. “Teehee♡ No surprise there, given all the bloody battles he’s overcome.”

“What does that mean?”

“He’s not as unnatural as he was when I walked past him. He’s fully entered fighting mode, with his body’s hormonal balance and blood pressure displaying the proper amounts of nervousness and excitement. He must have gotten his feelings in order while he was waiting. Relax, Shizuku. Your brother is undoubtedly in top condition!”

With the scene ready and the actors present, a gong signaled the start of battle.

“It’s time to begin the next battle in the first round of the Seven Stars Battle Festival! The fourth match in block C, it’s Yuudai Moroboshi versus Ikki Kurogane! Let’s go ahead!”

◆◇◆◇◆

The instant the signal was given, Ikki kicked off from his starting position and sprinted toward the Seven Stars King.

“Whoa! Kurogane isn’t wasting a single second! He’s already on the offensive!”

The announcer was audibly startled by Ikki’s charge, leading to a wave of similar surprise throughout the venue. He was attacking without even taking the time to assess his situation. Careless, impatient, hasty—many would feel that it was a poor idea. Alice, however, had carefully scrutinized his options.

“Great thinking!” she praised.

“Alice?”

“There’s nothing Ikki can do from a distance, because he has no skills that work at long-range. The key to his victory is breaking past the range of Moroboshi’s spear and getting into his own range with his sword.” In other words, a swift attack was his best option. “A spear’s strengths and weaknesses are all based on reach. If he can get close enough, he’ll easily be able to get the upper hand!”

“But Moroboshi’s fully aware of that. He’s not just going to stand there and let someone get in close to him.”

As if to back up Kiriko’s claim, Moroboshi moved to protect himself. He was unperturbed by Ikki’s swift attack, moving with composure as he angled himself such that his shoulder was drawn back, Tiger King’s spearhead waiting for its prey. Everyone in the Dome immediately got goosebumps, shudders creeping down their backs.

“Hnn…!”

Shizuku, watching from the audience, was no different.

“Wh-What a man! His posture alone exudes such a strong pressure!”

As the announcer stated, the stadium-wide shudder was caused by the intense pressure that Moroboshi exuded as he took up his stance. The once-bustling crowd was frozen in silence; that one boy had captured the full attention of the tens of thousands of spectators in the arena.

Despite his swift decision-making from seconds before, even Ikki was forced to halt his charge in the face of that pressure. Moroboshi had the same glint in his eye that had stopped Yui Tatara two days earlier: Predator’s Sense. The pressure only lasted a moment, however, and Ikki then put even more strength into his halted legs, continuing his sprint toward Moroboshi.

“Kurogane may have stopped once, but he won’t shrink from battle now!”

“He’s got guts, for sure. A normal knight would have faltered and tottered around under the Seven Stars King’s pressure, but he hasn’t lost one bit of his sharpness.”

Coach Muroto praised Ikki’s courage, but Moroboshi already knew of his daring. If he wanted to put the Worst One down, he would need more than just some pressure.

“Hah!”

Just as Ikki, unshaken, stepped into Moroboshi’s range, there was a flash of light as Tiger King pierced through the air. Ikki performed a backstep to escape the attack, but wasn’t able to make it out completely unscathed—some of his hair scattered onto the ground. He had been a split second too late to dodge, owing to the spear’s incredible speed.

Cheers filled the arena once more in response to Moroboshi’s counter.

“See how sharp that was! That thrust tore through the air so fast, I think I can hear the wind from up here! Kurogane was forced to retreat. Moroboshi has ended his opponent’s charge with a single blow!”

“That wasn’t a single blow.”

“It wasn’t?”

“Try zooming in on Worst One’s chest.”

Iida operated the play-by-play camera in response to Muroto’s command. In doing so, the venue’s huge screen revealed multiple holes in Ikki’s clothes.

“Wow! His clothes are torn in two places!”

“That’s right. Include the haircut, and that makes three strikes total. It’s the Seven Stars King’s Astral Trio, a triple spear thrust that looks like only a single stab from afar. Because Moroboshi’s incredible Noble Art allows him to break enemy magic, people often fight in a way that removes that from the equation. In my opinion, though, his honed skill with the spear makes for a more dangerous weapon. Weaving your way through his attacks is a Herculean task; Worst One needs to take extra care to really plan out when and how he intends to make his move.”

Muroto’s confident explanation was tantamount to common sense. A direct charge would be too rash against the spearman whom Ikki had locked eyes with, as the spear boasted unmatched power against enemies in a straight line. Ikki’s surprise attack at the start of the match had failed, so he had to find some way to break through from the side. That much was obvious, which made his next move all the more bewildering.

Not running, not leaping, he almost seemed to stroll nonchalantly toward Moroboshi. Incredibly, he got about five feet from his foe—perfect striking range for the spear, but not for the sword—before stopping to stand completely still.

“Whaaat?! What in the world is Kurogane planning! I-It’s almost like he’s asking his opponent to attack!”

Both play-by-play and analysis were agape. His actions were entirely incomprehensible; they almost looked to be provocative. Then, a few members of the audience caught on, and one section of the arena erupted with shouts.

“Don’t underestimate him, Boshi! Kick his ass!”

“This Tokyo kid’s just got a big head!”

As if responding to their voices, Moroboshi repeated his special move from before: a volley of stabs known as Astral Trio.

“There he goes! The Seven Stars King comes in with a furious assault on his fearless opponent!” It was a rain of death, not unlike a bullet hail let loose by a machine gun. Unavoidable, unblockable—or so it was thought to be. “I-It’s not working! The attacks aren’t hitting! Even with its incredible speed, Astral Trio hasn’t put so much as a scratch on its target! Kurogane is avoiding the spearhead so elegantly it almost looks like he’s dancing! Talk about magnificent footwork!”

Ikki was avoiding Moroboshi’s Astral Trio, which could strike thrice in the space of a single breath, by moving left and right instead of forward and backward. The Noble Art was so terrific that it could almost have been said to be superhuman, but despite being well within its range, Ikki was evading every blow. It was a situation that he had intentionally put himself in, for he knew of a technique far faster and far sharper. It was the Sword Eater’s Marginal Counter.

The Sword Eater’s Marginal Counter far surpassed a human’s maximum reaction speed, allowing him to strike eight times in such rapid succession that it created the illusion of simultaneity. Compared to that, Astral Trio could be followed by the naked eye with ease; it wasn’t nearly as overpowering as the impossible illusion of eight fangs closing in all at once. Ikki needed only to calmly read the spear’s path of movement and he would have no trouble dealing with Moroboshi’s technique.

For ten full seconds, Moroboshi attacked and Ikki evaded. As if deciding that it was a fruitless endeavor, Moroboshi leaped back to create distance between them once again.

“Moroboshi can’t take it! He’s been forced back! Incredible, Ikki Kurogane! It’s like he’s paying the King back for that pressure at the start of the match, forcing him to retreat without landing a single hit!”

“The heck?!”

“No way!”

“Whoooa! That guy’s seriously a Rank F?!”

“So cool!”

“Cheers and cries alike rise from the crowd. These fighters sure know how to make a match exciting!”

“He’s making it very clear how he managed to achieve victory over past representatives like The Hunter and Raikiri. I’ve never seen a fighter as quick and fearsome in mid-range combat as he is. That said, it seems that neither fighter is giving his all quite yet.”

Muroto’s gently whispered words were the truth. Though it looked as though Moroboshi was overwhelmed, he curled his lips into a smirk and spoke to Ikki.

“You’ve got some nerve, making me a part of your warm-up. Well? Feeling good yet?”

“Yeah. Thanks to you, I’m absolutely certain now. I’m definitely in top form today.”

Neither side had meant for their game of cat and mouse to be a true trading of blows. Ikki had stepped into the danger zone and continually evaded Astral Trio for the sole purpose of making sure that his body did not flinch in fear, and, understanding that goal, Moroboshi had offered a helping hand. Ikki thanked him for his kindness, for it was because of him that he could have conviction.

His legs carried him well. His movements were sharp. His field of vision was wide and clear. Even if he had only narrowly evaded Moroboshi’s spear, there was not the slightest bit of fear in his heart. There was no sense of unnaturalness like there had been when he’d fought Ouma the night before.

Ikki could fight. With that realization, for the first time since the starting signal, he wielded his sword with a true thirst for battle.

“Perfect.” Moroboshi nodded in satisfaction. “That’s the end of your free lunch, then. Time for me to get serious.”

The pressure emanating from Moroboshi instantly grew stronger, to the point that just looking at him made it hard to breathe. It was undoubtedly the pressure given off by a King. However, Ikki still knew that he could win. He had gleaned an important piece of information from their short exchange.

The way Moroboshi uses his spear is exactly the same as it was in the videos I watched. He has a fatal weakness!

◆◇◆◇◆

“I like that look on Kurogane’s face. Seems like he’s found the hole in the Seven Stars King’s fighting style,” Touka muttered, watching the television broadcast from a hospital room at Hagun Academy.

“Is there a hole in his fighting style?”

“There is, though you’d only be able to find it by researching tons of videos like he did. I bet he used their little skirmish to confirm his suspicion.”

“I don’t understand. What could it possibly be?”

“Think about it this way, Kana: if you used a spear, how would you attack?”

Kanata thought for a moment before deciding on her answer.

“I imagine I would use stabbing attacks.”

“Of course you would. Spears are made for stabbing, after all. But their incredible reach gives them another method of attack: sweeping.”

There was more to a spear than just its pointed head. With enough force behind it, the hard staff, usually over a yard in length, could easily break bones. Sweeping techniques were especially prevalent among certain Chinese spearmen, who would often use stabs to force their foe to dodge before swinging their spear like a club. The sweep of a spear couldn’t compare to the swing of a sword, of course, but that didn’t mean it was something that could be ignored.

“But the Seven Stars King doesn’t use sweeps when he fights,” Touka continued. “He’s not just avoiding it now; in every match since his comeback, he’s only used stabs. That includes his match with me, of course.”

“My, I never would have noticed that,” Kanata declared in surprise, but with a refined tone befitting of her usual manner of speaking. “But why is it that he only uses stabs? Does he simply believe that’s all he needs to win?”

“Stabs are strong. With very little effort, you can strike fast and hard, since the power is all focused at the one end. Moroboshi’s Astral Trio goes even further, removing the danger inherent in pulling the spear back. Chances are that it’s his strongest possible method of attack, so maybe, like you said, he never needs to sweep to beat his opponents. That changes when he’s up against a master like Kurogane, though.”

No matter how fast or sharp it was, a stab could only attack a fixed point. It seemed almost harmless in comparison to the wide-range attack that was the sweep. Worse, it was highly predictable, and the follow-through would cause one’s body to naturally lean forward, making it easy for their foe to counterattack.

“A dodged stab gathers no blood,” she explained.

“In other words, you’re saying that Kurogane’s reflexes are going to ensure that he has little trouble overcoming Moroboshi’s fighting style?”

“That’s… what you would normally think.”

Touka grinned in a way that was unusually wicked for her.

“‘Normally’? What do you mean?”

“Unfortunately, the guy Kurogane is up against isn’t normal. If what I just said is what Kurogane is thinking, he’s in for a world of hurt—just like I was a year ago.”

◆◇◆◇◆

“What’s this?! Kurogane’s on the offensive again!”

Just as Touka finished giving her vague, grave warning, the match in Osaka jumped back into action. Ikki had confirmed that he no longer harbored any fear, and once again closed the distance between himself and his opponent, ready to expose the hole in Moroboshi’s fighting.

“But Moroboshi’s not going to let him have his way so easily! He counters with another Astral Trio!”

Naturally, Moroboshi led off with a counterattack, using his long reach to preempt Ikki’s charge. For the first blow, Ikki moved right to dodge the spearhead aimed at his forehead.

One!

Then, he stepped left to dodge the one that came for his heart.

Two!

Moroboshi’s Noble Art attacked three places in the space of one breath. It was a terrifying skill, but it was the result of endless training and repetition rather than an inherent, superhuman ability like the Sword Eater’s Marginal Counter. Thus, Ikki could react to it with ease.

I’ve dodged two, so the next one is the last! After that, Moroboshi will pause! Three was probably the most he could stab without stopping to breathe. Thus, Ikki had decided that the third and final stab would be his chance to counterattack. The moment he dodged, he would leap into sword range. I’ll squeeze in there and draw first blood! It might not take him down, but I’ll at least get a leg up on him!

The third stab was trained on Ikki’s femur. When it came, he immediately put his plan into action.

That’s three! Now!

No matter how fast or well-executed, a stab could only attack a single point. If he dodged even inches left or right, it wouldn’t hit him. He sidestepped to the left, ready to pounce into sword range.

I’ll get a nice hit to his torso, and—

As Ikki escaped the stab and prepared his sword to slam into his opponent, a jaw-dropping event occurred in his periphery. The head of Tiger King immediately turned left, changing directions to follow its prey like a snake that had missed its initial strike.

“Hrrrngh?!”

The spear continued its pursuit. Though he was dumbfounded by the nonsensical sight of it, Ikki made the split-second decision to give up on pressing forward. Instead, he jumped to the left once more to move out of the spear’s range. He’d made a hairbreadth escape, but it did not leave him entirely unscathed.

“Wh-Wh-Wh-Whoa! Kurogane, who dodged Astral Trio with ease! Moroboshi, who seemed to be stuck in a defensive battle! Their skirmish, which seemed clearly in Kurogane’s favor, has just been turned upside down! Kurogane’s earlobe has been half-torn off! The King draws first blooood!”

The crowd stirred at Moroboshi’s drawing of first blood. Ikki, however, showed no interest in that blood as it trickled down his neck. What interested him was his opponent’s attack, which made him shudder so powerfully that it shook him from head to toe.

Wh-What was that stab?! I never saw anything like that in the videos!

By watching countless videos of him, Ikki had researched Moroboshi’s fighting style inside and out. That was what had made the hole in his fighting style so clear to him. That attack was different, however; never before had he seen Tiger King behave that way. Ikki first thought it a new skill, but quickly decided that it couldn’t have been—not with the very peculiar problem it posed.

Why didn’t play-by-play say anything about that? Did they not see it?

◆◇◆◇◆

Ikki’s hypothesis was correct: no one in the crowd had noticed the curving of the spear.

“Argh, darn! I thought for sure he was going to get him that time,” Alice frowned in annoyance. She had seen Ikki prepare to strike but fail to take the chance. It was quite the shame. He’d only needed a little more.

At least, that was how it had seemed to her, who thought it a shame because she had only seen that Ikki had failed to dodge the final blow. If she knew what had truly happened in that moment, her view would have been different.

In that last skirmish, Moroboshi had lured Ikki into his trap by coercing him to set upon taking advantage of his weakness of only using stabs. It was an ambush designed to subvert Ikki’s belief that all he had to do to be safe was to move to either side. Everyone in the audience—Alice included—held that belief as well.

“Was he, though?” She hadn’t seen the spear curve, but Shizuku still had her doubts.

“Shizuku? Something up?”

“Look at Big Brother’s face.” Even from a distance, Ikki was visibly shaken. “If it were as simple as him flubbing his dodge, he wouldn’t look so wary. Something happened down there that we couldn’t see. And the one who made it happen must have been Moroboshi.”

◆◇◆◇◆

There was someone aside from Shizuku who knew that something was amiss—someone who had anticipated the outcome.

“I thought he’d use that,” Touka Toudou, the Raikiri stated. It was natural that she had predicted it, because she had fallen for the same trick the year before. “Though he hit me directly in the side with it, since I couldn’t avoid it.”

“President, is there some secret to his stabs? To me, it only seemed as though Kurogane failed to dodge the third and final blow.”

“I said before that the weakness of a stab is how easy it is to avoid as a result of being focused on one spot, but Moroboshi’s stabs overturn that basic logic. No matter where you dodge, his attack curves to follow.”

“It… curves?”

“Yeah. And by using what you could call his ‘pursuing stab’, Moroboshi altogether removes the major drawback of stabbing.”

“But from what I saw, it didn’t appear to bend at all. Further, his ability has nothing to do with altering his reach. Blazers each only have one type of ability, so I can’t imagine that he’s able to change the shape of his Device the way the Sword Eater does.”

“It’s no surprise you didn’t see it bend. You couldn’t have, because it doesn’t. Like you said, what he’s doing isn’t the result of his Noble Art; it’s a skill that relies on his physical abilities, just like Astral Trio.”

“Hm?”

“Anyway, now that he’s drawn first blood, Moroboshi will go on the offensive and press his advantage. This is Kurogane’s moment of truth.”

“The Seven Stars King advances!” the TV blared. Once again, the match developed just as Touka had predicted. “The tables have turned!”

◆◇◆◇◆

He’s out for blood before I can even get my head straight? He definitely knows!

Ikki grimaced at Moroboshi, who was coming at him for the first time since the battle began. He clearly knew that Ikki was confused.

“Hup!”

The sharply thrust head of his spear was aimed at Ikki’s foot, a calculated assault that aimed to decrease his mobility.

I’d better give up on attacking and focus on dodging for now! I’ll keep evading until I get my rhythm back!

Ikki reminded himself to calm down and attempted to evade the impossible-to-stop stab by going back a half-step. With enough force behind it to audibly cut through the wind as it moved, the spear pierced fruitlessly into the stone floor, presenting Ikki with the perfect opportunity.

Or perhaps it wasn’t. Instantly, the spearhead burst from the surface of the ground, heading straight for his face.

Gaaah! He bent his neck as far as he could to evade a direct hit, but the attack still managed to graze his cheek. There’s no question about it anymore. I’m not sure how, but Moroboshi’s stabs are curving!

Moroboshi’s spear, a weapon that was supposed to be firm and straight, was bending like clay. It was an unbelievable sight, but having seen it twice, Ikki was forced to believe.

However, twice was not the end. Every stab bent in much the same way. Right, left, up, down—it was like some sort of illusion. Every last one of them pursued Ikki in whichever direction he dodged.

This is insane! I can’t just keep side-stepping; sooner or later, I’ll get skewered!

Quick dodges were only going to work for so long. Without any other method of protecting himself, Ikki’s only option was to remove himself entirely from the spear’s range.

“What’s going on with Kurogane?! As if his beautiful dodges from before never even happened, he seems to have gotten cold feet! Back and back he jumps, like he’s single-mindedly trying to escape!”

I am trying single-mindedly to escape!

Ikki chuckled at the play-by-play announcer’s criticism. However, fleeing did not equal losing—it was, in fact, a strategy employed specifically to prevent losing. Even if it was a shameful sight, his eyes were still set on victory.

Moreover, he was doing more than simply running away in fear. He was observing Moroboshi as he fled, summoning all of his wisdom as he neared the secret of Moroboshi’s pursuing stab.

Play-by-play has made it all too clear that nobody else can see it. If they could, the announcer wouldn’t have said what he did. He would have been praising Moroboshi’s impossible attack rather than criticizing Ikki. That must mean that the mechanism behind this is…

“Whatcha doin’ there, Kurogane?!” Moroboshi taunted. “You’re never gonna win if you just keep running!”

Yet again, a flash of steel pierced the air. Since the start of their battle, Ikki had been focused on the spearhead each time it was thrust at him. Given that some mysterious ability was being used to make it follow him, it only made sense that it would steal his attention.

That was wrong. I shouldn’t be focusing on the spearhead, I should be focusing on Moroboshi’s wrist!

Finally, Ikki had arrived at the truth of Moroboshi’s attack. As the next stab came at him, it did not escape his perception that the moment Moroboshi thrust his spear, he flicked his wrist and changed the angle of his elbow, altering the trajectory of his Device.

Ha! Thought so!

Ikki’s guess was right on the money. The spear never truly curved, it only appeared to do so by moving with such speed that it created an optical illusion. As he thrust it, he curved it. As he curved it, it pierced. It was as simple as that.

Though simple in concept, executing those motions while stabbing thrice with such speed that it appeared as a single stab was an impossibly difficult feat. So many actions were being performed in such a short period of time that it went beyond the realm of what a person should have been able to do; it was too much for the human brain to keep up with. The ability to do so, then, was because Moroboshi had engraved the movements into his muscles, his bones, and even his blood.

What could only be described as a triumph of the human body’s capabilities was the result of an enormous amount of incomprehensibly arduous training. As a result, Moroboshi’s stabs needed no orders from his brain, pursuing their prey of their own accord. It was such an extreme physical skill that it was indistinguishable from magic. For that reason, the Seven Stars King had given the ability a name: Comet.

What an incredible skill!

A physical feat that laughed at human limits. It, too, was unlike the innate ability belonging to the Sword Eater; it was a miracle created by constant effort. Ikki had to respect him as a fellow martial artist. His fighting style, which took the spear’s weakness of being able to attack only a single point and transformed it into an advantage, was nothing short of impressive. Once more, Ikki was glad that he had made it to the Seven Stars and could fight astounding knights like Moroboshi.

Just fighting isn’t enough, though!

In discovering that Comet was nothing more than a physical technique, he’d also discovered that it was possible to counter. The key to Comet’s strength was that it attacked enemies who had left themselves defenseless by evading.

“All I have to do is not evade!”

Ikki’s fighting style changed instantly. He used Intetsu to swat away a Comet aimed at his neck, giving up on his retreat in favor of a forward charge.

“Ngh?!”

Moroboshi tried to retaliate by quickly using a Comet-enhanced Astral Trio, but if they weren’t dodged, they were nothing more than regular stabs. With the trick behind it exposed, Ikki had no trouble swatting it away, parrying until he was in point-blank range.

“Whoa! Kurogane’s undergone a sudden transformation! He’s stopped his fancy dancing and is now making a bold forward plunge! Sparks fly as he elbows his way through a shower of steel, steadily closing in on Moroboshi!”

As a result of the abnormality, Moroboshi gritted his teeth for the first time since the start of their fight. A normal foe could never charge through Astral Trio’s high-speed assault even if they’d learned how to overcome Comet.

Ikki, however, was no normal foe. He was capable of such a charge. His incredible observational skills—the same ones that made Perfect Vision and Blade Steal possible—had already identified some of the quirks and inclinations of Yuudai Moroboshi’s spear technique. In his relentless pursuit of Ikki, the Seven Stars King had shown off too much of his fighting style.

“Haaah!”

“Moroboshi has the face of a madman as he unleashes his high-speed spearmanship! But Kurogane just won’t quit! He keeps on shoving his way through the veritable phalanx of spears!”

“This is a rough situation for the Seven Stars King. A spear’s advantage comes from its reach. When the enemy gets in too close, its effectiveness falls by at least half. Moroboshi has to find some way to drive him back!”

Unfortunately for Moroboshi, as long as Ikki could foresee his moves, he would be unable to deter the charge no matter how many inconveniences he added. It was only a matter of time before Ikki put himself within sword range, and once a swordsman like him gained that advantage, he would never let it go. The moment Ikki got close enough, the battle would be over.

“Dammiiit!”

With Ikki just one step outside of sword range, Moroboshi released another Astral Trio in hopes of deterring Ikki. His last resistance was for naught, though, as Ikki had already stolen his spearmanship. Using the angles of his elbows and his line of sight, Ikki could instantly perceive where each strike would end up. He repelled the first and second with ease, and took his final step into range in time with the wind-up of the third.

“Kurogane has finally gotten within striking range of Moroboshi!”

“Boshiii! Get outta theeere!”

Cries rose from the stands, supporting the cornered King. But Moroboshi still had the last strike of his Astral Trio, and much like both it and Comet, he had one more super-speed technique that waited not even for thought. It too was guided by the muscle memory resulting from millions upon millions of repetitions. Additionally, he was not the kind of person who would flee when told to.

He moved, ready for his final stab to pierce Ikki’s chest. However, Ikki knew all the ins and outs of his spearmanship, and had foreseen the attack’s angle and path. There wasn’t the slightest chance that he would fail to swat it away.

Once I deal with his last thrust of Astral Trio, I’ll be able to end this! It’s time for me to— No, wait! This is bad!

Lightning ran through Ikki’s brain as an unbelievable spectacle unfolded in the arena. He, who had cornered Moroboshi to the last, was struck in the shoulder by Tiger King and launched out of the striking distance he so coveted.

◆◇◆◇◆

“Wh-What in the world just happened?! Kurogane clearly had the upper hand as he advanced, but he was suddenly bombarded! He’s been launched far away by a stab to the shoulder!”

“No way! Big Brother lost an advantage like that?!”

Shizuku lost her composure at the unexpected development. But next to her, Alice turned pale at a yet-more-unbelievable sight.

“Shizuku! Look at Intetsu!”

Practically screaming, she pointed out what she saw to Shizuku.

“N-No…!”

“I can’t believe my eyes! Kurogane’s Device, Intetsu, has been broken! It’s as if some giant beast took a bite out of it!” Indeed, a large chunk had been gouged out of the blade of Ikki’s Device—the crystallization of his very soul. “What could have caused this?! Unless something extreme happens, Devices typically never so much as bend, let alone break like that!”

The announcer was at a loss, but that was only natural. Blazer’s Devices were super-high-density crystallized magic. Iida had been doing play-by-play for Mage-Knight battles for quite some time, but he could count the amount of times a Device had been broken on one hand. Muroto, however, began to talk in an excited tone.

“No, there is actually one exception!”

“Really?”

“Yes! Take a look at the Seven Stars King’s Tiger King!”

All eyes in the venue gathered on Moroboshi. They noticed all at once that, without their realizing before, his spear had taken on a golden glow. Everyone present knew what that aura of gold meant, of course.

“A-Amazing! At some point, the Seven Stars King activated his Tiger’s Bite!”

Tiger’s Bite was Yuudai Moroboshi’s pride. It was also the strongest known anti-Blazer ability. The night before, it had effortlessly destroyed even the Gale Sword Emperor’s Kusanagi.

“But why would he use that right now? Kurogane wasn’t using a Noble Art, was he?” Iida then gasped as he came to a realization, and his expression warped with shock. “N-No way!”

“Now you know. Indeed, erasing a Noble Art just means erasing some sort of magic. A Blazer’s control over magic doesn’t only extend to their Noble Arts, though; their Device is also made of magic!

“In the year since Moroboshi became King, it seems he’s acquired some incredible strength. Until last year, his Tiger’s Bite was only powerful enough to erase Noble Arts, which are created using a portion of a Blazer’s magic. Yet this year, Tiger’s Bite has become able to tear apart even Devices themselves, the super-dense crystallized magic formed by the Blazer’s very soul!”

Even Touka, watching the battle from all the way over in Tokyo, choked in shock.

“That’s insane!”

“President, doesn’t this put Kurogane in quite the awful position?”

“‘Awful’ doesn’t even begin to describe it.”

As the Blazer’s soul, the shock to the senses resulting from a broken or shattered Device was liable to render its user unconscious. If Tiger’s Bite had the strength to chew through a Device, then crossing blades with Moroboshi was tantamount to offering up one’s heart and begging for death. Fortunately, the attack hadn’t been enough to shatter Intetsu’s blade entirely, but a second hit would not be so forgiving. Ikki could no longer use Intetsu to block Tiger King, and in losing that, he also lost his one way of fighting back against Comet.

There’s no weakness for him to take advantage of! Touka thought as a shiver ran up her spine.

It wasn’t just her, either. Kanata, who was watching the fight on the television with her, as well as Ikki’s other friends watching from inside the arena all shuddered at the sheer terror that was Tiger’s Bite. The only person who was different was Ikki, the man standing in the ring. He shuddered at Yuudai Moroboshi’s entire being.

He’s a behemoth of an opponent!

Tiger’s Bite was a frighteningly powerful ability. It and it alone would likely have been more than enough to conquer the Seven Stars. Even so, the knight that Ikki faced was choosing not to do just that. Instead of indulging in his overwhelming strength, he was attempting to meticulously apprehend Ikki. Every act since he’d first used Astral Trio had been mere foreshadowing.

First, he’d drawn Ikki in by using Astral Trio, following up with the weakness-nullifying Comet. At that point, perhaps Ikki would have thought he had no chance, that the weakness Moroboshi had displayed with Astral Trio was a trap to lure him into Comet, the true killer.

Ikki was also a strong warrior, however. He, a Rank F, had clawed his way up to the Seven Stars. He had quickly perceived that Comet was a mere physical technique, able to be deflected with ease rather than dodged. But in doing so, he had falsely led himself to believe that he had trumped his foe.

Everything had gone exactly according to Moroboshi’s plan. Comet wasn’t his trump card; it was never intended to be the move that would deal the finishing blow. Its only purpose had been as bait to lure Ikki into a situation where he would consistently strike Tiger King with Intetsu. The entirety of their battle had been for the sake of using Tiger’s Bite to exploit his fatal weakness—the fatal weakness present in all Blazers.

With strength like that, pretty much anyone else would be a lot more careless.

He utilized careful strategy to strike at the blind spots in his enemy’s consciousness, never falling to sloppiness. If it had taken Ikki even a moment longer to act on his fear that Tiger’s Bite could erase Devices in the same way it did Noble Arts, he would have lost both Intetsu and the match in one fell swoop.

“Darn shame. I was so close to devouring that little butter knife of yours.”

“Hrk…!”

Moroboshi’s panicked look was nowhere to be found. Instead, he smirked fearlessly as he looked down at Ikki, whose shoulder was leaking blood. Between that expression and his overwhelming strength, Ikki became certain of one thing: the man he was fighting, the Yuudai Moroboshi who seemed so heroic based on his appearance and way of speaking, was actually a chillingly wily opponent. Every one of his actions throughout their battle had served to drive Ikki into a corner, further lowering him into his grave while he had been busy searching for weaknesses. Moroboshi’s strategy had accounted for every minute detail.

He seems so far away… There was only about fifteen feet between the two of them, but to Ikki, his opponent was distant and hazy. So this is what the Seven Stars King is capable of!

◆◇◆◇◆

“This is quite the rough development,” Alice muttered as the situation in the arena once again became deadlocked. With Moroboshi using Tiger’s Bite, Ikki would no longer be able to charge in just by knocking the spear away. His method of overcoming Comet was gone.

Though neither Alice nor Shizuku was aware of Comet’s existence, they knew that there was some secret behind Moroboshi’s attacks. If they were nothing more than normal stabs, Ikki wouldn’t have been having so much trouble avoiding them. Because she knew that, Shizuku could only offer a pained nod in response.

Twice already had the tables been turned when Ikki was just about to seize victory. He had clearly spent more time on the offensive, but Moroboshi still didn’t have a scratch on him. It was painfully obvious to everyone present just who was controlling the match.

“I can’t believe Big Brother is just being toyed with.”

“Are you sure about that?”

A voice of disagreement interrupted Shizuku’s complaints. The voice came from a tall, suited woman: Hagun Academy’s director, Kurono Shinguuji. She stood next to Shizuku, puffing a cigarette as she questioned the girl’s logic.

“Director?”

“Yes, it looks like he’s wrapped around his opponent’s little finger. And really, Moroboshi has had the upper hand throughout the fight so far. But things aren’t progressing quite the way he’d expected them to. He may seem confident, but I’d bet he’s not so calm on the inside.”

“What makes you think that?”

“That Tiger’s Bite was the culmination of a multitude of traps, something that Moroboshi was betting the whole fight on. It clearly didn’t turn out well for him, though, considering that the match isn’t over. What Kurogane did was realize that Moroboshi’s aim the whole time was his Intetsu, so he used his own body as a shield to protect it. In short, thanks to Ikki’s quick wit, the strategy that Moroboshi had spent the entire match building up is no longer viable.”

With his plan seen through, Moroboshi had lost the element of surprise again. Ikki would not use Intetsu to block Tiger King ever again. In essence, their battle had been reset, the only difference being that Moroboshi was at a disadvantage because he had revealed so many of his tricks.

“Most of all, though,” Kurono continued, “Moroboshi isn’t the only one who can win with smarts instead of strength.”

Ikki could never have heard Kurono’s words, but strangely, he was thinking exactly what she’d just said.

“That’s just what I’d expect from the Seven Stars King. You’re nothing if not full of surprises, Moroboshi.”

“Don’t call it cowardly, now. Clawing for an opening’s the first rule of combat.”

“No way I’d say that. In fact, I’m kind of enjoying this.” Ikki raised his head as he and Moroboshi exchanged words. On his face was an impish grin. “So now it’s my turn to surprise you.”

As a fellow master of physical technique and tactics, Ikki couldn’t let their battle of wits end in defeat. He wouldn’t feel better until he’d gotten the jump on Moroboshi at least once. And he had one method, one strategy in mind that could outwit him and put an end to the match.

◆◇◆◇◆

“We’ve got some unexpected provocation from Kurogane! Twice has he approached the King, and twice has he been bitten back by the King’s incredible speed, yet this challenger still refuses to fold! He fears nothing!”

“Go, Kurogane! Show ’em how true effort wins!”

“You got this, Ikki!”

Cheers arose from the audience, praising Ikki for not shrinking from a fight that had been in his opponent’s favor since the start. Taking no notice of those cheers, however, Moroboshi considered the true meaning behind Ikki’s words.

He’s not one to bluff.

No matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t come up with an explanation. Ikki could no longer knock Comet aside with his sword, as that was tantamount to suicide against Tiger’s Bite, and the same was true for Ittou Shura. For Tiger’s Bite, which could swallow even Ouma’s Kusanagi with ease, Ikki’s magical power was little more than a crumb. Against Moroboshi’s ability to erase magic, a time-limited ability like Ittou Shura was not to be used haphazardly.

Where, then, was Ikki getting his confidence from? Moroboshi couldn’t even begin to imagine it. Even so, it spurred him to widen his joyous grin.

He sure is an interesting one.

“All right. Surprise me to hell and back, then.” Moroboshi would be remiss not to indulge Ikki’s willingness to reveal his unimaginable method. In order to be ready for whatever that method was, he relaxed his shoulders and pointed the head of his spear at his foe. “But I’ll be real mad if it turns out to be lame. We Osakans hate to be let down.”

“Guess you’ll just have to wait and see,” Ikki said, deeply lowering his hips and readying his feet. “Now then… Here I come!”

Kicking with enough force to break through the concrete floor, he charged toward Moroboshi.

“Kurogane has just started up again, and boy is he fast! He’s moving with the same speed he was at the start of this battle! Twice has he used that speed to avoid the King’s wrath, and now he’s challenging him for a third time! Will he find that the third time’s a charm?!”

Iida’s voice became shrill with excitement. The crowd also burned with anticipation of what Ikki’s challenge would lead to. However,

“Wait. He’s fast for sure, but this is…!”

The professional knight Muroto was unsure. Ikki’s movements hadn’t changed at all; he merely charged straight ahead like a wild boar. In much the same way as Muroto, Moroboshi, too, was disappointed.

Has he still not learned his lesson? Is he really just going with a straightforward charge?

He wasn’t even using Ittou Shura. It had already been proven that he couldn’t break through Comet with his own strength, and attempting the same suicide attack three times in a row was wholly uninspired.

“I told you, Kurogane, if you let me down, you won’t get off easy!” Of course, Moroboshi counterattacked with Comet, the pursuing stab that had already given Ikki so much trouble. “Take a bite, Tiger King! Tiger’s Bite!”

With the addition of his magic-breaking ability, Comet took form as an unavoidable, unblockable flash of steel. Ikki attempted to dodge the spearhead with a jump to the right, but that was something he had already tried several times.

Comet would not miss. It changed direction to go to Moroboshi’s left, following Ikki as he fled to the side and piercing his neck. In doing so, however, Moroboshi’s captured prey disappeared like a mirage.

Huh?!

How could he have just vanished after being dealt a lethal injury? Moroboshi was lost for words at the sight of the incomprehensible situation—at least, up until he noticed that Ikki was at his right side instead of his left, and was stepping into sword range.

Wh-What?!

“A bitter miss for Moroboshi! Somehow, his thrust missed its mark! This is a major failure, perhaps even a fatal one!”

Unbeknownst to the spectators, what happened was not a result of Moroboshi missing, but of Ikki’s outstanding move. Only Shizuku and the others were able to recognize what he’d done, as they had seen the technique before.

“Shizuku, was that—”

“It was! It was the same attack he used against Ayatsuji! That was Shinkirou, I’m certain of it!”

The technique he’d used was, as Shizuku thought, one of Ikki’s seven sword arts: the Fourth Secret Sword, Shinkirou. By carefully adjusting his speed as he charged, Ikki created afterimages of himself, fooling opponents into swinging at thin air. Usually, the afterimages would be in front of and behind himself, but in the case of the Seven Stars King, he used Shinkirou to create them on either side, baiting Comet in the wrong direction.

Dammit! He got me with afterimages!

Moroboshi, however, was still a first-rate student knight. He could instantly analyze what had happened to him and what his opponent had done, then select the optimal counterattack. Using that method, he found that he had no time to sweep or yank back his spear. Given the situation, the best option available to him was to strike with the opposite end of his spear.

His plan still had one major flaw, though: his attack would be too slow. By moving to the weak side of Moroboshi that Comet’s pursuit created, Ikki had completely outwitted him and entered sword range. It was a fatal mistake that not even his best manner of counterattack could save him from.

There was no doubt in Moroboshi’s mind that Ikki’s slash would land first. With no chance of escape, Moroboshi accepted his defeat, which made it all the more shocking for him when, in the next instant, he felt the sensation of the close end of his spear shaft strike Ikki’s cheek and launch him away.

“Oh, wow! What a skillful move from Moroboshi! He recognized his own miss and immediately went for a smack with the base of the spear! With that, he’s repelled Kurogane once again! Kurogane is still unable to keep himself in striking range! A dignified defense by the King!”

Applause showered Moroboshi for having evaded Ikki’s attack a third time over, yet not a bit of it actually reached his ears.

Tch. That wasn’t because of my skill!

He knew that no matter how hard he tried, it should have been impossible for his counterattack to have hit first. The only way it could have happened was if Ikki had made a critical error in the deciding moment.

You gotta be kidding me… Bewilderment shook Moroboshi’s heart. He thought back to the events of the night before, the sight of Ikki stopping dead in his tracks before Ouma resurfacing in his mind. There really is something wrong with him!

Moroboshi’s inference was, unfortunately, right on the mark.

◆◇◆◇◆

The impact of the spear against Ikki’s skull sent an intense shock through his consciousness. In his head, his brain danced wildly as his field of vision muddied. He was far from caring about that in the slightest, however.

Again?!

The mysterious ailment that had lay dormant within him until his battle with Ouma the night before, the inability to move as his mind willed, had resurfaced. It had done so at the worst possible place and time, too, as he had heightened his focus and prepared to topple Moroboshi.

Maybe there is something wrong with me.

“You fought the strongest swordsman in the world and thought nothing about you would change because of it? Even if you remain physically sound, that doesn’t mean your heart made it out unscathed.”

Damn it, there really is something wrong with me. I am broken!

The terror that was Edelweiss had become a fatal wound without his notice. At the worst possible moment, the imperceptible disease had given him a grim reminder of just what it could do, which sent a cold sweat creeping down his back. Even his friends were able to notice the anomaly within him.

“What’s happening? He definitely had the chance to finish the battle, but his movements seemed like they slowed down.”

“His movements did slow down,” Kiriko said, confirming Alice’s suspicion. “Moroboshi’s counterattack was fast enough that it’s hard to notice, but Ikki definitely decelerated.”

“H-He really is nervous, isn’t he?”

Kiriko shook her head.

“No, that’s not it. If he were nervous, it would have manifested at an earlier stage. Plus, your brother isn’t the kind of knight to be dulled by nervousness; he should know how to adjust his actions when he’s in poor form. But that may just mean that this is an acute case.”

“What do you mean by ‘acute’?! What’s happening to my big brother?”

“At the very least, we can be sure that this isn’t an external wound. My examination can vouch for that. His body is in perfect working order, and the damage he’s taken so far isn’t that severe. Instead, it’s probably his mind that’s encountering some issue. Mental disorders aren’t my area of expertise, so I can’t be too sure about this, but there’s a disorder known as Punch Eye that affects martial artists. It creates an extreme fear of the opponent attacking, causing the body to freeze up. It’s a serious enough condition to end the career of an athlete who’s been forever engraved with that fear.”

“Are you saying he has that?!”

Something abnormal was happening to him, and even Shizuku was likely vaguely aware of it. She was practically screaming as she pressed Kiriko for answers.

“Calm down. Like I said, that’s outside my field; this is all just hypothetical. But we all know he fought that Edelweiss, the strongest knight in the world, and lost.”

Those words turned Shizuku pale, for she knew what they truly meant. Ikki was strong, that much was certain, but he wasn’t strong enough to match the strongest knight alive. In fact, it was strange that he’d managed to return home unharmed.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s been bearing some invisible injury.”

“N-No!”

“You might be right, Kiriko. And even if it’s not this ‘Punch Eye’, it’s just not normal for him to suddenly slow down at that exact moment. You can see it on his face, too.”

Even from afar, Ikki’s turmoil was plain to see—including that he was trying to suppress it and keep a straight face. It was obviously incredibly serious, because it meant that he was so shaken that he couldn’t even keep up appearances.

This isn’t any kind of PTSD like Punch Eye.

Standing silently just outside the circle the three formed, Kurono Shinguuji had a different opinion about the unusual situation. One look at Ikki was all it had taken her to see through to the root of this issue, something indiscernible to even Ikki himself. Or perhaps, rather than seeing through to it, she had anticipated it to some extent.

Ever since she had learned of the conclusion of Ikki’s fight with Edelweiss, she had known that there was the potential for such an issue to arise. Because of that knowledge, she understood that his condition was nothing that threatened his career like Punch Eye would.

That doesn’t change that it’s slowing him down, though. Moroboshi has probably already figured out that he’s having trouble, and if he has, this could turn out very badly.

◆◇◆◇◆

There was no doubt that the problem that had showed up the night before was rearing its head again. The look on Ikki’s face—a look that showed that he was bewildered by a condition even he himself failed to understand—was enough to finally convince Moroboshi of that.

He’s trying like hell to stay calm, but that’s the same face he made last night, Moroboshi sighed inwardly. In order to convince Koume of his strength, he needed to fight and defeat Another One while he was in perfect condition.

It’s too bad, but we’re on the field of battle now. When faced with an enemy’s weakness, to not exploit it was to disrespect the fight. Sorry, Kurogane, but you’ve shown me an opening. For both our sakes, I gotta do everything I can to take it!

Though he regretted it, Moroboshi could not show mercy or hesitation. He quickly shifted to an offensive stance, ready to finish their match with a single blow.

“Kurogane still seems to be reeling from the damage that last blow dealt. Meanwhile, Moroboshi has taken up the offensive! Another One’s back is to the wall—will he be able to pull through?!”