Chapter 11
I presented my breastplate to the two female armor smiths, who immediately began to work on fixing the slash. Both seemed stunned that Mitsurugi had slashed through orichalcum, an amazingly strong metal that should be able to withstand any attack. They started a discussion about what his katana was crafted from before dismissing me to the waiting room, telling me they would have my armor finished before the beginning of the final match.
In the waiting room, I watched Ivy's match against a young man wielding a halberd. He was fighting a losing battle against Ivy, who had pulled his weapon away and was now simply entertaining herself by torturing her prey. She was holding the halberd just out of his reach and whipping him at random intervals as he struggled to reach his only means of defense. Finally, out of boredom probably, she plunged her sword straight into his stomach, where it then extended through out his back, wrapped around him, and was pulled tightly, causing each segment to cut deep into the skin before being dragged around his body and out an open wound. After that, the match was over.
After the end of the match, the announcer told the crowd that there would be an intermission before the start of the final round. I sat in the waiting room for a few minutes before one of the armor smiths returned with my repaired armor. I slipped it on and fastened it before tipping the smith a few coins and returning to my waiting.
Ivy finally returned a short while later, with Mitsurugi a few feet behind. Instead of congratulating me for winning, he simply rubbed his newly wrapped side before (presumably) watch the final round from the stands.
"You must've been hurt pretty badly to be in there for that long."
Ivy smiled, brushed her hair from her face, and replied, "You think that amateur hit me once? I was talking to Heishiro."
"Hm. Since when are you two on first-name terms?"
"Since I… how should I put this… 'Arranged a meeting' with him."
"Should I ask why?"
"So you can break into his inn room and find the Soul Edge fragment."
"Ah, I get it. I get stuck with the dirty work while you just get dirty."
"No, if you've for gotten, my goal is not only to destroy Soul Edge, but also those corrupted by it. Also, there's a chance that Heishiro will still have the fragment with him."
"Ah, so you're just using him so you can get what you want… I see."
"Of course. I can see you're not above using underhanded moves, so why are you talking to me like that?" Ivy replied in a tone of mock outrage.
It was then that I noticed the arena official walking toward us. "If you two are ready, the final match is about to begin."
As I stood up and walked into the arena after Ivy, I wondered just long he had been standing there, and how much of our conspiracy he had heard.