Chivalry of a Hollow Cryo Dragon Devil Knight

by Gaevontracey24

Ayato Kurozakuro Sparda will enter the world of Devils and learn more about himself as Rias Gremory's Pawn & Stella Vermillion Gremory Phenex's Queen , along with his mysterious family past which allows him to wield a legendary demonic sword... and he's the next Red Dragon Emperor. Harem with Stella,Rias and Mio being the main girls.

24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

'' - Talking

"" Thought

...

NENE SAIKYO

■ PROFILE

Affiliation: KOK A-class league

Blazer Rank: A

Noble Art: Banned Art ・ Hodou Tensei

Nickname: Yaksha Princess

Personal Summary: Hagun Academy special lecturer

Attribute chart (starting at far left, going clockwise)

Physical Ability: A

Luck: A

Offensive Power: A

Defensive Power: A

Magic Capacity: A

Magic Control: E

Kagamin Check!

Next up is a currently active KOK league competitor who's ranked third in the world, the Yaksha Princess Nene Saikyou-sensei. A flashy person both in public and private, she's always on the hunt for delicious people.

Her Device is a pair of iron fans. Her ability is the gravity manipulation system.

Her unique technique, Houdou Tensei, is the power to pull space debris from outer space, and in the next second strike the enemy with it at cosmic speed.

It's the best of the best in terms of offensive power among the current knight-crushing techniques.

Since it's a huge power on the level of nuclear weapons that casually destroy countries, it's received the special treatment of being designated a banned art that she can't use without permission from the Union, but since she had a power that's overkill for hitting people one by one as a student knight, it was a shock that she unleashed it during the deciding battle of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival against Shinguuji-sensei (formerly Takizawa).

It became a forfeit too. If Shinguuji-sensei hadn't been able to defend against it, wouldn't the Japanese islands have a hole in the middle right now?

On the final evening of the joint training camp, Yuuri Oreki, a member of Hagun Academy's staff, was sweeping around the school's front gate in preparation for greeting the returning students. It was then that a lone girl in a tracksuit greeted her.

...

"Hi, Ms. Oreki."

She turned toward the voice. It was a girl that she had never taught, but whom she had some memory of. She had supervised one of the girl's selection battles at some point. She dug the name out of her memories and returned the greeting.

"Oh, hello there, Ayatsuji. Cough." "Thank you again for what you did for me." The reason Ayase bowed her head in gratitude was related to her battle with Ayato Kurogane.

"I didn't do a thing. It was all thanks to Ayato 's efforts."

"But Ms. Oreki, you were the one who tolerated my rule-breaking. If you'd stopped our fight, I'm sure I would never have been able to let go of the past."

"That was all because I'd already talked with Ayato about it, cough. Aside from that, Ayatsuji, did you decide you were going to stay here? I figured you'd have gone home for the summer to take care of your father."

"I wanted to join him in his rehabilitation, yes, but he wouldn't have it. He said that I'm a growing young woman and that I shouldn't use this time to slack off on my training. Supposedly, he can make it on his own."

"Haha, that certainly sounds like the Last Samurai."

"After two full years of sleep, he honestly seems livelier than ever. I decided I should try to keep up with him, so I just went for a run."

"How prudent of you! I'm sure your other master is hard at work right now, too." Ms. Oreki looked up at the deep blue northern sky. Ayase muttered her agreement and looked up along with her.

"Ayato really is incredible. He even beat the student council president despite his awful condition."

"He certainly did. Even I was a little surprised, and I'm his teacher & a friend of his Mother."

"I heard a rumor that you were the one who proctored his entrance exam. Is that true?"

"Cough. Yes, it's true."

"You certainly have an eye for talent."

In terms of his certification, Ayato was a Rank A; he wasn't even qualified for entry into Hagun. The fact that he was enrolled despite his rank was presumably thanks to, as Ayase had praised her for, Ms. Oreki's keen eye. However, she shook her head with an apologetic expression.

"Oh, no, not at all. Honestly, I tried to test his Abilities."

"Really?"

Ms. Oreki nodded. Her impression of Ayato when they'd first met was that he had an uncanny lack of talent control. She hadn't had even the slightest intention of letting him pass, so she'd given him one final opportunity, intending it as a mere formality. Ayato was offered a single chance to sell her on his worth as a Blazer.

"You know what that boy said to me?"

"What?"

"'I can beat you in a fight right now'." A child, not even out of middle school, had claimed he could defeat her, a full-fledged Mage-Knight and educator.

"I couldn't believe my ears. Such a bold statement came as quite the shock."

"H-He was quite confident in himself."

"Cough. And after that, he actually won! No matter who the proctor was at that point, there was no chance he wasn't getting in."

"I see. That's quite the story…" Ayase nodded, amazed at the details of Ayato's entrance exam. Ayato had probably known at the time that he wouldn't have been able to get in via a normal examination. That was why he'd so boisterously challenged Ms. Oreki to a duel, creating a chance for him to show what he was made of.

"Ms. Oreki, do you think Kurogane can be the next Seven Stars King?" Ayase asked, the strong, determined image of Ayato still in her mind.

"I may be biased because I'm so close to him," Ms. Oreki responded, "

but I think he has the strength to do so. Then again…"

"'Then again'?"

"In this year's Festival, just being the defending King might not be enough for him to make it all the way."

"Is that because his older brother, that fellow Rank A, is going to be there?" Ms. Oreki cleared her throat and nodded in agreement, then began elaborating on her earlier, seemingly pessimistic statement.

"Well, partly, yes. But even more than that, there are so many kids this year that we know nothing about. Just about every school has some nameless first year with abilities we can't even pinpoint the nature of. I think the progression of this year's Seven Stars Battle Festival will be greatly influenced by those kids."

"Wow. With Stella in the mix, this year's Festival is ripe with exciting new people."

Though Ayase's words seemed inoffensive, Ms. Oreki closed her eyes in silence. Indeed, "ripe" was an apt word. A typical year saw only one or two first- years making it to the Festival in total. It wasn't uncommon for that number to even be zero. Taking that into consideration, having ten first-years in the upcoming Festival definitely seemed to make it exceptionally ripe with newcomers. Something about that just didn't sit right with Ms. Oreki, though. There was nothing wrong with first-years being representatives, but the inclination toward unknown ones was questionable. It's like they've been lying in wait for this. Asking Ms. Saikyou and Director Shinguuji for their thoughts once they'd returned from Osaka seemed like her best option. However, while she pondered the matter, Ayase pointed toward the gate and spoke.

"Hmm? Ms. Oreki, there's a bunch of people coming this way." Ms. Oreki then turned her eyes toward where she was pointing. Like she had said, seven shadowy figures were lined up, approaching Hagun Academy. It was a rare sight for a mandatory-residence school like Hagun, and given that it was summer vacation, it was even more bizarre that such a large group would come all at once. Stranger yet, two of the seven were riding on a beast that almost appeared to be a huge lion. Ms. Oreki narrowed her eyes. Who could they possibly have been? "Oh? Is that…" Her narrowed eyes opened in surprise. She recognized one among the seven from long ago.

Is that Ouma Kurogane, Bukyoku's Rank A?!

The question of why a student from Bukyoku would be coming to Hagun swirled around her mind, but it was quickly forced out of her thoughts. The sight before her confirmed that something strange was going on, something much more important than the trivial question she had been preoccupied with.

It's not just Ouma. Reps from Bunkyoku, Donrou, Rentei, and even the other schools…!

The people walking alongside Ouma were all familiar faces from the Seven Stars Battle Festival documents that Ms. Oreki, a member of the Festival staff, had received.

A representative from each of the other six participating schools —plus one extra—was present.

Worst of all, the nameless first-years that Ms. Oreki had just expressed her misgivings about were all in the lineup.

An indescribable chill ran down the nape of Ms. Oreki's neck.

Why were representatives from all of the other schools gathering? Why were they heading toward Hagun?

Why did it create such an awful feeling in the pit of her stomach? Why were they all holding their Devices?

"Ayatsuji! Get away from here, now!" The questions that assaulted Ms. Oreki's mind all at once was answered immediately.

One of the seven, a girl wearing a winter coat despite the summer heat—Yui Tatara, one of Donrou's representatives—suddenly leaped toward Ayase, as quick as lightning. Using both hands, she swung her chainsaw-like Device down on the defenseless girl.

"Huh?" The malicious assault was so abrupt that Ayase was completely unable to react. Tatara's roaring weapon came down upon her, but just before it could lop her head off, Ms. Oreki repelled it with her cutlass Device.

Her skillful parry caused Tatara to lose her balance—an opportunity she wasn't going to let go to waste. I have to stop her!

Deciding to stop the girl's assault first and figure out why she had so suddenly come for blood later, Ms. Oreki deftly flicked her wrist.

Her counterattack, aimed at the assailant's carotid artery, was so fast and efficient that it left the girl no way to evade.

The cutlass, materialized in Phantom Form, was going to knock her unconscious, but her lips merely curled into a wicked grin.

"Total Reflect." Just as Tatara's neck was about to be pierced, a mysterious impact deflected Ms. Oreki's blade.

In the evening, with the sky dyed a burnt orange hue, a bus was concluding its journey from Yamagata to the area near Hagun Academy. On that bus was Ayato's team of representatives and the people who'd helped them, like Shizuku and the student council. Friend groups sat together, sharing candy and chatting away with not a care in the world. Among them, however, a miserable-looking Stella's shoulders were drooped.

"Haaah."

"C'mon, Stella. Chin up."

"I'm just so frustrated…" Though Ayato, sitting next to her, tried to cheer her up, Stella couldn't regain her vigor. As if following up his attempt, two female students, the twins Kikyou and Botan Hagure, addressed her.

"What's wrong, Stella?"

"Did you get carsick, Princess?"

"Seems like she's frustrated that she couldn't outfight Toudou." Ayato waved his hand to gesture that there was no need to worry, and communicated to them why Stella was so down.

"Oh yeah," one of the sisters replied, "you two did fight a bunch. What was the final score?"

"…We tied. Three wins each," Stella whimpered quietly. Stella's one goal at the training camp had been to surpass Raikiri, but she'd failed, unable to win more than half of their duels. She was so disappointed in herself that she couldn't stand it. "But against the student council president, even a tie's incredible."

"Stella's a Rank A, though. It only makes sense that she'd want to beat someone weaker than herself, right?" "I don't really think Touka is weaker than me." Stella argued Kikyou's claim. She had actually expected the opposite; Stella believed herself inferior to Touka. The very reason she'd wanted to surpass her before the end of the training camp was so that she could look out on the coming Seven Stars Battle Festival with confidence. But the result was not what she had expected. "Aaaargh, I'm so mad!" Stella yelled. "I can't stand sitting still right now! I might as well have just ran home instead!" "I think that's going a bit too far…" Ayato chuckled, knowing Stella wasn't actually being serious.

"At times like this, the only way to get my mind off things is food." Upon saying that, Stella pulled three Snackers bars out of her bag and began devouring them, still curled up in despair. The Hagure sisters gasped in shock as they looked upon her.

"You had three servings each of udon and ramen at the rest stop. You're still hungry?!"

"You're gonna get fat!"

"I'll be fine. No matter how much I eat, I never get fat," Stella responded, thinking nothing of the strange phenomenon.

Somehow, Stella was a ridiculously big eater, yet her body remained tight and fit with no traces of excess fat. Even to Ayato, who thought he had a grasp on the inner workings of the human body, it was a mystery.

He had simply chalked it up to some sort of inherent injustice and had long since accepted it.

The twin upperclassmen, on the other hand, were hearing of it for the first time and were appalled, their faces frozen momentarily while her statement sunk in

"What?!" they cried out simultaneously.

"…Botan. She had the tofu, curry, and tempura udons. After that, she had soy sauce, miso, and pork ramens. If you ate all that, and then you even scarfed down Snackers to top it off, you'd definitely get fat, right?"

"That's the only possibility, even if she's using weird occult magic. She must be hiding some belly rolls under those clothes."

"I-I am not! How rude! Any fat just happens to go right to my chest. I've never been all that fat in my entire life."

While Stella retorted, still chomping down her super-fatty candy, Ayato bore witness to the very moment the sisters snapped.

"Don't lie to us!" With demonic looks on their faces, the Hagure twins fell upon Stella in a fit of rage. They grabbed her shoulders and yanked her from the bus seat, pinning her down.

"Whoa! Hey, what are you two doing?!"

"Shut up! I know you're hiding a gut under there! Hurry up and confess, or else!"

"I told you, fat collects in my chest!"

"You think I'm gonna believe that?!"

"I swear, there's gotta be a fat roll or two somewhere!" The twins lifted up Stella's shirt and started fiddling with her bare skin.

"C-Cut it out, already!" Stella screamed, her face getting redder by the second. "Where do you think you're touching me?! Ayato, stop sitting there like a lump and help me!"

"Oh, u-uh, sure! Um, hey, you two should calm—"

"This is a sacred war between women. Butt out!"

"Just shut up and eat some Rocky or something, male!" Ayato's attempt to mediate was immediately shut down by the girls' bloodshot eyes, like those of predatory beasts, locking onto him.

"Oh, okay. Sorry."

"Ayatooo!" They're too scary for me! Intimidated by their glares, Ayato chose to avert his eyes from what threatened to turn itself into an international incident, when suddenly, the seat next to him became occupied.

Though it had been made vacant by Stella being dragged out of it, it now housed a small, silver-haired girl: Ayato's sister, Shizuku Kurogane. Her green eyes watched the struggle on the floor of the bus, and she decided to poke fun.

"If Kusakabe were here to see this, she'd be more than happy to plaster photos all over the newspaper."

"Ahaha, definitely. She'll be so mad when she hears about this later." Ayato agreed with Shizuku's observation; as a matter of fact, Kagami probably would have wanted to join in. He then directed a question toward Alice, who sat in a window seat on the other side of the aisle.

"So, you said Kagami was off to visit Hokkaido by herself or something, right?"

"Yes," Alice responded, nodding. "Rokuzon's training camp started three days ago, so she left first thing in the morning in search of a scoop."

"Shame she couldn't come with us." Of course, Alice was lying. Kagami was actually bound by her hands and feet, locked up in a facility at Kyomon's training camp. However, with no evidence that she was lying, and no reason to doubt her in the first place, Ayato believed Alice's statement

. "What a workaholic she is," Shizuku, who also believed the lie, said with a sigh of both annoyance and admiration.

"I'm already exhausted."

"Sorry. Thank you so much for coming, Shizuku."

Given her superb healing ability, Shizuku's presence at the training camp had made a major difference. iPS Capsules were certainly convenient, but using them required full-body anesthesia, so they still placed a burden on the user.

That was why Ayato had brought her with him to Yamagata despite her failure to become a representative. He was deeply grateful for her help with healing less serious wounds.

"Anything for you, Big Brother." Shizuku flashed Ayato a lovely smile, one that nobody else would be blessed with, then held out the box of Rocky she was holding. "Would you like one?"

"Maybe just one." Ayato wasn't especially fond of candy, but he was happy to try anything his sister offered him.

He reached for the Rocky and attempted to remove a stick, but just as his fingers brushed the end of one, the characteristic red box was snatched away from him.

Huh? Ayato didn't understand why the box had been moved. Meanwhile, Shizuku put on an innocent face as she took one of the sticks and held it between her palepink lips. Then, as if beckoning a kiss, she pointed both her lips and the Rocky within them toward her brother.

"Mmm~"

"Wh-What exactly do you want me to do?!"

"H-Hey!" Ayato had faltered at the sudden attack, but his girlfriend refused to watch in silence.

"What the hell are you trying to make Ayato do here, Shizuku?!"

"Ah!"

"Eep!" As if they hadn't had her pinned her down, the Hagure sisters yelped as Stella shook them off with ease and closed in on Shizuku.

"It's just a little bit of sexual harassment. What's the big deal?"

"How can you be so shameless and so nonchalant at the same time?! Don't you think that's improper?!" "Quite hypocritical of you to say that when you're undressed in public."

"Huh?" Once it was pointed out to her, Stella finally took notice of her condition. She didn't know what to say. The Hagure twins' manhandling had left her shirt open, exposing her bra, and her skirt falling off "N-Nooooo!"

Overwhelmed by the sudden turn of events, Stella stopped for a moment, allowing her thoughts to finally catch up to reality. Her face became so red-hot that it looked like fire would spew from it, and she curled up on the spot in shame.

"Whoa, someone looks like she's been getting busy," Utakata whispered, watching from afar. "Pretty hot…"

"I'm going to make you regret that when we get back to school, Uta," Touka warned.

"Eek! Kanata, help! I don't wanna face consequences!"

"I'm not the one who stuck their hand into the hornets' nest," Kanata replied curtly.

"You'll have to figure this one out yourself." As a woman of character, Stella would not lose heart so easily. She quickly righted her clothing and approached Shizuku anew. "Shizuku! Didn't you say you accepted my relationship with Ayato?"

"You mean your whole lovey-dovey relationship?"

"Yeah, that one!" "Then yes, I did say that."

"O-Okay, so s-stop doing that!" Stella shouted in discontent.

"Wow, is that it?" Shizuku scoffed. "You should learn to be less conceited."

"Wh-What's that supposed to mean?!"

"I said I've accepted your romantic relationship with my brother. But that's the only way you can have him. I give my big brother a sister's love, a mother's care, a friend's adoration, and even a partner's caress."

"Uh, Shizuku? I don't remember you doing anything like that last one," Ayato objected, but Shizuku ignored it entirely, thrusting four fingers toward Stella.

"In short, I love my big brother four times more than you do!" she declared. "Surely even you can see the thorough logic guiding me to my airtight conclusion."

"I sure as hell can't!" Stella's reaction was natural, for Shizuku had clearly crossed the line into absurdity.

"Cut the weird complaints and get away from Ayato! That's my seat!"

"I don't see your name on it!" Stella finally decided to peel Shizuku away from Ayato by force, but she continued to resist by clinging to her brother. It was then that Ayato finally spoke, tired of watching the spectacle.

"H-Hey, c'mon, Stella. We shouldn't make a scene on the bus. It's dangerous."

"Aw, but…"

"It's just the ride home. Might as well leave her, right? Besides, we're almost back at Hagun already." Ayato turned to face the scenery as it glided by. The bus had already passed through the city, arriving at the familiar trees and asphalt that formed the mountain path that Ayato and Stella jogged along every morning. Hagun Academy wasn't far.

"Rgh… Fine, then. But you're making up for this when we get there!" There was no reason to fight for just a few minutes of time in a seat, so Stella withdrew. However, before she could find a new place to sit for the remainder of the journey, the bus driver abruptly slammed on the brakes.

"Ahhh!" "Whoooa!"

The rapid loss of momentum threw all of the passengers forward. What could have happened to warrant such a sudden stop? The first one to act was Touka. The student council president immediately got to her feet and ran over to Saijou, who was driving the bus. Normally, Saijou wasn't the type to show his emotions, but he was staring out the windshield, pale and dumbfounded.

"Wh-What's wrong, Saijou?! Did we hit something?!"

"No… That's not it…" Saijou slowly pointed at the area in front of the bus. Ikki and the rest of the passengers, who had made their way to the front after Touka, followed his trembling finger.

"Huh? Isn't that the way to the school?" There, in the very direction of Hagun Academy, thick black smoke was rising into the blood-red evening sky. Everyone present was at a loss for words, their eyes wide open in terror. Everyone, of course, except for Nagi Alisuin, who alone had remained seated.

The bus transporting the group barreled through the main gate of Hagun Academy, its tires screeching to a halt. Everyone inside leaped out through both the door and the windows to take in the horrid scene.

"This is awful…" Flames licked every part of the building, pouring smoke into the sky. The asphalt paved over the earth had cracked and broken, as if it had suffered an explosion.

Scattered around the ruined school were collapsed students and faculty members who'd stayed for the summer. The fire was no mere accident; it was the result of a battle.

"Ayato, look!" Stella yelled, pointing. Ayato turned to look in that direction, where he found two familiar women

. "Ms. Oreki… and Ayatsuji?!"

Both of them lay motionless on the ground. Ayato and Stella rushed over to them and held them in their arms.

"Ayatsuji! Wake up!"

"…"

"Nothing. Any luck, Stella?"

"Ms. Oreki's not moving either. She's not wounded, though; she just fainted." There were no wounds on either of the ladies, but their clothes had been sliced and frayed in some places. "Whoever took them down must have been using their Device in Phantom Form."

"Ladies and gentlemen!"

"Wha—?!" An impish voice suddenly echoed through the area. It had come from above, as Ikki and his friends discovered when they all looked up toward its source. On the roof of a burning building stood a tall, lean man dressed like a jester.

"Welcome home from your long journey, representative team of Hagun Academy! I've been waiting for you!"

"Is that a clown?!" The man's bizarre appearance baffled the group, but Ayato and Touka recognized him from the list of Seven Stars contestants.

"No, that's…"

"You're Reisen Hiraga from Bunkyoku, aren't you?" Touka asked, a menacing look on her face.

"Oh, you know me?" the jester responded, the excitement plain in his voice.

"Heheheh, what an honor it is for the great Raikiri to remember my name! How do you like my stage? Did it shock you to your core?"

"Were you the one who did all this?!"

"Oh, no!" The fool exaggeratedly shook his head back and forth.

"No, no, no, no, no! It wasn't I who did this." The Pierrot, Reisen Hiraga, then jumped down from the roof of the building he stood on, from about forty feet in the air. He wasn't the only one, either. From behind him, several more shadows descended, landing together in front of the Hagun students.

"Ah?!" A man in a kimono carrying a long nodachi; an outlandish-looking woman, topless save for an artist's apron; two girls riding a lion with raven-black fur, one with an eyepatch and the other wearing a maid uniform.

Those four, as well as Hiraga and two others, comprised their off-kilter troupe. Even stranger than their appearances, though, was the mysterious, foreboding aura that accompanied them as they stood before Hagun's students.

Once they'd all landed, Hiraga gestured to himself and the others, finally answering Touka's question

. "'Twas not I, but we, the students of Akatsuki Academy."

The eighth school that had once moved in the shadows, Akatsuki had at last formally announced its existence. Its purpose: to stand in opposition to the schools that made up the Seven Stars, undermining the event like the dawn as it eclipsed the Big Dipper.

Ayato and his friends stood stock-still, unable to do anything but stare dumbfoundedly at the group. It was no surprise that they were stuck agape; the students were all representatives from schools other than Hagun.

To make matters worse, looking upon the villains brought Ayato and Shizuku face-to-face with Ouma Kurogane, their own flesh and blood—though perhaps he had foregone being their older brother

. "Y-You! You're that kid from Kyomon we met at the training camp!" Among the seven who called themselves the students of Akatsuki Academy was Amane Shinomiya, the boy they'd met a few days ago.

"Ahaha, nice to see you again, Stella. You too, Ayato. I'm so glad I get to see your faces again so soon."

"This must be why you got that bad feeling, Ayato."

Is that really it?

Though Stella, having finally understood the reason, reminded Ayato of his distaste for Amane, he couldn't help but wonder about her conclusion. Was the ill omen that had hung in his mind nothing more than a premonition that such an event would come to pass? No matter the answer, Ayato didn't have time to pursue the doubts that had surfaced within him. He had other, more pressing things to focus on, so he looked up and posed a question to the enemy most closely related to him:

"Kyomon, Rokuzon, Bunkyoku, Bukyoku… You've got representatives from every school but Hagun here. Why is that? What's going on here? Maybe you'd be willing to enlighten me with a reasonable explanation, brother. I've never heard of an Akatsuki—"

"Shut up." Rather than an explanation, Ouma responded with a cruel retort, as if Ayato were a mere fly to be swatted away. "I renounced my relationship with you Kurogane scum long ago. Don't talk like you know me." Ouma refused. His eyes remained focused on the woman, Stella Vermillion & Himself . The sheer weight of his glare told her everything she needed to know. This guy… He's no joke.

She could feel her skin tingling—trembling, even—just from the look in his eyes. Seven stood in front of her, all certainly ambitious and powerful knights, but the Gale Sword Emperor still stood out from amongst them. The air of intimidation about him was unmatched except His Younger brother; his mere presence exuded pressure. No doubt about it. This guy's the cream of the crop. The glare Stella returned to Ouma housed more conviction the more the realization of his strength set in. The others were much the same, as the tension between the two small forces continued to grow. Eventually, despite the intense hostility, Hiraga offered a more palatable answer than the venomous one Ouma had given.

"So, why are we doing this? What is Akatsuki Academy? I understand your questions, boy, so allow me to answer them. It's actually pretty simple: whether or not we secure the representative spots at the Seven Stars, the management committee would never allow a school unapproved by the Federation to participate. Instead, we're going to force them to approve of us by showing the world that a competition to find the country's strongest student knights would be pointless if we were to be excluded."

"I see. In other words, you're trying to destroy Hagun to accomplish that goal. You plan to take Hagun's place as one of the seven schools taking part in the Festival."

"Correct! You're always so quick to catch on, Raikiri."

"And you think they'll be willing to accept that you're doing something illegal?"

"The management committee isn't stupid. They'll just remove you from the Festival."

That was wrong; before that could happen, the Japanese government would stop Akatsuki's attacks. Though Touka and Saijou told him as much, Hiraga's fearless grin never wavered. "Heheh, not quite. Rest assured that we will appear at the Seven Stars. The management committee and its parent organization, the Mage-Knight Federation, have no choice but to approve of Akatsuki Academy.

"Come on, think about it. Once we've destroyed Hagun, a school with such a vibrant history, refusing our challenge would be the same as running away with their tail between their legs.

The Mage-Knight Federation controls the education of Blazers in every country under its umbrella. They wouldn't sit around and let a school outside their control produce students stronger than theirs.

After all, society's trust in them is on the line here.

"To take back their damaged trust, they can only prove that the Blazers they've created are stronger than ours. If they can't, they'll never be able to protect what they've spent more than half a century building: their monopoly on educating Blazers."

Indeed, the Seven Stars wasn't merely an event for the schools. It existed for the Federation to put the excellence of their educational facilities and the mass production of superior Blazers under their control on display for the entirety of Japan.

Their ability to deliver such incredible results was the reason that an exception was made to allow Blazer education, a factor vital to Japan's defense, to be left to the Mage-Knight Federation, an entity that existed outside of the Japanese government. But what if there was another educational facility that could outdo the Federation?

Naturally, trust in their brand would be shaken to its very core. The purpose behind the establishment of Akatsuki Academy and the hiring of Rebellion, an enemy of the Federation, was to do just that, create a powerful entity to oppose them.

"So, I'm terribly sorry, but I'm going to need you to fall. You will be the stepping stones that lead to our success."

Great malice rose from the group of Akatsuki students, enveloping them as they took their Devices in hand and assumed fighting stances.

"Do you really think we'll just lie down and let you make fools out of us? Come and take us down, if you think you can!"

Hagun's students responded in kind.

They were still unnerved after the instantaneous show of hostility, but they materialized their own Devices nonetheless, symbolizing their readiness to resist the incoming threat. "Heheh, with pleasure." The tension finally boiled over, with both forces leaping into battle.

Alice, forcibly blacked out by the Phantom Form weapons protruding from her back, collapsed limply upon the ground. Shizuku was the first to act in retaliation.

"Alice!" she yelled, running over to her fallen friend.

"Shizuku, don't be careless! Look ahead!"

"Gh?!" Ayato's warning came just in time. Before Shizuku's eyes, there was a small distortion in the empty air, where the scenery seemed to rip.

That's…! Upon seeing it, Shizuku held up both arms in front of her face, assuming a defensive posture. Instantly after doing so, her tiny body was launched horizontally through the air, bouncing like a ball. It was like she'd been punched away by some invisible force—which was exactly what had happened.

"Ah…!" A gasp came from one of the Hagun students. No, perhaps it had come from all of them, as the sight before them was truly stunning. As if walking out of an invisible smokescreen, the fallen Akatsuki Academy students appeared before the group, unwounded.

"H-Huh?! The heck's going on?!"

"Are those clones?! How can they be standing over there when they're on the ground right here!" Renren and Saijou looked at their feet to confirm that the fallen Akatsuki were still there. Upon doing so, their eyes opened wide, for the truth was that the figures below them were nothing more than painted wooden dolls.

"Wh-What's going on here?!"

"That was my Trompe L'oeil. Some say my art is realer than the real thing." A girl from Akatsuki Academy muttered a response to Renren's shout. That girl, topless besides the apron hiding her generous chest, was Sara Bloodlily. Much like Alice, she, the Bloody da Vinci, was a member of Rebellion.

"To put it simply, the people that you thought to be us were actually wooden replicas given life by her Noble Art and piloted by my Black Widow." Hiraga, the Pierrot, laughed contentedly as he exposed the truth.

"Using Ouma's wind powers to refract light, we kept our true selves hidden the whole time, waiting for your plan to fall apart."

"Then you've known all along that Alice was deceiving you?!"

"We happen to have a spectacular prophet among us, you see. Ah, but the traitor herself was never told of this, of course. Just look how it turned out, though; i

t would seem Amane's prediction was right on the nose. Makes for quite the shame that Master Wallenstein wanted to take pity on Alice and give her one last chance. I imagine he'll be very disappointed.

"Well, I'll leave you to finish the job, friends. The sponsor's order was to 'crush them as absolutely and intimidatingly as possible', so if you would, please destroy every last one of them. In the meantime, I'll take this traitor to her master." The Pierrot lifted Alice's limp body and leaped backward like a panther, fleeing the battlefield.

Try as he might, however, Ayato would not allow him such an easy escape.

"Hold it!" he cried as he kicked off the ground in pursuit. He moved fast enough that he would have caught up quickly if it weren't for the Gale Sword Emperor blocking his path.

"Ouma!"

"Begone."

With not the slightest moment of hesitation, Ouma swung his Device, a nodachi over three feet long called Ryuuzume, a silver arc following the blade as it tore through the air. The merciless attack rushed toward Ayato's torso, making it all too clear to him that he would have to stop and pay full attention to defending himself to prevent himself and Ryuuzetsu from being sliced in two.

"Haaaaah!" Though Ayatohad temporarily given up his pursuit, Ouma's Device was stopped short of its target by a golden sword enveloped in flames. "Stella!"

"Ayato!" Stella shouted while still fending off Ouma's blade with her own.

"Shizuku is chasing after Alice!"

"Ah!" Ayato turned to look at the spot where Shizuku had landed after being blown away by Ouma.

She was no longer there, so he began searching for her, and eventually caught sight of her far away, pursuing the fleeing Hiraga at top speed.

"They didn't even try to stop her! There's probably a trap just waiting for her out there! Don't let her go alone; you have to go after them!" Stella's rapid-fire commands caused Ayato to hesitate. Was it okay for him to leave Stella and the others to deal with the threat facing them?

Fortunately, Touka and the other student council members were present. The Hagure sisters were Seven Stars representatives, too. Therefore, it was best to help the person who was alone.

"Got it! I'll let you handle these guys, then!"

"Right! I can crush every last one of these fools even without Alice's help!"

Spurred on by Stella's confidence, Ayato left the fight behind to chase after Shizuku. Seeing him off as he left, Stella returned her attention to her foe, who resembled her beloved. She could feel that the man, just like the puppet from earlier, was staring into her soul.

"I know you've been watching me this whole time. You're here because you want to fight me & Ayato, aren't you?!"

If Sara's art was "realer than the real thing" like she claimed, then the puppet's gaze had even imitated Ouma's emotions. The Crimson Princess had no reason to refuse him. Her opponent was a Rank A knight just like her & His Brother, so the time to play her part had come. "Then I accept your challenge, Gale Sword Emperor!"

Resolved to fight, Stella used her raw power to send Ouma flying. After launching him over a hundred feet away, she poured all of her spirit into the broadsword Lævateinn.

She would begin their fight with her ultimate Noble Art, a swing of her sword that burned with the heat of the sun itself: Katharterio Salamandra.

I don't know how strong this guy is, but I do know that he means business! In order to defeat him, she couldn't hold anything back at any point during their fight.

If opening with Katharterio Salamandra was all it took to finish the match, that was fine with her. If not, she would learn her enemy's true strength through how he countered. That was Stella's decision, her determination leaping like the temperature.

"Hmph. Is that really how you intend to end this? Boring."

With a savage grin that revealed his canines, Ouma responded with his own most powerful Noble Art. Ironically, it involved the same movements as Stella's.

Gripping his long sword with both hands, he held it aloft as he poured magic into it.

As the Gale Sword Emperor, Ouma's ability was the manipulation of nature, specifically wind. The savage gale born from his power created a tornado centered around Ryuuzume, devouring the air around him.

Likewise, debris and fire were swallowed by the storm that consumed everything in its wake. Once the violent storm had grown and condensed around his sword to the point that it too seemed to have mass, Ouma coolly uttered a single word: "Kusanagi."

A sword of blinding flame versus a sword of raging wind. Each one was nearly two hundred feet in length, able to attack at an unprecedented range. They were more than capable of bridging the hundred-foot gap between their wielders.

Both warriors simultaneously swung their supermassive swords down on their waiting foe, the blades colliding in midair. Instantly, the reinforced elements summoned by the knights' magic, flame and wind, began to grind each other away, sending sparks flying. The sparks quickly began to unravel, becoming storms and conflagrations of their own that continued to wreak havoc on the surrounding area as they battled.

"Eeeeek!" The Hagures screamed as the scorching gales threatened to blow away everyone present. Forced to protect themselves with magic, they all curled up and labored to stay rooted in place. If they relaxed for even a second, they would be launched with such force that the inevitable impact would be akin to hitting the ground after falling from the top of a skyscraper. To avoid that, everyone desperately tried to protect themselves while in the midst of a fight at a level that most normal knights could only dream of witnessing.

At long last, however, the competition between the blinding flame and raging wind began to break down. The Crimson Princess was being forced back.

N-No way! The bones in Stella's arms creaked. Her heels gradually dug into the asphalt beneath them, carving fissures into it. Though she prided herself on her unprecedented strength, she was under pressure she had faced before. I'm actually losing in a battle of raw strength Again?!

The sheer power that Ouma was unleashing bewildered Stella; she had never experienced anything like it. Unable to keep up, her plan to use Katharterio Salamandra to ascertain her opponent's strength began to collapse at an alarming rate.

Never before except For Ayato & Kori Kusanagi had she come across so much as a single person who could withstand a frontal attack from her esteemed Noble Art, but Ouma had done just that, and was even pushing her back.

Stella could hardly believe her eyes, let alone measure his strength. She had no experience facing such a situation, and with that lack of experience came a lack of ideas as to how to recover.

I don't know what to do…!

Slowly, gradually, the perfect cross shape created by the blades distorted. Raging wind overcame blinding flame, the tornado grinding away at the light pillar like a drill.

Finally, the blade of Katharterio Salamandra was severed, and Kusanagi descended toward Stella's head.

Oh no!

Reeling from the overpowering force that broke her sword, Stella couldn't move to escape her opponent's attack.

Nobody was able to jump in to save her, either, as everyone else in the area was preoccupied with protecting themselves from the incredible impact of the Rank A knights' swords.

Stella was going to be hit. Her defeat was all but assured—if not for Touka Toudou, the Raikiri and the only person present who was able to withstand their battle.

"Stella!"

Just before Kusanagi could split Stella in half, Touka used Shippu Jinrai to accelerate, slipping between them to grab Stella and save her from the falling blade by a hair's breadth.

Kusanagi slammed into the ground as its raging winds tore through and blew away everything in its path.

If Stella hadn't been pulled away by Touka, she herself would have fallen victim to that destructive power.

Nothing remained in the arc traced by Kusanagi's descent.

Buildings, training grounds, the asphalt along the ground, and even the debris that littered the area had been ground away, leaving only a straight line carved into the brown soil.

It was almost as if an enormous dragon had dragged one of its claws through it all.

If a human had taken that powerful blow head-on, there would probably have been nothing left of them.

Th-That was close! If Touka hadn't saved me, I would have…

"Thank you! You saved me, Tou—?!"

Suddenly, Stella's voice caught in her throat, the reason for which lay in Touka's right hand as it supported Stella's head. She had sent a bolt of electricity directly through Stella's brain. "Why…?"

"I'm sorry, Stella, but I can't let you keep fighting Ouma. If you can only tie with me, then you can't defeat him right now."

"Ah…" Stella looked to have some sort of protest in mind, but given that Touka had essentially flipped the breaker in her brain, she fainted before she could say it.

"Kikyou, Botan!"

"Huh?!"

"Eep!" After forcing Stella to go unconscious, Touka looked to the Hagure sisters and lobbed Stella's limp body at them. Though startled by the abrupt toss, the girls were quick enough thinkers to make it as two of Hagun's Seven Stars representatives, so they had no trouble catching Stella.

"Take her and run as far as you possibly can!" Touka shouted not a moment after they'd caught her.

"We can't lose any Seven Stars representatives like you girls right now!"

Even under such extreme circumstances, Touka was calmer and more collected than anyone else. The situation had transformed the moment their ambush failed, and considering the difference in strength between the two groups, driving Akatsuki Academy back was a herculean task for Hagun.

If they jumped in without a plan, Stella and the Hagure sisters ran the risk of becoming disabled—or worse—at the hands of Akatsuki's students. If that happened, Akatsuki taking Hagun's place as the seventh school, the worst possible outcome, would become far less improbable.

As a veteran who had been through countless real-life battles, Touka decided on the best course of action and relayed her plan accordingly.

Routing Akatsuki's students and bringing the situation to a forceful end. Stella's method would usually be the best way to do things, but it's not the right strategy here.

Right here, right now, the most important thing for me to do is to protect Hagun Academy's representatives!

"Y-Yes, ma'am!" the twins cried.

Touka's command reverberated with the strength of her resolve, spurring them into action. Regardless of whether they agreed with her, the force of her command alone was enough to make them listen.

Kikyou, the stronger of the Hagure sisters, quickly picked Stella up, and they turned tail and fled from Hagun.

"You think you can escape?" Ouma's voice, like a low growl, signaled the Akatsuki students behind him to leap into action.

First was the girl in the dress, the Beast Tamer Rinna Kazamatsuri, riding atop her enormous black lion.

Following her was Yui Tatara, The Unflinching.

"Mach Greed!"

"Crescendo Axe!"

Though Rinna and Yui tried to give chase to the three, Runner's High and the Destroyer halted their pursuit by attacking them from the side.

"And you think we'd let you follow them?" Touka retorted, locking eyes with Ouma as she readied Narukami. As if following her, the other student council members readied their Devices anew as well.

"You'd sacrifice yourselves to let your representatives get away? That's quite the level-headed decision. Unfortunately, you're only prolonging the inevitable." Accompanying Ouma's threat, the Akatsuki students stepped forward, their dark malice palpable. A second charge, one that harbored no falsehood or tricks, was unavoidable. It was truly a matter of life and death.

"Kana." As the atmosphere rapidly tensed ever further, Touka spoke to the girl standing next to her: Kanata Toutokubara. Touka gazed at her, the student council's only Seven Stars representative, seemingly encouraging her to flee. Aware of what she wanted to say, Kanata offered not even a glance in return. She continued to stare fixedly at the targets in front of her.

"Absolutely not. I'll be with you until the very end, Touka."

"Right." The two had known each other since they were children, so Touka knew just how stubborn she was. Repeated pleas would have been nothing more than wasted breath.

"Letting a job go unfinished would leave a stain on the good name of the Hagun Academy student council. We'll pay them back in full for trespassing on our turf!"

"Yeaaah!" Invigorated by her short speech, all the students still present roared as they charged into battle.

"Haah, haah…!"

Shizuku had been running along the empty slope leading from the school for some time. Once she had made it out of a bustling downtown area, however, a sharp pain in her side forced her to stop.

I'm really… out of shape. But I haven't lost him yet. She cursed her own weakness as she calculated the distance between her and the clown who'd abducted Alice, Hiraga. He was no longer visible; at some point along the way, he might have gotten into a car.

Forward thinker that she was, though, Shizuku had wrapped a thread of magic around Alice just as she was being abducted. The thread, so thin that it was imperceptible to the naked eye, could pass through any material, leading directly to Alice.

By using that thread as a guide, she would be able to find her lost friend, even if catching up on foot was impossible. To account for that impossibility, she accosted a man on a motorcycle who was waiting at a red light.

"Excuse me! I'm a student knight from Hagun Academy. There's a bit of an emergency, so I'd like to borrow your bike—"

"What?! Get real, brat. Why would I do that?"

"This is an emergency," she told the man, an alarmingly hostile look on her face as she pressed Yoishigure against his throat.

"Please."

"Gladly! In fact, I insist!"

With a horrified smile, the man nodded like a bobblehead before breaking into a dead sprint, leaving his motorcycle abandoned. He had left Shizuku no other choice; she was in too great a hurry to argue.

Deciding that she could probably have the school return it later, Shizuku took the man's spot on the bike. In doing so, she realized that she had made a grave mistake. My legs are too short…

"This is truly the most dastardly trap of them all."

"Having fun, Shizuku?" came a voice from behind her, causing her to turn around.

"Big Brother." There stood Ayato, who had been quick to catch up to her. "The enemy must have had some sort of getaway vehicle prepared, because Alice is getting farther away. That's why I procured this motorcycle, but as you can see, it has a major design flaw. It's disappointing indeed to see just how far Japanese manufacturing has degraded."

"I don't think the problem here is the design." Ayato chuckled for a moment at Shizuku's blame-shifting, but his face quickly turned serious. He approached her and asked a question of the girl who was still trying to pursue Alice despite her trickery.

"Shizuku. They know that we're trying to find Alice, but Ouma and the others aren't trying to stop us. They're not trying because they don't have to try. There's no question that somewhere up ahead, someone we have no hope of defeating is lying in wait. You know that, right?"

"Yes, I'm well aware."

"Alice was lying to us for all that time. What if us pursuing her is all part of her plan? What if this is just another one of her complex schemes? That's not impossible, is it?"

"Yes, I'm well aware."

"And even if Alice did forsake Akatsuki just to save us, she told us to abandon her. That was what she asked of us. That means she doesn't want you to put yourself in danger, doesn't it?"

"Yes, I'm well aware." Shizuku gave the same response to all three of Ayato's questions. She could infer that Ayato was trying to stop her, but she had no intention of backing down so easily, even if the person opposing her was her beloved older brother. After all, in her mind, his three questions were nothing but three tiny little nitpicks.

"So what? What's so important about any of that, Big Brother?" She looked her brother directly in the eye and conveyed to him just how determined she was.

"Alice is my friend. She's the first person other than you that I've ever come to honestly enjoy. And now, that friend is in danger. That's all that matters to me right now. I don't care what threats I have to face or how much Alice wants me not to do this; I'm going to save her life."

She would not turn tail and run home. Even knowing all the risks involved, she still wanted to rush to her closest friend's aid. In the face of such courage and conviction, her brother couldn't help but crack a small grin. "Good answer."

"…Bwah?"

Ayato's unexpected response caused Shizuku to accidentally make a silly noise.

"Big Brother, you're not here to try to stop me?"

"Well, if you'd given me a halfhearted answer, I would've dragged you home whether you liked it or not. But if that's how strongly you feel about it, I have no reason to stop you."

Ayato straddled the motorcycle, pushing Shizuku behind him and gripping the handles.

Then, he turned to look over his shoulder at her.

"I'm here to help you do what you want to do, Shizuku."

"Big Brother…" Ayato swore that he would join her, accepting all the perils that would come with doing so. The love and appreciation she felt for his compassion made her heart swell.

She rested her head on his back and felt more than ever:

Though it may be unrequited, I'm glad I fell in love with you.

"Thank you," Shizuku said, her voice quivering slightly.

"No need to thank me. This is what brothers do. Now, let's get going. I'll need you to give directions."

"Okay." Ayato and Shizuku then rode straight toward Akatsuki Academy, where Alice had been whisked away to.

KURONO SHINGUUJI

■ PROFILE

Affiliation: Hagun

Academy Blazer Rank:

A Noble Art: Banned Art ・ World Crisis

Nickname: World Clock

Personal Summary: Hagun Academy Board Chairman & Ayato's Aunt & Guardian

Attribute chart (starting at far left, going clockwise)

Physical Ability: A

Luck: A

Offensive Power: A

Defensive Power: B

Magic Capacity: B

Magic Control: A

Kagamin Check!

Lastly, it's the Board Chairman of Hagun Academy, 'World Clock' Kurono Shinguuji-sensei.

Her Device is a pair of handguns.

Her ability is time control, a member of the causation-manipulation system.

Time/space collapse is a superpower that twists the space she aims at into nonsensical shapes.

The decisive fight in the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival, in which she blew away the Hodou Tensei that the Yaksha Princess fired, is still a topic of anecdotes even now.

That's because a space destroyed by World Crisis never goes back to normal again.

Since it creates a scar that never disappears from the world, this technique was designated a prohibited art, just like the Yaksha Princess's Hodou Tensei.

She took the opportunity to retire in order to have a Child before her husband was killed by Shalba Beelzebulb even though she was ranked the world's top third in the KOK A-class league at the time of her retirement.

This was because she couldn't risk her life, for the sake of her loved ones. She chose to be a mother & Aunt over being a knight.

At the time, people said various things, but I think that was a praiseworthy way to live her life.

Smoke billowed from Hagun Academy. Its campus was embroiled in the war between the school's student council and the students of Akatsuki Academy, and in the eyes of the student council, the outlook of that war was getting bleaker by the minute.

Even excluding the student guest Ouma Kurogane, every Akatsuki Academy student was a powerful fighter with deep ties to the underbelly of society.

They all stood out amongst the underworld's ranks, having been hand-picked from the myriad of people who had been witness to terror and bloodshed unimaginable to everyday members of society.

Each one of them was strong enough to match the ace of their school, and at least on par with any of the top eight student knights from across the country.

It was that difference in strength that had driven Touka and her companions into a corner.

"There's no point, weaklings!" Despite her high success rate, her opponent was hot on the heels of her high-acceleration Mach Greed.

The reason for that was, of course, because her opponent was not a person, but a massive black lion.

It was no mere lion, either. On top of its incredible physical strength that was incomparable to a human's, it also used mana emission to propel itself to a speed that approached even Renren's.

"My loyal servant, Sphinx, is so much more than a mere magical beast. Thanks to the wicked stigmata carved into both my blood and soul by a demonic curse, I can use the power of my bloodline to draw out its dormant, dark power to the fullest extent. Mere mortals can only tremble before our strength!"

"What my master means to say is the following: 'Any living creature that wears my Collar of Subjugation becomes my Device. Lions have much greater brute strength than humans, so if it's able to use magic as well, it becomes even stronger!''

The eyepatch-wearing girl on the lion's back, Beast Tamer Rinna Kazamatsuri, spoke in a bizarrely theatrical way. Her maid, Charlotte, then translated the intended meaning of her pomp.

"Now, accept your extinction, weakling!"

"What my master means to say is the following: 'Moving will only make this hurt more, so stay put!'"

"You're a bunch of weirdos!" Renren shouted an insult at the two in response to their jarringly silly back-and-forth. There was no way she'd stop just because they told her to. Considering that the black lion was likely the weight of a small truck, letting it catch up to her meant certain death.

What made it all the more problematic was that it would be nigh-impossible to stick to a hit-and-run fighting style with how well it matched her speed. That's it! The sight of a light pole just ahead of her gave Renren an idea. If I'm up against a fast enemy, I'll use their speed to my advantage and feed them a counter! That way, I can end this with one punch! Her foe was staying behind her while matching her speed.

In that case, she would do the same thing that Ayato had done to her with his Mukuu Samui Kekkai and use its speed to strike it that much harder.

With that determination, Renren ran by the pole, grabbing on to it with her left arm to perform an instant U-turn.

The instant reversal in her velocity sent Renren careening straight toward the lion in pursuit of her, with Renren aiming for its vulnerable brow. Her abrupt U Turn that led into a counter would leave no time for it to evade, and unlike people, animals couldn't take defensive stances.

Black Bird!"

She lunged forward, ready to settle their battle in the blink of an eye.

However, her all-in ambush was met with boisterous laughter from the Beast Tamer.

"Hahahahaha! Unenlightened fools like you fail to see the truth governing this world! Did you not hear my venerable voice?!

My demonic curse is not limited to the power to control magical beasts! Come, Sphinx, and show them the dark power that lies dormant within your tainted soul!

Make them cower in fear before King's Pressure!"

"Rooooooar!"

The lion's eyes suddenly began burning with red flames, and Renren felt the force of a roar that would startle people miles away. Then, an unusual change occurred within her.

"Wha—?!"

I can't move!

Somehow, her body had stiffened, unable to move from the position she was in. She had no time to wonder what had caused it, though, as the small truck of a beast slammed into her frozen body at full speed, sending her flying.

"Gah!"

Renren was launched dozens of yards away, her small body bouncing across the earth until she slammed into a concrete wall. By the time she fell to the ground, she had already blacked out.

"As I said, my demonic curse draws forth the powers of darkness! The power dormant within Fenr—I mean, Sphinx, is the dark King's Pressure!

Only the king of the beasts can wield the immense power required to make any enemy who locks eyes with him freeze and cower in fear!"

"What my master means to say, with a very proud look on her face, is the following: 'Because I've made him my Device, he can use both magic and Noble Arts! Cool, right?!'"

"Tomaru!"

Seeing in her periphery that Renren had fallen, Touka bit her lip. It wasn't just Renren who had been taken down, though.

Saijou, Uta, and even Kana, too!

The two groups had been fighting for just over ten minutes. At the end of those ten minutes, Touka was the last member of Hagun's student council who remained standing.

"Ready to give up?" Ouma asked, exasperated, as despair clouded Touka's face.

Unlike her companions, she wasn't wounded in the slightest, but that wasn't because she and Ouma were evenly matched. Once Stella and the others had escaped, Touka took each student council member's strength into consideration and, deciding that she was the only one who could face him, chose to challenge Ouma herself. Shockingly, he'd responded to her challenge by dematerializing Ryuuzume, leaving him defenseless.

"I'm not one to point a sword at a woman weaker than me," he'd told her. "If you want to fight me that badly, I'll let you have the first hit. If you can manage to wound me in any way, then I'll face you in battle."

Ouma had then waited motionlessly with his arms crossed and his eyes closed, as if saying that a knight as weak as her wasn't worth wasting his time on. Seeing him like that had infuriated Touka, but his arrogance in underestimating her had lent itself to providing a rare opportunity. There was no question that he was tremendously strong, as shown by how easily he had overpowered Stella, yet he had carelessly opened himself up to attack when faced with a drawn sword.

An opportunity like that wasn't something she was going to let slip. She was going to remove Ouma—the most troublesome factor—from the equation, and had wasted no time in taking advantage of his carelessness to do so. It was possible that she had misinterpreted his arrogance, that he'd known that she had only a fraction of his strength, but nonetheless, she had unleashed a full-power Raikiri against him. The draw from the sheath, the angle of the attack, the speed of the swing, and the power behind it were all immaculate—it was a perfectly executed strike.

She'd landed a direct hit with her Raikiri, yet it hadn't left even a single scratch on Ouma's body. For the full ten minutes that followed, she'd tried over and over, each attempt ending the same way. Every last slash had reverberated violently off of him as though she were bludgeoning a mountain rather than a man. The best she'd done was cut into his clothing; she'd never managed to pierce his skin.

What?!

His defensive power is out of this world! Altogether, one Blazer being unable to hit another wasn't an incredibly rare phenomenon. Much like what had happened during Ayato and Stella's first fight, it was often due to the two knights doing battle having vastly different magic capacities. But the difference in our magic capacities shouldn't be that high!

"The way you and I have trained is very different," Ouma said as if witnessing the conflict taking place in her mind.

"Accept that you have no chance against me."

"Tch! I'm not done yet!"

Touka dashed at Ouma. All of her allies had fallen, which meant the other Akatsuki students would be on their way to take her down as well, putting her directly in harm's way. To avoid the coming danger, she needed to land just one hit.

I'll get him while he's still mocking me!

Touka stepped back to create some distance between them and pointed the tip of Narukami at Ouma, holding the sword parallel to the ground. She formed a magnetic field in front of her using her magic, at the same time using Shippuu Jinrai to send electricity flowing through her muscles.

"Takemikazuchi!"

She plunged into the tunnel of electromagnetic forces, which propelled her forward with destructive speed. It was as if she had created a railgun that fired her own body as a projectile. The technique was incomplete, pregnable, and excessively dangerous. It was a flashy special attack that warranted no real practical use, but its destructive potential surpassed that of even Raikiri and its incredible propulsion.

Making use of that monstrous offensive power, Touka had taken up her final attack stance and charged, sending blood flying through the air. The red mist hadn't come from Ouma, however; it was coming from Touka's right arm, thrust forward to attack. Narukami had only chiseled a fraction of an inch into Ouma's skin, just enough to let out a tiny bit of blood. He had remained completely motionless like a mountain, otherwise unaffected by Takemikazuchi's charge.

"What even… are you…?" Touka asked with a quivering voice, her right arm broken and limp. "Wha—?!"

Her eyes opened wide in shock, but not because Ouma had shrugged off her attack. It was because she had seen the countless scars that littered his chest, which she had poked using Takemikazuchi. Incisions, lacerations, punctures, bullet wounds, crush injuries—any and all kinds of pain had been inflicted on Ouma's body frequently enough that the wounds layered and overlapped, never able to heal.

iPS Capsules were advanced enough that they could heal the majority of wounds without leaving scars.

Their existence was a medical miracle that made it very strange for a Blazer to have as many old wounds as he did—a bit too strange, even.

For the first time, Touka had come to fear Ouma Kurogane from the depths of her heart.

"You… what have you been doing after you disappeared when you were little…?"

For five years he had disappeared from the public stage. Just how many scenes of carnage he had surmounted? Ouma, having been asked this, said—

"I have no interest in talking about myself." Shaking his head, he refused to speak about the empty space of those five years—

"No, I have never been the type to do things like talk. My parents, brother, sisters, fame—I've discarded all of them. All I have is this sword, and the oaths I make to it." In his hand, Ryuuzume manifested.

"Even if it's only this much, a wound is a wound. As promised, I will be your opponent." In an instant, from within the core of Ryuuzume, a windstorm that devoured everything began to blow. Just like the time that it had clashed with Stella's Katharterio Salamandra—

"Kusanagi." The sword descended like a tornado. The excess current from the backlash of Takemikazuchi covered her entire body.

Touka couldn't move a single muscle due to the spasms from that overload, so it was only a matter of course that she didn't dodge—

I'm sorry… everyone…. The wind-clad dragon's claw ripped through Touka's consciousness ruthlessly.

After winning easily against the Hagun Academy student council, one of Akatsuki, Amane Shinomiya, took a sigh.

The sun had already set, and the sky was darkened to indigo blue.

"Phew. The hour is later than I thought it'd be, huh?" While the chainsaw she held in her hand was scraping loudly upon the earth, Yui Tatara gave her honest opinion to those words in a gravely voice.

"Hehehe. It's because you people were so sluggish, dumbass. I got it done and over with in a flash, ya know."

"Hahaha. Someone surrounded by allies shouldn't be so quick to brag, 'Unturning'."

"My lady says, 'You just happened to get matched against an enemy you're strong at fighting, so don't get a big head!'"

"Huh? How about you and me see who's the one matched with an enemy we're strong against?"

"Sounds fun." Kazamatsuri's lips twisted in a feline smile at Tatara's provocation, and she lifted the patch covering her right eye with a finger.

"I'll show you the power of my Twilight Magic Eye! Don't pretend to regret it later! Seal release!"

"…Even though your left eye is equally red." "My lady, you've forgotten your contact lens."

"…W-Wahaha! I've run out of MP for today. You have good luck!"

"What game are you two playing?" Amane, who couldn't watch such half-baked things, sighed with a troubled face. I see. When Hiraga-san isn't here, I have to be the manager for this comedy duo, huh?

"We still have something to finish. We have to chase after Stella-san who got away, and Ayato-kun too. …For the time being, should we split up?" Amane who recognized his own role proposed this to the others. However, Ouma shook his head at that proposal.

"There is no need for that."

"Eh? What do you mean, Ouma-san?"

"My brother and sister are heading toward certain death. If it was only the One-Armed Swordsman they might make it, but right now she is there." She―with those words, Amane also agreed. Their alma mater, Akatsuki Academy, an inconspicuous place in a corner of the Tokyo metropolitan area. On this day, a certain person was a guest staying there by happenstance.

"Now that you mention it, that's true. It's today. That person is lodging at Akatsuki Academy."

"Indeed. Therefore those two have not the slightest chance. It would be best for all of us to pursue the Crimson Princess." Certainly, Amane agreed.

Although she wasn't the kind of person who'd take part in their plan, she was a sentimental person. Owing them a favor, she would probably recompense them with her sword. And if she took the field, going to Akatsuki Academy right now could be called a fool's errand.

"Still, you sure are indifferent about it. Aren't you worried? He's your brother, right?" At Amane's inquiry, Ouma spat out his response.

"Don't be ridiculous. He's someone I abandoned ages ago. I'm long past feeling sorry for him."

"Ahaha. Ayato-kun really has no luck with his family, huh?"

"Cease your prattle. Even with your infatuation and sympathy for that boy, Amane, aren't you not showing any worry either?"

"Me, worried? Ahaha, no way." Amane laughed loudly at Ouma's reply that had missed the mark.

"I'm not anxious about , I'm rather delighted. Ayato-kun, you know, he should suffer more and more. He should hurt more and more. His body should break from agonizing, outrageous crisis and uncontrolled Magic Power. Because when he overcomes that sort of hopelessness, it will make the tale of the Cold One shine."

Right. That was why the hopelessness should deepen intensely. The sight of him exhausting all his willpower and while coughing blood, but still denying his fate―

"I just looooove seeing Ayato-kun like that! That's why I want him in more and more extreme trouble!"

"Hehehe, your usual disgusting attitude is coming about again."

"Hmph. Don't say such cruel things. Isn't it natural for a fan to want to see the one he likes being cool?" And the moment Amane puffed up his cheeks in indignation. He noticed that his student datapad had received a mail.

Checking it, it was from the one who was their manager, the 'Pierrot' Reisen Hiraga.

The gist was that he had delivered Arisuin to Wallenstein, their teacher and supervisor, and was now heading back to join up with them.

He had sent over this mail, so…. As I thought, I only had to take this role temporarily, huh?

Recognizing that, Amane communicated using the mail that they would all be chasing after Stella, who Touka had sent away.

"Well, shall we go catch the princess?" Leading the rest of Akatsuki, he began the pursuit of Stella and the Hagure sisters.

...

At around that time, it wasn't only the students of Hagun and Akatsuki who were moving.

"Goddamn it! What bad luck for the airplane to have trouble today!" The one cursing was a woman dressed in a beautiful kimono, the Hagun Academy special lecturer Nene Saikyou, known as the Yaksha Princess.

"Indeed." The one agreeing with her was running alongside, the board chairman of Hagun Academy Kurono Shinguuji, known as World Clock.

The two of them had spent the last week in Osaka, where the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival would be held, but they had just received news of the attack on Hagun Academy from the teachers remaining there, and now they were trying to return to Tokyo in a hurry.

However, the fastest mode of transportation between Osaka and Tokyo, by airline, was being suspended due to a problem with the runways. Having no way to deal with it, the two were running along the Tokaido Shinkansen train track toward Tokyo.

Because, if the two used their abilities, they could reach their destination faster by running than by taking a bullet train.

"…Maybe it happened because it was today."

"Don't say that. I don't want to think of such troubling things." Saikyou made a bitter face at Kurono's words. At the present time, Kurono and Saikyo did not have adequate information. What they understood was only that representatives from each school had banded together and attacked Hagun. They didn't know the real motive behind that. However, both of them felt it. It was an attack that wasn't communicated in the news broadcasts at all. And then the airplane services were suspended suddenly. This sudden attack was heavily planned. That was the suspicion they felt.

"Well, at any rate, once we get there everything will become clear. So for that reason―" As quickly as possible. At those words, they put even more strength into their legs.

…At that moment. Faster than a second, a sudden gust struck their bodies and brought them to a half.

―In fact, no wind was blowing on them.

The sea was also calm.

However, on the expressions on the two world-class knights, trembles of obvious dismay were spreading.

Their legs were shaking, and their brows were sweating unnaturally.

Yes... what stopped their legs wasn't the wind. It was an aberrant sword spirit that could be felt from a long distance away.

To the point where the ground in front of them was going blurry in their eyes, as if a drawn sword was pressed to their throats.

The two were both superior knights, but they could feel it and it paralyzed them.

―Going toward that was dangerous. At that instinctive warning, the two had stopped running.

"Th-The sword spirit… just now… it can't be…."

"H-Hey hey hey. Are you kidding? Our attackers have someone outrageous mixed among them…!" The two knew. This unusual sword spirit. Only one person in the world could exert this kind of pressure.

"The sword spirit lasted only a moment. Was it to intimidate? …Let's hurry, Nene!"

"Y-Yeah!" With their faces pale, and ignoring the effort of starting up their bodies again, they raced toward Tokyo at the utmost speed.

This sword spirit, if she has becoming interested in something―probably Kurozakuro!? Kurono guessed what was happening at the place far away, and prayed.

Don't be rash, Kurozakuro! It's still too soon for you to enter this domain!"

With Ayato piloting the motorcycle per Shizuku's directions, the pair exited the populous city and passed through mountain roads. They traveled deep into the mountains in search of the hidden Akatsuki Academy. Just as they arrived in a forlorn area full of abandoned homes and came into view of the school building, something happened.

"Khhhnnnnnnnn?!"

An abrupt pressure as powerful as if the sky itself were falling. Its incredible weight fell heavily on Ayato, as if crushing his intestines. He slammed on the brakes, bringing the motorcycle skidding to a stop.

"B-Big Brother? What's the matter?!" Shizuku gasped at the sudden stop.

She, still inexperienced as a warrior, had no idea what was going on, but Ayato was painfully aware that he had entered the realm of demons. That awareness left him speechless; he was completely unable to respond to Shizuku's question.

Forcing himself to swallow down the fear that seized and froze his very being, he calmed his breathing. He then materialized Ryuuzetsu in his right hand and gazed up at the roof of the main building of Akatsuki Academy. There, at its highest point, he saw a white gleam, but not that of the moon. What shone vaguely in the night sky was the figure of a human being, a woman resembling a Valkyrie from Norse mythology. In each of her hands was a sword, both pointed in Ayato's direction.

"The enemy?!"

Following Ayato's line of sight, Shizuku noticed the woman's presence. She quickly jumped off of the motorcycle and materialized Yoishigure, readying herself for battle.

"…"

The snow-white shadow, however, showed no interest in Shizuku. She merely gazed down in silence. Ayato knew that her stunning eyes were trained on him, thus he made a decision.

After Shizuku Left him, The angelic swordswoman descended noiselessly from the tall school building. She seemed to glide down elegantly, her wings fluttering as she did.

The moment she touched down, Ayato felt such intense fear that it was almost as if his heart was exploding. His body, instincts, and even his very soul cried out, Run. Run! Get out of here, damn it! If you don't, you will die here!, but he did not listen. He gritted his teeth and faced the immense pressure head-on.

"I am demise, awaiting at the distant peak. I am she who rends heaven and earth with twin blades. I am Edelweiss, the Twin Wings. Little Warrior, it's time you learned how vast this world truly is."

In that moment, the Cold One and the Twin Wings, the world's strongest sword fighter, began their clash.

(Few Minutes Later)

Against the world's strongest sword fighter, Edelweiss, the Cold One, Ayato Kurogane, enveloped himself in a fierce blue aura. He had activated his Noble Art, Ittou Shura even before the first crossing of their blades. Though the technique limited him to only one minute of fighting, he wouldn't stand a fraction of a chance if he didn't use it at the outset of their battle. The difference in strength between them was easy for him to see, so if he wanted to fight the world's strongest, he would be limited to a single minute.

His judgment was correct. Ayato became certain that he had made no error in using Ittou Shura when Edelweiss charged in to attack, enveloped in wind. The moment she swung her twin swords, he lost sight of them.

"Kh?!"

Panicked, he jumped back, and the air in front of his face tore immediately after. Something ridiculously sharp and invisible had just barely grazed the tip of his nose. Based on its scent, Ayato knew that this invisible object was one of Edelweiss' swords.

I can't see her slashes! Far too fast and far too sharp, even the afterimages of the snow-white swords guided by Edelweiss' hands were imperceptible to the naked eye. All that he had just barely perceived was a slight sheen in the air as it was nearly ignited by the friction of a blade passing through it. She's so agile!

It was then that Ayato abandoned breathing for the rest of the fight; he literally did not have the time to breathe. To fight off Edelweiss' repeated twin flashes, he would have to mobilize every nerve, never falling behind her speed. If he wanted to keep up with her, he would have to use the nigh-invisible sword slash that boasted the greatest speed and sharpness among his techniques.

Using his Seventh Secret Sword: Hellmoon, an attack that was only possible through the use of Ittou Shura, he countered the incoming slashes. One, two, three, four—a total of ten slashes in which every entanglement of steel sent white sparks flying into the night air. Each of her invisible attacks, released in the space of a single breath, was fended off by Ayato as he used the movements of both her body and eyes to calculate the arcs of her next moves. Yet despite his ability to withstand the first assault, Ayato's expression was warped with shock.

I-Incredible!

Both of his arms were tingling from having blocked every last attack. Her swings weren't just fast; they were extremely strong as well. More so than even Ayato's Hellmoon, despite her using only one hand. Of course, he had already guessed how that was possible.

"Hrk!"

Ayato once again used Hellmoon to defend against Edelweiss' continued pursuit.

Amidst a shower of sparks, he became certain that his guess was correct.

That's it! None of this woman's actions make any noise whatsoever!

Her steps and her slashes were all perfectly silent. In essence, shockwaves created by vibrations in the air were what created sound. In other words, it could be called the dispersion—the loss—of physical force. But if one could control all the energy created by their actions and use it in a way that avoided such waste, the result would be that their actions would be inaudible, as both speed and power approached the absolute limit of their potential.

Such a thing would seem impossible for humans, but it was clearly possible for the woman Ayato faced. Drawing that conclusion, Ayato shuddered as he swallowed the saliva that had collected in his mouth.

So this is the world's best swordplay! In her approach, in her swordsmanship, she was clearly on a different level. Ayato couldn't find a single moment to go on the offensive; he could only continue to defend against the fervent, rhythmless assault. But I can't just sit here guarding the whole time! Even with Raikou, I can just barely defend myself; my speed and strength just aren't enough! If I can't turn this around, I'll be down within five seconds! I'll just have to throw everything I've got at her!

Thus, he would have to change up his tactics and find a way to attack her. It would have been silly of him to blindly believe that a good offense was the best defense, but there was an element of truth to those words. Even if he wasn't able to damage Edelweiss, his attempts would be worthwhile if it meant he could break her posture. He was determined to go on the offensive against the world's strongest sword fighter. He wouldn't be stingy with his attacks, either;

he couldn't afford to be against an enemy like her.

Steeling himself, he converted his determination into action, first backstepping to escape the high-speed assault from Edelweiss' twin blades. She quickly pursued, jumping forward with her blades held in the shape of a cross. It was a stance that perfectly balanced defending her front and preparing to attack. Hers was the optimal action against a foe in front—and it also was exactly what Ayato had predicted she would do.

Here goes!

Ayato stepped toward the approaching Edelweiss. Then, using special footwork with ice magic that alternated between decreasing and increasing in speed, he created afterimages of ice in front of himself. He was using his Fourth Secret Sword: Zanhyo Ningyō

His mesmerizing footwork fooled Edelweiss into attacking one of his afterimages of ice. Her blades crossed once more as she slashed with both left and right hands at once, but because it was only an afterimage made of ice, she had only cut through ice & air.

As a result… Her chest is open!

Thinking he had her, Ayato prepared Ryuuzetsu to attack.

However, just as he planned to plunge his sword into her, he jerked his body back. Immediately after, the space where Ayato's neck had been was assailed by an invisible blade. No! Her counters are faster than my attacks! I won't be able to finish it like this! But I'm not going to give up after just one or two tries!

If he'd stayed in her range carelessly, his head would be separated from his torso in no time flat. To avoid that, Ayato once again went on the offensive, shifting his focus from speed to power. Twisting his upper body against his lower body like a spring, Ayato put all of his weight and every last bit of power in his disposal into the point of his sword and charged. It was the Cold One's most powerful sword skill, a thrust known as the First Secret Sword: Saigeki.

Ayato's strongest attack, one that could pierce through even massive Mountains.

Its propulsion and penetrative ability were extraordinary. Even to Edelweiss, the only option available was to move out of the way.

"What?!"

The naïveté of that belief was instantly made clear as Saigeki lost its propulsion and Ayato's charge halted. The cause of that shutdown lay at the tip of Ryuuzetsu, where Saigeki's power was concentrated. Incredibly, Edelweiss had stopped its charge using the tip of one of her own swords. Ryuuzetsu's tip was as thin as even a Khyber Knife, yet she had perfectly matched its position with that of the tip of her own sword. With one hand, she had calmly, coolly stopped Ayato's strongest attack.

"Urgh!" Ayato faltered somewhat as she seemed to show off the difference in ability between them. Edelweiss did not fail to notice his faltering, and seized the opportunity created by the momentary dulling of Ayato's reflexes. "Ngah?!"

Her sword finally cut through the skin of his forehead, causing it to spew blood. To make matters worse, that blood had flowed down into his eyes.

Naturally, Edelweiss wouldn't miss a fatal opening when it was presented to her. She began her white-hot pursuit once more, repeating her ten-strike combo from the start of their fight. Her blades again cut through the air at blistering speeds.

"Haaaaaah!"

"Gh?!"

Much to her surprise,Ayato had reacted to every single slash, driving away every last potential killing blow. Though robbed of his eyesight, he showed no sign of fear, because he had no need for vision because he has his hollow and Ddraig and Sparda.

I may not be able to see her swings, but from her movements, I can at least estimate where they'll go!

Edelweiss' breathing, swordplay, tempo, and footwork. The Cold One had spent their fight gathering all of that information, uncovering his opponent's very nature with his peerless observational skills. Perfect Vision, the other weapon at his disposal, had allowed him to read all of Edelweiss' swordplay. He no longer needed vision because he could read all of her incoming moves without it.

"You're quite good."

The world's strongest was even moved to admiration for Ayato, whose mind's eye made up for the failure of his physical eyes. Even so, her assault didn't let up. She continued to attack head-on, making full use of the absolute advantage granted to her by her twin swords.

Edelweiss knew that even if Ayato knew every last bit of her swordplay, the chasm between them was so great that he could never hope to fill it with mere prediction. She had no need for cheap tricks; she just had to overwhelm him with strength and speed. Ayato, too, knew that her conclusion was entirely correct, that he would quickly be defeated if she continued.

It's time to decide this battle!

He had one final method to change the tide of battle. To make it work, he began to think while continuing to fend off the invisible, inaudible assault.

Edelweiss hadn't fallen back even once during their fight. She would occasionally defend herself while still advancing, but she had never evaded an attack. Why? Simply because she had no need to. Evading was pointless;defending with one hand while attacking with the other was more than enough.

Judging by the difference in power between them, Edelweiss was certain that Ayato's sword would be nothing against her own. Therefore, she did not choose to evade.

And if that's the case… That was where Ayato's chance of survival lay. It was because of her certainty that the situation was so easy to read. I'll use this as a starting point to break her rhythm!

Ayato assumed his final offensive stance. Repelling her white blades with a powerful blow, he delayed his counterattack, then forced a diagonal strike from below. Ryuuzetsu's blade scraped just slightly against the ground, carving the earth away as it moved for Edelweiss. The swing was as fast as a savage ice gale despite its large arc, but it wouldn't be enough to reach Edelweiss.

If Ayato's sword was the cryo wind, Edelweiss' twin blades were a flash of lightning.

There was no doubt that she would block his slash, but that didn't matter.

There was a reason he was going to make her block the attack. The moment she blocked Ryuuzetsu, he would contract every muscle from his fingers to his toes, creating a shockwave.

The devil body was a lot more than a sack of meat filled with water. Thus, it was easily influenced by vibrations, with mere ripples created by specific vibrations able to disrupt its inner workings. The principle behind the technique was an element of a certain style of Chinese martial arts, Ayato was simply using his sword to do what a martial artist would use their hands or feet for.

Like a poison that disrupted the nervous system, as long as the strike connected, its target would be hindered. If a direct hit on the target's armor, it would disrupt their internal organs; if blocked with the target's own sword, it would affect their arms by traveling through the sword. That was the methodology behind the Sixth Secret Sword: Dokuga no Tachi.

Taking into account the difference in strength between them, Edelweiss would not evade Ayato's strike. Her actions were proof that she had accurately judged the chasm between them. Unbeknownst to her, however, a situation in which the enemy would not try to evade was exactly where Dokuga no Tachi flourished.

"Huh?"

Skin all over his body tore, sending blood through the air. The reason was quickly made apparent to him, as it was quite simple: Edelweiss had done the exact same thing that he had attempted to do to her, but with much greater speed and force. As a result, Ayato's own shockwave had been overpowered by the one coming from Edelweiss, disrupting his own body.

Ayato had believed that he had seen through Edelweiss' swordplay, but that was no more than an illusion. She had intentionally led him to believe that he could outsmart her, but in truth, he was nothing but putty in her hands. That fact became two chilly shivers that shook Ayato's very being.

Though he had used all his strength, all his skills to the greatest possible degree and exhausted every possible ploy, Ayato was still unable to even touch Edelweiss. Faced with strength that went off the charts within his mind, he was shocked beyond belief.

A moment later, the end came for him. Edelweiss swung her right sword at Ayato, whose last angle of attack had been exhausted. The snow-white blade, invisible as it swung, tore through both Ryuuzetsu and Ayato.

"Ah…" The blow dealt to Ayato by her blade was not deep, but as his Device—the manifestation of his soul—had been destroyed, so went with it Ayato's consciousness. His collapse marked the end of Edelweiss' assault, for she knew that she no longer needed to continue. She recognized that the battle was over and turned away from Ayato.

But at the moment Ayato's body would've hit the ground, incredibly, Ayato mustered as much of his strength as he could, and refused that last act. Grabbing a piece of Ryuuzetsu that was flying through the air―

"Aaaaahhh!" He slashed at Edelweiss again. That broken edge was easily blocked by the pure-white blade. "

…You still wish to continue?" Ayato's action had made Edelweiss's heart waver just a little. She asked the knight who was now breathing over her shoulder, yet still grasping the broken shard of his crystallized soul.

"It is plain to see that with the difference in our strength, you cannot even hope to win by chance. The sword formed from your soul is broken, your consciousness faint. You body can no longer fight either. Despite that, why do you hinder me? I have no desire to injure children unreasonably. Since the beginning, I had no intention of killing you or your sister. Compared to keeping me here, you are putting your little sister in danger. Lord Wallenstein is not one to show children mercy, I fear. …Do you not also know this?" At that question, Ayato nodded while breathing heavily.

"Yes… I know…. You're a kind person."

"If so, why?" "…Because Shizuku doesn't want that." Ayato, keeping himself awake with pure will, stared back at Edelweiss through his blurred eyes and answered with the reason that he had not yet surrendered.

"If I let you go… maybe Shizuku will be saved. But Alice won't be!"

"―That boy is a criminal, a member of society's underworld. Such a fate is inevitable."

"Maybe so. But Shizuku doesn't want that. She came here because she doesn't want that! And I promised to follow what Shizuku wanted!"

Therefore― "Even if I die, I won't surrender here!" At that answer, Edelweiss's noble face turned in confusion.

"Even if you die? You don't hold your life so cheaply, do you? Having cross blades with you, I know how strong the ambition and longing is inside of you. You too have a dream. You too have someone important. Despite that, you don't mind losing your life here?" At the perplexed question, Ayato returned a weak smile. "This is… the first time."

"What?"

"The first time… Shizuku's ever asked anything of me." Ayato continued to speak as he thought of his relationship with his sister. "Even though I've only ever made her worry about me, even though I've never been anything like a big brother should be, she's always loved me. But today, for the first time, she asked something of me for her own benefit. That's more than enough reason for me to risk my life!"

She had entrusted her needs to such a failure of a brother. More than ever before, Ayato refused to yield. If a brother couldn't risk his life for the sake of his sister's one wish, the wish of such an incredibly bright girl who supported him through thick and thin, what kind of brother was he? He would never give up on helping her, so he screamed:

"I'll use my greatest strength to keep your strength at bay!"

As long as there was life left in him, Ayato would not let her through. Relying solely on his willpower and determination, Ayato stood, blocking Edelweiss' path.

What incredible strength of will. Are these the eyes of a young man who's finally begun to find himself? Even Edelweiss could see the depth of his determination through the dragons in his eyes. Her breath was taken away. A boy with so much strength and ambition, yet with such a virtuous soul that he would risk his life for another. It's been so long since I last met someone I could consider to be beautiful.

"Young man. May I have your name?"

"…Ayato Kurozakuro."

"'Kurozakuro'. I apologize for my discourteousness, young samurai," Edelweiss said, gracefully hopping backward to create a greater distance between herself and Ayato.

"You're no child in need of protection. You're a man worthy of fighting with all my strength as a swordswoman. Now, using the greatest swordplay ever known to this world, I will slay the swordsman known as Ayato Kurozakuro."

Just before things had become complicated, Ayato had certainly felt it. The footsteps of the Dragons. The presence of a sharp sword that would unlock his true power. If he defended, he would die― But be that as it may, now was not like the situation then. It was different from the fight before, where he could underestimate his opponent or retreat. The forward speed of Edelweiss in seriousness could not be compared to that. To say nothing of swordsmanship, this was already to the point where Edelweiss's form had changed to light itself― And with no sound, it all flickered for a moment before passing. Belatedly, a spray of blood flew in the darkness. Ayato Kurogane had no time to utter a sound―this time, he fell.

(Few Minutes later)

Though Edelweiss had cut Ayato Kurogane down, her face was pale with shock. She cast her mind back to the moment she'd won the match, to an unbelievable event that had occurred amidst the blinding ice dragon of their battle. In that moment, confronted by the world's strongest swordsman, Ayato Kurogane had still moved to attack with an Cryo wind Tornado.

She hadn't held back in those final moments like she had before, yet he still had not hesitated in the slightest.

As she pushed yet further to take his life, he plunged the remains of his shattered sword with the Cryo Wind Tornado into the nearly microscopic opening that her action had created, trying until the very end to defeat her. His attack had forced even someone as powerful as her to defend herself for a mere instant, dulling her attack.

Her final step forward to take Ayato's life had been wasted, converted to a step back to save herself.

As a result, Edelweiss could not snuff out the Two Cryo Dragons of Ayato Kurozakuro's soul.

That swordplay at the end was definitely… "My word. I didn't expect this." Edelweiss stood next to the fallen Ayato with slashes around her body and held a snow-white blade to his neck. Then, she chuckled. "Laying a hand on a fallen enemy would only serve to bring shame to me."

"A-Ayato!"

She suddenly heard a voice, and turned toward the source of it.

"Is that you, World Clock?"

"Damn you, Edelweiss!"

Kurono Shinguuji leaped over the wall surrounding the area to find Ayato Kurogane, covered in blood and lying unconscious. In her anger, she materialized her Device—a pair of pistols, one white and one black—and pointed them at Edelweiss while still flying through the air with scars on her body.

"Calm yourself."

"Tch…!

The moment she was pierced by Edelweiss' gaze, Kurono's fingers froze on the triggers. She was petrified by the fear that threatened to destroy her very soul. She finally landed, struggling just to keep the barrels pointed at Edelweiss.

Her fingers still refused to move.

It was Kurono's own instincts of all things that kept her from firing. If she moved her fingers even a tiny bit, the area would immediately erupt into battle —a battle that she knew full well she could not win.

"You monster…"

"That is quite the greeting toward someone you haven't seen in so long."

Edelweiss spoke coolly to Kurono, whose face clearly betrayed fretfulness. "Be at ease. YourNephew's still alive."

"R-Really?!"

"Yes, though it was not my intention to let him live."

Edelweiss punctuated her statement with a chuckle, before leaping soundlessly to her perch atop Akatsuki Academy's main building.

"Wh-Where are you going?!"

"Home. I was never meant to be entangled in any of this to begin with," Edelweiss replied, turning her attention again to the young samurai who had so bravely confronted her. Then, she thought of the great trials he would face in the coming Seven Stars Battle Festival. Despite her not being closely connected to Akatsuki's plan, she had a general idea of the bigger picture.

You probably have an inkling of this yourself, don't you, boy? In his coming battles, Ayato would not be hindered by the Gale Sword Emperor or even the Crimson Princess. In the near future, Amane Shinomiya will block your path.

Their battle would be far crueler than Ayato could ever imagine, possibly even more so than his fight with Edelweiss. It was for that reason that Edelweiss left a few words of advice for the Cold One as the Cryo Gale Sword Emperor.

"World Clock. Once Kurozakuro awakens, I'd like you to tell him something for me: 'Next time, I hope you'll be a worthy opponent for me.'"

And then, still without a sound, the world's strongest sword fighter disappeared into the indigo night.

"I'll make sure to tell him," Kurono replied, watching the sky in the direction Edelweiss had left before running over to Ayato.

Indeed, he had been severely beaten, but it wasn't fatal. He could definitely be saved—a fact that relieved Kurono deeply.

Well done Nephew. You stood toe-to-toe against Edelweiss, and you'll live to tell the tale.

"…Oh?"

Just as she was going to use her time manipulation ability to close Ayato's wounds, Kurono saw something unbelievable in her periphery. On the white concrete where Edelweiss had stood were lots of red spots.

Though it was only a lot of splotches, it was definitely blood.

Blood not from Ayato's body,but from the body of someone who had stood there mere seconds ago.

He actually scarred her all over?! A boy this young scratched the strongest in the world?!

Ayato's sword had found its mark. It had left only a Lot drops of blood and was hardly even worth calling wounds, yet it was absolute proof that the Cold One's sword had left its mark on the top of the world.

"Hah… Hahah. You're always full of surprises. You've got one hell of a future, kid."

Kurono trembled with excitement, joy, and shock all at once.

She then started tending to Ayato's wounds, assessing the situation anew while she did.

When Kurono and Saikyou had returned to Hagun, nobody was present except for the unconscious student council members.

She'd looked into the past to figure out what had happened, then sent Saikyou to recover Stella and the Hagures while she went to recover Ayato, Shizuku, and Alice.

However, only Ayato was present, so where had the other two gone? Kurono focused her senses, searching for magic nearby.

(Few seconds later)

While trying to sense nearby magic, Kurono felt the activation of an ability so strange that it was beyond anything she had ever experienced.

It seemed as though it was Shizuku's magic, expanding so subtly that it was undetectable.

The moment it became perceptible as wide-area magic, it again focused into the size of a normal human. Her actions seemed to defy normal logic.

For what reason had that happened?

Knowing Shizuku's ability, Kurono could guess why. "She deconstructed and reconstructed her own self"

? Honestly. What a crazy pair these two are," Kurono muttered, exasperated, as she looked more finely into the details of what occurred underground. What Shizuku had done was a miracle in and of itself; she had practically revived herself from beyond the grave.

Furthermore, judging by the response to her magic, Shizuku's foe had already been silenced. Kurono could say with relative certainty that things at Akatsuki Academy had been settled.

That knowledge gave her a touch of relief as she looked to the western sky. Things went well enough over here, but how are things on your end, Nene?

...

"Black Blade Yatagarasu!"

"Kusanagi!"

A magical blade wrapped in lightning blacker than the night sky clashed with a tornado-clad sword, knocking the two knights away from each other.

As he slid on the gravelly mountain road, Ouma Kurogane clicked his tongue.

"As I thought, the power drops by the third usage."

On the other side, the petite woman fighting against him who was dancing back through the air, the Yaksha Princess Nene Saikyou turned gracefully in midair, and dropped down in front of the Hagure sisters who had been cornered upon the deserted mountain.

"Sensei!"

"It looks like I got here just in time~"

"*Sniffle* We're saved…."

"Ahh. You've really been holding on. It's okay now." After confirming the two of them and the fainted Stella were safe, Saikyou felt a moment of relief, and–

"Nooooow then…." –immediately faced back toward the enemy in front of her. Akatsuki Academy–at the only one she recognized among them, Saikyou made a declaration.

"Haven't seen you since your grade school days, right? Ouma-chan. You really became huge."

"And you haven't grown at all."

"That's none of your business–anyway, I want to teach you a lesson right now, but what's the meaning of all this fooling around? Talk, and I'll hear you out, okay?" Saikyou spread her weapon, an iron fan, and asked Ouma while concealing her lips behind it. But the one who answered was Amane, who was standing behind Ouma in reserve. He, with a peculiar smile that could be described as simple-minded, answered Saikyou's question.

"Instead of chatting, how about negotiating you handing over those three people to us instead?"

In an instant. "Ha ha. Negotiating. Is that what you said–little boy?"

The air hardened with a *crack*.

"You suck at pretending to be an adult!"

"Augh!" All of Akatsuki were suddenly assailed by an intense weight.

With Saikyou at the center, everything within twenty meters was being crushed into the ground by an invisible force. It was Saikyou's Noble Art that used gravity, Jibakujin.

Akatsuki, who had suddenly been struck by gravity making them ten times as heavy as normal, all collapsed onto the ground as if they were sinking into it.

Except for only one person, Ouma Kurogane, who stood upright and faced Saikyou without moving even an eyebrow.

Ouma slowly turned Ryuuzume toward Saikyou, and Saikyou also once again charged a pure and enormous gravitational energy into the twin iron fans she had materialized, having it take the form of the blade called Black Sword ・ Yatagarasu– "Ah, stop stop! Please hold on a second!"

Between the two of them, the inappropriately-dressed Pierrot Reisen Hiraga interrupted. After delivering Arisuin to Wallenstein, he had immediately turned around and just barely managed to catch up with his compatriots, and–

"Everyone, please withdraw. We don't need those three." –he urged Akatsuki to retreat.

"–Is that alright?"

"Yes. Well, we've probably made enough of an impact, and more than anything else, if the Yaksha Princess is our opponent then there's too high a risk.

If the Yaksha Princess seriously went on a rampage, Ouma-kun might be fine, but I don't think the other members will escape unscathed.

And our sponsor doesn't want us beaten before the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival. So let's escape here somehow.

"…Hmph." Ouma sheathed his blade, bored.

"And you, Demon Princess? Any problems with that?" After a moment of silent contemplation, Saikyou hid her fans in the sleeves of her kimono. There were too many enemies.

It was her duty as a teacher to protect her students, so she had no reason to object.

"You're lucky I decided to take this damn teaching gig, you stupid little shits."

"We appreciate your understanding." It was then that the Eve of the Festival, a disturbance that had begun at Hagun Academy, met a quiet end.

Reisen Hiraga and the other Akatsuki students paid no attention to Stella or the Hagure twins as they disappeared into the darkness.

The mountain path was left silent, save for the sound of wind blowing through the trees.

There, Saikyou ruminated on Hiraga's words as she looked to the sky with a grimace.

"'Sponsor', huh? These guys are gonna be one hell of a pain in the ass, Kuu-chan.

...

The news of Akatsuki Academy's attack on Hagun quickly circulated across the nation, along with video of Hagun Academy's main building as it burned.

The Seven Stars Battle Festival's management committee was quick to take action against those who had committed the atrocity, beginning a deep investigation into who was responsible for it all while considering the option of stripping the students involved of their knight certifications.

The people demanded they be subjected to strict punishment, captured, and confined. Of course, it was certain that they wouldn't appear at the Seven Stars.

However, with the appearance of a man who claimed to be the director of Akatsuki Academy, everything changed. The name of the middle-aged man who proclaimed himself director was Bakuga Tsukikage, the Prime Minister of Japan. He held the highest position in the nation, yet despite the investigation into him, he did not apologize, nor did he even seem sorry in the slightest. Unbelievably, the man offered an invigorating smile as he made the claim.

"Wonderful, isn't it? Were you all surprised? A Federation-affiliated school stood no chance against them. This is the strength of the National Akatsuki Academy, the school that will bear Japan's future as it takes the place of the seven dogs of the Federation!"

He went on to speak of that very future. In it, National Akatsuki Academy would dominate the Seven Stars Battle Festival, ending the Mage-Knight Federation's reign over Japanese Blazers and returning sovereignty over their education to Japan. His speech would mark a turn of events that nobody could have ever imagined.

Police and government alike took no action against the Akatsuki atrocity. Instead, the event was treated as if the attack on Hagun had been a false alarm, an accident that had occurred during mutually consented-to training. Normally, such a claim would have been laughable, but with the government doubling down on it, it was easy to convince the public that black was white.

Of course, Hagun Academy, the other six schools, and the Seven Stars' management committee were furious. They quickly moved to block Akatsuki students from entering the Festival. Much to their dismay, however, they could not enforce such attempts, for they had received a direct command from the International Mage-Knight Federation: the Federation would not tolerate having the education of Japan's Blazers wrested from their control. Therefore, they would put an end to Akatsuki Academy at the Seven Stars and prove that the Federation's system of education was superior.

All had gone exactly as Hiraga had said it would. With the nation of Japan itself on the enemy's side and even the Federation Headquarters declaring them as such, the management committee and the seven schools had little recourse available to them. Their claims were thrown out, and Akatsuki Academy became known as the up-and-coming powerhouse that had nearly destroyed Hagun with the power of a mere seven students. Their goal of formally entering the Seven Stars Battle Festival as an eighth school had been achieved.

"I'm sorry."

Recounting the events after the attack on Hagun, Kurono apologized to her Nephew & Niece Ayato and Shizuku Kurogane for her own powerlessness.

"There's no reason for you to apologize, Auntie," Ayato told her, requesting that she lift her head up.

"Big Brother is right. But what a shock that our own country was behind it all."

"It's been a ticking time bomb ever since World War II," Kurono said in response to Shizuku. The country's entry into the Federation was anything but a unanimous decision. Using the weariness that followed the war as a tailwind, the prime minister at the time went as far as giving up territory to cooperate with other nations and stop the runaway imperialism that had been occurring. It was part of a greater campaign to get Japan to enter the Federation.

"But that action meant parting with our status as a world power," Kurono continued. "There was backlash against it, of course, leading to a bloody internal political feud. Despite all that, the prime minister was adamant about international cooperation. The political discord still remains to this day. Many believe that Japan still has the strength to hold its own as a superpower—like the USA or Russia—without joining the Federation, many want to change the nation so that we can do that, and many believe that Japan's inability to educate or punish Blazers without permission from the Federation is a major problem. These factions exist in both our government and in the Federation's Japanese branch."

"Even in the Federation itself?"

"The Federation's Japanese branch as you know it is a remnant of the samurai of the past. Back when Blazers were still called samurai, a group of them working under the Japanese government split off and changed their relations with the Federation's main branch, which snatched away their authority, are bad, to say the least. But, well, that's what happens when you force everyone to go along with the "international cooperation" to mention the Anti-Federation sentiment that exists among the general government is what it is today as a result of it spending half a century expanding its power while under the pressure of public opinion.I guess it was more or less unavoidable that something like this would happen at some point."

Putting extremists aside, it wasn't all too surprising that many would take issue with their nation's army being made up of people trained by another entity's educational so, joining the Federation came with its own multitude of benefits, so it was hard to say for sure which side was correct.

"So, in short, Prime Minister Tsukikage's plan is to use the Seven Stars—the Federation's stage for putting the results of their training on display—to refute their methods by showing off his own students' strength and take back our right to educate Blazers from the Federation?"

Well, that would be the best outcome. The worst-case scenario is that he might be trying to completely sever ties with the Federation."

"Does nobody care that he's using human resources provided by the Rebellion, a group of actual terrorists?"

"The only evidence that Akatsuki's students are members of Rebellion comes from Alisuin's testimony. If they play innocent, there's nothing we can do. Even if we had irrefutable evidence, the government would probably just suppress it by force, just like what they did with the attack on Hagun." Kurono sighed, then put a cigarette to her lips with a bitter groan. "But I still can't believe Director Tsukikage would do something like this."

"He was the director of Hagun Academy back when I and Your Mother were students. We remember him as an intellectual, rational man. What the hell did the government do to him?" she pondered as she lit her cigarette. Upon closer inspection, the ashtray on Kurono's desk had been stabbed with so many cigarette butts that it looked like a sea urchin. She was clearly stressed.

"Anyway, Akatsuki Academy's spot at the Seven Stars is all but secured. They're all elites with ties to crime syndicates, so it wouldn't be wrong to assume that this year's Festival will be a hell of a lot different from last year's.

As a result, we instructors believe we should ask you representatives once more: are you absolutely willing to go up against people like that? That's the reason I had you come here today."

"It is?" Ayato asked, the reason he had been summoned to Kurono's office finally revealed to him.

"Alisuin, Toutokubara, and the Hagure twins have all given up their spots. Looks like Alisuin feels responsible for what happened, while Toutokubara wanted to stay with Toudou, since she's yet to wake up. Kikyou and Botan Hagure seem to have merely folded before the power of the Akatsuki."

"I… see. I guess that's not too surprising."

"And you? What are you going to do? Circumstances as they are, our deal can wait—"

"No," Ayato declared, cutting her off.

"I have no issue with continuing. I'm going to the Seven Stars. Our promise won't change."

He didn't need the compromise she was trying to offer. He had long since made up his mind. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. After all, I don't see this year's Festival being that much different from last year's.

All that's changed is that knights from criminal organizations have joined what used to be a more exclusive event." Ayato's voice was strong, with clear resolve backing it up.

"If the Festival exists to find out who's the strongest student knight in Japan, then really, this is the Festival in its truest form, and that's perfect for me.

We student knights don't have the slightest idea what the prime minister is thinking.

All I can do is to fight fair and square with my raw power until I meet with Stella at the top. Besides, there's someone I'm interested in there."

"The Gale Sword Emperor?"

"No," Ayato answered quickly.

"Not that I'm not interested in Ouma, but this is different."

"Who's got you more interested than the Gale Sword Emperor?"

"It's a student from Kyomon's roster, Amane Shinomiya."

Ayato nodded in confirmation of Shizuku's inquiry. Kurono tilted her heard slightly in confusion at that confirmation. "…I didn't see him as a knight who's particularly noteworthy, though."

"That's also what I think."

"What?"

"The ones related to this must have outstanding ambition like my brother Ouma. Among Akatsuki Academy's members, there are none who doesn't leave a special impression. And I think my impressions are basically right. His power as a knight isn't as great compared to the rest of Akatsuki Academy.…Despite that, for some reason I've always had a weird impression about him stuck in my chest. An unpleasant feeling that's strong enough to surprise even me–"

Why did he have such unpleasant feelings for no one other than Amane? Ayato didn't know himself. For that reason, he couldn't help but think it was ominous.

"Why am I repelled by Amane-san to this degree? I want to know." He didn't understand right now, but there must be a reason.

To Ayato's words, Kurono nodded in comprehension.

"Well, Liitle Nephew, you never struck me as the type to hate others for no reason. Maybe there's something about that Shinomiya boy that only you have figured out so far. Anyway, I understand your commitment. I'll take care of the details of your participation."

"Um, Auntie? Is Stella going to be there too?"

"I asked her this morning," Kurono replied with a small chuckle.

"She didn't hesitate for a second when she said yes. 'You think I'd give up that easily after they made a fool out of me?!'"

"Big Brother, that does sound like Stella."

"It sure does," Ayato said and nodded slightly. "Oh. That reminds me.

Little Nephew. I have a message from her. She told me to tell you, 'I won't be coming back to the dorm this week even though it's the week before the Seven Stars, but that doesn't mean you can let Shizuku stay over.'"

"Ignore that message," Shizuku answered immediately before turning to Ayato. "But still, I wonder why she isn't coming back this week."

"…Yeah. I'm sure Stella has a lot on her mind." Ayato was reminded of what Stella had said when the two had visited the still unconscious Touka and Utakata the day before.

As she stared teary-eyed at the two sleeping council members, she spoke shakily, clenching her fists so tightly that they nearly started to bleed.

"I never knew that weakness felt so bitter," she'd said. She probably wouldn't have wanted others to know what she'd said or that she'd cried, so Ayato left Shizuku with a vague answer.

"In any case, I've got an important question for you, Shizuku Kurogane, My Niece."

Kurono turned her attention toward Shizuku, who had been sitting silently next to Ayato for most of the meeting.

"This year's had some crazy developments right off the bat, none of which we could've imagined last year.

But as you've explained, Little Nephew Ayato, you have no need to fear the plots of certain men.

The stars of the Seven Stars are, as ever, you student knights.

This will be a good opportunity for you to trade blows with Rebellion troops, too, as they're an enemy you'd rarely get to fight otherwise.

Maybe a Seven Stars that includes every kind of student knight in Japan won't be too bad after all.

It'll be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for you to stand on a stage where you can test the limits of your true strength to your hearts' content in 20 Days!"

"Yes, ma'am!" the Sparda siblings declared in unison.

While Ayato and Shizuku were meeting with Kurono, Stella Vermillion stood in front of the KoK league's specialized gym within the Tokyo Metropolitan Area. She was waiting for a certain person. "Well, well. Fancy meeting you here." The person who greeted her was Nene Saikyou, the Demon Princess. The facility they were at was one that she used regularly during her stay at Hagun. "I've been waiting for you, Ms. Nene."

"Oh? Does that mean you want something from me, Princess?" With that guess, Saikyou urged Stella to state her business. Wearing an expression that was either earnestness or nervousness, she gave her reply.

"I'd like you to help me train for the Seven Stars this week."

"Well, this is a sudden request. What for?" Stella bit her lip when she heard the question, then strained to answer it.

"Ever since I failed to surpass Touka, I've had a vague feeling about something. But what happened at Hagun really drove it home for me." Stella's hands still throbbed from having been pushed back by Ouma's Kusanagi. It was the first time she'd ever lost in her domain, a battle of raw strength. The shock of that failure, combined with Touka's continuing unconsciousness as a result of protecting Stella, thrust one undeniable truth upon her. "…I'm weak. If I don't get stronger, I'll never be able to meet Ikki at the top."

"So that's what makes you want my help?" Stella nodded vigorously. "As far as I can see, you're the strongest person in the whole school! So, Ms. Nene, I want you to train me in the week I have left! Please!"

"…And if I say no?" Stella had lowered her head deeply, but when asked that question, she looked back up at Saikyou.

"When showered with sparks, anyone would be forced to brush them away. Know what I mean?"

There was a glimmer in Stella's eye, showing through her drooping bangs as she stared at Saikyou.

If she would not help her willingly, Stella would force her to. If she were to refuse, Stella would not hesitate to attack.

Realizing that that was what her stare implied, Saikyou sighed internally.

Well, she's got me there.

She had noticed that Stella was desperate.

An overwhelming loss the likes of which she had never experienced before and a sense of powerlessness the likes of which she had never felt before had put her in an incredibly difficult position; she was struggling desperately to confront the desire to do anything she could while not knowing where to begin.

In asking for Saikyou's help, she was likely attempting to do that which was most difficult for her.

It was the only option she had, because if she did nothing, she would be crushed by the discomfort.

The first thing Stella needed to do, though, was to calm down. Forced training spurred on by impatience was more than just dangerous. Frankly, there was little to nothing that Saikyou could actually teach her.

The untapped potential within her was something she was simply unable to match.

If a commoner were to teach her bad habits, Stella, the genius with the second most magic power in the world behind Ayato, would have her potential limited.

In order to prevent that, in order to avoid creating the worst possible deficit, trying to calm her down was the best decision for a teacher to make.

But man, I actually feel bad for her. Looking at how stressed Stella was—nearly to the point of crying—Saikyou began to think.

Indeed, calming her down may have been the best decision for the long term.

Stella's potential was a cut above the rest with Ayato; by the time she graduated from Hagun, even the Gale Sword Emperor wouldn't stand a chance against her. Saikyou could easily imagine that future for her. But that was three whole years down the road, and the impatience that Stella felt was not without reason.

If she didn't get stronger before the Seven Stars, reaching the finals would prove difficult, if not outright impossible. She knew as much, hence she was so desperate.

You're just a late bloomer, clearly… Pfft. No way someone her age would listen to bullshit like that.

Saikyou grinned wryly, remembering her own days as a student.

When she was young, she had constantly pushed others to help her get stronger and show results.

The time she forfeited her match with Kurono and nearly killed her was a prime example of that.

Back then, all she'd cared about was the present; the future hadn't mattered to her one bit.

She had been willing to die if it meant victory.

Stella was young, and people her age had their own sets of values.

Those values may have been irrational and unworldly, but trying to force children to think logically when they normally only saw things their way was nothing if not illogical.

To that end, Saikyou made a proposal.

"All right, Stella. I've got one condition. If you accept it, I might spare some time for you."

"R-Really?! What is it?!"

"Simple. I'll join you in your training, but I won't teach you anything."

"Huh?"

"Basically, this coming week will be a twenty-four seven beatdown, starring me. I might destroy your body, or, who knows, maybe your mind will break first. And I'm just gonna keep on going, no mercy. If you're okay with that kind of training, then let's do it."

"So you're saying I should figure it out on my own as we go?"

"Yep. But I can't guarantee you'll be able to. So, whaddaya say?"

That was the best idea Saikyou could come up with: just show Stella what true strength looked like, make her realize how powerless she truly was. It was up to her to find a solution. If she couldn't, then, well, too bad. As poor a proposal it was to come from a teacher, of all people, it was more than enough to lure her was desperate; all she really wanted was some sense of direction, an opportunity to take the next step toward greater there was a chance that she could find it, she had no reason to refuse.

"That's perfect! Thank you so much!"

"Come with me, then. Get ready for a week of hell on earth."

Everyone involved with the Seven Stars passed the final week before the event in their own way.

Good and evil, adult and child alike, all were enveloped in a tempest of hopes and ambitions as they barreled toward the Seven Stars.

Two days prior to the Festival, the bracket was announced.

With the abstaining parties removed from the bracket, only thirty-two contestants remained.

One such contestant, Ayato Kurogane, smirked as he looked over the matchups.

Perhaps he was confident, or perhaps his smirk betrayed something more bitter, as from among the other thirty-one participants, Ayato was tasked with fighting a third-year from Bukyoku Academy in the first round and was training unlocking his true powers.

His first opponent was to be the winner of the previous year's Festival and the man who stood indisputably at the top of Japan's student knight population: the Seven Stars King, Yudai Moroboshi.

...

The next day the Gremory group gathered in a corner of the huge garden, all dressed in jerseys, including Azazel, and were sat down at the table about to start the meeting to find out what there training would be.

Ayato was still had Ddraig ranting quietly in his head about the previous night in the hot spring although luckily Sparda had managed to keep the dragon's mouth shut so he didn't have a permenant blush on his face. He glanced to Azazel to see him with some sort of pile of documents in his hands as he started to speak

"Let me say this first. What I'm going to tell you now is a training menu that focuses on things in the immediate future. There are people who produce good results immediately, but there are also those who have no choice but to look at things in the long run. However, you are all growing young people. Even if you mistake your direction, you will grow well. Now then, first is Rias." Azazel turned his attention to Rias as he continued

"From the beginning, you have been a high-spec devil with everything, including talent, physical ability and magic power. Even if you live normally as you currently are, those traits will rise and you'll become a candidate for being a highest-grade devil when you become an adult. However, your wish is to become stronger than you would in that future, right?" Rias nodded strongly to Azazel's question as she answered

"Yes. I don't want to lose ever again."

"Then, follow the training recorded on this sheet exactly, even all the way up to the battle day." Azazel spoke, handing Rias a piece of paper which she looked puzzled at as she asked

"…But, this training doesn't seem all that special, though?"

"That's right. It's a basic training method. That's just fine for you. You've already collected everything. That's why your power can only be raised by basic practice. The problem is the quality of the [King]. Over time, the [King] seeks brains more than strength. You know that even if they're not good at magic, devils can climb to the top with a good head and cleverness, right? Learn all you can about the Rating Games until the deadline. Drive everything, from game documented images to documented data, into your head. What a [King] needs are the thought, quick-wittedness and judgement to defeat any kind of situation. It's your job to make sure that your group's servant devils can display their power to the fullest. However, also remember that, until the actual game, you won't be able to know what will happen. It's the same as a battlefield." Azazel answered, Rias nodding in understanding as he turned to Akeno

"Next, Akeno."

"…Yes." Akeno spoke with a sullen expression as Azazel added

"You must accept the blood that flows within you." Akeno frowned in response, Yukio knowing he meant her Fallen Angel side, Azazel continuing regardless of her expression

"I've seen the recorded images of the battle with the Phenex family. What was that? With your original specs, you should have been able to easily defeat the enemy [Queen]. Why didn't you use your Fallen Angel powers? You limited yourself to only thunder. If you don't add light onto thunder and make [lightning], you can't display your true power."

"…I can do just fine even if I don't depend on that kind of power." Akeno replied coldly as Azazel frowned slightly

"Don't deny yourself. What will you do if you can't accept yourself? In the end, the only thing you can rely on is your own body, right? Denying yourself makes you weak. Accept everything about yourself, even the tough and painful things. Your weakness is your current self. Overcome it by the day of the battle. If not, you will become a mere obstruction in future battles. The [Priestess of Thunder] must become the [Priestess of Lightning]." Akeno didn't respond to him but it seemed like she understood that she had no choice but to do it.

"Next is Kiba." Azazel spoke turning to the blonde boy who replied

"Yes."

"First, you must maintain Balance Breaker for a full day. If you get used to it, you'll be able to maintain it for a full day in your actual battle form. Your objective is to continue that and to become able to maintain that state for the length of a day. After that, you'll be able to become sufficiently strong by doing basic training like Rias. I'll teach you man-to-man how to handle sword-type Sacred Gears later." Azazel explained, Kiba nodding in understanding as the Governor asked

"For sword training…Will you train under your teacher again?"

"Yes, I plan to be taught from scratch again." Kiba answered, Yukio smiling at his diligence as Azazel turned to Xenovia

"Next, Xenovia. To be able to use Durandal better than you do now…you need to be able to use another holy sword."

"Another holy sword?" Xenovia asked doubtful Azazel's words, who grinned as he added

"Yeah, a slightly special sword."

"Next is Gasper."

"Y-Yeeeeeeees!" Gasper replied nervously.

"Don't be so frightened. Your biggest obstacle is that fear. You need to train your mind and body that fears everything from scratch. From the start, the specs with your bloodline and your Sacred Gear are substantial. Skill improvement of your bishop special characteristics and your magic will also support you greatly. Since I've constructed an exclusive [hikikomori escape plan] program, you must first put on a proper attitude as much as possible. Even if going out in public entirely is impossible for you, make sure that your movements aren't dull." Azazel explained to the blonde half-vampire who replied

"Yeeeeeeeeeeeees! I'll try to obtain a spirit that goes for broke!"

"The same [Bishop]-class, Asia." Azazel spoke turned to the blonde girl who was showing her fighting spirit as she replied

"Y-Yes!"

"You will also improve your body and magic with basic training. Also, your main task will be to strengthen your Sacred Gear."

"You want to increase her range of healing right?" Yukio asked, Azazel smirking as he nodded as he answered

"Yes. Her speed of recovery is great but the big problem is her having to touch to heal. This is like an underhanded trick, but to show the true worth of [Twilight Healing], its effective range must be expanded."

"So it's also possible for Asia's Sacred Gear to be used in long-range as well!?" Rias asked surprised as Azazel nodded

"According to the theory based on the data gathered by our organization. It should also be possible for the Sacred Gear aura to be issued from the whole body and to use the recovery on all allies within one's surroundings. But, the problem is that it would seem to heal both enemies and allies without discernment. It would be fine if it could distinguish between enemies and allies and heal only allies, but…I'm worried about Asia's own nature."

"…Because Asia's kind to everyone?" Ayato asked

"Yes. When seeing an injured enemy on the battlefield, Asia would think in her heart of wanting to heal him too. That would obstruct the Sacred Gear's ability to distinguish between enemies and allies. Most likely, Asia wouldn't be able to obtain this distinguishing power. This enlarged healing range that I spoke of just now can be a double-edged sword for this team. Even so, you should keep the range expansion in mind." Azazel answered seriously which lightened as he added

"That's why I've found another possibility. —The power to fire the healing aura."

"S-So you mean I would send my healing power to someone that is some distance away from me?" Asia asked while making the gesture to throw something, Ayato smiling at the cute gesture.

"Yes, it seems that you can directly throw it. When Ayato is battling 10 meters away and is injured, you would fire your healing power at Ayato. If what you have used until now is a standard limited field, the one I'm explaining now is a projectile version. You could heal even if you aren't directly touching." Azazel explained, Yukio smiling as he took Asia's hand and spoke

"That'll be great. Asia can play a great active role like that"

"Its power would be a little less than with direct touch, but being able to heal allies from far away is still a strategic characteristic with many uses. With one or two people jumping into the frontlines and arranging for the healing Asia and someone to guard her in the back, you'd be able to make the ideal formation."

Rias spoke up in agreement with Azazel's opinion "It's an easy method, but that's why strong tactical formations are simple. Usually, the method used to heal allies is Phenex tears or some mixed healing medicine. Asia's Sacred Gear could easily top those with its all-purpose characteristic and reliability."

"That's right. The power of Asia's Sacred Gear, which can also heal devils, could be called this team's distinctive characteristic and weapon. After that is merely a test of Asia's strength. Please finish the basic training properly, okay?" Azazel spoke calmly

"Y-Yes! I'll do my best!' Asia replied with a nod as the Governor turned to Koneko

"Next is Koneko."

"…Yes." Koneko asked with a hint of excitedness for today as Azazel continued

"You have nothing to be criticized about, as you possess the elementary traits of offense and defense as a [Rook]. You're physical ability is also not a problem. However, there are those better at offense in Rias' group than a [Rook] like you."

"…I know that." Koneko spoke frustrated as Azazel explained

"The ones at the top of offense in Rias and Stella's groups are currently Kiba, Xenovia and Ayato, Aine,Scarlet, Yurishia and Druella. It's because they possess brutal weapons with his Balance Breaker holy demonic swords and her holy sword Durandal and Ayato has Kuraokamitsu and his Scale Mail along with Ascalon and Ryuuzetsu , he even have his Bankai available from completing this training which should further power it up"

"Koneko, you will also improve your basics like the others. In addition, release the thing that you have personally sealed. It's the same as with Akeno. If you don't accept yourself, big growth won't be possible for you." Azazel spoke to Koneko who said mothering in response but her fighting spirit suddenly disappeared at the mention of releasing something. Ayato frowned as he wondered what her power was before trying to help her as he spoke

"Don't worry Koneko-san; I'll help you with it if you want"

"…Please don't say that so lightly…" Koneko spoke with a stern expression.

"Now then, the last is Ayato. For you…Please wait a moment. Should be here soon…" Azazel spoke looking up at the sky as Yukio asked annoyed

"What have you prepared…?" The silver haired teen looked up to the sky with the others before, his eyes widened in shock at the level of power he felt as a huge shadow appeared.

The earth shook as it landed right in front of the group, Yukio falling out of his chair from the shaking as he looked through the cloud of dust to see a fifteen meter tall black dragon.

"A dragon?" Ayato asked surprised as Azazel grinned

"That's right,Ayato. This is a dragon."

"I know what a dragon looks like, idiot!" Ayato countered annoyed as he shot a glare at Azazel.

"Azazel, you have some nerve openly entering devil territory." The dragon spoke, Azazel not seeming fazed as he replied

"Hah, I've properly gotten the personal permission of the Maou-sama and have entered this territory fairly, you know? Do you have a complaint, Tannin?"

"Hmph. Well, it's fine. I specially came here because of Sirzechs' request. Don't forget your surroundings, Fallen Angel Governor." Tannin replied before Azazel turned to Yukio

"Heheh. —Anyway, Ayato. This guy is your teacher." Ayato shook his head with a sigh as he spoke

"I should have expected this…"

"It's been a while, Ddraig. Can you hear me?" Tannin asked, Boosted Gear appearing on Ayato's arm as Ddraig spoke aloud

[Ah, how nostalgic, Tannin.]

"So you two know each other?" Ayato asked curiously as Ddraig answered

[This guy is a former Dragon King. I told you about the "Five Great Dragon Kings" before, right? Tannin here was a Dragon King back when they were the "Six Great Dragon Kings". The dragon called Tannin recorded in the Bible is him.]

"Tannin became a devil, so the [Six Great Dragon Kings] became the [Five Great Dragon Kings]. Even among the current reincarnated devils, he is ultimate-class. A highest grade devil" Azazel added before turning to Tannin as he continued

"[Blaze Meteor Dragon] Tannin. It's even said that his breath of fire is equal to the impact of a meteorite. He's one of the few legendary dragons that are still active right now. Sorry, Tannin, but please help with the training of this kid who carries the Red Dragon Emperor and the Dark Knight. I want you to teach him how to use a dragon's power from scratch."

"Even if I don't do it, it should be fine if Ddraig and Sparda teaches him directly, right?" Tannin asked, Sparda speaking aloud to explain

{He has reached the point where he needs to Improve the Bankai so you help with that as well as knocking some Dragonic magic into him}

"So magic and unleashing the True Blazer's power up. I see, so you're saying that you want me to torment this boy…This is my first time training someone who harbors Ddraig, Sparda and has so many factors to him." Tannin spoke happily

[Go wild my host is stronger then expected. As long as my host doesn't die]

Everyone sweatdropped as Tannin sighed and spoke "Just leave it to me, Ddraig"

"The period is about 20 days in human world time. I'd like for him to get at least Bankai by then. Ayato work as hard as you can without dying." Azazel spoke, turning to leave as the silver haired teen rolled his eyes.

"Now then, each of us will now do our respective training menus. I hope you all do well." Rias spoke, everyone giving a yes in response before they headed in there own directions. The crimson haired princess looked back at Ayato, giving him a thumbs-up as she cheered

"Ayato, do your best!"

"Miss Rias. Can you lend me the mountain there? I'll be bringing him over there." Tannin spoke, pointing to a far-off mountain as Rias nodded

"Sure. Please teach him well."

"Leave it to me. I'll train him right to the edge of death." Tannin replied, grabbing for Ayato only to miss as he spoke up

"I can move myself Tannin-san" Ayato hopped onto Tannin's back before the black dragon took to the air.