Rakudai Kishi no Eiyuutan - Volume 09
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Chapter 14: Heightened Fighting Spirit
After the end of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival’s second semifinal round, Ikki fainted in the waiting room. By the time his cardiac arrest was discovered, the shock and anxiety had spread beyond his inner circle, to the tournament staff and spectators. Many of them seemed to expect the worst outcome. In reality, the tournament staff had to at least consider that possibility, so they revised the schedule for the next day.
Fortunately though, due to the power of Japan’s greatest doctor, there was no need to worry. Ikki was saved from death.
However, Ikki had still not awoken by the time the final round was scheduled to begin. But was that really a big deal? As long as Ikki was alive, what was waiting a day?
Everyone’s hearts were united in this.
Kurogane Ikki and Stella Vermillion.
It would not be an exaggeration to say that this 62nd Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival had been the highest level ever.
The two knights who had fought their way to the summit, the finals.
The tournament should not end without seeing the conclusion for oneself.
An attack after the end of the match. Not to mention taking a stray hit after protecting the umpire. With such an unfair end, there was no good excuse to end the festival there.
Therefore, they waited for Ikki to come to the stage of battle.
To this end, everyone offered a hand. The staff ran about apologizing and moving forward an exhibition that had been planned for the last day, the media coordinated special coverage, and the spectators accepted these changes without complaint. All for one young man’s sake, countless people gave their all.
And then… He came.
The sun had already gone down completely. His clothes were disheveled and he still had a bed head.
Even so, he was there in the ring, ready to face his fight, showing his strong will.
The hopes of the fighters, the desires of the staff, and the feelings of the audience were all the same.
There were no longer any obstacles.
Thus, with many people’s support and good will and the great spirit of the fighters, the final match was ready.
Dawn broke at last, coming from the eastern sky with a first light that seemed to burn white-
And the morning of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival’s final day, which so many had been longing for.
◆◇◆◇◆
“Wow, What a huge crowd. Everyone is so fired up even though it’s still morning, huh.”
It was 9 am. Tomaru Renren, from the Hagun Academy Student Council, had taken the bullet train to the station nearest Wangan Dome, where the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival was taking place. The moment she got off, she found herself both amazed and astonished by the massive congestion, and murmured this complaint.
Everything, from the platform to the ticket gate to the road to the dome, was filled with an uncountable number of people.
Naturally, they all had one goal. The Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival finals.
“But with this many people, can they even get inside?”
“There’s no way they can all fit inside. They’ve even installed monitors outside.”
The one who answered Renren’s question was the one who had come with her to Osaka, another member of the student council.
It was a large man with a physique like a rugged boulder, Saijou Ikazuchi.
Just like he had pointed out, most of the people were there to watch the fight from outside the venue.
Even though normally a lot of people gathered, the semifinals simply couldn’t compare to the finals.
Considering that it was a confrontation between the A-Rank Knight Crimson Princess, boasting magic power that could be said to be the greatest of mankind, against the Blazer with the worst evaluation of F-Rank, Worst One, who had advanced by continuously defeating one strong opponent after another starting with Seven Stars Sword King, it’s even more so.
Moreover, with such an unprecedented turnout, many merchants had gathered to do business as well.
Some sat with their backs to the hedge, guitar in hand, singing songs.
Other performers juggled or did magic tricks.
And then there were the local stalls.
Even though it was but morning, the area around Wangan dome was already festive.
There was another person currently with Renren, the Student Council Vice President, Utakata Misogi, whose face was blue and trying to hold something back from his mouth.
“Somehow this large crowd is making me feel rather sick…”
“Are you okay? Vice Pres-?”
“I’m not okay. I’m hot. Frazzled. Tired. I can’t take it.”
“Then it would have been better to leave you at school.”
“That’s no joking matter. Wouldn’t I look like an idiot if only I had stayed behind to work while everyone was playing? Let’s just hurry and get to the hotel. If we stay in this kind of place, I think my brains will melt out through my ears.”
Utakata whined while pulling at the hems of Saijou’s shirt.
Well, even if one’s brain didn’t melt, staying much longer would probably lead to heat stroke.
It would be no laughing matter to have spent the two and a half hours to come from Tokyo only to watch the game from a hospital bed.
“Even if you say that, with a crowd like this, finding Kanata-senpai will be such a pain-”
“Nah, that’s not true.”
As he said that, Saijou pointed at a spot in the crowd.
“Everyone, over here~”
Amongst the crowd, dressed in mainly short sleeved shirts and shorts, with at most a thin cardigan, was the figure of Kanata Toutokubara, completely clad in a white dress that did not reveal even her fingertips, which could already be said to be a partially suspicious getup.
“That was a needless worry, huh.”
“Kanata-senpai, aren’t you hot?”
“I’ll be fine if I just endure it~”
“Endure… Why endure through that…”
Perhaps there was some spiritual reason? It perplexed Renren.
Utakata tilted his head questioningly at his junior, then asked Kanata a question.
“Eh? Kanata, whatever happened to Touka?”
Though they had without a doubt been traveling with her, the figure of Hagun Academy Student Council President, Touka Toudou, was nowhere to be found.
“Since it’s Touka-chan, she probably slipped out for some urgent business that just came up this morning.”
“Urgent business?”
“Fufu. Yes. Urgent business.”
Though Kanata would not explain the matter further, her bemused expression told them that it was not a serious matter.
Since it seemed that forceful questioning wouldn’t be necessary, Utakata closed the matter with a “hmm.”
“Well, she did say that she would come back before the fight, and that we should all watch the finals together.”
“I see.”
“But, finals, huh… Once, we were wondering what would happen, but it would be good to have a meeting about it. Being surprise attacked after a match, moreover losing by default due to an injury taken while protecting someone else, Kurogane-kun is too pitiable.”
“That issue is something for the management committee to consider for us. Such a special measure is an unprecedented exception. …According to the information Toutokubara collected, to make this extension happen, Prime Minister Tsukikage pulled a lot of strings.”
“The Prime Minister who put us through all that?”
“…Again, that’s a separate matter.”
“Nonetheless, there’s no way they would have delayed the schedule just for one student. It just so happens that the rampage Stella went on that shortened the festival by a day may have been a blessing in disguise… It looks super unfortunate, but kouhai-kun is pretty lucky.”
Renren nodded in agreement at this as well.
Then she looked up at Saijou behind her and asked a question in her friendliest classmate voice.
“Hey hey, who do you think will win? Saijou-”
At this, Saijou put his hand on his chin and contemplated for a moment.
“…Both are from our school and are developing their abilities quickly. However, just looking at how they fought during the semifinals, Vermillion has the edge in ability. I can’t imagine how to handle that dragon’s power with just sword techniques. My assessment is that Vermillion will triumph.”
With that answer Renren came to an understanding.
Stella’s true power was what she pulled out in the semifinals, Noble Art Dragon Spirit.
It was natural for Saijou to come to such a conclusion.
However- Renren’s thoughts differed.
“It’s true that Stella-chan’s true power, the embodiment of a dragon, was amazing. I do think it’s already beyond what one person has the power to handle; it’s just that abnormal a power… But, it’s by repeatedly overturning such unreasonable odds that Kurogane-kun came to be standing in the finals ring tonight.”
“…You think Kurogane will win?”
Renren nodded.
“I understand because I’ve fought him directly. Though Stella-chan’s power surpasses human understanding, Kurogane-kun’s skill can also
be said to be superhuman, something in the realm of the abnormal. Do you remember? What Kurogane-kun did when he defeated me at the Hagun selection battles?”
“If I’m not mistaken, he sidestepped your supersonic charge 「Black Bird」, then caught you by the nape of your neck and smashed you into the ring.”
“That’s right. Normally, doing that would get your arm torn off. Despite that, Kurogane-kun countered that power completely and instead diverted it into the ground. That skill is definitely a match for Stella-chan’s violent power.”
“…It’s not that I can’t understand your point of view, but your understanding of Vermillion is a little naive. She effortlessly stopped my Crescendo Axe’s heaviest strike. Because of Dragon Spirit, that brute strength probably rose even more. That offensive power is beyond the domain of things that can be stopped with techniques. I was crushed by it, after all.”
“Kurogane-kun has the speed to completely dodge that. I saw it myself, Kurogane’s speed throwing Stella’s figure off her feet!”
“That’s an illusion. Fights are won by by those who are strong.”
“What a thoughtless thing to say! Speed is the key to modern wars!”
“In the end, it seems you just want the opponent you lost to to win.”
“You’re the one who wants that!”
“Hnnnng!”
“Mmmmm-!”
“Ah okay okay, let’s stop it there you two.”
Within the heat that only gave rise to a haze, those two held an argument so heated, it gave off sparks.
Unable to just watch, Utakata got between them and tore them apart.
“Have your sweltering conversation in a place with air conditioning. If we stand around here any longer, we’ll end up with heat stroke.”
“That’s right. Then, everyone, let’s go to the hotel. There’s even food prepared, so let’s continue there.”
It seemed Kanata agreed with Utakata.
She immediately took the lead to guide them to the Toutokubara group’s hotel and began walking.
“Eh? Food? Awesome~ There’s food, Food~”
“…Apologies. I, of all people, got unusually fired up.”
“Nah, the lightning god image was quite scorching, so it didn’t seem out of place.”[1]
“!?!?”
With a shocked expression, Saijou hardened like a statue and got left behind.
◆◇◆◇◆
“Fuhaha~ Look, the people are like trash!”
“What the hell are you doing?”
A long line of people stretched from the station to Wangan Dome.
Watching from the hotel terrace, Nene Saikyou let out a strange, feigned voice, at which Kurono Shinguuji shot her an incredulous gaze.
“Now look here, when you look at a crowd of people from somewhere high, don’t you just want to say that? Instinctively.”
“I do not.”
“Seriously? Kuu-chan, are you sure you’re Japanese?
“Is this really something you’d involve nationality in?”
While grumbling in a sighing voice, Kurono pulled out cigarettes from her suit.
She put one to her lips and lit it before tossing words at Saikyou.
“It seems you didn’t agree to do commentary for the last day, even though it should be a profitable job.”
“Well, yeah. It’s the finals of my favorite pupil. Wouldn’t I want to watch from the front row?”
“It was only for a week, I want to say, but… She did improve considerably.”
“I was surprised too. I thought I’d just try more or less shoving her around. Who would have thought that such a beast would be sleeping.
“When I think about it, that huge appetite of hers that doesn’t match her constitution must be the influence of the dragon’s power as well.”
As she said that, Kurono glanced at the top of the table fleetingly.
There, stacked on the table, was a mountain comprised of the ruins of what had once been a room service meal.
Farther in, on the bed, the red haired girl who had created the mess… Crimson Princess Stella Vermillion was sleeping with her body curled up like a baby.
“…Nene. About today’s finals, what do you think?”
“I think it’ll be a great fight. Since they’re both knights who obtained great power in their own ways, neither should get done in easily. Though it could also become an appropriately high level mudslinging contest.”
“A mudslinging contest eh.”
“You know, since they’re lovers and all. It’s kind of messy.”
“If such a pleasant quarrel were to occur, the viewers might just feel relieved.”
After responding to Saikyou’s banter with a dry laugh, Kurono puffed out a breath of smoke.
“I don’t think that’s likely to happen. Especially between these two.”
She muttered, though her tone betrayed a tinge of nervousness.
At this, Saikyou also returned a small nod.
“True. If something goes wrong, someone might die. Just like in the match between you and me.”
Though Saikyou was joking, Kurono could see that her eyes carried the same nervousness.
What she was recalling was the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival of their own generation.
What she clashed with back then were her own feelings.
─Back then, she believed she didn’t mind dying.
To beat that person, she would even throw away her life.
It was to that extent… The girl named Kurono Takizawa had pined.
Saikyou was sure that Kurono thought something similar might happen.
That, with the same feelings as they had held back then, these two might-
“Still… It seems the one in danger here in the end is still Kuro-bou.”
“Does Yaksha Princess see Crimson Princess as better?”
“Yes, after all, I can’t picture it. The image of this princess losing, that is.”
Saikyou momentarily looked over the sleeping Stella.
As she was deep asleep, all Stella did was make sleeping sounds.
She was saving her strength.
Not even using the energy to open her eyes, she accumulated strength from head to toe.
All so that tonight, she could erupt at the finals.
“…”
While laying her on the bed, the two had visions of the dragon’s giant body several times.
At that overwhelming pressure, Kurono couldn’t help but gulp.
And so she thought.
Tonight, the one to face this monster will be a single knight.
(Kurogane. What are you thinking now? How are you spending your time?)
Was he, like this girl, accumulating strength?
Perhaps he was waiting eagerly for the finals, unable to sleep from the exhilaration?
Or possibly…
“…Either way, in this match, even if we interrupt it, things could get deadly. We can’t leave this to some half-hearted knight. If it comes down to it, you and I will stop it… Just like Nangou-sensei and Kurogane-sensei did back then.”
“I know, I know.”
Saikyou agreed with Kurono’s sentiment without showing distaste on her face.
From the start, in order to focus on the fight and not miss such an important timing, she had turned down the commentary.
She didn’t have to be told such a thing.
Saikyou regarded Kurono with a serious expression. Right now, even more important was-
“Hey, Kuu-chan.”
“Hm? What?”
“This place is a non-smoking room, you know.”
“…Next time, please warn me before I light up.”
“I’ll use my best discretion.”
With a mean grin on her face, Nene smirked at the blushing Kurono.
◆◇◆◇◆
Stella had stored as much strength as she could in her body.
Her opponent, Kurogane Ikki, was in a training facility owned by the National League near the Wangan Dome.
For the duration of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival, this training facility was free for use by contenders.
Ikki was carrying out a mock battle in one of that facility’s rings.
Acting as his opponent was a tall, thin, and handsome person.
It was his friend, Black Sonia Nagi Arisuin.
“-Huu.”
With a fast attack that whistled through the air, Ikki charged at Arisuin.
In response, Arisuin shifted his weight backwards and took a retreating stance.