Chapter - 13

Just remembering what had been said about the ferocity of Moroboshi's ardor for battle made Shizuku shiver.

Taking back his sister's voice—it had been for that reason that Moroboshi had been able to recover from seemingly irreparable injury and make a comeback, even overcoming a rehab process akin to torture. His tenacity and determination were both extraordinary.

Moroboshi-san is, without a doubt, strong.

Not only in body, but also in spirit. He was not someone Ikki could defeat if he went into battle with doubts on his mind.

Onii-sama…! Please pull yourself together somehow!

So Shizuku watched the blue gate which her brother would come out of with emotions akin to prayer. And as she looked—

"Ah…."

There, in the spectator stands above the blue gate, sat a petite girl with bob-cut hair—Moroboshi's sister, Koume Moroboshi. Like Shizuku, she had come to watch her brother, who would soon emerge from the red gate.

…Her expression looked horribly pained.

「Ehem. Everyone, your attention please. We apologize for the long wait. Now, we shall begin the first first-round match of Block C!」

At the announcement, both Shizuku and Koume's eyes turned towards the ring.

If she were in Koume's shoes, how would she feel? How would she feel if Ikki had lost his legs because of her, and then plunged himself into a world of hurt and fought others for the sake of reclaiming her voice, while she could do nothing but watch—how would she feel then?

"…Ah."

Just thinking about it felt as if she herself was being cut to the heart.

Part 6[]

Unlike the Block B matches, which had run into some problems, Block C was going very smoothly. In the midst of all this, Moroboshi returned to his holding room following his usual warm-up, and looked at a piece of paper on his pipe chair.

「Do your best!」

It was written in circular, cutesy lettering.

Last night, he had not returned to the hotel. After getting Ikki an ambulance, he had returned to the store, where the crowd had yet to thin in any way. In the end, there had been no time to go back. This piece of paper had been given to him by Koume just as he was leaving the house this morning.

Before heading off to attend the opening ceremony, he had asked her.

「Hey, could you tell me to do my best, like you always do?」

He would request this before every match, as though it were some sort of good-luck charm. As always, a conflicted look would flash across Koume's face before she could school it into a smile and then write that message.

Just as always.

As he looked at the message, Moroboshi remembered that face that he had seen in that moment. That pained, apologetic expression. He knew why she would think this way, why she would make that expression. She understood that it was for her that he had stepped back into the world of knights. Of course, he had never once asked for her gratitude or told her anything of that sort. But they were siblings by blood, and thus she had been able to guess the gist of his thinking. That was why she hesitated. For how could she merely cheer from the sidelines for her brother, who was fighting for her sake, as though it were not her business?

Having seen through her thus, Moroboshi… had smiled gently.

"Silly."

You don't have to think that you need to apologize, Koume. You did nothin' wrong. Don't worry, just take it at your own pace and get well again. Even if it's years, decades… it don't matter how long it takes. So till then, I won't lose. Until you realize that you didn't take nothin' away from me, till the day you get better, I'll keep winnin'! And when that day comes, please, like you used to long ago—

「Representatives in your holding rooms, your attention please. The third match is now over, and the fourth match will now begin. Representative Ikki Kurogane of Hagun Academy and Representative Yuudai Moroboshi of Bukyoku Academy, please proceed to your respective entry gates.」

"Shaa! Time to kick some ass!"

Watch me closely now!

Part 7[]

「So, in the third match of Block C's first round, representative Byakuya Jougasaki showed us his strength, splendidly knocking his opponent out of the ring for a ten-countdown KO. As expected of the previous first-runner up, wouldn't you say, Muroto-pro?」

「Yes… but nonetheless, a victory by countdown just doesn't sit well with me as a knight. I understand that the rule is in place to ensure the safety of the participants, but I can't help but prefer duking it out in the ring.」

「I see. I think there might be many in the audience who feel the same way. Let us look forward to seeing that in our next match! Ladies and gentlemen, the wait is over! We bring you now what is probably the most anticipated match today—the fourth match of Block C!」

With commentator Iida's words as their cue, the fence on the entrance gates began to lift, and the contestants for the fourth match walked in.

「First up, from the red gate, we have the reigning champion—Bukyoku Academy's third-year, Yuudai Moroboshi! The hero of the west, with his ingenious spearmanship and his ability to devour magic making him the Blazer's natural predator, climbed to the summit of Japan last year! His road was by no means a smooth one. He once lost both his legs in an accident he encountered before the U-12 tournament. This ended his path as a knight, and he was forced to retire as a result. But he's back! Back from the depths of hell, from overcoming that irreparable injury all the way to the top! Whether it be a knight's glory or a knight's reverses, he knows them all and fears them not! The Seven Stars Sword King, Yuudai Moroboshi, is here today in this ring to try for the unprecedented—a second straight victory at the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival!」

In that moment, the cheers shook the ground.

「Ho-shi! Ho-shi!」

「Would you listen to these cheers! They're shaking the Bay Dome! As expected of the hometown hero, he's immensely popular!」

The thunderous adulation was like the rumbling of the earth itself. Surely, no other student knight in Japan could garner such applause. Being on the receiving end of the spectators' expectations, Moroboshi materialized his Device Tora-Ou and raised it aloft as though piercing the heavens.

"Shaaaaa!"

As if to say "leave it all to me!"

「Ooooooooohhhhh!」

「What is this? Representative Moroboshi! Despite the earth-shaking applause, he doesn't flinch! He doesn't cower! Not even before such expectations, such hopes! He can carry it all on his shoulders—what a young man! What a man!」

「That's what's so amazing about him.」

「Oh, what do you mean?」

「As you said before, Iida-san, he recovered from an injury thought to be impossible to recover from. Thus he should, more so than others, be conscious and uneasy of his body's condition. But he did not show cowardice, or show any uneasiness. Rather, he carried and then lived up to all the expectations he received. As though to say 'I'm alright, there's no need to worry about me.' …Also, I once underwent the same recovery procedure as Moroboshi-kun.」

「So, Muroto-pro, one of your legs is a prosthetic?」

「Yes. After all, even the loss of all four limbs is quite common in the KOK tournament. Thus there is a rather large demand for such recovery operations. However, myself included, there are almost no cases of it succeeding. Do you know why that is?」

「No, I don't. Could you enlighten me?」

「To tell the truth, the operation itself has a hundred percent success rate. It is the rehabilitation that most everyone cannot pull through. The operation is a procedure that takes one's existing flesh to recreate the lost parts. Thus, various post-op complications such as a result of severe osteoporosis and loss of musculature causing the performance of one's internal vital organs to drop. But because the body will not restore the lost muscles without training, one has to undergo muscle training in order to return one's body to its original state as a part of the rehab. That means undergoing countless instances of muscle tearing and bone-breaking… I'm a grown man, but I couldn't take it. Within three days, I was begging the doctor tearfully to return my leg to my body. But Moroboshi-kun managed to pull through that hellish rehab, and even gained strength incomparable to before. It is not something that could be done without extraordinary spirit and resolve. Honestly… I can't imagine it. His heart, skill and body are all on a higher plane. I don't see anyone defeating a Seven Stars Sword King with this much grit, courage and tenacity.」

「So we might expect to see the first brace of victories in the history of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festivaaaaalll! And now, the Seven Stars Sword King's first opponent is entering the ring!」

As Iida spoke, all eyes turned to the blue gate. Amidst the gazes, a young man walked in calmly, his black sword in hand.

「I'm sure many of us here recognize this face! Having been embroiled just prior in a scandal involving the Crimson Princess Stella Vermillion, he is the very first F-rank knight to make the stage of the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival! But don't be fooled by his rank—his strength is certified genuine! In his school's selection process, he defeated Raikiri Touka Toudou—who gave our reigning champion a difficult time last year—in a single strike, and even defeated A-rank knight Stella Vermillion herself in an unofficial duel. A knight of abnormal strength, to whom someone gave the nickname Crownless Sword King! Wielding the weakest magic alongside the strongest swordsmanship, he is this year's most-watched dark horse! Here he comes now into the ring—Hagun Academy's first-year, representative Ikki Kurogane!」

The response to Ikki's arrival was not as uproarious as when Moroboshi entered, but was loud all the same. Everyone was waiting to see what sort of waves this unusual F-rank knight, who had come to compete for the number one spot in Japan at this stage, would make.

Having witnessed the passionate responses of the crowd, Arisuin swallowed.

"The time has finally come. Ikki is finally standing on the national stage."

The ill-fated knight whom no one expected anything of, whom they treated unfairly, had come to stand here in the ring of the nationals, to be acknowledged by all. As one from the same school, and as one who had been with him all through the school's internal selection matches, Arisuin could not help but feel deeply moved by this scene.

"Yes… but what Onii-sama is aiming for is still further ahead. He cannot lose in this place."

Shizuku said so a little stiffly, before turning to Kiriko.

"How is Onii-sama right now, Kiriko-san?"

"Hah. Just a moment…."

Kiriko closed her left eye.

"Doctor Scope."

Channeling magic power into her right eye, she began to examine Ikki. Then, she gave a mild smile.

"Hehe~♡. As expected of someone who is accustomed to strife and conflict, I must say."

"What happened?"

"The abnormality that I detected when I passed him earlier is gone. He's fully into the battle now. His hormone balance and blood pressure are maintaining an optimal state of nervousness and excitement. He probably managed to sort out his emotions during the waiting period. Pretty impressive. You needn't worry, Shizuku-chan. Your brother is undoubtedly—in the best condition possible!"

With this, the stage was set, the actors ready. The gongs of war sounded.

「Now then! The Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival—Round One, Block C, Match Four! The match between Yuudai Moroboshi versus Ikki Kurogane begins! LET'S GET STARTED—!」