-1271- Her name?

Before long, Ikki, who was lying on the ground, finally managed to stop the bleeding and get up, albeit barely, thanks to the combined effects of Rozen's healing charms and Shizuku's healing magic. Although his wounds were not fully healed, the bleeding had been successfully staunched.

"I lost..."

Ikki, sitting in a pool of his own blood, looked utterly exhausted as he touched the gaping wound on his torso that had just stopped bleeding and fell silent.

"Onii-sama..."

Shizuku, seeing Ikki like this, supported him without caring that she might get stained with his blood, her voice full of sadness.

Even Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene chose to remain silent, quietly observing.

In the end, it was Stella who spoke up.

"Indeed, you lost, but you're only an F-rank knight. Reaching this level of combat is already something to be proud of, isn't it?"

Stella said, looking at Ikki with newfound respect.

"That technique, Ittou Shura, was it? With that move, I can't say for sure that I could definitely beat you. So there's no need to be so disheartened."

Stella clumsily tried to comfort Ikki in her own way.

But she wasn't wrong. With a technique like Ittou Shura, Stella couldn't confidently say she could always win against Ikki within a minute.

In fact, considering Ikki's superb and powerful swordsmanship, Stella herself was more likely to lose.

So, Stella was genuinely both surprised and impressed by Ikki.

However, there was a misconception in her words.

Previously, Stella couldn't claim she could definitely win against Ikki, but if she used her dragon power and absorbed dragon blood, defeating Ikki wouldn't be that difficult.

Even though Stella hadn't fully mastered her abilities, it was extremely hard for Ikki to defeat the current Stella.

However...

"Who exactly was that female swordsman just now? She was terrifying, wasn't she?"

Stella couldn't help but voice her lingering fear.

"I feel like even with my true power awakened, I wouldn't stand a chance against that swordsman."

As she said this, Stella looked at Rozen with a hint of fear.

Not just Stella, everyone else also looked at Rozen.

"I want to ask that question too, Rorelai."

Shinguji Kurono spoke directly.

"I've never heard of such a female swordsman before. Searching through my memories, there's only one person who could rival her in swordsmanship, and even then, their strengths might be equal. Where did such a terrifying individual come from?"

Saikyo Nene looked at Rozen with confusion, her eyes flashing with an unprecedented seriousness and gravity.

They couldn't help it.

As Blazers who had ranked third in the world within the League, both Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene were well aware of how frightening that female swordsman was.

Such an existence appearing suddenly in this world, without any prior indication, was truly alarming.

More importantly, such a powerful swordsman emerging out of nowhere could have unimaginable effects on the world's balance of power.

A powerful Blazer could even dominate wars and nations, a truth repeated countless times.

Given that, it was impossible to ignore such a sudden emergence of a strong individual.

"Is there going to be a second Tenkai?"

Shinguji Kurono murmured.

"Spare me. Although I've never fought Tenkai before, such a monster who couldn't be dealt with even by the three great powers, who could fight and win against the world, even if I brought down a whole meteor shower, I doubt I could win. One such mysterious strong person is already terrifying enough. If another appears, the world will be in chaos."

Saikyo Nene sighed repeatedly.

In this situation, everyone turned their eyes to Rozen, including Ikki and Shizuku.

After all, everyone knew that the mysterious female swordsman had a close relationship with Rozen.

Even though she hadn't spoken a word to Rozen, everyone present was sharp enough to see that she had a deep connection with him and had likely appeared at Hagun Academy because of him.

She might still be hiding nearby with some unknown ability, for all they knew.

Thinking about this made everyone a bit more sensitive.

In response...

"Don't ask me. Even if I could answer, I wouldn't be able to."

Rozen rolled his eyes, speaking with a mixture of annoyance and grievance.

"I don't know who this person is who shows up without a word and disappears just as silently. If you want to know her origins, go find her yourselves. Maybe she'd be more willing to talk to you than to me."

These words sounded like they came from a dissatisfied child.

However, from Rozen's words, everyone could hear a sigh, a complaint. Clearly, Rozen's relationship with that person was more complicated than anyone could imagine, and not something easily explained.

This left everyone exchanging looks, and eventually, they had to give up pursuing the matter further.

Only Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene seemed to still have some concerns.

"I really don't know if the presence of someone like that at Hagun Academy will cause any trouble," Shinguji Kurono worried.

"I couldn't sense her presence at all. If she's still around, it's really disheartening, as if we could be cut down from behind at any moment. It's terrifying, truly terrifying," Saikyo Nene said, either acting or genuinely hugging herself, looking like she wanted to run away immediately.

Finally...

"What's her name?"

Ikki raised his head, looking at Rozen, and asked seriously.

Seeing this...

"...Altera."

Rozen was silent for a long time before he seemed to give up and uttered the name.

"Her name is Altera."

Rozen said this without much enthusiasm.

But everyone present remembered the name.

"Altera..."

Shinguji Kurono and Saikyo Nene murmured.

"Altera..."

Stella and Shizuku also mumbled.

"Altera..."

Ikki lowered his head and repeated the name over and over, lost in thought.

Seeing everyone like this, Rozen shrugged as if he didn't want to argue anymore, then spoke up.

"It seems you all gained a lot today, so let's end it here for now."

Rozen waved his hand.

"Whatever you feel, think it over carefully after you go back."

Hearing this, everyone instinctively nodded, though each with their own thoughts, which lingered long after.

Tonight, many people were destined to be sleepless.

And how today's events would change the lives of so many people?

Only the fates carried by the Blazers could tell.