[51] Raikiri!

Boom!

A spring thunderclap echoed, and golden lightning surged like a tidal wave, instantly making the third-year student's scalp tingle and his entire body tremble.

"—Raiou!"

The golden lightning arced out in a slash, resembling a giant bird of lightning, its massive beak pecking toward the opponent. Even though the opponent had activated his full mana defense, the beak shattered it effortlessly, sending shockwaves through his body.

Lightning-based abilities are famously powerful, excelling at breaking through mana defenses compared to other types of abilities.

Moreover, the clash between mana slashes and defenses is essentially a contest of total mana. The person with more mana has a significant advantage in magical combat.

This is precisely why the League prioritizes total mana as the primary metric for rank evaluation, and why Stella is hailed as a once-in-a-decade genius.

Touka's total mana and mana control are both B-rank, placing her among the top tier. Her mastery over lightning far surpasses her opponent's.

"Whoa—!! She's finally getting serious! So strong! With just one slash, she broke through the defense of someone ranked in the top ten of the academy. As expected of Hagun Academy's strongest! But why did she suddenly get so serious?"

"Probably because she heard someone cheering for her and couldn't help but want to show her best side. Girls at this age are so simple-minded~!"

Nene, sitting in the commentary booth, rolled her eyes as she glanced at the corner where Eiji was fervently cheering.

In the arena.

With his full mana defense shattered, Michiyuki's expression turned panicked.

"—Shippu Jinrai!"

In the blink of an eye, the girl, as fierce as a demon, crossed over ten meters with the stimulation of golden lightning. At the same time, the katana in her right hand returned to its sheath.

The black scabbard of her treasured blade, Narukami, was covered in visible streams of lightning.

"This is bad…!"

Michiyuki's pupils contracted sharply.

He recognized that stance.

It was so famous that it had become Touka's epithet. You could find it on any website. A Blazer technique with absolute control over crossing distances, said to even make the Seven Stars Sword King tremble—

"—Raikiri!"

The girl let out a cold shout.

At the same time, dazzling lightning illuminated the entire arena, momentarily blinding everyone.

The lightning scattered, and overwhelming heat erupted in an instant.

In the face of this immense speed, every move seemed as distant as a dream.

With just one slash, the outcome was decided.

Boom—!

It wasn't until the lightning dissipated that the deafening sonic boom echoed through the arena, reverberating across the entire venue.

The airflow was shattered by the extraordinary electromagnetic draw, transforming into a raging storm that swept through half the arena, even affecting the spectator stands.

This spectacle left the audience momentarily speechless, followed by feverish cheers.

—The speed of this slash far exceeded the speed of sound.

This was Touka's proud Blazer technique, Raikiri!

With just one slash, there was no enemy she couldn't defeat, no obstacle she couldn't cut through!

But why, with such immense power, did Touka not only lose to the Seven Stars Sword King, Yudai Moroboshi, last year but also fail to even make it into the top three?

The footage of that match was still circulating online, and Eiji had already seen it.

In fact, last year's Seven Stars Sword King, Yudai Moroboshi, wielded a spear as his Device, which gave him a greater range than a katana. He constantly kept his distance, staying just outside Touka's attack range, which ultimately led to his victory.

This also proved one thing—even last year's Seven Stars Sword King feared Touka's Raikiri, not daring to face it head-on.

In the subsequent match for third place, Touka didn't even participate, allowing Asagi Momiji from Bukyoku Academy to take third place.

It was said that the director of Wakaba House had suffered a heart attack and was urgently hospitalized, causing Touka to lose all interest in the competition. She returned to her hometown, Fukuoka, that very day.

This was why Touka was only ranked fourth nationally last year… However, in reality, she possessed at least the strength to be in the top two.

"With a flash of lightning! Touka Toudou has defeated Michiyuki Azuchiyama! The referee has crossed his arms, signaling the end of the match!"

On the battlefield, Michiyuki lay unconscious while Touka calmly sheathed her Device, dissipating it into her hand. She then turned and walked away, disappearing through the gate with a cool and composed demeanor.

The spectator stands erupted in cheers, celebrating the victory of the academy's strongest.

Eiji stood up and left his seat.

No wonder.

"No wonder Kanata said I'm no match for Senior Sister. There's some truth to that."

Eiji felt considerable pressure.

His senior sister was incredibly strong and talented, which was why their master had taken her as a disciple.

Her physical abilities and mana completely overshadowed Eiji's. Her standard combat strength far surpassed his, and her trump card, the Blazer technique Raikiri, was fully capable of rivaling Eiji's Absolute GodSpeed, which he could only use by exhausting his mana.

After all, the speed limit he could achieve with Absolute GodSpeed was determined by his mana. With his current mana, he could only reach supersonic speeds. If he tried to exceed that, his ability would fail.

This was also why his Blazer rank was only E-rank. Otherwise, he would have already reached B-rank, or even A-rank.

Moreover, upon closer thought, it could be said that Raikiri was even stronger.

Because Touka's blade was infused with mana, and lightning mages are famously adept at offense. Her Blazer profile listed her attack power as A-rank, the highest level.

In contrast, Eiji used all his mana to activate his Blazer ability, leaving none to infuse his blade. Even if his blade speed exceeded the speed of sound, his attack power was only rated as C-rank—such an attack might not even break through Stella's .

If he were to face his senior sister now… he would likely lose more often than not.

Even with his innate intuition and insight, which allowed him to see through all techniques and flaws, and his exceptional skill in swordplay, the overwhelming gap in mana and physical abilities left him with no chance of turning the tide.

Ultimately, it was because he had wasted too much time in the first fourteen years of his life.

If he could match his senior sister in either mana or physical ability, Eiji was confident he wouldn't lose.

Training!

He absolutely had to train!

Mana aside, at the very least, he couldn't let his physical abilities remain as lacking as they were now!

"Oh, Junior Brother, you're unusually motivated!"

Nene had just left the commentary booth when she saw Eiji walking toward her. Seeing his determined expression, she couldn't help but cover her face with her fan.

"So, have you made up your mind? How about it? Will you agree to the condition I proposed this morning? If you do, my Jibakujin is yours to use anytime!"

"I've made up my mind… Just to be clear, I'm not cross-dressing!"

"...Tch!"

***

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