Chapter 75: Ikki Kasugano

"You two are getting way too full of yourselves!"

A guy who had been sitting quietly off to the side shoved his way through the crowd of girls with four of his lackeys, standing in front of Charles and Ikki Kurogane.

To be honest, the appearances of these five matched their behavior to a tee—they looked exactly like stereotypical villains and cannon fodder.

It was likely because of that very fact that they weren't popular with girls, and all they could do was stew in jealousy watching Charles and Ikki.

Sure, Charles and Ikki had become well known thanks to the mock battle, but if they weren't so good-looking, they wouldn't have been surrounded by girls either.

Take Charles for example—his handsome face combined with an almost "phantasmic beast"-like mysterious aura gave him a powerful and alluring contrast.

Ikki Kurogane was also a type very popular with girls. His features were unusually delicate, and despite his tough personality, there was—according to Kagami—a kind of vulnerability that stirred the maternal instinct.

The fact that they were being envied over such a thing seriously irritated Charles, especially since the other side wasn't even trying to hide it and was picking a fight over it.

All the Knight students in the country enrolled in the Seven Star Academies in their respective regions, so naturally someone in the class recognized the guy causing trouble.

"Manabe, don't tell me you're jealous of them! That's seriously lame!"

The leader's name was Manabe, and perhaps he was only the leader of this little gang because of his particularly burly frame.

His lackeys were good at sucking up, though. One of them barked out, "What did you say, you b\*tch? How dare you talk to A-Manabe like that!"

Seeing this cannon-fodder type threaten a female student, both Charles and Ikki had had enough.

Ikki was more self-controlled and probably still hoped to resolve the situation peacefully, but Charles didn't have that kind of patience.

In an instant, Charles stepped forward and grabbed the wrist of the guy who was about to strike a girl.

"Hey! Weren't you looking for trouble with me? Then don't go picking on other people!"

Charles said coldly, his eyes taking on a beast-like vertical-slit pupil shape, exuding a killing intent that felt like it would burn everything to ashes.

The guy felt like his wrist had been clamped by a pair of red-hot iron tongs—but even more terrifying was the look in Charles's eyes.

He collapsed to the floor as soon as Charles let go, too scared to even speak.

The girl he'd almost hit blushed and said, "Charles-sama protected me... That was so cool!"

Charles was stunned. Okay, classmate, I appreciate your gratitude, but the "-sama" is way too much. And Stella, please don't just casually go full yandere like that!

Maybe embarrassed by how pathetic his lackey looked, Manabe stepped forward. "Getting all high and mighty, aren't you, exchange student? So what if you're an A-rank—it's just fame from beating up some F-rank loser!"

Charles instantly thought this guy was not only ugly but a complete idiot.

The League obviously knew that ability values weren't everything, yet still used them to rank Blazers because they were the most easily measurable and relatively reliable data.

Yet here this guy was, saying something completely illogical just to put Charles down.

"And that so-called senpai over there... pathetic! Just because you're F-rank, you let someone use you as a stepping stone!

But stepping stones should act like stepping stones—who gave you the right to shamelessly flirt with girls in class?

Either one of you, come out and prove why you think you're so great!"

As he spoke, Manabe and his remaining three cronies manifested their Devices. But it was clear they weren't intending to use the Phantasm Form for practice—they were obviously aiming to deliver a painful lesson.

He said "either one," but his eyes were fixed only on Charles.

To him, the F-rank Ikki Kurogane wasn't even a threat. His only concern was Charles, who even had a higher ability rating than Stella.

But whether that made him bold or just foolish, Manabe believed he could win.

He was gambling on Charles not daring to go all out in the classroom, since the school rules clearly forbade unauthorized use of Devices.

He didn't understand what being A-rank truly meant and naively believed he had a shot at landing a surprise attack. In his fantasy, he'd become the guy who defeated the big-shot A-rank exchange student.

Charles stepped forward, and for some reason the air seemed to grow hotter.

"You're pointing weapons at me, huh? So that means you're prepared to face my blade head-on, right?"

Truth be told, Manabe was already starting to regret it. But to save face, he had no choice but to continue this game of chicken.

Charles sneered with contempt. The opportunity Manabe was hoping for didn't exist. Charles had never intended to use his Device against these nobodies, so the issue of violating school rules didn't even apply.

Just as Charles was about to make a move, Ikki stepped in and said, "Let me handle this."

Charles looked at him for a moment, then suddenly said, "I get it now. Ikki, you really are kind."

And by "kind," Charles didn't mean that Ikki was responding to hatred with compassion.

Ikki was stepping up because by proving his own strength, he could prove how strong Charles—who had defeated him—really was.

Ikki's kindness lay in not wanting his friend to be doubted because of him.

Manabe and his crew had been intimidated by Charles's overwhelming aura, but seeing that it was now Ikki facing them, their fear turned to anger.

"A mere F-rank flunky? Get him!"

With a savage grin, Manabe barked his order and his goons charged in.

Ikki's eyes moved with sharp focus, and Charles could sense how concentrated his attention was. If this were a movie, the "bullet time" effect would've kicked in.

In a life-or-death situation, human perception heightens, and cognitive speed increases dramatically.

But Ikki could enter that hyper-focused state at will, which made perfect sense for someone who had mastered Itto Shura.

He stepped forward and used a karate technique to block the attack from the fastest swordsman, then swept the guy's legs out from under him.

That guy flew straight into one of the long-sword-wielding lackeys and knocked him flying too.

Having dealt with two in an instant, Ikki approached the last thug holding an axe.

The axe was heavy, and before the guy could lift it fully, Ikki closed the distance and delivered a palm strike to his chin, sending him flying.

At that point, Manabe had already raised his own Device toward Ikki.

Manabe's Device was a rare large-caliber revolver, and he didn't hesitate to pull the trigger.

But before he could, a piece of eraser flew from Ikki's fingers, bounced off the ceiling, and wedged itself perfectly between the hammer and firing pin, jamming the gun.

Manabe froze, dumbfounded by the unexpected block, and didn't even notice Ikki closing in.

Faced with an Ikki who had no intention of continuing the fight, Manabe collapsed to the floor, his will to fight completely shattered.

"Now you should understand how powerful Charles is, if he beat someone like me," Ikki said.

The classroom went silent. Despite being Blazers, most of them had never actually experienced combat.

Ikki had defeated four people cleanly and efficiently without even using his Device. It left the others unsure how to react.

Just then, applause broke the silence. Everyone turned to see a petite girl with silver-gray hair clapping her hands.

"That was amazing! Such overwhelming strength, mere mortals couldn't touch you at all... Onii-sama!"

"You're...?" Ikki seemed to recognize her and stepped forward. "Shizuku? You've grown up—I almost didn't recognize you."

"Well, it has been four years. It'd be weirder if I hadn't changed," the girl replied.

Charles recalled Ikki mentioning that his little sister would be enrolling this year—this must be her, Shizuku Kurogane.

"I've always... always wanted to see you!"

The girl named Shizuku Kurogane then did something that shocked everyone.

She gently cupped Ikki's face—her own brother's—and pressed her lips to his.

Charles was utterly stunned. Aren't these two siblings? Something doesn't feel right here!

Wait a second... Don't tell me you've been lying to us, Ikki! Is your real name actually Ikki Kasugano?!

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