December Double Drop!
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Upon hearing Souji's confident assertion about her stealth skills, Ikki Kurogane nodded in agreement.Souji's ability to hide her presence was the best Ikki had ever encountered. Every time she approached him, even this close, he failed to notice her in advance.
It was the same in the mall. Neither Stella nor Shizuku noticed her absence, and neither the surrounding tourists nor the vigilant armed thugs detected Souji slipping away. He was beginning to wonder if Souji's power was some form of invisibility…
Wait a minute…
Ikki's brow furrowed as he recalled the events at the mall.
Though the thugs had already been dealt with by the time he reached the main plaza, Stella and Shizuku had described the scene to him, recounting how the attackers had been taken down in an instant, without any chance to react.
"All we could see was a flash of steel before the thugs were falling one after another, their throats cut without ever seeing who attacked them…"
The police had obtained similar statements from the hostages, leading them to conclude that the attacker was a Blazer with invisibility powers, wielding a sharp weapon like a dagger.
Judging by the methodical efficiency of the kills, they speculated that this mysterious Blazer had extensive experience with assassination and likely carried multiple kills on his record.
But… did that Blazer really accomplish this just with supernatural abilities?
As he pondered this, Ikki stole a quick glance at Souji, who was grinning with her usual cheerful expression.
Ruminating aimlessly wouldn't yield answers, so he temporarily tucked his suspicions away.
"Anyway, the reason I didn't come back last night…" Souji scratched her cheek awkwardly, "is that my sister insisted I stay with her at her apartment instead of letting me live on my own."
Seeing Souji's "I can't do anything about her" expression, Ikki blinked in surprise. "The academy allowed it?"
"Yep! My sister had a 'friendly chat' with the chairman."
Since Sister Ai claimed it was a friendly chat… let's just go with that.
"Wait—your sister could meet the chairman so easily?" Ikki asked, sounding impressed. "She must have quite the status."
World's strongest swordswoman—that qualifies as extraordinary, alright.
Honestly, I was half-expecting the "meeting" to involve Sister Ai sitting in a chair talking while the chairman listened from her knees on the floor.
Okita Souji was well aware of the academy's chairman, who possessed one of the rarest causal-interference abilities, which allowed her to manipulate time. She was once a KOK League competitor, ranked third in the world before retiring after marriage.
With such power, Hagun Academy had ousted its former chairman to bring her on, which had allowed her to make sweeping changes to the academy.
One of these changes included Ikki Kurogane's graduation eligibility. The previous chairman had been one of the people targeting Ikki, forcing him to tread on thin ice, where even the smallest mistake could lead to his expulsion.
But the new chairman, Kurono Shinguuji, had promised that if Ikki could win the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival, he'd be permitted to graduate. Those targeting him couldn't oppose her openly, so they resorted to undermining him in other ways.
Kurono Shinguuji was strong, but her title as "third in the world" was limited to the "League" and was somewhat inflated, especially since she'd retired and hadn't fought seriously in years.
Meanwhile, Souji's sister, The Winged Sword Edelweiss, was undoubtedly one of the world's strongest, able to rival the top champions from each of the three factions: the League, the Allied Forces, and the Rebellion.
Most likely, Chairman Shinguuji had agreed so readily last night because she immediately sensed the vast gap in their abilities—like comparing a firefly to the full moon.
"Well, as long as everything's settled, you should go find Ayase-senpai and explain things to her. She was pretty worried when you didn't come back last night."
"Don't worry, that was the first thing I did when I arrived at school this morning. Then I came to find you."
Walking side by side along one of the academy's paths, sunlight danced around their feet.
"So, why aren't you heading to class, Souji?"
Stella and Shizuku were with their teacher, learning with the rest of the class. Only Ikki was barred from participating in practical courses under the pretense of his "insufficient abilities," but Souji was different.
Without answering, Souji quickened her pace and turned to face Ikki with a playful tilt of her head.
"Why? I'm here to help you, of course."
"Help me?"
Ikki blinked in confusion at her words.
But rather than explain immediately, Souji surprised him by asking about his opponent in the selection matches.
"Why the sudden interest?"
Despite his curiosity, Ikki trusted her and handed over his student handbook.
When Souji opened Ikki's handbook, she found not only his opponent's basic information but also details on their stats, abilities, and even footage of their past battles.
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Name: Shizuya Kirihara
Class: Hagun Academy, Year 2, Class 3
Weapon: Oborozuki (Crescent Moon)
Noble Art: Hunter's Forest
Alias: Hunter
Stats:
Attack: E
Defense: D
Magic: D
Magic Control: B
Stamina: D
Luck: B
Profile: Hagun Academy's top second-year student, one of last year's representatives in the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival…
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"A second-year, huh…" Souji's gaze drifted from the information on Shizuya Kirihara to Ikki, her tone calm. "It seems like you know him?"
"…Yeah."
A shadow crossed Ikki's obsidian eyes.
Souji continued flipping through the footage of Kirihara's past matches.
If she recalled correctly, this Shizuya Kirihara had been in the original plot, a character sent by Ikki's detractors to specifically counter him.
After watching a few clips of Kirihara's battles, Souji frowned in disgust.
"Hm… he's exactly the type you'd struggle against, isn't he? Fighting with such a… sneaky style."
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T/N: It's okayyy you can say scummy
Thanks for reading! Let me know if you spot any mistakes or inconsistencies!
Posture and water check! Remember this is a fan translation!
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