As Okita Souji had anticipated, Ayase Ayatsuji won her first match with relative ease.
The following day, Stella and Shizuku likewise claimed overwhelming victories in their rounds.
Stella's win was especially dramatic. All she had to do was stand on the field, and her opponent forfeited without so much as lifting a blade. Only those who stood directly in her presence could truly understand what it meant to wield "the world's greatest mana reserves"—over thirty times the average.
Unlike the mixed reactions to Souji's victory, Stella's match received pure admiration and awe from the spectators.
And then… it was finally time for Ikki Kurogane's match.
"Are you sure you don't want to rest a little longer, Onii-sama?" Shizuku asked, her worry for him evident as he approached the competitors' entrance.
"I'll be fine, Shizuku," Ikki reassured her with a gentle smile. "If anything… I'm in the best condition I've ever been."
Ikki's appearance, however, said otherwise.
His complexion was pale, his hair was slightly disheveled, and his clothes bore several cuts and faint bloodstains.
Before coming here, he'd been training with Okita Souji.
"Mind's Eye is like a sixth sense. To unlock its full potential, you must silence the other five senses."
"Sight and hearing alone account for 90% of a person's sensory information. Then there's touch, smell, and taste. In our training, I'll push you to the point where your senses will falter, leaving you no choice but to rely on Mind's Eye."
"The truth is, Mind's Eye is a realm one typically only glimpses after years of life-and-death battles. We don't have that luxury of time, so even though the feeling may fade once you recover, with your talent, I trust you'll remember it again."
Indeed, Ikki Kurogane had finally unlocked Mind's Eye.
Souji's strikes were too fast for the eye to follow, forcing him to abandon his sense of sight.
Her strikes were so ethereal, it felt as though even sound itself was severed, making it necessary for him to abandon his hearing as well.
Ikki realized that in order to "see" Souji's blade, he had to rely on something beyond his five senses—a sense that allowed him to "see" without sight, to "hear" without sound.
So even if he appeared haggard, his aura was sharper, more focused, with none of the weakness one might expect.
In Ikki's eyes, the world had never looked clearer.
His usual nerves and fears were nowhere to be found.
Right now, his heart was as calm as a mirror-smooth lake.
"Shizuku, go wait for me in the audience."
With that, Ikki turned and headed for the competitors' area.
Watching him walk away, Shizuku's lips trembled slightly before she whispered, "Good luck, Onii-sama."
In the stands, Stella sat in the front row.
Beside her was Ayase, though several seats around them were conspicuously empty, clearly reserved despite the packed crowd.
Out of the corner of her eye, Ayase noticed someone sit down beside her, though she hadn't noticed their arrival at all.
"Souji, you—"
Ayase turned to greet Okita Souji, only to stop in shock.
Souji's usually pristine face showed traces of exhaustion, and her clothes had three fresh cuts along the fabric.
"Souji! What happened to you?!"
"Ah, just… a little accident," Souji replied with a sheepish smile, her eyes still closed.
Stella, who had also noticed Souji's disheveled appearance, looked just as surprised.
"Did Ikki do this?"
"Ikki?" Ayase blinked, recalling that Souji had mentioned she'd been training Ikki for the past several days.
Ayase hadn't seen their sessions herself, as she had been busy preparing for her own match. However, Stella, as Ikki's roommate, had witnessed him coming back covered in injuries night after night and had eventually gone to observe the training herself.
Shizuku hadn't tried to stop her, perhaps even hoping she would go.
After all, Stella had been thoroughly shocked when she saw Souji's "Demon of the Battlefield" mode firsthand.
Now, her astonishment was understandable.
When she last saw them training, Ikki had barely been able to keep up with Souji's attacks. And now he was landing strikes on her?
If it had been her in Ikki's place, she couldn't imagine even raising her weapon against that fearsome version of Souji.
Souji nodded, causing Stella's eyes to light up with excitement.
"So… you think Ikki's match will go well?"
Souji looked down at the arena, a meaningful smile curling at her lips.
"I'd say he'll win pretty easily."
Soon after, Shizuku joined them, accompanied by Arisuin.
Then Shinguuji Kurono, the academy's headmistress, arrived as well.
As the head of Hagun Academy, she was well aware of Souji's special training with Ikki, and her own interest in Ikki's progress had brought her here to witness the match.
As for her close friend, Nene…
"The first match of the day is about to begin! I'm Tsukuyomi, your host, with commentary by the esteemed Professor Nene!"
"Pleased to be here."
Yes, Nene had taken on the role of commentator.
Apparently, it provided the best view of the entire arena.
"Today's competitors are an intriguing pair! On one side, we have Shizuya Kirihara, the C-rank knight who competed in last year's Seven Stars Sword Art Festival!"
As the announcer introduced him, Shizuya Kirihara entered the arena, his head tilted with an exaggerated swagger in his stride.
Even with his brash entrance, the crowd went wild, with girls swooning and shouting, "Lord Shizuya is so handsome!"
"Facing him is the F-rank knight who defeated Princess Vermillion in a mock battle, Ikki Kurogane!"
The crowd's energy dimmed noticeably.
In the rest area, Ikki had taken a brief half-hour to clean up and change his clothes. While he no longer looked like he'd crawled out of a war zone, Shizuya could still make out the fatigue on his face when they came face-to-face.
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Posture and water check! Remember this is a fan translation!
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