Chapter 69

"..."

"Why do you think the opponent only used melee attacks?"

"Hmm~. I think it's because that demon race is good at melee attacks."

"But?"

"Probably because Kawanaka didn't launch a single melee attack, right?"

"I see."

While Natsuki and Mari were stunned by Keita's combat, which silenced the target without hesitation, Shoko and Nana were comparing the information they had seen, thinking from the beginning, "He would do something like that."

"Of course, when facing an enemy weak in melee attacks, a melee expert would naturally try to close the distance. The greater the distance, the more the difference in mobility becomes apparent."

"Right. It becomes harder to land attacks on an opponent with superior mobility and evasion skills when they keep their distance."

"Exactly. And if you know where the opponent is going to come, it's natural to set a trap there, right?"

"True. He said 'hunting,' and in hunting, it's natural to set traps."

"True. I was surprised that the trap was the incendiary grenades themselves."

"If you stay away, they become ineffective. But that also means they remain effective if you don't stay away."

"That seems to be the case."

"Furthermore, to neutralize them, you need to wrap yourself in magic power. But to do that, you need a bit of preparation time. So during that preparation time, you can move to the side or behind and shoot with the 40mm."

"Exactly. That's a tactic only possible with a mass-produced model that can move and shoot simultaneously."

"True. At least, it would be impossible with a Kusanagi model that hasn't been modified. The enemy, who didn't expect this, must have been flustered."

"Right."

"Even more maliciously, before the shooting started, he had already set a trap."

"Not just malicious, but ruthless."

Keita, by making the demon race defend against the 40mm, was conditioning them to think that "40mm can be defended against without taking damage," while he himself was gathering the information that "even the demon race's ghost body takes damage if it doesn't defend against the 40mm."

"You have to win. No, you must win. That's why it's only natural to do something like that."

"I don't deny it, but..."

The opponent is not a classmate, senior, or junior. It's a demon race, and we are the ones who were invaded. Therefore, choosing means is a mistake.

While it's not as extreme as saying "anything goes," most things should be allowed.

"Even when flying around, he wasn't just jumping around."

"Yes. He would suddenly stop after jumping to the side, or accelerate in the opposite direction."

"Using wire anchors to vary the speed. That makes it extremely troublesome."

Not only was movement restricted to deal with the heat, but attacks came from all directions. Even desperate attacks and magic power shots aimed at the landing points were evaded by varying the speed.

This alone would have been unbearable for the demon race.

Of course, if the demon race had time, they could have dealt with it appropriately. But this series of actions happened in just a few seconds after Keita switched his mindset.

No matter how skilled the demon race was, it would have been nearly impossible to deal with everything.

Moreover, Keita had been holding back in various ways up to this point. When he removed that restraint, the difference in his movements compared to when he was holding back was like the difference between heaven and earth. From the perspective of Shoko and Nana, who were watching on the monitor, it was overwhelming.

From the demon race's perspective, it must have seemed as if Keita's mobility and shooting performance had suddenly increased. In such a situation, it would have been impossible to take normal actions.

"So, just as he was about to use some final move, he was hit with a 'Zudon.'"

"I don't know what he was trying to do, but there was no need to force him to use his trump card."

"True. In terms of gathering information, it wasn't meaningless, but if it caused his own death or involved bystanders or civilians, it would have been meaningless. In that situation, what he did was correct."

Waiting for the enemy to awaken or transform is foolish. There's no romance or etiquette in a battle with the demon race.

Incidentally, some of the upper echelons of the First Division, who advocated for a one-on-one duel, were apparently angry, asking, "Why did you resort to such a deceitful tactic?!" However, a few officers, including Asaka, who didn't see value in a one-on-one duel, and those who shared her sentiments, calmed them down by saying, "What can you do against an opponent who might do anything? Prioritizing the safety of guests and civilians over romance and etiquette is only natural," similar to what Shoko said.

Leaving aside the fact that, according to Shoko, there are quite a few "crazy people" in the upper echelons of the First Division.

"...He didn't engage in melee combat until the end, did he?"

"Yes."

"Why do you think that is?"

"Probably for the same reason as Shoko."

"...Reconnaissance, right?"

"There's no other explanation."

"Indeed."

When the demon race interrupted the battle between classmates and rivals Mutoe Saori and Fujita Kazuichi, Shoko was confused because the demon race's purpose was unclear. But now, thinking calmly, one answer comes to mind.

It's the same conclusion that Keita and Shizuka had reached while observing from the VIP seats.

"There's only one, no, precisely two things that exist only in this place on this day."

"Right. I can only think of those two things."

"The demon race's target is the hero Kawanaka Keita and the new model he operates, which was supposed to be unveiled at the exhibition."

"Right."

"And the fact that the demon race appeared in person means..."

"There must be a demon race observing the battle between the demon race and Kawanaka. Kawanaka must have judged that this was the case."

"Right. That's why he hid his strength until just before the demon race got serious and didn't engage in melee combat."

"Exactly. Hiding his strength is natural, and if the observing demon race thinks that the mass-produced model can't engage in melee combat, that information itself becomes a strategy."

"Not bad. But..."

"Yes?"

"If you're going to hide information, wouldn't it have been better to hide everything from the beginning?"

"What do you mean?"

"To begin with, did Keita need to engage in a one-on-one duel with the demon race?"

"Ah..."

Shoko understands that Keita thought through his combat, but in terms of hiding information, wouldn't it have been better if Keita hadn't appeared at all?

In fact, the soldiers responsible for security had surrounded the demon race before Keita appeared, and other soldiers were preparing to snipe from a distance. The teachers, including Shizuka, were also trying to surround and eliminate the demon race. So Shoko's thinking wasn't unreasonable.

"Didn't you know that the demon race's target was him?"

"Yes. They were calling for him."

Furthermore, it's questionable why Keita responded to the demon race's target, even though he was aware of it.

"He didn't just go out on his own, right?"

"He's not that kind of person."

"True. If that's the case, did it come from Captain Kuga?"

"I think he agreed, but I don't think he would recommend such a foolish one-on-one duel."

"Agreed. So it must have been an order from someone higher than the captain."

"Right."

"Why do you think that is?"

"Let's see..."

The demon race's target was Keita, who is already called a hero despite being a student. This is understandable and not questioned by Shoko or Nana.

The problem is that the reason the teachers, and the upper echelons of the First Division, sent Keita to face the demon race is unclear.

The military is an organization that aims to win by doing what the enemy dislikes.

Therefore, if the enemy's purpose is known, it should be hidden. Moreover, this is a military academy designed to teach students how to do this.

Thus, the correct judgment would be for the surrounding soldiers to launch a simultaneous attack with "Goodbye, die."

Even if they were to respond to a one-on-one duel, it would be normal for a teacher or a skilled soldier to say, "A hero doesn't need to face such a lowly opponent," and take the challenge to gather information beforehand.

Yet...

"Even if the soldiers who went first lost, it would still be strange to send him out first. Especially with a mass-produced model whose performance is not fully understood and in an arena where melee combat is the main focus..."

"Understanding only the catalog specifications doesn't help much."

"Exactly. As evidenced by the fact that the best use of the mass-produced model so far was by Captain Kakiyama, who successfully eliminated three large enemies with two jumps, the military has not fully grasped the performance of the mass-produced model."

While the mass-produced model has proven its firepower by successfully eliminating large enemies in the last major offensive, research on other aspects is virtually non-existent. The fact that the two surviving mass-produced models from the last offensive have regressed is also a well-known secret among those involved.

Therefore, the current evaluation of the mass-produced model is that it is "a machine whose ability to move properly is unknown."

"That's why it was supposed to be tested in the exhibition."

"But this happened before that."

"Yes. Not switching to a prototype from the mass-produced model... Even if it was simply due to a lack of time, I still don't understand why Keita was sent out."

From a military standpoint, Keita, who is now considered a decisive weapon, should be preserved, especially since he was specifically targeted by the enemy. Moreover, given that the mass-produced model's ability to function is unknown, it should not have been sent against the demon race.

Furthermore, from a humanitarian standpoint, Keita, who is a student, should be protected.

So, what was the intention behind sending Keita, who should be protected in various ways, into a battle where the outcome was uncertain, and even more so, into a one-on-one duel where he could die in the first exchange?

"..."

Having been trained as soldiers since they were young and also possessing a fair amount of general knowledge for marriage into other families, Shoko and Nana could not fathom that the upper echelons of the First Division, known as one of the elite units alongside the Second Division, would order a one-on-one duel for romantic or self-preserving reasons, as Shizuka described as "senile." For a short while, they were left wondering, "What were the upper echelons thinking when they took such actions?"

Thank you for reading.

Is the cultural festival coming to an end...?