Chapter 77

Having made it through the preliminary rounds of the Sword King Festival, I shared the joy of victory with the president and everyone at Senrin Academy, and then returned to the dorm with Rea.

"Phew... I'm a bit tired..."

I took off my shoes at the entrance and let out a deep breath.

"Hehe, good job. You did great today."

"Thanks to Rea's cheering."

As I said this, I put down my sword and sat on the sofa, sinking into it more deeply than usual.

(What a packed day...)

Today alone, I fought nearly ten swordsmen—each one a talented representative of their respective schools.

I managed to win without encountering any of the soul-armed swordsmen who excelled in long-range attacks, which I'm not good at...

(I'm mentally exhausted...)

In a swordsman's match, the stakes are high.

Just before the match starts, the tension is intense—and the moment it ends, the tension snaps.

Repeating this process nearly ten times, it's no wonder I'm mentally drained.

(I'll take a short break here...)

I decided to close my eyes on the sofa for a moment.

Then,

"Hey... Hey, Allen, wake up."

"...Huh, ah. Rea...?"

When I came to, Rea was shaking my shoulder.

"You'll catch a cold if you fall asleep here."

"Ah, sorry..."

It seems I had dozed off on the sofa without realizing it.

"Ugh...!"

To shake off the sleepiness, I stood up and stretched widely.

"Allen, the bath is ready. Do you want to eat first?"

Rea tilted her head as she asked.

It seems she had been busy while I was taking a short nap.

"Thanks, Rea. Sure, let's start with the bath."

"Okay. But don't fall asleep in the bath, okay?"

"Hehe, I know."

After that, I took the bath Rea had prepared, ate her homemade lamb stew, and went to bed around nine o'clock, which was relatively early.

"Phew... Yeah... Good night, Rea..."

"Hehe... Good night, Allen."

Feeling Rea next to me as usual, my consciousness slowly drifted into a peaceful slumber.

■

The next day arrived in the same way.

Just like yesterday, I met up with the president and the others and headed to the "National Holy Battlefield."

The National Holy Battlefield is a designated important cultural property by the government and is only open to the public for the Sword King Festival and a few other ceremonies.

This stone-built place, which exudes a sense of history, resembles a weathered version of the Vesteria Coliseum—majestic and imposing.

"---That concludes the opening remarks. Thank you for your attention."

As the opening remarks by the Sword King Festival organizing committee ended, the audience in the packed stands applauded.

From there, a female commentator took over the proceedings.

"---Today is the main event of the Sword King Festival! A fierce battle to determine the pinnacle of swordsmanship academies is about to begin!"

At that moment, a tremendous roar of cheers, applause, and whistles erupted.

(What...!?)

It was the first time I felt the "pressure of sound."

It was a strange sensation, as if my skin was vibrating.

"Let's move on to the 'draw' to determine the match-ups!"

The female commentator, holding a microphone at the front row of the audience, took out two large boxes.

On the surface of each box, large numbers '1' and '2' were written.

"The draw is simple! The 'Box 1' and 'Box 2' contain balls with the names of the academies that advanced in first and second place, respectively. I will draw one ball from each box, and the academies whose names are drawn will face each other!"

After explaining the draw method, she rolled up her sleeve and put her hand into 'Box 1'.

"---And the first match is... It's a surprise! Senrin Academy from Group 5!"

The commentator held up the ball with 'Senrin Academy' written on it and announced.

"...First match, huh?"

"Right away... Let's do our best."

"Alright! Let's show them what we've got!"

"Wow... I wish we were third or in the middle..."

Tension ran through the four of us.

The commentator then quickly put her hand into 'Box 2'.

"---Next, from 'Box 2'... Here it is! Rokka Academy... However, Rokka Academy, which was heavily exhausted in the preliminaries, has informed us this morning that they are 'withdrawing from the main event'—thus, Senrin Academy wins by default! This is a good omen for Senrin Academy today!"

"Withdrawal...?"

When I muttered this, the president explained from the side.

"They must have given everything in the preliminary group... Every year, one or two schools end up like this in the 'main event'."

"I see... So that happens..."

Because each match is a life-and-death struggle, they couldn't recover in one day...

While I was thinking about this,

"---Let's move on to the draw for the second match!"

The commentator put her hand into 'Box 1' again.

"The only school that has informed us of their withdrawal is Rokka Academy. There will be no more default wins! The next school is... Here it is! Another from Group 5—Hyoutou Academy!"

Hyoutou Academy—where Shido, Cain, and Felis are from, and Felis serves as the principal, is a super famous swordsmanship academy.

"Their opponent is—Rising Dark Horse, Kagei Academy, which has advanced to the main event of the Sword King Festival in just three years of its establishment!"

Kagei Academy, huh...

I've never heard of it.

"---Let's start the 'First Match'! Hyoutou Academy and Kagei Academy, please prepare! All other participants, please move to the special viewing area!"

We followed the commentator's instructions and headed to the 'special viewing area'.

Each of the sixteen schools that made it to the main event was assigned a special viewing area in the front row of the audience.

When the four of us arrived at the special viewing area for Senrin Academy,

"---Now, let's introduce the participants before the match begins!"

The commentator started the introductions as usual.

"The first match for Hyoutou Academy is—Shido Euclydes! A super genius swordsman who manifested a soul-weapon in his childhood! He won all his preliminary matches with overwhelming skill! Despite his excellent record... he was suspended for a month after causing a violent incident at the Grand Five Saints Festival shortly after enrolling!"

Shido slowly walked up to the stone stage after being introduced.

(Still, the 'Grand Five Saints Festival'...)

It feels like it was a long time ago, even though it was just four months ago.

"And—Kagei Academy's first match is—Zari Droll! We have no data on him... only that he won all his matches in the D Group preliminaries! Truly an 'unknown' Zari Droll, what kind of battle will he show us!?"

As the commentator shouted, Zari, dressed in a navy robe that seemed to be the uniform of Kagei Academy, walked up to the stage.

Their gazes met, and the tense atmosphere spread to us as well.

"Are both sides ready? Let's begin the first match!"

The commentator announced the start of the match.

"Drag me in—<Acid Swamp>!"

As soon as the match started, Zari activated his soul-weapon, while Shido, with his sword dangling lazily in his right hand, just stared at it blankly.

"Haahaaaaa!"

Zari's roar echoed through the venue, and the first match between Hyoutou Academy and Kagei Academy began.

And that battle was—extremely one-sided.

"Hey, hey... Is it already over? This isn't even a warm-up..."

"Ugh... Monster...!"

Shido, without even using his soul-weapon, overwhelmed Zari with his overwhelming physical abilities.

"So... strong..."

Compared to when we fought before, it's incomparable.

Strength, speed, reaction time, and sword speed—his physical abilities, the foundation of swordsmanship, had improved to an 'abnormal' level.

The overwhelming difference in power left the audience, and even the commentator, speechless.

"---Huh!? My apologies! The winner is Shido Euclydes! What an incredible match! His movements were superhuman, leaving us speechless!"

The commentator briefly summarized the match.

"---Next, let's move on to the second match!"

The second match began after introducing the participants from both academies again.

■

After that—contrary to expectations, Hyoutou Academy lost to Kagei Academy.

"What... What is this...!? The mighty Hyoutou Academy, one of the top five, has been eliminated in the round of 16!?"

When the commentator said this, a loud murmur spread throughout the venue.

Everyone was surprised by this unexpected result.

While Shido won the first match overwhelmingly...

Kagei Academy won all the subsequent second, third, and fourth matches.

Then,

"Haha! So, the only real swordsman is the first one—Shido! What a joke, Hyoutou Academy! The second and third years are just dragging everyone down! Hey, Shido—why don't you leave that potato school and come to Kagei Academy?"

The representative of Kagei Academy, the man who had just fought in the 'fourth match'—Liam Riot, mocked Hyoutou Academy loudly.

(This is bad...)

Through the summer training camp with Hyoutou Academy, I learned one thing.

(Shido, despite his appearance, is very team-oriented...)

He's rough but kind-hearted—there's no way he'll stay silent after his teammates are insulted like this.

"Hey... What did you say, you scum?"

Shido, clearly upset, approached Liam, the vice-captain of Kagei Academy.

"Stop it...! Don't get provoked, Shido!"

The upperclassmen of Hyoutou Academy tried to stop him, but...

Once Shido was fired up, there was no stopping him.

And to make matters worse,

"Haha! I'll say it again—Hyoutou Academy is a 'dumping ground for the incompetent'!"

Liam continued to provoke him.

"Hmm... If you want to die that much... I'll grant your wish...! Unleash—<Lone Ice Wolf>!"

At that moment, a freezing cold wind swept through the venue.

"Haha! Interesting, a first-year wants to fight me!? Pierce—<Venomous Serpent>!"

And so, an unexpected and unplanned brawl began.