Part 3
The air in Seisen's outer arena was vibrating. All the students fell silent, holding their breath.
Eva continued her assault, her combat drones orbiting her in strategic formations.
But Shizuki, with the elegance she was known for, dodged every attack with graceful movements—like she was dancing within a clock of invisible gears.
"Come on, Shizuki! Show that loli president who's boss!" Touma shouted from the stands, his energy fully restored.
For a moment, Eva lost her rhythm. Her face flushed slightly, and her drones wavered in formation.
"Who said that!?" she snapped, trying to maintain her composure. Her visor highlighted the source of the voice—pulling up the student's profile.
Seizing the moment, Shizuki spun sharply and fired two precise projectiles. The drones exploded in flashes of light, leaving the crowd stunned.
Eva cleared her throat and straightened her posture again, but the pink in her cheeks was impossible to hide.
"Kisaragi Touma… I swear you'll pay for that," she muttered under her breath, her blue eyes sparking with frustration.
"I hope you're not going to use that as an excuse when you lose," Shizuki replied coldly, never looking away from her opponent.
Eva clenched her jaw, forcing her expression back under control.
"Don't think that gives you an advantage…"
In that moment, the turbines of her EXO detached, breaking apart into floating metallic shards. With precise movements, the nanobots reassembled, once again forming her six combat drones.
The drones soared high above, spinning as their cores charged with radiant energy. The atmosphere crackled with tension.
"No more running! This ends now!"
"Bifröstregen!!"
From the sky, the drones unleashed a multicolored storm of projectiles. It was as if a rainbow had been shattered into thousands of deadly fragments.
Shizuki, instead, let her pistol vanish. She pulled out her pocket watch and held it firmly.
"Clock Tower!!"
A sharp ticking echoed through the arena. Tick... tock... tick... tock…
Shizuki began to move. She didn't run. She didn't flee.
With every click of the second hand, she appeared in a new position—dodging with surgical precision, as if she could read the future.
Her figure shimmered among the beams of light—elegant, calm… and lethal.
"I'm so sick of you dodging everything!" Eva growled, frustrated.
"If you'd like, you can surrender," Shizuki said seriously, though the fatigue on her face was clear.
"I've never backed down from a fight… and today won't be the first time."
"Then prepare to face Odin's judgment."
Eva's drones returned, spiraling around her in a mechanical dance.
The nanobots of her EXO disintegrated from her torso, revealing her academy uniform once more. But this time, the energy converged into her arms, assembling into a heavy, solid structure.
"Jörmungandr system… she's really going that far?" a student whispered.
"She's going to use that in a validation duel!?" another cried from the stands.
Eva stood in silence. She extended her right arm, and a massive golden cannon—almost three times her size—materialized with surgical precision. Her gaze held no doubt. Only conviction.
"President… are you really planning to fire that?" murmured Leonhardt, the vice president, one brow raised.
"Our loli president means business…" Reiji said with a mocking grin.
Across the field, still and silent like a statue, Shizuki Tokisaki watched without blinking.
The breeze softly tousled her silver hair, and her watch glimmered like a distant star.
"So that's your final ace…" Shizuki whispered, her voice calm but resolute.
"I already told you," Eva replied, now completely composed. "I stand firm in my convictions."
"The students of Seisen must protect humanity… and that also means protecting each other."
Shizuki shook her head, and for a moment, she glanced toward the stands. Her eyes locked with Touma's.
"Someone once taught me… that freedom and peace are worth fighting for."
"Protecting the club… is like protecting my family," she added, as a fleeting memory of her grandfather smiling beneath a starry sky crossed her mind.
"All my life, I've followed protocols, etiquette… always hearing people point out every little mistake."
"Students of Seisen…" she paused, taking a deep breath. "You have every right—and the freedom—to do what you believe is right."
"Don't become tools…"
Eva's cannon was finishing its charge. Energy surged through it, pulsing like an artificial sun.
"Impact in 10 seconds. Increasing barrier output to 100%," SEI announced in its flat, robotic tone.
"You leave me no choice…" Shizuki finally murmured.
Her rapier appeared, crackling with dense, vibrant electricity. She turned the mechanism on her pocket watch completely.
A magical resonance exploded within her. Violet patterns projected beneath her feet, forming an intricate structure. The air distorted—like even time itself was hesitating.
"Clock Tower! Big Ben…" she said, and the world seemed to hold its breath.
It was barely a whisper, but Ellie, through Touma's glasses, heard it.
"Touma-sama… That's a dimensional-level ability…! If they clash, half the city could be erased."
Eva took aim.
"Receive Odin's judgment!!!" she declared with deadly seriousness.
Shizuki didn't move. Around her, time began to fracture into irregular pulses. A massive clock tower—Big Ben—rose behind her like a spectral giant.
Both girls radiated energy—one with sunlight, the other with the shadow of a supernova.
The Astra Cores resonated with overwhelming power. SEI automatically triggered the containment protocol:
[OVERLOAD IMMINENT. LEVEL 5 THREAT DETECTED. CODE RED ACTIVATED]
And then…
CLACK.
The sound echoed like a funeral bell.
"Zero Zone."
A gray, muted wave expanded across the arena like a dense fog, swallowing all magic in its path.
Eva's massive cannon disintegrated into particles of light, as if it had never existed. The German girl lost her balance and fell backward with a dull thud, her expression stunned.
On the other side, Shizuki's aura cracked in a silent burst. The great clock tower vanished, and her sword dissolved into a sigh of violet light.
Both stood frozen in place, speechless.
A gust of wind swept through the silent battlefield.
And then… a figure strolled in casually, hands in his pockets, hair a mess, shirt half-untucked.
"Just because it's a validation duel doesn't mean you get to destroy the entire arena…" Gen Kirishima muttered apathetically, his tired eyes scanning the floating magical remnants.
A single clap broke the silence.
"Bravo! What a magnificent show! Well done, Gen. If you hadn't stepped in, I would've had to intervene myself."
The voice of Headmaster Vergil echoed as he appeared amidst a swirl of smoke and floating playing cards.
Gen glanced at him sideways, emotionless.
"I've said it before… your tricks don't impress me."
"Oh, but they're not tricks, dear Gen," Vergil replied with an enigmatic smile, a burning card floating over his palm. "Just… magic you've yet to nullify."
The headmaster cleared his throat theatrically and approached the two combatants, hands clasped behind his back.
"Well then, ladies. I declare this duel… an official draw. Therefore, the Student Council must withdraw the request to dissolve the club. Unless, of course…" —his voice dropped an octave— "you'd prefer to challenge me instead."
The tension in the air spiked, but Eva shook her head without hesitation.
"That won't be necessary. I accept the result."
Shizuki stepped toward her, composed as ever, and offered her hand with elegance.
"It was a good match."
Eva hesitated for a moment, but then firmly took her hand and stood up. Their eyes met—not with animosity, but mutual respect.
SEI's metallic voice echoed through the arena:
"Validation duel: concluded. Result: draw. Student Council has withdrawn all charges."
A wave of murmurs and cheers rippled through the crowd. The level of combat, the sheer tension—it had been worthy of titans.
"That was insane!" someone shouted.
"I didn't know Tokisaki could fight like that!"
"The president's a monster—but in a good way!"
As the crowd erupted with excitement, Touma's group finally exhaled in relief.
"I never doubted our homewrecking kitty for a second!" said Hina proudly, as if she had won the match herself.
"Pfft, haha… come on, Hina. Even you don't believe that," Mirai replied with a teasing laugh.
"The Ice Princess has truly shown her strength. And I'm convinced we've only seen the tip of the iceberg," said Jake, analyzing the duel with quiet seriousness.
"It's true… I see her in a whole new light now," Akari added, still visibly impressed.
Touma, who had been standing, let himself collapse heavily into his seat, trying to process it all.
"Without a doubt… I'm speechless."
"And to think you didn't believe in her, Ellie," he muttered.
"Hahaha, Touma-sama… I never said I didn't believe. I simply said her odds weren't favorable," the AI replied with playful sass.
Just then, a figure beside him—someone he hadn't even noticed—stood up and walked past.
It was a girl with jet-black hair, wearing a sleek black dress. As she passed, he caught the sweet scent of a flower. He never saw her face.
"…Is she a Seisen student too?"
"Who?" Ellie asked.
"No one… forget it."
Moments later, outside the arena, as the students dispersed, the group waited for Shizuki.
She appeared with a serene expression… almost like a smile.
"Told you I wouldn't lose," she said gracefully. "Which means… you owe me a victory dinner," she added, looking straight at Touma.
"Of course. This calls for a celebration," he replied, still in awe.
And so, the Literature and Film Club was saved by Shizuki… But this wouldn't be their final encounter.
In the girls' locker room
Evangeline stood under the shower, letting the water wash away the sweat from battle as she reflected in silence.
"Shizuki Tokisaki… last year, when I fought her, she wasn't this strong."
"Or was she, and simply never showed it? What changed in her?"
An unexpected image surfaced in her mind—Kisaragi Touma, yelling from the stands.
"Show the loli president who's boss!"
"Who are you calling loli…!" she muttered, blushing, as she lightly bumped her fist against the wall.
For the first time in a long while… someone had caught her attention in a different way.
Not out of respect. Not out of fear.
But… something else.
"Is this the feeling that drives Tokisaki?"
"I need to understand what this feeling is…" she whispered.
And so, as the water continued to cascade down her shoulders, the questions swirled endlessly in her mind.
It had been a long day… and her thoughts were a stormy sea.