Tōka Tōka's concerns about their conflicting positions were actually unfounded.
Even if Tōka and Kurogane Shizuku were set to face each other in the next round, as long as the match was fought fairly, there was no reason—even for her brother Kurogane Ikki—to bear any ill will toward Tōka.
After reassuring Tōka, Charles agreed to accompany her to Okutama for the investigation.
Bidding farewell to the student council, he and Stella planned to go meet up with Ikki and Shizuku. However, neither Ikki nor Shizuku responded to Charles's messages. Fortunately, Arisuin Nagi, who was with them, could still be contacted.
What surprised them was that Nagi told them to come to the hospital.
…
Looking at Ikki lying in bed, covered head to toe in bandages, Charles finally understood how Tōka must have felt.
"Seriously, how long has it even been since we last saw you? How the hell did you end up like this?"
Before Ikki could answer, Ayatsuji Ayase—who was present—interjected, "I'm so sorry! It's all because of me that Kurogane-san got hurt!"
Thanks to Nagi's explanation, Charles finally understood what had happened.
The details leading up to it weren't important—what mattered was the result: Ikki had fought with Kurashiki Kurono from Tōrō Academy and ended up like this.
Charles had heard of Kurashiki Kurono before. He was apparently one of the rising stars of last year's Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival. His alias? "Sword Killer."
With a title that flashy, Charles had assumed the guy was just another clown. After all, he hadn't heard of him going after anyone like Nango Injiro.
But for him to injure Ikki so badly… maybe he wasn't just all bark.
The worst part? Because the fight had been unofficial, they couldn't use a regeneration pod for treatment. Luckily, Ikki's next opponent in the school preliminaries wasn't strong—otherwise, his tournament would've ended right here.
"Having fun, are we?" Charles said with a smirk. He knew Ikki too well not to understand what was going on.
Ikki might be a little too kind-hearted, but Charles could tell—he hadn't fought Kurashiki Kurono just to help Ayase.
Ikki Kurogane, surprisingly, was someone who enjoyed combat. No doubt the fight against Kurono had brought him genuine satisfaction.
With a grin, Ikki said, "Yeah… Sword Killer really was a great opponent. I'm looking forward to meeting him again in the Seven Stars tournament."
"You're not planning on losing, are you?"
"Of course not. I'm your rival, after all. I won't lose to anyone else."
The sudden intensity between them triggered the instincts of both Shizuku and Stella. They quickly separated the two before the room could catch fire.
Shizuku held Ikki down and turned to Charles and Stella. "You two rushed over to find us—what happened?"
Stella answered, "You haven't checked the student handbook notifications yet, have you? Your next match has been posted."
From the look on their faces, Shizuku already had a sense of what it meant. "Judging from your expressions, my next opponent must be pretty strong."
Charles nodded. "It's the student council president—Raikiri herself."
Upon hearing the name, Shizuku fell silent for a moment. Then she said, "That's… one hell of an opponent."
Ikki looked concerned. "Shizuku, you—"
She cut him off. "Don't worry, Onii-sama. No matter who I face, I'll give it my all. Just watch me fight."
Ikki knew there was nothing else to say. As Shizuku had made clear, all he needed to do was watch her from the stands.
…
Soon, the day of the match arrived. Their whole group was seated in the audience, ready to watch the upcoming fight.
Charles had already witnessed firsthand how popular Tōka was at Pojun Academy, so the thunderous cheers when she stepped onto the field didn't surprise him.
In contrast, Shizuku, while not lacking fans, clearly couldn't match Tōka's popularity. Fortunately, the girl didn't care—otherwise, the pressure of "fighting on enemy turf" might've affected her.
The buzzer sounded, signaling the start of the match.
"Splash forth—Yuyushigure."
"Roar—Narukami."
Both drew spirit-armaments rooted in traditional Japanese style—one a kodachi, the other a katana.
With weapons in hand, the two began circling each other slowly, neither daring to approach recklessly.
In previous Seven Stars tournaments, apart from rare A-ranks, most of the champions had actually been B-rank Blazers. In other words, both of these girls had the qualifications to vie for the title of Seven Stars King.
Caution was warranted—especially for Shizuku. Tōka's famed Raikiri was not something she could afford to take head-on.
If Charles was right, the first to act would likely be Tōka.
And indeed, after a minute of deadlock, Tōka, now crackling with electricity, suddenly closed the distance.
Shizuku had expected this. Her response came instantly.
"Freeze all—Tundra Plain!"
Ice spread from beneath her feet in a wide arc.
But even on the slick, frictionless surface, Tōka didn't slow down. She used the slide to accelerate even further.
Even as Shizuku fired off three spheres of pressurized water, Tōka deftly slipped between them with grace born of long experience.
This was the power of Raikiri—the top-ranked Blazer at Pojun Academy. In battle awareness and reaction time, Shizuku couldn't compare.
Tōka swung. Though it wasn't her signature Raikiri strike, her blade still crackled with burning lightning.
Shizuku raised a barrier of water—her Noble Art, "Barrier Lotus."
Purified by her A-rank mana control, the water contained no impurities, making it non-conductive. Though Tōka's lightning attack shattered part of the wall and evaporated some of the water, Shizuku remained unharmed.
But Tōka didn't let up. She kept channeling thunder into the wall, strike after strike, forcing Shizuku to gasp for breath.
Both Charles and Ikki were impressed. Tōka had noticed that while her lightning was relatively easy for her to produce, Shizuku had to work hard to purify and control her water.
In other words, by simply attacking faster than Shizuku could replenish her barrier, Tōka could seize the momentum.
Still, Charles wasn't worried. Shizuku wasn't someone so easily pushed into a corner.
Sure enough, she counterattacked. Water arms emerged from the floor, grabbing Tōka's legs and freezing over. A large disc of ice dropped from above, targeting Tōka's head.
It wasn't just a defensive stand—Shizuku had been laying a trap all along. With her exceptional mana control, she had created both restraints and a surprise strike simultaneously.
But when the dust cleared… Tōka was unharmed.
Shizuku's trap had been clever—but she had underestimated Tōka's raw strength.
"So they're evenly matched?" Ikki asked—but his tone was far from optimistic.
Before the match, they had all agreed: the only way to defeat Raikiri was to stop her from using her Noble Art and build a 70% advantage in the opening minutes.
A dead-even match meant things were already tilting against Shizuku.
Stella suddenly noticed something. "Wait a second… I thought the president was nearsighted. She's not wearing glasses—is she holding back?"
Charles shook his head. "Actually, it's the opposite. Tōka-senpai is a lightning mage. She can sense electrical and electromagnetic signals—including the neural impulses in the human body."
He continued, "By removing her glasses, she weakens her visual reliance and strengthens her other senses. By detecting the electrical impulses of her opponent's nerves, she can react even faster."
"This is the strongest Pojun has to offer—a Blazer with virtually no weaknesses."
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