Chapter 44

Book 4




『Don't block. Dodge.』
『Gaah!』
『You take too long to get up. I could have killed you in the meantime.』
『Damn, dammit!』
『Your swing is too big. Don't approach your enemy when you're wide open.』
『Guboo...』



"Uwaah, this is just terrible. Made even worse with those guiding tips."
"But everything he said is on point, no? Is that boy his underclassman? He's quite underwhelming if so."
"Nah, don't think they ever met before. Well, stuff happened."
"Hmm. Oh, wanna have some, Yuuki? Kitk**."
"Ah! That's mine!"

　Felt like I heard someone saying something but since Kaname offered me snacks, I picked one.
　Ah, it's good. Been some time since I had chocolate.

"Ah, they're done."
"Over in an instant. Alrighty, let's check 'em out."



"Uumu... You've got decent motor skill. However, you severely lack combat experience. I'm guessing you've barely ever fought someone your level."
"...Dammit... You gotta be a pro... Don't you think you're acting childish..."
"What are you talking about? Didn't you see I came in there bare handed precisely because I was up against a high schooler."

　I forgot the boy's name. He looks groggy already. Shousuke is too merciless.

"Alrighty, player change. You wanna fight me, right? Come, I'll take you on."
"Wha!? You Yuuki? I'mma win this--"
"For your information, I held back enough to accurately portray my strength in my high school days against you earlier. I never won against him once in that state. As a reference."

　Quit spoiling the fun, man. And you there, where do you think you're going.

"It's gonna be just fine. It's just a light spar. Let's get to it!"
"Hiee! No, I don't wanna!"
"Alright, we're off to have a little fun. Shousuke, Kaname, wait outside, will you."

　I'm gonna make him taste another crushing defeat. If that's enough to stop him from coming here again then that's that. If not, then it should be a good lesson to correct his attitude.

"Ready, go."

　I'm gonna skip to the result: guy's a real weak sauce.
　No really, this facility gotta put in more effort into getting more foot traffic.
　A more diverse variety of people should discourage this type from popping up.



"By the way, you're... Kyouhei-kun is it? My apologies but I can't write you a letter of recommendation after looking at your results. I might reconsider if you at least manage to be a champion in a regional amateur battler tournament... I'm sorry to be a bearer of bad news."
"Yes... I'm sorry ma'am... I got way over my head... Forgive me..."

　Guy was on his way out too! You don't hafta deal the finishing blow there, Nishida-san!

"I'm obliged to announce the result as the person in charge. Still... Shousuke-kun was it? You're pretty good. Fancy transferring to Scwhein School next year?"
"Thank you for the offer but I have to decline. I'll tread my own path and get to Yuuki and his friends my way."
"Really. Fufu, I suppose next is your match with Yuuki-kun. I cannot wait."
"Ah, that's so nice Shousuke-kun. I'm up after him, okay, Yuuki-kun."

　I had been turned into a subscription service before I realized. Why are the facility's regulars waiting in line behind Kaname-kun again?

"Okay, make sure you stay in the line. Please write down your name on this sheet."
"Ixia-san... Why are you managing the line?"
"It's the least I could do to amend taking the snacks without permission."
"O-oh okay..."

　Ah, Akemi-san looked away. She's snacking too. How many snacks does she have stashed away anyway. Even used that to work Ixia-san hard... Well I guess it was on Ixia-san for snatching her snacks.

"Alright, let's do this. Hold no barrel, Shousuke. Cuz I'm not planning to."
"You got the word right out of my mouth. I'm going to vindicate my high school losing streak right here and now."

　VR training room. Come to think of it, my fight with Rio-chan was probably the last time I fought in this room.
　I usually use the normal training rooms with protectors because the scale of the matches here were never that big.
　But--I'm sure we're gonna need it this time. Let's do this, Shousuke.







"Let's see how it goes. I bet he'll have a hard time breaking through Shousuke at first."
"Really? Is Yuuki-kun not familiar with his fighting style?"
"No, he has seen him fight once. He watched a match between Kaname-kun and Shousuke-kun abord a ship previously."

　On the biggest monitor in the lobby, two young men came into a room with a wireframe-looking pattern on the walls.
　Yuuki. Making use of his knowledge on fictional works that don't exist in this world, he wields power and knowledge unheard of in this world, reproducing all manners of abilities and superhuman physical strength.
　Shousuke. A 'Mage' who is able to fight nearly on par with Yuuki in close quarter combat through sheer effort alone.
　Showing a diverse variety of tactics, even Ixia commends his 'splendid formula control.'
　These two are now about to clash.

"Eh, he vanished!?"
"He got that sprinting quickdraw move out right off the bat."
"...That's a bad move. Or perhaps I should say he was given no other choice."

　Ixia's commentary was spot on.
　Yuuki slowed down ever so slightly just before his quick drawn device could touch Shousuke's.
　Shousuke wasn't one who would overlook that slight change and used the chance to channel his magic on Yuuki.

"Frost has started forming on the field's ground. I didn't know VR could even reproduce that."
"...I see, Shousuke had frozen the ground around him from the outset. Hard to tell it apart without sunlight."
"Indeed. However, this action that slowed Yuuki down has its own pitfall for Shousuke-kun as well."
"...Right. That's why Yuuki-kun ceased his assault instead."

　Yes. The moment Yuuki realized he was moving slower and got hit by the electric magic attack, he jumped away and decided to end the fight with the least amount of moves.
　However, that range is Shousuke's domain as a mage.
　He immediately shot flame magic at Yuuki.
　But--

『Gah...』
『...Gale Gash. My strongest move at this point of time.』
『Coordinate magic... No, this firepower, magecraft huh...』
『You bet. I let you think I don't have means of ranged attacks and gain me some distance.』
『I actually have a better chance in close quarter combat than in ranged magic combat huh...』

　The gap between how fast one casts their magic. That's the biggest factor that clinches victory in a magic combat.
　An attack that gets generated in a specific location the moment the caster's sword is drawn is simply superior to projectile attacks.
　There is no way to offset the attack either.
　Moreover, Yuuki is capable of generating at least seven slashes in a single momentous strike.
　Dodging this move is a tall order for people with average mobility.
　In combat, the ability to quickly and accurately control the gap to your enemy is a strength.
　In games this is often called 'Zone Control'.
　Carelessly having your range stolen is a losing move.
Yuuki understands from his experience in gaming that 'he must have a perfect control of the zone between him and his opponent from start to finish if he wants to win.'
　'Information' is another crucial factor in combat.
　Yuuki could read Shousuke's thought process that he didn't need to chase after him because Yuuki knew Shousuke had means of ranged attacks.

『I think you're the first one ever who got a first hit on me, Shousuke.』
『That's an honor. Well, this kind of environment is the only reason you missed it.』
『Using environments to your advantage is a valid strategy. You're strong, no really.』

　It's a fact that Shousuke adopted the same line of thinking as Yuuki.
　It emboldened Yuuki to truly see him as his rival. 



<TLN: Catch the latest updates and edits at Sousetsuka .com >



"Phew, I lost my cool. Thought I'd end the match in an instant."
"That's my line."
"Well, it's only gonna work once. I knew you wouldn't have imagined I could cast a coordinate attack."
"Yeah. I see, so you can use magic now... Now this is trouble."

　Even though the match ended shortly, I can't really call it satisfactory.
　I got caught off guard. Thinking I could finish the match in an instant only to end up getting caught in a trap.
　The numbness from his magic attack quickly went away since we were fighting in VR, but it would have stayed on and slowed me down longer had it been in real world.
　I gotta think twice before closing in whenever I'm up against mages.

"Well done, you two. I'm up next... or so I would like but it won't be fair of me to monopolize you two. I'll pass today."
"You sure? Can't say I'm in a tip-top shape and I still gotta deal with these regulars, so that'll help."
"Right? The line is getting out of hand, see? Do your best, Yuuki-kun!"

　This was when I realized the line had stretched out from the lobby to outside. And managing it are both... Ixia-san and Chief Nishida.

"You gotta be kidding me..."
"Go at it, Yuuki. I'll be taking a little break."
"Here, have some, Shousuke-kun. **kky."
"Thank you. You sure come prepared, Kaname."
"Found lots of these behind the receptionist desk."

　And thus I ended up having to deal with all the regulars waiting. Some of them are Satomine high schoolers who probably heard the news somewhere.



"And that makes the last one... no seriously, how did I get stuck in 47 straight matches again. Akemi-san, did you post a promotional advert or something?"
"Eh!? W-what do you mean... I have no idea what you're..."
"I'm glad for you Akemi. This should ensure the summertime district's best record win for this facility, no? ...Show a token of your appreciation to Yuuki later. Got it?"
"Uu... Yuuki-kun, I'll give you something nice later..."

　Ah, knew she made a post about it. I'm betting she got in touch with Satomine High School.

"Ah, I'm beat... Well then, I'm gonna go watch some old recordings in the briefing room."
"Ah, can I come along? I wanna see how you looked when you first started training, Yuuki-kun."
"Fumu, can't say I'm not interested."
"So am I. Do you mind, Yuuki?"
"Not really no... But I only got the beginning saved you know?"

　If I remember right, I only recorded the time I was learning how to move around initially.
　I stopped recording once I started having matches with other people.
　Ah, but I think I did have my match with Rio-chan saved?

"Oh right, I want to show you all a recording. It shows the only opponent I couldn't win against in this facility. She's amazing. I was completely outmatched even though it was at a point Shousuke couldn't land a win against me at school."

　I talked about Rio-chan as we were walking.
　The me now can probably put up a good fight... still don't think I can win, but she was so strong the me back then couldn't even envision a sound strategy to get over her.
　Above all... she was still a primary schooler.

"Oho, that's intriguing. Let us have a look of her. Excuse me Nishida-san, could you get the device ready?"
"Sure, leave it to me. I'm just as curious. Let's look up the database... Yuuki-kun, when was the match recorded?"

　A list of past records got shown on the briefing room's big monitor.
　Whoa, I see recordings from other people too there.

"Last year... It should be in July. Beginning of the month."
"Fumu, that would be around the time Yuuki got back on his feet."
"Hee, Yuuki-kun had a slump too."
"Yeah. Before that point, he was second only to me in martial art lesson, but his performance suddenly saw a huge drop. It only took me one hit to beat him, many times."

　That was around the time I strayed into this world. Yeah, makes sense... From Shousuke's point of view, it would look like I suddenly got weaker out of the blue.

"Personal combat records in July... There's no matching record."
"Eh? But I applied for the recording to be saved... Huh..."
"What was your opponent like? There might other recordings of them."
"...It was a small girl. She had light bluish silver hair. She looked to be around a primary school sixth grader."

　There's no record, but how? I filed for it I'm sure of it...

"You lost to a small girl? It's hard to imagine that... Nope, I can't still find a matching record."
"No way... But I got beaten for sure. I even woke up in the infirmary..."
"Fumu... That's quite unbelievable... Who is that girl."
"You sure that girl was there, Yuuki-kun? Honestly, I can't imagine a primary schooler beating a high schooler. Or maybe you had a Limiter Bangle on you back then?"
"...I did have them. But I only got two equipped. More like, she really was on a whole different level, I could barely even keep up... Oh right! She used an Otherside Move."

　Even without a recording, I am absolutely sure I got beaten by that girl. She really was there.

"...Yuuki, do you have any other information about that girl?"
"She's called Rio, and the Otherside Move was..."

　I traced back my memory. What did she whisper right before I got hit by that final strike?
　...Right, Heaven Judgment... Revision? It's gotta be a derivative of the Art Ichinose-san and Kai used.

"It was 'Heaven Judgment Revision'. I passed out in a torrent of blinding lights."
"Heaven Judgment... Revision? Never heard of that move, but it kinda sounds like a tall tale."
"Yuuki. There are grades to swordsmanship that have persisted in Grandia in today's era. Heaven Judgment that is said to be capable of splitting the sky is an Art handed down in Ichinose Swordsmanship school derived from an ancient school..."
"Or 'Shezard Magic Swordsmanship' passed down in Koune-san's family, unbelievable it may sound to you. Those are the only two schools capable of wielding the Art. And only the most talented of its disciples are able to inherit the Art. If you're really sure that you didn't mishear it, you might want to as Koune-san or Ichinose-san about it."

　Is that for real. Then if I really got the name right... Is Rio-chan from a special lineage of family?
　I think she did say that she was special or something...

"Or maybe, Yuuki-kun daydreamed it all. Wait wait, I'm just messing with you. Don't make that face."
"No... Now I'm getting worried too."

　Other regulars came into the briefing room while I was mulling over it.
　That's it. They should remember her!

"Oh, if it isn't Yuuki-kun and friends. Don't wanna get in your way. We'll take the next room over."
"Hold up! Just asking, you remember there was a really strong kid here in July last year right? She beat all the guys here before I came. She even defeated seven people coming at once, ring any bell?"
"Hm... Nope, not a thing. Maybe you saw her in another facility? I don't think I'd forget a kid who leaves that strong an impact."

　The regulars left the room after they told me that... Weird, that's just weird.

"...She was here. I'm sure of it... That's it!"

　As I was getting more and more anxious, I recalled Rio-chan visiting me in the hospital once.

"Ixia-san, you sneaked in the hospital when I got admitted there remember?"
"Yes, I did sneak into your room."
"Now that you mentioned it. She really did. How did you manage that, Ixia-san?"
"I came through the room's window without any special measure. I have Yuuki's mana response memorized after all."
"...That hospital? The security there is among the top in Japan supposedly."
"For reason I am unsure of, all the magic formulas set in the path to Yuuki's room alone had been neutralized. I thought Nishida-san had it arranged for my convenience."

　I knew it. Rio-chan did come.
　Chief Nishida came into my room right after she left too.
　I told her about a girl that came before Ixia-san that night.

"...I woke up that night because I sensed her presence. Rio-chan was there."
"...I see. Considering the fact that the security had been breached per Ixia-san's testimony... It seems this girl was real. I'll have a look on it. If her existence could be proved... we must take precautions."
"Fumu, a mysterious girl of incredible prowess, is it. Consider me intrigued if she's not a figment of Yuuki's imagination."
"Same here. Sure would love to spar with her."

　Uumu... The mystery only deepens. She vanished not only in recordings but also people's memories?
　I asked Akemi-san about Rio-chan too afterward but she gave the same response as everybody else, 'Nope, don't remember.'
　Just... who is that girl anyway.





"My sister will fetch me with her car. See you guys later."
"Gotcha. See you next term."
"I'm heading back to Miyagi Prefecture in three days. Next time will be... can't really say. See you around, Yuuki."
"Ah, back at you Shousuke. I'll be heading home myself."

　We parted ways at the Training Facility.
　Kaname left for a cafe in front of the station, Shousuke was north line bound. As for me, I'm waiting in the facility's rest area until Chief Nishida and Akemi-san are off the clock.

"Still, what a mysterious thing. A girl who doesn't remain in memories..."
"Hnn... She might be a Grandian judging from her hair color. She'd have a lot of opportunity to learn Otherside Moves that way too."
"...Yes well. I am familiar with the Art, Heaven Judgment... however, even during the age of the past, only three people were able to wield the Art. Perhaps it might have spread over countless years later on, but unlike magecrafts, only select few people can learn Special Art of Swords."
"Hee... well, no matter who she is, I hope I could see her again someday."
"Fufu, so she was the person who helped you decide on your future course. That means she also helped facilitate our eventual meeting."

　Yep, that's exactly right. I'm not exaggerating when I say that my defeat and her word 'Go to Tokyo' was what made me today.

"Thank you for waiting, you two. My staff will handle my evening quota."
"All you did was push them work through authority. You will write the report yourself later."
"They got paid for the time and happily grabbed the chance, you know..."

　The two came back done with their work. Chief did mention she knew Akemi-san since high school days. They really get along well.
　...That's so nice, I hope I have friends that tight even after debuting as a working adult.

"Now then... I'll take Yuuki-kun and Ixia-san home and then bring this birdbrain to my home... Ixia-san, care to join us tonight?"
"Join you, in what?"
"Ah, that sounds nice. We can leave the car at Chise's house and go to the shopping district by train for a get together. Why don't the three of us have a drink, Ixia-san?"
"Alcohol... is it? In that case, Yuuki can also--"
"Ah, alcohol is still off limit for 18 year old in Japan. Many bars that serve alcohol also don't allow minors to enter. Don't you think it's fine to let loose every once in a while, Ixia-san? I'll hold the ground at home."

　Speaking of which, I've never seen Ixia-san drink alcohol even once.
　She'd only use it for cooking at most... Maybe she's accounting for the fact that her body has only been made last year?

"Ixia-san, there's nothing that stops you from drinking... but you can have fun even if you don't. Let's go, the three of us. Fraternizing with women your age should make for a nice change of pace."
"Err... But Yuuki would be left all alone..."
"I'll be fine. I'm used to it. You don't often have the chance, do you Ixia-san?"
"Is that right... I suppose there is a start to everything, very well. I'll take Yuuki's advice."
"Yay! It's finally not just us two. I wanna talk a lot with Ixia-san."

　Uumu, I'm envious. But Ixia-san has been taking care of me all this time. I'm sure she needs this kind of adult gathering to let loose and de-stress.
　Besides, I can rest easy knowing she's with Chief Nishida and Akemi-san.

"I'll leave the door open. Don't come home too late, okay."
"Yes I won't. Please look after the house tonight."

　I came back home while Ixia-san left in Chief Nishida's car.
　Now then, guess I'll go prepare stuff good for hangover just to be safe.

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