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Whoosh—! Whoosh—!
Sharp gusts from swinging swords echoed throughout the empty kendo dojo.
Time quietly passed, and the sky outside had long since darkened. It had been nearly four hours since the end of the day's second afternoon class.
Usually, Japanese high school students not involved in clubs would leave school around three in the afternoon, after which club activities began.
Even with club activities, the latest dismissal usually didn't surpass 5:30 PM. Any later, and students wouldn't make it home in time for dinner.
But now, it was already approaching 7 PM.
Busujima Saeko was still practicing in Kuoh Academy's Kendo dojo, alone. All other club members had long since departed, leaving only her behind.
This situation wasn't because she'd just transferred today and had to endure some hazing from the "senior" members—quite the opposite. From her very first day as a new "junior," she already enjoyed a status typically reserved for the club's ace.
No bows and greetings to the captain or vice-captain. No rookie chores like cleaning the dojo floors. Instead, she even had clubmates proactively offering her tea and refreshments.
This preferential treatment wasn't merely because of her looks. It was purely earned through the strength she'd displayed earlier that day.
She had conquered a "Hyakunin Ikki"—a hundred-person challenge.
In Japanese, "Hyakunin Ikki" originally referred to a mass uprising or a group of people united to achieve something. The historical origin referred to a farmers' rebellion, where enraged villagers stormed Shimabara's Arima village, attacking and killing their oppressor, Hayashi Hyoe-mon.
Of course, Saeko didn't rally the entire Kendo Club to rise against the captain and vice-captain. Instead, in her first-day initiation sparring match, she'd single-handedly defeated every member, including both the captain and vice-captain.
When an individual's strength could overpower the entire group, traditional ranks and positions within the group lost any sense of authority over them.
Thus, the current situation came into being.
"Phew..."
Saeko steadied her breathing, completely unfazed by the thoroughly sweat-soaked kendogi clinging to her form. Her wooden bokken aligned perfectly straight with her wrist and grip, angled precisely downward at forty-five degrees. Drops of perspiration trailed down her arm, dripping from the sword's tip.
Closing her eyes, she vividly replayed yesterday's scene—Bokue Keikain's earth-shattering kick—again and again in her mind, focusing and condensing her sword intent.
She slowly lifted the wooden sword.
Just as the droplets of sweat were about to slide downward along the blade—
A slash descended!
Clang—!
The wooden blade sliced through the air, producing an unprecedented metallic ringing. A dazzling blade-light erupted forth, extending in front of her, carving a hair-thin incision into the dojo's wooden floorboards, stretching a full ten meters ahead.
It was Sword Ki.
She had actually managed to project tangible Sword Ki through a wooden sword!
But... it still wasn't enough.
Saeko slowly opened her eyes, looking at the faint scar she'd etched into the floor, inwardly sighing in disappointment.
She remembered it clearly. Bokue Keikain's kick hadn't used even a trace of spiritual power. With sheer physical strength alone, he'd shaken an entire mountain.
That level was probably already far beyond the limits of human capability.
"It's already late. I should head back..."
Glancing through the window at the illuminated streetlights dotting the campus, Saeko relaxed her stance, quietly moving towards the changing room, bokken in hand.
First, she would swap out her soaked clothes, take a quick shower in the dojo's attached facilities, then head home.
❁❁❁❁
Meanwhile, in a small public park approximately three hundred meters away from Kuoh Academy...
A certain orange-haired twin-tailed girl leaned listlessly against a pair of parallel bars, usually occupied by elderly morning exercisers. Listening to the insects chirping faintly in the nearby greenery, Irina sighed heavily.
"Seriously, we haven't found any trace of Fallen Angels at all! Could headquarters' intel have been wrong?"
"Probably not."
Seated nearby atop a leg-press exercise machine, Xenovia hugged her white-cloth-wrapped Holy Sword and shook her head.
"Rather, it's probably natural that we can't easily find them. According to headquarters, the three stolen Holy Swords are now in the hands of Kokabiel—a ten-winged Fallen Angel commander. Someone of his caliber wouldn't expose himself carelessly like an amateur. He's likely hiding, biding his time and waiting for us to walk right into his trap."
"You have a point..."
Irina pouted unhappily.
"Still, Xenovia, speaking of traps... there's something I've been wondering about. If our opponent really is a cadre-level Fallen Angel, do you think the two of us alone even stand a chance?"
"Likely not."
Xenovia again shook her head decisively.
"I suspect the Church already anticipated our sacrifice when they dispatched us. Nevertheless, we must complete this mission. The Holy Swords are sacred weapons bestowed upon us Church warriors by God. Rather than let them remain in the hands of heretics, we must recover them—or destroy them entirely."
"That's easy enough to say..."
Irina mused for a moment, suddenly smacking her palm as a small imaginary lightbulb went off above her head.
"Oh! Wait a second, Xenovia. Remember, earlier at school, Bokue said he'd killed some Fallen Angels a while back but hadn't seen any Holy Swords. Could it be that those swords are still at that place, and Bokue just didn't bother to look for them? Or maybe he did find them, but chose not to take them? If we find where they fought before, we might find those lost swords and complete our task easily!"
"I doubt that's possible," Xenovia hesitated. "Three Holy Swords are extremely conspicuous. Besides, they're weapons forged by divine power. Even high-ranking Devils find their allure irresistible. A normal human couldn't possibly—"
"Xenovia~ Do you still think Bokue is a normal human?"
The orange-haired twin-tailed girl cupped her chin, giving Xenovia an incredulous glance.
"Besides, that's exactly the thing you don't get about him. Bokue has always had an aversion to using weapons. When we were kids, our Kyoto branch had a Holy Sword. When we invited him to see it, he wasn't interested in the slightest. He's a dedicated… hm, bare-knuckle type."
"Hmm, does that mean there's actually a possibility the swords are still lying where they fought?"
Xenovia pondered carefully, then came to a decision.
"In that case, I'll go check out the location of their previous battle. Irina, you continue searching for traces of the Fallen Angels. We'll split up—it'll increase our efficiency. Call immediately if anything happens."
"Okay~!"
Having decided on their strategy, the two Church girls rose immediately, one heading westward while the other continued searching north.
❁❁❁❁
Not even ten minutes after Irina and Xenovia had left the park, a familiar silver-haired figure dashed out from the bushes, landing lightly atop a nearby tree branch.
Carrying a massive silver lightning-shaped sword upon his shoulder, Freed Sellzen glanced around at the deserted exercise equipment, confusedly sticking out his tongue.
"Huh? Weird~ I'm sure I sensed a Holy Sword nearby just now. Where'd it go?"
"Well, whatever. Guess I'll keep sniffing around here first..."
With an amused smirk, he disappeared back into the shadows, continuing his hunt.
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