"Nope."
Uesugi Koshi burst into laughter. "I just wanted to give you a heads-up. Don't let Fensei's young age fool you—her swordsmanship talent is extraordinary, surpassing even mine. You'd better be careful, or you might lose spectacularly."
"?"
Angers raised an eyebrow, skeptical.
Back when he first visited Japan, he'd sparred with Uesugi Koshi and knew the man's swordsmanship was at the level of a modern master—just one step shy of the ancient "Sword Saint." In Japan's millennia-long history, only Tsukahara Bokuden and Kamiizumi Nobutsuna had earned that title. Even Miyamoto Musashi didn't quite make the cut.
A girl who looked barely fourteen…
Could she really reach that level?
Under normal circumstances, it seemed unrealistic.
But if she was a super hybrid with White King blood like Uesugi Koshi… then common sense didn't apply. Japan's "Emperor" class was indeed something else.
Right then.
Angers shrugged off his coat and unbuttoned the cuffs and top two buttons of his shirt. As he did, a glimpse of his fierce tiger-yaksha tattoo peeked out—a mark of the highest rank in Japan's underworld.
Then, the refined old principal picked up two long swords from the rack, drew one from its sheath, and flicked it with his finger.
Hummm~~
A crisp sword hum rang out.
"Nice blade."
On the other side.
Uchiha Hikari casually selected two swords, exhaled lightly, and assumed the "Niten Ichi-ryu" stance.
Her presence was already unique, but when she restrained herself, it wasn't as noticeable. Now, with dual blades in hand, she radiated an overwhelming sharpness. This aura morphed into a tangible field, enveloping the entire training ground and making every onlooker's heart skip a beat.
"?!"
Angers' eyelids twitched, his expression turning serious as he finally regarded Uchiha Hikari as a true opponent. "Your move, Miss Kurosawa."
"…"
A brief silence.
A leaf, caught by a gentle breeze, spiraled to the ground.
The next moment.
Hikari stepped forward and swung her blades!
Swish!
In that split second, Angers saw two blazing arcs of sword light, one following the other, slicing through the air with fiery sonic cones racing toward him! They were so fast that even sound lagged behind, leaving the strikes eerily silent!
—Ninth-Order Moment, 512x Godspeed Slash!!
This was the pinnacle of Inuyama Ga's "Moment" ability, achieved only in his final year before death. Yet Hikari unleashed it as if it were second nature!
At the critical moment.
Angers raised his sword vertically, meeting the attack head-on. The blade in his hand nearly snapped on impact, and he staggered back several steps, shock written across his face.
"…This strong?"
"Again!"
Hikari stepped lightly, launching herself forward once more.
What followed was a relentless storm of ferocious attacks!
Of course, she was holding back. Without restraint, even using pure physical skill and no external aids like the Dragonbone Blade, she could've ended Angers in two moves.
The reason she didn't was to force Angers to use "Time Zero" so she could see the ability's mechanics for herself.
Right now.
Hikari's swordplay flowed like the wind, showcasing every technique she'd learned from the Dragon Raja world with flawless precision. The power she used was roughly that of an average B-rank hybrid, but her angles and methods were so refined that every ounce of strength was utilized to its fullest.
At first, Angers held back a bit, wanting to give the younger generation some confidence. But gradually, he realized that even at full strength, he might not be able to beat the girl before him. Uesugi Koshi's earlier words weren't exaggeration—they were fact.
This petite, adorable-looking loli…
Was truly a modern Sword Saint, mastering countless styles, refining them, and blending them into her own!
"…No choice, then."
After parrying dozens of strikes, retreating again and again until he was nearly at the edge of the training ground, Angers took a deep breath and unleashed his ability with full force:
"Ability…"
Time Zero!
An invisible domain expanded.
In that moment, time slowed—not just in the training ground, but across the entire estate.
Uesugi Koshi and the others watching from the sidelines, Esdeath, Eriyi, even the birds in the sky and the leaves swaying in the breeze—all slowed to a near standstill, as if frozen.
For Uchiha Hikari.
This was a completely different experience from "Mahakala."
—"Mahakala" worked by using the ice and snow power of the "Demon Essence" to create an ultra-low-temperature environment, achieving a pseudo-time-stop effect. That's why it could be countered by the extreme heat of "Fire-Thunder God's Veil," as Hikari had done at the World's Greatest Martial Arts Tournament.
But "Time Zero" was entirely different.
Based on the sparse descriptions in the original story, this ability didn't slow the external world—it extended the user's own time, up to 50 times, turning one second into a minute. So, even "Fire-Thunder God" couldn't counter it, as Hikari had no way to interfere with Angers' personal timeline.
This was…
A bit tricky.
In the final moment, Hikari chose to retract "Fire-Thunder God's Veil" into her body and pulled out the cursed energy of "Mahoraga" from her sealed scroll, intending to use its environmental adaptability to counter "Time Zero."
—"Fire-Thunder God's Veil" was deadly to Dragon Raja hybrids. If she accidentally incinerated Angers with a passive skill, that wouldn't be ideal.
However, since "Mahoraga"'s ability was reactive, Hikari had to take the full brunt of Angers' first use of Time Zero. But since he didn't know she was a "Dragon King," he wouldn't go for a killing blow right away, and she could easily heal from regular attacks with her physique.
Just as Hikari planned her next move.
The light and shadows shifted.
Under her gaze, a grayish-white filter seemed to overlay the air, enveloping everything in sight. Then, Lu Mingze, dressed in casual clothes, appeared, holding an ice cream cone and licking it.
"?"
Hikari froze for a moment.
"It's you?"