--Ten years ago.

　The body bounced on the dry soil with a dull thud.
　The little thing rolled over and came to a halt, then let out a vigorous, sobbing cough.

　The thread tightens around my fingertips like a tangle.
　Sunlight burning my eyelids even when I close my eyes.
　The smell of dirt and sweat that entered my nostrils with my breath was awful.
　Tears spilled and soaked the soil as I wondered why I was being forced to do this.

　The cracked earth of the wilderness, drying up so quickly.

　I managed to stand up, supporting my wobbly center of gravity with my hands, which were covered in cuts, large and small, shallow and deep.

The enemy does not wait for you.
"Geez, ......!

　A voice that a girl of about ten years of age should not have made, it was the equivalent of a scream from her organs at the pain that pierced her abdomen.

　The toes caved in at the groin, the starting point of the body's curvature.
　An unpleasant sensation of floating in midair, followed by a sensation of being pulled in unceremoniously.

　If you stand still here, you'll hit your head.

　In a split second, you decide to fold your neck, but the ground you're slammed into remains as hard as ever.

　Somehow, I managed to catch myself and keep the pain to a minimum.
　But... --All I could remember was this.

　I can't stop sobbing from the frustration and pain and the inexcusable inability to get rid of it.
　I can't stop sobbing from the frustration, the pain, and the irrationality that I can't get rid of.
　And yet, the bullying of the boy standing in front of me never stops.

"It hurts. ...... It hurts. ......
"Have you learned enough body language to say it hurts? I'm glad you have an arm, a leg-- dignity, a heart. You're lucky to have any of it.
Ugh. ...... Oh, ......!
Oh, you lost your people. But that's...

　--But that's no excuse for living.

　As if to himself, the boy muttered and waved his arms.
　A cloud of dust seemed to gush out of the ground at the same time, and a few flashes of silver reflected the sunlight.

I'm not sure what to say, but I'm going to say it.
I'm not sure what to make of that.

　The hand holding the string was like a baby's.
　He slumps down, sobbing, in a defenseless stance, arms crossed to protect his head. The face is the face of an infant who can't believe he's facing an enemy.

...... Huh. I'm not sure why he picked up this kid.
I'm not sure what to do.
...... Well, it's just a whim like mine anyway.

　He scratched his head, wondering what to do.
　The white-haired boy turned his back on the dark-haired girl and walked away.


"Wait.


　And then he stopped dead in his tracks.
　After all the pain, after being beaten down for no apparent reason.
　I stopped him.
　A girl who'd just been crying.

　Unexpectedly, he turned around.

　Against the slanting sun, bleeding profusely, she forced herself to wipe away her tears with her arms and said.

"Come on, don't go .......
...... It's strange. You want me to stay?

　I was confident that she hated me a lot.
　That's why she shook her head when I asked her.

"No. I don't want ...... anyone ...... anymore.
"......?
No one is going to leave me. ......!

　Even if that person is someone who hurts you badly.

　The boy couldn't help but let out a "haha".
　It was a muffled laugh.

"...... I'm not interested in anything but revenge.
"What ......?
I'm gonna kill every last one of those bastards that killed my people. You'd better remember that, you little shit.

　He grabbed her by the chest.
　The boy says with a blaze of hatred in her young eyes.
　The boy says with a blaze of fire.

"If you don't want to be left behind. If you don't want to lose them. --Kill anyone who gets in your way.
"Mi, mi, mi, mi: ......

　He lets go of her in disbelief.
　She's slumped down again, and I don't have the strength to reach her.
　But...

　The boy was still very young. He had his hands full with himself.
　The fire that burns in the face of unforgiveness can easily chip away at the wax of reason.

　That's why the teachings are so short-sighted.
　But it was the truth because it was easy to understand.

Take it before it's taken. .................. That is the only way to live in this world with an open mind.



　He shook his head, distraught.
　Like the leader of this group. Why do I have to take care of this girl who can't do anything on her own?

　It's nothing. That kindness.

"...... like her. You're too vain to say it.

　The kindness of the girl who once saved my heart comes to me.
　But he also knew that it was just a meaningless sentiment in this world.

　Kindness is weakness, sweetness, and an excuse for the weak.

　That's why I've reached the heights.
　I'll reach the heights and release the bitterness.
　So she sniffed at the sky.


　The girl's name was Mion.

　The boy's name is Libra.














　-Arena Spectacula.

　Aylan B. Smiles.
　Lilac M. Fangini.
　Prim Lancaster.
　And Mion.

　At the signal of the start of the match, each of them begins to move with their own agenda.

　Their speed and movement is instantaneous.
　That's why it's best to anticipate.

It's almost always Prim who takes the lead. I'm not sure what to make of that.

　Just before they faced each other and started.
　The predictions that Fouta made were as follows.
　But even as he said this, Futa was looking at the field with a bit of suspicion in his eyes.

"But ......".

　And that's when he made the negative connection.

"Here we go, Mr. Prim!
"Yes!


"Yes!" "Fanfare!


　With a whoosh of wind, the magic thread (Ariadne) unfolded.
　The dancing dagger strapped to the end of it dances into the sky.

　I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to do that.

"......

　I'm not sure if it's a good idea, but it's a good idea. She's not afraid of a dagger or two, though.
　She also understood the advantage of using Ariadne, not a human, to control her weapon.

　In other words, it behaves in a way that the human body cannot.
　It has no joints, no need to change hands, and it can reach freely.
　Many people have died while being confused by its unpredictable movements and new tactics.

　However, Aylan B. Smiles is right in front of you now.

　Her blade dances in the air around her as she calmly assesses her movements, planning to break the dagger and cripple her.

　The dagger, which can be stabbed from behind if you want to, is immensely powerful in terms of speed.

　It would be possible for Arawn to stab Mion in the back before she could jump in and hit him from this distance.
　And moreover.

That's troublesome.

　In front of Mion, there was another girl holding a cross spear with the tip pointing towards her.

　That stance was one that Arawn had seen before - the spearhead.

　If you go on the offensive, you will be stopped in your tracks and finish with a dagger.
　This is why Aylorns can not move carelessly.

　The first step is to set up a standoff. Mion's goal has been accomplished.
　Both of his opponents were superior to him in strength.
　That's why he put them in this situation so that they can't take any chances.

　But there was one more piece of information that was obvious.


"I see. I'm more than a little uncomfortable.


I'm a little uncomfortable.

　A shower of stabs was unleashed.

　I'm uncomfortable. I'm not sure what made me say that.
　Her Royal Highness, the princess of this country who carries the sign of the strongest in the kingdom.
　She was ignored right at the start of the match. "Displeasure" at the fact that the two opponents had all marked Aylin.

　How low the boiling point is, Arawn thought to himself.

　It was Mion who widened his eyes.
　This is a bad move by Lilac, if you ask me.
　A raid to move the situation is the best move Lilac can make right now. Mion was caught off guard by this move, because he thought she knew it too.

　The shower's target was Prim Lancaster in front. I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that I'm not the only one who's a bit of a jerk.

I wanted to compare with it.　I've always wanted to compare it to that!

Chang Shan Jiu.

　Face to face.
　Two people facing each other, clashing with each other in a rush of stabs.
　I'm not sure if it's a good thing or not.
　On the other hand, Lilac's stab is a high-speed stab using a Konzesh. This is also an amazing technique that can beat Prim's Lancaster in speed.




"Woohoo!　Woo-hoo!　And!　It's like a wall of sparks between Prim and the princess!
I've always wanted to see a clash between the Everlasting Mountain Cross and the Imperial Court's own style of swordsmanship, the Deserts. It's quite something to see in person.
What's going to happen?　What's going to happen?
Manten, using the cross spear, could control a larger area with his stab than Lilac-sama's rain. On the other hand, Lilac-sama's rain has a superior stabbing speed. In other words, from Lilac's point of view, the spears are too strong for Kontse to handle, and from Prim's point of view, Kontse is being pushed.
"So it's a tie?
No?　I'm sure you're not the only one who has a problem with that. Because it's you who will get hurt. Prim, on the other hand, if she is pushed, she will lose. If the spear is played, it's not the full sky.
"...... Hmm?
"That's what I mean.

　The cross spear and the stabbing sword were fired with tremendous speed.
　If you look closely at the exchange between the cross spear and the piercing sword, you can see how the situation changes.

"The first one to get into a 'must defend' situation wins!

　Either the out-of-range spear spear will checkmate the princess.
　Or, the spear spear will checkmate the princess, or the spear spear will checkmate the princess, or the spear spear will checkmate the princess, or the spear will checkmate the princess.

　It's a game of skill, but it's also a game of speed.

"But...
"Huh?　I was just wondering...
I'm not lying to you. I'm not lying. ...... It's just that it's one on one.

　Mion hesitated for a moment.

　He didn't want to take the chance of disturbing Prim in the slightest. He was going to take cover, but the last thing he wanted was for his thread to get tangled in the crosshairs. She could be defeated in an instant.

　--And Lilac had foreseen that.
　And Lilac had foreseen this. She knew who Mion was, and she knew she hadn't fought before, and that's why she had jumped into the fray with Prim.

　No matter how strong the "Kingdom's Strongest" is, there is not enough of a difference in skill to be able to take on Prim and Mion at the same time and still have a smooth fight.

　However, once he was within striking distance of Prim, Mion would be unable to make a move on him.
　That's what I thought.

　And she was right.

　Because Mion hesitated, just as she thought he would.

　But.
　There was only one miscalculation in this sword fight. There was only one miscalculation.

　I knew why Mion jumped into this sword again. Lilac also knew that he had been defeated by Arawn.
　She knew that he was looking for revenge, and even regretted his failure to protect the Lord of Finance.

　But still...

　But still, she didn't know that Mion had remembered her first love just before the event.


　--There was a shadow watching the game.

"...... Mion. I'm sure you're right.

　He lowered his eyes softly.
　A young man looks down at the sword at the top of the arena, where a familiar brother and sister are making noise.

　Mion just sees a man named Libra Robinson as a danger. Libra herself thinks it's okay.

　It's safe to say that everyone who was in the Orquestra has a scar on their shin.
　There's no peace in life. Then, in order to protect the place you've acquired, you'll have to become a shura. --Yes, I know that from the bottom of my heart.

　So I don't want to be a part of that. But.


But if you owe a debt to this Aylin, then you owe him.

　If you have to fight a warrior who is apparently superior to you...

"Get a grip, you little shit. You don't want to be left behind, do you?



　Yes, in a voice that no one can hear. Libra loosened the corners of her mouth just a little.





"Whoa, whoa, whoa!　You were right, big brother!
'Well, it's just a fact. It's just a fact that it's not one on one.


　First blow.

　The dagger connected to the magic thread, mixed with Prim's "Full Sky".
　I'm not sure if you've seen this before.

"What?
"I'm sorry, sir.

　I'm sorry, sir," he said, pulling his white gloves to the limit to make sure he could feel his fingertips.
　I'm not sure what to do, but I'm going to do it.

I'm going to give it my all today.


　The first game is not over.