BXBX NOVEL [Ln] Volume 4: Chapter 4.1
With the Strength of Our Bonds Part 1
Translator : PolterGlast
"Jihad-sensei is quite capricious, huh? That guy might be a bit lucky and managed to survive the Special Comprehensive Exercise, but there's no way he'll ever be a match for a hero like Jihad-sensei, no matter how hard he tries......"
A section of the waiting area, protected by a barrier of light.
In the place where the 1st-class had gathered, Ken was snickering as he looked at Jihad and Nozomu, who were facing each other.
Next to him, Lisa gazed at Nozomu standing in the arena with an empty expression on her face.
"In the first place, it's strange that that lousy bastard was chosen to be Jihad-sensei's opponent. It's as if that bottom-feeder qualified to be the representative of our grade."
"Yeah, you can say that again......"
"Even this morning, he suddenly ambushed me in the girls' dormitory, just like a stalker. I wonder why he hasn't been expelled yet."
Lisa's cold words were uttered along with her lifeless gaze. The other students around her began to whisper and make a fuss over her words, all of which were generally in agreement with Ken's words.
Certainly, Nozomu's reputation was briefly swayed by his attempts to confront Lisa before the Special Comprehensive Exercise, but it soon fell to the ground again. This was the result of Mefi's manipulation of Lisa's memories of the Spasim Forest.
A dark glee welled up in Ken's chest.
However, if one were to say whether he was able to completely ruin Nozomu's reputation ...... it was not the case.
"......What a load of crap."
The buzzing atmosphere was cut short by a dignified voice.
The attention of the surroundings then focused on the owner of the voice, Irisdina.
"B-But, Irisdina-san. Lisa-san is his childhood friend, so-......"
"How many of you here have actually spoken to him? How many of you know who he really is? Even she, as his ex-girlfriend, doesn't know who he actually is."
One classmate spoke up timidly, but Irisdina brushed off her words without even making eye contact. Her eyes were fixed on Nozomu, who was in the arena, and they were filled with intensity and light, something that Lisa, who was being manipulated by Mefi, lacked.
Complete trust and immense credibility. She paid no heed to others' frivolous talk. Seeing her appearance, all the students who had been gossiping fell silent.
The tension increased. Inevitably, the atmosphere of the place turned vague and ambiguous.
Ken gnashed his teeth inwardly at the reaction of those around him.
Recently. Especially after the recent Special Comprehensive Exercise, whenever Irisdina and the others heard bad things about Nozomu or rumors that had been circulating, they kept denying them.
As a result, gradually, the number of students who began to doubt the rumors spread by Ken has been increasing again.
(But this is just the right time. Let's make him unable to recover himself here. Mefi......)
(Sure~~, but I can't do much with this girl's mental restraints, is that okay?)
(No problem, as long as we can make it look like an accident, that's all that matters.)
(I'll leave it to me......~!?)
However, right after hearing Mefi's words, the image of a blue-haired elf girl and a small lapis lazuli-colored bird popped into Ken's mind. They were with Nozomu when they fought against the [Cracked-Crown] Giant Centipede. Apparently, they were keeping an eye on them. This meant that he could not use Mefi's power. Ken clicked his tongue and gave up on the idea of conducting a backstage operation here.
He then turned his attention to the two standing in the center of the arena with his arms crossed.
A confrontation between a hero and a student. Almost everyone who came to this Martial Arts Garden, including the rest of the students, let out a disappointed sneer at Nozomu's lack of reliability.
But Ken was aware of it. Nozomu, facing Jihad, was bewildered, but not nervous.
In his mind, the scene of his abominable childhood friend fending off the [Cracked-Crown] Giant Centipede resurfaced.
Ken gritted his teeth to stifle the frustration that was rising up within him.
†
Jihad stepped forward and completely killed the distance that had been open in an instant.
An ultra-fast flash step, reflected in his enormous amount of Qi. A perfect step with no hint of any movement.
The great sword swung downward from above and fell toward Nozomu's head at such an extraordinary speed that it was hard to believe it was being controlled with only one hand.
Nozomu twisted his body and shifted himself out of the sword's trajectory. The sword strike flew past him and grazed his cheek.
In the next instant, the muscles in Jihad's arm bulged, and the blade of the great sword slashed out horizontally.
"~!?"
As soon as he could, Nozomu bent his upper body while leaning backward.
The blade grazed his chest, popping the buttons of his clothes and leaving a single tear in his uniform coat.
With cold sweat running down Nozomu's cheeks, Jihad drew back his great sword, which he had flung out further, and released a thrust.
A gust of wind accompanied the thrust, and in an instant the tip of the sword was right in front of Nozomu's eyes.
Nozomu, however, did not show any signs of weakness. He relaxed his knees as he crouched down. Jihad's great sword passed right over Nozomu's head. Nozomu slammed the sheath, which still held the katana within, into the belly of the great sword. Then, while Jihad's right arm was still fully stretched out, Nozomu slid into his feet.
"Hm......!?"
"Sei!"
Nozomu unsheathed his katana and drew it. He ran past Jihad and delivered a sharp slash to Jihad's exposed flank.
*Clang!* Along with a high-pitched metallic sound, a hard feeling was felt back on Nozomu's arm.
His slash was blocked by the tower shield that Jihad deftly slid into place.
The tower shield is a huge curved shield. It boasts overwhelming defensive power, but because of its weight and poor maneuverability, it was not originally intended for use in such one-on-one battles.
Despite using such a shield, Jihad's defense was surprisingly swift.
"Nuuun!"
Jihad rushed forward with his shield at the ready. He swung his greatsword at Nozomu with a mighty force befitting his outward appearance. Nozomu, although in an unstable posture, attempted to deflect Jihad's slash by raising his katana.
"Gah!"
The moment the katana and the greatsword made contact, a powerful shock struck Nozomu's entire body. It was a pressure he had never felt before. He managed to prevent the blade from making a direct hit, but there was no way that Jihad's offensive would end with just a single sword strike.
"Ugh......!"
A huge shadow loomed. Nozomu, still staggered backward, was directly hit by a blow from the tower shield.
While his vision was distorted by the impact of being hit and slammed to the ground, Nozomu desperately moved his body and jumped back. Immediately afterward, Jihad's greatsword pierced the ground where he had fallen.
"You dodged it well."
"Haa, haa...... I'm used to being blown away......"
Penetrating sword-Qi and a sense of tension. The overwhelming difference in ability, shown in the few moments of attack and defense.
A smile naturally appeared on Nozomu's lips. Seeing him like this, Jihad's cheeks loosened slightly.
"You seem to be enjoying this."
"Eh?"
"I see, so it's subconscious. Nevertheless, you have a good eye. You also have a great instinct for reading the flow of battle. You are a good swordsman. As expected of the great swordsman's last disciple."
"T-Thanks......"
"But it's not enough. Show me a little more. Here I go."
With those words as a signal, an unbelievably vast amount of Qi was concentrated at Jihad's feet.
"Fuu......!"
But suddenly, the pressure on Jihad's arm suddenly vanished along with Nozomu's figure.
"!?"
At the moment of the collision, Nozomu's entire body relaxed and he dropped his body. Using the greatsword as a pivot point, he slipped underneath, slipping past Jihad's side, and delivered a quick slash. *Ching!* with a crisp, clear sound, the two crossed each other.
The hero turned to see the white-silver armor he wore. On his flank, there was a distinct mark.
[Mikagura-style・Rolling Talon]. A technique in which one drops one's body at the moment of contact and releases a slash while slipping past the opponent's side. Just like [Mikagura-style・Oscillation], it is one of the pure swordsmanship techniques that do not use Qi.
"Did he just ...... land a hit on Jihad-sensei?"
"You are kidding, right......?"
Surprise and bewilderment filled the Martial Arts Garden. It was understandable, a student who was called the bottom of the barrel just landed a hit on a swordsman whom everyone in the whole continent recognized as a hero.
".......It's been a really long time since someone landed a hit on me."
Jihad stepped forward with a smile akin to self-mockery on his face, but with an even more heightened fighting spirit.
The momentum was even greater than before.
"You still have more to show me, don't you? Your swords, show me more of them."
A flash of a horizontal cleave unleashed. Nozomu also immediately drew his katana and tried to intercept the greatsword.
They originally had a disparity in physical strength. If one were to think about it, it would be impossible for Nozomu to withstand Jihad's powerful blow. One could only imagine a future in which Nozomu would be blown away.
However, after seeing the previous scene, the audience thought, "Could it be.......".
"~......!"
And reality turned out just as they had expected.
Jihad's blade cut through empty air without hitting Nozomu's body.
The greatsword swung again as a returning strike, and the katana intercepted. This clash was repeated two or three times, and in all of them, Jihad's slashes were deflected. At the moment of the fourth clash, the trajectory of Nozomu's blade, which had deflected, changed, and it fell toward Jihad's head.
"!?"
Reflexively, he repelled Nozomu's blade with his tower shield. The expression of the hero of many battles was tinged with astonishment for a moment.
(That slash just now, it was completely parrying my sword and then turning directly into an attack......)
[Mikagura-style・Willow Blade]. It is a sword technique that combines offense and defense, deflecting the opponent's blow and switching to attack.
Like the previous [Rolling Talon], this is also a pure swordsmanship technique that does not use Qi.
Although captivated by this outstanding technique, Jihad immediately resumed his attack. Five or six times, he unleashed another slashes, but they were all still completely parried.
Jihad's mighty blade has the power to easily sever his opponent's weapons in two, even with a single swing of one hand.
However, Nozomu was undaunted and stepped forward on his own, carrying even his momentum into the slash to intercept the greatsword.
Sometimes resisting the onrushing impact, sometimes being swept away by it, he perfectly adjusted his timing. With sharp eyes fixed on the trajectory of the greatsword, he swung his katana without hesitation, accurately capturing the equilibrium point where the slashes balanced each other.
(It's a wonderful sword technique. Every time we exchange blows, it seems as if my sword and his body are repelling each other. On top of this perfect parry, he added that [returning strike] to it. How is it possible for a human being to do this kind of movement?......)
Because Nozomu refused to just be passive on the receiving end, he took the initiative to be aggressive offensively while also parrying the enemy's attacks. With the addition of [Willow Blade] here, the three elements of attack, defense, and evasion are in perfect harmony.
(Guh......!? Furthermore, has he increased his accuracy?)
At this point, the frequency of the [Willow Blade] gradually increases.
What used to be one slash for every five slashes became one slash for every four slashes, and finally, a counterattack was unleashed once every two slashes.
Even Jihad was no longer holding back. Making full use of the experience he had, he tried to mislead Nozomu by deception and trickery.
However, all of his attempts were completely thwarted by Nozomu, and the frequency of his counterattacks increased.
This is a feat of extreme concentration and a body that can instantly respond to one's thoughts without the slightest deviation.
The weapon that Nozomu possesses also plays a significant role in this technique.
[Mumei]
Nozomu inherited this katana from his master. The katana, made by a certain master craftsman, meets the demands of the reckless Nozomu. Nozomu has a superior weapon and the skill to make full use of it. With these two things, Nozomu was able to fight head-to-head against Jihad.
They slashed at each other without taking a single step back. Before they knew it, more than 40 slashes had clashed between them.
†
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