This latest sleepover ended with me and Narumi getting caught by Carol in the morning, exiting the same room while disheveled. The reasoning was the same as before, so she understood well why I did it. Didn’t spare me the weird looks, though.

  Oh well… Life goes on. The days pass by, and eventually, the time to meet with Galene comes. I have a bad feeling about this…

  I go to Ebrilyon. Casually, trying to play it cool. It’s a bit of a walk from the fast-travel station to the castle, but not an unpleasant one.

  The people on the street seemed more agitated than usual. Rushed? Excited? I can’t really tell.

  Is it because of Galene? The people of this world really love their Hero. I wouldn’t be surprised.

  However, from the bits of conversation I picked up along the way, I realized that wasn’t it. It’s the tournament Bea mentioned. They were talking about preparations, and it seems like they’re not the only ones.

  “Just in time, Iroha.” Ebrilyon’s central road was a wide one and climbed all the way to the castle near the center of the city. Standing just outside the front gate was Flanne, who greeted me with a smile and a nod. “We’ve just finished our preparations.”

  “Preparations?” For a talk? “I don’t really get it, but thanks for all your hard work. Can we go inside?”

  “There’s no need.” Flanne signaled to a nearby guard, who ran inside the castle. “The princess will meet us here, then we’ll head to the location of the meeting.”

  “I- I don’t get it… We’re going somewhere else?”

  Before I could get a response, the gate opened and a carriage rolled out. A normal carriage. It had some decorations, but it wasn’t filled to the brim with them like I imagined their best carriage would be. Stopped right next to us.

  Flanne reached for the handle and opened the door for me. “Step in.”

  “Okay…” Flanne stood by as I passed by her. The inside of the carriage was more luxurious than the outside, and there was a green-eyed girl sitting on one of the sides.

  “Good morning, Iroha.” Her tone was formal and polite. She’s not usually like this with me… “You don’t seem to be doing that well. Did you rest properly?”

  “I’m alright…” The cushions were as soft as they looked. “I’m just a bit confused… I thought me, and Galene were going to talk… What’s going on?”

  “You are going to talk.” The one who answered was not Bea but Flanne. The door closed behind her, and the carriage started moving. “That hasn’t changed, so there’s nothing to be confused about. She just insisted on doing things this way.”

  “And what is this way you’re speaking of? No one told me about anything, so I think it’s pretty fair to be a bit confused!”

  I made Bea giggle with my retort. “Yeah, okay… Maybe you do have reason to be confused. But don’t be alarmed, okay? This is all part of the process to help you two make up.”

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

  “I see…” I’m not fully convinced, but what can I do? A moment of silence filled the carriage, and Bea’s eyes moved up and down while staring at me. “What’s wrong?”

  “Just looking at your clothes. You fight well in those, don’t you? Very interesting dress. Good choice.” On her face was a smile, like she was hiding something.

  I’m nervous now…

  Carriages are supposed to be used for long trips, right? For a second, I thought they were taking me somewhere out of town. But that didn’t happen. There’s no window on the front like in a car, so I wasn’t able to see where we were going during our trip. A trip that cut through various streets of Ebrilyon and ended with us entering some shadowy tunnel after a few minutes.

  It was there that we stopped and stepped outside. “Where are we?”

  “Don’t worry about it. Just walk this way.” Bea pushed me from behind, forcing me to walk in front of both of them. I didn’t know where, but I could tell we were inside a big place…

  Crossing the light at the end of the tunnel revealed a wide-open area under the bright blue sky. “What is this…? An arena?” It’s like a coliseum… What am I doing here?

  “Good luck.” The two of them stopped a good distance behind, and Bea waved with a faint smile.

  I knew it… This is some kind of set-up… I was reluctant to even look forward, but there she was… Galene… standing on the other end of the arena.

  “Ahaha… Uhmmm… Hi…?” My hesitant voice echoed around the empty stands. No response. The only sound was her footsteps, rapidly speeding up toward me.

  Dammit! Dammit dammit dammit! I knew it!

  *Click…*

  *Clang!*

  She rushed with her longsword raised and swung down. Katana was drawn and transformed in my hand just in time to block her blow.

  “What are you doing attacking me out of nowhere?! I get that you’re mad, but don’t I even deserve a little bit of an explanation?!”

  Her sword’s heavy… Maybe she’s just strong… I don’t know, but I’m sliding back. I broke off the clash and stepped sideways. Agility Burst.

  “Come on… Say something!”

  “Double Down!” I was faster than her, but she was not without tricks. The skill she used let her close the gap almost instantly and land an attack identical to her previous one.

  Burst Dash! Try again. Even faster than before, I jumped out of the way and got even further this time. A cloud of dust rose from the paved floor as her sword struck the ground. She calmly pulled it back and turned to face me once more.

  “*Sigh…*” No point in fighting it anymore, is there? Might as well play along. Agility Burst!

  Her eyes widened, and we were instantly face-to-face. Slash Flurry! It was a move she had seen before, and her sword moved to block all of my slashes.

  Dash Burst! From behind now! Slash Flurry! Can you keep up, Galene?

  *Swoosh!*

  Inconclusive, was the answer. She didn’t try to turn and block. She stepped forward, which was away from me, and swung her sword while turning to cover her retreat.

  Okay… Fine… We’re back just staring at each-

  “Sword Slam…” Except we’re not. She went back into the fray with a leaping strike right after turning.

  I dodged out of the way, but this wasn’t a normal strike. I felt a sting up my legs just from being near the impact and was forced to stop…

  “Sweeping Moon!” She didn’t stop. Is it all going to plan? Her sword glowed white in preparation for what was a wide arching swing.

  Parrying Strike!

  *Clash!*

  I caught her swing, but it was no good. What is this strength? Her sword’s pushing me around! Parrying Strikes, Slash Flurry, Butterfly’s Wings! It took an instant barrage of blows, all empowered for better parrying, to finally stop her sword’s momentum.

  Finally… Why do I have to fight her again? This sucks…

  I’m ending this! Butterfly’s Wings! Her sword was raised in time and caught two downward slices. This time, the one sliding back was her as I pushed down on her. It’s a contest of strength.

  Just stop… Why are you doing this? Our eyes crossed. She’s amused?

  “Pommel Stun!”

  Her hands twisted her sword with some tricky movements, and she broke out of the clash. The pommel rotated to the side of my head, and I couldn’t block it with my sword. Fine…

  *Smack!*

  Take my hand. Numbness quickly spread across my left arm from the wrist. It’s tingly… Is this a status effect? I would have been knocked out if this had hit my head. Too bad for her. I’m still standing.

  She couldn’t be happy with that. “Pristine Path.” She wasted no time in taking advantage of the situation and empowered her sword again. Her next slash was sharp and precise. Chained into a slice just as beautiful. And another.

  I could tell I’m in danger just from the glow of her sword. Dodge! Parry! Dodg- That won’t work! Parry!

  Her sequence of attack actually overpowered me. What kind of skill is that? She held her sword horizontally in preparation for a swing. Is it the move from before? She’s trying to finish this, isn’t she? I’m not letting you fini-

  “Sweeping Moon!” “Agility Burst!”

  Shit! She’s faster! I tried to close the gap, but now I can’t retreat! I’m leaning forward so much that I can’t even jump… I can’t jump? Not with my legs, no… But… I got this… Jump!

  I smack my numb hand into the ground in what was a clumsier maneuver than I would have liked. Her sword swept in front of her in an arch perfectly clear from above.

  This is my chance!

  “Heart Piercer! Parrying Strike!”

  A perfectly perpendicular thrust struck the center of her sword. My most powerful attack, made even harder on the hands, forced her sword to the ground with a powerful thud. Grip slipped through her fingers and the sword hit the floor perfectly flat.

  “Hm!” With a single motion, I landed and snapped my sword to aim at her neck. “*Pant… pant…* Checkmate…”

  “…” How did the victory escape her so quickly? She had the advantage? How did that happen? She was confused, but… “You got me.” She raised her hands with a smile. She too satisfied for someone that just lost.

  “I concede.”