Vol 25 Chapter 1 (1/2)
Early Dia sound ca bus
It was the sound of the outer buffer partition hitting thebanner and the scene visible through the vehicle s hs of relief
'Welcoe that it see bus station
Upon being inforers stared raptly at the scenery of Zuellni showing through the aving excitedly at the students near the station
More than eighty percent of the passengers looked to be the sae as he was, but the others were independent traders who had coents of other cities
”It seems like we made it”
”Yeah”
Nina replied after her childhood friend sitting next to her spoke up cheerfully
”We're here”
Academy City Zuellni
From today onwards, this would be Nina's new city
The entrance ceremony completed without issue The feel of the brand-new unifor on her waist ot used to those feelings
”I can't go to alcheht away”
Harley, who had come here to study alches al to a new place probably still hadn't vanished
Nina was dissatisfied with the fact that she couldn't i school, but she would just have to bear it for half a year
No, maybe she wouldn't have to bear it for half a year
”I heard the Military Arts Division was going to hold a co the first-years”
”Yeah, since this year is the period for the inter-city battles It seehting strength”
”Are you going?”
”That's the best way to confirth”
Nina hadn't been permitted to participate in the inter-city battles in her old home However, this was an Academy City Ale as Nina, so she could show herself off as long as she proved her strength
”Well, there's no need to worry since battles between Academy Cities have limitations like weapon restrictions and such, but”
”What, are you worried about o back hohed at his frank words
”I won't let anyone gossip Never et a Dite, I'll leave the maintenance to you”
”Of course, that's ree amount of cheers filled the area
”Good luck”
”Yeah Thanks”
The coroups of ten Those on the roup could advance, and then it would becoave a sports drink to Nina, who had just finished oneagainst the wall She put her practice iron whips to the side of her, propping theainst her shoulder
”You're on a roll How are things?”
In order to get through things in a short tiroup coedly the elimination tournament would also end to held here, and the sound of intense collision and shouts flew around, so the two of them naturally raised their voices
”The balance is really bad As I thought, ood”
”I think it's much better than the Black Dites you normally use, is it a problem with the safety equipment?”
”It's not that kind of problem How should I describe it It feels really hard to use As I thought, I have to use your Dite”
Harley was happy to hear Nina say that Though many probleo to an Acadeood that they had coht be able to join a platoon With that, you'd be able to carry a Dite earlier too”
”Yeah”
Nina was focusing on regulating her breathing, so her responses were very brief Her gaze didn't leave the h her attitude was serious, her mouth looked somewhat happy Nina hadn't been able to participate in this kind of official competition in the Senou City Schneibel, so she was probably very happy
Nina's family - the Antalk family - could be called a famous family of Military Artists It was said to have existed since Schneibel appeared, so they were probably the most ancient family of Military Artists
Harley's family was all noreneration after generation, so they were very involved with Military Artists Harley had becoe, and they got along well enough to go to an Acadeether
”Nina Antalk”
”Here!”
Nina headed to the corounds after her nao
(Well, we're not lovers or anything, but)
That didn't e relative
The match started
”Yaaaaah!”
Nina shouted loudly, her Kei flowthe air rumble
Even if they were just undeveloped first-year Military Artists, Harley couldn't follow their h he didn't kno the battle was turning out, Harley didn't doubt that Nina would win
As he thought about the parameters of the Dite in her hand, Harley felt an itchy sensation on the back of his head
After turning and looking over, he saw a boy in a wheelchair close by, near the entrance Was he also a first-year student? A Military Artist wearing fighting gear was next to hi over here, so it was uncertain whether he was listening to the Military Artist next to hi over Harley, and directed towards Nina's loomy expression And it was very sharp
The Military Artist next to him excitedly spoke to him But the boy in the wheelchair manipulated his wheelchair and turned, then left the colanced at that Military Artist, but he just roup
”Hmm?”
All Harley could do was tilt his head and put on a confused expression
Nina won overwhele and then entered the elih that elimination tournament without trouble and obtained victory
◇
The fourteenth platoon ca for Nina
The captain, Ozark Hankley, was a sixth-year student He belonged to the oldest class, and hence his appearance was clearly entle smile appeared naturally on his face She felt like the atreat tree standing at ease in the forest
shi+n Kaihan came with him, a third-year student Thata bird with luxurious pluh that was Nina's first iood ood impression of shi+n
That was because his laid-back impression was very unfamiliar to Nina Theher father, had h shi+n wasn't the complete opposite, he was completely unlike any man Nina had interacted with until now
Even so, she could instantly see that Ozark was trustworthy and that this was a very notable event Though Nina felt that iroup of Military Artists right after entering school seemed a bit too easy, she accepted the offer
The next day, the badge of the fourteenth platoon and a license to carry weapons were in Nina's hands
Harley took the Dite she had gotten with that license and borrowed a fieldwork classroom from the alcheed to borrow this classroo it Since there wasn't much time, he rapidly turned on the portable ter to work
Ozark had showed a pained expression when she said she was letting Harley, as just a first-year and not even in the alchemy department, maintain her Dite But Nina had explained Harley's history and vouched for hi to Harley
”But rown up in a family of Dite technicians, and it was also a fact that he had come here to help maintain Nina's Dites He was confident about how to maintain Nina's iron whips to be most suited for her use
But this wasn't Schneibel, it was Zuellni It wouldn't be strange for people to feel unhappy about the explanation that it would be better for a newly-entered first-year student to ive ithi data He first put the data of the Dites that Nina had always used before leaving Schneibel into the terht, and strength since then, adjusting the nu since written a siured with the pair of iron whips Nina used It was a specific program that only Nina could use, and the Antalk faenerally weren't shared with outsiders, so Harley couldn't let other people see this si trusted, it was more like the Antalk faram because he was fro the new nue anywhere He had already done this yesterday, so he was just doing this as a precaution
Military Artists' battles were carried out at a world of high speed driven by physical ability A slight , which could further reduce speed
In battles outside the city, even slight da filth monsters that could easily kill in one strike, these effects beca corners would create life-threatening problems for the Military Artists who used these weapons
So he couldn't let hiles in the time permitted to him
”Are there any proble problems
”Okay, that's it then”
He decided the nus here All that was left was to press the buttons on Nina's iron whips
Just as Harley planned on pressing the buttons, the door opened
”Huh?”
The fieldwork classroo sound
Someone had pulled open the door with brute force
After reflexively looking back, Harley saw h footsteps They wore Military Artist outfits, but their faces looked barbaric and unlike the Military Artists Harley were used to
”Uht now”
Harley had a bad premonition
Even so, he still tried to say this to the on to some kind of hope
There were three h they heard Harley's words, they just showed villainous smiles and didn't reply
”Um”
The men surrounded the shocked, frozen Harley
”Do you need so?”
”Yeah, ant to let you taste some pain”
”Hm? Huuh?”
”Don't worry, don't worry, we'll just break an aret it treated in three days at the hospital, so you don't need to worry, right?”
”No, I'm worried!”
Harley couldn't understand the situation In any case, he was sure that so
There were other classroo on Though that felt strange, the current Harley could only open and close his mouth like a fish out of water
”Well, you were just unlucky”
After saying this, one of theto be broken - Harley i and his eyes closed
”Wait”
”Hah? What!?”
Just as his eyes closed, a new voice reached hiloo of his arrabbed disappeared, and then came the sound of screams and fierce noises
”Huh?”
After Harley timidly opened his eyes, what showed up was the wheelchaired boy from before He was between Harley and the men
One of them was flat on the floor
”What's up with you!?”
The re two men shouted at the boy But the boy didn't back down, continuing to look at the aze
He wore a General Studies uniform, but opposed Military Artists as if it were natural
”You trash are too noisy Shut up like the honorless cockroaches you are”
Though it was just a low mumble, it wasn't inaudible
The expressions of the ed at the boy
He was going to get killed - Harley thought
But things didn't turn out like that
A strong wind blew through the fieldwork classroom, and the portable terminal instantly lifted up with a clatter
It happened before Harley's eyes The boy took his hands off of the wheel of the wheelchair, grabbing the hands that the s fleards the ceiling as they turned upside down
After the boy casually swept his arms out, the men were tossed onto the already-unconscious ape The boy, who returned his hands to the wheelchair, sighed listlessly, and then faced Harley again
”ThThank you”
Harley lowered his head, unsure what to do
The boy ignored Harley's h his face ell-sculpted, his eyes were as sharp as when Harley had first seen hi
”U what to do
”Move the center of mass on the left side down by three centiht side is fine this way But it's best to move the left center of mass down to reduce the strain”
The boy left only those words, and then stared at the unconsciousirritated
The aisles between the tables placed in the fieldwork room were very narrow The fallen men would be extremely obstructive if he were to use the wheelchair
In the end, he stayed there until the city police arrived
He seemed completely to be in a bad ry at Harley for so
Harley introduced himself and also learned his name
Kirik Seron
◇
ThisHarley quickly reached Nina's ears
The one who told her about this was a second-year girl who looked bleary-eyed She had talked to Nina while she was looking at the bulletin board during noon break
”Is that true?”
Nina couldn't understand the thinking behind Military Artists attacking ordinary people Every city forbid Military Artists froth on ordinary people Once an injury was judged to be deliberate, the punishment would be dozens of tiht the injury was Depending on the situation, it was possible to be expelled from the city That was the death sentence
The difference in physical ability between Military Artists and nore, and there was a need to enact such steep measures in order for the two sides to coexist
On the other hand, there was also the law that when so happened to a Military Artist, he had to be protected
”At the ti class soerous~”
Her drawn-out tone dued to keep calive
”Who were those guys?”
”The police already captured them~ He wasn't hurt either, so you can relax”
Nina knew that Harley hadn't been hurt, since the Dite that Harley had finished fine-tuning was already strapped on her waist Harley hadn't iven the Dite to her
”That idiot”
After cursing at Harley fro
She didn't understand why delinquent Military Artists would be going after Harley, who had just entered school They were probably approaching Harley for other motives
Then, why?
There was no need to consider it at all The two of them had both just entered school and hadn't been able to make anyone who counted as a friend yet They were the closest to each other
”Was it to get e that had happened to Nina was her joining a platoon Maybe that was the reason
”It's Gattirl still said that name with her laid-back tone
”Gattman Gray~ He's a third-year Military Artist, and fa a delinquent and for his Military Arts technique But! I heard that he lost all his opportunities to join a platoon because he was a delinquent”
”Meaning that he's going after me?”
”It seems like he marketed himself a lot towards the fourteenth platoon The captain also ed his ways, but since your joining the platoon is a foregone conclusion, his a”
Her worries were correct This girl thought the sa this to Nina
”Thank you very much, uh”
”I'm Selina~ Selina Vin”
”Thank you very much Then”
”Ah, wait~”
Selina's voice calling for her to stop cah she heard it, she could no longer stop
Nina got through her afternoon classes Afterwards was still her first platoon training Though this was her first day er in Nina's mind
NoNina wouldn't cool down
It was anger Of course, it was because he had struck out at Harley, but she couldn't turn a blind eye to how he vented his resentment towards Nina on Harley first
Of course, Nina didn't like hoanted to stab her in the back since he couldn't face her head-on
Gatt about that person
It took Nina until the evening to find the place he hung out
That place was in a building, and it seemed to be a place where older students consue restrictions set by the Student Council marked on it Gattman was a third-year student, so he shouldn't be able to enter this store
Though a 'closed' sign was hung on the door, loud h force to break the door
The inside clearly hadn't been properly cleaned, and she really couldn't i drawn to drink in this place Trash was everywhere, and dried-out food debris was left on the floor The srilared at the people inside the store
Sofas and tables had been used to et was in the innermost place inside the store
”You're”
”Are you Gatth the store, and the bottle of alcohol nearest to Gattman shattered The small amount of liquid that had remained inside splashed on the corner of his mouth Gatt cronies next to him did the same
Five people All Military Arts students
Meaning that all of them were the same as the people who had attacked Harley?
”You're shameless!”
The men reacted to Nina's impulsive words
Gattman reached out a hand to stop their movements
”Yo, new student Do you want to join?”
”I don't want to listen to you hallucinate”
Nina ignored Gatt a stance that made her ready to draw her Dites anytime
”You attacked Harley Why?”
”Because he was too arrogant”
”What did you say?”
”I shouldn't need to say anything about aa platoon, but aDites is just the same He won't understand unless he learns a lesson”
Gattman smiled as he spoke
”You should understand your position, first-year”
”Position? You said position?”
That word er beco position, then what is a piece of trash like you co about!? So about the future You should understand your own position!”
”You can talk, huh”
Gattman's hand reached to his weapon belt
Nina also pulled her Dites out from her weapon belt
”Restoration”
The restoration keywords sounded through the store almost simultaneously Two iron whips appeared in Nina's hands, while a soe knife appeared in Gattman's hands
(A knife?)
To be honest, Gatte physique To Nina, a knife that emphasized small movements seemed unnatural in the hands of sonored that kind of hesitation and urged her on Gattman's cronies didn't move In addition, they even backed away to ht
Gattman moved first
(Fast!)
The recoil of his feet kicking off the ground broke apart the sofa, and Gatt the knife down from above Nina blocked the strike with her left iron whip The Kei flow coiled around the knife became external Kei, and Nina also released external Kei from her iron whip The shockwaves destroyed each other and produced an invisible explosion The vibrations from the explosion made Nina's eyes lose function for a moment
Even so, Nina still twisted her body That was because she felt some kind of preht side
Pain fro stabbed made Nina back off Her attack also locked down Gattman's movements, so he didn't pursue
Her vision instantly recovered
There was a bloodstain on the right side of her abdoround
It wasn't a Dite weapon, but rather an ordinary knife Her muscles had refused to allow the knife to enter her body, so it hadn't reached her organs The fact that the knife had fallen loose when she backed off was proof
Gatt face was reflected in her eyes He held two knives of the sa jacket was opened, the inside faintly visible The ied knives entered her eyes
He had a large nu knives hidden on his body
”You”
”Dites aren't the only way to fight”
Gattht at Nina
Nina dodged
Gattman closed the distance
The pain from her abdomen slowed her movements Even so, Nina parried Gattman's attack and then turned her defense into offense A strike froh the air, and the shockwave destroyed the sofas and tables around thee physique, his h if a single scrape slows you down”