Infinite Stratos - Volume 1, page 8
"How did you?"
Facing the shocked Cecilia, I swung the sword downward.
"Uuu..."
Cecilia dodged the attack that came from behind and again waved her right hand. BITs 2 and 3 were deployed.
"These weapons will only move on your commands! Also—"
After investigating the routes, I destroyed the rear boosters of BIT2 to make it fall.
"At that moment, you can't launch any other attacks, because you have to concentrate in order to use them, right?"
"...!"
Cecilia's right eyebrow twitched a bit. Heh, I've nailed it right on the spot! There're only two BITs left, and I can already tell where they're going. They'll definitely come to attack me from an angle where my reaction will be the slowest.
The IS vision field is perfect. However, the humans who use it can't 'look' behind, below and above simultaneously, so when our brain processes the information, the response will be slower by a few seconds. Cecilia must be aiming for this chance to attack. On the other hand, it means that 'I can lure the enemy to attack from where I want it to be'. The logic is simple, I just need to create an opening and let the opponent attack from there, and just wait for it.
(--That will work! I just need to concentrate here.)
I gripped the sword in my right hand again. The training after school that I did with Houki has become unexpectedly useful. The basic of kendo is to strike, and I didn't lose the feeling I've gained from my multiple experiences in the past, even though I've become slower.
And is it my imagination? The IS is moving more agilely. Normally speaking, the more damage the IS has, the functions should decrease, but for some reason, I feel that the response is a lot faster than what it was at the beginning.
(Anyway, if I can close the distance down, I'll have the advantage.)
As what Cecilia declared, her IS is a long-ranged type, and in a distance suitable for close-ranged combat, that large and long rifle is completely useless. And from what I see, she doesn't have any close range equipment.
Even though such equipment might be 'on standby', but even so, since the distance is being reduced extremely quickly, she shouldn't be able to deploy them in time.
This little ray of hope caused my heart to race.
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"Ooh...Orimura-kun's amazing!"
Yamada Maya exclaimed while watching the live broadcast on the screen inside the control room. Truly, the way Ichika is fighting doesn't look like one who has just mounted an IS for his second time at all.
However, compared to Yamada, Chifuyu looked rather irritated.
"That idiot sure looks happy."
"Wh? How do you know?"
"He has been clenching his left hand all this time, right? That's a habit he has had since he was young. When this happens, he'll start to make very simple mistakes.
"Wha...to be aware of that, you two really are siblings!"
Maya just casually mentioned it, but Chifuyu was stunned for a second.
"Ye-Yeah, how should I say it...even if he's like that, he's still my brother..."
"Ah—are you embarrassed? Are you embarrassed?"
"..."
*CRRRAACCCKKK!!* The headlock exploded.
"OOWWWWWW!!!"
"The one thing I hate the most is to be made fun of."
"Yes, yes! I know, I know! So please let go of—OWWWW!!!"
Houki was completely unaware of the commotion Maya was making behind her, staring intently at the screen. For some reason, her expression started to look really scary.
"..."
She wasn't making any praying gesture; Houki isn't the kind of person who would do that.
And thus, because of that, this expression of hers had many feelings within it.
(Ichika...)
While Houki was biting her lip lightly, the battle situation started to change again.
◇
—Got her.
Having entered Cecilia's range, I swung my sword to destroy BIT3, and because of the zero gravity mechanism of the IS, I kicked BIT4 away.
The rifle couldn't aim at me in time, and so this would be a good chance to land a hit on her.
"—I got you."
I see Cecilia smirk—damn it! My basic instincts detect danger and tell me to pull away, but it's already too late.
*PAM*—
The skirt-shaped like armor spread from Cecilia's abdomen, and those parts that suddenly rose up started to move.
"I'm sorry, but there're six Blue Tears!"
I can't dodge them in time! And they're not those laser shooting BITs. These are 'auto-tracking' types.
*BAM*—!
The explosion got so red that it became white as it surrounded me.
◇
"ICHIKA...!"
Watching the broadcast, Houki suddenly shouted out.
Chifuyu and Maya, who were squabbling about just now, looked serious as they stared at the screens' image, that was covered with black smoke.
"—Humph."
While the black smoke scattered, Chifuyu let out a snort. However, she looked as if everything was okay.
"You got saved by the machine, you idiot."
The smoke that vaguely floated around scattered as if it crumbled.
And the pure white machine was right in the middle of it.
That's right, it's true appearance—
◇
—Formatting and optimizing of settings are complete, please press the button to confirm.
(What, what now...?)
The information was sent directly to my consciousness. At the same time, a window appeared in front of me, with a 'confirm' button right in the middle.
Without knowing anything, I pressed the button. After that, a large wealth of information came flowing into me.
—No wait, this should be processed information—
I could understand this based on the feeling. After that, a huge transformation occurred in me.
*CLANG...!*
It's a high frequency sound. However, I feel the gentleness within it.
At that moment, my body got wrapped—no, the light ball that appeared on my IS instantly disappeared and then reshaped itself.
"This is..."
The newly-shaped IS again let out a dim glow. This glow erased all the damage I got just now and refined the appearance of the suit.
"Don-Don't tell me...that's the First Shift? This means, this means that you were fighting with the initial settings right from the beginning!?"
The window that showed 'formatting' and 'settings optimized' seem to mean that.
If so, this is my real suit.
I looked at my suit. Those constructive curves that were there in the beginning were now gone, instead becoming one with the polished curves and sharp edges, giving the feeling of a medieval designed armor.
And then, what had changed the most was my weapon.
—Close ranged enhanced sword [Yukihira Nigata][1B 2].
The blade that seemed to be derived from a Japanese sword. Instead of a sword, it was more of an arched longsword. There was a shallow groove on the blade itself, and it revealed a glow that seemed to respond. From the intricate mechanical function, one could tell that it was definitely made for an IS.
And most importantly, the name.
—Yukihira. That's the name of the weapon that Chifuyu-nee once used. At that time, the sword-shaped weapon that she used was called Yukihira.[1B 3]
...Ahh, this is so touching.
"I really have the best sister in the world..."
No matter whether it's three years ago or six years ago or even fifteen years ago, that person is still my always-reliable sister. However, it's about time for me to end this one-sided protection. From today onwards—
"I'll be the one to protect my family."
"...Ah? What're you saying—"
"Anyway, first of all, I'll defend Chifuyu-nee's name!"
I'm the younger brother of the ex-representative of Japan, so if this brother is weak, it'll be too embarrassing! That's right, how can I let the cool Chifuyu-nee lose her face? Even if it's a joke, there has to be a limit. Besides, this isn't funny at all.
"More like I'll be mocked."
"What are you rambling about...ahh geez, you're too irritating!"
The two BITs again reloaded themselves with guided missiles, and under Cecilia's command, they started to fly over. It's those multi-angle paths again, and they're faster than the shooting type BITs. However—
(I can see them...!)
I clenched my right hand tightly. 'Yukihira' seemed to respond to me as it let out a deep mechanical sound. I know how to use it, since I watched a few of Chifuyu-nee's matches without her knowing, and I remember how she used the 'Yukihira'.
*CLANG—!*
The blade of light flashed, and the BITs that were cut in half moved forward due to the momentum, passing by me before exploding.
Before the explosion reached my back, I again attacked Cecilia. The suit instantly accelerated, and the sensor efficiency was a lot different from before, such that it was easy to control it.
"OOOOHHH!!"
I felt the energy intensity in my hand gradually increasing. At that moment, Yukihira's blade glowed, telling me that it has a tremendous power.
(I can win this...!)
Charging right at Cecilia, I let out a reverse kesagiri[1B 4].
—But, before it could hit her, the buzzer signaled the end of the match.
"Ending the match. Winner—Cecilia Alcott."
...Wha?
"That's strange...?"
My face was most likely filled with 'whys'. Facing me, Cecilia was the same, as her slightly opened mouth revealed a similar expression to mine.
And not just us, all the spectators in the 3rd arena, even Houki and Yamada-sensei, who were watching the match from the control room silently, were the same. Everyone was just shocked.
Only one person...only Chifuyu-nee was giving the 'can't stand you' look.
In these unknown circumstances, the match ended. The result is—I lost.
◇
"Everyone was actually praising you, and this is the outcome we got in return! You big idiot!"
After the match ended, I was upgraded from an idiot to a big idiot. This upgrade wouldn't make me happy at all. Chifuyu-nee's style sure is to not relegate me like this.
"It's because you didn't consider the special characteristics of the weapon before you used it. Now you have experienced it for yourself already, right? From tomorrow onwards, start working hard. Activate the IS when you have time, got it?"
"...Yes."
I nodded. Guess I could only do that...who asked me to lose despite acting so confident.
"Well, the IS is in standby mode now, but if Orimura-kun calls it, it'll deploy right away. However, there're rules to this, so please study it closely. Here, this is it."
Thud. It made a 'thud' just now. What's this in front of me? Though it has IS activation information on it, it's actually a 'phone directory', right? It's not just thick, the pages are so thin...how many pages are there anyway...
"Anyway, that's it for today. Head back and rest."
This order doesn't consider anyone's feelings at all. I really hope that she can learn from gentle medicine and painkillers. Speaking of which, do I really need to protect this person...?
"Let's go."
Oh, she appeared; another person who lacks gentleness. Her name is Houki, and she's my childhood friend.
I stood up tiredly and prepared to head back to the dorm.
"..."
"Wha-What?"
While walking together, Houki stared at me without turning away. Did she discover some treasure? This treasure called 'me'.
"Loser."
Huh? What's with her!? You're like a priest who lets a dead person revive with 1HP before sending him into a labyrinth, right? On a side note, that revival was a daylight robbery! As the common saying goes: 'the devil resides within everyone'. I didn't expect to witness that illustration first hand.
This should be a new scenario: enter a new chapter, and the plot starts to pummel like crazy, creating a shocking situation. The enemy again shows up as an ally, and the enemy in front turns out to be a dead assistant. The world's fate rests on you—no wait, don't come near me!
"DON'T COME NEAR ME!"
"What?"
"Nothing..."
As that's the main point, I repeated it twice, but since Houki's glaring at me, I better be content with this. 'The most important things are the parts where the human eyes can't reach'. This is something an author casually said before, so 'since I got glared at by Houki, the 9th of April is Houki's memorial day'—something like that.
"Are you making fun of me from within your heart?"
"Where did you get that from."
"Why is your tone so weird?"
"It not weird at all. This is normal, it's normal to speak like this in middle South America."
"Ohh..."
She really drew the wooden sword out quickly. What, are you going to swing your sword around over here? Such a strict fellow. But then, Houki, training the body is different from resting! I can't call it resting if I have to carry out some activity.
*BAM—!*
"OOOOWWWW!!! IT HURTS! YOU, YOU, WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?"
"Since there's an idiot here, I just knocked on him."
What's with that 'I'm holding an umbrella because it's raining' tone? Is it alright for you to keep using violence like that? What's wrong with Japan's security!?
"Are you that thing? The vegetable chopper, or are you the envoy of violence!?"
"Want me to go again?"
"...Sorry, I'll shut up."
With a 'mm', Houki keeps her bamboo sword back. She's scarier than Mount Osore...huh, but Mount Osore isn't really terrifying. (Literally meaning Mount Fear, it's a volcano in the center of the remote Shimokita Peninsula of Aomori Prefecture, Japan. The Bodai Temple near the crater lake is seen as one of the three great spiritual fields.)
"..."
"..."
Houki and I silently walked on. Though it's not that we have nothing to talk about, I'm really affected by today's defeat, and so I have nothing to say to Houki.
At this moment, what I really want to do the most is to take a shower. I think that the feeling that comes from lazing around in the bathtub can't be found in any other activity. I did mention this to Gotanda before, only to be told 'you're like an old man'. Really, he doesn't understand the beauty of a silent simplicity.
(Hm? Speaking of which, don't I have someone like that beside me?)
If it's Houki, she may be able to understand that feeling. Besides, if I were to introduce her as someone from the Edo period, 60% of the foreigners would believe me. The source of this information: me.
"Ichika."
"Hm, what's up?"
That's strange, she's actually talking to me. Is this the so-called telepathy? How convenient, this is so much more convenient than a handphone, and I don't have to pay monthly bills. How alluring.
"That, well, how should I say it...are you unhappy about losing?"
"Well, of course I am."
"Is, is that so? That's good..."
Since when is that good? Are you talking about me losing? You're too much!
"Ah, s-starting tomorrow...that...ah, you have to do IS training."
Continuing with the talk, for some reason, didn't her voice sound rather courteous? Or was it distraught...
"So, in the end, Houki's gonna teach me how to control an IS, right?"
"I, I don't intend to force you! Wouldn't you prefer Chifuyu-sensei to teach you?"
"No, Chifuyu-nee would find it bothersome, and I don't want people to misinterpret it as favoritism."
"How, how about getting a sempai to teach you? As they say, the seniors can teach you lots of things, and it's important to improve yourself."
Seems like instead of trying to change the topic, Houki's been trying to divert it to somewhere strange. And I have no idea if it's just me, but why is she glancing at me? It seems like she's waiting for something.
"Mm, since Houki doesn't want to, I'll just look for someone—"
"I, I DIDN'T SAY THAT I DIDN'T WANT TO!"
I got terrified at her, shouting out all of a sudden. Houki seemed to notice that she got too fierce, as she immediately pulled herself together.
"That, that...ahem, I-Ichika, do you want me to teach you...?"
"That's right."
At least it's easier than having to get other girls to teach me, and she's Tabane-san's little sister, so she should be able to understand ISs pretty well, right?
"Is, is that so...hoho, I see. I guess it can't be helped."
Why is she so happy all of a sudden? Did something good happen?
She seemed to be extremely happy as she again started playing with her hair, continuing to flick her long ponytail apart with her fingers.
"Alright, I'll teach you then. This is a special exception!"
For some reason, it felt like she emphasized the words 'special exception' quite a bit.
But that's right. Truthfully, I'm really grateful for that. If I were to continue losing to girls, my man's pride would definitely die. Though it's already half dead, when that happens, it'll be completely dead.
"Starting tomorrow, make sure to leave some time after school, okay?"
"Okay."
Since I have no clubs that I can join (they're all girls' clubs), this is perfect.
Basically, I can't stand having to smear Chifuyu-nee's reputation like that. No matter what, I have to make myself stronger.
"Oh yeah, Houki."
"Hm, what is it?"
Oh, she's still in a good mood. I then gave an honest question I've been harboring up till now.
"Have you been holding yourself from going to the bathroom all this time?"
*BAM—!* The bamboo sword let out a sound.
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