“Before today’s match starts, I’m going to attack Shinomiya Amane while he’s in the waiting room,” Shizuku confessed to Alisuin as they were walking back to the tournament venue from the department store. It was right after they’d finished picking out new clothes for Sara Bloodlily.
“What? What do you mean, Shizuku?” Alisuin responded, so shocked that she stopped in her tracks.
“I mean exactly what I said,” Shizuku answered in a firm voice. “It’s the only way I can think of to defeat Shinomiya Amane’s Nameless Glory. As far as I can tell, it’s a Noble Art with an extremely powerful influence over fate. If he wishes for his victory or my defeat, my powers won’t be able to do much. I can only control natural phenomena, after all. One way or another, events will be twisted to work out in his favor. Perhaps I’ll end up forfeiting like the Doctor Knight and his second-round opponent did. In fact, it’s better to assume that’s the likely outcome. Chances are, I won’t even get to step into the ring, which means I won’t have a chance to fight him. So I was thinking, why not use this inevitability to my advantage?”
“How so?”
“If my loss is set in stone...why not make it a loss due to breaking the rules and attacking my opponent outside of the ring? That way, I won’t have to fight against my fated defeat, but I’ll still have a chance to beat Amane. It’s the only thing I can think of to bypass Nameless Glory and let my blade reach him.”
Alisuin nodded in understanding. That certainly was one way to overcome Amane’s insane ability. Since he had absolute confidence in his Nameless Glory, he wouldn’t be expecting it either. It wasn’t a bad strategy on paper. There was one problem, though.
“But that still means you’ll be out of the tournament!” Alisuin exclaimed.
Beating Amane that way required Shizuku to give up her right to fight in the tournament, which defeated the purpose of beating him in the first place.
“That’s fine with me,” Shizuku said simply.
“What?!”
“As a nature-controlling Blazer, I have no way of interfering with fate like he does. If he were only using his abilities during the match, it would be possible for me to find some way to overcome them, but since he’s twisting fate from well before the match starts, there’s nothing I can do. However, that’s no reason for me to give up. If I’m going to be forced to forfeit for some reason or another anyway, I’d rather take him down with me. Besides, you heard what he said to Onii-sama after Stella-san’s match, didn’t you?”
“I did...”
“And you know what? That’s exactly why I need you to keep getting hurt. Spill more blood. Get beat up even more. The worse things get for you, the harder I’ll cheer you on! I want to see you fight fate again and again and again until you finally break!” Those words and the horrifying smile with which Amane had said them were etched deeply into Shizuku’s and Alisuin’s memories.
“I can’t allow someone as dangerous as him near Onii-sama. I don’t mind losing so long as he doesn’t make it to the semifinals. I’ll hurt him badly enough that he won’t be able to recover in a day or two, knocking him out of the tournament.”
It would certainly be in character for Shizuku to sacrifice herself for Ikki. But even so, Alisuin couldn’t approve of that course of action.
“Shizuku... You’re right that he’s dangerous, and I do understand your worries. But underhanded moves like this go against the spirit of Mage-Knights.”
“Tell that to him. If he hadn’t cheated and used his powers outside of the match to make both of his opponents forfeit, I wouldn’t even think of doing this.”
“I see where you’re coming from, but...as much as it pains me to admit it, we can’t prove that he cheated. He can always claim that his opponents forfeiting was just coincidence, and there’s no evidence that can definitively convince the Management Committee otherwise. In your case, though, Shizuku, you’ll be disqualified for sure. And that’s not all. You might even get expelled for such a blatant breach of conduct.”
Indeed, Shizuku’s plan might be able to get past Nameless Glory, but it was a deadly double-edged sword. If anything, she was risking far more than she stood to gain.
“Ikki won’t be happy to see you taking such risks for his sake either,” Alisuin continued. “Hell, it’s not just him. Stella-chan will be disappointed as well.”
As will I.
“Believe me, I know. Onii-sama and Stella-san are both too kind for their own good,” Shizuku replied, smiling sadly. “But you know, Alice, I had a lot of fun today. I got to spend it with my beloved Onii-sama, his beloved Stella-san, and you. Well, there was an extra who got in our way, but still, I had a wonderful time. It’s not just today either. It’s been nothing but fun times since I enrolled in Hagun Academy. But you know...it wasn’t like that in the past. Unlike when I was living in that stifling house, I know without a shadow of doubt that everyone’s enjoying themselves as much as I am. I’m truly glad that I came to Hagun.”
There was a hint of nostalgia in Shizuku’s voice. It was as if she knew nothing would be the same after today.
“Shizuku, you...”
“I’m sorry, Alice. But I can’t just stand by and do nothing when I know disaster is heading toward Onii-sama.” Even if it means I get expelled. Even if it means I never get to hang out with everyone like this again. “This time, it’s my turn to protect him.”