Chapter 235 - The Sword That Wishes, The Sword That Hopes, The One Awaited is Here, Part Six
"No, seriously...! I'm sorry from the bottom of my heart, but——————like hell I care!!"
The strong have their struggles—I might be biased by my close association with my master and Irori, but even an idiot like me gets it. I can tell she's carrying all sorts of 'somethings' too.
But—don't screw with me. What's with that look on your face?
I've been shifting up, up, up, up—and from the very beginning, I've been fighting for my damn life without a single change in pace.
And just when I thought I'd finally, finally grazed her with my fingertips—you give me that faraway look? You've got to be kidding me...!
"Hey, Princess, what's with that face—you're not crying, you're smiling! So smile!"
"————"
And don't look like you've been abandoned, either. What do you think all my desperate charges were for?
"I'm not running away, so smile!"
"...Hk!"
"I'm not giving up, so smile!!"
"..., ...hk!"
"—I had a hell of a lot of fun!! What about you, damn it!!"
—Ah, okay.
That's it, really... that smile is the only thing I wanted to see.
"...About thirty more seconds."
"—...Yeah."
After clashing emotions this much, I think it's safe to call us friends—so, as a final, special service from a friend,
"This is the finale—enjoy it with everything you've got, Iris."
[Blink Switch]—[An-ri Galta (Prologue: The Wedge-Fragment that Sings of Eternity)].
"—Manifestation Release."
The keyword is authenticated. From within the shattered iron lump, a withered, ancient sword reveals itself.
"Let's turn this around—[Angalta, God-Wedge Spirit Sword]."
From the white scars carved into it, gold overflows—forming a giant sword of light.
[Exchange Voltate] activates. The count isn't maxed out, but I'll swallow my complaints.
The gold and pale white light merge, emitting a platinum glow that once painted a meteor across the sky.
Even without relying on the momentum of a fall, the me of now, who can imitate the [Sword Saint]'s techniques, can wield this thing—so then... bring it out, bring out that.
"...Hey, 'Haru'."
"...Yeah."
"That was fun."
"Yeah."
"Thank you."
"Hah, don't mention it."
Ugh, we're out of time... I'll listen to whatever you have to say later—
"So you, too... should have more fun."
————Damn it. She's really... when she smiles, she's so beautiful it's absurd.
"—Sword-Gleam Release."
It was a keyword with the same sound as a Terror Armament, and yet that 'sword' was not of the same kind.
"—'In the name of the Sword-King, I now demonstrate divine might.'"
A short, three-line chant.
And yet, the miracle—the 'magic'—that 'sword' brings about surpasses every 'power' that exists in this world.
I know it. I know that 'sword's' true name.
I laughed when I first saw it, but—now that I see you actually holding it with my own eyes...
"—That's cool as hell. I'm jealous."
"—I think yours is wonderful, too."
We both smiled—and stepped forward at the same time.
Ah, this feels so unreal. That I would be the one to challenge that 'name' head-on.
As the two of us closed the distance, strangely slowly compared to before... I looked at the 'sword' gripped in the hands of the approaching girl, a blade that housed a silver radiance.
Alright—steel yourself, me. What you're about to cross blades with is, in every sense of the word, the world itself.
Don't get vaporized in an instant—go at it like your life depends on it, you bastard!!
Five steps left—I raise my sword overhead.
Four steps left—no time for second thoughts, don't look away.
Three steps left—hey, dumbass, now's not the time to be captivated by her smile.
Two steps,
One step,
Alright————let's have some fun!!
An overhead swing, coming straight down.
Following a trajectory I'd decided on from the start, I unleashed my all-or-nothing, ultimate strike with the combined outputs of my 'inner' and 'outer' strength—
And the girl, who just looked straight at me, her smile scattering tears, chanted its name as she faced the world.
"Weave the world————[Arcadia, Ideal Land Embracing the Old Moon]!!"