Chapter 573 - Backstage
"—For the very first match, I sure got a ridiculously tough opponent…"
This mission was a different beast from the last Four Pillar War, where I basically did whatever I wanted, or the 'White Throne' subjugation battle. In a way, this was my first true 'duty as a title holder to the public.'
And so, I went in fired up, only for the first round to be… that. The words that spilled from my mouth the moment I returned to the Round Table, my now-familiar home, were my true feelings, leaked out as the tension drained away—to be honest, I was acting calm during the match, but I was terrified.
It was no joke; he was an opponent where an 'accident' wasn't an impossibility…
"I'm a million percent sure your opponent is thinking the same thing, you know."
"It looked like… a complete victory."
The 'spectators'… my two senpais who had already left the venue and returned, offered a retort and a question to my muttered comment. I suppose I have to explain it to them carefully.
Just how 'ridiculously tough' Kanata, the user of that boyish avatar, really was.
—When it comes to the ABCs of close combat, he's actually a complete amateur.
I'm speaking to the two little ones, whose perspectives are that of ordinary people with 'average' kinetic vision and reaction speeds—which would put them at the bottom of the barrel by title holder standards, and dead last by the standards of the top tier.
"No, that was dangerous… It could have turned into a repeat of my fight with Irori."
As I sank into the Fourth Rank's seat and stated the 'fact' with a straight face, they must have realized I wasn't joking.
Mi-na's expression, which had been half-exasperated, half-teasing, cramped into a "Seriously?"
"…His movements were incredible, I'll give you that. But was he really that good?"
Ri-na, still skeptical, tilted her head and posed a question. In response, I gave one nod and one clarification.
"Yeah, and, well. If we were to fight for real, I'd win a hundred times out of a hundred."
This wasn't some childish boast or conceit; I was being serious. As someone aware of my position, where I can't joke around too much, I try to analyze the fighting strength between myself and others with complete seriousness.
"It was a matter of compatibility, I guess. We were 'of the same kind' with similar styles. If we both went all out… the one with the superior specs would naturally win."
"Hoh? You've started talking big, onii-san."
"He's grown."
Well, I'll ignore the teasing comments.
"But, you know… from a position where I can't go all out because I have to assess my opponent, I realized that I'm the natural enemy for a type like me. It's too scary. I don't want to fight it."
"A type like you?"
That would be, of course, the core style that allowed me to defeat the [Sword Protector] and the [Sword Queen].
"A surprise box that spams first-time-kill moves with sheer momentum."
"Ah… well, Irorin was toast, wasn't he? And the 'momentum' in 'sheer momentum' is insane."
"A Giant Killing Specialist."
It's not like I intentionally built myself that way, but… well, that's how it is.
In any case, 'that' is surely a kind of magic trick whose danger can't be understood just by watching from the outside—by anyone other than me, who actually faced it.
"Kanata, he completely predicted my movements after he closed his eyes."
No, 'predicted' is too soft a word.
"It was more like… with the precision of future sight."
"Hmm…? Is that, like, your 'eyes,' onii-san?"
"The skill name I overheard sounded similar. It might be a skill from the same family… but at the very least, his response wasn't at a level where he was just seeing one second into the future."
It was a series of counters so perfect it was as if he had chosen the best option from countless visible futures. There's the prerequisite of 'within the realm of what Kanata could execute,' but it's a fact that he pried open a clear enough opening for me to be forced into a finishing motion.
"Wow. I guess, for you to say that much, he must have been really amazing."
"His first-place score in the preliminaries wasn't just for show?"
"Exactly… I'm seriously glad I was on full alert based on the advance info."
Again, he was an opponent where, no joke, an accident wasn't an impossibility.
Intuitively, I feel that skill is dangerous—which, in turn, leads to the evaluation that 'Kanata, who mastered that skill, is the dangerous one.'
In this world, 'skills' are miraculous blessings that realize possibilities the user alone cannot achieve. Conversely, the skills an avatar possesses are the embodiment of the 'talent' sleeping within.
Many of those with unique skills are powerful individuals who have walked a path that led to the manifestation of that skill. It's not everything, but it is one clear indicator.
Which brings me to my conclusion.
"I guess my 'recommendation slot' is pretty much filled already…"
"Oh, after just the first round?"
"A new favorite?"
Well, I mean, come on.
Even setting aside his dangerous hidden card, his battle sense, including his snap judgment, was undeniably top-class. In addition, his high-speed, irregular gliding combat, likely using those 'boots' that seemed to be an Anima for consecutive [Tremble Slide]-like maneuvers, was nothing short of brilliant.
That is, without a doubt, the kind of unique talent our faction is looking for: an Istian.
I may have been the wall he ran into, but he's not a player who should disappear after a first-round defeat. It's my duty as someone who correctly understands his strengths to pull him up.
…Yes, it's a fair judgment as a title holder. Therefore, it is absolutely not—
"…………A favorite?"
"…Why did you ask that twice, Ri-na-san?"
—because I felt a kinship with his fighting style, or because of the passion with which he challenged me, or the spirit he showed in trying to land a single blow until the very end, or his somewhat friendly atmosphere… or anything like that. Things I personally liked about him.
I am by no means pushing for him based on such personal feelings.