Chapter 71 – ７１ – A B-Rank's Debut Match: Suzu

Debut Match Arc

“Now that preparations are complete, let us proceed to the next duel. From the East, Suzu Mikagami! From the West, Sweed!”

Suzu and the male student move onto the stage.

Neither shows any sign of hesitation, nervousness, or complacency.

“Three… two… one… Duel start!!”

“Masquerade Activation. Reflect, Suzu Mikagami.”

“Masquerade Activation. Shroud. Sweed.”

At the signal to begin, both activate their Masquerades.

✧

A thin, disc-like sheet of water appears before Suzu; as it passes over her, her body transforms into that of a Masked Form.

Specifically, a Hannya mask appears on her face, and horns extend from it.

Her body is protected by a dazzling white and red shrine maiden’s outfit.

In her hand, she grips the handle of a Boston bag, from within which a suspicious clashing sound echoes every time she moves.

Thus, the Hannya Shrine Maiden appeared, radiating an ominous aura.

✧

In contrast, Sweed produces a vast number of ribbon-like objects from his Device.

Countless bands made of various materials—leather, cloth, cotton, metal—cover Sweed’s entire body. They hang down like curtains, obscuring where his limbs are or how they are positioned within.

From inside the mass, which retained only a silhouette barely recognizable as human, emerged a three-pronged spear, similar to a trident.

Thus, an unidentified entity appeared, whose orientation was unknown save for the spear.

✧

“I have no intention… of giving you time!”

Sweed took the initiative.

While creating a loud racket as the bands clashed against one another, he charged toward Suzu at a speed no different from any other Masked Form.

Then, although the bands should have clearly been in the way, he swung the spear in a horizontal sweep as if unobstructed.

Naturally, the blade was aimed directly at Suzu.

“I figured. ‘Quick Step’.”

Suzu activated ‘Quick Step’.

With a single step powered by enhanced physical abilities, she evaded Sweed’s spear and created a wide gap between them.

While maintaining that distance, Suzu checked the contents of her Boston bag, grabbed two flasks, and swiftly hurled them at Sweed.

“!?”

An explosion erupted.

The blast echoed not only on the stage but throughout the entire venue, and a crimson flower of flame bloomed right next to Sweed, matching the volume of the sound.

“Thermal energy is lacking. A dud, then.”

Having witnessed the result of her action, Suzu immediately moved to her next.

She took a test tube and several tablets from the Boston bag.

She dropped the tablets into the liquid in the test tube, shook it quickly to dissolve them, brought the contents to the mouth of the Hannya mask, and drank it down.

“It wasn’t as hot as it looked… but it might have been dangerous if it weren’t me.”

Meanwhile, Sweed emerged from the explosion.

Several of the bands were scorched, but his movements remained fluid, and he showed no signs of having taken damage.

“She took medicine… given the situation, I should assume it’s some kind of buff. In that case.”

Sweed charged toward Suzu once more.

Sweed’s Masked Form ensured defensive power through the massive amount of bands hanging from his body, while simultaneously preventing the opponent from grasping the movements of his face or limbs.

If he hid even the tip of the spear, the opponent wouldn’t know where he was looking or where an attack would come from.

Furthermore, the function of Sweed’s Masked Form was that he could ignore the very things that should have hindered his own movements.

Leveraging this ability, Sweed rushed toward Suzu while keeping the spear’s tip concealed.

Once he had closed the distance sufficiently, from Suzu’s perspective, the tip of the spear lunged out—from where, when, and how, it was impossible to tell.

It was thrust forward at a speed that Suzu’s normal reaction time should never have been able to keep up with…

“You won’t hit me.”

“You’re dodging!?”

Suzu evaded it with ease.

Moreover, as they passed each other, she launched a kick, mounting an attack.

However, the strike was light and dealt no damage to Sweed.

Suzu immediately retreated, and Sweed swung his spear in a counterattack, but it hit nothing but air.

“Hmm. So there really is a body under those bands.”

“Of course there is. Did you think the bands themselves were the body?”

However, even such a light attack was enough for Suzu.

Inside the mass of bands, there was a proper human body swinging a spear; he was breathing, evidenced by the slight movement of his shoulders; and while the bands were strong against physical attacks, they were not airtight.

Suzu had already gathered the information she needed.

Based on that data, Suzu moved and retrieved several objects from her Boston bag.

“I know there are Masked Forms like that in the world. If that’s the case, the cards I need to play change, so caution is necessary.”

Suzu’s Masked Form’s function could be described in one word: compounding.

It was an ability that could trigger various phenomena by mixing objects generated as the contents of the Boston bag.

Now, Suzu poured three liquids—red, black, and green—at her feet, letting them mix naturally, and dropped several capsules into the blending liquid.

Immediately, a massive amount of smoke erupted, completely blanketing the stage.

“This is…”

“If you don’t want to suffer, I suggest surrendering early. ‘Air Shelter’.”

Through the skill ‘Air Shelter’, a membrane of air deployed around Suzu, preventing the smoke from entering her immediate vicinity.

Everywhere else, however, was engulfed in smoke. The smoke was so thick that one couldn’t see a meter ahead, rendering the stage invisible to those outside.

“…”

The audience was bewildered by the sight.

Despite this being a debut match intended to showcase one’s power to various people, the combatants had vanished from sight.

“—————!?”

Then, a scream rang out.

It wasn’t Suzu’s; it was Sweed’s.

The scream was one of pain and searing heat.

“…”

“—————…”

The screaming continued for a while.

But soon, the screams grew quieter… and eventually ceased.

“Alright. I win.”

Suddenly, the smoke cleared.

Standing alone on the now-visible stage was Suzu, holding empty flasks.

It was a vivid demonstration of who the victor was.

“The… the winner is… Suzu Mikagami!”

“I won, Naru!”

With that, Suzu proudly left the stage.