"More… than that…?" I inadvertantly murmured. "Kuroyuki… are you expecting me to reach your level…?"

    "…I won''t ask for the impossible." Kuroyuki said to me with a stern look.

    And some hints of pity in her eyes.

    "That said… you seemed to know that those guys aren''t your ordinary people."

    "…It was frustrating," Kuroyuki murmured with her brows slightly furrowed. "…It only took me one exchange to understand that I could never surpass their talents no matter how hard I try."

    This means August Whisperwind, Persia Silverlight, Crimson Veludora Blaze, Kronos Y Chronoclock and Rumelia Heartlock is strong enough to make even Kuroyuki Shiroha acknowledge them.

    "Let''s start with August Whisperwind, then," I murmured. "I know you were going all out against August when you are exchanging blows with your swords."

    "…That was the 57th time I''ve challenged him with my swordsmanship."

    When hearing that, I inadvertently took a deep breath.

    57th time…?

    Poor August.

    "…You were thinking of something rude, weren''t you…?" Kuroyuki glared at me.

    "Ehem, may I ask why?" I avoided the topic.

    "…Because I want to defeat him in terms of swordsmanship."

    "I don''t think you understand anything at all." I inadvertently retorted.

    "…If only my swordsmanship is as powerful as his…"

    She''s not listening at all.

    "…those exchanges made me stronger… but the same goes for him as well." She continued. "…If my swordsmanship grew by one level, then he''d be a five."

    "…This explains why he could break your swordsmanship that easily."

    "…No," Kuroyuki uttered with frustration. "…You don''t understand at all…!"

    I was sincerely surprised.

    "Wait… Really…?" I inadvertently uttered. "…He defeated you in your OWN swordsmanship…!?"

    "…The Fubuki Sakura (樱吹雪), also known as the Blowing Cherry Blossom Snow… is my father''s own created mixture of spear and sword arts… August learnt it during our first duel, and he modified it to his own swordsmanship and crushed me in my swordsmanship."

    "Eh… In just one exchange…? He really is a genius." I murmured. "But still, Kuroyuki… your spear arts are just as good as his swordsmanship, no? You easily repelled him whenever you are holding your spear."

    "…Think, before you answer," Kuroyuki uttered coldly.

    There''s more…? Did I miss something…?

    "Oh… right." I inadvertently murmured. "His pinkie is broken."

    "…Correct. With his pinkie broken, about half of his grip strength is gone, his precision and control won''t be as accurate as before— and yet, he could even give me a hard time."

    "No wonder you were that worried. If it''s just as what you say… he could become a tough opponent in the Knights Tournament."

    "…Have you ever seen anyone using a sword as their primary weapon nowadays?" Kuroyuki asked me.

    "Well, it''s not like I have seen anyone using spear, cards, fists, strings, rapier and a bunch of junk as their primary weapons either," I replied. "It''s surprising that only four out of ten students in S Class had guns as their main weapon."

    "…True." Kuroyuki somehow giggled, seeming to agree with my point. "…Why do you think I would mention that he''s a swordsman? He had something that we have in common."

    I immediately understood what she meant.

    "No way…! August— he— he had the ''Force of Will''…!?"

    "…Remember my freezing slash that gouged out a piece of the ground… and the spear thrust that froze the tree?"

    "Err, I think I remember…? Did you clad your weapon with ''Offensive Cladding'' to make such attacks?"

    "…Or with enough explosive power on your arm, you could do it," Kuroyuki added. "…August could deflect that slash back to me with ease."

    "I know. I have seen how he deflected Kronos''s sword back to you just like that."

    "…Speaking about Kronos… what do you think about him…?"

    "Among them… I think he was the weakest of them all. And of course… what I mean is in terms of fighting prowess."

    "…Just as what I thought, as well— but…"

    "You were wondering just how many arsenals he could pull out from his dimensional storage."

    "…His technology alone could cover the loss for his talent in martial arts."

    "He would definitely pair up with Rumelia, without a doubt," I said.

    "…You seemed to learn about their relationship as well."

    "Oh, they are childhood friends."

    "…I envy them," Kuroyuki said blandly.

    With the topic steering towards the danger zone, I immediately pulled it back.

    "If Rumelia were to take out the latest model of her combat automata paired up with Kronos''s arsenal… What do you think our chances of winning…?"

    I think we will be fighting an army instead of two people.

    What''s more, automata are considered legal weapons… depending on the amount you could control.

    "…I could probably hold off on my own, but you… You would die without a doubt."

    "Haha, I hope not," I said. "But then, if that''s how she fights… she won''t be needing her strings and martial arts, isn''t it…? I don''t think that''s her way of combat."

    "…Don''t forget we still have singles match."

    "Oh, that explains now. So it depends on the matches."

    Somehow, Kuroyuki broke eye contact while seeming to be in deep thoughts.

    "…I wondered who will Blaze pair up with…?" She murmured.

    "You seem to care much about him," I said. "Maybe it''s because both of you had a trait in common? Haha."

    "… I-I''m not feeling lonely at all…! Not at all…!"

    Kuroyuki screamed at me with her face redden.

    She usually had this cold, stern look.

    "Come to think of it… Principal told me that Blaze got all the way to the 4th place with just his fist alone. So just how skilled are Blaze''s martial arts…?"

    "…To be specific, it was hand-to-hand combat," Kuroyuki remarked. "I probably won''t be able to find another martial artist of my age as skilled as him."

    "Did he went all out against you…?"

    "…Unfortunately, no," Kuroyuki replied. "…Even after for 27 official matches and 54 unofficial matches."

    "Kuroyuki… I know you are somewhat a battle junkie— but can''t you show some restraints…?"

    "…Is there a problem?" Kuroyuki''s tone is as if she thinks it''s not a problem at all.

    Which then, she stood up, patting her pants.

    "…It''s boring with us sitting here. Why don''t you play a game with me…?" She asked. "…I will perform different stances, and you need to guess what type of martial arts it is."

    "Hmm… sure," I replied without a second thought.