Chapter 410: The Melee Begins!
"Did you hear? Shion took first place again."
"Must be nice. Everything goes smoothly for him just because he's lucky."
"Right. Remember the fire at school? Amamiya saved us, but what if he caused it himself?"
"I'm not accusing him. But what if he subconsciously wanted to become a hero, and then…"
"That's possible. Even the mayor came to praise him. He really did become a hero."
"He's lucky, always places first, and succeeds at everything. I'm so jealous."
"Stop talking. It'll be bad if he hears us. We can't bully him when we don't know how he might retaliate."
"How scary. We should keep pretending to be friendly with him, just like before."
...
Shinomiya Amane's original name was Amamiya Shion.
That former name represented the past he had sealed deep within his heart.
When he joined Rebellion, he changed his name in an attempt to sever himself from the memories he never wished to revisit.
However, Luke thanking him for his ability unconsciously dragged those painful experiences back to the surface.
It had been a long time.
Ever since Amane decided to use his power for evil rather than good, he had never again heard such nauseating gratitude from another person.
No one had ever been willing to believe in him.
No matter how hard he worked or what achievements he earned, all he ever received was false praise and hollow thanks.
Back then, he had desperately struggled through each day, firmly believing effort would always be rewarded.
Now, recalling even the smallest fragment of those memories made him sick.
No one had ever looked at him.
They only saw the goddess standing behind him, and everything he accomplished was credited to her blessing.
The person named Shinomiya Amane was nothing more than a puppet dangling from the Goddess of Fate's strings.
...
The instant the referee announced the beginning of the match, the first to move was not Luke, but Amane!
His Device took the form of two rapiers, one held in each hand. The moment the match began, Shinomiya Amane charged directly at Luke!
That was right.
He had chosen close combat against Luke!
"You've got to be kidding! Bad Luck is the one initiating a sword fight?!"
"His opponent is Falling Star Sword Emperor Luke!"
"Could he secretly be skilled with a sword?"
Amane's unexpected action caused discussion to erupt throughout the audience. Even Luke could not help feeling slightly surprised.
Luke was certain Amane possessed no swordsmanship whatsoever.
Still, since the other party had chosen to charge, Luke did not mind playing along.
Swoosh—!
Starfall Sword instantly left the sheath at his waist, transforming into a streak of sword light that flew directly toward the approaching Amane.
The strike possessed impressive speed and force. Combined with Starfall Sword's sharpness, it carried considerable power.
However, that was all.
To Luke, a swing of this level could not even be considered an attack.
He was literally just playing around.
Even so, it was not something just anyone could withstand.
At Luke's current level, even a casual swing contained a natural and refined trajectory, despite him not consciously using any sword technique.
Masters such as Ikki or Moroboshi might have been able to read it, but an untrained amateur like Amane certainly could not.
Yet in the next instant, an astonishing sight made every spectator with martial training rise from their seats in shock.
Facing Luke's sword, Amane did not dodge at all.
He simply charged forward while wildly swinging both rapiers.
He looked as though he were trying to die.
His charge possessed no technique. There was not the slightest trace of proper movement or footwork, and his rapiers were being swung with almost laughable clumsiness.
The only thing worth noticing was the raw force granted by his mana.
But an attack possessing only power would never hit Luke. Even a martial artist who had barely learned the basics could easily avoid it.
A slight change in technique would break through—
Clang—!
The clear sound of crossing blades echoed across the stage.
It shocked the entire audience and completely overturned their understanding of Shinomiya Amane.
"He actually… blocked it?!"
Anyone with some insight immediately understood what had happened.
No sword technique performed by a human could ever be truly perfect, because perfection itself meant there was no room for further improvement.
As long as there was room to improve, a sword style could not be perfect.
An imperfect technique naturally possessed openings, weaknesses, and stronger or weaker points throughout each swing.
Even Luke and Edelweiss were no exceptions.
Amane's movements were undeniably clumsy, yet the path of his rapier had miraculously struck the weakest point in Luke's sword swing.
Their blades meeting in that manner could only be described as a miracle.
With Luke's current mastery of swordsmanship, even Edelweiss could not precisely identify the weakest point of one of his attacks.
Impossible.
Unbelievable.
Those were the only thoughts in the spectators' minds after seeing Amane's strike.
However, everyone soon realized the explanation.
Anyone could see that Shinomiya Amane could not possibly possess such extraordinary swordsmanship.
Therefore, only one possibility remained…
The effect of Nameless Glory!
"Interesting."
Luke raised an eyebrow and looked at Starfall Sword after it had been deflected, appearing slightly surprised.
Amane had clearly expected this result.
Without hesitation, he swung his other arm and attacked Luke again with another wild, completely unrefined slash.
This time, no one in the audience dared underestimate his clumsy movements.
Everyone held their breath and waited for the result of the second strike.
If their guess was correct, Nameless Glory might make it difficult for even Luke to gain an advantage in close combat.
For a moment, the result of the match became uncertain.
However, just as everyone thought that—
Bang—!
A dull impact rang out, and Shinomiya Amane was sent flying backward!
The venue fell silent as his body crashed completely outside the arena.
The only sound that remained was the clear ring of Starfall Sword returning to its sheath.
At the same time, Luke casually swept his gaze across the audience.
The faint smile at the corner of his mouth seemed to mock their ignorance.
It was true that even Luke's sword swings possessed stronger and weaker points.
Without question, Amane's second strike had once again hit the weakest point.
However, striking the weakest point did not mean he could break Luke's attack.
Even Luke's so-called weakest point was far stronger than the full-powered strike of an ordinary Blazer.
If Luke had possessed a better understanding of causal power, Amane would not have blocked even the first strike.
And that was while Luke had used practically none of his strength.
…
(PS: Vote for more chapters this week. If this fanfic reaches 100+ powerstones, I will increase the daily upload frequency. Also, don't forget to write a review!)
---
Read more than 20 chapters in advance:
patréon.com/tom22
Replace "é" with "e" on your web browser.
---
For Audiobook:
youtube.com/@animefic22