The conference room door slammed shut with a bang.
Even after Ryoji left, Kurogane Gen didn't call out to stop him, only silently watching him disappear from view.
"Junior Brother got a little carried away," Toudou Touka said, bowing slightly to Kurogane Gen to apologize on Ryoji's behalf. "I hope you won't take offense, Branch Leader."
But shortly afterward, Toudou Touka's tone shifted abruptly.
She seemed to see nothing wrong with Ryoji's outburst, bowing only because he had left so rudely.
"Though I can understand Junior Brother's feelings," she continued. "He must be saddened by the strained father-son relationship between you and Ikki-kouhai."
"What do you mean by that?"
Kurogane Gen withdrew his gaze from the door and turned to look at Toudou Touka, his eyes filled with a probing curiosity.
"Junior Brother is an orphan," Toudou Touka replied solemnly.
Kurogane Gen paused slightly, then nodded thoughtfully.
"He cherishes those around him deeply. If his loved ones and strangers were tied to railroad tracks, he would undoubtedly save his own people without hesitation."
"Having no family of his own, he places extraordinary value on familial bonds, believing them to be the most precious thing in the world. Therefore, your decision to abandon your family in the name of maintaining order is utterly incomprehensible to him."
'Because he has no family, he cherishes those around him all the more.'
'Naturally, he despises those who abandon their families from the bottom of his heart.'
What he finds even more unacceptable is that Kurogane Gen once possessed such bonds, only to discard them himself.
That's right.
The person Ryoji had hated from the beginning wasn't Mamoru Akaza. That man was merely a clown.
After Ryoji exposed his conspiracy, Akaza Mamoru was stripped of his Blazer qualification by League headquarters for abusing his power and engaging in grossly unethical behavior. He was imprisoned two days prior.
The person Ryoji truly despised was Kurogane Gen, a man who, despite possessing something he considered invaluable, had willingly abandoned it.
Was order important?
Of course, but it paled in comparison to family.
This was Ryoji's train of thought.
Thus, he and Kurogane Gen could never reconcile.
"By the way, I'm an orphan too," Toudou Touka said with a faint smile.
"So I understand Junior Brother's feelings, but I can't comprehend yours, Branch Leader."
In a sense, Toudou Touka and Ryoji were like two souls huddling together for warmth, each drawing from the other the parts they needed.
This was the fundamental reason for their close bond.
Toudou Touka soon departed as well.
Kurogane Gen remained alone in the conference room, lost in thought for a long time before finally snapping out of it.
...…
In the main auditorium, the award ceremony officially began shortly after the group arrived.
Ryoji, Toudou Touka, Kurogane Ikki, Kurogane Shizuku, and Stella took the stage one by one to receive their medals.
"It has been decided that Toudou Touka will serve as the Captain of the Hagun Academy delegation for this festival," Shinguuji Kurono announced, handing Toudou Touka the Hagun Academy flag.
This meant that Toudou Touka would be responsible for handling all affairs related to Hagun Academy during the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival.
Senior Sister Touka had captained the delegation last year, making her exceptionally experienced, a key reason Shinguuji Kurono chose her.
"Where's Eris?" Kurogane Ikki scanned the surroundings, unable to spot the final member.
"He took the day off," Kurogane Shizuku explained quietly.
With the six representatives officially confirmed, thunderous applause erupted in the auditorium.
These six individuals represented Hagun Academy's top six Blazers this year and embodied the academy's hopes for victory in the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival.
Meanwhile, several kilometers away on a highway outside Hagun Academy...
Arisuin Nagi, a slender and tall beautiful boy, walked alone along the road. At one point, he pulled out his phone.
"Hey, hey, is this the Black Shadow Killer?"
"Our target has been decided, it's Hagun Academy, where you're undercover! You'd better cooperate fully and complete this mission without disappointing me. Heh heh!"
"Understood."
Arisuin Nagi hung up the phone.
Gone was the usual playful banter and teasing; his eyes now held only a chilling, absolute coldness.
...…
It was mid-July.
The rainy season had ended, ushering in summer, and pristine white cumulonimbus clouds hung in the sky.
The first semester at Hagun Academy concluded with the intense selection trials, and the long-awaited summer vacation finally began.
Most students returned to their hometowns, but they remained keenly aware that the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival would be held in August. Everyone eagerly anticipated this year's fierce competition and held unwavering confidence in their school's contestants.
A small number of students remained on campus, either to enjoy the city's conveniences or to take advantage of the school's facilities for intensive training.
Ryoji and the other representative contestants for the Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival were not among them.
For such a major competition, rigorous training camps were standard practice. Given that Blazers specialized in combat, these sessions were especially crucial.
The Seven Stars Sword-Art Festival was a nationally acclaimed grand event, with television stations broadcasting live coverage and conducting interviews. Rumor had it that the broadcast rights for past festivals had sold for over a billion yen!
Originally, Hagun Academy's intensive training camp this year was supposed to take place in the mountains of Okutama.
However, unfortunately, the Puppet Warlock attack had occurred recently.
Being targeted by an enemy hiding hundreds of kilometers away left everyone feeling uneasy, and they suspected the enemy might still be monitoring Okutama. As a result, Shinomiya Kurono made an emergency adjustment.
This year, Hagun Academy's training camp would be conducted jointly with Kyomon Academy at their training grounds in Yamagata Prefecture.
In other words, it would be a joint training camp.
"Hah!"
The spacious arena was designed specifically for mock battles, with heat-resistant materials covering the ground.
Stella didn't need to worry about damaging the arena, allowing her to unleash her full potential. She fully unleashed the extreme heat of her body, continuously pushing scorching flames toward the girl opposite her.
Under the surging golden lightning, the crimson flames couldn't even touch her opponent.
That's right.
This was a mock battle between Stella and Toudou Touka.
Princess Stella, hailing from the small Nordic nation of Vermillion, had come to Japan seeking greater heights and power. But upon arriving, she discovered that even the modest Hagun Academy harbored crouching tigers and hidden dragons.
Determined to grow stronger, Stella had set her sights on surpassing Toudou Touka.
She secretly vowed to achieve her goal of surpassing the academy's strongest student within the seven-day joint training camp!
Boom!
Crimson flames and golden lightning clashed relentlessly, filling the arena with thunderous roars and scorching heat, making it impossible for others to train.
"Amazing! No wonder she's called the Crimson Princess, she's actually holding her own against Raikiri!"
Several onlookers at the edge of the arena were excitedly recording the scene with their cameras.
(End Of This Chapter)
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