Crunch-
Crackle-
Every step sent sparks flying around her legs and body.
Emika frowned as a tsunami of pain washed over her.
When manipulating an alien aura, the body inevitably reacts with intense rejection.
Mimicking Na-me’s unique aura, Emika barely endured severe dizziness and nausea.
At the moment when all cards were laid bare, she made a gamble to turn the losing fight around.
That was to imitate the swordsmanship she learned over Na-me’s shoulder.
Na-me had shown an oddly effortless ability to parry her blades during joint training.
Often, when training in swordsmanship, she finds herself entranced, narrowing her field of vision without realizing it.
Therefore, approaching someone displaying their techniques was considered extremely dangerous within the sect.
Yet, Na-me always effortlessly halted Emika’s sword.
[Na-me, could you show me your swordsmanship just once?]
A question thrown out of curiosity.
[It shouldn’t be difficult.]
A never-before-seen swordplay.
If she hadn’t said that line back then, would she still be standing here now?
She couldn’t be overly optimistic.
Mikhail was struggling to rise with a vicious axe, twisting his body.
“Did you have that trick up your sleeve…?”
“…”
“Well, you’ll know if you keep pummeling me! HRAAAAH!”
With a beastly roar, Mikhail swung his massive wand.
Without hesitation, Emika materialized her inner vision.
Whooom-
As the Demon King’s Horn resonated, the pain lessened.
Still, her head throbbed as if it would burst.
It was too late to control a new aura now.
‘I have to follow my body as best as I can!’
Not questioning anything was crucial above all.
Swinging the sword with the most natural motion was Emika’s specialty.
Clang-!
Every time metal clashed, blue sparks popped.
A thin katana managed to withstand the weight of the massive battle axe without any trouble.
Chak-chak-
The two weapons crossed, momentarily brushing against each other’s sides.
Emika read the bewilderment in Mikhail’s eyes.
She gained more confidence in her swordplay.
The pain was subsiding.
Thanks to the image of wielding swordsmanship in the imaginary world materializing.
However, the natural swordplay that Emika discovered showed minor differences from what Na-me had shown her.
‘The person who used this swordplay was probably at least a hand taller than me. Fundamentally, their movements seemed grand and flashy, so their limbs must have been long. Each strike focuses on heavy cuts, yet their build doesn’t seem enormous. Considering agility and flexibility, they might have a slender, delicate body type?’
The unknown swordsmanship shown by Na-me was far more destructive and straightforward than the Katsuhata style.
But when combined with the aura, it demanded an unsettling level of delicacy.
Simple thrusts were no exception.
In an instant, Emika infused aura into her thumb and spun the katana at high speed.
She bit down hard on her teeth from the pain as her finger dislocated.
The katana made for slicing properly jabbed into the side of the axe.
Thud-!
The massive axe that had once frustrated Emika now spun and flew through the air.
“Ha!”
Four eyes tracked the wand.
Mikhail leaped up, aiming to grab the wand.
Without a moment to think, Emika spread her left palm and conjured a lightsaber.
Emika hurled red spikes, sending the axe flying to the other side of the training arena.
The 60,000 spectators in the Tokyo Dome erupted in unison.
The roar was so loud it made the sand on the arena floor tremble.
Emika’s heart, once cold, now raced uncontrollably.
Mikhail cursed in his native language.
The situation had flipped long ago.
Her mouth felt dry, and she tightened her grip on the katana.
The moment she realized there was just one step left to victory.
“HRAAAAH!”
With a desperate scream, Emika sprang forward immediately.
Mikhail’s eyes bulged with fury as he followed Emika’s movement.
Just as she raised her sword, she surrounded her fist with aura to the limit and thrust forward.
BOOM-!
The sound echoed like cannonfire in the Tokyo Dome.
Mikhail’s eyes widened in shock.
Somehow, Emika was enveloped in her own red aura.
‘Remember, the first technique of the Katsuhata style Omoten no Tachi, Kasumin no Tachi, is called Hercho.’
The information she had engraved in her mind time and again before the match suddenly flashed back with vivid clarity.
As if anticipating the enemy’s counterattack,
Emika angled her body and slashed at Mikhail’s unguarded upper side.
SWOOOOOSH-!
“Hah… Hah… Hooou.”
Clunk-
Emika smoothly sheathed her katana with graceful hand movements.
The deafening cheers invaded her ears uncontrollably.
She exhaled the breath she had been holding, her shoulders heaving up and down.
Despite the battle-like situation, the sky remained remarkably peaceful.
Emika stared blankly at the score display.
[Final Match 63]
[LOSE: Mikhail Balabanov (Russia)] [8%(☠️Complete Destruction) | 23%]
[WIN: Katsuhata Emika (Japan)] [22% | 13%(⚠️Irrecoverable)]
The moment she had been dreaming of was approaching.
“I won… I did it, I won, I really won…”
People from the Katsuhata Sect dashed at full speed from the training arena entrance.
Finally, Emika burst into tears, delighting in her hard-earned victory.
*
“The Katsuhata Sect certainly saved face, huh?”
With winning the National Exchange Tournament, they achieved everything they aimed for, including proving aura swordsmanship.
Regardless of the interim process, they concluded it with Katsuhata swordplay.
Under the leadership of Lord Akitaro, everyone from the Katsuhata Sect descended to congratulate her.
The Russian coaching staff left the VIP lounge as soon as the results were confirmed.
The once-crowded sky lounge was now empty.
“Wow, Emika was awesome, right? I think I’ll be a fan from today!”
In the meantime, Adella took the seat of the Lord.
I approached the glass wall, overlooking the arena drowned in cheering.
The audience seating had not stopped clapping for ten minutes.
In Japan, where magic battles have become mainstream as a sport, there were even hymns praising Emika.
[27th Champion of the National Exchange Tournament, Katsuhata Emika]
A large airship floated over the Tokyo Dome, fluttering celebration banners.
“Wow, they really do everything. Would’ve been a disaster if they hadn’t won?”
“First finals in ten years and victory in thirteen years. The emotion must be on a different level.”
“Does Korea have a trophy?”
“The most recent one was eleven years ago.”
“Oh wow… that feels like such a long time ago.”
While everyone reveled in the afterglow of victory, I sent a congratulatory message to Emika.
With awarding ceremonies and interviews keeping her busy, I figured it would take a while before she could check it.
“Hey sis, do you want a bite of churros?”
Suddenly, Adella appeared from the back row, giving me a back hug while offering churros.
I took a bite from the heavily sugared part.
“Thanks. But where did you get this?”
“There’s a non-staff convenience store right up ahead. Hey sis, that swordsmanship Emika used at the end, it’s the same one you used to use in Wagal, right?”
“Was it? Ah, now that I think about it, I did use it when I fought Mephistopheles.”
“Of course! It looked familiar! Back then, the sky split and everything!”
“It wasn’t that dramatic.”
I denied it while flicking the sugar off my lips with my ring finger.
‘Even if she seems a bit foolish, she has talent.’
To be able to replicate Kaizen-style swordsmanship just from seeing it a couple of times.
Of course, the opponent wasn’t lacking either.
Aside from the first psychological battle, Mikhail had the edge most of the match.
“How about you? Did you find the match entertaining?”
“Well, it was fun for me. I couldn’t enjoy it properly because I had my bets, so I plan to re-watch it later.”
I pondered, pinching my lips as I thought deeply.
‘Both of their skills were roughly on par. But why was there such a difference in the beginning?’
When looking just at the match, it was a miracle that Emika held out until the second half.
Moreover, she had learned quite a bit from me.
The unique magic ‘Adela’, ‘Demon King’s Horn’, ‘Layered Blade’, and even though it was a rough estimate, she knew the Kaizen-style swordsmanship and could use multi-aura for external manifestation.
She had poured out all sorts of cheat keys and still barely managed to win.
Was it because the population pool had changed?
In her past life, the population was at most 500 million.
Now there are at least 8 billion, with some estimates going up to 10 billion—meaning a 20-fold difference.
Additionally, because we’ve entered an information age, it has become easy to assess one’s own talents.
“Seeing this vast Earth, I suddenly feel like that pesky cat in the Wagal world seems puny now.”
“What? Were you just targeting me with that comment?”
Though the Wagal world was immense, it hardly exceeded the size of the Dobong District in Seoul.
“Without the talent bestowed by heaven, I was expelled from the academy in Dobong District, demons descended to conquer Dobong District, and the World Tree is simply a large tree in Dobong District.”
“I-it was almost like I was brainwashed back then! I’m smarter by several folds compared to those dumb robots!”
“Don’t take it too seriously; I’m just saying it. Let’s go down now.”
“Huh? Aren’t you going to meet Emika? What about the clan recruitment talk?”
“Aah, that?”
Na-me descended the stairs with a cryptic smile.
*
Lord Akitaro was deep in thought.
[I suspect my questions will end at my turn. Let’s make this last bet. Will Katsuhata Emika finish with the Katsuhata swordplay?]
Emika, abandoning the entire Katsuhata style, overwhelmed her opponent.
Even Lord Akitaro, who had placed infinite trust in Emika for thirty minutes, couldn’t help but feel slightly dejected at that sight.
Objectively speaking, it wouldn’t be reasonable to expect someone to use a swordplay that had not been effective throughout the match.
However, as the head of the sect, the lord held a responsibility.
[I think she will.]
[Is that so? I think so too.]
Even Na-me, who had fiercely criticized the current aura swordplay’s issues, shifted her stance.
[The strongest weapon is the weapon that suits one’s hand best. During this training, what Emika practiced the most wasn’t external manifestation but rather that Kasumin no Tachi. I hope you recognize that as well, Lord.]
He had long yielded the responsibility of educating his successor entirely to Koizumi.
What kind of technique she preferred, what she was most confident about, the month or so’s glimpses Na-me had seen surpassed what Lord Akitaro had known all along.
[Regarding the clan, Emika’s opinion is paramount. If she agrees, I’ll try my best to persuade the elders even if there’s opposition.]
Lord Akitaro felt a tinge of melancholy seeing Emika surrounded by bouquets.
Katsuhata-style aura swordsmanship was a half-success, in other words, a half-failure.
Though with this match, she gained undeniable fame worldwide, sooner or later, issues would inevitably arise.
‘If only Emika could learn that swordsmanship…!’
Perhaps it could be developed to fit the Katsuhata sect.
The controversy surrounding the successor’s position might only last one generation, but the lord always had to consider the next generation and the next century.
“Katsuhata Emika, do you plan to follow Na-me to Korea, by any chance?”
The question came after deep contemplation.
Emika, who had been smiling with the joy of victory, suddenly drooped her expression.
“Ah… I’m sorry for hiding it…”
“Hiding what?”
“Yes?”
“Hmm?”
“Didn’t you know when you asked?”
Lord Akitaro received shocking news.
“During last summer training, Na-me told me that she would only teach me external manifestation if I signed, so…”
She meticulously stamped her seal on everything.
