The suited man led Lorelei across the crowd while the seated spectators cheered her on enthusiastically.
"Good luck, missy!"
"You got this!"
"Do your best!"
The volume of encouragement was enough to spread a smile across her face. She gripped her weapons tightly and followed the man down the descending staircase. The particles lighting the stadium didn't shine as brightly here in the tunnel they were walking through. He came to an abrupt stop right next to the closed gate.
"Your weapons. Do not fret—we'll return them right before it starts."
Lorelei nodded and handed him her weapons. He walked away and disappeared into a room on the left. She stood in front of the gate, watching the current match unfold right before her eyes.
"ARGH!"
From here, even the fighters' words became clearer. The sound was being projected in the dome, but the crowd's noise completely drowned it out. The clash of weapons reached her ears clearly enough. The black-haired girl fighting her opponent obviously had the advantage. She relentlessly struck with her bare fist at every opening that slipped through his defense. Right as he backed to the edge of the arena, the girl's fist pulled in the particles before she dropped a punch toward him—cleanly piercing a hole straight through his guts. Even then, only particles flowed out of his body.
"WE HAVE YET ANOTHER WIN BY KNOCKOUT!!! THIS YEAR'S CANDIDATES ARE RUTHLESS!!!"
The gates opened, and suited people rushed into the arena, carrying the fighters back inside. Lorelei briefly made eye contact with the black-haired girl, who gave her a small grin.
"THE WINNER OF THIS MATCH IS!!! SARI FAROL!!!"
The crowd erupted in cheers again, clapping and congratulating the winner.
"PREPARE YOURSELVES FOR THIS FIRST DAY'S LAST MATCH!!! WE'LL BE RIGHT BACK!"
The gate closed again, and the suited man who'd taken Lorelei's weapons walked over to her. He stood behind her without a word, blankly staring at her. The crowd chattered for a little longer before the announcer cut through their endless noise.
"THE LAST MATCH WILL BE STARTING RIGHT NOW!!!"
The crowd clapped, then fell quiet.
"Miss, get in front of the gate, please."
Lorelei pushed off the wall she'd been leaning against and stood in front of the gate.
"ON MY LEFT, NO, MY RIGHT, NO, THE FIRST GATE!!!"
The gate opened, and Lorelei walked through, exposing herself to the excited mass.
"REILI FIDELYA!!!!"
She climbed the stairs and stood at the edge of the arena, staring intensely at the gate in front of her. She didn't try to find Samuel or Brant's eyes; all she needed right now was courage and strength—and she'd have to provide those herself. She closed her fist and reopened it swiftly.
"My apologies; we're currently having a small inconvenience with the participant. We won't be able to start unless she yields to our demands. WELL, UNLESS YOU GUYS WANT TO START THE MATCH!!"
The crowd cheered and screamed.
"ON MY RIGHT, NO, LEFT, NO OPPOSITE GATE!!!"
The gate opened, and a girl with a black cap pulled low over her eyes walked out of it.
"SHINIEL FAREWAY!!!"
Her right hand held the top of her hat down while the other balanced in the air. Lorelei couldn't quite see what she was holding until she climbed the stairs. A sword—a long, sheathed sword; katana would be the better word to describe it. She placed the sword behind herself and took a single step forward, keeping her hand on the sheath just below the hilt, her hat still covering her eyes. Her long blue hair seemed to defy the very laws of gravity, spiking upwards toward the end.
"STEP FORWARD!!!"
Lorelei slowly walked to the middle of the arena, and so did her opponent. When they were face to face, Lorelei saw her dark blue eyes—her left eye seemed brighter than the other. Shiniel kept her sword in hand and reached out her right hand, waiting for Lorelei to shake it. But Lorelei couldn't: that hand wasn't covered.
"GIVE THEM THEIR WEAPONS—WELL, HER WEAPONS!!!"
Shiniel smiled, then slowly returned to the edge of the arena, and Lorelei did the same, completely thrown off. The suited man came out of the gate, climbed the stairs, and handed Lorelei her jet-black sword as well as the briefcase. She opened it, reached in, and took out the silver gun.
"ARE WE READY?"
She turned around and adjusted her posture. Her opponent, on the other hand, lowered her stance, her hand gripping the sheath tightly.
"GET SET!"
Lorelei focused until she could clearly visualize the particles around her.
"GO!"
Neither rushed at the other. They slowly circled, moving opposite each other. Lorelei waited for the energy around them to concentrate further, but it seemed her opponent was doing the same. Just as Lorelei felt she'd absorbed enough energy, she rushed straight at Shiniel and struck at her vertically. Shiniel easily dodged by stepping to the side, her hand still holding her hat down. Lorelei turned to follow up her attack, but Shiniel spun around her and dropped her hand onto the hilt, letting go of her hat. A swirl of energy rushed toward the blade as she slowly drew it. With a swift movement, she sliced upward three times, and three waves of ice launched at Lorelei. She dodged the first two, then decided to block the last. But Shiniel stepped forward, sword now sheathed, and used the back of it to pierce her stomach. Thanks to the energy she'd absorbed earlier, Lorelei managed to sustain the hit and scramble back up. The crowd roared even louder.
"A FAILED ATTEMPT AT A KNOCKOUT!!!"
Lorelei brandished her sword again, and just as she'd predicted, Shiniel lunged. Lorelei used the same trick Brant had used against her, rolling over her back to deliver a blow—but right as she thought her attack landed, a thin dagger made of ice blocked the hit from behind. The blade shattered, piercing tiny holes through Lorelei's arm and torso.
"WE HAVE A DIRECT HIT!"
Despite the clear hit, Lorelei felt nothing. Particles slowly flowed out of her body into the air, yet she still felt she could keep going.
"You're a pain in the ass. Just stay down," Shiniel muttered, pulling her cap back over her eyes.
Shiniel had spoken in a cold, barely audible voice, and Lorelei was certain the crowd hadn't heard a thing. Lorelei drew her gun and set it perpendicular to the hilt. Already fully loaded, she dragged in energy from around her and shot at her opponent. Shiniel deflected the beam with a single swipe of her sheathed sword and pressed the assault. Lorelei flung the gun high into the air and ran toward her. Before their blades could collide, she jumped for the high ground—and in the clash, she let herself be knocked away on purpose, before setting her blade between her teeth and snatching the gun midair. She fired three powerful beams, but Shiniel unsheathed her sword and blocked them with three icicles, then sheathed it again the moment they released. Lorelei had run out of tricks—only one option remained.
The explosion.
As soon as she landed, Lorelei grabbed an energy crystal from the gun's barrel.
My last crystal.
She charged it with as much of her own energy as she could before hurling it at Shiniel—but at the same instant, Shiniel unsheathed her blade and gave a swift strike through the air at her side. Lorelei saw her lips move but couldn't hear what she said.
"Release."
The stone exploded and sent Lorelei flying into the wall. A beam of blue light erupted from Shiniel and pierced straight through the dome's cover. The crowd was dumbfounded, and everyone fell silent. Lorelei felt the world spin around her. She looked toward Samuel and Brant, who were waving and screaming something, but she couldn't hear them. The host began counting down.
"5!"
She got up and walked toward the arena.
"4!"
She dragged herself up, and the countdown stopped. The beam of light suddenly splashed across the arena and vanished, sending a gust of wind that tore Shiniel's hat from her head. Lorelei rose and leveled her sword at Shiniel. Right in front of her, the sword stood there—pierced into the ground. Shiniel walked to it and pulled it free.
"Tsk."
Suddenly, the air in the dome shifted completely. Lorelei glanced at Brant and Samuel—but those two had vanished, and so had Shiniel by the time she turned back. Instinctively, Lorelei jumped, and a horizontal wave of ice swept across the arena. The blade was nearly soundless; the movement took only an instant.
"SHINIEL'S REALLY GETTING INTO IT NOW!"
Lorelei almost lost her balance but caught herself before the fall.
"Listen. Don't speak, just listen."
It was the figure speaking to her.
"You will die. If that blade reaches your core, you will die—not come back, but die in the proper sense. Just follow what I say, don't speak, don't question anything."
Lorelei hesitated, but when she saw that the holes from the earlier burst of ice were now dripping blood, she grasped how serious everything had become.
"Left."
She stepped to the left—just in time. Shiniel appeared and slashed vertically, splitting the floor in front of her. The motion was so smooth and precise that Lorelei almost found it dazzling.
"Up."
She rolled away, and Shiniel stabbed the ground, freezing part of the arena beneath her.
"Stop wiggling around," she complained, seemingly irritated.
"Jump."
Lorelei jumped, and her opponent slashed beneath her feet. She used the occasion to swirl and return a kick that knocked Shiniel away. Blood dripped from Shiniel's mouth and nose. Her eyes sparked with a pale blue light, but just as they grew brighter, tears of blood ran down her cheeks. Lorelei had a feeling it wasn't because of her kick.
"Cover your left eye with the glove."
"Huh?"
"Don't question it, just do it. Quickly!"
Lorelei did as the figure asked, pressing the glove against the eyepatch. Her heart pounded hard in her chest, and a wave of pain flooded through her. She crumbled to the ground, clutching her chest. A ticking sound resonated in her head.
"We don't have time. Kill her quickly."
"Kill her?" Lorelei breathed, out of breath.
She looked up to see Shiniel raising her sword vertically—but Shiniel didn't move. Not a single movement. Everything was utterly still, even the crowd. For a second, Lorelei thought Fray had come back for her, but the figure reassured her.
"She didn't calm down."
"Why do I need to kill her?"
"That sword—it's dangerous, too dangerous. If she keeps it and learns more about it, you'll die for real, I assure you. Kill her and take it."
Lorelei forced herself up and grabbed her sword. The ticking rang louder and clearer. All this time, this tick—it was the tick of a clock.
"No. With your hands."
"What?"
"Kill her with your hands. Others may have learned what you are through her. Kill her with your hands and take those memories away."
"She knows about that?"
"Y-yes."
Lorelei took a deep breath—but her heart stopped. Everything in her body stopped working. She reached for air, yet her lungs wouldn't respond.
"No! Don't we need to kill her now!"
The figure's voice felt like a bee buzzing in her ear.
"Get up! Get up! Lorelei! Get up! I don't want to see another go through this—please get up! Get up!"
A heavy body pressed down on her. It was Shiniel.
"I will k—"
Her voice was cut short, and she passed out. Lorelei's consciousness slowly faded as the world spun around her.
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