CHAPTER 4
THE QUARTERFINALS III
“Phew… We made it.”
“Naturally.”
Camilla and Saya had been adjusting and readjusting the S-Module in Saya’s prep room at the Procyon Dome right down to the very last minute before the match was due to get underway. Now, having completed their preparations, they flashed each other dauntless grins.
They had been working on their final adjustments to the device since yesterday. There were no matches scheduled during that time, so they had ample opportunity to perfect it. And now, thanks to their efforts, they had fully repaired the damage that her Luxes had sustained in the fifth round.
“In any case, this should greatly increase the stability of the S-Module. It should also ease the burden on its user.” Camilla squeezed Saya’s shoulder and disconnected the wiring leading to the device’s manadite core.
“…Thanks again. I could never have perfected it alone.”
Saya had prepared two trump cards for the Lindvolus. The first she had created with the help of her colleagues from the Society for the Study of Meteoric Engineering and her father, Souichi, but she had designed and built the S-Module entirely by herself. Seidoukan Academy might have provided her with her own private research lab, but still, doing it all alone was somewhat excessive.
“Well then, shall we say this settles our debt?”
“I didn’t think we had a debt… But fine, if that makes you feel better.”
“Very good.” Camilla nodded with satisfaction, handing her the S-Module’s activation body. “Now then, do your best. I’m sure you know this, but Lenaty is strong, got it?”
“I know.”
From having watched Lenaty’s match against Rimcy alone, Saya knew her chances of victory here would be slim.
Or rather, it was probably fair to say she was the weakest contestant remaining in the top eight. No matter who she fought, it would be a positively grueling match.
Nonetheless, she had no intention of losing.
“Me and my dad’s Luxes are invincible. I’m just going to prove that,” she said as she wrapped the S-Module’s activation body around her waist.
Rimcy, until now standing by the wall, stepped forward, her head lowered. “Lenaty is in your hands, Saya Sasamiya. She is still growing and has the potential to become angel or demon. But if through this fight, she could discover herself, as Ardy and I did—”
“I don’t know anything about that,” Saya interrupted, cutting her off.
She had already heard from Camilla that Lenaty wasn’t under Ernesta’s control. From Saya’s point of view, that was an incredible abdication of responsibility, not to mention an unbelievable lapse in judgment. She was basically letting an autonomous puppet with greater destructive power than most Page Ones run completely loose.
That, however, was a problem for Ernesta—or perhaps for Allekant Académie. It wasn’t any of her business… Or rather, it shouldn’t have been.
“Nevertheless, she is rather impertinent. If you are firm with her, if you show her some discipline, it will do her good,” Rimcy said with a laugh, her cold visage softening somewhat as she bowed her head once more.
“Well then, it’s time,” Saya said, picking up the activation body of her completed Lux from the corner of the room.
It was heavy, but that weight was proof of its exceptional specs.
“…I know it’s a little late for this, but are you really going to take that with you?”
“Naturally.”
Why was she bringing this up now? Saya wondered.
Camilla might not have been directly involved in the Lux’s development, but Saya had given her a general overview of its design and capabilities. She chuckled at the memory of just how stunned Camilla’s expression had been upon realizing what it was.
“I can’t beat that kid without it.”
“Of course, I understand that. I mean, are you sure, in its current configuration…? No, don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t be questioning you.” Camilla gave up, shaking her head slightly. “Here’s to your courage, Saya Sasamiya. I may be affiliated with Allekant, but best of luck.”
“Yep.” Saya gave Camilla and Rimcy a thumbs-up before calmly making her way toward the stage, a leisurely briskness to her step.
“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Oh my God, seriously?! I can’t stop laughing! Ha! Ha-ha-ha! It’s glorious! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”
“C-calm down, Chitose…! Pff! Y-you’re going overboard here…! Pffta-ha-ha!”
Down on the stage, Saya puffed her cheeks in indignation at the uncontrollable laughter of the commentator, Chitose Sakon, and the announcer, Nana Andersen.
“Errrg…”
“I know, but she’s brought a backpack! A backpack! To the quarterfinals of the Lindvolus! And I mean, look how adorable she is with it! Pah…! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”
Maybe so.
Maybe the activator she was wearing strapped to her back did look at first glance like a child’s schoolbag.
But it wasn’t. The activator was simply designed to be efficient and easy to carry, nothing more.
“And they call this commentary…? Disgraceful.”
Thinking back on it, Chitose and Nana had also been responsible for the commentary two years ago when she and Kirin had first fought in the Phoenix. Those two had been an unpleasant duo back then, too, and now she found herself liking them even less.
And it wasn’t only them—the audience seemed to be laughing just as heartily.
The spectators seemed so amused that it was hard to imagine the match was about to begin. Given the spectacle that was Sylvia’s match against Orphelia just a short time ago—even if it was in another venue—and the fact that it had ended with Sylvia having a heart attack, Saya would have expected the announcers to be a little more apprehensive and muted, but there was no sign of that at all.
“Hey, hey, why is everyone laughing?” Lenaty, her opponent, asked as she approached, her expression quizzical.
And after watching her fifth-round match at the Canopus Dome, Saya had assumed it would be Lenaty who would find the device most amusing.
“That backpack, it’s so cute! Lena wants it! Hey, can I have it? Please?”
“…No.”
“Eh! Cheapskate! It would suit Lena more!”
As she watched her opponent sulk, Saya found that she understood exactly what Rimcy had meant a short while ago.
For Lenaty, nothing was more important than her feelings. She wanted to have fun, to get her hands on whatever she liked, and she truly hated the things that she hated. She was completely driven by her whims.
According to Camilla, Lenaty had gleefully pulled Ardy’s arms right out of their sockets in a mock battle at their first meeting. And Saya believed it. Even if her opponent had been a human being rather than an autonomous puppet, Lenaty had that level of selfish innocence about her.
I see… She really is just a kid.
It wasn’t that she lacked reason but rather she lacked the comprehension that came along with it.
At the same time, as she sized up the girl standing in front of her, Saya felt as if she herself could see the ideals that Ernesta had made reality in this autonomous puppet.
I guess this means Ernesta Kühne was right. I hate to admit it, but there you go…
Saya breathed out a resigned sigh and called out to Lenaty: “Hey, kid!”
“Come on! Stop calling Lena a kid!”
“Oh? Lena, then.”
“What…?” Lena stared back wide-eyed, as if taken by surprise that her request had been granted.
“I’m Saya Sasamiya. Remember that.”
“Saya Sasamiya? What a funny name!” With a loud guffaw, Lenaty ran back to her designated starting position.
That was probably to be expected.
To Lenaty, Saya was just one more nameless opponent.
But that wouldn’t be the case for much longer.
“Lindvolus Quarterfinals, Match 3—begin!”
“All right! Here we go! Wha—?! Ah-ta-ta-ta-ta?!”
No sooner did the automated voice announce the beginning of the match than Lenaty charged toward her, but Saya immediately deployed her type 35 Lux Gatling cannon, Granvaleria, and fired off a rapid barrage of bullets.
Next, she deployed her vernier unit—rebuilt from parts from her type 41 Lux homing blaster, Waldenholt Mark II. Saya’s previous match against Violet Weinberg had resulted in considerable damage to her Luxes, and while she had been able to repair the Granvaleria just by changing its barrel, the Waldenholt had been almost completely destroyed, and so she hadn’t been able to restore it in time. As such, she had separated the vernier unit so that it could be used independently.
“Aieeeee! Ouch! No fair!”
Lenaty did her best to repel the bombardment with her huge adjustable glaive-type Lux, the Youdemra, but she couldn’t keep up with the assault at four thousand rounds per minute. She threw herself left and right trying to dodge the onslaught, but with Saya tracking her with the Granvaleria, she couldn’t break free.
At the same time, Saya used the vernier unit to slide backward across the stage and put some distance between herself and her opponent.
Nonetheless, while the attack seemed to have successfully slowed Lenaty down, it hadn’t caused much visible damage. Looking carefully, Saya saw that her opponent seemed to be surrounded by some subtle light, which had caused her bullets to bounce right off her.
Well, I knew this wouldn’t be easy just from what she did to Rimcy. I’ll need the S-Module to break through that armor.
From what Camilla had told her, Lenaty was powered by several urm-manadite cores working in parallel. It was an ingenious concept, relying not on the special abilities unique to each individual piece of urm-manadite but rather converting their energy into raw power to maximize her specs.
Of course, Camilla’s goodwill didn’t extend to providing direct data on Saya’s opponent, but it was clear that Lenaty’s offensive and defensive power, along with her mobility, were beyond compare. Raw strength, heavy armor, and great agility—Lenaty’s design was the epitome of the axiom Simple is best.
Moreover, her power output was multiplexed using the LOBOS transition method (LTM). Saya didn’t need Camilla to tell her that—she could work that out for herself at first glance. After all, it was fair to say that the method was originally the work of Saya and her father. In Lenaty’s case, however, the technique was used to channel that explosive power into a defensive coating, giving her almost impossible protection and the ability to fight empty-handed.
It’s supposed to be impossible to control urm-manadite using the LOBOS method, though. Even if the cores are irregular, Ernesta keeps performing one miracle after another…
However, Saya found it hard to believe that the technology was as foolproof as that used in Ardy. After all, she would have been fine just using the LTM the way it was supposed to be applied. Lenaty’s design risked overburdening her urm-manadite cores, possibly even resulting in an explosive runaway cascade.
That being the case, Saya had three strategies at her disposal.
The first was to draw the match to a rapid conclusion before her opponent could employ the LTM. However, that wasn’t very realistic if Lenaty could initiate the process at will.
The second was to wait for her to activate it, drag her into a battle of attrition, and wait for her to self-destruct. However, she couldn’t be certain that would be the outcome. Also, she wasn’t confident she could survive that long.
That was where her third strategy came in—
“I’ll crush you with brute force,” Saya intoned, activating the Lux on her back.
Nothing happened.
Nonetheless, that was by design, not a malfunction.
At that moment, the Granvaleria, until then roaring as it unleashed its endless volley of projectiles, fell silent. It was a Lux with no limit on its amount of ammunition, so it had probably overheated and burned itself out.
Now then, how was that…?
Her opponent, standing amid a cloud of rising dust, was completely unharmed.
“Whoa… Ha-ha! Look at all that dirt!”
“…So it didn’t work.”
Her opponent, it seemed, was even more robust than she had thought.
“Oh? Is it over? Argh, that really hurt, you know? But now it’s my turn!” Lenaty let out a gleeful laugh and brought the Youdemra about, transforming it into a huge gun and firing off a bombardment of her own.
Saya switched from the Granvaleria to her type 38 Lux grenade launcher, the Helnekraum, and activated the S-Module as she dodged her opponent’s barrage.
“And now… Boooooom!”
Lenaty joyfully unleashed a bright explosive blast, but Saya, adjusting the S-Module with one hand, deftly avoided it.
“Hmm? What happened?” Lenaty tilted her head to one side, evidently confused as to why her attack hadn’t hit.
“What? Is that all you’ve got?” Saya teased.
Lenaty’s face turned red. “Arrrrrgh!”
Contrary to her whimsical behavior, Lenaty had indeed accurately predicted Saya’s movements. Nonetheless, this wasn’t anything that Saya couldn’t outsmart. Her experience fighting against long-range specialists like Rimcy and Violet gave her a great advantage here. After all, Lenaty’s incredible specs were of little use at such a distance.
For the time being, at least.
“Huh?! Why not?! Argh! Tell me, tell me!”
Lenaty may have been wailing in frustration, but to be fair, Saya’s projectiles hadn’t reached her, either. Saya was confident with her shooting accuracy, but she just couldn’t keep up with her opponent’s reaction speed.
“Fine! Fine! It’s more fun like this anyway!”
With that, Lenaty switched the Youdemra back into its glaive form, and feinting left and right, she rapidly began to close the distance between them. Her agility was astounding. If she managed to get close, Saya would have no way of defending herself.
Fortunately, with her vernier unit fully activated, she was able to fall back to a safe distance.
“Whaaaaat?!”
“Ngh…!”
Saya’s bones creaked under the stress of such rapid acceleration, but she had no choice but to endure it. It was a million times better than risking an engagement with her opponent in close combat.
“Whoa! Look how quickly Contestant Sasamiya just shook off Contestant Lenaty!”
“That vernier unit certainly has a lot of power. And she’s making good use of it so far. She wouldn’t have much chance of winning at her usual speed, so it’s a wise choice.”
“I see. Lenaty certainly is one of the fastest contestants in the tournament… Hmm? But I guess anyone could use it, no matter how slow they are on their feet! That’s one heck of an invention!”
“No, no, it isn’t that simple, Nana. Most people would end up crashing into flames if they tried that. The Glühen Rose may have used something similar, but she’s a Strega, so her abilities help her to keep control. And in this case, balancing the insane acceleration of that leg-mounted vernier unit with the recoil control of the waist-mounted one doesn’t look at all easy. The technology must be incredibly fine-tuned.”
Saya didn’t like having to admit it, but Chitose Sakon certainly had a good eye. Perhaps that was to be expected of a former student council president at Allekant Académie.
In fact, the only thing Saya had that she could be fully confident was the best among all remaining contestants in the tournament was her handling of her Luxes. While her design, production, and configuration techniques might not have reached Allekant’s level, she could be proud of the fact that she was undoubtedly the most proficient in all of Asterisk at actually employing Luxes in real-life combat.
“Hee-hee! Lena’s good at playing tag!” Lenaty, not discouraged in the slightest, followed straight after her, her speed quickly surpassing even the maximum output of Saya’s vernier.
“Yahoo! I’ve got you…”
“—Burst.”
Nonetheless, flying in a straight line as she was, Lenaty made an easy target. Saya pulled the trigger of the Helnekraum at the last possible moment, scoring a direct hit that enveloped her opponent in a huge explosion.
“Aieeeee!”
Lenaty was thrown through the air by the impact, but she deftly spun around before making an elegant landing. To Saya’s dismay, she didn’t appear to have sustained even the slightest damage.
Damn, not even equipping the S-Module to the Helnekraum was enough.
“Yarghhhhh! Lena hates you! Why do you have to be so mean?!” Lenaty glared across the stage at her, clearly upset.
“Saya,” she repeated. “I’m Saya Sasamiya.”
“Arghhhhh!” Lenaty pouted in frustration as she shifted the Youdemra to a spear configuration.
“Saya’s quite the go-getter. She’s more than a match for that new autonomous puppet, don’t you think?” Claudia asked with a relaxed smile. She was clearly impressed.
“…She is now,” Ayato answered, sitting beside her.
After his match at the Sirius Dome, Ayato had come to join Claudia in Seidoukan Academy’s special viewing lounge at the Procyon Dome to support his classmate. He had originally meant to go and watch Sylvia’s bout, but that one started before he had been able to finish his winner’s interview and the other formalities. He had been lost for words when he heard she had gone into cardiac arrest, but fortunately she had been quickly resuscitated and was being treated now at the hospital. Nonetheless, his concerns were only truly allayed when she had contacted him directly just a short time ago.
But as for Saya’s match—
“Oh dear, you don’t sound very confident.”
“You can’t have missed it. Saya might have the advantage right now, but she won’t be able to keep this up for long.”
“Well, now… I suppose you’re right,” Claudia answered with a short nod and a forced smile.
Lenaty was strong. In terms of raw performance, she was probably on par with Ayato himself or with Xiaohui or Gigoku, while her defense was probably the best of all remaining contestants, surpassing even that of the Black Knight (although technically the Black Knight’s abilities had allowed him to withstand even physical shocks). And with her armor powered by urm-manadite, Ayato doubted that even the Ser Veresta would be able to break through it with ease.
Indeed, the only reason why Saya was dominating the battlefield was due to Lenaty’s guileless fighting style.
Apart from when she engaged in a processing battle with another autonomous puppet, as she had in her match against Rimcy, Lenaty’s behavior was seemingly completely random. It was as if she was only ever thinking about her next move, without ever planning in advance.
From the very beginning of the tournament, nothing she did suggested any form of strategy. She had pulled through the qualifiers using no more than the brute force of her superior specs, and even in her bout with Rimcy, she had performed relatively poorly up until she’d overwhelmed the other puppet with her raw power.
Saya, no doubt having realized that, was making sure Lenaty kept moving in order to prevent her opponent from truly capitalizing on those specifications. She had her experience and preparation to thank for that, but the problem would be Lenaty’s quick learning abilities.
Ernesta’s puppets never fell victim to the same trick twice. That had been the case for Ardy and Rimcy and no doubt applied to Lenaty, too. Even now, it was clear she was continuously adapting to Saya’s attack patterns little by little.
“And she still hasn’t revealed all her tricks,” Ayato noted.
Saya was no doubt on guard against that incredible power output Lenaty had demonstrated at the end of her match with Rimcy, but Ayato couldn’t help but wonder whether she would be able to keep it at bay.
“If you’re thinking about hidden moves, then Saya still hasn’t used her new Lux, has she now? That… Bah!” Claudia snorted, clearly unable to contain her amusement. “Er, sorry. That’s what her adorable little backpack is for, isn’t it?”
In fact, looking at Saya’s current outfit, Ayato couldn’t help but remember their childhood elementary school days. Saya had certainly grown up since then, but the innocent impression that she made now was just too strong.
Nonetheless, putting that aside…
“You’re probably right… But I’ve got no idea what it actually is.”
Of course, Ayato knew Saya had prepared a new Lux for the Lindvolus, but he still didn’t know what it was or how it worked.
At that moment, an air-window suddenly opened up by Claudia’s chair, and a computerized voice announced they had visitors.
“Dear me, I wonder who would choose now of all times to stop by…?”
It was normally impossible to visit any of the special viewing lounges assigned to Asterisk’s six schools during a match without a prior appointment. Not only would its occupants obviously be focused on that match, but it was also a breach of basic etiquette. Maybe a place as obstinate as Le Wolfe wouldn’t care for such niceties, but at Seidoukan— But before Ayato could finish his thought, an unexpected face appeared in the air-window.
He and Claudia exchanged glances before nodding simultaneously and unlocking the door.
“Excuse me.”
“S-sorry to interrupt…”
Their visitors were a dumbfounded young blond man and an obviously terrified green-haired girl.
“Yes, come in… And to what do I owe the pleasure of Gallardworth’s student council president?” Claudia asked with a warm smile as she went to greet them.
“I apologize for barging in like this. I should have called in advance, but let’s just say my mobile hasn’t been able to keep a good connection lately.”
“…I see.” Claudia’s smile underwent an almost imperceptible change in quality.
In other words, it was a confidential matter.
“Well then, come in. Let’s talk inside,” she said as a huge cheer rose up from the stadium below.
“Talk about a close call! One more millimeter and Contestant Sasamiya wouldn’t have been able to dodge Contestant Lenaty’s attack there!”
Hrng, she’s getting better…
From their last exchange, Saya knew that Lenaty was closing in on her.
“Lena’s good!” her opponent said with an innocent giggle.
Saya was flying backward across the stage, her vernier engaged to full throttle as she continued to fire at her opponent, moving faster than the naked eye could clearly see.
Lenaty, however, continued to evade that barrage, and with an unstrained expression, she brought her spear down on Saya from above. Saya shifted the injection angle of the vernier at her waist, spinning through the air to dodge the blow. Lenaty nonetheless followed through, her spear piercing deep into the ground.
“Ngh…!”
“Aaand there!”
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