NBAA Vol. 7 Chapter 6 Part 3
“Could you please tell me the reason?”
“Well…we’re going to the Tower’s Great Labyrinth, right?”
“Yes.”
“Actually, my father was an adventurer. When I was little, he challenged the Tower’s Great Labyrinth and never returned…that was over five years ago.”
“He…died?”
“No… No body has been found.”
Shizune was convinced by Mina’s words. She wanted to challenge the Tower’s Great Labyrinth, which her father had challenged, and search for traces of him.
Mina had been improving her skills to challenge the Tower’s Great Labyrinth. When she heard Reito and his friends were going to the Tower’s Great Labyrinth, she thought it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance and asked to go with them.
“Please!! Please take me with you too!! I may look like this, but I have confidence in my skills!! I’ll never get in your way…”
“…For your father.”
After listening to her story, Shizune crossed her arms.
She could understand Mina’s feelings to the extent that it hurt. She was also trying to challenge Gorai for her father’s honor. However, Shizune answered coldly as she remembered Mina’s performance in the two-person match.
“No. The Great Labyrinth is too dangerous for you right now.”
“But!”
“…If you really want to come with me, show me your power.”
“What…!?”
Mina’s eyes widened, and broke into a cold sweat at Shizune’s comment.
“…Is that what you mean, you want to check my ability?”
“That’s right. Show me your strength.”
“I understand… then I’d like to duel with you.”
“Wait! Are you serious? You’re dealing with a Swordmaster, you know?”
“Back off, Dain. These two are serious.”
Gonzo made Dain back away as he tried to stop her.
Mina readied her spear, Shizune reached for her sword, The Four Seasons, at her waist, and the others hurriedly left the scene.
Mina, looking nervous, held her spear at the ready and did not move.
Shizune was about to pull out The Four Seasons, but then had second thoughts and held it up with the sheath still attached.
“I’ll let you attack first.”
“Eh?”
“I’m not making fun of you but pulling this sword out of its sheath just for a duel is not safe. The match is won by the first person who inflicts an effective blow that can cause a fatal wound to the opponent. Good?”
“…Okay!!”
The Four Seasons, one of the Seven Great Magic Swords, possessed power comparable to that of the Swordmaster, and anyone who could not handle fire magic risked losing his or her life. Shizune said this with consideration, but Mina’s eyebrows furrowed as she misunderstood that she was not worthy of Shizune’s serious fight.
“‘Rapid Thrust’!”
Shaking off her negative feelings, Mina performed the battle technique she was good at. The spear was thrust out at such a speed that an afterimage was created, but Shizune calmly intercepted it with The Four Seasons, which still had its sheath attached.
“Here!!”
“Oh!?”
Shizune matched the tip of the spear perfectly with the tip of her own sword, killing the momentum of the thrust from the front. Mina couldn’t hide her dismay at this miraculous feat.
Shizune pushed out her sword and sent Mina flying.
“Guh…!?”
“Is this your full power? In that case…”
“N-Not yet!”
Before Shizune could finish speaking, Mina pulled back her spear, and this time, she stepped in with force and thrust her spear out.
“‘Thrust’!”
“‘Parry’.”
Shizune used her sword sheath to change the trajectory of her spear and approached Mina, who had lost her balance. Then she threw her elbow into Mina’s unguarded flank.
“Ah!!”
“Gufu!?”
“It’s decided!?”
“No, it’s not done yet!!”
Mina retreated, but she immediately attacked Shizune while spinning her spear.
“Damn…’Spin Strike’!!”
“Huh…”
But Shizune, not seeming surprised, took a few steps back and evaded, thrusting her sword at Mina’s spinning feet and striking her knee with the sheath.
“Whoa!?”
“Is that all you got?”
Shizune held her sword in Mina’s face as she lost her balance and looked down at her with her cold eyes.
Gonzo, who was watching the match, broke into a cold sweat at the sight. It was not that Mina was weak by any means, but there was too much of a gap in their abilities.
Mina jumped backward and readied her spear, but was unable to move.
“Damn…!!”
“I’ll end this with the next move.”
“I… I won’t lose!”
“Wait a minute.”
“Whoa!?”
Determined, Mina gripped her spear and was about to launch her best battle technique when Reito, who had been standing behind her for some time, held her back. Mina was surprised at how easily he got behind her, and Shizune also saw him and withdrew her hand that had been extended to her sword.
“R-Reito-kun?”
“Calm down… you’re too nervous. That’s why it so easy to get behind you.”
“Ugh…”
Shizune glared at Reito.
“Reito, the match between me and her isn’t over yet. I don’t appreciate you interrupting.”
“I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t bear to watch…can I just have a moment with her?”
“Just a moment.”
Shizune looked dissatisfied, but she reluctantly agreed.
Reito stood in front of Mina and suddenly pulled both of Mina’s cheeks.
“*pull* *pull*”
“Huh!? Hihyaihyai!?”
Mina resisted the sudden tug on her cheek with teary eyes.
Reito confirmed this, grabbed her by the shoulders, and nodded in satisfaction.
“Yeah, it’s good now!”
“W-What’s so good about it!? I can’t believe you’re suddenly doing something like this…”
“But your body has stopped shaking, right?”
“Eh… ah.”
Mina suddenly noticed that the tension in her body had eased. Reito’s action had caused her body to relax.
From the beginning of the match, Mina had been so nervous about fighting Shizune, a Swordmaster, that she had been unable to move her body as much as she would have liked. Her movements were much slower than when she was fighting with Reito. Reito saw this and intervened between them to bring out her true potential.
“Look, you can handle the rest on your own.”
“Ummm, yeah…thank you.”
“Good luck.”
Reito patted Mina on the shoulder one last time and bowed slightly to Shizune before walking away.
Shizune let out a sigh and readjusted her sword to face Mina.
“Come.”
“Fuu…I’m going to!”
Her nervousness eased. Mina made up her mind and ran towards Shizune. As she thrust it out, the spear’s tip rotated at a high speed.
“‘Spiral Spear’!!”
“…!?”
At the thrust of the spear, Shizune’s eyes widened in surprise for the first time, and she instantly pulled out The Four Seasons from the sheath at her waist.
~