Chapter 14: Direct Speedrun

"Hey! Why are you still here! Come with me, quickly!"

"What's the rush? I haven't finished watching this match yet."

"Stop talking nonsense; a monster has appeared in the southwest corner! They're already on the fifth round now; in the first four rounds, every single opponent was defeated by him in one move!"

"Hah? One move! For real?"

"Anyway, he's super strong! Just follow me, hurry, hurry, or we won't be able to squeeze through!"

Similar conversations kept happening in every area of the square.

As if drawn by a magnet, spectators began rushing in large groups toward the southwest corner, and before anyone realized it, the areas around most of the other rings had become empty.

And right at the center of this surging crowd.

A black-haired youth leaned against the wooden platform; having waited for quite some time, he boredly picked at his ear.

"Hasn't the next one arrived yet?" he glanced at the referee.

"Arriving soon! Mr. Siano, please bear with us and wait just a little longer!" The referee was a tall girl in her twenties with a high ponytail, and she answered hurriedly.

Because more and more people were gathering around, she was squeezed until she felt stiflingly hot and broke out in a sweat, yet the corners of her mouth still couldn't suppress a smile; clearly, she was in an excellent mood.

What incredible luck!

It was her first time serving as a referee, and she got to oversee such an amazing swordsman; when she told her junior brothers and sisters back at the dojo about it, they would be jealous to death.

Having watched four matches in a row from close range, she had long been captivated by that godlike swordsmanship.

Moreover, this Mr. Siano was still very young; if his swordsmanship was already this formidable, what would he be like in the future?

"He's here!"

Her eyes suddenly lit up; spotting a scar-faced swordsman approaching, she stood on tiptoe and waved desperately, "Mr. Kirin, over here, over here!"

The scar-faced swordsman wore an indifferent expression; with a cigar dangling from the corner of his mouth, he seemed shrouded in shadow as he stepped onto the wooden platform without saying a word.

"Hey, that's Mr. Kirin, the deputy master of the Fallen Leaves Dojo, one of the Seven Great Dojos!"

A spectator recognized the newcomer and couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.

"It really is him!"

"In the Swordsmanship Tournament five years ago, he was the runner-up, wasn't he?"

"A swordsman who has been famous for so long, yet he's come to participate in the tournament again? As expected... he still can't let go of not winning the championship back then, can he?"

On the wooden platform, Siano took in all these murmurs with his ears.

The gaze with which he squinted at the scar-faced swordsman finally carried a slight hint of seriousness.

This guy... was different from the previous small fries; just judging by his aura, he was very formidable.

Barring any unexpected developments, this opponent should be the one most worthy of attention in the entire Swordsmanship Tournament—

"I forfeit."

A hoarse voice drifted out, mixed with smoke.

"Alright, it seems both competitors are in place, so then... eh? Eh? Eh??"

The girl with the ponytail turned her head in utter bewilderment to look at the scar-faced swordsman, "Mr. Kirin, what did you say?"

The surrounding clamor also ceased; the spectators' astonished gazes all focused on Kirin.

Clatter—that was the sound of a bamboo sword being tossed aside; Kirin exhaled a ring of smoke, waved his hand, and said casually, "Don't look at me like that; I saw this kid's third-round match earlier."

"With such terrifying swordsmanship, I admit I'm no match; I'm already getting on in years, so rather than be blown away and make a fool of myself, I might as well preserve some dignity."

"Is... is that so..."

The girl with the ponytail was about to say something more.

But Kirin had already stepped down from the wooden platform; with the cigar still in his mouth, his back disappeared into the crowd, and soon he was gone without a trace.

Siano withdrew his gaze, looked at the bamboo sword that had happened to fall at his feet, frowned imperceptibly, then suddenly bent down and picked it up.

"This can count as a trophy too; I'll take it, no problem, right?"

"Eh?" The girl with the ponytail stared blankly for a moment, then quickly nodded, "Of course you can; since Mr. Kirin threw it away himself, it's yours to dispose of as you wish."

"Good."

Siano placed this bamboo sword alongside his own and tucked them both back at his waist.

Meanwhile, the girl with the ponytail took a deep breath, suppressed the excitement in her heart, stepped onto the wooden platform, and announced loudly:

"Fifth round of the preliminaries, Siano versus Kirin; final result: Siano wins!"

"Hereby, on behalf of the Swordsmanship Tournament organizers, I also announce that Mr. Siano has achieved victory in all five rounds! No need to participate in the revival elimination stage; he officially becomes the first competitor to advance, securing a spot in the top eight!"

All the spectators present had already been whispering below, waiting precisely for her to announce this news.

Thus, after a brief silence, deafening cheers of excitement suddenly rang out across the square—

"Siano! Siano! Siano!"

————

Boom!

In a spacious office, a middle-aged man dressed in luxurious clothing slammed his fist fiercely onto the desk and roared in fury:

"Is this the nobody you talked about? A chance encounter? Even after giving him the most troublesome draw, he still won all five rounds; with this kind of strength, he's clearly a powerful ally hired by that damn brat from the Sakuraba family!"

"You were the one who called him a nobody, Boss."

The tall, slender swordsman wearing a white fox mask said calmly.

"Eh, really?... No! Is that the point here! You damn well dare to talk back to me!"

The middle-aged man froze for a moment, then flew into a rage born of humiliation; he grabbed the ashtray on the desk and hurled it over.

"That analysis mistake was based on your intelligence report! Tell me, with this kid being this ridiculously strong, how do we deal with him!"

"And that Kirin! Didn't he always harbor resentment over not winning the championship back then? I thought he came this time to wipe away that shame, but turns out he's a complete coward! He didn't even have the courage to step onto the stage and fight once!"

"..." The tall, slender swordsman fell silent; the expression on his face hidden behind the mask was unreadable.

The middle-aged man's rage had not yet subsided when something else occurred to him:

"Oh right, what about that brat from the Sakuraba family? Hasn't he finished fighting yet? How are his results?"

"Four wins out of five matches; he lost to another favorite for the championship, but he holds a repechage qualification. Barring any accidents, he should advance to the top eight shortly."

The middle-aged man grew even more agitated; he stood up and paced back and forth within the office.

"No! The championship absolutely cannot fall into the Sakuraba family's hands; otherwise, the prestige of the Sakuraba Dojo will rise again. If it reignites from the ashes, dealing with it will require considerable effort..."

"Hey, White Fox!"

He suddenly turned his head, fixed his gaze on the tall, slender swordsman, and said in a cold voice:

"While the preliminaries haven't ended yet, go participate immediately. You must secure one of the top eight seats. Right now, only you have the strength to keep the champion's throne in our own hands!"

The tall, slender swordsman's brows furrowed slightly.

"Wasn't it agreed initially that I would only hide behind the scenes and wouldn't need to appear publicly to do this kind of work?"

"Isn't this due to pressing circumstances? Apart from you, who else can steadily stop those two kids? Of course, mainly that Siano; whether the Sakuraba brat can defeat the other advancing contestants is still up for debate."

The middle-aged man sneered, "Besides, no one asked you to remove your mask; feel free to use your current false identity, or switch to another mask if you like. Who the hell could guess who you are?"

"..."

The tall, slender swordsman remained silent for a long while before finally nodding.

"Go, and hurry!"

The middle-aged man waved his hand; just as the tall, slender swordsman's back was about to disappear outside the door, he suddenly spoke:

"Tell me, White Fox, you wouldn't go soft-hearted, regret the agreement from back then, and betray me, would you?"

The footsteps outside the door paused briefly.

"... Asking such a question when you already know the answer is meaningless."

A voice devoid of any emotion drifted in.

"Haha, good that you know it!"

The middle-aged man threw back his head and laughed loudly, "Don't forget! Just how terrifying my kind of ability is; it's not something you ordinary people can resist!"

The southeast sector of the plaza.

"What's wrong, Mr. Siano?"

Junichi had just stepped down from the wooden platform amidst cheers, the excitement in his heart not yet faded, when Siano pulled him aside, prompting him to ask in confusion.

"Nothing."

Siano said with a smile, "First, congratulations on easily passing the repechage and successfully advancing. However, the top-eight stage doesn't start until one o'clock in the afternoon; there's still plenty of time. How about going to eat with me first?"

"Eat already?"

Junichi scratched his head; before he could fully recover his senses, Siano forcibly grabbed him, dragging him by the arm toward the outer perimeter of the plaza.

Only after entering a secluded alley did Siano stop.

He tossed a bamboo sword in his hand to Junichi, whose belly was full of confusion.

"This is..."

Junichi raised the bamboo sword, staring at it for a long time before noticing a line of small characters carved upon it: "Eleven o'clock sharp, second floor of the Wisteria Restaurant?"

"My opponent in the fifth round, Kirin, the deputy master of the Fallen Leaves Dojo, gave this to me." Siano frowned, "It seems he wants to discuss something with us privately. Do you know this guy?"

"Deputy master? Kirin?"

Junichi ransacked his memory, thinking hard for a long time.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he struck his palm with a fist:

"I remember! You say 'deputy master' and I have no impression, but this name—I saw it five years ago!"

"That year, while Father was still alive, he was responsible for preparing and hosting that year's Kendo Tournament; he would always bring a list home."

"The names on that list were all swordsmen who had actively registered for the tournament but couldn't attend due to lack of funds; Father specifically allocated funds to subsidize their travel and lodging expenses one by one, and Kirin was among them!"

"A list? You were only ten years old that year; are you sure you didn't remember it wrong?"

"Absolutely not!"

Junichi nodded affirmatively, "I only carefully examined that list twice; if it were other names, I wouldn't dare be certain, but this name is too unique and easy to remember, so I still have an impression of it to this day."

"Looking at it this way, the most reasonable guess is that you... no, rather, our ally?"

Siano seemed lost in thought.

Recalling Kirin's direct withdrawal from the competition and the two cups of coffee still warm from that morning, he twisted his neck, causing his bones to emit a series of cracking sounds.

"Then let's go meet him; let's hear what Mr. Kirin wants to tell us, but we must not lower our guard; bring the sword."

(End of Chapter)