The pressure suddenly soared, and her heart sank.
She gritted her teeth and fought back with all her strength, her katana slashing down wildly.
It missed.
Raiden Mei narrowed her eyes and observed quietly for a moment. Seeing Bai Yan retreat, she gradually came to a conclusion.
"Hmph. All flash, no substance."
Her fighting spirit surged in an instant as Beichen Ichiryu activated.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
As Raiden Mei's momentum rose, Bai Yan was steadily forced back across the platform.
Bronya blinked. "Sister Bai Yan is going to lose."
Kiana said, "So what? I saw that coming ages ago—but Xiao Yan looked really pretty just now!"
Bronya looked at Fu Hua. "Class Monitor?"
Fu Hua did not respond. She merely frowned as she watched the arena.
"Something feels strange... but I don't think it was entirely all flash and no substance."
Kiana said, "Of course! Does a pretty move mean it can't be powerful?"
Fu Hua murmured, "Graceful as a startled swan, elegant as a swimming dragon... Student Bai Yan still seems to have strength left."
"Even though I'm not taking sides, Xiao Yan is indeed just a tiny bit worse." Kiana said, holding her index finger and thumb apart with only the narrowest gap between them.
"Bronya thinks so too."
"Hey, hey, hey, don't just repeat what I say. Have your own judgment."
Bronya ignored her, but Kiana felt as though she had won a small round. Generously, she held out the bag of chips for Bronya to take as much as she wanted.
On the stage, Raiden Mei pressed her advantage, each wave of attacks fiercer than the last, as though she were about to crush Bai Yan completely.
"You've lost!"
At that moment, Bai Yan assumed a stance that seemed full of openings. Seizing the chance, Raiden Mei used the Shukuchi technique to surge forward.
But in the next instant—
Raiden Mei felt the world before her suddenly explode. Endless dazzling white light made her eyes ache, forcing them shut.
Tears immediately streamed down her face, followed by a sharp, stinging pain.
But she endured the pain and opened them again at once.
Where was there any white light in the world? It was as though none of it had happened.
Instead, Bai Yan's sword was pointed directly at her throat, along with that smiling face Raiden Mei found so irritating.
The victor had been decided.
"Hmph! You win."
Raiden Mei left the stage in anger.
When she returned to the resting area and picked up a bottle of drink to take a sip, she realized the others were staring at her in bewilderment.
"What is it?"
"Big Sister Mei... did you go easy on her just now?"
Raiden Mei's eyes widened. "I didn't! She somehow released a flash of white light into my eyes, and that's how I lost."
"Mei, are you seeing things? There wasn't any white light at all."
As everyone looked at her in confusion, she vaguely seemed to understand something.
Bai Yan happened to walk over just then.
Raiden Mei immediately stopped her and asked, "What was that?"
"Hmm..." Bai Yan stroked her chin and thought for a while. "One Sword Startling Swan. I just came up with the name."
Everyone froze.
Fu Hua asked, "A mental attack?"
"No, I used a little principle involving light." Bai Yan answered ambiguously.
"I see."
Fu Hua had clearly misunderstood, but that was exactly what Bai Yan wanted.
Kiana did not understand, so she asked Bai Yan again.
Bai Yan only smiled without answering, waiting for Fu Hua to explain.
"It's similar to the use of lasers. It acts directly on a person's eyes, and with only a tiny amount of energy, it can interfere with an opponent's reactions at a critical moment—quite a practical idea."
Everyone suddenly understood.
Raiden Mei lowered her head and looked at her palm. Her long hair covered half her face, and no one knew what she was thinking.
However, that was not the truth.
After Jingliu had finished teaching her the entire sword art, she had once said something to Bai Yan.
"Today, you have completely mastered this sword art. Just like everyone else who practices it, you understand all sixty-four variations.
"But this is only the beginning. From here on, you must take this as your starting point and walk your own path step by step.
"This is a process of understanding the sword art, and also understanding yourself. Contemplate it well..."
Bai Yan remembered that the sword art's power was proportional to its beauty.
On the battlefield, the more pleasing it was to the eye, the more corpses it would leave behind.
So Bai Yan had thought of simply combining that beauty and power, delivering them both to her opponent in order to achieve a double impact on the body and mind.
Though reality proved that could not be done, she had managed one thing for now: directing her sword at a particular sense of her opponent's.
For example, sight.
Raiden Mei became the first person to test the move on.
Bathroom Talk
"One Sword... Startling Swan..."
Raiden Mei, who had mastered Beichen Ichiryu, had lost to Bai Yan, an unknown girl from Shenzhou.
In terms of fundamentals, she could steadily suppress Bai Yan. She just had not expected her opponent to possess such a move.
Ha... Didn't I tell you? If you accepted this power, you wouldn't have so much trouble.
"Shut up!"
Tch...
The voice in her mind disappeared. Raiden Mei took a deep breath, then slowly let it out.
Over the past while, it was not as though she had never looked for chances to be alone with Kiana.
They went shopping together, visited amusement parks, and even watched movies all night.
Later, she discovered that Bai Yan liked making a huge pile of food for Kiana to eat whenever she had nothing else to do, while Bai Yan herself drank beverages and chatted with Kiana.
She also began secretly making midnight snacks for Kiana, giving her small surprises now and then.
As time passed, Bai Yan seemed to have no interest in competing with her anymore. She merely praised Mei's cooking while freeloading meals and drinks...
Mei had thought she had regained the advantage, until one night, when she saw the two of them duo-queueing games to climb the ranks. Only then did she realize that some of the talents she lacked were a little too fatal.
And according to Bronya's leaked information, the two often climbed over the walls and snuck out. Bronya had personally seen Kiana toss Bai Yan one-handed over the already heightened wall, after which the two successfully coordinated their prison break.
That girl looked so refined and gentle, and she even resisted practical combat training. How was she so wild behind the scenes?!
She had encountered a naturally gifted player at the academy and could not defeat her no matter how hard she tried.
From then on, Raiden Mei's mindset began to change a little.
That Shenzhou girl liked putting on airs, but she did not seem to have any bad intentions. At the very least, Mei had never seen her deliberately interfere with her.
"Maybe... I've been too petty?"
But whenever she saw Kiana getting along with Bai Yan like they were real brothers, gloomy rain clouds filled Raiden Mei's heart again.
The internal tournament passed as a minor interlude, while the official competition gradually drew closer.
Another day of training ended, and she dragged her exhausted body back to the dormitory.
Resting for an hour after exercising before taking a bath was a habit Bai Yan had formed in her previous life.
St. Freya really did have great facilities. The dorm rooms even had bathtubs.
Splash, splash, splash...
She opened a large bottle of soda and took out a cup.
She filled it up, inserted a straw, and drank half the cup first.
Then she sank into the water and began contemplating life.
"Dumb Goose stirred up Schicksal's grand military exercise, all for her—
"Hmm, that headline is sensational enough. If anyone dared write a news story like that, that news agency would vanish from the face of the earth.
"After getting used to this identity, life at St. Freya really is relaxing.
"The joy here makes one forget the tower."
Do not ask whether that tower referred to Rita or Altagina.
Rumble...
The door opened.
Bai Yan instantly perked up. She hurriedly lowered herself into the water until only her head remained above the surface.
Kiana poked her head in sneakily.
"Xiao Yan?"
"I'm here, but you're not allowed to come in."
"Got it, got it."
Kiana sat down cross-legged by the bathroom door, holding a bottle of soda as well.
This counted as drinking together, too.
"Xiao Yan, I've never asked about your family before... Can we talk about it?"
"Only my brother is left."
"I see... I'm sorry..."
"It's fine."
Kiana felt awful. She took a sip of cola, trying to use the sweetness to wash away that discomfort.
"You know, when I was little, that stinky old man of mine suddenly left without saying goodbye for some reason. I've been looking for him ever since, but there's still no news.
"Recently, my aunt—that is, the principal—promised me that as long as I become an A-rank Valkyrie, she'll tell me where that stinky old man is.
"But after spending time with her lately, I feel like she..."
Bai Yan slurped loudly through her straw and smacked her lips.
She glanced back at the hot water behind her, then silently picked up the body wash and began making bubbles.
"The principal doesn't exactly seem very reliable?"
Kaslana, in her child form.
Those two factors combined dealt devastating damage to "reliability."
"Um... Xiao Yan, do you think she actually knows where that stinky old man is?"
Bai Yan swished the water around, letting bubbles fill the entire surface of the bathtub.
Before you continue