Watching the white-haired girl point the technologically advanced Light Sword at him—despite not even knowing where she had come from or why she had appeared at Hagun Academy—and seeing her stare at him without a trace of emotion, Ikki finally understood.
(She's serious...!)
That was right.
The girl before him was serious.
As long as this girl regarded him as an enemy, she would absolutely cut him down in earnest, without showing the slightest mercy.
If he failed to properly deal with the enemy before him, then dying on the spot would be his fate.
Understanding this, Ikki's grip on his sword began to sweat.
In the past, Ikki had faced all kinds of malice.
When he was with the Kurogane Family, his poor talent had caused his relatives to completely ignore him, treating him as though he did not exist and isolating him as a result.
At the academy, because the former chairman had colluded with the Kurogane Family, they had constantly made things difficult for Ikki. Not only had they denied him the chance to participate in the Seven Star Sword Festival, they had even prevented him from taking practical combat classes, causing him to waste an entire year before he was ultimately expelled.
Because of the title of Fallen Knight, Ikki had endured countless scornful looks, contempt, and insults. From then until now, he had borne all kinds of malice.
But facing pure, unadulterated killing intent like this was a first.
The girl before him neither looked down on Ikki nor thought highly of him. She merely regarded him as an enemy, intending to cross swords with him and even cut him down.
The reason she did so was also very simple.
"I am neither an instructor nor an enlightener. I am merely a killer, a destroyer,