The Asterisk War, Vol. 4: Quest for Days Lost

by Yuu Miyazaki

  “Got it. Thanks, Yabuki.”

  The Tyrant, his sister, the quarterfinal in two days, and his seal on top of that… Ayato had a lot on his plate.

  “Haaah…” He looked up at the ceiling. Nothing to do but tackle things one at a time.

  CHAPTER 4

  DOUBTS

  There was a small clearing in the middle of the woods.

  Two young children, each with a weapon in hand, battled fiercely.

  “Uh, um—oh, Amagiri Shinmei Style—Twin Serpents!”

  The innocent boy drew a clumsy cross with his sword at the girl holding a large gun.

  “—Too slow.”

  The girl easily evaded the attack, spinning her small body toward the boy, and fired a shot. The ball of light blasted out of the enormous pistol-shaped Lux and brushed past the boy’s midsection as he contorted to evade it. Somewhere far-off, the missile created a cloud of grass with a small bang. Although the gun’s output had been lowered to an appropriate level for self-defense, a direct hit would have incapacitated him.

  The boy swung his wooden sword in a feint and put more distance between himself and the girl. Usually, it was poor strategy to give a gunner the advantage in range. This girl, however, was also formidable in close-range combat. He had to fight at the best distance for his attacks, as long as that was possible.

  As if to thwart his plan, the girl launched a rapid volley.

  “Aw, crap!” Dodging some rounds and deflecting others with his sword, the boy fought like mad to maintain his distance. But eventually, he caved and sprang backward, clicking his tongue in frustration.

  “…Gotcha,” the girl murmured, and took aim to shoot him down.

  But he was expecting that.

  “Haaah!” The boy redirected the projectile back at the girl.

  Ordinarily, such a stunt would be unimaginable. But with a projectile reduced in power, and a good guess as to the timing, this was not impossible.

  “!”

  A hint of surprise crossed the girl’s stoic face as she dodged.

  Meanwhile, the boy zigzagged toward her to close the distance again.

  Rushing to land a counterattack, the girl squeezed the trigger over and over—but every shot failed to find its mark, landing a moment too late.

  In the next instant, the boy struck upward from a low stance to send her gun flying into the air.

  “I win, Saya.”

  As Ayato Amagiri spoke triumphantly, Saya Sasamiya raised her hands in surrender.

  “…Okay. You win this time,” she said with a small sigh. Her expression barely changed except for the slight frown that wrinkled her brow. Defeat did get to her a little.

  “So that’s three hundred twenty-one wins for me, and one hundred eighty-two for you,” Ayato said. “But I lost a bunch in a row, so it’s about time.”

  The two children had lived next door to each other and had been playing together as long as they could remember.

  At first, they had amused themselves like normal children, playing tag or hide-and-go-seek or board games. But ever since Ayato had begun training at his family’s dojo, they had sparred like real fighters. After that, their playtime had started to resemble actual matches.

  In spirit, these were the same good-natured competitions many children had. But they had provided valuable training for Ayato, who had been banned from participating in matches at the dojo. And they had given Saya the chance to use the guns her father made.

  There was something else, too.

  “…All right. Here.” Saya took out a piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Ayato.

  In childish writing were scrawled the words Wish Coupon.

  “Hee-hee! Thanks!” Ayato accepted the voucher and gleefully held it up to the sun.

  The token was valid only between Ayato and Saya. Like other coupons for favors between friends and family, this one could be exchanged for any single wish. Ayato and Saya wagered these whenever they had any sort of competition. Saya had come up with the idea, inspired by the Festa prize.

  There were, however, two restrictions on the type of wish.

  One—wishes that would upset the other friend were forbidden.

  Two—a coupon could not be used to nullify a wish made using another coupon.

  These were mostly redeemed for such innocuous wishes as getting the other person’s share of a snack, or asking the friend to do one’s homework. But they had certainly started using their wishes in increasingly creative ways.

  For example…

  “Hey, Saya?”

  “Hmm?”

  “You wouldn’t want to, maybe, take back your wish…would you?”

  They could not use a wish to negate another wish, but the person using the ticket could always take it back. Which was what Ayato had been hoping for…

  “Nope,” Saya replied flatly.

  “But shouting out the names of my moves is kind of embarrassing…”

  “It’s not embarrassing. It’s super cool, so don’t worry.” Saya gave him a firm thumbs-up.

  “Umm…you think so?”

  “That’s what all the heroes on TV do. Nothing wrong with it.”

  “Well, I guess you’re right…”

  “It’s fine. You’ll get used to it.”

  Ayato couldn’t help but feel that Saya was intentionally missing his point.

  Still, her wish didn’t upset him quite that much, so he kept his mouth shut.

  “Anyway, what about your wish, Ayato?”

  The coupons had no expiration date, so there was no need to use them right away. They could save as many as they wanted, or redeem several at once.

  Today, Ayato already had a wish in mind.

  “Oh, yeah. I’m gonna use this one right away.” He held out the slip of paper toward Saya. “Just once, I want to beat my sister. Will you help, Saya?”

  “Mm…”

  When Ayato woke to the ringing of his mobile device, it was already past ten in the morning.

  Usually, he woke up on his own for morning training, but the fatigue from the last few days had caught up to him.

  “Why am I dreaming about the past again?” Ayato muttered to himself, scratching his bed-head hair.

  He had dreamt about his childhood before, but this was from even further back than usual—nearly ten years ago…

  Meanwhile, his mobile was still ringing.

  “Whoops…” He grabbed it and saw the call was from Julis.

  Glancing at the other side of the room, he saw Eishirou spread-eagle on his bed, seemingly deep in his own dreams.

  Adjusting the volume so as to not wake him, he opened the air-window to find an apologetic Julis. “Oh—were you still sleeping? Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you.”

  “Yeah, but don’t worry. It’s time I got up anyway. So, what’s up?”

  Their strategy meeting wasn’t until the afternoon. He had plenty of time until then.

  “Actually, Flora wants to invite you for lunch. She says there’s something she has to ask you.”

  “Flora does?”

  “Only if you want to, of course…”

  “I don’t mind.”

  Ayato wondered what kind of question Flora could have for him.

  “Good. Can you meet us in the commercial area? Main Street will be too crowded, though. Somewhere else would be better, but…I’m still not very familiar with the place.”

  “Yeah, you’re right.” Ayato could recall how busy that area was on a normal day. It wasn’t hard to imagine what it would be like during a Festa event. “But I don’t know much more about the city than you do.”

  After all, he had spent his days off and after-school hours training with Julis and the others. He’d been living in Asterisk for two months now, and he had hardly gone out at all. They had spent more time in the city since the Phoenix started, but that didn’t really count—it was just commuting between the arenas and the school.

  At that moment, Eishirou yawned dramatically.

>   “What, you guys looking for a place to eat?” he asked Ayato, slowly sitting up in bed while blearily rubbing his eyes.

  “Uh, yeah. We were wondering what to do, since anywhere we go is bound to be crowded.”

  “Hmm—then I’ll recommend a place. You’re going on a date with the Princess, right?”

  “A d-date?! Y-y-you idiot! You have it all wrong!”

  Paying no attention to Julis’s shouting or her bright red face in the air-window, Eishirou reached for the mobile by his pillow. “Here, try this one. It’s near the edge of the residential district and pretty far from the trains. Not a lot of tourists, plus the atmosphere and food aren’t bad—it’s a bit of a hidden gem. It’s a favorite with Queenvale students, but it’s summer break now, so it shouldn’t be too crowded.”

  Ayato checked the shop profile Eishirou shared. It was a café with a pleasant ambience—the sort that might be popular with young women. “Huh, not bad, Yabuki. How’d you know about a place like this?”

  “Well, you know. Our club deals in all kinds of information,” Eishirou replied with a smug smile.

  “So, what do you think, Julis? Will this do?” Ayato forwarded her the profile.

  “Hmph… I guess so. I don’t like that Yabuki is the one suggesting it, but it does look nice.” Julis sounded grudgingly interested.

  “All right, that’s where we’ll meet.”

  They promised to meet at the café in two hours, and Ayato hung up. “Thanks, Yabuki. That was a big help.”

  “Hey, don’t mention it.” Sitting on top of his bed, Eishirou glanced meaningfully at Ayato. “I figure it can’t hurt for you to owe me a favor.”

  “I hope I can afford to repay you,” Ayato replied with a wry smile, and he stood to get ready to go out.

  “Huh…?” After Ayato quickly made himself presentable and started down the dorm path toward the front gate, he noticed some familiar figures approaching.

  They noticed him, too, and one—Kirin—trotted over. Since she was in workout gear, he guessed she was in the middle of a run.

  “Hello, Ayato. Are you going out somewhere?” With a bashful expression, Kirin bowed to him in greeting.

  “Yeah, for a bit. Hey, I don’t see the two of you together a lot.”

  “Oh? Is it unusual?”

  A few steps behind Kirin came her companion, Claudia. She smiled as she always did, placing her hand on her cheek with a slight tilt of the head.

  Ayato really could not remember seeing the two alone together.

  “We bumped into each other, and I wanted to discuss something with Miss Toudou,” Claudia said.

  “Like what?”

  “About Orga Luxes.” Claudia glanced to Kirin for approval and, after the other girl nodded, she continued. “Following her uncle’s demands, Miss Toudou never used an Orga Lux, but as you know, she’s free to do as she chooses now. I thought it might be worth trying some, if she was interested.”

  “I see…”

  Ayato could easily imagine a much stronger Kirin with an Orga Lux. After all, she had achieved the top rank at Seidoukan with nothing but an ordinary katana. The only reason he had bested her was because his unusual tactics had panned out. He doubted he could win again.

  “However…”

  “I appreciated the President’s suggestion—but I really can’t use anything other than a katana,” Kirin explained, shaking her head apologetically. “I’m attached to the Senbakiri, and the Conjoined Cranes is a technique specialized for the katana…”

  “Oh, right,” Ayato said. “And the Toudou style sticks to a strict set of forms.”

  No matter how powerful an Orga Lux was, it was wasted if it restricted the skill of the wielder. Fighting with a familiar weapon was no small advantage in and of itself.

  “I have to admit, the size of the Ser Veresta is giving me a little trouble,” Ayato added.

  “Hee-hee, I’m sorry to tell you, but I think that means you haven’t fully harnessed its power yet.”

  “Huh?” Ayato’s eyes went wide.

  “The Ser Veresta has no fixed size. If you have it completely in your control, it should naturally assume a size and form that’s best for you.”

  “I—I didn’t know that…” Ayato’s eyes dropped to the Lux at his waist.

  So this rebellious character had yet to accept him.

  “You seem to have trouble exercising precise control of your prana. Maybe that’s part of the reason,” Claudia suggested.

  “Um, yeah, maybe…” Ayato had no retort, since that really was his greatest weakness.

  “Oh, we seem to have gotten off topic. As for Miss Toudou’s Orga Lux—what if we can find one in the shape of a katana?”

  “What? Is there an Orga Lux like that?” Kirin asked, surprised.

  Claudia shook her head disappointedly. “No, not among the Orga Luxes in Seidoukan’s care. The closest would be the Ser Veresta…”

  The Ser Veresta was a single-edged blade, after all, and shaped like a tachi sword. Although…

  “N-no, that belongs to Ayato, and I’d never be able to control it—!” Flustered, Kirin waved her hands in protest.

  “So katana-shaped Orga Luxes are rare?” Ayato asked.

  “I would say so,” Claudia replied. “The powers and form of an Orga Lux come from the character of the urm-manadite core, to a surprising degree. It’s not as if we can design an Orga Lux to order.”

  “Not very convenient, is it,” Ayato said bluntly.

  Unable to disagree, Claudia smiled helplessly. “Well, their powers more than make up for that, so we can’t be too greedy… Well, actually, our R&D division recently got their hands on a new urm-manadite from Galaxy’s research surplus. So, perhaps…”

  “It might end up katana-shaped?” Ayato finished.

  Claudia nodded. “I’ve heard it’s a possibility. There’s no way to know how it will actually turn out, or when it will take shape as an Orga Lux… But if it does work out that way, please give it a try.”

  “O-okay!” Kirin bowed timidly.

  “You’re pretty serious about this, Claudia,” Ayato observed.

  “It’s my job to do everything I can for all the students of Seidoukan and see that they perform as well as possible at the Festa.”

  “It must be hard being student council president…”

  Claudia herself was a Page One fighter, and she had to spend her time and effort making other students stronger. It takes some fierce dedication to keep up with it all, Ayato thought.

  Then something occurred to him. “By the way—have you two ever fought each other?”

  “Huh?”

  “What?”

  The two girls exchanged a glance.

  Kirin was the former first-ranked at Seidoukan, and Claudia was second. It wouldn’t be a surprise if they had faced each other at some point.

  But Kirin nervously replied, “N-no, no, never!”

  “Well, her uncle saw me as a threat,” Claudia said. “So of course we had no chance.”

  “Besides, you haven’t participated in any matches or duels for about a year now, have you?” Kirin asked.

  “That’s right. It has been quite a while. I hope I’m not getting rusty!” Claudia laughed good-naturedly.

  “Duels I can understand, but no matches, either…?”

  Julis might have mentioned something like this, Ayato recalled.

  This meant no one had challenged Claudia in an official match. Under Seidoukan’s rules, a student could not refuse a challenge from a lower-ranked fighter. Claudia was second, so almost any ranked student could try for her place.

  But if she hadn’t fought in any matches for a year…

  “Ayato, have you seen any recordings of Claudia’s matches?” Kirin asked.

  “Hmm? No, I haven’t…”

  “If you did, you’d understand right away,” Kirin said, dead serious. “The reason no one fights her is because she’s just that strong.”

  “I imagine that what every
one fears isn’t me, but the little one.” Claudia caressed the Orga Lux activator at her waist.

  Her Orga Lux, the Pan-Dora, granted the exceptional power of future sight—in exchange for a cruel cost. Naturally, not many would willingly engage an opponent who could see the future, but that no one tried at all seemed a bit strange.

  “To be honest,” Kirin said, “I have imagined fighting you, Miss President. But…I just can’t picture how I might win.”

  “Oh, you’re being too modest,” Claudia answered with a self-deprecating smile.

  “But it’s the truth. Besides, Odhroerir has you ranked higher…”

  “That is based on the subjective opinions of outsiders, which are not very useful.”

  As Yabuki had said, Claudia placed little faith in the unofficial rankings.

  “But, still…,” Kirin stubbornly demurred.

  “Haaah…” Claudia let out a small sigh. “Then—in those imaginary encounters, did you lose to me, Miss Toudou?”

  “W-well…”

  Kirin fell silent, and Claudia continued.

  “You couldn’t picture how you would lose, either, could you? Even if I can see what’s to come, that won’t save me if I cannot respond in time. And you have the advantage over me in speed, at the very least. Who knows how a match might go?”

  So, were the two of them—abilities and all—evenly matched in Claudia’s estimation?

  “Oh, how silly of me. Here I am chattering away…” Claudia clapped her hands, and bowed to Ayato and Kirin. “Excuse me now. Good luck in the quarterfinals tomorrow, both of you. I’m expecting great things.”

  “Oh—yeah. See you,” Ayato said.

  “What Claudia said is true,” Kirin murmured, watching her leave. “I didn’t picture myself losing, either.”