Skill 18 Volume 8

Your brother's not avoiding Amane's interference at all. Vermillion, you see it, right?"

Stella's eyes quivered in admiration and envy as she nodded to Kurono's question.

"Yeah… Ikki really is incredible…!"

"What?"

"In other words, your brother's taking Nameless Glory head on. If you look carefully, you can see his footwork is off. He's slipping, just like you did. But the moment he slips, he readjusts, and turns his step from bracing his weight into pushing off for a slash, switching the angle of force and spreading it across his lower body. All in a split second."

"Is that even possible!? Even when there's no telling how the error would happen!?"

"Nameless Glory acts faster than human thought, so compensating intentionally is beyond human capacity. But in the past, a certain famous swordsman achieved enlightenment after a lifetime, and reached attunement with his sword."

True harmonization of mind, body, and weapon was the epitome of swordsmanship, and only those whose training reached the bleeding edge via harshest struggle and deadliest risk could achieve it.

"Those who attain this enlightenment will cut down enemies faster than their own thoughts form. Honed through uncountable repetitions of technique, their bodies react to their surroundings without conscious will. No matter how Kurogane's body fails, it fixes itself instantly."

Even a genius could make mistakes, but a true genius fixes them with superlative skill. And thus Ikki continued unwaveringly toward Amane regardless of his condition. His existence was no longer concerned with technique or sword style, but the ideal of a weapon sharped unto inevitability.

"Power over coincidence can't fend that off."

Kurono's words described the truth that all could see in the ring.

"GUAAAHHH!"