I caught the mock sword Mika threw to me and drew the blade from its scabbard. As the silver-painted surface caught the sunlight, a stir rippled through the field. Part of it was likely due to the tense atmosphere hanging between us, but from a distance, the weapon probably looked like the real thing.
I tossed the now-cumbersome scabbard back toward Mika and the others, then took the hasso stance, pointing the tip of the mock sword toward the sky.
"..."
Holding my stance, I faced Yuji and Hiiragi-san in silence.
In response, Yuji took the kasumi stance, leveling the tip of his sword at me from an upper-level guard, while Hiiragi-san aimed her mock spear at me from a middle-level stance.
“““...”””
Glaring at one another, we kept each other in check through the slightest of movements—the shifting of a gaze or the minute adjustment of a weapon's tip. The tension mounted until the athletic field, which had been buzzing over the appearance of the swords just a moment ago, fell into a complete hush.
Then, shattering an oppressive silence that felt as though it had lasted for hours, we all moved at the exact same instant.
"...Hah!"
The opening strike was a kesa-giri from Yuji’s upper right, aimed at my neck. Under normal circumstances, I would have parried the blow and countered while Yuji’s posture was compromised, but that was out of the question with the weapon I currently held. Attempting to parry his strike would likely result in our mock swords snapping with pathetic ease.
In other words, direct weapon-to-weapon contact was strictly off-limits in this mock battle.
"...Whoops."
I hopped to the side with a light sidestep to evade Yuji’s strike. I remained on guard for a follow-up slash as I usually would, but there was no need.
Having missed his kesa-giri, Yuji didn’t follow up with a return stroke. Instead, he allowed his body to rotate in the direction of his swing, turning his back to me. Under normal circumstances, Yuji would never expose such a glaring opening, but for this specific demonstration, it was a necessary movement. If he tried to perform a high-speed return stroke with a fragile mock sword, the blade would likely snap at the hilt from the sheer G-force. To prevent that, he had to spin with the swing, using his entire body to ensure no excessive load was placed on the blade.
I prepared to swing my own sword down at Yuji’s exposed back...
"...Ei!"
...But I leapt backward with a backstep, evading an attack from Hiiragi-san, who had thrust her mock spear at me from the flank. As expected, when facing two opponents at once, I couldn't easily land a hit even with a clear opening.
After dodging Hiiragi-san’s attack, I kicked off the ground the moment I landed, closing the distance and swinging my mock sword down from an overhead guard. While still in her thrusting posture, Hiiragi-san caught sight of my descent out of the corner of her eye—and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly.
"...!"
A question mark flashed through my mind for a split second, but I understood her confidence immediately. Yuji, who had approached under the cover of Hiiragi-san’s shadow, lunged forward. He stepped deep into my guard and prepared to swing his sword across my midsection. In a regular mock battle, I could have easily evaded even now, but I had already committed to my downward swing. A sudden change in trajectory would break the mock sword, so I couldn't pull back.
That left me with only one possible escape.
"Yo!"
Keeping the mock sword stationary as my center of gravity, I leapt into a front flip to evade Yuji’s strike. I couldn't halt the sword's momentum, so the only way to save the blade was to rotate my own body around it.
As I landed, Hiiragi-san pivoted on her right foot and thrust her mock spear toward my back.
"To!"
I ducked under the spear and grabbed the shaft near the head as it passed over me, twisting it forward. Just as I intended, Hiiragi-san sensed the manipulation and jumped forward—mimicking my previous flip—to prevent the wood from snapping.
Good. Now, if I let go once she reaches the peak... Success! I released the spearhead while she was mid-rotation, and Hiiragi-san sailed through the air, righting her posture before landing a distance away. She would likely return to the fray immediately, but for a moment, I had succeeded in separating them.
"Hah!"
"Not so fast!"
Yuji, who had regained his footing while I was dealing with Hiiragi-san, was already closing in. For this brief window, I could focus entirely on him. Signaling with my eyes, I timed my movement to his thrust, winding my blade clockwise to entangle his and flicking it upward. A winding technique.
Yuji’s mock sword soared into the air. I swung my blade down toward his now-unarmed head, but...
"Shi!"
Even without his sword, Yuji didn't falter. He threw an upward palm strike aimed at my sword hand. His strike accurately caught the hilt, knocking the weapon from my grip.
Now both unarmed, we simultaneously backstepped to create distance, then caught each other's falling mock swords as they came spinning down.
"Not bad."
"Back at you."
Having swapped weapons, we exchanged a few words with smiles on our lips.
We glared at each other for a moment longer until Hiiragi-san rejoined the battle, and then we resumed the clash.
The spectators seemed to have grown accustomed to the pace, as cries of admiration rose from the field every time we collided.
Just then...
"One minute left!"
As we continued the mock battle, carefully managing the durability of the wooden weapons, Mika called out the remaining time.
I stole a glance at the clock; there was indeed less than a minute remaining.
"Sounds like it’s time, Yuji, Hiiragi-san. Shall we wrap this up?"
"Yeah."
"Yes, understood."
Confirming their nods, I moved into the finale. First, I approached Hiiragi-san, who was leveling her spear. Holding the sword in an overhead guard, I took a heavy step in and swung down with full force. Hiiragi-san reacted instantly, but unlike before, she held the mock spear horizontally, intending to catch my blow with the shaft.
The impact was decisive. My mock sword and Hiiragi-san’s mock spear collided magnificently. The sword’s blade snapped clean off at the hilt, leaving only the handle in my hand, while the shaft of the mock spear was cleaved halfway through, the broken blade embedded deep in the wood.
"Haaah!"
Even though I held nothing but a useless hilt, Yuji launched a merciless attack. A small scream rose from the stands as he aimed for my seemingly defenseless side, but it wasn't a problem. I used the bladeless hilt to intercept his strike.
Matching Yuji’s diagonal downward swing, I positioned the hilt in the path of his blade. At the moment of contact, I shifted the angle of the hilt. Unable to withstand the impact of hitting the wood at an irregular angle, Yuji’s mock sword snapped easily. I made sure to catch the flying shard of the blade between my thumb and index finger before it could sail into the crowd.
“““...”””
After maintaining our stances for a few seconds, we glanced at our ruined weapons and bowed in unison to signal the end of the demonstration.
A massive collective sigh echoed across the athletic field as the tension finally bled out of the audience.
The mock battle finished, we joined up with Mika and Saori-chan. We spent the rest of the allotted time waving to the crowd in front of the banner bearing our circle's name. The response seemed excellent. Not only were the students cheering, but the parents were giving us enthusiastic applause as well.
In the end, the extension to ten minutes worked in our favor. According to Mika and Saori-chan, the parents looked stunned for the first five minutes, but they spent the latter half watching our battle like it was a professional action show. I suppose being viewed as a spectacle is better than being feared or shunned.
"With that, we conclude the club activity introductions."
The end of the presentation period was announced, and the club members scattered across the field returned to their original lines. The reactions were mixed. The culture clubs were sighing over their lack of impact, while the members of the sports clubs had the refreshed smiles of those who had reached some kind of enlightenment... though their eyes remained hollow.
"Exit!"
Following the command, everyone ran toward the gates in the order they had entered.
As we left the field, many spectators called out to us. Most were positive comments like "That was amazing" or "I want to see that again," but one gaze stood out. It was the representative from the Dungeon Association.
He was watching us with an appraising, calculating look that was unpleasant, to say the least. Though even that discomfort quickly faded...
"Hey, Onii-chan. Look..."
Mika pointed with a shaking hand toward Juzo-san, who was breaking into a cold sweat. He was directing a piercing, sharp glare our way. All three of us—especially me, Yuji, and Hiiragi-san—felt our faces twitch violently.
Is he... is he angry?
"H-Hey, Yuji? Do you think he’s mad?"
"N-No? I don't think he's necessarily angry, but..."
"Are you sure about that?"
"P-Probably."
Yuji nodded with zero confidence, his own face twitching. Still, we had no choice but to cling to that unreliable answer for now.
Heart pounding with trepidation, we hurried through the Exit Gate.
"See you two later. People might make a fuss in the stands, but try not to let it get to you. And let me know immediately if those guys look like they're going to try something."
"Yeah, I got it. Good luck to you too, Onii-chan."
"Yeah. We’ll find a way to manage."
After packing our props away in the sports equipment shed, we left the gym quickly to stay out of the way of the other clubs. We were the center of attention, and it didn't feel like a place where we could linger. From the other clubs' perspectives, our flashy display had likely robbed them of the audience's focus.
Once outside, we parted ways with Mika and Saori-chan and headed for our class's seating area. I was a bit worried about the reaction from our classmates, but they had probably developed some immunity after yesterday.
When we arrived, there was a brief, awkward hesitation as everyone waited to see who would speak first. Shigemori broke the ice with his usual casual tone.
"Yo, good work. That was some incredible clashing, you two. Do you guys always do that in practice?"
"O-Oh, yeah. It’s usually like that during our sessions."
"If that’s your normal practice, what on earth are you guys aiming for...?"
"Haha, I wonder..."
Shigemori looked up at the sky, covering his face with his hand in exasperation. But honestly, Shigemori, that performance was actually quite restrained compared to our real training.
Seeing our casual exchange, the others who had been holding back suddenly bombarded us with questions.
"How do you even move like that?"
"How did you break a spear shaft with a wooden sword?"
"I can't believe you blocked a full swing with just a hilt."
Yuji and I answered them as best we could. If we acted cold or dismissive now, it would only lead to more trouble later. Hiiragi-san was also being swarmed by the girls in our class, but she was handling it with her usual grace.
Between participating in events and the cheering competition, we spent most of our time answering questions. Before we knew it, the program was complete, and the clock neared noon.
"We will now begin the closing ceremony for the sports festival."
An announcement played as the entire student body lined up on the grounds. The Principal stepped up onto the platform.
"First of all, good work, everyone. To the parents as well, thank you for coming to support the students despite your busy schedules."
After offering his thanks, the Principal began his formal address.
"Now... this year's sports festival was full of turmoil, including the sudden cancellation of the relay events, but we were able to conclude the day safely. I believe this success is entirely due to the enthusiasm of the students, the tremendous support from the parents, and the hard work of the teachers behind the scenes. Everyone's strength gathered under the common goal of making this day a success. And..."
His speech continued, but thankfully, there were no shocking proclamations like the ones at the start of the day. It was a standard celebration of the festival's success, much like any other year.
"With that, I will conclude my remarks. Everyone, thank you for your hard work today."
The Principal finished his speech and bowed.
"Next, we will announce the results."
The students turned their attention toward the school building, where the scoreboard was being updated.
"Red Group... 53 points!"
Cheers erupted from the Red Group's section as the numbers were posted.
"Next, Blue Group... 69 points!"
A sigh of disappointment rippled through the Red Group, while the Blue Group exploded in celebration.
"Finally, White Group... 64 points! Therefore, this year’s sports festival champion is the Blue Group!"
The cheers from the Blue Group intensified. After a few moments, the announcement for the awards ceremony played, and the noise gradually subsided.
"Will the Blue Group's cheer squad leader please come up to the platform."
Following the instructions, the leader stepped onto the morning assembly platform. The Principal, holding the certificate of championship, faced the leader across the microphone.
"Congratulations on your victory."
"Thank you very much!"
After receiving the certificate, the leader bowed to the Principal and then held the paper high for his group to see. A roar of triumph rose from the Blue Group.
Once the awards ceremony finished and the solemn speeches from the PTA and guest representatives were concluded...
"This concludes the closing ceremony."
With that final announcement, the long, chaotic sports festival finally came to an end.