In their classroom during their lunch break, Akari and Shino are eating lunch while chatting again today.
Raika, who had secretly been eating her lunch during class, was slumped over her desk and had a manga volume as an eye mask… She was just taking a nap.
The other students as well were resting, eating, and enjoying their break… When suddenly, a loud noise came from classroom 1-A’s door!
It opened with a bang, and so naturally everyone’s eyes gathered there.
At the now open door stood a girl with long hair and glasses.
But she had a pale face, and looked so nervous that it wouldn’t be surprising if she threw up.
Everyone was on edge, even though they recognized this girl from being Butei High as she was wearing an official bulletproof sailor school uniform.
It seems that she had opened the door with too much enthusiasm due to being tense. The sound of the door slamming open had terrified her, and she began looking around restlessly with her eyes that were covered by her bangs. And,
“… I-, I’m not good at speaking to people, why was I given this job…”
She was mumbling and clutching the clipboard to her chest as she walked into the classroom.
She seems to have something to tell the class, and so she walked over to the podium at the front.
The girl was standing at the podium in a stiff state, her glasses half hidden by her bangs flashing,
“I-, I am a second year from Connect, Nakasorachi! I am here with a message from Masters!”
In a voice that was hard to make out despite the class being silent, she spoke to the class.
However, when she had suddenly shouted “second year”, the class all at once entered an uproar.
Just like the Defense Academy and the Police Academy, Butei High is rooted in a hierarchical society, not unlike a feudal society.
Therefore, being rude towards a senior is never tolerated, even if they were slightly timid and seemingly unprofessional.
The previously relaxed 1-A students suddenly straightened their backs and had all eyes forward on their senior.
Those who were standing stood at attention, and those who were turned to the side in their chairs turned to face forwards.
Akari and Shino naturally of course followed suit, even Raika woke up, put away her manga, and straightened her posture.
Nakasorachi-senpai held a clipboard out in front of her, as if she was reading out an award on it,
“Th-, th-, this class! This class has had a low application rate for the 4v4 Quartet! Please hurry up and apply! That is all!”
She had merely read out what was written down. Despite being a senior in the Connect Department, who had often done announcements and worked with operators in the field, her speech was full of stutters and hard to understand.
In any case, when Nakasorachi-senpai finished disseminating what was written down, she placed a bundle of application forms on the podium and left the classroom.
… Akari grabbed one of the application forms left by her senpai,
“”Quartet”… What is that?”
Returning to her seat, she spoke to Shino, who is sitting in front of her.
“It is a competition for first year students where everyone participates in a 4v4 style match. Come to think of it, Masters had told me to apply with a group, but that was quite a while ago so I had forgotten all about it…”
“Huh… It seems that even interns can be included in the team selection. Interesting.”
Raika, who was also looking at an application form, joined in on their conversation.
It seemed that Raika couldn’t say what she really wanted to say since she was too embarrassed, so Akari decided to say it for her.
“Then, we should all apply together with Kirin-chan.”
When Akari said what Raika had wanted to say,
“Sounds good!”
“Well, we do need 4 people after all.”
Shino and Raika agreed with her.
“Then its decided~! Ehehe~.”
With a bright smile on her face, Akari filled out the application form with the names of 4 of her best friends.
Taking this for granted, she did not think too much about what this meant or would mean.
– A few days later, the schedule for the 4v4 Quartet matchup was posted on the bulletin board in front of the Masters department.
The battle table and the teams were decided upon by Masters based on the various teams that students applied with.
Each team only had one match, and the result of said match is subject to “evaluation” from Masters.
This evaluation is extremely important for the involved students, and can affect both their credits and Butei rank.
Much like in a normal highschool, credits are given to students throughout the year and necessary to move up a grade or ultimately graduate.
Furthermore, a Butei rank can impact a Butei’s income. Rank is decided upon without distinction between student and professional Butei, and available jobs for a Butei can vary greatly on rank.
Because of this importance, the bulletin board that Akari and the others came to was crowded with other first year students who had come to see the 4v4 Quartet matchup schedule.
Somehow Akari managed to squeeze herself close to the bulletin board, and when Akari found her name…
“Round 9: Team Mamiya vs. Team Takachiho.”
The opponent was team… “Takachiho”.
“Takachiho Urara… She is an A-rank in the Assault Department.”
“Indeed, if I remember correctly she is the Head of Class C.”
Akari did not know who she is, but Raika and Shino had both heard of her.
Judging from their facial expressions, she seems to be a fairly well known student.
As an explanation, at Butei High “Head” is a term for “Class President”.
“CVR had actually scouted her once before… She is a very popular beauty among the M-attribute boys.”
Wrapping both arms around Raika’s arm and holding a crepe in one hand, Kirin divulged even more information on Takachiho.
Kirin kept wrapping her arms around Raika no matter how many times Raika shook her off, so Raika had gotten used to it now or at the very least stopped shaking her off.
“… M-attribute?”
When Akari tilted her head at the unfamiliar word, a response came from behind.
“– Yuyu, Yaya, laugh.”
Suddenly, Akari heard a strange order.
Turning around,
“Hohohohohoho!”
A blond female student with a raised voice that hit Akari’s ears like an ultrasonic wave with a lace fringed fan over her mouth,
“”Hohohohoho.””
Standing on either side of her were twins with bobbed hair who were both laughing in sync.
Akari did not understand why, but for some reason all three of them were laughing at Akari and her friends. However, their laugh was the kind of laugh that made people think “Oh, people actually laugh like that?”, a laugh that most people would think only queens laugh like.
The three of them continued to laugh like that for a while, while Akari and the others just stared in confusion at this sudden turn of events…
“Yuyu, Yaya, stop!”
When the blond girl in the centre closed her fan with a snap, the twins behind her stopped laughing as well.
The blond haired female student, who was showing off the dignity of a queen, looked at Akari and the others as if she was evaluating them,
“You seem like unworthy opponents… I guess my fathers donation to Butei High was effective.”
She spoke high handed in a voice that was not cowardly or thoughtful of what others might think.
However, she had said “opponent”, and wore an armband that represented her as Class President.
In other words, this must be Urara Takachiho, Akari’s competition in the 4v4.
She was brazenly confident, walking around with a girl on either side of her as if they were her cronies, and she seemed to be a very skilled Butei.
First of all, Akari’s attention was drawn to her height. She is about 160cm’s tall. (TL Note: 5 foot 2.)
Kirin had said that Takachiho was scouted by CVR, a specialized department at Butei High that instructs students in the art of honey potting and only allows the most beautiful and cute girls to join, meaning that Takachiho is a recognized impeccable beauty. Her overall impression is harsh, but that is purely a positive when combined with her western-style make-up and crimson rouge lipstick.
At Butei High, students are allowed to remodel their uniform “as long as it retains its original form”, and Takachiho had remodelled hers to make it look like a dress. She has bulging puff sleeves around her upper arms, a long skirt that gracefully spreads out around her, and a combination of black sights and lace-up boots.
Everything she has assembled to wear is something that clearly she has chosen herself. Such is the way of girls.
Takachiho’s sneering gaze… It seems as if she had quickly and easily seen through the weakest of Akari’s party and set her sights on Kirin who was by Raika’s side.
“Oh my. They even have an intern, one who looks like they wont be able to do much.”
Then, as if she was teasing her, she tickled Kirin’s cheek with the tip of her fan.
Raika, who was now Kirin’s Amica,
“It can’t be helped, she is my Amica after all.”
Takachiho, in response to Raika who was protecting Kirin…
“Well, what are you planning on using a CVR member as an Amica for? Hmm?”
Takachiho looked at Raika, with her face as if she was purposefully saying something suggestive to provoke Raika and Kirin.
That… Seemed to be the last thing that Raika had wanted to hear, and as if she was screaming Kyaaa!, Raika’s face turned bright red.
Whether someone is setting up a trap, planning a counter, seeing how her opponents react, or simply making an excuse for legitimate self-defense, “provocation” is a technique that gets your opponent to make the first move.
Takachiho clearly was well trained in that art. She could tell right away what Raika, the most easily provoked person here, didn’t want to hear, and set her off within seconds.
“If you want to fight, don’t get angry when I smear your face in the mud!”
Raika, who was getting angry after being teased over her newly formed War Sisters relationship began to shake in anger and threw a fist at Takachiho–
“–!!”
However, it never reached her.
Someone had managed to stop Raika from behind her.
An armlock… This specific one being a Standing Hammerlock.
Raika twisted her head to look behind her, and the tip of a knive – a Kunai to be specific – was placed against her cheek.
The girl had black hair tied up in a ponytail much like Raika, but was wearing a mask that hid her mouth and lower face.
Akari recognized this girl.
“Fuuma, Hina…!”
At the same time that Akari recognized this girl, Rika also mentioned her name.
“Raika-dono. Please do not act out.”
Raika was not the only student in the first year that was recognized for her strength. Many strong students existed besides her, and outside Assault at that. Hina Fuuma, from Lezzad and dressed like a ninja–
Although she had done a surprise attack, was able to neutralize Raika with an elite level restraint technique.
“That is indeed Hina Fuuma. I hired her since she seemed to be useful, and will be working with me under contract until the end of the Quartet.”
Takachiho showed a satisfied and smug smile as she explained what was going on.
At Butei High–
Students are not prohibited from paying students to hire them for helping during examinations.
Rather, even among students, it is frowned upon to help anyone for free.
Unlike the Police and JSDF, Butei is a private, not public, business. Thus it is a policy to have students acquire a habit of working for pay from an early age.
Raika naturally understood that as well.
“… Well, Butei is a business driven by money. I understand that.”
Her expressions seemed to express that she has surrendered.
However. While Raika had admitted that “Butei is a business driven by money”, there is another habit that Butei follow as well… “Surprise attacks, unexpected attacks, and fake surrenders are an art”. Something that Raika sought to remind Fuuma.
“– That is what you would expect me to say!”
Raika suddenly changed her opinion and, gari!
She bit into the Kunai that Fuuma was holding up to her cheek.
Suddenly twisting her neck and forcibly snatching her Kunai from her hand, Raika suddenly jerked her lower body, unleashing a right high kick without regard for her short skirt!
Her pinned arm was still locked, however the limited motion she had was enough.
That sharp and powerful leg hit the side of Takachiho’s head — Gashii!
Before her feet could make contact, something blocked it.
Takachiho herself blocked it with her fan.
Apparently, Takachiho was not just a smug foolish general who sat cross-legged as their subordinates did everything for them.
This was obvious to see now, she had managed to intercept a kick from Raika, who excels in the martial arts, without any gimmicks or issues. On top of that there was no movement in her long remodelled skirt, but the odds of her somehow having taken steps to counteract the impact through footwork was high.
Takachiho, using her right hand and with a cool expression on her face, uses her fan and wrist to lock Raika’s ankle from moving.
Against Raika who was locked in place by Fuuma’s right arm from behind and her right leg by Takachiho…
– Fuuma and Takachiho used a highly skilled combination attack to unleash a rotating throw on Raika’s body to the right. With the two girls working together, doga!
Raika slammed into the ground on her face.
“Oneesama!”
“Raika!”
Kirin and Akari called out to her, but there was no response.
She wasn’t acting this time. She was either too weak to move or fainted.
“You said that you would rub my face in the mud… But yours looks much better.”
Kusukusu, now, Takachiho was mockingly laughing at Raika.
On top of that, Akari and the others–
–They couldn’t just retreat.
Takachiho had picked a fight with them right in front of Masters department, a location that was bound to attract a lot of attention. Running away from a fight that was brought to you was a dishonourable and shameful thing to do at Butei High.
And, more than anything else now, they had to defeat Takachiho and Fuuma to avenge Raika.
Even girls at Butei High cannot just let themselves get beaten.
“– Onee-sama! … How dare you!!”
Kirin, who had her Amica beaten soundly in battle, fired a palm strike at Fuuma, but…
Kirin wasn’t like Fuuma, she was from CVR where combat training wasn’t compulsory, and moreover was an intern in junior high who had thrown a punch purely out of anger. Her palm was easily repulsed.
Her attack was completely ineffective… The difference in combat between her and Fuuma was that wide of a gap.
“… Just kidding♪”
Kirin, who was now flustered at her ineffectiveness and smiling wryly,
Was now trying to get Fuuma to drop her guard and forgive Kirin by doing a “cute girl blinking routine”, but–
Fuuma was cold hearted, paan!
Slapped both of Kirin’s ears at the same time as if she was pinching her head.
The impact caused her eyes to roll back into her head and she dropped her half eaten crepe to the ground, falling on top of Raika.
“Kirin-chan!”
The technique is called a “eardrum rupture”. It is a dangerous technique that Fuuma occasionally uses that disrupts the semicircular ear canals and defeats her opponent. In actual combat, as the name suggests, it can actually rupture the eardrum.
Knowing this potential outcome, Akari goes to check on Kirin’s injuries, but before she even could,
“Eh…?”
Both of her arms were grabbed from her left and right by Takachiho’s subordinate twins, Yuyu and Yaya.
The twins were in perfect harmony with each other, and once they lifted Akari from both her left and right arm–
They threw her into a nearby trash can.
“Kyaa!”
Akari’s landed butt first into the trashcan and was stuck in it, making it look like she was sitting on the trashcan. She was completely unable to get herself out.
This had not happened by chance. This was a restraint method called the “Box of Laughter” that had originated in Italy. When a person lands butt first in a large can-like object, either on purpose or accidentally, they are unable to get out by themselves. Looking at her like this, Yuyu and Yaya looked proud of their work.
They looked at Akari in her embarrassing appearance, unable to move on her own.
One of the twins threw the crepe that Kirin had dropped at her.
–Becha.
The crepe landed on Akari’s head, and her head became stick with cream and pieces crepe dough.
“Iyaa~! What is–!”
Akari couldn’t help but tear up at the humiliating situation that she had ended up in.
“Akari-san!”
Shino panicked and rushed to rescue her, but–
“Shino Sasaki… Your father is an armed prosecutor, correct?”
When Takachiho’s words hit her back just as she turned, she stopped moving.
Shino wanted to save Akari as soon as possible, but in doing so would involve her turning her back on Takachiho, Fuuma, Yuyu, and Yaya, allowing an opening.
Also, it seemed unnatural, odd even, for Takachiho to suddenly bring up her family situation,
“… What do you mean by bringing that up?”
Shino put her hand on her sabre and turned towards Takachiho.
Takachiho responded to Shino’s angry gaze with a cool and collected face…
“Don’t our fathers have a dog-monkey relationship in the courts?”
Takachiho spoke.
At those words, Shino’s eyes opened wide.
“… I just remembered.”
Shino and Takachiho glared at each other for a while.
“… armed lawyers, the Takachiho clan. From Tottori.”
To Shino, who just recalled the name Takachiho and their legacy, Takachiho,
“There was no need to say we are from Tottori given the situation we are in!!”
She seems to have a habit of speaking in her hometown dialect when she gets excited or embarrassed, and so responded in the Inaka dialect.
Takachiho, who suddenly noticed the dialect that she unconsciously spoke in…
“… ~Ohon” (TL Note: Sound for clearing throat basically.)
She blushed, cleared her throat, and immediately returned to her original pompous demeanour.
She then looked at Akari and the others,
“– A Quartet group is mean to be built with strategy and individual balance in mind. But you girls are just nothing but friends.”
Seeing clearly through them, she spoke with full confidence.
“It is impossible for you to win against us.”
Takachiho’s words…
They were persuasive.
Aside from her overbearing words, Takachiho’s ability as a leader is excellent as is her individual combat ability.
Fuuma, who had taken out Takachiho herself is a formidable opponent as well.
In addition, the Yuyu and Yaya twin sisters on either side of Takachiho had a teamwork and combination compatibility unique only to twins.
But.
No matter how touch Takachiho’s team might seem,
“Why does that make it impossible to win~!? Or rather, so what if we are good friends!”
On top of the ridicule that Akari was facing, Akari herself was not the kind of person who could keep silent after having the taboo word of “impossible” forced onto her, a word that Aria herself had forbidden.
While glaring at Takachiho, gassha, gassha! She expressed her anger by violently shaking the trashchan to the point that it started to jump.
“That’s right! Akari-san and I are good friends!”
Shino agreed with her, although the way that she agreed did not line up with Takachiho’s statement.
There–
“Hey! What do you think you are doing in front of the Masters department!”
From the other side of the students who were watching the fight, Aria appeared in her gym clothes with a round-neck shirt and shorts, seeming to have just finished a physical education class.
–To the Aria, who was severely admonishing everyone,
“…!”
For a moment, Takachiho made a complicated expression.
But immediately, she snorted and turned her back,
“Then, please look forward to our upcoming performance.”
And so, leaving Akari and the others behind, she calmly left as if nothing happened at all.
After a while, Shino had managed to rescue Akari from the trash can, and was washing herself in the Assault Department’s shower room.
There was also the figure of Kirin and Raika with her nearby.
“Uhh…”
Kirin was still dealing with the disorientation from the damage that Fuuma had done to both of her ears.
Her eardrums would end up being fine with time and she could still hear, however she was still dizzy.
Even after taking a shower, it seemed that she was unable to wrap a bath towel around her body…
“Um, hey. Are you really okay?”
Raika spoke in a caring tone to Kirin.
Raika had heard from Shino that Kirin had attempted to take revenge on Raika’s behalf and that is why she got hurt… Kirin wondered, “is that why she is being so kind to me?”.
Aria, who was looking sideways at Kirin,
“Your semicircular canal was injured. You need to sit down and rest for now.”
She spoke to Kirin from her own partitioned shower stall.
In response to Aria, “Okay…”, and as Akari watched as Raika took Kirin to a nearby bench…
“It only took 1 minute for all of us to be knocked out…”
Akari could hear Shino’s depressed voice in the shower next to her.
The fight against Takachiho was a crushing defeat for Akari and the others.
It was an undeniable fact.
But for Akari,
“But! Hiring allies with money is cheating!”
Her anger and dissatisfaction to Takachiho was evident to all, especially since she had hired an excellent pawn to use, Fuuma, using the power of money.
For Akari, comrades are meant to be friends.
A true companion is one who is bound by friendship in your everyday life.
But–
“Would that be your excuse in the afterlife if you were killed by a mercenary?”
As if dismissing Akari’s opinion, Aria sighed as she began to dry her hair with a bath towel.
Aria’s words… They were undeniably true.
In the first place, a Butei is someone that anyone can hire as long as they have the money.
Even Akari, who is a Butei albeit a new one, can understand that in her head. But…
Emotionally, she could not accept it nor admit it as truth.
“Aria-senpai… but, but…”
Poroporo, Akari stuck her face outside her shower stall while crying.
Aria who saw her crying face…
She hadn’t meant to hurt Akari more right after she lost her fight.
“Hey, don’t cry.”
Aria began to pat and stroke Akari’s head, trying her best to comfort her.
Much like Raika had done earlier, most Amica’s have a habit of being kind to their younger Amica.
However… Shino was being strangely hostile towards Aria during all this, glaring at her with an openly hostile face.
In the changing part of the shower room, Akari put on her bullet proof uniform and her underwear.
After a short rest, Kirin’s complexion improved. She was now sitting upright on a chair and using a hair dryer to dry her long hair.
Even so, Raika looked on at her worried… Drinking milk coffee, she was standing nearby and watching over Kirin.
She had hated the idea before of being an Amica, but not only is she now an Amica, but she is an overly protective one.
Aria had finished changing into her clothes and tied her hair into twintails, and then looked over at her juniors who seemed to want advice on how to win the Quartet against Takachiho and her team.
It isn’t unusual for the older War Sister to give advice to her younger sisters during an exam, but…
“… While I want to help you with this exam, I am a transfer student, and so I have never taken this exam. As well, I am busy this Saturday and Sunday so I have no time to help train you.”
Aria herself had not actually even heard of this exam until Akari herself told her about.
Aria, however, did have an idea,
“Kirin, why don’t you ask your previous Amica about the exam?”
Aria made a good suggestion, and when Kirin heard it,
“– That’s right! I’m sure Riko-oneesama will help train us!”
She seemed to have suddenly gained a burst of energy, and pulled out her cellphone that was decorated with rhinestones.
“Now that that is decided, we should rent a training camp facility for us to use while training!”
Kirin triumphantly began to browse the Butei High internet, but…
“– No way.”
Raika, who had anticipated this outcome had also accessed the internet from her own phone and shook her head.
“All of Butei High’s training camp facilities have been rented, and they were all rented under Takachiho’s name.”
“All of them were rented out…!? Wha-, what an absurdly rich person…”
Akari, who had been drinking milk through a strat, opened her mouth in utter disbelief.
But, Akari knew, that that is something that Takachiho would do.
It is the same logic as is the case for her hiring Fuuma. In the Butei profession, money is king, and using money to win something is not something to criticize at all. The rich have a way to fight unique only to them.
– In important and critical situations like subjugation, rescue, and a life or death fight, a Butei is willing to stoop to any level to win. Another big difference between Butei and JSDF.
That is why, despite the odds of them knowing what Takachiho is doing, Butei high is knowingly overlooking her “borrowing” all the training camp facilities. As for Akari and the others, this is a precariously difficult situation.
However, in the middle of this gloomy atmosphere,
“In that case, we can use my house as the location for our training camp! I refuse to lose to the Takachiho family!”
Shino, drinking the same milk as Akari, made a sudden but resolute declaration.
“Eh!? Is that okay!? Are you sure!?”
Shino’s house was indeed very spacious and had a large garden perfect for training.
It would be very useful if they could use her house.
“If it’s Shino-chan’s house, that is perfect!”
“Wow, you really are a great friend.”
“I am looking forward to seeing Sasaki-sama’s house.”
Akari and the others are overjoyed at the offer, while…
“… I did it! A natural and great opportunity to get Akari-chan to stay at my house…!”
Shino, on the other hand, has an evil expression on her face, and is currently muttering dangerous and suspicious words to herself…
Silvered Tongue 