Published: January 22, 2026
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Even though the battle hadn't moved a single step forward since it began, I could feel the fatigue steadily building up.
(This is bad... No matter how I attack, I can only see visions of me losing...)
Some time had passed since the fight started, but I was still struggling to find an opening.
Fuuka kept a calm expression, calmly shifting her stance to counter whatever move I was about to make next.
At this rate, I'll be the one to tire out first...
But it wasn’t like I gained nothing from this.
From all the tactics so far, I had managed to learn a bit about Fuuka’s Future Sight.
First, the extent of how far ahead she could see—probably just a few seconds, and at most about ten seconds into the future.
Next, the future Fuuka sees isn’t a fixed, unchangeable one.
If it were an unchanging future, she wouldn’t have to keep adjusting her actions to counter mine.
Every time I changed my move, Fuuka would alter her counter as well.
If this was just a bluff, I was completely helpless, so I had no choice but to believe what I was seeing.
If my understanding was wrong, then there was no chance for me to win.
It took quite some time, but I gathered the information I wanted.
(This is the only way...)
My strengths lie in adaptability and my ability to respond quickly.
I’m confident that in these two aspects, I don’t lose to most people.
Not even to Fuuka, the strongest swordsman.
She can’t use magic.
All the mana capacity that I usually dedicate to magic—I’ll put it all into this attack.
No matter how far into the future she can see, Fuuka is still human.
There has to be a limit!
I steeled myself and closed the distance to Fuuka.
Of course, Fuuka, seeing the future, tried to respond optimally to my moves.
—The moment I sensed that, I changed my action.
(Feints won’t work. Act as if you really intend to carry out every move!)
I changed my actions dozens, maybe hundreds of times before closing the gap of about ten meters.
I even moved faster than my own thoughts, almost like a reflex.
Once I was in sword’s reach, swinging my blade while changing actions with each move—
"Haa… haa… haa…"
My sword stopped just before Fuuka’s neck.
If I hadn’t stopped, this blade would have definitely reached her.
Fuuka stood there, eyes wide open, unable to move.
Just as I expected, seeing so many futures in an instant overloaded her information processing, putting her in a near paralysis.
“…I had no idea you could do that. I couldn’t move.”
Fuuka muttered in her usual calm tone.
But her expression looked like she simply couldn’t believe it.
"Haa… haa… I’m glad I caught you off guard. So, is this my win?"
Because I pushed my brain to near its limit, I felt the same heavy sensation in my head that I got when I overused magic.
If I pushed myself further, I’d definitely get a headache.
"Yeah. If this were a real fight, I would have died. —I lose."
The host announced Fuuka’s surrender to the audience, signaling the end of the match.
Unsurprisingly, many viewers were dissatisfied with both the process and the outcome, and complaints poured in even more fiercely than before.
I understand their feelings, but we were both serious about this, and yet they keep saying whatever they want...
But it can’t be helped if I had no chance winning through fair fighting.
The reason I won this time was because the rules defined the battle.
You can’t fight like this in a regular martial arts tournament.
Dedicating all the capacity I usually use for magic just to make my sword reach Fuuka—that’s something I’d be afraid to try normally.
If I ever fought Fuuka outside this place, I’d probably focus on how fast I could retreat instead, depending on the situation.
Also, this method will probably be countered next time.
“It… why didn’t you show your full power?”
After withdrawing my sword, Fuuka asked.
“…What do you mean?”
I didn’t understand the intention of her question and returned it with a question.
“You showed a bit of your true strength last time.”