No matter how many times I rewind time, the embarrassing sensation doesn’t just vanish. It only gets erased from other people’s memories, not mine.
Well, fine.
For now, I realized Claire was being sincere when I got hit and found out for myself.
Since I’m not revealing my identity, it seems Claire wants to figure out my true self by herself. Especially with that cheerful smile on her face.
When I got punched and fell, Claire was probably surprised for that reason too.
The time Claire and I spent together wasn’t that long. But the memories of her treating me warmly during my hardest times are very vivid.
Moreover, from young Claire’s perspective, I might have looked like someone with extremely mysterious abilities. After all, I brought her all the way to Baron Grace’s Estate while making her run around, almost as if I knew the future.
Honestly, I thought about hiding a bit longer. Not because I had any grand reason, but just because I wanted to maintain that character. It was a persona I built over ten years, and it would be a waste to crumble it all at once, right?
However, if I dodge Claire’s attacks here and manage to win, she will notice that I was the ‘Sylvia Black’.
Well… that might not be so bad.
It’s the long-awaited reunion of sister and little sister. A relationship proven through skills. If it’s a story with a Japanese manga vibe, wouldn’t that be just splendid?
“……”
I slung my rifle across my back and pulled out my revolver.
And I hooked my finger on the trigger. The Wexler revolver is a double-action revolver, so there’s no need to pull the hammer back.
“Alright then!”
Once again, Jennifer’s voice echoed.
“Start!”
The moment Jennifer shouted that, Claire lifted her sword upward again—
But since I had switched to the gun, things didn’t flow the same way as before.
I didn’t avoid Claire’s movement and reached out directly.
click
As I pulled the trigger, the hammer of the gun was pulled back and jolted forward. There was a slight recoil, but that’s all; a gun without gunpowder wouldn’t push back.
“Missed!”
Jennifer declared.
The moment I extended my arm, Claire had already twisted her body to dodge out of the line of fire. Although she didn’t foresee the future like me, she must have seen my arm rising.
You can’t dodge a bullet. But considering shooting, adjusting your stance is possible.
In the original work, it was about walking in and hitting, but in reality, such combat is obviously impossible. To face someone with a sword while holding a gun, I needed this level of speed.
To me, it was to the right. To Claire, it was to the left.
As Claire twisted her body to evade, her stance with the sword changed as well. It was like she was slightly covering her face with the broad side of the sword. She probably wasn’t trying to block the bullet but rather maintained her stance while shifting her body with all her might.
I rotated my arm to follow Claire, but before the barrel pointed at her, she was already swinging her sword.
My arm’s speed didn’t slow down; rather, Claire’s next move was just faster than mine.
The distance was insufficient for her to hit me with the sword. In actual fact, Claire’s slash didn’t reach me.
But slightly delayed,
“Ugh…!”
A strong impact hit my right shoulder.
I dropped the revolver I was holding.
Again.
*
Immediately after I first pulled the trigger.
Claire had taken the same stance as before, but before she gently swung her sword downward, I moved first.
Half a step to the left.
As I stepped left while aiming the gun at Claire, the sword hit the ground late, kicking up sand.
click
“Missed!”
Was that voice a little too excited?
This time, I rushed too much. The pistol has quick aim, but its barrel is short. If the distance gets a bit longer, the bullet misses due to slight deviation.
With all that moving, if I’m only using one hand, it’s bound to be tough.
Before I could pull the trigger again, this time Claire ducked to the left. click The revolver made an empty sound. Jennifer didn’t need to yell. It was too obvious I had missed.
And this time, Claire raised both hands above her head.
swish, with a sound like slicing through the air, the sword came down at terrifying speed.
Again, it was still too far to reach, but again, the ground kicked up dirt from the late follow-up of the sword’s speed.
And I couldn’t avoid that sword strike.
Again.
*
I think I understand a little now.
Claire’s sword strike followed her movements like a whip attached to the sword, but it didn’t move freely like the melee weapon from the game. Compared to the game, where it moved like a snake, Claire’s sword strikes now are much straighter.
Is the inability to move like a whip a characteristic of the sword? Or is it just that her skill hasn’t matured yet? It didn’t bother me either way. It was to my advantage, after all.
Of course, it’s annoying to be hit twice in succession.
…Alright, I’ve decided.
Next time, I’ll prepare a short shotgun. In a battlefield where entities wielding swords run rampant, having more options is always better, even if assassination missions are different.
For now, I only have the revolver.
I aimed at Claire while stepping left. This time, I supported my gun hand with the other hand.
Once I aimed at Claire, she ducked left again.
Even in this world, machine guns exist. And the most famous way to counter a machine gun is to zigzag while running. If the opponent can’t predict your next movement, the likelihood of the bullets missing rises. Of course, only those with extreme physical abilities can dodge bullets like that.
But I’m not carrying a machine gun or submachine gun; I’m holding a revolver. Although it can shoot quickly, a double-action revolver requires more pressure on the trigger to shoot rapidly. On top of that, Claire not only swings her sword but also has long-range strikes with sword energy.
Alright.
Again.
*
Claire’s feet began to move. The movements I hadn’t caught earlier started to become clear after seeing them a few times. She was preparing to shift to her left, from her perspective, or my right.
It was, in a split second, a subtle movement that you wouldn’t notice in the heat of battle.
However, even if it’s a moment captured in a video, if you watch it repeatedly, it’s clear as day.
I don’t have the ability to calculate that tiny difference and aim precisely in a moment.
But that wasn’t a problem.
I had an opportunity with one shot, and even if I missed, I could try again a hundred times.
As I turned the barrel left, I pulled the trigger.
“Missed!”
Again.
*
click
“Stop! Claire Gracepath!”
Jennifer, who had been closely watching the two of us, announced. The other two teams had used swords, so Jennifer’s intervention wasn’t necessary as students could judge reasonably well. Of course, that’s not to say they hadn’t been paying attention.
Nobles handling guns isn’t that common.
After all, firearms are often treated as weapons that ‘anyone can use’. In reality, for those reaching a certain level, it takes considerable effort to train with cold weapons, while gunpowder weapons have shorter training periods. Typically, after about three months of training, you could raise a soldier who can fight on the battlefield.
But that doesn’t mean weapons have no limits.
Once the training starts, the end never exists; the same goes for guns. Calculating ballistics to hit targets at distances typically difficult to hit or rapidly aiming in close combat to take down enemies. Wielding the gun itself to protect one’s body is also part of mastering firearms.
However, typically, soldiers using firearms sharpen their skills not through long periods of training with excellent masters but rather through wild experiences in actual combat. After all, it’s tough to make training with guns akin to actual ‘battlefield’ experiences. Even the gun Jennifer is wielding now likely has no gunpowder inside, and the feeling of firing it would differ from an actual firearm.
Those who survive become stronger. This phrase applies to all soldiers who’ve experienced actual combat, but… a mere fifteen-year-old child?
Could she really have been a talent destined for the Northern Region?
Or perhaps there was a prior reason she had to fight with that weapon for her life?
Moreover, there was something strange about Sylvia’s own movements.
It looked like she could predict how her opponent would swing their sword, how their body would move.
Even when Claire tried to thrust down her sword, Sylvia seemed ready to aim at her once again, and when Claire swung downward with her sword, she calmly sidestepped.
And…
While she might not think of her own aiming, from Jennifer’s perspective, it looked like Sylvia was already pointing her gun in the direction Claire was dodging to.
And the moment Claire entered her line of sight, bang.
Unlike the other students who fiercely clashed swords, the showdown between them concluded in an instant.
That said, it didn’t mean the duel looked easy.
“Hmmm.”
Jennifer found interest in whether Sylvia coming to the Academy instead of heading to the Northern Region was a good thing for the Empire or a pity.
*
There was no physical exhaustion.
No pain. Mentally, I was a bit drained, but in terms of time, even counting the rewind, it wouldn’t have taken that long.
But still, the feeling of getting hit isn’t exactly pleasant.
If my opponent weren’t Claire, it would have felt much worse.
While I was holstering my revolver, Claire approached me.
Even after losing, she looked so cheerful that I wondered why. Claire was bearing a wide, beaming smile on her face.
It was a very lively and bright smile. Claire had only smiled like that once in the game, at the very last moment.
And at that time, the ‘sister’ wasn’t me but Alice.
From behind, I could hear the tap, tap of two wooden swords clashing. It seemed Alice and Charlotte’s duel wasn’t over yet.
clink
As Claire approached, she extended her hand to me. It seemed like she was asking for a handshake.
“……”
I paused to look at that hand for a moment before slowly reaching out and lightly grabbing it.
However, the light grip was only on my side; Claire held my hand tightly.
And then she pulled me toward her.
I didn’t think it was a surprise attack. The reason I was able to stay steady was that I somewhat imagined this situation.
As I stepped a bit closer as Claire pulled, she looked straight into my eyes and said,
“Sister.”
“Are you sure it’s me?”
Claire’s eyes already held certainty.
…Hmm.
I had anticipated this. I thought that Claire would prove I was Sylvia Black the moment I cleanly defeated her.
That’s why I panicked when I got hit by Claire’s attack.
“You seem to be very sure…”
Even as I said that, Claire’s smiling expression didn’t change at all.
“Because you knew how to dodge like that. Just like you did back then.”
Claire and I had spent very little time together. And honestly, the foresight I exhibited back then was similar in principle but differed in type. Back then, I was avoiding threats from the start, while now, I had been dodging attacks by using that ability sparingly.
“I looked into it afterward. Those people back then were definitely a human trafficking ring.”
It was a mystery that there was only one victim, even with the orphanage having burned down. Truthfully, we did make a visible escape, but with the fire spreading on the side, reports flew in from all over.
Children who vanished without a trace. Then, the very next morning, children suddenly showing up at Baron Grace’s Estate.
If Baron Grace and his wife hadn’t noticed, that would have been even stranger.
“…Did you find those traffickers from that time?”
The deal happening at Count’s house was separate from the transactions involving that orphanage. If I could find that creepy guy, I would shoot him myself. He might not remember, but I got punched hard enough to faint.
I imagine countless other children were also beaten to death by those fists.
…Were they all fabricated?
Would Claire have survived just long enough to not die? Maybe it’s related to the resurrection ritual that only existed as a plot device in the game? Or perhaps she was just lucky to escape from a necrophilic child molester.
Although I exposed my identity, Claire’s expression slightly stiffened.
Claire shook her head.
I see.
Even though she was a character I had never seen in the original, there’s no guarantee she wasn’t an important character. She might be set to appear in a sequel.
If she’s still alive now, she could have become a big shot.
“……”
I glanced around. There were numerous eyes on us. Some students were looking at us curiously as the first duel came to an end, while Jennifer’s gaze still lingered.
“Claire.”
“Yes, sister.”
“…Here, please call me Sylvia.”
As I revealed my identity once more, Claire’s eyes widened, and she nodded vigorously a few times in response.
“Don’t carelessly reveal information to others. You never know how it might be used against you.”
“I understand.”
Claire, who obediently nodded like a good girl, wasn’t all raggedy like before; her hair was neatly arranged, and she was wearing much better clothes. Though it was still a design resembling military uniforms for the academy.
At least she didn’t look like an ‘orphan with nothing’.
“……”
“……”
Hmm.
Even though the conversation seemed to end, Claire didn’t plan on letting go of my hand.
I hoped we could set this aside and continue the conversation instead.
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