Editing Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance:Volume1 Chapter8 (section)

===Part 1===

Academy Town was a small-scale town within the premises of the Areishia Spirit Academy.

The townscape, lined with stone buildings, was filled with the tumult of people.

While bumping many times over into the coming-and-going crowds of people, Kamito was running towards the arena.

—If that was him thinking about it too much, it was alright. However, he was feeling strangely uneasy.

(...Absurd. With the loss of her contracted spirit, a blade dance is just...)

While he was out of breath, he ran at full speed, pulling Est's hand.

He did not understand why he was so frantic for her sake.

Claire Rouge was a—tyrant, who was prideful, willful and quick to lash her whip.

However, he somehow could not leave her alone.

(After all, her true self is—)

Kamito stopped at that moment.

"—Here, right?"

Before the arena built at the center of the town, there was a crowd of spectators gathered.

The blade dance was originally a holy ritual to let spirits enjoy themselves—a kind of kagura.

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However, there was no change to the fact that it was also the highest form of entertainment to humans.

Also, the same as other festivals, the spirits preferred a great number of enthusiastic people.

He showed his academy student badge to the guard and entered inside, and pushed aside clamoring spectators to get to the front.

There were ear-splitting cheers. The sound of shrills of weapons. The intense blade dance had already started at the arena.

There were about 20 participants. Various types of spirits were jumbled together and fighting.

It was a battle royale system where the last one remaining would earn the right to contract with a powerful militarized spirit.

Kamito searched for Claire—

"...!?"

For that unbelievable sight, he doubted his eyes.

That Claire Rouge was—

Covered all over with wounds and crawling.

Against the contracted spirits boasting tremendous power, Claire was fighting with just a whip and spirit magic.

While her whole body was hit and slammed into a wall, she stood up and fought again and again.

"Claire—"

He could not go help her. If Kamito got in and helped her, she would be naturally disqualified.

If he did that, she would probably never forgive him.

Kamito bit his teeth and in front of him, Claire was blown away.
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