Editing Seirei Tsukai no Blade Dance:Volume2 Prologue

==Prologue==
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—Three years ago.


“Haa, haa, haa –“

A girl was running through a forest of Astral Zero, where many twisted trees were lined up in rows.

Her shoes had long since slipped off and the soles of her bare feet were covered with injuries.

Due to her long black hair being done up at both sides and her long sleeved extravagant courtesy attire, she did not run smoothly.

From behind, a violent sound of many trees being mowed down was approaching.

Being caught upto was just a matter of time.

(Why did such a thing –)

The girl was invited for viewing the blade dance as the guest of honor of the Ordesia Empire.

Although called the guest of honor, she was only an extra invited as an excuse.

Fallen out of the candidacy of 'divine ceremony institute’ – the spirit princess training organization, she was the royal family’s excess baggage.

She had nothing other than the title of former second princess and was just a mere thirteen year-old girl.

Her noble colleagues, who should have pledged allegiance to the royal family by right, were sending her gazes of contempt.

Even the retainer court ladies were ridiculing her behind her back.

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A worthless lost queen –

It was painful for her to be at the match venue where she would be exposed to many people’s gazes.

The aim was Ren Ashbell’s match, which was later on in the afternoon, and, particularly, even if she was gone, there was no one who would be worried.

Therefore, she came to the middle of a forest like this alone. 

Without knowing how dreadful of a place the forest of Astral Zero was. 

Approaching her from behind, Dryad (a tree spirit) let out a dreadful roar.

Naturally, Dryad had the temperament of a docile spirit. Perhaps, it might be angry about her stepping and breaking the twigs in the forest.

(It’s no good, if this keeps up –)

She could not get away – realizing that she prepared herself.

She stopped at that place, turned around and firmly glared at Dryad.

“Y…you, if you are my knight, so then simply beat it –“

Shouting with a shaky voice, she began to recite the summoning to summon her contracted spirit.

—Thou servant of the king of the child of man, knight and master swordsman!

—By the contract of the old blood, become the sword that protects me, hurry and come to my side!

The spirit seal, engraved on the girl’s chest, emitted a faint radiance –

However, that was all it did.

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Suddenly, the path with her contracted spirit was severed and the seal's radiance vanished.

(…! I thought so, it’s already hopeless, I –)

Despair surfaced on the girl’s face.

Dryad let out a roar and swung its log-like spirit arm –

At that moment, a beheading light flashed.

“Eh?”

The girl opened her eyes reflexively.

The log-like spirit arm had cleanly vanished before her eyes.

It was as if time had stopped.

From the cross-section of the severed tree, something like a black fog was emitted out.

And then *don* there was the sound of someone landing on the ground.

Before the girl’s eyes, a single boy was standing.

It was a black haired boy, who wore a black vest with a pair of navy blue trousers.

In the boy’s hand was one swinging sword. He was grasping a jet-black magic sword that emitted black fog.

“Stay still there, it’s dangerous.”

The boy bluntly told her and turned towards the spirit before him.

Dryad, who had its arm cut off, let out an angry roar and attacked the boy.

It swung down its other arm. The girl reflexively covered her eyes.

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However...

“It isn’t going to work on me, I’m sorry though.”

The boy was stopping the blow that came from Dryad with all its might, single handedly, with one sword. <!--the tense is in continuous state -->

And then – he exhaled and kicked the ground together.

With all his strength, he cut off its arm and hit its torso very hard with the center of the sword.

It was a single blow. With merely a single blow, a spirit, who was prideful of its strength, was brought down and became motionless.

“Maybe I overdid it a little. Although, it was my intention to not injure it as much as possible.”

“…”

The girl was dumbfounded and the boy turned around.

If she had to say it, then the boy was of a slender, handsome look.

His eyes were clear such that, depending on how one looked at him, a girl of about the same age could also be seen.

At that very moment, she did not think of him as a person who brought down a spirit in a blink of an eye before her.

Then, the girl suddenly realized.

(Eh? This person, it's like I have seen him somewhere –)

The girl tilted her head to the side.

“Err, are you alright? Do you have any injuries?”

The boy asked in a calm voice.

“Ye...yea, I’m fine. You have my gratitude for saving me.”

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“Is that so … that’s good.”

The boy took a breath in relief, put down the jet-black magic sword and came walking towards her.

At that moment—

“Ah…!”

The jet-black magic sword that emitted black fog – the girl realized its significance and her face turned pale.

That was it. A sword that cut up spirits could not be an ordinary sword.

(That’s an elemental waffe!? But, why –)

Then, the girl finally realized.

She surely had recollection of the boy’s face.

“N…no way…why…”

She should have seen him before. After all, this boy –

“…?”

Seeing the girl’s expression stiffen, the boy was puzzled as if a miracle happened—

And then, as he was taken aback, his eyes widened.

“Gua… Damn it! Ahhh!”

He covered his face with both hands and shouted.

Facing a boy like that, the girl pointed her index finger.

“Why is Ren Ashbell-sama a boy?”


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