chat 147 ( Not so different)

Running around trying to find interesting fights to watch was difficult. I mainly relied on the crowds as people tend to want to watch the more impressive abilities. So if I followed the crowd I could find out who these people thought were impressive.

That worked out for the most part but some times I would find basic ass bitch elemental powers. Sure, throwing around billowing cloaks of fire looked cool but it was not that impressive in comparison to others.

There were also cases in which the Blazer could not showcase the full might of their ability. Either from the lack of Mana to pump into it or them simply not understanding their ability properly.

Ikki was the case in the former. His ability was enhancing his physical state by double. Now, that was not exactly a hard-set rule containing him down. He could theoretically double his status after the initial status but each additional charge cost him Mana. So even if it was possible he could not muster the amount of Mana needed to showcase that.

He managed to circumvent that by increasing his own body's status massively. By breaking his body’s limiters in holding back for his safety he was able to push that x2 to a x20. Except it was not that either. He simply had a higher base to work with so it was 1 x 2 = 2 turning into 10 x 2 = 20. Which was impressive but not really the main factor of his ability. He could push it further for a single second of x100 but it was a bit of a waste.

Effectively Ikki had Boosted Gear but due to his lack luster Mana it was sealed into a simple Twice Critical. It was frankly a complete and utter waste of his ability but that was fate. When he breaks the chains of Fate holding onto his humanity and becomes someone with the ability to grow Mana he will become a monster.

For the second case, Stella would be a prime example. She was a dragon but as she grew she strictly concentrated on throwing flames and burning things into ash. It was a complete and utter waste that was being rectified currently.

Beyond Stella, I had found another person who did not really expand on their ability. The Blazer in question had the Ability of Wound Amplification. As you can imagine they focused in on the thing that was most obvious. Every scratch would become a gapping wound and every tap would become a bruised and battered body.

But that was just the tip. What exactly qualifies as a wound? Emotional people have problems so a broken heart can be considered a wound right? So theoretically you could amplify that wound into something that would ruin someone completely and utterly. Turn their doubt into crippling confidence issues. Hell, every single second our bodies are dying slowly. Without even touching them they were already doomed if you pushed hard enough.

It was that lack of inventiveness that throttled so many promising candidates but that was their problem.

So following the crowd did not always lead to the outcome he wanted. Honestly, the amount of time he followed the crowd and found someone he had already copied was irritating but the amount of people that were truly eye-catching was rather limited.

Right now he found himself watching Ikki’s match against Kirihara. As soon as I saw who was fighting I let out a sigh but figured it was better to watch this than wander around again.

It was pretty late so this was probably the last match that was going to happen today. I had already copied Ikki’s Device and I did not really have too much interest in Kirihara’s.

Transparency Manipulation was okay but not something that drew his attention. Then again for all of my talk about people not understanding their ability I ignored this one. Instead of changing his own transparency, Kirihara would be better off changing certain aspects of his opponent's eyes. Playing around with that sound effectively blinded them while he fought.

There were probably other factors he was ignoring but this was not an ability that really interested him.

Ikki was facing the cocky senpai with a frown and a slight shake. It was barely noticeable but it was clear that Ikki was not confident facing this guy. Figures, he did not defeat Stella in this world so his confidence might have taken a hit. Beyond that Kirihara had already defeated him last year and it was rather humiliating.

I was waiting for the match to start when I noticed Stella was actually sitting and watching the match. I raised an eyebrow as I did not expect that out of her. Even more perplexing was she was seated next to Ikki’s sister and Alice. Although judging from her twitching brow she was not sitting next to them and more like they chose to sit next to her.

Her pride would not allow her to simply walk away from a seat she had already chosen. It would be running and that was not something Stella Vermillion would ever do. A Dragon does not scatter in fear.

I hesitated on going over as my relationship with Stella was odd. She was still treating me exactly as she did before. In fact, she was probably even bolder in her pursuit of me. So the awkward mood was coming from me. I did not want to encourage her but at the same time, I kind of needed her.

This was something about myself that I did not want to face but it was clear now. I was lonely, plain and simple. I was similar to Ashley in that way. She wanted to be loved by others while I needed to feel well needed. I would throw everything I had into protecting and being there for the people I claimed as my own.

I would say I did so because I wanted to but there was an underlying fear in my actions. I did not want others to leave me, to toss me aside like I did not matter. It was a rather difficult thing to admit but that was something that became clear when I isolated myself here.

While I had gotten over the bitter emotions I felt towards Lily that did not negate the wounds that scabed over. She…well she tossed me aside for the bright path that was standing before her. She got lost in the friends and people she had met along the way. She was tossing me aside because I was just not that important to her.

That was not true, at least not totally but those were the wounds cracking me apart before. So I tossed myself into being useful to others. That trend continued on with Ashley, Rias, Narcissa, Petunia, and finally Stella.

There were exceptions but the closer I got to someone the more I wanted to be useful to them. I may have hidden behind actions and thoughts that seemed true but that was my main issue. It was only as I found myself truly alone that I had to face that.

It was frustrating but now that I can see it I can deal with it. Still, even if I wanted to work on it I did not want to avoid Stella any longer. So with a wry smile on my face I shifted my way through the crowd to get near her again.

“Did not think you were the type to watch other’s matches,” I spoke out dryly as I neared Stella. She jolted from my sudden voice but looked over at me with a bright smile.

“Well, someone told me that Ikki had potential so I was interested in seeing if he could reach it.” She spoke out with a smile and she gestured for me to sit down beside her. Alice shifted over so I could sit next to her. I gave them a polite nod which had them smiling and snickering.

“Oni-sama will win.” Shizuka declared seriously as she watched the match but there was this nervous tension in her. I figure she was saying that not only for us to hear but to convince herself that was the case.

Stella twitched at her words and she looked like she wanted to deck the girl. That was certainly an odd reaction.

“Okay, I got it after the 12th time.” Stella hissed out. She looked like she was moments away from blowing her top but was only holding back because it was not really a huge transgression just annoying.

Shizuka started blankly at her which had Stella looking away twitching all the same.

“What do you think Prince-san?” Alice asked from the side. I raised an eyebrow as I figured Stella would have asked that considering the interested look on her face but maybe Alice just wanted to stir the pot.

I looked over at the two people facing off against each other and contemplated how to say this.

“Honestly…It’s difficult to gage. Ikki certainly has the tools in his kit to beat Kirihara-san but there is an issue.” I spoke out seriously as I looked over at the shudder running through Ikki’s body. Shizuka looked over at me with a frown but her interest was clear. Stella just looked interested in what I was saying while Alice nodded solemnly.

“He is afraid,” Alice spoke out while looking down at the arena.

“Oni-sama is not!” Shizuka shouted out quickly but even she did not sound like she believed that. Stella frowned and looked over at Ikki with disappointment.

To her, she would appreciate a fool who gave everything they had over someone who ran from their problems. Even if that fool would die in their charge at least they would burn brightly for that moment.

I looked over at Shizuka with a frown before sighing. She was clearly just trying to put up a brave front but it was pointless hiding from the truth.

“He is,” I spoke out calmly. Shizuka looked like she was bursting to say something so I continued. “Perhaps Ikki-san is not afraid of Kirhia-san himself but he is afraid of something. From what I know about Ikki-san he needs to win the seven-star festival to graduate. So that pressure is building on his shoulders and Ikki-san was not allowed to fight his peers last year so he does not have confidence in his skills.” I finished off with a frown on my face.

Shizuka paled at my words and her lips quivered but she still looked stubborn.

“He was not allowed to fight?” Stella asked with some curiosity. Her words shifted the attention away from me which led to Shizuka to glare at her. Of course, Stella did not take that lying down as she glared back.

“That is a problem stemming from his Family…so don’t look into is Stella,” I spoke out breaking the tension. Stella only shrugged as she was not that interested while Shizuka frowned before looking back at her brother with misty eyes. She looked like she was praying.

The fight started as expected but I frowned and let out a sigh at what happened. That caused Shizuka to look at me in a panic as she viewed my opinion as clear headed even if she did not like it. Alice was also wearing a bitter smile on their face which did not help her mood.

I knew originally that Ikki let Kirihara go hide because he got lost in his indecision and his fear but I thought Ikki had a chance at avoiding that. If the boy started the fight with his power move he could have one shot Kirihara instantly.

I thought he would have learned that lesson from his fight with Stella but clearly he got lost in his own habits and thoughts.

“Is it that bad? Kirihara-san does not look that impressive.” Stella questioned as she looked over at me. Before she flinched as an arrow pieced Ikki’s leg spraying blood over the forested arena. Shizika paled at the sight and was shaking.

“Ikki-kun could have ended the fight right at the start but he let Kirihara-senpai use his Device,” Alice spoke out before I could. I nodded along with his words which only further increased Shizuka’s paling.

Stella was also frowning. Not in worry as she had no real connection with Ikki but in distaste. Like I said she would have appreciated a fool.

The fight continued on as was expected. Invisible arrows rained down on Ikki as he stood helplessly in the face of them. Blood raining down in the green grass as Ikki was slowly being played to death. Kirihara could have taken care of Ikki nearly instantly but he wanted to play with his prey.

It was expected but cruel to see. As the fight went on the frown on Stella’s face furthered. Originally she would have bolstered Ikki’s mood when things looked completely and utterly hopeless. In this world that was not in the cards.

I shifted to look at Shizuka as she could also step in but let out a sigh at her condition. She was pale and completely helpless in the face of her bloody brother. Like I said her confidence in Ikki was completely a false front. She may say her brother was the strongest but she really did not believe that.

“This is pathetic,” Stella spoke out with a scoff before she stood up to walk away. I was surprised about that but I guess this display irritated her. Shizuka was too lost in her own pain and worry to notice Stella’s words or actions.

Alice was covering their face with their hat. Blocking the dire sight of Shizuka’s brother.

As Stella was walking away something cracked in the arena. I don’t know if Ikki was paying attention to this spot for a reason but when he saw that Stella was leaving he looked like that finally level of hope was lost.

It looked like he was about to be shot by that last shot without resistance but as the attack flew through the air he looked back up with anger and finally some gumption.

From there the battle followed along with Ikki barely winning as he did in Cannon. Apparently, anger at the world was just as motivating as having your love cheering for your victory.

I looked over at the scene with a wry grin. I was not sure how this was going to change things but it should be interesting.