It was as if she was a whole different person. The child who had fallen unconscious standing tall was no longer in sight...
Instead, there's Kasuka.
If there was a word to describe her... perhaps it'll be 'Bubblehead'.
Not for any deep reason or anything, it was merely metaphor to show that Kasuka's head seemed to be filled with bubbles 24/7.
"Hm... Flowers? They could grow here? I'd like to see...!" She'd smile at the small things.
"There are stars above us! Trust me! Although you can't see it right now, it's because this place are a victim to light pollution! I promise I'll show you the stars someday!" Some words were incomprehensible.
It's true, she's a bubblehead, but she also seemed to have some rarely-heard information just waiting to be used inside her head.
Personal space? What's that?
Kasuka eats up personal space for a living. Although, it hasn't gotten too bad to the point of unbearable, it's still... weird.
Inside Arius district, nobody could be trusted.
Someone like Kasuka is an anomaly. Her mindset isn't set for this place.
Perhaps if there's a more beautiful place out there, she'd be the first one to deserve stepping foot outside.
And occasionally...
She'd show a scary face, even Saori was intimidated.
"..."
"...Sorry, I didn't mean what I said. Please forget about it."
"...Ok!" And then she'd turned back to what she always was, a bubblehead.
It wasn't a sight that you would expect from a hell hole like this.
[Blue Archive]
It's been a full week since Kasuka and Azusa both became part of Arius Squad.
And Saori had never seemed more out of it than she is today.
She hasn't eaten for a whole week, as instructed. It shows from the fact that her cheeks were a bit sunken.
"...This will be me at my weakest, Azusa. If you can't put a scratch on me today, then I'll give up on you."
And indeed, even after an entire week of practical training, Azusa had never once been able to damage Saori in the slightest.
It shows just how big of a gap there are between the two of them.
"..." Azusa wasn't discouraged, though. This was merely a trial.
She had a feeling that this might be the time she'd be able to close their gaps.
It is a shame that Saori wasn't in her own peak condition, but that's the thing with combats. Nobody waits for their enemy.
There's simply the winner and the loser.
"We'll begin 2 minutes after I step foot inside this building." The same words had been said across the days, but Saori still clarified.
Azusa nodded.
Seeing this, Saori looked over the girl for a moment, but then she turned her gaze slightly towards the new person on this training field.
It was Kasuka, she was standing right beside Azusa with her carefree smile.
"...You're still badly injured, please do not seek combat engagement." With her voice in an accepting tone, Saori palmed her face.
"Don't worry! I'm not trying to get in the way or anything! I just wanted to give Azusa some words of encouragement!" Ignoring the tense air, Kasuka spoke.
Then Kasuka met Azusa's eyes.
"...Good luck!"
"...Mn."
"Ah, also! Come closer for a bit~" Shaking her hands up and down, implying Azusa to move closer, Kasuka signed for her to lend her ears.
Relenting, Azusa crouched slightly and then Kasuka covered her mouth so that only her voice was audible to Azusa's ears.
Azusa's heart began beating a bit faster but the moment Kasuka finished talking, it stablized.
"...Really?"
"Yup! Trust me!" Punching her chest, Kasuka looked extremely proud and confident of herself, as if the things she had just said doesn't contain the slightest hint of... trickery.
Thinking about what she said, Azusa hesitated.
...Will it really work against Saori?
It doesn't sound plausible. There's no way it would work against someone as emotion-hardened as Saori.
'...There's no harm in trying.'
Azusa thought so, since this is her final attempt, then there's practically nothing left to lose.
...Totally not because it was Kasuka gave the advice.
She felt a hand patting her back twice and noticed Kasuka was smiling brightly towards her.
Her heart tightened.
"Understood."
"Alright! Goodluck out there!"
Kasuka began to jog out of the training field, waving one final time before turning away.
Azusa's hand hanged on the air, losing the meaning if the person she was showing it to doesn't notice.
Then it limped to her side.
Knock Knock
The sound of someone knocking on a door echoed.
Azusa looked at the source of the noise and noticed Saori's piercing gaze looking at her, she still hadn't entered the building just yet.
'...Was she waiting for me?'
At that thought, Azusa was reminded of the words Kasuka had given her.
"...It's going to work."
Saori ignored Azusa's gaze and entered the building.
"1, 2, 3..."
"70, 71, 73..."
"117, 118, 119..."
"...120!"
A deep breath was taken and Azusa dashed through the open field, entering the front door with swift speed.
'There is no time limit. As long as I don't lose consciousness, it's practically guaranteed to be my win.'
Perhaps the trial wouldn't have been so hard had it not been for Saori's determination to prevent her victory as of yet.
'...But this will be the time you'll fail.'
It wasn't because she's suddenly awaken a new-found power or anything. It was merely a simple piece of advice given by an individual.
'For being such an airhead, she'd occasionally show off quite an amazing arsenal of knowledge.'
Though it rarely happens.
In fact, Azusa had only seen it once the whole week.
...Pushing past stories behind, Azusa focused on the task at hand.
Her goal: Injure Saori
Although Saori said so herself that even a scratch on the clothes would be accepted, Azusa felt that such insignificant goal wasn't enough.
Due to that, she's determined to injure Saori.
The moment Azusa took 3 steps inside the building, she felt a string hitting her shin. Without a hint of hesitation, she ducked.
Boom!
A group of debris flew over her head as an explosion occurred behind her head.
'I'll win today.'
Azusa cracked her neck, feeling the stiffness escaping her bones.
"Hah..."
Dusting off her shoulders, she took a step forward...
Boom!