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Final Chapter B - Standing Side by Side
Final Chapter B - Standing Side by Side
After collapsing on the ring in the finals, Ikki and Stella were quickly
transferred to recovery capsules in the sickbay.
“...”
“This is…”
He also noticed the silver haired girl sitting next to his bed.
“She’s here.”
The voice came across from where Shizuku was sitting.
He turned his neck to see. Sitting on a folding chair was Arisuin, while lying
on a bed like him was Stella.
“Stella…”
“That’s good.”
“Ufufu. Sorry.”
“Well, now that Ikki has awoken, I think it’s about time for us to return to the
hotel. It’s already pretty late.”
She had also been waiting for Ikki to wake up before leaving.
“Yeah… Big brother. I left you a change of clothes next to the bed.
Tomorrow morning, I’ll come to wake you up before the awards ceremony,
so please take this time to rest.”
“I will.”
“Also-”
Shizuku grasped Ikki’s gnarled hand in her small hands and broke out in a
smile.
“Congratulations, big brother. You were the coolest you’ve ever been
today.”
“Yeah… Thanks.”
“Let’s celebrate another day, after we return to Tokyo. I’ll show you a nice
restaurant.”
Only Ikki and Stella remained in the sickbay, dimly lit by moonlight.
The only sounds echoing in the stillness of the night were the clock’s
needle and Stella’s breathing.
“...Ik...ki…”
“...!”
Curious, Ikki got out of bed and went to the one on which Stella lay, but her
breathing was still regular and she seemed to be sleeping peacefully.
Slightly jilted, Ikki sat down in the folding chair Arisuin had used.
What was she dreaming about, he wondered.
Except-
“...”
*Dokun, dokun.*
Each time he thought about it, his chest throbbed. The throbbing grew
faster.
It was because she had been there for him that he had been able to get so
strong.
“Stella…”
When he thought of her, he felt like the love overflowing from his chest
would drown him.
He hovered over Stella and gently touched her cheek with his hand.
Even though she was asleep, she knew it was Ikki’s hand.
Stella smiled and nuzzled her cheek against his hand like a cat.
“~~~”
So incredibly cute.
His heart was beating out of his chest, boiling his blood.
He wanted to embrace her right then and there. He wanted to kiss her.
With this convenient excuse, he knocked out any guilt he had over stealing
a sleeping girl’s lips, and like a bee tempted by a flower, he was drawn to
Stella’s lips.
“Itadakimasu…”
“Eh? Food?”
Her eyes snapped open to reveal her scarlet pupils, and their gazes
crossed.
“KYAAAAAAAAAA~~~!!!”
“Doof!?!?”
◆◇◆◇◆
“I, I’m sorry Ikki! I know I just kicked your stomach super hard, but are you
okay?”
Stella asked Ikki, who was doubled over and shaking in pain on the floor,
while stroking his back.
Ikki replied,
But his face was breaking out in a cold sweat, and he looked anything but
fine.
His expression made Stella feel increasingly apologetic and a guilty look
showed on her face.
“Err… I’m really sorry okay? But It’s because you were hovering above
me…”
“Yeah. I was 200% wrong there. So, you don’t have to worry about it.”
Then she finally had the chance to realize where she was.
“Ah, since I haven’t been taken to the sickbay during this tournament, I
didn’t know.”
Just as he had felt the satisfaction of winning when he had woken up,
frustration must be welling up in Stella’s chest again.
“Hm? Why?”
“Well… I just thought that since we just had our match, it might be awkward
for me to be here.”
“Not at all!”
“Ikki, are you perhaps thinking that I was going to cry? I wouldn’t do
something so pointless.”
“Pointless?”
She was already turning her emotions towards revenge next year.
Her optimism reaffirmed his thoughts. She was truly strong.
“Eh?”
The hunch Stella was referring to was the feeling that nothing was too far
for Ikki to try and aim for.
Nothing could bring her more happiness than the strongest man and her
most loved being one.
So she reached out a hand to Ikki, who was still on his knees on the floor.
Those words reignited Ikki’s heart, which had just calmed down after the
earlier trouble.
“Eh- Kya!?”
In the next instant, Ikki ignored Stella’s outstretched hand, took her by the
shoulder, and pushed her down onto the bed.
◆◇◆◇◆
“...”
“I- Ikki…?”
Stella, taken aback by the sudden move, looked up at Ikki with a surprised
expression.
The Ikki she saw... Was blushing even redder than her eyes.
It was embarrassment.
Just thinking about putting it to words made his face seem to spout fire.
But even so, this feeling rising from his chest could not be resealed.
“Um, Ste… Stella. Do you remember what I said in that mountain cabin
when we went to Okutama with the student council? That we couldn’t do…
erotic things before I met your parents.”
No, he was confident that those had been his completely genuine feelings
at the time.
“After showing off like that, it’s really hard to say this, but…”
He said as if apologizing.
However, what with being pinned down by Ikki, and seeing his face being
red all the way to his ears, after making the connection to his earlier words
in her head; before long she understood what he was trying to say.
The heat spread from her cheeks to her ears, and her voice jumped up half
an octave.
“~~~~!!! Ho-ho-hold on! Wait! What are you saying so suddenly Ikki!? Are
you serious!? For real!? Where is the Ikki that was strong enough to not
succumb to my immodest figure?”
“He died”
“DIED!?”
It was a very rough way to put it, but Ikki couldn’t think of any other way to
put it.
After all, with such an attractive lover before him, could he really manage to
put the brakes on his feelings and understand how he felt that day?
“Today, after fighting you, when I arrived at my limit, I couldn’t help but
think to myself, ‘If I stop here, Stella will rise alone.
I don’t want to yield any part of you. I want to keep it all to myself.
That was the feeling that spurred me in that moment.
He knew what he was about to say would advance their relationship, but he
was ready to say it anyway.
“You idiot…”
Overflowing joy.
With a small smile she reached her hand out to Ikki’s cheek and pinched it
playfully.
But that joy didn’t change what a girl like her wanted of the man she loved.
If Ikki so wished, then anytime-
Ikki’s courage, that brilliance that affirmed him, now pressed him onwards.
“Stella…”
Stella forced the impatient Ikki off with all her might.
“Stella?”
“That…?”
“Well, it’s true that I’ve been waiting for you to say that, but we’re still
students, and we haven’t met each other’s parents… Also, I intend to battle
you next year too, so… It would be a problem if I got pregnant, you know?”
“...ah.”
Even the confused Ikki understood after she said that much.
“Ugh…”
“You lose points if you leave after making a girl feel like this! Lots of points!
You don’t need to go buy them now!”
“!?!”
Ikki had never used them, but he knew what they were.
But the fact that she was pulling them out now meant…
“~~~”
“It’s not like I’ve always been hoping for this, that’s not it at all! That’s not it,
okay?!? It’s just that, you know, as your l-lover I wanted to be prepared for
your requests! Yeah, this is just expected manners for a princess!”
If anything, he was grateful that her concern had covered for his oversight.
With this promise, Ikki nodded and took the packets from Stella.
Suddenly, with a lot of crackling, the folded packets were pulled down by
gravity and stretched out tenfold.
(What kind of bout is she expecting us to have!?)
Well, it’s not like they had to use them all just because they were
connected, he decided. As if that would happen.
Telling that to his trembling heart, Ikki tore one off along the perforation.
“...Y-yeah…”
Similarly, even while she stole glances through blurry eyes, Stella turned
away whenever their gazes met.
So Ikki took a deep breath to clear his mind, and faced Stella on the bed.
“Stella!”
“Y-yes!”
And so, despite having some worries, they began their first night together.
◆◇◆◇◆
Pale moonlight shone dimly on Stella, who was stretched out on the clean
white bed, her upper body resting on the rolled up sheets.
The faint glow outlined the uneven curves of Stella’s bright white dress and
body in shadow.
An odd prospect.
The sensation filled him with nervousness and exhilaration, sending his
heart on an unstoppable rampage.
It was no wonder.
He had longed for this day ever since he fell in love with this girl.
“This is embarrassing…”
Though she was short, her bust was huge in comparison. Her chest
restlessly strained up and sank down as if she was nervous, but her blurry
eyes, looking up at Ikki, glowed with anticipation.
“W-wait…”
When Ikki’s finger reached her top button, a small voice called for restraint.
“H-hey… Right now, I’m not wearing a bra… It’s embarrassing if you start
there so suddenly, so… Please come from below…”
“Oh, sorry…”
Thus Ikki moved his hand to her knee, and began undoing buttons from
there.
He took great care to not hurt the precious gift inside while unwrapping.
One by one-
With each one undone, Stella’s white skin was slowly revealed.
Round knees.
Her crotch, protected by just simple hospital underwear, even with her
thighs swung shut.
And, above her fair belly, a small dent, wriggling with her breath like it had
something to say.
Ikki realized that he was so excited that his pores might go from perspiring
just sweat to blood as well.
Frankly, starting from the top would have been somewhat predictable.
You would think that it was the same result, but changing the sequence
completely changed the impact.
So he couldn’t prepare himself, and as more and more was revealed, the
visuals overwhelmed his sense of reason.
He wanted to pry open her trembling thighs, which were closed from
embarrassment.
He wanted to rub her fair belly, and tickle her pristine belly button with his
fingertips.
Those crass desires blazed up in his chest, inflaming his whole body.
Then- Once he released the button covering her belly button, sparks went
off in his head.
As Stella’s breath made her chest rise again, her dress began to part from
the next button at the peak of her breasts, and the lower half became
exposed, quivering like the dress had been constricting them.
“!!!”
His gaze was immediately drawn to that flesh which was like squashed
white mochi.
Her eyelids snapped shut, and she pressed her lips together as if to muffle
a squeal.
This sensation from the opposite sex, found nowhere on his entire body,
sent a shiver down his spine.
It crept over to the line drawn by the bottom of those squashed mochi
breasts, and then sank right in.
“Hyu.”
This new sensation made Stella’s ruby eyes snap open with bewilderment.
Her skin was so smooth that they might not even retain his fingerprints.
“~~~~Ah…”
Stella’s body reacted to the sensation of having her breasts rubbed from
within.
He curled the fingers in her breasts into hooks and raised them slightly.
“Fu; Kuu!”
Her compressed breasts sprang up like jelly and opened the dress.
The dress had actually been stopped by the top of her breasts.
Although the peak wasn’t visible, there was clearly a differently colored
area now half visible-
“W-Wait!”
He wasn’t waiting.
No waiting.
Ikki had moved to clear off what had gotten stuck on her breasts when-
His gaze shifted from her chest to her face, where her eyes were tearing up
as she drew short, restless breaths.
She’d said she’d be okay, but there were some things she would just be
afraid of.
When he thought about her devotion, the wild lust that had ignited him
faded.
He didn’t want her to have memories of fear on this day she’d been waiting
for.
“Stella…”
“...!?”
Ikki took his hands away from her dress and leaned forward, pressing his
lips to hers.
It wasn’t a lust fueled, bitey kiss, but more like their usual messy kisses.
“...”
“...!”
His tongue, wet with saliva, split Stella’s lips and intruded within.
But this was the last thing they would be accustomed to.
“...”
Normally, even when it came time to separate, Ikki wouldn’t stop, wouldn’t
separate their lips.
As if licking at sweet candy, his tongue would melt away her sense of
reason.
“~~~”
*Smack, slurp.*
Their saliva was mixing into a froth, and spilling from their lips.
*Gulp gulp*
As he did so, Stella drank it down, the liquid made by their arousal.
It carried the heat from her throat and warmed her marrow.
At the same time, Ikki’s finger slid to Stella’s inner thigh, still closed by her
knees.
He started beside her knee. Slowly, moving back and forth, his finger
approached her crotch.
He could feel the minute spasms of her thigh muscles begin through his
fingertips.
Looking into her eyes, he saw that fear was already melting into arousal,
and her focus was growing fuzzy. Her white body, stimulated from outside
and within, was tinged pink with heat, and her arousal made her sweat give
off a sweet odor.
“...Yeah…”
“You said you were afraid. I’ll do this as long as it takes to help you calm
down.”
“...I’m ready.”
Even though her eyes showed such infatuation they lost focus, they did
their best to keep Ikki in sight.
That courage was unbearably lovable, and Ikki gave Stella three tender
kisses on the lip.
As he parted from the last kiss, he put his hands on her shoulders and
disrobed her.
Her body, slightly flushed pink, was laid bare before the moonlight.
Even though she was partly lying down, her hanging breasts were still
springy, and the disrobing sent them and her peach colored nipples
jiggling.
“So beautiful…”
His own lower half was already raging painfully in his pants.
Even when he forgot to breathe, he wouldn’t forget his concern for Stella.
He scooped up some of the saliva that had spilled from their mouths onto
her collarbone and smeared it into her right breast, as if rubbing cream with
his finger.
“Ahhhh…nn”
It was the first time he’d heard such a seductive voice from Stella.
If he teased that nipple with his hand, it would look clearly different from the
other.
It hurt.
She said she was ready, but if he started now, would she be hurt?
As Ikki worried, Stella raised her arms and gently placed her hands on the
nape of his neck.
“---”
They embraced so deeply, that it became unclear where one ended and
the other began.
Their voices lost meaning, their lips only desperately seeking their beloved.
◆◇◆◇◆
His consciousness too, sank far below the surface of awareness, even as
his eyes received the sunlight.
Deciding he couldn’t stay like that, Ikki inhaled once to guide him towards
awakening.
Her pale body was sunk into the futon to her shoulders and she wore a
gentle smile.
And when their eyes met, Stella’s scarlet pupils narrowed bashfully.
“Morning, dear.”
“...!”
As he realized this, Ikki noticed that beyond his gaze was a mess of plastic.
Where had the trepidation and fear from the beginning gone?
Well, he’d also forgotten himself, so it wasn’t just Stella who’d flipped a
switch.
It seemed the ascetic life he’d pursued since the opening ceremony had
haunted him.
If he went that hard he’d be left unable to move properly the day after.
Warning himself thusly, Ikki directed his attention at Stella, who almost
certainly took more damage.
“W-well, I guess.”
She was well aware that she went too far too.
“It’s not that I can’t… But I’d like to stay like this for now.”
For Ikki, the constant pain was also a constant reminder of his guilt.
“~~~”
Saying such a thing with such a happy face left Ikki speechless.
Even after all the lovemaking they did last night, he loved her so much his
chest hurt.
She felt his emotions through the heat of his palms, closed her eyes, and
prepared her lips.
“”Hii!?!?””
(There’s no time to put it on! Just hide it! I’ll hide the trash on the bed!)
(Got it…!)
Ikki grabbed Stella’s robes from the floor, dived onto his own bed, and hid it
in the futon.
At the same time, the door to the sickbay opened and Stella and Arisuin
walked in.
“Hm? Nothing~ I just thought, you two must have had fun last night.”
“That?”
“N-nothing!”
“...?”
“No, this much isn’t worth thanking me for… I’d actually prefer if you rested
more after trying so hard, but with the award ceremony in mind, I thought it
best to come get you for breakfast.”
“I see. Then, I’ll change and get ready, so could I get you to wait outside?”
But first-
“By the way, Stella. I’ve been wondering since earlier, what are all those
rubber balloon looking things under your bed?”
Stella saw nothing when she peered below the bed, but her careless words
gave it away.
“Stella…”
“Ahhhhhhh”
The boys let out a sigh of defeat, while the girls paled.
One paled from being flustered, while the other paled from such indignation
that their blood drained from their face.
“I see, I see. So it was that all along. I thought you two were acting rather
funny.”
While feigning a smile, Shizuku’s eyes let up with a demonic green flame,
and instantly dropped the temperature in the room below freezing.
“No no, you don’t need to say it. Simply put, it’s that. Last night, after
competing so seriously with each other, you earnestly thought about how
to express your gratitude, and so you two must have been Dragon Fanging
the night’s Ittou Shura.”
“No-”
There was never any point in trying to persuade the inflamed Shizuku.
In the next instant, the magical green glow on the Shizuku had summoned
onto the windows disappeared.
“Kyaaaaaa!”
“Shaaaaaaaaaa!!!”
“I don’t know!”
“Hasshaaaaaaaa!!!!!”
And that is why a blizzard of blood blew through the sick bay.
◆◇◆◇◆
It was finally time to meet the end of the long Seven Stars Sword Art
Festival.
「32 warriors, the elite of Japan’s 8 schools, fought here around the summit.
26 fierce battles.
The audience was not looking at Kaieda, but was instead concentrated on
the victor’s podium in front of him.
More accurately, they were focused on the fighters who were about to
climb onto it.
Because one of the top three, Amane Shinomiya, committed foul play after
his match, he was automatically disqualified, leaving third place to Ouma
Kurogane. Ouma had already returned to Osaka, leaving only Ikki
Kurogane and Stella Vermillion in the waiting room.
“Baka Shizuku got way too serious…! Anyone other than me would be
dead, for real..!”
Ikki patted Stella on the back as she slumped in a chair and breathed
heavily.
“To be honest, even though I managed to get away for now, I’m still afraid
about later.”
But after a deep breath to fix her breathing, Stella replied, “It’s fine.”
She had stolen Ikki away from a girl who loved him to bits.
“If I don’t do this, I’ll never be able to face Shizuku head on. That’s why,
just for this, I can’t accept your help, Ikki.”
“Eh?”
Ikki was understandably confused, seeing as she just said she wanted to
do it alone.
“Don’t you remember? After your battle with Touka, he told you, right? My
father.”
“...Ah.”
At the end, the King of Vermillion, Stella’s father, sent Ikki a message
through Stella saying “After the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival, come
meet me in the Vermillion Kingdom.”
“Now that you mention it, that was a thing…”
“Eeeeeeeeh!?!?”
“It’s not that, that’s true, but… I need to prepare myself. Can’t I get an extra
week?”
“Oh…”
「Ladies and Gentlemen, let us commence the Sixty Second Seven Stars Sword Art
Festival Awards Ceremony. A round of applause for our winners! 」
“...Yeah.”
Immediately-
「「「WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!」」」
「Ikki-kun! Congratulations!」
Within the praise, the two continued down the path together.
When at last they reached Kaieda and the podium, the voices quieted
down, giving way to a dignified silence from tens of thousands.
Having waited for that, Kaieda called the name of the runner-up.
“Yes.”
Stella released Ikki’s hand and approached Kaieda.
「You achieved second at the sixty-second Seven Stars Sword Art Festival, a
magnificent achievement. That is henceforth acknowledged here.
Congratulations.」
Stella accepted the certificate he presented with both hands and bowed.
Stella then stepped up to her place on the podium on the second highest
tier.
“Yes.”
「Through a series of fierce battles, you have ascended to the peak of the sixty-
second Seven Stars Sword Art Festival. In recognition of your achievement, you
are hereby awarded the title of Seven Stars Sword King. Congratulations. 」
Together with his certificate, he received the title of strongest student knight
in the country.
It was what Ikki had always aimed for.
“Thank you.”
“Kurogane.”
In order to carry out that duty, he was handed something by the principal of
Hagun Academy, Shinguuji Kurono, who was standing beside Kaieda.
It was something Toudou Touka had entrusted to him as the group leader
of Hagun Academy, the school flag.
He passed his certificate to Kurono for safekeeping and accepted the flag.
He took his place next to Stella, on the podium’s highest level, the Seven
Stars Summit, and raised the flag to the sky.
「「「----------!!!!!!!」」」
People Ikki knew very well also sent their blessings to him on the summit.
“Mmf-”
Arisuin waved, while next to him, Shizuku clapped reservedly with cheeks
puffed up like a hamster.
“Congrats Kurogane-kun!”
“...Fuu.”
Kurashiki Kuraudo sat with his arms crossed, looking interested. With him
was Ayatsuji Ayase, who’d managed to drag him there, saying she wanted
to attend her benefactor’s award ceremony.
“Thanks, Kurogane-kun!”
“I’d love to hear if you think there’s anything you could actually do about
that.”
On this stage called the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival, only a few could
be considered worthy opponents to compete for the summit with.
So he wouldn’t betray those blessings or the Seven Stars Sword King title,
or embarrass himself.
So-
With those blessings, the last program of the Seven Stars Sword Art
Festival came to an end.
「With this, the sixty-second Seven Stars Sword Art Festival ends. 」
「「「Wait a minuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute!!!」」」
Dozens of female voices cried out at the same time, from all over the
stadium, and dozens of people could be seen climbing over the fence and
surging into the ring.
Everyone was astonished.
As if it wasn’t surprising enough, the intruders all shared the same face.
Their goal, to apprehend the girl and bring calm back to the situation.
But whenever one was close to getting caught, they would disappear in a
puff of smoke.
“You…!”
“Kusakabe-san!?”
They wanted to ask her, but the camera in her hands explained everything.
“Ok..!”
The results of battle, victory and defeat, are hard to change, recorded as
they are, but the way those two were was meant to be.