Chapter 5: Mowing Them Down

In the past, there had been plans to develop a new city along Osaka Bay, but then funding had dried up halfway through development, and for years, a half-built ghost town had languished. But now, those buildings had been converted to hotels that were all fully booked, and the once-empty Bay Dome was currently packed with over a hundred thousand spectators. The arrival of the Seven Stars Battle Festival had breathed new life into this failed megaconstruction project.

“You better not disappoint us after all that big talk, Crimson Princess!”

“Guess we’ll get to see just how strong Akatsuki’s students really are now.”

“Mikoto-chan, I’m rooting for you!”

As the signal to start the match rang out, the spectators went wild with excitement. But unlike the audience, the fighters didn’t seem particularly thrilled by this turn of events. Rather, they all looked furious, and Tatara Yui was the angriest of them all.

Don’t underestimate us, bitch!

They were, of course, pissed off at Stella for insinuating that they were so weak she could beat all four of them at once. The Icy Sneer, Tsuruya Mikoto, was happy with this turn of events since all she cared about was victory, but the members of Akatsuki hated being underestimated, especially Tatara. They’d agreed to Stella’s terms because they’d known that doing so would put them in an advantageous position, but that didn’t mean they had to like it.

I’ll make you pay for treating us like small fry!

“Hey, Hiraga. Since this is a tournament match, no one’s gonna complain if I ‘accidentally’ kill her, right?”

“Heh heh heh, that’s right. In high-profile tournaments like this,