That's...
Mentor!
I always believed in you!
Lady Alice...
The Night Before Battle
I just looked at the Eastern Gate.
There's not much time before the gate's destroyed and the enemy pushes through.
The enemy army has about 50,000 troops. We have 3,000.
We have to give them what training we can.
Where are the other Integrity Knights?
From above, I could only see seven outside.
That's everyone.
That's ridiculous!
There should be 31 members of the order, including me!
Surely you're aware, Lady Alice.
That Prime Senator Chudelkin had been used a retuning art
on knights who showed symptoms of memory issues.
Ten of those knights have yet to awaken from that art.
At this time, 21 knights are awake.
Four are watching over the Cathedral and the capital,
and four are patrolling the End Mountains.
That leaves thirteen.
Our forces are already stretched too thin.
And yet, Lady Alice...
Do you intend to shield that young man while you fight?
Of course I do.
Because I swore to protect him.
You mustn't, Mentor!
Should you encumber yourself with such deadweight in battle,
not only will it diminish the power of your sword, it could expose you to danger yourself!
Well, don't get so worked up, Eldrie.
Yo, little one.
I'm relieved to see you look better than I expected.
Have your cheeks filled in a little?
Uncle.
It's been a long time.
Commander...
Uncle.
Is he going to kill Kirito?
It's all right, little one.
U-Uncle...
Little one, did you just see that?
Yes. It was only for an instant, but I definitely saw the flash of a sword.
I launched an Incarnate Sword, or rather, a dagger at that young man.
If it had hit, it would've sliced some skin off his cheek.
If it had... hit? Which means...
That's right. He stopped it.
With his own willpower.
It doesn't look like the young man's mind is here.
But he's not dead.
Listen.
The boy wasn't protecting himself, but you, little one.
So he'll be back one day. That's what I think.
Probably when you need him the most.
So you see, Eldrie.
We can look after one young man.
All right. Wait a moment, okay?
Kirito.
Even though your heart has been lost since that battle,
you still tried to protect me from Uncle's sword technique.
What do you think of me?
What do I think of Kirito?
No. I'm only a created being.
Who continues to occupy Alice Zuberg's body.
A puppet who exists to fight.
I'm not allowed the luxury of feeling anything other than the intent to fight.
But maybe...
it's because I've been suppressing my feelings that you can't hear my voice.
If I were to unleash all of my willpower at this moment,
would you respond?
U-Um...
W-We've brought your dinner, Lady Knight.
Thank you. I appreciate it.
U-Um, it's bread and something to drink.
You don't have to be afraid.
Are you two from the North Centoria Imperial Swordcraft Academy?
Yes! I'm Primary Trainee Tiese Schtrinen of the Human Guardian Army Supply Corps.
Primary Trainee Ronie Arabel, of the same.
You don't have to be so formal.
Here, I'm just another swordsman, nothing more.
Please call me Alice.
What's the matter?
O-Oh, it's nothing.
It's just that you seem so different from when we met you at the academy.
You... think so?
Anyway, is there something you wanted?
Yes.
Um, Lady Kni— Lady Alice, we heard that you arrived with a dark-haired young man.
And we were wondering if he might be someone we know.
So we thought...
Oh, yeah. That's right.
You two were friends with Kirito at the academy, weren't you?
So it is Kirito-senpai!
Then Eugeo-senpai must...
This might be too harsh for you to bear.
But I have faith, that as Kirito's, as well as Eugeo's juniors,
you're surely capable of accepting it.
I just... heard...
Eugeo-senpai's voice.
He said, "Don't cry. I'll always be here."
Did you two have feelings for Kirito and Eugeo...
That's not it! I... I'm...
Lady Alice, you know the Taboo Kirito-senpai and Eugeo-senpai violated, don't you?
Yes. I was told they killed another student.
How about what led them to break that Taboo?
No, not that much.
Kirito-senpai and Eugeo-senpai raised their swords to save us.
If only we'd been a little wiser
they wouldn't have fought the Church to change the law, and no one would've died.
We've committed an irreparable crime!
That's why...
no matter what happens, we can't ever...
...admit we're in love with them!
No, you're wrong about that.
You've committed no crime.
Lady Alice, you...
You're an esteemed Integrity Knight, Lady Alice, so you can't understand!
Our bodies were played with, and our pride has been tainted by sin!
The body is nothing more than a vessel for your heart.
The heart... the soul is the only thing that truly exists.
And what determines the nature of your soul...
is you alone.
I know I can do it.
Just like how Kirito showed me.
You see?
Your body and appearance merely follow your heart.
Your heart can't be tainted by anyone.
I was born in a village in the hinterlands, and I should've grown up to be like this.
But when I was eleven, I was taken away as a criminal,
my memories were erased by an art technique and I became an Integrity Knight.
There were times when I cursed such a fate.
But...
Kirito taught me that there was something that I could do... that I should do.
And that's why I'll never hesitate again.
I've decided to accept myself as I am and move on.
I'm sure there's a wide, long, and straight path meant only for you, too.
Yo.
Uncle. Good morning.
About where we're going to put that young man.
If you want, I can ask the rearguard unit...
No.
It's fine.
I met his former pages from the academy,
and asked them to look after him once the battle begins.
Oh? That's good to hear. So how is that black-haired boy?
Did he react in any way, coming into contact with people from his past?
I see.
To be honest, I can't help but feel that he'll be the one to set the course of the coming battle.
What?
Even if he had help from you and his partner,
defeating the prime senator and the pontifex was an incredible feat.
I'm not sure if I'd be a match for the intensity of his willpower.
That can't be.
When our willpower clashed yesterday, I definitely felt it.
That boy has the same amount as, or even more experience in actual combat than me.
What do you mean by actual combat?
Just what I said. A fight for life.
The Taboo Index prohibits any battles to the death.
So where did that boy gain that kind of experience?
Uncle, Kirito's actually...
My lord.
It's almost time for the war council.
Lady Fanatio.
Lady Fanatio... with makeup on?
It's been a long time, Alice.
I'm glad you're well.
She sounds... feminine?
I-It's been a long time.
Hey, Alice, I hear you brought that black-haired boy with you.
Uh, yes.
I see.
Then could I see him briefly after the war council?
Why?
I just want to thank him.
Thank him?
Yes.
For fighting and defeating me.
In all my years as an Integrity Knight, that boy is the only one
who fought me all-out, even though he knew I was a woman.
What do you mean...?
Whenever a man fights me, there's always a slight difference in his swordplay.
When I realized that, I hid my face with a helmet
and mastered the art of continuous attacks to prevent opponents from getting close.
But that was only because I was self-conscious about my own gender.
That boy saw right through me, and didn't hold back as he crossed swords with me.
During my battle with him, I unleashed all of my sword skills and art techniques,
and when it was over, all my trivial obsessions had vanished.
See? It's no wonder I want to thank that boy, right?
Not to mention, I'm also a little annoyed.
Because when he saw my exposed face, he didn't find any womanliness in me.
So I thought I'd try a few things... and maybe if I do this or that, he might wake up.
I am grateful for your kind words, but he's resting in his tent right now.
I shall pass on your regards to him later.
Oh, my. I need your permission to see the boy?
Whenever you asked to meet with the commander while he was on duty,
I don't think I ever refused you due to my personal feelings.
Surely I don't need your permission to see Uncle.
First of all, if you wished to be beaten up by a male knight,
shouldn't you have just asked Uncle to do so?
Oh, but he's exempt.
Since he's the most powerful swordsman in the world,
of course he would go easy on everyone.
Oh, is that right?
Whenever he trained with me, Uncle was always drenched with sweat from going all-out.
- My lord, is that true? - Uncle, it's all your fault for...
Hey! It's time to start the war council.
For the last four months, we've considered all kinds of strategies,
but have concluded that it will be difficult to repulse an all-out attack at our current strength.
On our side of the End Mountains,
there's nothing but grassland and rocks for 10 kilors in all directions.
If they force their way in this far, then we'll be surrounded and massacred by the enemy.
Therefore, we...
...have no choice but to fight in this narrow ravine, that's 100-mel wide and 1,000 mel long.
We'll set up a defensive position here,
and relentlessly repel the enemy's advances, and strike them down.
This will be our basic strategy throughout this operation.
Does anyone have any thoughts so far?
The enemy forces include ogre units equipped with longbows,
as well as the even more dangerous order of the dark mages.
What are we going to do about their long-range attacks?
It will be a risky gamble, but...
There's no sunlight in that ravine, even during the day,
and not a single blade of grass on the ground.
In other words, spatial resources are sparse there.
If we can consume every last bit of it before the battle starts,
in theory, the enemy will be unable to launch any powerful art techniques.
Needless to say, the same is true for us.
However, we only have 100 or so sacred arts wielders on our side.
Should we find ourselves exchanging art techniques, the enemy will be sure to consume far more resources.
I see. I believe you're right, Vice Commander.
But if the resources are exhausted,
won't we be unable to restore the life of the wounded?
That's why I said it was a gamble.
We've brought all of our high-level reagents and healing potions with us.
If we restrict all art techniques to healing arts,
and use our medicines to assist, the reagents should last for at least three days.
There's one more problem.
Lady Fanatio.
No matter how sparse Solus and Terraria's blessings may be,
there must be a vast amount of resources in that ravine that have built up over the years.
Who would be able to deplete that power in the short time we have before the battle?
No, there is someone. Just one who is capable of that.
Just one?
That would be you, Alice Synthesis Thirty.
Perhaps you haven't realized,
but your power has surpassed that of any Integrity Knight.
I'm sure you're capable of wielding it now.
The true sacred power that can split the heavens and rupture the earth.
All right, please look after Kirito for me, will you?
Yes, you can count on us.
Lady Alice, we promise to protect Kirito, no matter what.
Kirito, this could be our last goodbye.
I'll do my best, as well.
I'm going to burn every last drop of the life that you gave me.
So if I should fall, and call your name with the last of my strength,
will you stand up and draw that sword for me?
If you're awake, it won't matter if the enemy has thousands, or even tens of thousands.
Make a miracle happen again and protect everybody.
After all, you...
After all, you defeated Administrator.
You're the most powerful swordsman of all.
Lady Alice.
Let's head out now.
Eldrie?
What is it?
You've served me well until now.
I was truly blessed to have you by my side.
You didn't choose a senior male knight like Sir Deusolbert.
You wished to be trained by an amateur like me because you were concerned about my heart.
Not at all!
I would never be so insolent.
It was just because I was so in awe of your splendid sword skills.
Thanks to your support, I was able to walk this dangerous path until today.
Thank you.
Lady Alice.
Why are you speaking in the past tense?
Why would you imply that your path is about to end here?
I... I still haven't learned enough from you!
My sword, my arts... I'm still nowhere near your level!
I need you to continue training and guiding me, forever and ever...
Integrity Knight Eldrie Synthesis Thirty-One!
Yes...
Here are my final orders as your mentor.
Make sure you survive. Live to see the advent of peace.
And then, take them back.
Your true life and your loved one.
November 7, 380 HE The Eastern Gate
Next time: "Battle of the Knights."
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