"Wasn't the Brigadier suppose to get promoted to General, but the place got taken by Calina?"

"Yeah… He never let it go, so I'm guessing he's about to take his anger out on the new girl."

Murmurs form around the room as the Brigadier walks towards the middle of the arena, where the rest of the squires stand at ease.

"Tell you guys what. If anyone has the guts to take on Ms. Momoko and wins…."

He opens his palm as a large bag plops into his hand; He lifts it into the air, and its content jingle.

"… I'll give you five-hundred gold kules plus a rank-up, right here right now."

The whispers grew louder as the squires look to the floor with unease, except for one.

"… I'll take her on."

Dai raises his hand and steps forward.

The Brigadier looks toward him with a scowl. "Ahh, Dai Kajuto… You were trained by Captain Stroyer. An excellent opportunity to showcase your mentor's teachings."

He walks to the center of the ring and takes out his blade while glaring at me. "Well… Are we going to do this or not?"

My hand quivers as I step forward.

Why me… These guys have been training for weeks, honing their skills with experienced knights… If this was a video game, my combat experience would probably be in the negatives.

I meet face to face with Dai as he sneers, looking me up and down.

"New hair and new armor? What, you came back as a totally different person?"

I clench my fist and take a deep breath.

The Brigadier walks towards us and holds his hand up. "Are you both ready?"

We both nod and walk backward, not breaking our gaze.

"Then… Fight!"

. . .

Dai rushes toward me with his blade blocking his front.

"You may have a new look, but when it comes to strength, your still shi—"

I rush over to meet him halfway with extraordinary speed.

"T-The hell?!" His eyes widen as he lunges his sword towards my side.

My arm grips his wrist before he's able to throw his attack, and he looks toward me with eyes of dread.

I feel a smile form on my face as I start to put pressure on his limb. "… Still shit, huh?"

—CRACK

"GAAAAH!" Dai holds the shoulder of his severed wrist; Bone pricks from underneath his skin as blood starts to spritz over the floor.

"LET GO OF ME, YOU BITCH!" He throws a kick near my abdomen, but I grab his shin with my left hand.

—CRACK CRACK

"AGGHHH!"

His bone feels like a broken tree branch between my palm as I let go of his twisted leg. Dai falls to the floor squirming in agony as his torn wrist flies from side to side.

"… DAI!"

Saori throws her katana towards me; I look towards my left and flick it away with my hand. She teleports mid-air and lunges at me.

—GUSH

My left shoulder gushes blood as my right arm falls to the floor

"Ergh…" I feel a tense of pain as I clasp the hole in my arm.

Saori drops to the floor and drives a sword near my neck.

—GUUSH

Another limb starts to form from the hole as light rays create a new layer of armor for my acquired limb.

Numerous military buffs and knights jump from their seats as they witness my sudden alteration.

"The hell was that?!"

"Perhaps healing magic?"

"What type of magic?! I didn't see any runes?!

Using my new appendage, I grab the sword mid-air while clasping the pink-haired girl by her neck. My strength allows me to pick her up while she struggles to lift her sword from my grasp.

"I'm assuming you two are related… How cute."

—Clank Clank

The sword breaks between my palm, leaving the two pieces to fall on the ground.

"ACK!" Saori grips my hand as I start to squeeze down on her throat.

"KAU!" I vomit blood as I look toward my lower torso.

My head turns to Natsumi holding an elongated blade that pierced through my stomach.

"That's enough, Momoko. We get it. You're a tough guy. Now let her go."

I lift Saori in the air by her neck and drive my right hand into her chest. Blood starts to pour onto the floor as the young girl coughs her fluids onto my arm.

"SAORI!"

Natsumi whips the blade from my stomach and runs toward me.

"DON'T YOU DARE HURT HER!"

She throws another bladed whip towards me as I maneuver Saori in her way.

"Right back at you."

Natsumi hesitates and slams the blade into the ground. I throw Saori's body to the side and jump into the air in front of Natsumi. After several twirls, I use the momentum to drive my foot directly into her skull. The impact drives her entire body to bounce from the floor back into the air.

"GAH!" She releases a cough full of blood as I grab her by her hair.

"If I can't hurt her, I'll just hurt you."

I reel my fist backward, but it's immobilized by a chain tugging me from behind.

"Get a hold of yourself, Momoko!"

My eyes start to glow a dark purple as I throw Natsumi onto the ground and stomp her head into the wooden surface.

My hand tugs on the chain as Usui's body starts to flies toward me. I smash his head into my hand multiple times as he's flung back and forth like a paddle ball. With each strike, he creates a blood trail starting from my location and ending across the room.

He lets go of his mace and is lunged toward Tatsuo, who dives to catch his body. The broad-shouldered boy looks down at Usui's mangled face, unrecognizable due to my consecutive attacks.

The Brigadier looks towards me with dismay as he drops his bag of coins to the ground. The golden currency splashes around in the puddles of blood at his feet.

"M-Monster! Just like that dam, Calina!"

My eyes turn to face him as he steps back in dread. "What did you just say about me?"

"S-Stay back!"

I race toward him as I unsheathe my sword from my hip. "Don't compare me… TO THAT BIIITCH!"

An elf-girl stands in front of me and blocks my path with her hand. "You're pretty strong, I'll give you that. But you need to learn to control your killer instinct."

I throw my sword toward her face and drop to the floor; She ducks, eluding the blade and lunges a kick at me from the ground. I dodge her advance and twist into the air above.

A hand catches my leg mid-air and throws me toward the ground. I look to see Captain Stroyer as he tightens his grip on my leg.

—CRACK

He snaps my limb from the knee down and gives me a stern look. "Learn some discipline, girl."

I twist my torso around, causing my leg to fracture even more; My arms reach for my leg, and I press down, ripping it from the rest of my body.

Captain Stroyer lifts my limb into the air and tosses it to the side. "… That's gross."

My lower appendage starts to regenerate itself, along with the gash in my stomach, allowing me to get up onto my feet.

"Haa… Haa…" I gasp for air as the rest of the mentors jump from their seats and stand side by side, shielding the Brigadier.

"Your squires weren't shit… And I bet you guys aren't either."

A black-haired woman wearing a black military lolita with a long rapier strode forward while clenching her scabbard. "You take one more step, and we're going to see just how much of a hard-ass you really are."

"Momoko! Please stop this!"

I turn around towards Mimi, who's hugging me from behind with tears flowing from her eyes.

"You weren't like this before! Even if you are a bit stronger now, that doesn't mean you act like a bully!"

My eyes widen as I look toward the floor covered in blood and my squires in critical condition. I gaze to the left at the military buffs and knights with concerned expressions.

I raise my hands, stained with the blood of my victims.

"I'm… Sorry..."

My eyes' glow starts to fade as I slump towards the ground.

Yuumi walks over to me and opens her hand, but pulls it back while looking toward the side.

Mimi continues sobbing while clenching my chest from behind

… What did they do to me?…