Matchmaking Warring States - All Cheaters, Love Battle Royale - Handrail, are you the enemy!?

"Exchange time" was another name for hell, as far as Takatsuki Taisuke was concerned. 　Less than ten minutes had passed since Houjou the manager quietly exited. The moment a staff member announced, "Please feel free to enjoy the evening as you wish," the air in the room changed. The Returners naturally gravitated toward each other, tilting glasses and beginning to talk. 　On the table lined with finger foods sat dishes Taisuke didn't even know the names of. Hotel staff began distributing champagne. 　"BL-0047, A-rank." 　A voice flew from nearby. Someone's Origin Code. 　"Oh, A-rank? I'm DL-0231, B-rank. People with high-tier sword skills are definitely strong, huh?" 　An Origin Code was an identification number issued by the government when a Returner came back. Skill strength was evaluated on a six-tier scale from S to E, and there were times when simply presenting this code got you a job offer. From Roppongi to Akasaka, "Shift Street" was lined with recruitment companies specializing in Returners—the demand for skill-holders was that high. 　The ranking had begun. 　Taisuke set his glass back on the table. Quietly. Without drawing attention. 　(My card only has two lines—name and invitation slot.) 　He mentally confirmed the blank spaces on his profile card again. Occupation field, skill field, aptitude field—all blank. A man who'd been counting ceiling stains at Corpo Hinata was mixed in with a quality assessment competition of elite skill-holders. 　The door leading to the balcony was at the edge of his vision. 　At a speed no one would notice, Taisuke walked toward it. --- 　The night wind on the fifteenth floor was colder than expected. 　The nightscape of Minato Ward spread out before him. In the distance, what looked like Rainbow Bridge glowed. The high-rise buildings of Toranomon stood against the night sky with some lights on. Taisuke rested both elbows on the railing and fumbled in his suit pocket. 　What came out was a convenience store rice ball. Salted salmon. He'd shoved it in his pocket on the way out. This hotel had restaurants charging over twenty thousand yen per meal, but a convenience store rice ball was somehow far more settling. 　He took a bite. 　"……I shouldn't have come here." 　His muttering dissolved into the night wind and disappeared somewhere. 　Thirty consecutive job rejections. A twenty-seven-year-old who could only write "I'm good at listening" in the special skills section. In a society where Returners were favored, someone without a single Origin Skill was being thrown into a matchmaking event for cheat ability-holders on a "free invitation slot." 　(Can't even go home. The electronic lock's on.) 　The thought of forced deportation crossed his mind. This Tetra Trial hosted by Vortex Link apparently worked by having four days and four trials determine pairs, then deporting matchmaking failures to another world. Houjou the manager had stated it in a tone like she was reading a weather forecast. He'd never been to another world. Didn't want to go. 　He took a second bite. The salt flavor melted into the night wind. 　(But I can't go home. Can't escape. What is this situation?) 　His solo comedy routine wouldn't stop. I get handed a card with a blank skill section, do the same trials as A-rank skill-holders, and if I fail, I get deported to another world—the risk and reward don't match at all. No matter how you looked at it, it wasn't worth it. 　In the first place, I'm not in a position to even think about matchmaking, he thought, and then the balcony door opened. --- 　The footsteps were completely different from his own. 　A gait with solid, centered weight. The sound of heels on stone had no wasted motion. When he turned around, a woman in a chic one-piece dress stood there. 　Long silver hair swayed gently in the night breeze. 　Water-blue eyes glanced at Taisuke for just a moment. Then they turned toward the nightscape. A small silver sword-shaped earring hung from her right ear. 　(……Who is this person?) 　He had a memory of exchanging profile cards. If he remembered right—Yukimura Yuuki. Twenty-one years old. Former Vice-Captain of the Carnelia Kingdom Knight Order. Carnelia Kingdom was apparently a nation in the other world where Returners had been transported during the Great Shift, with a medieval European-style civilization of swords and magic. 　"……Was I in the way?" 　When he tried to move to the side while holding his rice ball, the woman shook her head. 　"Don't worry. I'm not fond of being indoors either." 　Her voice was clear. Unguarded, unwavering speech. Maybe people who'd served as vice-captains of knight orders spoke like this. 　She walked to the edge of the balcony. She reached for the railing— 　CRACK. 　A dry, metallic snapping sound. 　Taisuke froze, rice ball in hand. The railing was split clean in two from the base. The cut surface was too clean—it felt unreal. The metal railing had split open as if sliced by something. 　"…………The, the railing." 　The woman turned around. Her expression was blank. 　"My apologies. My will apparently recognized the railing as an enemy." 　Taisuke's thoughts stopped for three seconds. 　"What enemy element did the railing have!?" 　"……It was giving off strong presence." 　"Killing intent!? The railing had killing intent!?" 　"Blade Link synchronizes with my will. When I tried to lean on it, I think my subconscious wariness activated. It happens often." 　She said it happens often. Right now. 　Blade Link—the name of her Origin Skill. A sword-type skill that could "cut" a target with nothing but the will to slash, without needing a physical blade. Estimated A-rank. Another participant had mentioned during the card exchange that no one in Carnelia Kingdom could stop her sword. 　That skill had just cut the railing. On the fifteenth floor. 　"……Who's going to pay for repairs?" 　"I'll bill Vortex Link. This is an occupational accident." 　"That's not—you're the one who cut it!?" 　The woman neatly pushed the severed railing to the side, then turned her gaze back to the nightscape as if nothing had happened. She wasn't apologetic at all. If anything, she was trying to solve it logically, which made the situation even more absurd. 　(This person is……really something.) --- 　"Does this happen often?" 　She asked while gazing at the nightscape. Not about cutting the railing, but about being alone on the balcony. 　"Yeah, well……when the group's talking among themselves, someone like me doesn't have a place." 　"Same with me." 　A short answer. 　"……You too, Yukimura?" 　"The talk in that circle is comparing Origin Codes. I'm not good at that kind of conversation. Strength isn't determined by a code." 　Taisuke thought: she says things directly. 　"Actually, there are various other things like that." 　She continued. Her profile was slightly softer than before. 　During a job interview, she got nervous and Blade Link activated. A chair got cut. The interview was suspended. She tried working as a convenience store cashier. The moment she put strength into her fingers, the register got cut. She was fired. She grabbed a strap on the train. It got cut. Passengers screamed. She got off at the next station. 　Taisuke held his rice ball and kept suppressing laughter. When he was about to lose it, he twisted his mouth into a line and covered it up. 　"……In the other world, I served as vice-captain of an entire nation's knight order. No one in Carnelia could stop my sword." 　She said it with a straight face. 　"But in Japan, I can't get a job or even work part-time." 　Laughter leaked from Taisuke's mouth. 　"I……got rejected by thirty companies in a row." 　"……How many companies?" 　"Thirty. Straight." 　There was a long silence. Her water-blue eyes looked at Taisuke seriously. 　"……You're a warrior too." 　"Don't call that being a warrior!!" 　But—somehow, he was happy. 　Laughter came out. He felt like he was laughing from deep in his belly for the first time in a while. She had an exasperated expression, but the corner of her mouth was slightly raised. 　Taisuke pulled another rice ball from his pocket. His hand moved before he could think. 　"……Want one? I only have salted salmon though." 　She looked at it. 　"Is this……modern combat rations?" 　"No. Just a convenience store rice ball." 　"Same thing." 　She took the rice ball and ate a bite. She chewed with a serious expression. After a moment, 　"……Not bad." 　she said. 　The night wind blew. Something deep in Taisuke's chest quietly pulsed. 　(What is this?) 　He couldn't explain it himself. But—talking to this person felt strangely easy. She had a cheat skill, cut the railing without any remorse, but in modern society she'd failed every job interview, cut registers and straps. 　Somehow, that made him feel a little relieved. --- 　The balcony door opened. 　"Oh, there you are, Yukimura." 　The voice belonged to a well-built man. One of the other participants. He had solid bone structure and wore his suit well. He was probably a B-rank skill-holder, if Taisuke remembered right. 　"We were talking about how it'd be better to pair up with people with similar ability values for the trials. Since Yukimura's A-rank, I thought I'd ask—" 　The man's gaze turned to Taisuke. It stopped for a beat. 　"……Honestly, it's hard to include someone with no skills on the invitation slot in your pairing preferences." 　It was a troubled smile. No malice. It was genuine, which made it sting somewhere deep in his gut. 　(Ah, I know this feeling.) 　"Your experience is limited……" "It would be difficult for you in that position……" He'd heard this phrasing many times during job hunting. The sensation of being told, indirectly but certainly, that you don't fit the criteria. 　"Haha, yeah, you're right." 　Taisuke laughed it off. 　"Was it necessary to say that in front of him?" 　Her voice was quiet, but had a sharp edge. The man flinched. 　"Ah, um……sorry." 　He retreated. 　Silence fell. Taisuke looked at the nightscape of the balcony. 　"……Don't let it bother you." 　"It doesn't bother me." 　"You're lying." 　Taisuke was quiet for a moment. The night wind brushed his cheek. 　"……But it's the truth." 　"Even if it's the truth, there's a way to say it." 　He looked at her profile. She was still facing the nightscape. That profile somehow knocked on something deep inside his chest. 　(It's pulsing again.) 　He told himself to calm down. 　"Should we go back inside?" 　"……Yeah." --- 　When they went back inside, hell was waiting. 　"Um, you're injured." 　"I'm not injured!?" 　A gentle-looking participant with a healing skill—Shou, who Taisuke had exchanged cards with—was holding his hands over an uninjured participant. Shou's healing skill was the type that cured wounds and illness. He was trying to use it on someone with no injuries and getting yelled at. 　In the corner of the room, staff watched with confused expressions as a woman silently set up and expanded a whiteboard, then started writing something on it. At a matchmaking party. 　When another participant tried to explain their skill and made a hand gesture—CRACK, CRACK, CRACK!!! Three champagne glasses on a nearby table shattered in succession. 　"Oh, sorry!! Wait a second!!" 　It was chaos. 　"……What is this?" 　"Exchange time. This is what Returner interaction is like." 　"Everyone's skills are interfering with daily life too much!!!!" 　The moment Taisuke entered the room, multiple gazes turned to his profile card. Eyes moved quickly when they saw the card in his hand. Skill field—blank. Aptitude field—blank. 　"……Please don't look. I know it's blank." 　He said with a wry smile, and then, 　"Don't worry. The real power isn't written on cards." 　A voice said flatly from beside him. 　"……I appreciate you saying it cool like that, but there's zero basis for it and that's scary!?" 　"Not all words need a basis before they're spoken." 　"Philosophy

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Episode 2

Name: Matchmaking Warring States - All Cheaters, Love Battle Royale
Author: Novelia

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