What is “Queen’s Blade”…?
A fighting competition that is held once every four years to determine the Queen that will rule the Continent. Any woman can participate, as long as she’s twelve years or older. Throughout the Continent, beautiful warriors fight each other on a daily basis in preliminary battles, relayed to all the countries by means of crystal balls.
The story so far…
Determined to participate in Queen’s Blade, the Exiled Warrior Leina, had run away from her home, the Vance Earldom, and began a journey towards the imperial capital of the Continent, Gainos, to practice her fighting skills. During her journey, Leina met the little girl Fio, who possessed the magical, serenading blade “Sword of the Unicorn”, in the Free Trade City of Sheldan.
Upon finding out that Fio had escaped from the custody of Airi, the Infernal Temptress, Leina decided to protect her out of her innate sense of justice.
Along the way, Leina became upset to find Fio was in fact a boy, but during her fight with Airi the wraith, she made a contract with him to become the owner of the serenading sword.
After her triumphant victory with the power of the magic sword, the heiress continued her journey while accompanied by Fio, which led them to the oasis of the desert. Where Leina became a captive of the Ancient Princess Menace, a woman who seeks to restore her defunct ancient dynasty of Amara back to prominence, due to a curse placed upon the Exiled Warrior by the Ancient Princess herself. The conflict was joined by the dropout Angel of Light, Nanael, who sought to obtain Fio’s magic sword, thus the chaos spiraled into a 3 versus 1 battle, but Fio and Leina’s party managed to prevail.
And then, Leina arrived in the capital of the Continent…
Prologue: Leina’s Daily Routine
“Haa, haa, haa…”
The female warrior’s rough breath echoed in the courtyard decorated with flower beds, lovely flowers blooming in them. The warrior had beautiful golden hair and blue eyes reminiscent of a clear sky.
Upon looking at her gestures and actions, it made one think that were she wearing a delicate dress instead of the scantily gladiatorial armor she currently bears, she would have been able to pass for a country’s princess–such was the beauty and dignity she posed and conducted herself with.
Her name was Leina, the Exiled Warrior. She was famous throughout the Continent as a warrior of justice who helped the weak and fought evil wherever she went.
The sword in her hand wasn’t the long sword she usually wields. Instead, it was a giant sword that exceeded her own height, with a blade so wide as to reach from one of her shoulders to the other.
That greatsword, with the moniker of Giant Killer, was known to be the signature weapon of a certain person—one rumored to be among the best swordswomen in the Continent.
“Kuuuuuuuh!”
She swung the Giant Killer with all the power her strength could muster.
“Aah! Oooops…”
Unable to suppress the momentum, Leina was almost turned around with it. The weight of the weapon itself wasn’t any easier to balance out.
“Kuh!”
On the verge of falling down, she forcefully stomped down with both feet, standing her ground.
[It doesn’t look like I’ll be able to fight with this.]
It was so difficult to handle, Leina felt like tossing the huge weapon aside and pulling out her own sword.
[Still, if I do that, there’s no point in me asking to borrow this greatsword.]
“Haa, haa, haa… you sure make it look easy.”
Her whole chest heaving, she spoke to the woman waiting in front of her.
“This is not about just swinging at random, Miss Leina.”
A woman with glasses and long black hair gathered at the back of the head—for easy movement—replied in a gentle teacher-like voice.
The Weapon Merchant Cattleya; there existed no one in the capital, and indeed few throughout the whole continent, who hadn’t heard her name. A skilled swordswoman with the same name as the weapon shop she managed. Once renowned as a master adventurer, her beautiful fighter name was also sung in the troubadours’ epic tales.
That was who was crossing swords with Leina in that courtyard. Only two people were watching: Cattleya’s son Rana, and Leina’s partner Fio—currently wearing a pure white dress.
“B-But, you know…”
“No buts, this isn’t a real battle, and you would be in trouble if it was. You’re alright at the moment since I’m not attacking you, but if I did, here and now, I’d knock you out in one blow before you even lifted your sword.”
She stabbed the javelin in her hands into the courtyard grounds, and stuck out her chest.
Her large breasts bounced lightly. In fact, they are not just large, they are huge, to the point it’s astonishing that the tip of her breasts don’t just fall under their own weight and face down towards her stomach, the so-called sagging breasts.
However, Cattleya’s breasts faced upwards without sagging or losing to gravity. Their size easily exceeded that of her son Rana’s head. Despite their massive size and volume, they maintained their beautiful shape.
What did that mean? Any woman with experience would notice straight away. Leina, quite proud of her own breasts being above average herself, possessed an intuit understanding: Cattleya owned the exceptional muscular strength to be able to lift those huge breasts. Needless to say, the strength in her back muscles, the main support of her breast, alongside her shoulder, neck, waist, to even the muscles around her hand and feet are so exceptionally developed, honed and tempered as steel, to the point they surpass those of ordinary people.
Otherwise, there would be no way she’d be able to handle the Giant Killer sword that Leina was holding, and even now is struggling to wield. The greatsword boasted a size and weight that only honored its name. A half-baked swordsman wouldn’t even be able to swing it properly.
If one wanted to swing a weapon with all their strength, a club worked better than a sword, much like how Risty wields her morningstar. To master the Giant Killer, both strength to hold and balance, and a matching skill of swordsmanship is required.
“How about giving up and using your usual sword?”
Cattleya said, a bit shocked at seeing Leina’s unsteady footing, barely able to hold any meaningful control over the weapon.
“You barely have the strength to hold it, don’t you, Miss Leina?”
“That may be so, but this is the weapon I chose. I’ll be using this Giant Killer today.”
The blonde rejected the mother’s proposal, and set the huge weapon straight.
The excessive weight made her arms tremble.
[It’s like Cattleya says, just holding it makes my arms numb.]
“Besides, I don’t intend to be defeated that easily.”
Gritting her teeth, she suppressed the trembling in her arms.
[If it’s a short battle, it seems like I might be able to handle it.]
Leina calmly analyzed the limit of the strength her muscles could exert.
[With the weight of this weapon, I’ll be able to cross swords two, three times at most.]
“Is that so? ‘Defeated easily’ is what anyone would think here, though.”
Cattleya flashed a smile at her, perhaps noticing the bravado in her voice.
“If you're so sure, please strike at my javelin right away. This won’t serve as training if we don’t do some actual fighting!”
[With this sword, I don’t have enough power to charge at Cattleya. I need to step into her range quickly.]
Enduring the weight of the huge sword, she provoked the other:
“Understood. I’ll meet your expectations.”
With a smile, her opponent picked up the javelin stuck in the garden.
“Mom, do your beeest!”
Rana, her son, watching the fight, rooted for his mother. A boy who tried never to leave his mother’s side, it seemed he could support her confidently if they were fighting in their home’s courtyard.
“Ookay, mom will try her hardest.”
No soon were the words out of her mouth, Cattleya threw the javelin in her hand towards Leina. The weapon, thrown by the owner as easily as if it was a mere handball, flew towards her at a tremendous speed.
[It’s so fast!]
Faced with the extraordinary speed of the approaching projectile, Leina had to make a split decision.
[Do I parry it with the Giant Killer? Or do I rely on my armor?]
“Kuh!”
She couldn’t afford to move Giant Killer in time to parry or else lose her balance regaining control and leave herself open to the next attack. Hence, she quickly repositioned herself to receive the javelin in the thickest part of her armor.
*Clang!*
A characteristic sound of metal against metal was heard, its vibration spreading like a ripple throughout her whole body.
“Guhah…”
Its blade might have been dulled for training, but the impact she felt at the time of the hit was comparable with taking a full-powered downswing from a hammer to her armor.
Despite her best efforts, she felt the impact of the hit all the way to her stomach, and for a moment, she had to swallow down the bile that built up her throat. It was no exaggeration to say that the force of the javelin’s strike was every bit as strong as that of the favorite morning star of the Bandit of Wilderness—who she had once fought—, the “Iron Lover”.
[She can release this power just by throwing it; if she used all her strength, my armor might get pulverized.]
“You’re… you’re not being serious yet, are you?”
Leina asked, a smile on her lips.
“I’m still standing.”
With both legs trembling, the Vance daughter walked towards the shop owner, huge weapon in hand.
“Stopping it with your armor right away was a good judgment from you. However…”
The mother fixed her eyes on Leina, advancing while staggering unsteadily, and took a second javelin.
“I think the best choice would have been avoiding it.”
*Zoom!*
The next javelin approached with a buzz. In Leina’s current state, where she could barely stand straight, she had no way of parrying it, let alone avoiding it entirely.
With a dull clashing sound, the Giant Killer left her hands. Blown away by the javelin, her body danced in the air.
[Huh?
Why can I see the sky?]
Occupied with such idle thoughts, Leina’s consciousness fell into the abyss.
“Leina!”
Fio screamed. But, his voice could no longer reach her.
***
Among the many fighters who were participating in Queen’s Blade, the name of Cattleya the Weapon Merchant brought to mind a powerhouse ranking next to Echidna. So why was Leina fighting her?
It all dated back to a few weeks ago.
After finishing her fight with the Ancient Princess Menace, she had come to Gainos to obtain a shield after she lost her previous one in the battle at Sheldan, and had asked Hans—a familiar face—about it.
“My Apologies miss, but weapons are not my field of expertise”.
She couldn’t withhold her feeling and expression of disheartened disappointment at such a response.
However, she refused to give up that easily. Fortunately Fio happened to be present, and through his smooth negotiation skills, he had succeeded in obtaining a letter of introduction to a certain weapon merchant.
When Leina looked at the name in the introduction letter, she became so eager, so excited, she could have started dancing at any moment. The Weapon Merchant Cattleya, also known as the great adventurer Giant Killer Cattleya, was someone she had long since heard of from stories told to her when she was a child, and had come to adore the legendary woman and her story.
Even though fighting the Bandit of the Wilderness Risty had been the trigger that had made her decide to leave on an adventure, her secret admiration towards the adventurers Cattleya and Owen the Dragon Smiter, came from way back.
The two had joined together in tackling the search for ancient ruins, engaged in mortal combat with the giant tribe from the southern seas, the extermination of a Frost Dragon in mountains where the air itself was thin, a fierce battle with a dark bishop intending to revive the evil one… and love grew between them.
Any girl her age would long for the chance to meet the main characters from such a popular adventure-romance.
Paying no heed to Fio’s exasperated gaze, Leina visited the ex-adventurer’s weapon shop and house. She was so ecstatic, she never even heard him saying they should count all the money they had first.
So there Leina stood, making a very embarrassing mistake in front of Cattleya:
“I don’t have… enough money…”
The use of a long-distance carriage required a huge amount of money. After traveling from Sheldon to the Amara Desert to the Capital of the Continent Gainos, she had no money left to buy a shield.
Leina shrugged her shoulders and decided to find some work. However, the brunette couldn’t very well remain indifferent when she saw her looking that depressed, and lent her a helping hand:
“If you tend to the store, I’ll give you a discount for the shield.”
Amazed as he was when Leina readily agreed, Fio took the opportunity to shrewdly request Cattleya to provide accommodation and meals, and they all agreed the two would be taking a rest at her house for a short while.
However Cattleya soon found herself surprised when Leina made it clear that she was nowhere near satisfied with just tending to her store. After all, she was the very person the heiress had been yearning to meet, and learn from.
[There’s no way I can simply work in her store. I must have a preliminary match with her by any means!
If that’s impossible, have combat instructions with her!
If she refuses, then at least hear anecdotes from her Giant Killer days, definitely!]
With Leina pressuring her every chance she got, Cattleya soon offered the heiress a proposition, having a mock battle every morning.
If she won the mock battle, they’d have an official preliminary match. If she lost, her allowance that day would be cut in half.
Leina could freely choose any weapon in the shop for the mock battle. There were weapons of all ages there, all well made and crafted by the living legend herself no doubt.
And so, the blonde came up with the idea of challenging Cattleya with a different weapon each time: one time it had been a dagger, another a lance.
Yet in every mock battle held, despite using weapons with different effective ranges, she kept getting defeated before being able to master them.
[Why’s Leina doing this?]
Fio couldn’t understand it at all.
Today, she had challenged and gotten defeated by the merchant and mother of one, like any other day since this arrangement began.
“Haa…”
Fio gave a deep sigh, casting a sideways glance at the other boy running up to his mother.
“Leina… are you alive?”
Before him, Leina lay on the ground in a ridiculous, unappealing posture.
“If you’re going to collapse anyway, wouldn't you try to fall down in a more sexy way.”
He poked her cheeks, sighing again.
[Today her allowance will also be cut in two, again. If that’s how this was going to be, we’d make more money if I sang songs in a square.]
Unfortunately, his proud companion wouldn’t appreciate getting economical support from him.
“Hey… Leina, are you alive?”
Still collapsed, she raised her right hand the second time he asked.
***
Queen’s Blade.
A huge competition, held once every four years to choose the Continent’s Queen.
There was only one requirement for women to participate: being over twelve years old.
Holding a variety of weapons, they fight each other, aiming for the throne.
Will glorious victory await them? Or will they suffer defeat to the point where they’d lose their lives?
Everything depends on their own actions!
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