There once was a great war, called the Waste War.
During that long conflict appeared a group of heroes, called Aces.
Wearing bright shining stars,
they carved the number of enemies vanquished onto their bodies,
and displayed feats of superhuman strength.
However, it is said that when peace arrived, the Aces vanished.
The legendary Ace?!
Is he for real?!
Calm down, you fools!
It's a fake.
Think it through.
Aces were heroes from 300 years ago.
Do you think a human can live that long?!
But, sir...
No, the sergeant major is right!
Yeah, he can't be alive!
You fraud!
I'll beat you to a pulp!
Hina, close your eyes.
Huh?
Just do it.
Huh...?
What just happened...?
Where are you?! What did you do?!
Dammit!
What?!
Where... Where did he go?
Where are you?! You coward! Come out!
Sir! Sergeant major!
You!
What's wrong?
I'm just walking over here.
Now you'll give it back.
The Count you took from her.
Her trust in her mother...
The five years she spent...!
What's going on over there?
It's a rampage by a legendary Ace.
You... How dare you!
I won't just kill you, I'll shred you into tiny slices!
You!
Why?! I am the chosen one!
It cannot be possible to evade my strikes!
Impossible! My blade is the fastest in all of Illinis!
Too slow.
What?!
He's seeing right through the sergeant major...
Wielding a great sword as long as a man's height...
Engraved with a negative 999 count on his left hand, the legendary Ace...
Whose legs exert a force unfathomable by human standards...
His attacks are too fast to even catch a glimpse of.
As a result, he earned the name "Ace of Flashing Strikes."
How fast can he be?!
But his Count is negative 999, right?
He must be quite a weakling if it's negative.
Oh, that number...
It's the number of times he got rejected by girls.
Licht...
Oh, you opened your eyes.
I'm sorry...
No, it's fine.
Um... Am I in the sky? How...?
I'm sorry. Are you scared?
A little... No, I mean...
It's more like, unbelievable... That a person can fly in the sky.
Maybe.
It's incredible.
So you're truly the Ace that I've been looking for--
Let's wrap this up and get your Count back.
Licht!
You, um...
You're still hungry, right?
Huh? Hunger? Um... yeah.
In that case...
When we get back, I'll treat you.
So...
--Don't worry, I'll get you your Count back.
--No, I mean... --Don't worry, I'll get you your Count back.
Huh?
The Count is fine, just...
Please don't get yourself hurt!
You're the one that's injured.
I...
Please don't take any risks.
I promise to buy you food.
Hina... I understand.
I'll make sure I don't get hurt.
I'll get your Count back, go home,
and have a meal with you.
I promise!
So, what'll it be?
You want me to stop?
Stop...
I'm happy for you, Hina.
See? I'm not hurt at all. I can swing my arm wildly, too.
Y-Yes!
Hina...
Find the legendary Ace...
Yes... Yes... Yes.
Yes...
I've finally found him...
I've finally found him, Mom...
Well then...
I'll be taking this.
What a lucky find, I have to say!
A Ballot is worth a whole lot of money.
Now I'm a rich man, thanks to this!
Um...
Licht, what is this...?
You're such a pain, you know that?
Huh?
You still don't get it?
My Count is 5700. Yours is 760.
If you don't like how this is going...
Do you want to bet your stars?
But... But I... For so long...
Oh, you don't want to give it up for free?
Here, have this then.
It's a mini-Barfie doll.
But... Mom said, to find the Ace...
There are other people who are called Aces.
The one your mom said to look for...
It's not me.
Um... Licht?
Licht?
Hina!
I'm glad you're safe, Hina...
Are you okay?
What about Licht?
I see.
He took my mother's memento...
I don't understand what's going on.
What am I supposed to do from here on...?
Hmm...
Let's see...
Well, there's...
Hmm?
Hina.
Why don't you just... hold on to this doll for the moment?
A doll? But--
Just hold on to it.
But...
You'll know what to do soon enough.
What? Is this...
It's your Ballot.
But... Why...?
Just owning a Ballot is a huge crime.
One of the worst offences in Alcian law.
But...
Typical behavior for that idiot.
You probably wouldn't have been charged if you gave up the Ballot to the military.
But you refused... And there were soldiers witnessing you do that.
You would have been hunted down as a criminal by the military.
Not just the military...
There are countless thugs who would want to get their hands on a Ballot.
Unless someone "stole" it from you,
you wouldn't have survived three days in this world you know so little about.
W-Wait!
Wait! Please!
Licht!
I... I was looking for you for so long!
After my mother went away...
There was no one else!
For years and years!
I've been traveling alone...
I was so lonely!
Traveling from town to town, always alone...
I was afraid it would be like that forever!
I was lonely!
But I met you, and Nana, and I was...
I was so happy!
I... I...
I've never laughed so much in my life!
Licht!
We have to...
You promised you'd have a meal with me!
Licht! Wait! Please, wait!
Liar!
I hate you...
I see.
So you have the Ballot after all.
Y-You're...
Oh, please don't get the wrong idea.
I'm not interested in that silly Ballot at all.
In fact, I'm here to thank you.
Thank...?
Yes. Thank you. Because of you,
we were able to find the Ace.
Huh...?
Now I can finally file a good report
to my real commanding officer.
Real... commanding officer?
Seriously though, how cool was that?
Blowing people away just by walking? Is he moving faster than the speed of sound?
The finishing move... That strike from high altitude!
Or shall I say, that bombing run?
Given the acceleration by gravity, there's no hope of blocking such a blow.
A close dodge would still be negated by the shockwave generated on the ground.
How to defeat that... Oh.
Yes, it's me. Yes, yes... It was just as you said.
What is he doing...?
Yes, I'm certain, I saw him with my own eyes.
Identification code 001, the Ace of Flashing Strikes.
Licht Bach.
He is alive.
"Episode 2: I Hate You!"
Hey, guys, it's me again, Licht.
Next episode on Plunderer is another pantie-flash-galore!
I mean, how else can it be?
Uniform, panties. Panties, uniform. Absolutely inseparable!
Stop with the false advertisement!
Next episode, "The Unavoidable Uniform."
Huh? He was right?