kscans

Chapter 146 - The Peerless Sword and the Feelings of Another Summer Bird

It had been a while since I'd had a morning practice. The moment I went to the Mateo Trading Company to discuss the rabbit-eared girl, Reeni, I was ambushed by Avea.

The location was the trading company's courtyard. It was normally filled with cargo, but my luck had run out and it was completely cleared. A perfectly level, stone-paved space. Besides Avea, Fang and Beers were also there for practice. On my side were Famu and Mizuki.

Spectating were Shizuka, Myra, Cecily, and Aira, as well as Claire and Mercedes.

And for some reason, I was being made to face off against Reeni. She clutched a wooden sword with a tense expression, while Avea whispered a strategy in her ear.

"Hey, who do you think I am? I'm a C-rank adventurer, you know!"

Avea smirked at my words.

"A word of warning. Like you said, you're a C-rank adventurer now. Don't let your guard down."

Avea stepped away from Reeni.

This was beyond disrespectful.

Reeni held her wooden sword in a low stance. 'Low stance' made it sound good, but it looked more like the sword was too heavy for her to keep raised. I also gripped my wooden sword and took a standard seigan stance.

There was more than a sword's length of distance between our positions.

Just as I was about to close the distance with a shuffling step, Reeni raised her sword and leaped. By the time I tried to parry her, it was too late. Her swing landed squarely on my forehead.

I was caught completely off guard. I collapsed with a thud.

Aira rushed over and touched the lump forming on my forehead.

"Ow..."

Was it my imagination, or was her gaze unusually cold?

Avea also came closer and peered into my face.

"To think you'd actually lose... You let your guard down way too much when you're not in your own range."

"That jump... is that a rabbit-folk trait?"

She nodded in response to my question. Reeni, who had approached while hiding behind Avea, peeked at me.

"...Are you okay?"

"Have you ever swung a sword before?"

She shook her head. Aira helped me sit up, supporting me.

I stood up and looked around, and it felt like everyone's eyes were cold. Famu's mouth was hanging open, but when our eyes met, she hastily shut it and shook her head.

"M-M-Master, um, no, ah! That's right! He let Reeni win!"

"I don't think so. He was completely careless. But don't you think he'd lose even if they fought seriously?"

Mizuki retorted to Famu. A smirk played on Mizuki's lips. She was probably trying to hold back a laugh. It felt just like when we first met. I wanted to sneak into her room and attack her in her sleep again.

"That's not true! Master is kind!"

"Give the loyal puppy act a rest. Where was the kindness in that? He just lost pathetically, that's all,"

even Cecily piled on.

"You're wrong! Master gets stronger from a situation like that!"

"Famu, the fight is already over. It's true that Mash can display abnormal strength when he's in a bind. But even if he were to get stronger 'from that point,' in a real battle, he'd already be dead,"

Myra said, trying to reason with Famu.

"Mmph! Master can die up to three times, so it's okay! That's why he's fine!"

Famu started adding to her wild fantasy, bringing up some new setting. Was my life being treated like the remaining stock in a shooting game?

Her desperate defense of me continued. It was a little embarrassing.

"Mash."

As I watched Famu and the others, Aira called out to me.

"The treatment isn't finished yet."

"Ah, right..."

Her hand was held over my forehead.

"We'll be arriving in Miglutt soon."

"Yeah, you're right."

I nodded at her words.

"You asked me to watch your practice, and I've been watching all this time."

I had her come along to treat anyone who got injured during training. I thought she disliked the role, but she always came whenever I practiced. But that would also end once we reached Miglutt.

We were already two-thirds of the way through our journey. I felt a little sad.

"You're right. Thanks for that."

"That's not it. I didn't say that because I wanted to hear you say thanks."

She stared at me. It was a powerful gaze.

"Avea is strong. I don't think my sister and I could beat her even if we fought together. But you're different, Mash. I've been watching all this time because I thought you would win. But if you plan on staying like this until we get to Miglutt, I won't be attending your practices anymore."

"Aira..."

She averted her gaze and pushed against my chest. A step of distance opened between us. She turned her back to me and walked back to where Famu and the others were watching.

The pain in my forehead was gone.

Avea stood blocking my path, a grin plastered on her face.

"Your woman has spoken. What about you?"

A wooden sword was thrust at me.

I glanced over at Aira. Not just her gaze, but the eyes of everyone in Levante had changed. Just as she always did during our practices, she sat on the ground and hugged her knees. She had always waited like that until I won.

Seeing Aira, Famu and the others followed her lead and sat down in the same way.

Backing down was no longer an option.

"Come to think of it, this one's supposed to be your future wife too, right? You lucky dog."

Avea lightly placed a hand on Reeni's head.

I faced Avea.

I gripped the wooden sword. What I held was modeled after a katana. It was more of a bokuto than a wooden sword.

In contrast, she held one modeled after a bastard sword. Perhaps to match me, she held it with both hands, forgoing a shield.

A solid hit from either would cause serious injury.

"I have no intention of letting you win for your woman's sake."

"Of course not. When I win, I'll make you scream all night long with fifty goblins."

"Is that so!"

Just as I was about to take my seigan stance, she lunged at me. It was a much faster, heavier blow than Reeni's. I barely managed to block it with my wooden sword.

"A step forward, I see,"

she laughed.

"Shut up! You think I'd fall for the same trick twice?"

I thought we were about to lock blades, but she reversed her swing and struck again. As I parried it, her knee came flying at me.

"Ugh..."

The knee struck true, right in my solar plexus. I doubled over and staggered back, my lungs forced up, unable to breathe.

As if to finish me off, her sword came swinging down.

To close the space she needed to swing her arm, I instinctively lunged forward and hugged her.

Avea twisted her body, throwing me off. I used the momentum to escape her sword's reach and regain my footing.

She didn't press the attack.

"You're a one-trick pony,"

she said as I took my seigan stance again. I knew I lacked variety, but I had no choice but to start from this stance.

My solar plexus throbbed with pain. I forced my chest out to fight the pain. I could finally breathe again, and I took a deep breath.

She was strong. No matter how I moved, she would counter with a superior move and crush me.

So the conclusion was always the same. Instead of thinking about how to move, I would unleash a single, unavoidable strike.

No matter what she said, I had to bet everything on one blow. First, close the distance to one-step, one-strike range. Seize the centerline. Then, pour all my strength into the tip of my blade and cut her down. Chanting that to myself, I slowly inched toward her.

Avea was in a waiting stance. She stood quietly, sword ready, as if inviting my attack.

I kicked off the ground with my back foot and leaped toward her. She reacted to my movement, trying to block my attack with her sword. I swung my blade down, intending to cut through both her and her weapon.

The moment our swords clashed, it wasn't the sound of wood hitting wood, but a high-pitched clang, as if metal had struck metal.

My blow had been completely blocked.

And then, our blades were locked.

"Surprised? But why would you think that something you can do, I can't?"

"Guh..."

Come to think of it, even Famu could do it far better than I could. But I couldn't stop moving now.

Avea began to overpower me.

I tried to shift my body to deflect her pressure, but I couldn't escape. Our gazes locked.

"Avea..."

"What?"

"This is for earlier."

I pushed back with all my might, and she took the bait, pushing back in return. Timing it perfectly, I kicked out at her calf.

I meant it as payback for her knee strike, but it seemed to be more effective than I'd expected; her body wavered.

I didn't want to miss this chance. But if I made a big move, she would easily regain her posture.

I let go of my sword and threw a punch at her solar plexus.

"Uff!"

My fist made solid contact. It seemed she hadn't expected me to switch to an unarmed attack.

Avea's posture bent forward. Her head dropped to a perfect position to strike, so I threw another punch, aiming for her face.

But my fist never connected. It stopped just as it touched her chin.

"I don't mind you holding me. You're about the only one who treats me like a woman, after all. But I've always told you, haven't I? That's what I hate about you."

As I stood there unarmed, her sword swung down. And then, I was beaten senseless.

When I came to, I felt something soft under my head.

I tried to sit up but was pushed back down onto the soft thing. Someone was giving me a lap pillow.

In my field of vision, Famu and the others were training under Avea's instruction, practicing one-on-one combat drills. The sound of wooden swords clashing echoed.

"Aira... I might stay like this until we reach Miglutt."

"I'm Myra. You were beaten so badly you can't even tell us apart, Mash."

"Why would you tell such a stupid lie?"

It was true I'd been beaten unconscious, but I was confident I could tell Myra and her sister apart even if I developed dementia.

I tried to move my head to see her face, but I was pushed down again.

"You're seriously injured, Mash, so it's better if you stay like this a little longer."

So she said, but my body didn't hurt. It seemed she'd already finished healing me.

Her hand stroked my head. It felt wonderful.

"Um... everyone's watching, so I'd appreciate it if you'd choose a better place to be affectionate..."

It was Myra's voice. I wanted to lie in Aira's lap a little longer, but I had no choice but to get up. This time, Aira didn't try to stop me. I took Myra's hand and stood, and Aira stood up as well.

"I want you to remember that I helped treat you too, Mash,"

Myra said, puffing out her cheeks slightly. I poked her cheek.

I could see Cecily watching us with disdain.

"In the end, you just lose anyway..."

she sighed, as if to say 'give me a break,' and bumped her shoulder against mine. I wanted to come up with a witty retort, but nothing came to mind. I'd been beaten to a pulp in front of them all. No excuse would work.

"But why do you punch her in the stomach but not the face?"

she asked, looking puzzled.

"I'd rather not have punched her in the stomach either, but I did it in the heat of the moment."

"I think it's better than beating each other with wooden swords. Besides, Aira and Myra are here, so it's fine if you get a little injured, right?"

Did this world not have a mentality of 'don't hit women'?

"About the wooden sword fight, that was because you all blocked my escape route... And while I did punch her in the heat of the moment, I had my reservations. She did grimace a little, after all."

I really didn't want to hit a woman's face if I could help it. And I was impressed I'd managed to stop. I'd have no problem hitting Fang or Beers as much as I wanted, but with Avea, I hesitated.

"Besides, you're talking as if you regret it, but Mizuki ended up like that because you hit her, right?"

"Hey, don't say things that could be misunderstood! But Cecily, you think Mizuki has changed too?"

"Don't tell me you don't know why?"

Cecily asked back with a shocked expression.

"Actually, someone else mentioned it, and it's been bothering me."

"It's because you attacked her!"

"Well, that's true, but..."

"I was just kidding. You really don't know?"

When I nodded, Cecily sighed.