kscans

Chapter 88 - Wings of Light and a Clumsy Sword

A lot had happened last night, and she hadn’t been able to sleep properly. She was at her limit.

Sitting at her third-floor workbench, Mireille was dozing off, her head bobbing. Alchemy was dangerous if you lost focus. She really should have rested, but a corner of her mind was still occupied with thoughts.

The combination of the carapace monster shells and the armor. The prototype of the panacea. And how to handle the magic suppression cloth, which she still hadn’t even named.

...There were so many things she had to do.

"All right, that’s enough."

Suddenly, the lamp was turned down. It was Leonhard.

As the room darkened, the Wings of Light in the jar on the shelf began to glitter. The feather-patterned light reflected on the walls, creating a fantastical scene, almost like a piece of interior decor.

"...The Wings of Light are beautiful, aren’t they."

"Yeah. A noble would definitely use them as a decoration."

Mireille let her thoughts go still, just gazing at it vacantly.

"Hey, hey. You’re completely asleep already," Leonhard sighed, and with a light movement, he scooped her up.

"I want you to rest well. If you’re okay with me being nearby, I’ll lie down next to you. If you’d rather not, I’ll sleep on the fourth floor or at the base. So, please, get some proper rest."

He knew. He knew that yesterday, she had barely slept and had been wrestling with the lingerie since morning.

If he indulged in the sweet thought that "she’ll understand without me having to say it," they would both end up with regrets and lose time they could never get back. He had just learned that lesson from today's lingerie incident, so he would convey his thoughts with words as much as possible.

"...Then, together, please."

He couldn’t tell how much of that reply was genuine, given how sleepy Mireille looked. The moment she slipped into the bedding, Mireille was breathing peacefully.

And so, he quietly moved away.

He hung the monster-repelling bell from his waist and went outside. Being cooped up at the base meant he couldn’t even practice with his sword properly.

In his hand was the sword that housed the attributes of fire and wind. It had other functions, but these two would be the main ones when fighting magicians.

But he still felt like he was being "swung around" by it. Recalling Darius’s swordsmanship from the other day, the difference was obvious, even with the attribute sword.

But in fact, it should have been Leonhard who had bested him and won the knight order’s tournament.

(Did I win that tournament... because he was holding back?)

The thought brought a surge of frustration. Looking at his movements up until now, there was probably some reason for it. It wasn’t that he wanted to beat his former superior. But the fact that he "might have been held back against" was just so frustrating.

"Hah!"

He swung down. It was repelled.

At the same time, a shock that felt like his body was being forcibly lifted, like being swallowed by a tornado he couldn’t control, assaulted his body, and a moment in time was created where space tried to maintain it.

His movement to stop the sword was unstable, and his body was being played with by the wind attribute.

He wanted to stabilize that somehow so he could immediately move on to his next action. A physical attack and a fire attack occurred simultaneously. The sound of the sword swinging, byun, echoed.

His calluses burst, and blood seeped out. Still, he didn’t stop.

He had no choice but to grasp the feeling.

The bell’s effect lasted for three hours. It wasn’t enough for a full night’s practice, but he wanted to make the sword his "ally," even just a little.

For the last ten minutes, he washed off his sweat at the spring. He wanted to greet the morning normally, as if nothing had happened, as if no one would notice his practice.

Before he knew it, the Light Fairies were fluttering around again.

"So fairies aren't monsters, huh."

To encounter them twice was surely good fortune.

"Thanks for the Wings of Light the other day. I’ll make sure to use them well."

As he spoke, a fairy gently landed on his hand. The next moment, his burst calluses began to heal.

(...In the past, I might have just cut down a fairy.)

He gazed at his healed palm and couldn’t help but chuckle.

"I’m starting to become like Mireille, too."

Laughing in the night wind, he returned to the base. She was still sound asleep.

He slipped into the bedding and gently snuggled up to her warmth.