by Takehaya
Training
Monday, February 8th
Koutarou and Ruth’s morning started early. By 5 AM, they were already up and headed out for their daily run. Leaving Corona House, they’d jog down the promenade running along the river.
The physical training Ruth had started during the latter half of last year had shown very promising results. By the start of February, she was already in much better shape. She never skipped out on her daily training, and she’d slowly built a better working relationship with her own body. As a result, she was no longer in the same sad state Yurika was.
As expected from a descendant of Flairhan, I guess... Ruth-san really does have a talent for this...
Her improvement was enough to earn Koutarou’s admiration. At first, just running had left her out of breath, but that was no longer the case. Even now well into their jog, she was only sweating lightly.
“Satomi-sama, will we be doing some muscle training today as well?” she asked with an eager smile.
After running several kilometers down the promenade, they would move into muscle training in a more open space by the riverside. That had been their morning training routine for these past few months, and the two of them were just about there now.
When they’d first started training, Sanae and Yurika had initially joined in as well, but they quickly dropped out because they were too sleepy, it was too cold out, et cetera. Nowadays it was just Koutarou and Ruth going out to exercise together.
“No, I think it’s about time we start with the real thing.”
Koutarou shook his head in response to Ruth’s question. As it was a rather unexpected reply, she cocked her head to the side in turn.
“The real thing?” she asked.
“That’s right. Ruth-san, you’ve built up enough strength, so I think it’s time we start practicing techniques.”
Ruth’s original goal was to learn how to fight from Koutarou. The running and fitness training were just in preparation for that. And after seeing how far she’d come, Koutarou decided it was finally time to start teaching her a thing or two about fighting.
“Then you’re finally going to teach me martial arts?!”
An excited expression flashed across Ruth’s face as she balled her hands into fists and playfully started jabbing at the air like she was shadowboxing. It was a good thing her opponent was imaginary, however, as her untrained punches didn’t look like they could even hurt a fly. Koutarou watched her with a small smile and shook his head.
“No, I think this would be better for you than martial arts.”
“‘This’?”
Ruth lowered her fists and gave Koutarou a suspicious glance. Koutarou left her be and walked over to the bags he’d set aside: two sports bags and a leather case for carrying baseball bats. The leather bat case was the one he picked up.
“...Will we be using a bat?” Ruth asked as she watched.
She recognized the case that Koutarou always kept his heavy wooden baseball bat in. As part of their muscle training, he would get it out and take a few swings from time to time. Seeing him go for it now, Ruth’s first though was that Koutarou was going to teach her how to fight with it.
“Ahaha! No, not that.”
Koutarou laughed as he loosened the fasteners on the case and revealed its contents. Inside was not a bat, but two swords. One was a traditional Forthorthian knight’s sword, and the other was a much thinner version of the same blade that looked like it would be good for thrusting. As practice weapons, however, both were blunt.
“Then... sword fighting?”
“Yup. I felt like this would suit you better, Ruth-san.”
As Koutarou said that, he handed the thin sword over to Ruth. Ruth looked it over and lightly but unhesitatingly tried swinging it. Since she was from a family of knights, she had received formal training in swordsmanship, and though it had been quite a while since she’d held one, she had no difficulty wielding it.
As I thought, this definitely suits her.
Really, there were three reasons why Koutarou wanted to teach Ruth sword fighting over martial arts. The first was that Ruth was slight of frame. Given her size, it would be far more practical for her to take up a weapon in a real fight. Since Ruth was a knight, the natural weapon of choice for her seemed to be a sword. And if she was going to use a sword, a thinner one would be best. The traditional Forthorthian knight sword was simply too large for someone of her build. It could easily throw her off balance.
The second reason was that Koutarou personally was better with a sword than his fists. His experiences in Forthorthe of the past had improved his skills with a blade considerably. As a result, he was much more skilled using the disciplined sword techniques Theia had taught him rather than his own self-taught hand-to-hand techniques.
The final reason was that Koutarou remembered the fighting style of Ruth’s ancestor Flair, who was a master at using a thin blade. He had spent almost every day practicing with her while he was in Forthorthe, so he had a pretty good handle on her style and techniques. All he had to do now was teach those to Ruth.
And so for all those reasons, Koutarou had decided to teach Ruth sword fighting rather than martial arts. But really, passing down Flair’s techniques to Ruth was something that made him feel nostalgic. Just the thought of it made his heart leap with joy.
Ruth’s sword cut through the cold, early morning air. Her technique was still faltering, but it was clear she was getting the hang of things. At the very least, she could wield the sword confidently and with ease. That was the result of the physical training she’d taken so seriously all this time.
“Does this look good?”
“Yeah, keep at it like that. But make sure your elbow doesn’t drop down too much when you thrust.”
“Yes, Satomi-sama!”
Koutarou observed Ruth from the front and critiqued her form so that her stance better matched Flair’s.
She really does look a lot like her...
Ruth indeed looked very similar to Flair, not just in appearance, but in the way she handled a sword. Of course, Ruth was nowhere near Flair’s level of skill as things stood now, but even then Koutarou could see glimpses of Flair in Ruth’s style. He couldn’t help the gentle smile that crept across his lips at the sight.
“Ah...”
Noticing the change in Koutarou’s expression, Ruth instinctively stopped moving her sword. The look he had on his face was something she had never seen before. It was gentle and calm, but somewhat wistful. She felt like she could watch him smiling like that forever, but at the same time, she wanted to do something about it. It was a mysterious smile that stirred something deep in her heart.
“What’s wrong, Ruth-san?”
Confused as to why Ruth had stopped moving all of a sudden, Koutarou called out to her.
“Ah, I’m sorry, Satomi-sama!”
Koutarou’s lonely smile faded, and Ruth quickly returned to herself.
“I... I just have this strange feeling...”
She couldn’t just admit to staring at Koutarou like that, so she quickly tried to cover it up.
“I know what you mean.”
Koutarou, however, had no idea what Ruth really meant. Oblivious as ever, he nodded in agreement and didn’t even notice her face turning red.
“I learned how to use a sword from you, and now I’m the one teaching you. It really is a strange feeling.”
Up until now, Ruth had used a large sword when she fought. It was a particularly advanced piece of Forthorthian technology that was more or less automated, meaning that it didn’t make much use of her own skills. When Theia had taught Koutarou how to use a sword for the play, Ruth had been his sparring p
artner. And though she’d used a sword like that, Ruth was still like a teacher to Koutarou. This reversal of roles felt very strange to him.
“...It was all because the sword was strong.”
“I’m sure you’ll get stronger too, Ruth-san.”
“I hope so...”
After exchanging a few words with Koutarou and collecting herself, Ruth readied her sword again. Seeing that, Koutarou brandished his own sword.
“Satomi-sama?”
“Try attacking me some. That’ll make it easier for me to see what you’re made of.”
As Koutarou said that, he concentrated on his eyes. When he did, he could see a faint white light enveloping Ruth’s body that represented her aura. Koutarou was planning on more accurately understanding the difference between Flair and Ruth by examining the flow of her spiritual energy.
“But isn’t that dangerous?”
“Don’t worry. These are just practice weapons.”
Koutarou smiled and demonstratively ran his finger along the edge of his own sword. Their weapons were both intended to be used for practice, so their blades were made of softer material than normal. There wasn’t any real need to worry about getting hurt with them.
“Okay, I’ll give it a try.”
Ruth nodded with a serious expression on her face. She readied her sword and pointed it at Koutarou. Her form was beautiful, just like Koutarou taught her.
Hmm... Her form is good, but she’s hesitant in her aim. And...
The aura that Ruth was emanating was wavering, indicating she was searching for an opening to attack Koutarou. When he’d fought Flair in the past, she was always confident of where to strike. But since that was just indicative of the difference in their levels of experience, Koutarou felt like it was unavoidable.
“Here I come!”
Ruth stepped forward with confidence and strength uncommon for a girl her age. The results of her physical training were showing in more ways than one.
It’s just as I thought...
However, Koutarou sensed a problem in the aura Ruth was emanating. It was an even bigger issue than her not knowing where to strike.
“Ruth-san, be more serious.”
“But I am being serious!”
Ruth moved in with a swift step and extended her arm to thrust. Koutarou responded by changing the angle of his sword a little. With that, Ruth’s thrust struck the flat of his sword and recoiled.
“I’m doing my best!”
Despite her first strike being blocked, Ruth didn’t stop. As she responded to Koutarou, she unleashed attack after attack. She chained together thrusts and slashes, clearly—just as she said—doing her best at her current level. Meanwhile, Koutarou read her aura and blocked her attacks one after another as he tried to think of a way to explain himself better. Since Ruth had only just started her sword training, Koutarou could afford to be distracted with such thoughts while still easily managing to parry her attacks.
“That’s not what I meant... Um, I want you to come at me like you’re seriously trying to kill me.”
After deflecting several thrusts, Koutarou tried to rephrase his advice so Ruth would understand what he really meant. Even while talking, he kept up his guard.
“Trying to kill you...?”
But it seemed wholly unnecessary. After what he said, Ruth completely stopped attacking. Though still holding her sword at the ready, she looked quite troubled as she furrowed her brow.
“That’s right. Ruth-san, you’re trying to avoid hurting me, right?”
“That’s true, but...”
Ruth lowered her sword. She glanced down at it before looking up at Koutarou, clearly deep in thought. But it only lasted for a moment; she quickly shook her head.
“That would be difficult. You’re not an enemy, Satomi-sama...”
“You’re using a practice weapon, so it’ll be fine.”
“Even then...”
Ruth was indeed rather unsettled at the thought. Since she had such trust in Koutarou, it was hard for her to seriously turn her sword against him. That was the problem Koutarou had sensed. Ruth’s sword was too gentle. Her hesitant aim was one thing, but it was obvious now that she was simply unwilling to hurt him. Really, her personality was holding her back just as much as her skill level was.
“Then... Why not pretend that I’ve suddenly betrayed you and that I’m now about to attack Theia?”
After thinking for a while, Koutarou offered that as a suggestion. Ruth’s gentleness was an asset in her daily life, but at this rate, it would be the biggest obstacle in their training. He wanted to come up with a way for her to be able to set it aside during practice.
“That’s not possible.”
However, Ruth shook her head again. To her, it was flat out impossible to imagine Koutarou ever turning on Theia. She never would have asked him to serve her otherwise.
“Well, crap... What should we do then? Hmm...”
Koutarou smiled wryly while scratching his head. He was happy that Ruth had that much faith in him, but if he was going to teach her how to fight with a sword, it was a problem.
Like Yurika, Ruth just isn’t cut out for combat... It would probably be the same way even if I wasn’t her opponent.
Ruth would likely be just as unwilling to raise her sword against Yurika, Sanae, or even Kiriha. She was just too gentle.
“Okay, okay, then let’s try pretending your target isn’t me, but some assassin that’s coming after Theia.”
“Then... I’m sorry, but could you please hide your face? When I’m looking at you, I naturally let my guard down, Satomi-sama...”
Ruth understood what Koutarou was trying to accomplish this way, but even then it was hard for her to seriously point her sword at someone she trusted as much as Theia.
Satomi-sama is just asking too much. There’s no assassin that smiles like that when he attacks...
It was hard enough for Ruth to show any hostility towards Koutarou as it was, but the gentle, wistful smile on his face whenever Ruth came at him with a sword killed any desire whatsoever she had to attack him. He was the last person on earth she wanted to hurt.
“Is there something on my face?”
With Ruth looking at him, Koutarou touched his own face, still oblivious to what she was really thinking. Seeing him like that, her feelings unwittingly escaped her lips.
“...You fool...”
They were sweet words from the normally temperate Ruth. If nothing else, as a little payback, she wanted to reveal her feelings to Koutarou to trouble him.
“What did you say, Ruth-sa—”
However, Ruth was unable to get that far. Just as Koutarou was replying to her, something completely derailed his train of thought and subsequently their conversation.
An enemy?!
Something alarming entered Koutarou’s vision via his spirit sight. It was a strong hostility that manifested as six incoming attacks. Koutarou sprang into action the instant he sensed them.
Is it a sniper?! There are six attacks—is the enemy above me?!
Knowing there was no way such hostility was coming from Ruth, Koutarou’s battle instincts immediately kicked in. His adrenaline began pumping and his spiritual energy began flowing. He still had access to the spiritual energy circuits Sanae would use to strengthen him from time to time, and he made good use of them now. His hand started moving long before the command from his brain ever could have reached it through his nerves. His sword slashed out in front of Ruth.
Not a moment later, a bullet crashed into the flat of the blade.
“Kyaaah!”
Ruth finally realized that they were being attacked upon hearing the sound of the bullet hitting the sword. However, even realizing that, she was far too taken by surprise to react. It seemed Ruth really wasn’t suited for combat.
And now...!
Meanwhile, Koutarou was continuing to do his best to defend them both. He swung his sword with his right hand while twisting his body. A bullet then
whizzed by where Koutarou’s right shoulder had been just moments ago and buried itself in the riverbed. Immediately after that, he swung his sword upwards and held it in front of his face just in time to catch two more bullets: one by the tip and the other near the handle. They were aimed at his head and torso respectively.
Two more to go!
Koutarou could still sense two attacks quickly closing in on him. They were aimed at his right leg and chest. In response, Koutarou planted his left foot down and leaped up into the air, right out of the way of the first shot that was aimed at his leg. And since he moved, the second shot aimed at his chest only managed to graze his side.
“That’s six shots!”
After avoiding all six shots, Koutarou quickly looked up to see a lone girl. She was holding a large rifle in her hands, freely floating in the sky with seemingly no support. It was a strange sight, but Koutarou didn’t seem surprised in the slightest as he called out to her.
“That’s quite a rude morning greeting, Clan.”
The flying girl was none other than Clariossa Daora Forthorthe, or Clan for short. She was Forthorthian royalty like Theia, and she had a rather deep connection to Koutarou.
“I’m quite surprised, Vel—whoops—Koutarou. You can block bullets even without the armor.”
Clan smiled wryly and lowered her rifle. The device she was using to float in the air was one of her own invention. It performed so well that, even while flying, the hem of her dress barely even fluttered.
“It’s not me you should be impressed with.”
Koutarou knew he wouldn’t have been able to block the shots without the spirit sight he had gotten from Sanae. He drooped his shoulders and sighed. As he did, Ruth boldly pointed her sword at Clan as she landed.
“Clan-sama! Are you after Satomi-sama again?!”
It turned out she had no problem raising her sword against Clan where she couldn’t with Koutarou. After having been attacked by Clan several times now, Ruth glared at her with a dead serious expression.
“It’s okay, Ruth-san.”
Koutarou, however, smiled at Ruth and lowered her sword with his hand.
“But Satomi-sama!”
