Chapter 009 – Those who Notice, Those who Protect [A]
There was the sound of a wooden sword being parried. The dull thud of wood striking flesh. A man coughing as he knelt down and held onto the spot he was hit.
Bouran was looking down on such a view and gave a smile of victory. On the contrary, Fay was looking up at her. He didn’t look at her out of disappointment, just looking at the void. His eyes were looking beyond her and far beyond.
Far and beyond…
This was repeated over and over. Fay always lost against Bouran, Tlue, and Arthur. He lost completely over and over again.
Bouran was always winning against Fay.
She thought this would continue over and over. She also thought their values would never change, which was Bouran (victor) and Fay (loser). This value was overthrown slightly, which served as the prologue and triggered the change in the girl named Bouran.
■◆
Well then, some time passed since I got my one-to-one lesson with Yururu-sensei. It had been about three months since I first enrolled in the knight brigade.
Indeed, this Fay had undergone certain changes. My swordsmanship was getting sharper. I could now last some time against Arthur and Tlue compared to when I was one-sidedly beaten down, and recently I’ve been able put up a decent fight against Bouran .
My growth was quite fast, said Yururu-sensei with an indescribable expression. Ah-, I know that, sensei.
As expected… she just couldn’t hide her surprise, as I had grown stronger at great momentum. And the training regime itself was quite hard so she also worried about my physical condition as instructor. As expected of the master character!
“Err, well then, let’s have another mock battle.”
“Aah.”
I crossed swords with sensei many times. As expected of a professional, she was very good at teaching. It made me honestly appreciate this person’s effort since it was thanks to her that I was able to grow this much.
I did have my talent though.
Ah, now that I thought about it, what kind of sword school did sensei use? She seemed very familiar with swords, after all.
“Oi, did your swordsmanship belong to any particular sword school?”
“Eh, ah, well… yes…”
“…I see.”
“It’s just, how to say it, my sword school did not spread much… rather, it’s not supposed to be spread around, or something like that.”
Was it some sort of forbidden sword school?!
That piqued my interest.
“So, what kind of swordsmanship is it?”
“Ah-, uhm, does Fay-kun know about the Garethia family?”
“…All I know is that it is your surname.”
“I guess so. It’s an aristocratic family which collapsed a few years ago… The swordsmanship adopted by the Garethia family belong Namikaze Seishinryuu, which is the sword school I use.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, it’s just that this swordsmanship isn’t seen as a good thing by others… so I tried to not teach it to others…”
“…”
It made me hesitant to continue asking since she said it that way. I did think it would make me cooler if I used it, though.
“…”
“Uh, are you perhaps curious about the Namikaze Seishinryuu…?”
“Yes, I’m interested.”
“…Eeh, what should I do about this? Uhm, this swordsmanship is really not seen favorably by others… That’s why, if you do learn it, it’ll make it hard for Fay-kun to rise in rank… and your reputation will also get affected.”\n“I didn’t join the knight brigade for rank or fame. It is to grow stronger.”
“…I, see.”
She was worried about it. Did she not want to teach me that much? Was the sword school cursed?
“I’m pretty disliked among the paladins. Actually, it is considered a miracle I’m even entrusted to take care of you all… some people even think I robbed others’ success to land this job.”
“…I see.”
“I am a twelfth-rank paladin, the lowest rank there is. Originally, the people responsible for all of you {the special unit} were supposed to be well-reputed knights, but my acquaintance recommends me for this job. Well, I also taught other young knights about swordsmanship other than Fay-kun sometimes, but never once did I teach the Namikaze Seishinryuu.”
It seemed that this person had heavy circumstances to deal with… but I still wanted to learn it.
“Since I’m only capable of using swords, the job I am entrusted with to is to fix other people with habits in their swordsmanship and allow them to gain experience in close quarter combat.”
“…”
“It’s not like Namikaze Seishinryuu is considered a unique sword school, but you’d likely get involved with troublesome things if others knew you learned it from me. Is that really alright with you?”
“I don’t mind. Teach me immediately.”
Ah, I intended to say “Please take care of me” there, but my autocorrect… Well, saying haughty words seemed to be common with my character. Sensei didn’t seem to mind it either.
“…Since you insist that much… I can’t refuse you as an instructor.”
“…Ah, please.”
Then I will teach you the first move I learned: the first movement of Namikaze Seishinryuu, Namikaze.”
“…Please.”
Fuh, it seemed the event earlier was about testing the disciple determination, so it excited me.
“This is the first movement my father taught me. Fay-kun, please swing your sword from above to below toward me.”
“Okay.”
I swung my sword upfront with the speed of wind, no, of light. Then sensei laid her blade horizontally, and sensei’s sword intersected with mine like a cross, but at the next moment, sensei turned her sword tip downward and turned her blade vertically.
Sensei’s blade, which was now vertical, deflected my sword that came from above, and the end of my sword touched the ground. Then sensei’s movement continued and her sword now pointed at my neck.
“This is the Namikaze. It can deflect the enemy’s blade that come from above and give its user the chance to land a counter as it is. That’s basically it.”
“…I understand.”
“It’s not as easy as it sounds, you know?”
“Of course I have no intention of underestimating it. However, you believe in my skill. That’s why you must be sure I’m able to do it as long as I put enough effort.”\n“…Really, Fay-kun’s words sometimes sound as if you’re trying to flirt with me.”
“I have no such intention.”
“I know. Well then, let’s begin.”
“Aah.”
“…Fay-kun.”
“…?”
“I don’t think it’s bad to seek power. I like your honesty. There are many people who hated me until now. But you came to me every day for the last three month and asked me to teach you swordsmanship.”
“…”
“I feel quite happy about that. To be able to teach others like this… that’s why I… Fay-kun, please don’t seek strength as your goal. If you do, you’ll lose sight of what’s important. By that point, you will no longer feel the pain of losing it.”
“…Aah, I’ll remember your words.”
She really said something good. I will engrave it deep into my mind. Even so, this sensei sure was a good person. Perhaps she was about as good as Maria.
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