Chapter 15
Selin had seemed dissatisfied lately. More precisely, she had been that way ever since she heard that I had begun training with Seria.
Today was the day Selin and I were attending swordsmanship practice together. We had been instructed to meet in the forest south of the academy rather than at the usual swordsmanship training grounds.
Unlike the training grounds, the forest was quite far away, so Selin and I had joined the others partway there and were walking together. She gave a derisive snort and looked at me as though I were pathetic.
“Senior Ian, are you an idiot?”
“……What now?”
Her left hand slapped against her waist. Her right hand waved airily, getting on my nerves. It was a gesture that said she found me utterly ridiculous.
“Isn’t that so? After getting beaten black and blue in the rain, you help that bitch just because she asks? No, wait. You’re not an idiot—you’re a sucker, aren’t you?”
“If you put it that way, I beat Seria too.”
“That’s different!”
Selin stood stiffly and growled like an angry cat. No matter how she looked at it, she seemed to dislike Seria intensely.
“A senior beating a junior for educational purposes and, huh? A junior beating a senior are the same thing?”
“What does seniority have to do with a spar? Does a senior’s sword become dull when fighting a junior?”
The more I took Seria’s side, the more Selin’s dissatisfaction grew. She huffed and tried to persuade me, but there was no chance of changing my mind.
After observing Seria for several days, I realized that aside from a few misunderstandings, she had no particular flaws in her character. If anything, I had even come to think of her as somewhat soft-hearted.
At first, I had not thought much of it, but after spending several days with her, I had to admit that she was beginning to concern me. I had the distinct feeling that if I left her as she was, I might end up releasing a social misfit into society.
At the very least, shouldn’t she possess some common sense about human relationships? As her senior, it was only natural for me to feel that way.
It seemed I would have to stay by her side and look after her for a while. Her relationship with the Hunting Festival and ‘Sepia’ concerned me as well.
Come to think of it, today’s lecture was related to that letter from the future too.
Swordsmanship practice in the forest—wasn’t this the very class during which the attack by a magical beast had supposedly occurred?
The letter said that no one had been injured because the situation had been handled appropriately. Conversely, that meant casualties could occur if it was not handled properly.
I had to stop it. I had come here with that thought in mind, but……
The problem was that I had no idea what kind of magical beast it was.
Magical beasts had vastly different traits depending on the creature that served as their original form.
Magical beasts were born when the density of unrefined mana grew excessively high and contaminated nearby living creatures. Their characteristics were inevitably influenced by those of the creature they originated from.
Magical beasts were usually animals, but plants sometimes became magical beasts as well. In fact, when mana density reached abnormally high levels, even humans could become magical beasts.
There was only one thing all magical beasts had in common: they were excessively hostile toward living creatures from outside themselves.
Aside from that, everything differed. Their ecology, habits, weaknesses, and most of their other characteristics were all different. That left me with no choice but to rack my brain.
In truth, I still was not certain whether the letter had really come from the future.
It was, after all, a letter from seven years in the future.
If I grabbed a passerby and asked whether the letter was genuine or merely someone’s prank, nine out of ten people would choose the latter. It was only natural that I still could not be certain either.
However, if the letter was real, an incident would occur during today’s lecture.
I calmed my mind in advance and steeled myself.
Unlike me, who was taking the matter with utmost seriousness, Selin was still chattering beside me. She looked at me suspiciously.
“Senior Ian, are you listening to me?”
“……Huh? Uh, yeah. I’m listening.”
“It’s completely obvious that you weren’t.”
I had been so lost in thought that I had even forgotten I was walking with Selin. If I kept this up, she might become even angrier, so I decided to try out one of the techniques Leto had taught me.
The girl approaching me while pointing her finger smelled familiar. It was the same scent I had complimented her on last time.
“Selin.”
“Who? Are you talking about Selin of House Haster, the girl Senior Ian completely ignores? What’s this? Senior Ian is even paying attention to you today? I feel like I might cry……”
“You smell nice today too.”
Selin had been twisting her words mockingly, but she froze at my single remark. For a moment.
She subtly blushed and avoided my gaze. Then she folded her arms and cleared her throat.
“R-Really?”
“It’s that facial cleanser you used last time, right? It suits you.”
Selin looked slightly smug, but also awkward. She made a series of unnatural sounds—“Ahem, hm, hm”—as she tried to compose herself.
“It’s not like I’ve kept using it just because Senior Ian said he liked it, you know? B-But I’m glad it suits me.”
Her voice had risen strangely, but Selin did not seem to notice even that.
It was a relief that she seemed to be in a better mood. I sensed that her anger had faded and inwardly let out a sigh of relief.
I felt as though I owed Leto a debt. I had acquired a way to control Selin whenever she sulked.
Thinking that I should make good use of it for a while, I quickened my steps.
The forest was visible in the distance.
The dense woodland, rarely visited because magical beasts lived there, gave off a gloomy atmosphere.
This was where Emma had been attacked by an unidentified magical beast. People still dismissed it as a freak accident, but who knew?
The only way to find out what it concealed was to enter it.
**
In the spacious clearing a little deeper inside the forest, most of the students were already gathered. Our leisurely conversation had apparently made Selin and me a little late.
Fortunately, we had not been late enough to miss attendance. After confirming that Selin and I had arrived, Professor Derek gave a large nod.
Then, as always, he drew the students’ attention with his booming voice. It was a vigorous voice, utterly unbecoming a man who had entered his later years.
“All right, everyone, pay attention! We’ll be conducting a special training exercise today!”
As I turned my gaze toward Professor Derek, I happened to meet Seria’s eyes in the front row.
I gave her a slight nod in greeting, and Seria bowed her head in return. It was proof that we had grown close enough for her to return a greeting.
At first, I remembered, she had bitten her tongue while greeting me, then stared at me with wavering eyes because she did not know what to do. Anyone watching might have thought I was threatening her.
In fact, Seria’s excessively formal attitude toward me was partly due to the previous ‘Yurdina Brat Nearly Beaten Half to Death Incident,’ so the comparison was painfully accurate.
What on earth had happened to my personality while I had lost my memory?
It was still a mystery. However, the aftermath had already been dealt with to some extent, so I decided not to worry about it anymore.
If I ever lost my memories again, I would have to think about it a little more seriously then.
For now, I was too busy worrying about the contents of the letter from the future.
“You’re all swordsmen, so you know how important the surrounding environment is. A forest with densely packed trees is one of the most difficult environments of all.”
As he spoke, Professor Derek stepped between the trees beside him as though he meant to demonstrate. The instant he drew his sword, it became obvious how narrow the gaps were.
Any academy student could read an opponent’s attack range to some extent. Within the attack range I had identified, there appeared to be at least three trees in the way.
And that was while he remained completely still. Considering that actual combat required more fluid movement, there were far more than one or two trees that would obstruct Professor Derek when he swung his sword.
And this did not apply only to Professor Derek. It would be the same for me, Selin, and even Seria.
Unless one used a weapon like a rapier, which specialized in thrusting attacks, moving freely in the forest was impossible.
“Look. In a place where the trees are this close together, even swinging your sword once becomes difficult. It would be fine if your opponent were an unintelligent creature, but if you were facing a named-class magical beast or a human, even your sword path would be restricted, making your attacks easy to read.”
Moreover, a magical beast encountered in the forest was likely to be a native creature that had finished adapting to the environment. That would put a swordsman at an even greater disadvantage inside the forest.
After reciting those common-sense facts, Professor Derek soon caused aura to rise from his sword.
The mana rose like a hazy mist, then scattered brilliant light as it condensed. That blood-red aura was proof that Professor Derek had already reached a fully mature level as a swordsman.
Sword Expert—the stage at which one could crystallize aura. Even among Sword Experts, Professor Derek possessed a skill level near the top.
As a third-year academy student, I could raise aura as well, but I was incapable of coating my sword with aura as densely concentrated as his. Among the students gathered here, Seria was probably the only one who could manage it to some extent.
Even she had only recently entered the realm of Sword Expert. Not a single student here could defeat a legendary hunter who had devoted his entire life to hunting magical beasts through pure skill alone.
“However, things change a little if you can crystallize aura. Whether your sword path is obstructed or not, anything you swing at will simply be cut apart.”
As he spoke, Professor Derek swung his sword for all to see. It was a silent sword strike that made not even the slightest sound.
Not even the sound of something being cut could be heard. Everything along the path of his sword was sliced apart—the trees, the air, and even the sound itself.
It was an unreal sight. It was as though I had closed and opened my eyes to find solid lines drawn across the world, like a spot-the-difference puzzle. It was a technique that could only be seen at about the level of a Sword Expert.
“But even a Sword Expert has limits when it comes to ignoring the environment. Now, do you see this tree?”
Professor Derek pointed to a tree that had been deeply gouged by the path of his sword. Then he walked around to the side of the tree and kicked it.
The impact was no more than a light tap. Even so, the tree began to collapse in the direction of the gouges with a deafening crack.
Naturally, the gouges had been carved in the direction of the sword’s path. In other words, one careless mistake could leave you crushed to death beneath that tree.
Of course, a Sword Expert would not die so easily, but it was still impossible to deny that the surrounding environment could be a considerable nuisance.
What if it happened in the middle of a battle? There was no need to say more. The students’ gazes grew more serious.
“As you can see, swordsmen have to fight at a considerable disadvantage inside a forest. So it’s best to avoid making the forest your battlefield whenever possible, but that isn’t always possible when subjugating magical beasts. That’s why today we’ll practice using the surrounding environment of the forest.”
As he spoke, Professor Derek sheathed his sword once more. The blood-red aura had vanished without a trace.
“You all know that the Hunting Festival is coming up soon, right? Since the Hunting Festival basically involves hunting magical beasts in a forest, learning the terrain in advance today should help quite a bit. I don’t know how many of you will participate in the Hunting Festival, though!”
Professor Derek finished with a hearty laugh. Then, as always, he began waving his hand and telling the students to arrange themselves however they liked, but suddenly paused as though he had forgotten something.
He nodded to himself for a moment, then added one final remark.
“For reference, you are not allowed to swing your swords at empty air today. Move around freely in pairs and spar with each other. However, make sure you analyze the surrounding environment carefully. Climb a tree, hide in the grass—anything is allowed. Prepare for every possibility. I’ll test you later, so don’t slack off.”
So we were free to move around.
At those words, my gaze gradually sank. The information was both advantageous and disadvantageous to me.
First, if we spread out in pairs and moved around separately, we would risk being picked off one group at a time if the magical beast attack became a reality. Yet without any proper evidence, I could not warn everyone about a large-scale attack by magical beasts.
That left only one answer. I had to notice the signs before the magical beasts attacked and report them to Professor Derek.
I did not know how powerful the magical beasts lurking in the forest were, but Professor Derek had once defeated countless notorious magical beasts. With nearly a hundred academy students present, there was no way he would lose.
There was only one problem: I needed someone who would completely trust my judgment and follow me.
My gaze naturally turned toward Selin. As though she had known without my saying anything, she brightened and came over to stand beside me.
“What do you think, Senior Ian? They said we’re supposed to work in pairs. How about a cozy date, just the two of us, for the first time in ages?”
“A date with swords in a place where magical beasts might be hiding? It is romantic.”
Selin giggled at my sarcasm. She seemed quite excited by the unusual practice session we were doing for the first time in a while.
“They’re probably only low-ranking magical beasts, right? Even if this is the outskirts, it’s still academy grounds.”
That was the common opinion. No matter how much magical beast breeding had been left unchecked, this was still academy property, and the Hunting Festival was even held here every year.
One only had to consider how people viewed Emma’s attack to understand. The prevailing opinion was that an alchemy student who lacked the ability to protect herself had simply suffered an accidental mishap.
But what if that was not the case?
Because of that ‘letter,’ all sorts of emotions were swirling within me: anxiety, impatience, duty, and guilt.
No one believed the letter. I alone could prevent the casualties that would occur today, provided that I operated on the assumption that it was true.
It was a lonely and painful feeling. I bit my lip for a moment, then, as always, prepared to suggest that Selin accompany me.
Selin would humor my unreasonable request, and more importantly, she was someone I could trust with my back. However, my mouth closed before I could do so when I felt someone’s gaze.
My eyes slid to the side. There, a pair of aquamarine-like eyes was staring blankly at me.
Those eyes held a faint expectation, then sank again. They did not even seem disappointed.
The look was fading as though she had expected this all along, blaming herself in the process. I could only hesitate.
I agonized for a moment. But my hesitation was brief.
“……Selin, pair up with someone else today.”
“Sure, sure. Even so, this Selin is the only one Senior Ian has…… What?”
Selin had smugly anticipated what I was about to say, but then her brow furrowed sharply as she asked me in disbelief.
I made sure she understood what I meant.
“I said pair up with someone else today. It’s not as though you don’t have plenty of other people to pair with besides me.”
“W-Well, that’s true…… Ah.”
Selin fidgeted awkwardly, then realized where my gaze was directed and spoke in a voice gone cold.
A chilly light gleamed in her eyes.
“……You’re going to pair up with that bitch?”
“It doesn’t look like you have anyone else to pair with besides me.”
Selin’s brows drew together in irritation. She whirled away from me.
“Have it your way. I suppose you two can just stick together from now on.”
She left me with that sarcastic remark and walked away. She seemed to be very angry.
I’ll have to make it up to her later, I thought with a quiet sigh. But since things had already come to this, I walked toward Seria with heavy steps.
Amid the people who had already gathered into groups of two or three, Seria stood alone and looked especially lonely. I thought I understood her a little better now.
The truth was that Seria had not been ignoring anyone, and that, unexpectedly, she knew how to feel lonely too.
I spoke to Seria, who stood with her head bowed, staring only at the tips of her shoes.
“Seria.”
“Y-Yes, y-yes?!”
Perhaps startled by my sudden call, Seria jumped with a cute little sound and looked at me in confusion.
I made Seria a simple proposal.
“Let’s pair up.”
“……Yes?”
Seria tilted her head as though she did not understand what I meant. So I had to add another word, this time with emphasis.
“I said, let’s pair up. With me.”
Seria stared blankly at me, then……
She looked away and fidgeted. Then she cleared her throat and recovered the proud expression she always wore before saying,
“……Y-Yes, yehep.”
She bit her tongue.
She was Seria as always.