93 92. Sword training.txt (1/2)

The sound of bells ringing above the field of seven-colored flowers.

Me and Rowen strike our swords and swords, trampling the jeweled flowers and illuminating the dimly lit stalactite cave with the light of sparks.

The swords of both of us pass back and forth at a speed that would be unnoticeable to an ordinary person.

At first glance, the battle looks like a killing match, but for me and Rowen, it's different. This speed, which would be difficult for an ordinary person to even see, is the speed at which you can stop your hand at any time.

That terrifying sword fight ended when Rowen's sword was placed against my left wrist.

''Haha, haha, kuso....... I can't even put a single sword in Rowen's hand......'

I nodded, using my sword as a support stick, while catching my erratic breath.

'No, if you can beat me with a sword after just a little practice, I'm in no position to do so ......'

Rowen scratches her head with a bitter smile.

However, the coolness of the situation takes away my confidence.

''But this one even uses Dimension Decisive Arithmetic (Gradiate), but ......!

I'm consuming my magic power and deploying dimensional magic, whereas Rowen is not using magic. Even with that handicap, it's shameful that this is the result.

Seeing me, Rowen tilts her head curiously.

''You seem quite frustrated that you can't beat me, but ....... Could it be that Kanami has never lost before ......?

............

That's not true.

I've lost a lot.

Many times, but that was in the original world.

It's different since I visited this other world. Thanks to his favored status, he was undefeated in battle. However, that record is about to be stopped by Rowen in front of me.

In its own way ...... no, it's quite frustrating.

'It's like a figurehead ....... But it's a training exercise. It's not that Kanami is inferior to me. ...... If this were a real battle, you wouldn't be competing against me with a sword, would you?

'Hmm ......, well, I probably won't ......'

Rowen's weaknesses are obvious.

It's that little magic power that is obvious at a glance.

''If they use icy magic at a thorough distance or only attack me with bows and arrows or traps, I have no way to counter them. So there's no need to be in such a hurry. There's nothing good about being in a hurry.

Hence, he is unable to build magic that can reach far.

That's why he's put his life on the sword and learned so much skill.

But that's why - against such a Lowen, he wants to win with the sword.

Childish selfishness cannot stop overflowing from his heart.

''Still, I want to win against Rowen with the sword ......!

Heh. ......

The words spilled out naturally.

It's a child-like reason.

I'm sure the position of the 'strongest swordsman' is dazzling to me.

It's the most powerful swordsman.

That word, the sound of it, has grabbed my heart.

I longed for a swordsman who stood in front of everyone else, not a wizard who fought from a distance.

Anyway, if you just want to challenge me, it's free.

''--Okay. That's the only way it can be fun!

Rowen senses my desire for such a thing on her skin and the corners of her mouth twist up.

She seems to be thrilled by the unexpected appearance of her sword rival.

Then, as if to say that practice is back on, she attacks me again with her sword.

As usual, his sword flashes were artistic.

Loewen's 'swordsmanship' is just so lean.

Logically, he swings his sword in the fastest possible procedure at the point where the enemy would have the most trouble. That's the basics.

And the tricky part is that he controls every action of his body at will.

Hence, countless feints are mixed in with the smallest details.

Its eyes move suddenly, its weight shifts unexpectedly, and it puts its strength in odd places. Just like that, I, who was grasping the situation with Dimension, got lost.

If I get caught in that feint and swing a sub-optimal sword, I'm done.

In the next moment, Rowen's sword touches me.

Rowen coolly puts in countless such feints in a split second. And that's in the flesh, not even using ”Dimension”.

It's a feint that can be used by me, who is using the ”Dimension Decisive Operation (Graduation)”. The depth of his tactics is extraordinary.

Both physically and mentally, Rowen has reached an extraordinary height.

I can't stop my heart from pounding in my chest as I observe it all.

My heart is pounding and bouncing, pumping a tremendous amount of blood throughout my body. My body as well as my head knows that I can't keep up with the man in front of me unless I put all my strength into it.

Each and every one of Rowen's techniques, I thought, was a work of art that should go down in history.

I feel like I'm walking through a renowned and sprawling museum as I do the barbaric act of matching sword to sword.

One technique after another is mesmerizing.

If I respond by imitating it, I can get a new artistic technique to be performed.

And then I would imitate them again. Then, without pause, I can see more art.

It's too beautiful and too much fun.

I kept walking around the museum named Rowen, losing track of time.

It was like a small child's eyes shining in front of the unknown.

As a child.

Memories of longing and yearning.

The protagonist (the hero) wielding a sword on the other side of the LCD screen.

The sight of them fighting with their swords while bleeding and putting everything on the line for each other.

I thought it was more than frightening, I thought it was cool as a child.

It's a contradiction of being barbaric and immoral, but above all, it's dazzling and lovable.

That is the ”Sword” for me.

And the dream of that ”sword” is coming true now.

There is no doubt that my opponent is the best swordsman in the world.

And I am able to keep up with that sword.

I'm allowed to dance on stage with him.

Just like that, my body is filled with satisfaction.

More than any sport, more than any sport, more than any game, more than any pleasure, more time passes.

I have no idea how much time has passed, and finally I reach the limit of my exhaustion.

'Hah, hah, hah!

Out of breath, I fall to my knees.

My body is heavy, as if I've run for miles without oxygen.

'Hah, hah ......'

Even the quintessential Rowen is sweating.

While wiping that sweat off, Rowen asks curiously, ”Do you think Kanami has a very good memory?

...... Could it be that Kanami has a very good memory?

It's a question that doesn't seem to have anything to do with 'swordsmanship'.

I nod my head and answer it while tilting my head.

'Huh?　Well, I'm confident in my memory: ......

Even in his original world, he was confident in his ability to memorize.

And that memorization ability has stepped into the realm of the inhuman due to the rise in levels in the other world.

''No, I was surprised to see that the technique I learned an hour or so ago was performed without an inch of difference. ......

Just in case, once I learn it, I'm pretty sure I'll never forget it again.

'Normally, you have to practice it over and over again to get your body used to the movement. ...... With Kanami, you don't even have to do that. Well, 'predisposition' is really scary .......

Rowen was dripping cold sweat that was different from the sweat generated by the exercise.

Her eyes were like looking at a 'monster'. However, those eyes also make sense.

I'm beginning to feel that I'm an 'outsider' as well, and I'm beginning to feel it faintly.

But now that we've taught you the basics of 'swordsmanship', we'll have to wait and see. The next step is to learn more and more about the inner workings at this rate.

What's the secret to that?

'No, if you're mastered at such a speed, you don't have a foundation to teach anymore: ....... And if you believe Kanami's words, you don't have to teach it twice. So, try to copy this. I think it's a little different from what you're used to.

At last, the practice reached the depths of the practice.

Probably the kind of thing that would take decades to pass down to a single child in a few hours. Rowen smiles bitterly as she controls her magic power.

Apparently, the deepest techniques of the Alais style use magic power.

It also seems to be a reasonable one that can be activated even with Rowen's little magic power.

Rowen's magic power is transferred to the sword in her hand and covers its surface.

Then the covered magic power hardened and took shape as an actual substance. That hard magic power expands and contracts at Rowen's will.

-- It was a familiar technology.

''...... This, I believe, is the skill 'magic power materialization'?'''

You know what that is?

'Yeah, yeah. I know, like I know, ....... Oh, I don't know where I heard that. Um, .......

'Well, if you know what I'm talking about, that's fast. You know that this will expand your swordsmanship, right?

I can see that.

At the same time I nodded, Rowen lightly swung her sword.

Then the flower that was blooming where the sword in her hand could never reach was slashed and slid down.

With 'Magic Power Materialization', the tip of the sword was slightly extended.

''Well then, I'm going to take 'magical materialization' slowly to the limit ...... and you can take your time to analyze the process of fixing the magic power .......''

Rowen lays the sword to the side and stretches and contracts the magic again.

This time it's very late, to make me understand how it works.

I observe the expansion and contraction in detail with Dimension Multiple Expansion (Multiple).

--The attribute of magic power is close to 'nothingness'.

Although Rowen said that it is 'the one that steals the reason of the earth', it does not seem that he is using the magic of the earth attribute as a profound effect.

The pure, plain magic power clings to the sword, expanding and contracting as it wriggles.

The movement of the magic power is followed with the intention of observing its molecular motion.

How the particles of magic move and how they work - the laws of the magic are slowly figured out and imprinted on my brain.

The concentration increases at an accelerated pace, and a second is subdivided into tenths of a second, which are then further subdivided into hundredths of a second. At the end of it all, I understand the laws that intertwine in the world of less than a hundredths of a second in my own way.

Then, he assumes an element that does not exist in the laws of physics called 'magic' and guesses at magic as a chemical reaction.

The deduced formula is transformed into a certain one to fill in the substitution formula.

And when all the numbers are in place, I understand how the magic works.

...... Yeah, I got the gist of it.

'Ho, you really can get the gist of it in one go: ......'

Leaving the astonished Rowen behind, I began to recreate the ”magical materialization”.

I pass my magic power through the magic construction formula inscribed in my brain - the so-called 'magic formula'. I manipulate the magic that overflows from my body, crawl on the sword in my hand, cover it up, and solidify it.

However, the magic power did not solidify well.

The cause was known. It was the difference in the quality of the magic power.

Rowen's magic power is as quiet as a clear stream. It's a plain magic that doesn't get dyed in any way.

On the other hand, my magic power is as restless as a torrent. And it's far from plain. No matter how hard I try, the colors of the dimensional attributes get mixed in.

The condition (trick) for this 'magic materialization' is to quietly solidify the magic power of 'nothingness'.

I know this, but I just can't do it.

Only the magical power of the dimensional attribute leaks from my body.

It's hard ....... Mu, it's difficult ......

I wrinkle my brow and wring my hands at the magic that won't harden.

It's a good thing that you're able to have a good time with your friends. It's not just a matter of time before you get to the point where you're able to get your hands on it.

Seeing me falter, Rowen realizes my failure.

However, I didn't hear any last words of follow-up to that failure, so I gave up on the magic that never hardened and tried the next technique.

It's not a technique that imitates Rowen, but a technique for reproducing 'magic materialization' with my hand.

If the magic power to be used doesn't become 'nothing', then you can try a magic formula that gives the same answer with another magic power.

''Hard, then!　You can do this--!

I don't create the magic of ”nothingness” but the magic of ”ice” that I am accustomed to.

I make the sword wear that magic.

So far, it's just the ”Ice Flamberge”.

Furthermore, it absorbs the moisture in the air and freezes it to create a substitute for the ”solidified magic power”. He repeats this over and over again, extending his sword. Sometimes he stops the molecular motion and makes the ice melt and shrink.

It's forced, but this completes the substitute skill of 'Magical Materialization'.

I swing my sword in the same way as Rowen, and use the ice blade to slash a flower that should be impossible to reach.

This skill.

If I had to name it--.