Chapter 99 – Fresh Training
“No way~, thanks a lot, big brother. And thank you too, Amae.”
“Un.”
It was a critical situation at the back of the school building, but I managed to let it pass, and soon found Karui.
When she arrived at school, she realized that she was empty-handed and in her church habit, so she was loitering around the school gate.
“Well, Amae still got to enter the school grounds with big brother. Did you make a scene~?”
“… Well …”
I… made a scene……. In the end, it was settled peacefully.
“I just met some annoying girls… pitiful boys…. a strange guy.”
“Wow, big brother, that’s splendid~, such a harsh thing to say… well~, this school, it just gives that~ impression?”
Karui laughed bitterly as she guessed what had happened from my subtle expression.
“I mean, it might seem conceited but how should I put it… What the hell is up with that? Umm, that José guy.”
“Oh, senior José. Well, big brother met someone amazing all of a sudden… the female seniors around him were amazing too, right?”
“It was annoying. I hope they will all be unhappy together.”
“Ahahahahaha, harsh! So harsh!”
Yes, this school. There seems to be a lot of different people, but all of them were influenced by the student life, centered on one black-haired guy named José. That’s what made an impression on me.
“Senior José seems to have transferred from another school before I enrolled in the school… it’s just a rumor. He was from a rural village that had never produced any magical school students, and he was looked down on by everyone at first, but suddenly he showed a ridiculous power even though he says ‘I have not trained properly before’ and suddenly became a celebrity. His strength, magic, and the kindness to girls, got all the girls in the senior class excited. So, all the senior boys lost their place and were thrown to the corner of the school building one after another… just tottering around.”
“Heh~… That’s right. But you have talent…”
Well, I think I had enough power to be that confident.
Although……
“Well, no. Either way…. in three months… the winner won’t be that José guy…… nor Machio.”
“Oh!?”
No matter who I talk to, what I’m going to do won’t change.
Besides, I’m looking forward to seeing how strong I can be in these three months.
The people of this country and the wizarding school, what they’re going through, who they are, what they’re all about, are not that much of a concern for me right now.
“Heh~… so cocky~. You’re going to beat Mr. Machio, are you?”
“Well, I haven’t met him yet, so I still don’t know how strong he is.”
“Nyahahaha, you’ll see him soon… but, uh… yes, I’m looking forward to it! I’m rooting for you, big brother! Of course, Amae also supports you, right?”
Karui laughed somewhat happily at my declaration. And waved to Amae as if teasing her, but……
“Un… not possible…-ish.”
“Oh, Amae?”
“Uncle, stronger, than this.”
“Hey, hey, hey! Let’s cheer for big brother there! Amae wants sister to be happy too, right? Besides, Uncle, Mr. Machio is still in his twenties!”
Since she was a child, she was not afraid to give her pure opinion, but I was called ‘this’.
“Th, this guy… don’t tell me.”
“Ahaha… sorry~… well, for me and Amae, when our parents died, Mr. Machio is like an older brother… like a dad. To Amae, Mr. Machio is the strongest in the world. I think~ “
“Hee… Well, then you’ll have to be sad in three months… but…… I see…”
Somehow, I heard a little of Amae and Karui’s sad past without delay.
Well, I didn’t say anything more to Amae’s words.
“Well, I’m going now! Oh, Amae.”
“Un.”
When I signaled Amae that we were going home right away because my business was done, she nodded and jumped on my back.
Karui also smiled at Amae’s manner.
“Oh! Amae~, splendid, you’ve let your guard down around big brother quite a bit. This guy~, if you got her to trust you right away, you’ll soon have the senior girls of this school latching on to you!”
“Un?”
“Hey, hey, you’re outrageously forthright… aren’t you interested in that José guy too?”
“Nyahahahaha, aren’t you saying too much? Well, me and senior José…. come on, I’m sure he’s an amazing guy, but the High Priestess is far more amazing, I’m not interested in romance right now…… or rather, I don’t think senior José is that cool.”
I don’t really get the appeal of that black-haired guy… I wonder…… all the same, he might be the most decent guy in this country.
“Good. Well, there seems to be no decent guys in this school, so if you’re not interested in love, that’s good. Then I’ll be going now.”
“Un, later!”
“Oh. Then, see you at the church big brother.”
According to Tre’ainar, the High Priestess, Jamdi’el, was also quite like a crazy woman, so I was relieved that there was a decent girl like Karui in this country.
Although her legs were superhuman, she was a normal girl.
I never thought that being normal would be so precious.
I’ve been frustrated since I set foot in the Wizarding school, but that made me feel a little better.
“Well, hold on tight, Amae!”
“Un.”
“Hey, you won’t get shaken off, will you? Quickly, let’s train, we’ll run a little on the way home, okay?”
“Okay. Karui, faster.”
“Oh, you said it!”
“Hmm♪”
With Amae on my back, I turned and ran back the way I got here.
If I could only learn the way, I could run without getting lost.
Amae was humming happily on my back as I went faster than I had been going.
「…… say….. Tre’ainar… when we get back, where do we start?」
『Hmm?』
「The training menu. I’m full of motivation today. I’m gonna do whatever it takes, okay?」
How do I use all the equipment in the dojo?
And, according to Tre’ainar, I should aim for dexterous affluence, so I’m sure I’ll be given a variety of menus to train in a well-balanced way.
Somehow, it kind of reminded me of the days when I was training in preparation for the previous match, and I got a little excited.
『Ah! Then, shall we warm up already?』
「Hmm?」
『Perform Magical Parkour. The little one will be glad as well.』
「Oh, I see.」
I nodded to Tre’ainar’s suggestion.
It would be boring to just run normally while carrying Amae to the church.
Then, it would certainly be nice to double as a warm-up.
“All right, Amae. Are you ready?”
“Un?”
“I may be a lot slower than Karui now, but … I can do this too!”
I thought I’d have a little fun for a while, and I smiled. Let’s go, Tre’ainar, come on!
『Now… Slant!』
“Oh!”
“Oh?”
Run straight and cut at an oblique angle.
『Jig out!』
“This time!”
“Oh!”
『Quick Out!』
“Oh!”
“Uhmm!”
『Slice-in! Hook! Hitch! Long Post! Square-in!』
“Yeah! I’ll do it all!”
“Hmm♪ Hmm♪”
Magical Parkour that I did in the forest before.
After resting my body to top physical form, I felt that I was able to run sharply, even though I was inferior to Karui in speed.
『Yes, child. Your power and speed, as well as visual prowess, you have greatly improved the way you use your body in your previous battles. Now, not only in Magical Parkour, but also in Magical Ladder, your movements will become remarkable.』
Not my self-esteem, but my master’s approval.
Like Amae, who for a while has been in high spirits on my back, my own feelings were uplifted.
『However, if you only train in the same steps and footwork, you will get ‘used to training’. Once you get accustomed to the training, the application in actual performance will be difficult once you encounter a scenario different from what was practiced… as such…… I previously had you doing Magical Ladders for warm-ups, but I shall incorporate something different in the future.』
「Oh, right away? Practice a new step. I’m curious…what are we doing?」
A new training to further improve this sharpness that I already thought was in good shape at this point.
That is……
『Rope-Jumping.』
“……………… eh?”
『Formally called… Magical Jumping Rope!』
Rope?
Jumping rope…… no, even in the dojo… there was a guy who was jumping around with a rope….
「Well, really… for sure, when I saw the guy jumping around, I wondered what he was doing…」
『Fufufu, were you surprised? Well, tis no wonder. On the Surface World, you do not think much of the jump rope. Well, I suppose tis only seen as a plaything for children, but… Fufufufu…… do you not underestimate rope jumping?』
It’s just spinning a rope and jumping so your legs don’t get caught in it… but… eeh? How is that going to help me practice the steps?
『It was a simple orthodox jump in the dojo…. however, the jump rope is deep…. the way you jump, the rhythm… and even the way you move the rope allows you to perform a variety of techniques.』
「Eh, te, technique? It even works on technique?」
『Tis so. So once you reach the dojo, take a breather… first of all, image training… for the first time in a long time, use ‘Fantasy Magic, 【Vier】’』
Vier. The dream world I imagine. For me, that’s the space where I can face Tre’ainar directly.
No, I haven’t used that magic since I left my match.
『In that world, I can embody the rope jump, so I shall give a direct demonstration there.』
「…… eh!? Ah, you… with that rope… will you jump?」
『Hmmm, be amazed. Once, in the Demon Realm… I held the record of the 30-fold jump…. furthermore, I was deemed the ultimate performer, with my Demon King Technique!』
Tre’ainar had a ridiculously smug look that said “look forward to it”.
But I remembered the first time Tre’ainar demonstrated the ladder steps, and just imagining Tre’ainar jumping over that rope, and I almost burst out.
I see…… earlier, I had to resist hitting those irritating guys, but now I’ll have to resist my laughter.
『…… Oi.』
「Ah, my bad…」
Of course, the determination in my heart was out of the ordinary. Tre’ainar looked a little bit puffy, but soon returned to his original smile.
『Well, tis fine. If you can laugh, you should laugh…. once you master the Ultimate Jumping rope technique, everyone will surely be amazed.』
With Tre’ainar full of confidence, the days of training began once again.