Read Daily Updated Light Novel, Web Novel, Chinese Novel, Japanese And Korean Novel Online.
Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? (Light Novel) - Volume 9, Chapter 1: Training
Volume 9, Chapter 1: Training
This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml
Part 1
February 8, Monday
Koutarou and Ruth's morning started early. By five in the morning, they had already woken up and had headed out for their daily run. On their running course, they ran towards the river from Corona House, and then they continued along the flow of the river on the promenade that had recently been maintained.
The physical training Ruth had started with during the later half of last year had shown very promising results as they entered February, and her fitness had completely changed since she began. Her daily exercise that she never skipped out on had let her understand the trick in how to move her body. As a result, Ruth didn't end in the same sorrow state as Yurika.
As expected from Flairhan's descendant, I guess... Ruth-san really does have the talent for this...
Her improvement was enough to earn admiration from Koutarou. At first she had been completely out of breath after running, but that was no longer the case. She lightly wiped some sweat away and smiled at Koutarou.
“Satomi-sama, will we be doing some muscle training today as well?”
After running several kilometers down the promenade, they would start with some muscle training in a more open space by the riverbed. That had been their morning training menu for these past few months. They had just now finished running and normally they were supposed to start their muscle training.
By the way, at first, Sanae and Yurika had joined in as well, but they quickly dropped out giving reasons such as it being too cold and that they were too sleepy. As a result, the only ones doing this training menu were Koutarou and Ruth.
“No, I think it's about time we start with the main training.”
However, Koutarou shook his head. That unexpected answer made Ruth opened her eyes wide and tilt her head.
“Main training?”
“Yes. Ruth-san, you've gotten enough physical strength, so I think it's time we start practicing techniques.”
Ruth's original intention was to learn how to fight from Koutarou. The running and physical training was just preparation for that. And seeing Ruth's growth, Koutarou decided that the time to start teaching her how to fight had come.
“Then, you're finally going to teach me martial arts!?”
Ruth revealed a happy expression and made two fists and began throwing out jabs. Though since she wasn't used to hurting others, her fists didn't look like they would hurt very much. Koutarou revealed a slight smile when he saw that 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 Ruth be and approached the luggage he had left nearby. The luggage consisted of two sport bags and a leather case for carrying baseball bats. Koutarou picked up the leather bat case.
“Will... we be using a bat?”
Koutarou's heavy wooden bat was always in that case. And while helping with Ruth's muscle training, Koutarou would swing that bat from time to time. Ruth was convinced that Koutarou would teach her how to fight using a bat.
“Ahaha, that's not it.”
Koutarou laughed as he loosened the fasteners and the contents of the case was revealed. Inside was not a bat, but two swords. One was a traditional Forthorthe knight sword, and the other was much thinner and was for thrusting. They were practice weapons without blades.
“Then, it's sword fighting?”
“Yes. I felt like this would suit you better, Ruth-san.”
As Koutarou said that, he handed the thin sword over to Ruth.
Ruth lightly swung the sword in her hand. Since she was from a family of knights, she had received training in how to use swords, though that was a long time ago, she had no difficulties in using it.
As I thought, this is better...
There were, in total, three reasons for why Koutarou was going to teach Ruth sword fighting instead of martial arts.
The first reason was that Ruth's body was small. It was far more realistic for her to use a weapon to reach the level of combat capability she desired than going in unarmed. Since Ruth was a knight, the weapon of choice naturally became a sword. And if she was going to use a sword, a thin one was best. The traditional Forthorthe knight sword was too large to use with her small body and would throw her off balance.
The second reason was that Koutarou was better with a sword than with his fists. His experiences in the past Forthorthe had raised his skills considerably. As a result, he was more skilled using the disciplined methods that Theia had taught him rather than his self-developed fighting techniques.
The final reason was that Koutarou remembered Flair, who was a master at using a thin sword. He had spent almost every day practicing with her while he had been in Forthorthe. As a result, he was very used with that type of sword handling. So all he had to do was teach Ruth that.
With those three reasons, Koutarou had decided to teach Ruth sword fighting, rather than martial arts. Teaching Flair's techniques to Ruth was something that made Koutarou's heart leap with joy.
Part 2
Ruth's sword cut through the early morning's cold air. Her movements were still faltering, but it didn't look like she was being thrown around by the sword’s weight. This was a result of the physical training Ruth had gone through up until today.
“Does, this look, good?”
“Yeah, keep at it like that. But make sure your elbow doesn't fall too far when you thrust.”
“Yes, Satomi-sama!”
Koutarou observed Ruth from the front and made slight alterations to her form to make it more similar to the memory he had of Flair.
She really does look like her...
Ruth looked very similar to Flair, not just in appearance, but in the way she handled the sword. Ruth was in no way near the same level as Flair, but their appearances would sometimes overlap. As a result, Koutarou's expression naturally turned more mild.
“Ah...”
Noticing the change in Koutarou's expression, Ruth instinctively stopped moving her sword.
The expression he had on his face was something she had never seen before. It was gentle, calm but somewhat lonely. She felt like staring at that smile forever, but at the same time she wanted to do something about it. It was a mysterious smile that greatly shook Ruth's feelings.
“What's wrong, Ruth-san?”
Confused that Ruth had stopped moving, Koutarou called out to her.
“Ah, s-sorry, Satomi-sama!”
Koutarou's expression changed and Ruth returned to herself.
“It's just, t-that, this is a somehow strange feeling...”
That said, she couldn't just admit to looking at Koutarou admiringly, so she quickly covered it up.
“I know how you feel.”
Koutarou failed to notice Ruth's intentions and just nodded his head. He agreed with what Ruth had desperately spat out and he didn't notice Ruth's face turning red.
“I learned how to use a sword from you, and now I'm the one teaching. It really is a strange feeling.”
Up until now, Ruth had used a large sword in her fights. However, that sword was a creation of the advanced technology of Forthorthe, and didn't make much use of her own skills. And when Theia had taught Koutarou how to use a sword for the play, Ruth had been his sparring partner. One could say that Ruth was his teacher, and this reversal of roles felt very strange.
“...That's just because the sword is strong.”
“I'm sure you'll get stronger too, Ruth-san.”
“I hope so...”
After exchanging a few words, Ruth readied her sword again. Seeing that, Koutarou confronted Ruth with his own sword.
“Satomi-sama?”
“Try attacking me a little. That should give you a way to measure your own capabilities.”
As Koutarou said that he focused on his eyes. When he did, he could see a faint white light enveloping her body. That light was the spiritual energy running through her body. Koutarou was planning on more accurately understanding the difference between Flair and Ruth by examining the flow of her spiritual energy.
“But, isn't it dangerous?”
“Don't worry, these are just practice weapons.”
Koutarou smiled and touched the blade of his own sword. Their weapons were both intended to be used for practice, so the blades had been swapped out with a softer material. In short, there was no worry for any injuries.
“Okay, I'll give it a shot.”
Ruth nodded and showed a serious expression. She readied her sword and pointed the tip towards Koutarou. It was a beautiful form, just like Koutarou had taught her.
Hmm... her form is good, but she's hesitant in her aim. And...
Ruth's intention to attack was moving around Koutarou, looking for an opening. When he was facing Flair, she would have already decided on where to aim. Since this was a difference in experience, Koutarou felt like it couldn't be helped.
“Here I come!”
Ruth stepped forward. Her movements were different from that of a girl her age. The results of her physical training showed itself here as well.
It's just as I thought...
However, Koutarou had sensed a problem within the spiritual energy that Ruth was emitting. He felt like it was a bigger problem than not settling for a target.
“Ruth-san, be more serious.”
“I'm being serious!”
Ruth moved in with a swift step and thrust while extending her arm. Koutarou responded by changing the incline on his sword a little.
When he did, Ruth's thrust struck the flat of his sword and recoiled.
“This is, my best!”
Despite her first strike being blocked, Ruth didn't stop. Ruth spoke as she unleashed attack after attack. Her combination didn't just consist of thrusts, but also slashes, and this was without a doubt Ruth's current best. Meanwhile, Koutarou read her aura and blocked her attacks while trying to think of a way to explain to her. Since she had just started her practice, Koutarou still had enough room to think while parrying her attacks.
“That's not what I meant... Uhm, I want you to seriously try to kill me.”
After deflecting several thrusts, Koutarou moved smoothly as he explained to Ruth.
“Try to kill, Satomi-sama...?”
However, Ruth who was just listening completely stopped. Still holding her sword she furrowed her brows and showed a troubled expression.
“That's right. Ruth-san, you're trying to avoid hurting me, right?”
“That's... that's true, but...”
Ruth lowered her sword and after glancing down on it, she gazed at Koutarou, deep in thought. However, she quickly shook her head.
“That would be hard. Satomi-sama is not an enemy after all...”
“It's a training weapon, so I'll be okay.”
“Even if you say that...”
Ruth was very troubled. Since she had such trust in Koutarou, it was difficult for her to seriously turn her sword against him.
This had been the problem that Koutarou had sensed. Ruth's sword was too gentle. Even if her hesitant aim had been because of her lack of experience, her gentleness limited her potential targets. As a result, her abilities were limited even more than her lack of experience.
“Then how about this. Imagine that I suddenly betrayed you and that I'm now about to attack Theia.”
After thinking for a while, Koutarou came up with that suggestion. Ruth's gentleness was a big merit, but at this rate, it would become an obstacle in their training. So he wanted Ruth to forget about her gentleness during their practice.
“That's not possible.”
However, Ruth shook her head again. To her, it was a flat out impossibility that Koutarou would turn on Theia. If that hadn't been the case, she wouldn't have asked him to serve Theia.
“Now what do I do...”
Koutarou smiled wryly while scratching his head. He was happy that Ruth believed in him, but this was a problem if he was going to teach her how to sword fight.
Just like Yurika, Ruth isn't suited to fight... It would probably be the same, even if I wasn't her opponent.
Ruth's sword would surely dull even if she was facing Yurika, Sanae or even Kiriha. She was just too gentle.
“Then how about this. Your opponent isn't me, but an assassin targeting Theia.”
“Then... could you please hide your face... when I'm looking at your face, I naturally let my guard down, Satomi-sama...”
Ruth understood what Koutarou was trying to say as well. But even then it was hard for her to point her sword against someone she trusted as much as Theia.
Satomi-sama is being too unreasonable. There's no way an assassin would have such a kind face...
It was hard enough for Ruth to show any hostility towards Koutarou as it was. But since he would show a gentle and somewhat lonely expression whenever she held her sword, any hostility and will to fight she had was erased. In this sense, there was no one harder for Ruth to point a sword against than Koutarou.
“Was I making such a funny face?”
Koutarou touched his own face, unaware of Ruth's feelings. Seeing him like that, her feelings unintentionally turned into words and escaped from her lips.
“...Stupid...”
They were sweet words from the normally moderate Ruth.
“What did you say, Ruth-sa―”
Just as Koutarou was replying to Ruth, he found he didn't have the time to speak.
An enemy!?
Something had jumped into his mind. That was a strong hostility and six intentions to attack. The moment Koutarou sensed that, he began moving.
A sniper!? There are six attacks, is the enemy above!?
Sensing hostility that Ruth wasn't able to muster, Koutarou's trained body sprung into action. The blood in his body boiled and spiritual energy began flowing. The spiritual energy circuits Sanae would use to strengthen Koutarou from time to time were still present and his hand began moving before commands from his nerves arrived. And his sword slashed out in front of Ruth.
The next moment, a bullet crashed into the flat of the sword.
“Kyaaa!?”
Ruth finally realized that they were being attacked upon hearing the sound of the bullet crashing into the sword. However, since she had completely dropped her guard, she was overwhelmed with surprise and she was unable to take any action. Ruth really wasn't suited to fight.
All that's left is...!
Meanwhile, Koutarou was continuing to move. He swung his sword with his right hand while making wide dodges.
The next moment, a bullet whizzed by where Koutarou's right shoulder had been and buried itself into the riverbed. Immediately after that, he swung his sword upwards and placed it in front of his face.
Then, two bullets hit the sword. One by the tip and the other near the handle. They had been aimed for his head and torso.
...Another two shots!!
There were still two intentions to attack, chasing after Koutarou. They were aimed at his right leg and body. That was when Koutarou planted his left foot down and jumped. With that, he was able to avoid the first shot that had been aimed at his leg. Since Koutarou moved, the second shot missed as well and only grazed his side.
“That's six shots!!”
After avoiding all six shots, Koutarou quickly looked up. There, he saw a lone girl. She was holding a large rifle in her hands and was floating in the sky without any support. That sight didn't surprise Koutarou and he called out to the girl.
“That's quite the rude morning greeting, Clan.”
The name of the girl floating in the sky was Clariossa Daora Forthorthe, or Clan for short.
She was Forthorthe royalty, like Theia and had a rather deep connection to Koutarou.
“I'm quite surprised, Ber― whoops, Koutarou, so you can block bullets even without the armor.”
Clan smiled wryly and lowered her rifle. The device she was using to float in the sky was her own invention. Its performance was excellent and the hem of the dress she was wearing wasn't moving at all.
“My strength didn't have much to do with it.”
Koutarou would not have been able to block the shots without the power he had gotten from Sanae. He dropped his shoulders and sighed. At the same time, Ruth who was right next to Koutarou pointed her sword towards Clan who had just landed.
“Clan-sama!! Are you targeting Satomi-sama again!?”
Ruth had been unable to do so towards Koutarou, but she showed hostility towards Clan. They had been attacked several times now, and Ruth glared at Clan with a serious expression.
“...It's okay, Ruth-san.”
Koutarou smiled at Ruth and lowered her sword with his hand.
“But Satomi-sama!”
“That was just a greeting... Of course, it was in pretty bad taste.”
“I don't want to hear those words coming from you.”
Having heard the words bad taste, Clan showed a discouraged expression as she adjusted her glasses and she gave orders to the bracelet on her right wrist.
“Cradle, recover the weapon.”
“As you wish, my princess.”
The next moment a black hole appeared next to Clan. The hole was connected to her spaceship, the Cradle, and after she had inserted her weapon into the hole, it vanished.
The weapon she had used to snipe Koutarou and Ruth had vanished without a trace.
“Ruth-san, try attacking me like that in our future practice.”
“S-Satomi-sama?”
Koutarou smiled at the puzzled Ruth and left her behind as he approached Clan. His appearance was completely defenseless as he casually walked towards her.
“I thought I could get you if you weren't wearing your armor, but it seems like that's not possible.”
“If those had been actual bullets, you probably would have shot straight through the sword.”
“You barefaced liar. You knew it was me from the start.”
And Clan showed no signs of attacking Koutarou. She seemed a bit displeased, but that was just insinuation towards someone she had a friendly relation with.
“I just believed that her highness Clariossa who I hold in high esteem would use real bullets because she is so sly.”
“Y-You little- next time I'll definitely greet you with real bullets!! I mean it!!”
“See? You would use actual bullets.”
“Kuh, you also have some witty remark! You are so hate able!”
“It is an honor to receive praise directly from her highness.”
“I'm not praising you!!”
Koutarou and Clan's lively conversation continued, and Ruth who was looking on couldn't hide her confusion.
Just... what is going on...?
She had heard that Koutarou and Clan had to work together to return after being thrown out of the universe. That said, the two of them were originally enemies, so once they had returned it would only be natural for them to become enemies again. However, it didn't look like that had happened at all. Koutarou and Clan's conversation was extremely similar to that of Koutarou and Theia's. Since the two of them had been trying to kill each other just a few days ago, that was a very confusing sight for Ruth.
And it feels like Satomi-sama's prowess with the sword is on a completely different level from before...
Another thing that confused Ruth was Koutarou's overwhelming capability with the sword.
He had received formal training from Theia for the play, he could see spiritual energy thanks to Sanae and he was good at fighting to begin with.
However, even with all of that, it shouldn't be enough to block bullets. In reality, he had only reached a competent level of fighting on the day he fought Clan wearing the Blue Knight's armor.
But now he was able to block Clan's attacks despite not using the power of the armor. All he had used was a practice sword. In other words, he had gotten skilled enough with the sword to make up for the loss in power from wearing the armor.
Just what happened to Satomi-sama... No, more importantly, just where did Satomi-sama and Clan-sama go during those few minutes...?
Koutarou's change in relationship with Clan and his rapidly improved skill with the sword only served to confuse Ruth.
“More importantly, did you finish that thing?”
“More importantly you say!? If it wasn't you, I'd have you thrown in prison for life a long time ago!!”
“Don't get so angry. It's something I can only ask of you.”
“...The way you put that is very tricky and I hate it. Really...”
The two continued their carefree conversation, unaware of Ruth's feelings, but they just now got into the main topic.
“Cradle, bring that out.”
“As you wish, my princess.”
Clan ordered her bracelet and summoned a large box from her spaceship. She opened the box in front of Koutarou and the two faced each other and peeked into it.
“Is this it?”
“Yes. I made it just like you wanted it.”
Inside the box were five metallic spheres. The balls had different sizes and weights. The largest was about as big as a watermelon while the smallest was about the size of a baseball. All of them had quite a bit of weight to them, and even the smallest was very heavy when lifted.
Clan had come to deliver these balls to Koutarou. He had requested the creation of them as his training with Ruth progressed.
These five spheres were devices used for practicing sword fighting. They would produce holograms while floating in the air, which would serve as targets and sometimes counter attack. The size of the ball determined the size of the hologram and the speed at which it could move.
Clan had plenty of detailed data from hand-to-hand battles with soldiers and she had created these devices while analyzing that data. Of course, Flair's combat data was already put in as well. And if all went according to plan, Ruth could eventually reach Flair's level of fighting.
On top of that, these devices had been designed to help Koutarou practice as well. In the very peaceful Japan, there was no opportunity to use a sword. So in order to practice sword fighting, various training opponents were necessary.
Koutarou was plenty strong since he was borrowing the power of the invading girls, but that didn't mean it was okay for him to remain weak. He didn't believe that there was a need for him to be overwhelmingly powerful, but he wanted to be strong enough to lend someone his strength.
Because of that, Koutarou had asked Clan to create these training devices. Clan had accepted his request and started her production and had appeared today to deliver the completed product.
“So, how do you use them?”
“I made it so you can control them using your bracelet. Just order it like you would your armor.”
“I got it. I'll try it out later and contact you if there's something I don't understand.”
“...Seriously, you're probably the only one who would treat a princess of Forthorthe as a handyman.”
After finishing her explanation Clan folded her arms, puffed her cheeks and expressed her dissatisfaction. Her sniper attack using practice bullets had been a result of that dissatisfaction.
“It can't be helped, I don't know a scientist more amazing than you.”
“Well, I don't feel as bad after hearing that.”
“Anyways, you've been a big help, Clan.”
“Can't you be a bit more respectful in your speech?”
“I would like to express my gratitude for your cooperation, princess Clariossa.”
“Fufufu, it was nothing.”
Since Clan's dissatisfaction had only been her way of playing with her companions, she started smiling as soon as Koutarou gave her an honest thanks.
“Now you owe me a favor.”
“I know, I know.”
“That face tells me you really don't understand... now then.”
With her business here finished, Clan glanced behind Koutarou. And ever revealing a mischievous smile she turned her back to Koutarou.
“Since Pardomshiha is glaring at me with such a scary face, I think it's about time to leave.”
Upon hearing Clan's words, Koutarou looked behind him. There he saw Ruth giving Clan a serious glare.
Right. Though it's been months for me, it's only been a few days since the attack for Ruth-san...
Koutarou and Clan had spent a lot of time together. However, that had only been a few minutes for everyone else. Significantly more time would be required before Ruth would reconsider her current stance towards Clan. So Koutarou didn't stop Clan, and instead just said his parting words to her back.
“Bye, Clan. I'll call you later.”
“I don't want to hear anything more problematic.”
Clan threw a glance at Koutarou and lightly kicked off the ground. As she did, her body floated up towards the sky. The girl wearing a luxurious dress floating through the sky looked like a fairy.
“Of course it won't be anything like that, stupid.”
“Fufufu, then that's fine. Well then, this is farewell.”
After that Clan blended in with the blue morning sky, leaving behind a smile.
She had activated another one of her inventions, a device that concealed her appearance. Even though there weren't many people out early in the morning, a flying girl would stick out like a sore thumb. So Clan activated her device and returned to her spaceship.
