May Flower
After a brief silence, Leon looked at May with apologetic eyes, let out a sigh, and bowed his head to apologize.
"I'm, well, sorry. I don't really like people who use talent as an excuse. I have some bad memories of people who haven't even put in enough effort saying things like that. But I suppose if a student like you is saying it, you must be truly desperate. Besides, if that's your reason, I have no excuse not to help."
"...Thank you."
"...No need for thanks. I did you wrong, so I'll make sure to give you proper help. Don't worry."
Leon looked at May, pointed at her, and asked,
"You're an aerokinetic, right? Focused on close-quarters combat?"
"Ah, yes. I use the wind to accelerate, or solidify the air to create a defensive barrier... I can also manipulate the flow of the atmosphere itself a little bit, but I'm still a bit clumsy with that."
"Hmm... I think I need to see how you fight first. Why don't you try attacking me for a bit?"
After parrying a few of her attacks in the sparring match that followed, Leon nodded and spoke.
"...Looking purely at your ability, long-range is possible, but it would probably be best to focus on the speed you're currently confident in. You've been training that aspect continuously, right?"
"...Yes, but I feel like I've hit a plateau at some point. It's like I just can't get any faster, no matter what I do."
"Haha, I know that feeling all too well. I was the same way in the past. I think I have some advice I can give you right now. I can't say for sure, but I think you can get faster."
"...! Really?"
"Of course. Well, before we start training, there's one thing we need to do first..."
Leon pointed a finger at May and said,
"Take that off."
"...My clothes?"
At May's reaction—covering her chest and glaring at him with utter disgust—Leon let out a dry laugh and tapped his temple.
"No, your glasses. Those are a magic tool for eye protection, right? It's highly unlikely an awakened esper would have bad eyesight and need regular glasses."
"...It is a magic tool, but without it..."
May clutched her glasses anxiously. To train with her already sensitive eyes exposed without any protection? Normally, that was out of the question. Without protective gear, she would have to create a barrier over her eyes using her ability while running. But doing so divided her focus, which ultimately slowed her down. Since these glasses were a tool that helped her maintain her speed in many ways, May looked at Leon with a skeptical gaze.
Leon gave a slight smirk, pointed to his own eyes, and said,
"Look at me. Have you ever seen me, supposedly the fastest among the Heroes, wearing anything over my eyes? If you train your ability diligently, your body naturally adapts and strengthens to match it. In fact, relying on a psychological safety net like protective gear unconsciously places a limit on your own speed. Past a certain point, those things are nothing but a hindrance."
"...Is that how it works?"
"Of course, that 'certain point' is beyond the level of your average Hero, so it's not exactly common knowledge. But regardless, the level you're aiming for is at least that high, isn't it?"
Scarlet had said she wanted to become strong enough to fight a Witch. Therefore, May also needed to become strong enough so she wouldn't hold her back. With that thought, May slowly nodded at Leon's question.
Leon's expression turned serious.
"Then trust me... No, trust yourself and the effort you've put in up until now, and take them off. I'm sure you can do it."
"Trust myself..."
May muttered to herself, then with a determined expression, she took off the glasses she had always worn and cast them aside.
Leon nodded in approval.
"There are only two things you need to remember. Look straight at your target. And when you feel like you've hit your limit, take exactly one more step forward. Keep that in mind."
With those words, Leon tossed aside the spear he was holding and spoke to May.
"Normally, you're supposed to just visualize this, but since it's your first time, I'll help you out. From now on, I'm going to run just a little bit faster than your current speed. Imagine me as yourself, running one step ahead of you. If you catch me, you succeed. Got it?"
When May nodded, Leon grinned.
"Then, let's begin—!"
The moment the words left his mouth, May witnessed Leon's speed and screamed internally.
You said 'a little' faster! How on earth is that just a little?!
But she couldn't afford to waste even a second complaining, so May kicked off the ground with all her might. Accelerating, and accelerating again. She was moving at a speed that made her wonder if she had already surpassed her usual maximum. Still, she grit her teeth and ran to catch up to Leon.
Yet, the distance did not shrink. The faster she ran, the faster Leon ran ahead of her. No, it wasn't Leon. It was herself, running one step ahead, keeping the parallel lines perfectly intact no matter how hard she ran.
As her speed increased, her vision began to blur. Her eyes, which had been slightly stinging, now throbbed with a sharp, burning pain. Her body screamed that she was reaching her limit—that going any faster was dangerous, and that her eyes wouldn't survive it.
But if she diverted her ability to protect her eyes, she would inevitably fall behind. She refused to let that happen, yet the escalating pain made it hard to ignore. Fear gripped her, and her eyelids instinctively began to close to protect her eyes. At that very moment—
—Look straight at your target.
Recalling Leon's voice, May forced her eyes wide open. Through her bloodshot, strained vision, she saw the back of her own self running one step ahead. My target. My goal. Repeating those words in her mind, May suddenly realized that the figure ahead was not her true goal.
Her true goal was running much further ahead than that. Ten steps? A hundred steps? Or perhaps even further. The girl she aimed for, the girl she had come to admire, was far too distant from where she stood now. She couldn't even fathom how fast she would have to run to catch up.
But she would not stop. Just like the girl she admired had shown during her own training. No matter how many trials and errors it took, she would run until she reached her destination.
As she stared toward that distant goal, her blurred vision seemed to clear, and the back running one step ahead came into sharp focus. Ah, compared to my true goal, how close this is. Looking back, it was nothing. The fear of exceeding her limits, the self running just one step ahead—none of it mattered. Because that wasn't what she truly feared, and that wasn't what was truly far away.
Without hesitation, May stepped past her limits. And in that instant, the girl became the wind.
"...Ah?"
By the time she realized what had happened, May's hand was resting on Leon's back. She looked at him, utterly dazed. Leon returned her gaze with an immensely proud expression and spoke.
"...'Talent' is a cruel word. People often compare talent to flowers, but they only ever look for the ones that bloom early. Because of that, most late-blooming flowers rot away without ever knowing they could have bloomed. A late-blooming flower won't open unless you constantly water and fertilize it until the very end. It's not something just anyone can do."
Having been a rather late-blooming flower himself in the past, Leon knew exactly how difficult it was to make such a flower bloom.
"In that sense, you deserve respect. Even if someone shows you the way, taking that single step forward in an instant would have been impossible if you hadn't been putting in ceaseless effort until now. And usually, that first step is the hardest."
"...Ah."
And so, he offered a genuinely warm smile to the newly opened bud, who still wore a dazed expression.
"It starts from there. If you keep taking one step at a time, you can go anywhere. So keep working hard. You have talent, after all."
At the warm words of acknowledgment from someone she deeply respected, recognizing the effort she had quietly built up on her own, May felt something trickling down her cheek. Flustered, she stammered,
"...Huh? Wait, why is this... Eh...?"
Like the remnants of melting snow welcoming the spring after a long winter, her tears washed over the late-blooming bud as if blessing it. Having been nurtured with care, water, and fertilizer for so long, it would undoubtedly blossom into a beautiful flower.
Leon smiled, savoring the lingering scent of the wind the girl had created. The late spring breeze of May, blowing belatedly, was warm.
Then, realizing the effect the wind she stirred up had on the onlookers, Leon let out a hearty laugh.
"...Haha, well now. Looks like everyone's fired up."
Wind only fans the flames. Witnessing the fire blazing within the dozens of eyes staring at him, Leon laughed out loud and shouted,
"Alright, I'm in a good mood today! I'll coach every single one of you, so line up in order!"