Growing Pains (3)
I closed my eyes. My breathing stayed shallow, barely there. That damn woman— No, according to Hilde, her training began with creating a calm lake in the mind.
If I made that still lake inside myself? Tap.
I flinched. Tap. Tap.
She would poke me with a long stick or knock it against the surroundings to create noise. Exactly like tossing pebbles into a tranquil lake.
“……Is this actually serious training?”
“Of course it’s serious. Whether I find it fun is beside the point.”
“……”
Watching Hilde openly enjoy herself left me with complicated feelings. It even made me unfairly resent Melissa. Still, apart from her personality, Hilde’s skill was undeniable, so I followed her lead.
Above all, her words had taught me that my Gigaam was exceptional. Until then I had been nothing more than a fool who could only swing a wooden sword. It felt like a single ray of hope piercing through dark clouds, and I couldn’t possibly ignore it.
Crack!
“……!”
That was the moment. An intense surge powerful enough to churn the lake in my mind. I glanced quickly toward Hilde and saw dark-red energy wrapped around the stick. Having read it with my Gigaam and confirmed it with my eyes, I threw my body sideways without hesitation.
Kwaaaang!
“Cough! Cough!”
“Your Gigaam is sharp, but your reflexes are disappointing. Move faster.”
“Yes…!”
Hilde’s assessment was merciless yet accurate, as if she could see every flaw in me. In truth, my sluggish movements caused more problems than my senses ever did.
“Want to rest a little?”
“No.”
“Then again.”
It was exhausting to keep up, but not impossible. Since this was one-on-one instruction, Hilde was surely monitoring my condition closely.
“Kid.”
“Huff, huff… Yes…!”
Seeing me panting, Hilde asked, “If your Gigaam is sharp at detecting change, how should you use it?”
“……To avoid an enemy’s attack?”
“Simply avoiding won’t end the fight. Do you plan to endure until your opponent collapses from exhaustion? You say you aim to become a knight, don’t you?”
“Ugh.”
Hilde launched into another lecture. She offered them at every opportunity, to the point I sometimes wondered about her real age, but her words were usually correct, so I nodded along.
Just how old was she? Both Melissa and Hilde looked so young that I couldn’t begin to guess. I spent a while groaning over the unsolvable riddle.
“Kid, your answer?”
“Ah.”
That wasn’t the important part. When I refocused, Hilde was staring down at me intently.
“Then should I fight back?”
“Correct.”
“If I don’t dodge, I’ll die…?”
“The instant your opponent’s fighting spirit reaches its peak—that is the perfect moment to swing your sword.”
“……Pardon?”
I could only blink. I didn’t understand at all. The opponent would be swinging their sword too, so how was I supposed to swing mine? Were we meant to destroy each other in some friendly mutual death?
“It seems you don’t understand.”
“My insight must still be too narrow.”
“Haha! For a kid, you sometimes speak like an old man. That’s what makes it entertaining.”
“……I’m not trying to entertain you.”
“Quiet. Watch.”
Shrring!
Hilde drew her blade. Even the sound of it leaving the scabbard was sharp. Having only used worn-out spears or crude iron rods in my previous life, I immediately recognized how extraordinary the sword before me was.
“Kid, does this sword tempt you?”
“No, but I did find it fascinating.”
“Hmm. Your Gigaam is sensitive, yet you reveal your inner thoughts just as clearly.”
“……?”
I tilted my head. Hilde gave a small snort of laughter as she looked at my face.
“Well, no matter. I’ll show you once, so pay close attention.”
Hilde settled into her stance. I didn’t know what she intended to demonstrate, but a master’s example was worth watching.
Whoosh!
“…!”
I watched, entranced, as Hilde’s sword moved with practiced grace.
“Selena, did something happen?”
“……No.”
The atmosphere inside the mansion was icy. Or more accurately, it felt as if something violent had swept through. The maids’ eyes toward Selena in particular held equal parts fear and astonishment.
I noticed belatedly that bandages were wrapped thickly around her wrist and that numerous scars marred her fair skin—scars that had definitely not been there the day before yesterday. Was there any reason for a wealthy young lady to end up so injured? There could be only one answer.
“Sorry.”
“For what?”
“I asked you to do something unnecessary……”
“What are you talking about? Look at your own condition, Rui.”
“Hmm?”
Worry flickered through Selena’s eyes. Now that she mentioned it, I had plenty of small wounds across my own body. Hilde’s training really was brutal. Both of us were covered in bruises and bandages.
“Rui.”
“Yes?”
“Do you still want to become a knight?”
“……I do, but I’m not sure anymore.”
“I see.”
Selena fell silent in thought. She sat in her chair, lightly swinging one leg, twirling the pen between her fingers in an odd pattern. Then, abruptly—
“Tomorrow night. Are you free?”
“Tomorrow night?”
“We promised to spar, remember?”
“…Ah.”
Her earlier declaration that I should defeat her. I knew it hadn’t been a lie. Yet I had spent the whole time worrying whether I truly needed to do it, whether I even could. Whether it was all right for Selena to be the first true rival Hilde had spoken of—the mountain I had to overcome.
“Will you do it or not? Answer clearly.”
“I’ll do it.”
“Good. Then prepare yourself. I’ll fight more seriously than ever before, and thanks to you, Rui, my skills have grown considerably.”
“Thanks to me?”
“Yes. So I’ll give everything I have—for your sake too, Rui.”
“……”
A strange mood settled over us. Class soon began, and Selena and I sat through it without another word.
“Melissa?”
“……Ah, Lord Ruines.”
Melissa looked more exhausted than I had ever seen her. She rarely showed emotion on her face to begin with, yet now dark circles shadowed her eyes and small sighs escaped her at intervals. Anyone would think she carried a heavy burden.
“Is something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing. I was simply wondering whether I had awakened something I should have left alone.”
“……?”
She was a private tutor—practically Selena’s master. If even Melissa was this troubled, it could only concern Selena. I wondered if it was all right to ask. As I stared, she let out a long sigh and shook her head.
“For now, I wish you good fortune.”
“Ah, yes.”
With only those words, Melissa trudged down the mansion corridor, a wooden sword covered in cracks clutched in one hand.
While preparing for tomorrow night’s spar with Selena, I endlessly reviewed the situation in my head. Her declaration that she would fight with everything for my sake had not sounded like a lie at all, even from the perspective of a childhood friend. That was why I, too, was swinging my sword in the forest with all my strength.
Whoosh!
“Haaam…… How boring. If it’s going to be like this, wouldn’t Gigaam training be more useful?”
“The training wasn’t meant to amuse you, Master.”
“Kukuk. Why overthink it? I did find it entertaining, of course.”
Hilde muttered in a bored voice. She rummaged through her clothes, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it with a mere touch of her finger.
Fwoosh!
……Wait, what did she just do? When I focused my Gigaam, I caught a flash of blue energy. Maybe our master wasn’t a knight but a mage instead?
Hilde puffed on the cigarette and exhaled smoke as though nothing unusual had happened.
“Have you mastered what I showed you?”
“Not yet. The movements and stances are difficult.”
“Naturally. It would be hard for a novice.”
“But Selena will be fighting seriously……”
“A rival of that caliber is rare. Try to defeat her if you can—or at least make sure you don’t break.”
“The latter seems more realistic for me.”
“Hehe.”
Hilde laughed, clearly amused, as she continued smoking. Come to think of it, why had she accepted me as her disciple? The question suddenly rose in my mind and slipped out before I could stop it.
“Master?”
“Hm?”
“Why did you take me as your disciple?”
“Well……”
“……”
I swallowed. Perhaps an unexpected answer would come. I watched Hilde’s lips with fresh anticipation.
“Because it’s fun?”
“……I’m sorry. I’ll return to training.”
“Puhuhu. Don’t look so disappointed. I simply can’t do anything that isn’t enjoyable.”
“Ah, yes……”
Dismissing Hilde’s nonsense, I reset my stance. Selena, who had learned proper swordsmanship from Melissa, must be many times stronger than before. To follow behind her—even if only a single step—I had to focus.
I poured everything into my Gigaam. Sounds, sights, sensations. I gathered every ounce of concentration on the present moment.
“Huu.”
The image of Selena from that night rose in my mind. She had looked so beautiful it was as if the goddess herself had bestowed a blessing upon her. At the same time, the sight had filled me with both envy and fear. Those emotions were trying to surface again.
“Haa, haa, haa…!”
“Do not lose focus. Without concentration, Gigaam is meaningless. Pay attention only to what is directly before you.”
“……”
I took Hilde’s words to heart. This was the moment to accept the situation. Selena’s promise that she would sincerely turn me into a knight kept echoing inside my head.
“Suuup.”
I steadied my breathing and slowly swung the sword.