We live at the foothills of Dragon Peak.
Master-Disciple Bond
After being thoroughly drilled by the Spirit Tree Spirits for three days, I was finally released and returned to the Moss Garden. There, Mistral was diligently performing her morning duties.
“Mistral, a match!”
“Oh, Elnea, good morning. And welcome back. I heard. Did the commotion in Dragon Forest truly subside?”
“Ah, I’m back. Yes. The rampage in the forest should have calmed down by now. If Mistral knows about the disturbance in Dragon Forest, then Mother and the others must have returned home too, right?”
“They arrived home safely yesterday afternoon.”
“That’s good to hear. I was captured by the Spirit Tree Spirits and it was tough. …Not that! Mistral, let’s spar. I’ll show you my improved strength!”
“Fufufu, I’m looking forward to it. But, could you wait a little longer? I still have to take care of Grandpa.”
“Hai!”
I had gotten all revved up and ready to go, but now that I think about it, she’s right. Mistral can’t even eat breakfast until she finishes taking care of Old Man Sleigsta.
I obediently waited on standby.
But by the time I realized it was a mistake, it was already too late.
“Umm, good morning?”
“Oh my, isn’t it Elnea-kun? Good morning.”
“I heard Elnea-sama’s voice! Good morning!”
“Elnea-kun, I’ve heard what you said. Good morning.”
“Elnea-kun, I’ve heard those words clearly. Good morning.”
“Meow.”
“Y-You’re all here too!?”
I could have guessed this if I’d thought about it for a second… but I was so out of it from being kidnapped for three days that my mind wasn’t working properly.
And so.
The entire family was gathered in the Moss Garden from early morning.
And unlike Mistral, they were all brimming with spirit.
“Umm…”
I found Mistral, and just felt like sparring, that’s all.
It’s not like I wanted to cause trouble with everyone…
“I’ll be Elnea-kun’s opponent. Whoever makes Elnea-kun say ‘gyafun!’ gets to have him all to herself tonight.”
“It seems Elnea-kun wants to spar. Whoever pushes Elnea-kun down first gets to have him all to herself tonight.”
“No, no, Yufi and Nina, what are you talking about?”
Yufilia and Nina, who had apparently overheard Mistral and me, cheerfully took out their Ryūhōken.
“If that’s the case. I also received training from Ada, so I’m a little confident.”
“Elnea-sama is mine alone!”
When it came to this, Ruiseine and Laira also joined in.
And then, Priscilla-chan and Nimia also started their warm-ups with full enthusiasm.
“Oh, if you ladies are going to do that…”
“Mistral, you must prioritize your duties.”
“Mistral, you must complete your task.”
“No, Grandpa can wait.”
“You all underestimate me.”
Old Man Sleigsta, who had been having his jet-black beard combed with a large comb by Mistral, sighed sadly.
“So, Elnea. Are you ready?”
“Fah!?”
Mistral’s eyes are glowing blue from the start! Mistral, who exuded an aura that made me shrink just by looking at her, put down the comb and picked up a one-handed club instead. Overwhelmed by the enthusiasm of my wives, I stepped back with a strained face.
“First strike wins!”
Among the women who were warily assessing the distance, Laira moved first. As her two-handed staff, infused with Dragon Energy, began to glow golden, she charged towards me.
“Yaaah!”
Laira’s full-power strike was approaching. If I took it head-on, I’d get seriously injured in this sparring match! I drew out my Spirit Tree Wooden Sword, made of the same material as Laira’s weapon, and slashed to block her momentum.
“Hahahaha!”
Laira lost her balance when her decisive blow was deflected. I nudged her from behind, and she face-planted onto the moss. Well, her ample chest acted as a cushion, so I think she’s fine. But I don’t have time to leisurely observe a maiden’s embarrassing pose. While I was mesmerized by Laira’s chest and rear, Mistral closed the distance in an instant. The menacing aura of a blunt weapon approached from behind! I swung the Spirit Tree Wooden Sword as I turned around. As if on cue, the edge of the wooden sword and the spikes on the tip of the one-handed club collided.
If we just went head-to-head with raw power, it was obvious I would lose. So, using the point where the wooden sword and club met as a pivot, I flowed with my body and deflected Mistral’s explosive force. Slipping and stepping gracefully, I moved to Mistral’s side. My movement had completely seen through Mistral’s surprise attack, but her eyes were still fixed on me as I dodged to the side. Nevertheless, this is where the true strength of Dragon Sword Dance comes into play. I’ll overwhelm Mistral with sheer numbers and win today!
That’s how it always is for me.
But, the me now is different from before!
Using the momentum from shifting sideways, I launched into a two-hit combo. However, Mistral could see right through my movement. She deflected the first blow, dodged the second, and counter-attacked. I also increased my number of attacks, not to be outdone, but Mistral defended with precise movements and landed a decisive blow, exploiting my opening.
I can see a slightly future outcome of this situation as clearly as if it were in my hands.
Dragon Sword Dance is a sword technique that draws opponents into the dance as a partner, drawing the flow of battle to one’s side. However, stronger opponents easily detach themselves from my dance and, conversely, make me dance to their tune. This is hardly an unbeatable fight, or a perfect Dragon Sword Dance. I’ve known this for a long time. But I couldn’t find a way to resolve it.
Because. I was thinking wrongly.
Dragon Sword Dance is all about speed, or so I was taught and had fully believed. But that’s not it. A true dance is not beautiful unless the movement and stillness are in perfect balance. The dancing maidens I saw in Peking Opera also skillfully balanced movement and stillness. I was captivated and tried to incorporate it into Dragon Sword Dance, but I was too focused on the beauty and failed to grasp the essence.
But now, I can understand. That was the ultimate beauty achieved by eliminating waste, and to reach that point, I still need to experiment endlessly. And to master stillness and movement, there are times when one must be prepared to forgo sheer numbers.
The me of the past would have skillfully used momentum to launch into consecutive attacks. But now, I forcefully held back that predictable flow and delivered a single horizontal slash.
“?”
As if sensing the subtle change in my movement, Mistral deflected my attack and looked at me with suspicion.
“Oh, how unexpected. With that flow, I thought you’d go into a two-hit combo followed by Dragon Sword Dance?”
As expected, she had me figured out. Performing a planned sequence that’s already been read is just playing into the opponent’s hands.
“However, if it was a contrived move, then it was a failure. Your feet have stopped moving with that last action?”
“Gnu~nu~”
I can’t just stand there observing! Old Man Sleigsta, seeing my movement, which was different from usual, pointed it out sharply.
That’s right. To be honest, it wasn’t a contrived move. I haven’t exactly had three days of intensive training with the Spirit Tree Spirits. I was working on revising Dragon Sword Dance. I was revising the offensive-only, overpowering-with-numbers style and trying to incorporate new elements such as accurately predicting the opponent’s movements, eliminating waste, and grasping the battle situation. Of course, I haven’t neglected this before. But to take Dragon Sword Dance to even greater heights, I need to improve its precision more than ever. Therefore, I need to re-examine the basics and eliminate any rough edges. If I have a weakness when facing a stronger opponent, it will surely be exploited. That is something that absolutely cannot happen moving forward.
“Hmph. You cannot afford to lose. However, if it causes what you had until now to crumble, it is meaningless. Your current movement was clumsy, like when you first started learning Dragon Sword Dance.”
“Yes, I am aware of that. But even if I have to start over from the beginning, I will master this fighting style!”
It’s harder to revise familiar movements than to learn new things. Even after three days of intensive training, this is all I can manage. But I think I am making progress. I’ve managed to change my thinking from solely attacking and explore elements like reducing the number of moves and discerning the opponent’s actions, which I wouldn’t have considered before.
“First, it is a matter of consciousness. After that, you just need to start over from the basics and correct your habits.”
“Yes. So… Grandpa, please continue to guide me!”
“Kukuku. Your Dragon Sword Dance already surpasses what is in my knowledge. From now on, it will be a process of mutual trial and error.”
“It’s hard for me to notice my own bad moves or awkward movements, so please point them out a lot.”
“Very well. We shall be strict.”
As Old Man Sleigsta and I made a firm vow, Mistral sighed with exasperation beside us.
“Haa. Elnea, have you forgotten what we’re in the middle of?”
“Hah!”
That’s right, we were in the middle of a spar!
“You’ve finally finished talking. Opening!”
“The conversation is finally over. Prepare yourself!”
Then, as if they had been waiting, Yufilia and Nina attacked. Mistral!
“What! Why me!?”
“First, we eliminate the hindrance.”
“First, we defeat the strongest enemy!”
Using their Ryūhōken, Yufilia and Nina conjured a wind dragon and relentlessly unleashed a coordinated attack on Mistral. Mistral shifted her attention from me to the twins and began a furious counterattack.
“Uwah, they’re relentless.”
I won’t say who, but the ones screaming are Yufilia and Nina.
“Umm, Priscilla caught big brother first?”
“Oh dear, so I was caught before I knew it.”
While observing Mistral’s fight, Priscilla-chan jumped on me. Priscilla-chan hugged me tightly. Ares-chan also manifested, and I was captured by a young girl. Then, Nimia jumped onto my head as well.
“It seems it’s decided that I’ll be sleeping over with the young girls tonight!”
It’s not like I’m happy about it. I’d rather have a fun night with my wives than a fun night with flat-chested little girls…
“Elnea-big brother is thinking lewd thoughts, meow.”
“Elnea-kun!?”
“N-no, Ruiseine. I don’t have any lewd thoughts about Priscilla-chan and the others! Nimia, don’t just translate the inappropriate parts!”
If I’m judged based on only Nimia’s partial translation, I’ll be seen as a real pervert! I protested to Nimia. However, Ruiseine stared at me with cold eyes and mercilessly cast her magic.
“Uwah!”
I’m supposed to be analyzing the situation and reading the opponent’s thoughts and movements, but I missed something immediately. In fact, I didn’t notice Ruiseine’s magic.
That’s understandable. Ruiseine had deployed her magic over a wide area, covering the Moss Garden.
Ruiseine activated her magic. Then, with my feet as the convergence point, the expanding magic trap was triggered. The magic power stored in the spell converged at a single point, increasing its density and power.
I hurried to escape, but the little girls clinging to my lower body prevented me from moving as I wished. In the end, the little girls and I were captured by the binding magic.
“Gnu~nu. It’s just a normal Crescent Moon Array, but to be captured so easily.”
“Fufufu, I just changed the activation method slightly.”
Ruiseine, who had completely bound us, smiled in satisfaction. The Crescent Moon Array is a technique that originally creates the light and shadow of a crescent moon at the target’s feet, and constrains them in the shadow. The fainter the light of the crescent moon, the more the caster’s magic power and precision are required. And when the light becomes a half-moon, it transforms into the “Half Moon Array” with low power but quick activation, and when the light disappears completely, it transforms into the advanced binding magic, the “New Moon Array.” Therefore, the Crescent Moon Array is a basic spell that Miko learn.
But to think I overlooked such a basic spell and was so easily bound. The Crescent Moon Array, deployed along the outer edge of the Moss Garden, was spread out thinly and widely, making its presence faint and unnoticeable. But now is not the time to be calmly analyzing the battle situation. We were enveloped in a binding force that made me feel like my entire body was frozen solid, as if my very heartbeat could stop. Encased in such binding power, we were in grave danger. Ruiseine, with a scary smile, approached us, twirling her naginata.
“R-Ruiseine-san. Even as the caster, once you step into the shadow of the crescent moon, you can’t move, right?”
“Yes. Therefore, I will poke you gently from outside the shadow. This is one of the reasons why a Miko uses a long weapon like a naginata.”
“!”
This isn’t just a gentle punishment for naughty children, Ruiseine-san! If this continues, I’ll be poked all over by Ruiseine!
In that case… I gave instructions to Priscilla-chan and Ares-chan with just my eyes.
“Elnea and”
“Priscilla and”
“Ares.”
“““Spatial Jump!”””
Even if our fingertips can’t move, we have an emergency escape! The spell activated, and Priscilla-chan and Ares-chan disappeared. Immediately afterwards, they reappeared far from the Crescent Moon Array, bouncing around merrily. And me too. Me too… Me? For some reason, the spatial jump didn’t activate, and I remained captured by the Crescent Moon Array. Wh-Why!?
“Hmph. Considering future events, I have sealed your Dragon Arts. In certain situations, there will be opponents like that, right? I vowed to be strict with you.”
“Grandpa, to do something like that in this situation!”
But Old Man Sleigsta’s strictness didn’t end there. Old Man Sleigsta swung a black, giant hand down at me, who couldn’t move and couldn’t escape.
“Nyaaa!”
Nimia, who had been relaxing on my head and was left behind because she wasn’t touching Priscilla-chan, shrieked at the enormous hand descending upon my head.
