Ch.28Chapter 28: Review

#

Had there ever been a duel where the distinction between winner and loser was so clear?

After Excel’s voice announcing the end of the duel echoed throughout the training ground.

Shizu withdrew the sword she had placed above my head and relaxed her stance.

Then, as she returned to the neutral area, her breathing remained completely steady.

It was as if she was flaunting that the dazzling and intense movements she had just displayed weren’t enough to affect her breathing in the slightest.

Her demeanor overflowed with the dignity befitting a victor worthy of being called the greatest talent ever produced by the Cradle.

But where there is such a brilliant winner, there must be a corresponding loser.

The actions I took after losing the duel, despite not suffering any significant injuries, perfectly embodied what a loser should look like.

“Huff… Huff…”

My rough breathing from the duel still showed no signs of settling down.

Though the duel lasted only for what seemed like a fleeting moment, the movements Shizu and I displayed during it were polar opposites.

Shizu, who executed the legendary swift sword technique “Radiance” once demonstrated by the great hero Lumen Ranos, moved at a speed that no one in this training ground could follow with their eyes or spiritual perception.

And me, who somehow managed to take the initiative with movements that seemed forcibly squeezed out by predicting Shizu’s actions through the experience of 10 years intertwined with two deaths.

If I were to put a positive spin on it, one could call it a duel contrasting brilliance and simplicity.

But in reality, even my desperate movements failed to draw out Shizu’s true abilities completely—it could rightfully be called an incomplete combustion of a duel.

“Huff…”

After reviewing the duel in my mind, only a light sigh escaped my lips.

I had awakened the exceptional talent of hyper-regeneration, incomparably superior to what I had at this time in the previous timeline, taking a step closer to the path of a superhuman.

I had even overcome the shackle of “Broken Vessel” that had bound me until just before my first death before the regression, gaining the advantage of being able to utilize my innate excellent physical abilities more actively.

Yet the sigh came from the stark realization of how far I still had to go to reach Shizu, who had diligently advanced ahead of me.

In the past, I would have thrown all sorts of tantrums, unable to accept defeat after experiencing such an insurmountable gap.

‘At least my head didn’t get cracked open.’

It was a satisfactory duel just for the fact that I didn’t suffer the misfortune of having my head cracked open by the flat of Shizu’s sword like yesterday.

And it also served as motivation to establish a clear goal.

‘Someday, I hope to close even a little of this immense gap between us.’

It was an earnest wish to not become a hindrance by her side—the precious one I always wanted to protect.

It was right around then that my rough breathing from the duel finally began to calm down.

#

Murmuring voices

As I was about to leave after reflecting on the duel, various voices began to reach my ears one by one.

The owners of these voices were the students surrounding the center of the training ground where my duel with Shizu had taken place.

‘What are they saying?’

Would they mock me for failing even my single attempt at taking the initiative against Shizu and losing pathetically to her counterattack?

‘…Well, I couldn’t blame them if they did.’

Since I had lost with such an overwhelming gap, I didn’t have high expectations as I turned my ear toward the direction of the voices. The first voice I heard:

-Did he really succeed in awakening yesterday? He read Lily’s movements that no one except Excel could perceive?

‘…Huh?’

It contained nothing but pure admiration, to the point where I felt embarrassed hearing it.

-Well… He may not have awakened, but he trained alongside Lily at the Cradle more than anyone else, so he must have some knack for reading her.

Stab

‘…Ugh.’

The voice filled with untainted purity was strangely piercing my conscience.

And for good reason.

‘This wasn’t reading her movements—I just guessed based on memories from before the regression.’

It was an action I couldn’t have even attempted without the experience from the previous timeline.

Only because I had fought against her Mirage Step countless times before.

It was a judgment that came close to the correct answer only because I drew on my experience from before the regression and consciously heightened my spiritual perception.

If either of these had been even slightly lacking, I would have failed miserably and might have been knocked unconscious again by Shizu’s sword strike like yesterday.

It was nothing more than a makeshift response, close to improvisation.

But apparently, the movement I showed was still somewhat impressive:

-My blood is boiling. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a duel that inspires such motivation just by watching.

-I didn’t expect someone who just awakened yesterday to show a proper response to Lillian Shizu’s movements.

-It was a movement that no one except Excel could even follow with their eyes.

-Right. Even Excel, who could somewhat read her movements, could only focus on dodging her approach, not counterattacking.

-To think a rising competitor would appear overnight—life at the Cradle isn’t easy.

-Instead of talking about it, let’s get back to our own training.

I could also hear the voices of those strangely fired up with motivation.

‘…This is uncomfortable.’

As I mentioned earlier.

During the duel with Shizu, I had the weapon of 10 years of experience—an overwhelming advantage compared to anyone else in this training ground.

Although the result of the duel was a loss in what couldn’t even be called a fleeting moment, I was able to face Shizu in a somewhat decent manner.

To bridge the overwhelming gap, I even drew on experiences from a timeline that only I remember now.

It was like cheating on an exam by preparing a crib sheet beforehand.

And despite such cheating, I still failed to achieve proper results and lost.

If they knew the truth, I would be lucky not to be pointed at or laughed at, yet:

-Seeing what he did makes me feel like my efforts have been lacking.

-Before saying it’s impossible, let’s at least try like Cal Ranos did.

-Yeah, let’s do it.

My desperate struggle had somehow inspired motivation in the students who watched the duel.

My already pricked conscience was now being deeply stabbed.

“…I feel dizzy.”

Perhaps it was due to the weight of my guilty conscience?

A fatigue I hadn’t felt during the duel suddenly overwhelmed my body.

I should rest a bit.

I’ll thank Shizu for the duel and then find a suitable place to rest.

As I was about to move with that thought:

Thump

I felt a rough hand on my shoulder.

Turning my head in confusion, there was:

“…You did well, kid.”

Excel, giving me a thumbs up with his free hand while wearing a somewhat proud expression.

“…What is it?”

Feeling awkward at his unusually rough expression, an uncontrolled blunt response escaped my lips.

‘Ah…’

I immediately regretted my curtness, but Excel maintained his proud expression and slowly shared what he wanted to say.

That he was truly happy to see my efforts rewarded in this way.

That as a friend, he would wait for me to rise to an equal position with him and the others.

He continued to offer congratulations filled with such pure joy, mercilessly stabbing my conscience.

“Did you read Lily’s footwork? I gave up trying to follow it with my eyes and just reacted on instinct.”

Then he asked a question that seemed designed to test my already tattered conscience.

My conscience was already being pricked constantly, and I had no intention of deceiving my childhood friend.

“…I just guessed based on the experience built up from dueling with Shizu since childhood.”

I told the truth, at least to this childhood friend.

“I see…”

Perhaps he had anticipated this to some extent, having watched the duel from the closest position.

Excel removed his right hand from my shoulder, stroked his chin, and seemed to accept my words with a nod.

“Ahem. Anyway, welcome to taking your first step on the path of superhumans.”

He patted my shoulder lightly while offering warm congratulations.

“The duel is over now, so go find something to train on your own. That’s what this place is for.”

With these words, he turned around and headed back to where he had been training earlier.

Following this, the students who had surrounded the center of the training ground also returned to their places and resumed what they had been doing.

The hearts of the students who had witnessed the extremely rare situation of Shizu, considered the greatest talent since the Cradle’s establishment, being caught off guard during a duel, were now filled with incomparable enthusiasm.

As conflicting emotions of satisfaction and guilt kept gnawing at my heart:

“…I should go to Shizu.”

To soothe these feelings, I finally headed toward Shizu, who had contributed to my self-objectification by participating in a duel with an obvious outcome.

Shizu, who had been reviewing the recent duel with her eyes closed while maintaining steady breathing, slowly opened her eyes as my footsteps approached.

The moment those eyes, reminiscent of a cloudless blue sky, met mine:

“Good… work in the duel.”

Shizu’s slightly hesitant voice reached me.

…Hesitant?

Puzzled, I carefully examined Shizu’s expression and could easily see that there was a faint trace of apology in it.

Why would she feel that way?

She had perfectly overcome a dangerous situation where her flawless sword path had been somewhat read and the initiative stolen, achieving a flawless victory by anyone’s standards.

I was puzzled, but I quickly understood the reason behind the apologetic look in Shizu’s expression.

‘Could it be… she feels sorry for defeating me by showing such overwhelming skill?’

Suddenly, I recalled yesterday before the regression—my 18th birthday spent in a hospital room.

When I was falling apart with despair at the thought that I could never reach her and would fail to awaken and become a superhuman.

Despite being the winner of the martial arts tournament, she gave up the glory and joy to visit me, and I treated her terribly.

Starting with a sharp voice asking why she had come.

The bitter memory of making her cry with all sorts of sneers and my one-sided outburst of anger was etched in my mind.

‘Huff…’

Just recalling it made my heart ache, and I could only inwardly sigh.

I thought I had completely let go of it after sincerely apologizing and exchanging honest feelings last night.

Yet that memory kept resurfacing from a corner of my mind whenever it found a gap, giving me both pain and a lesson.

It was telling me to speak kindly to her now as she nervously watched me, and express my gratitude.

‘I was planning to do that anyway.’

After calming the instinct ringing alarm bells in my head, I realized I had already approached to within arm’s reach of Shizu.

Shizu’s expression, as she watched me approach with a composed face, showed not only the earlier apology but also a strange tension.

It was as if she was more tense now than during our duel, if I were to exaggerate a bit.

Seeing this, I almost let out a small laugh, but:

‘…This is all because of me and my blinding inferiority complex.’

Since the conclusion was that I was ultimately responsible for her tense appearance, I quickly composed my expression by inwardly cursing my past self.

‘Enough strange thoughts—let me say something appropriate for this situation.’

Finally, after organizing my thoughts, with a voice full of gentleness:

“Thank you.”

I expressed my gratitude to Shizu for participating in the duel with me, without a trace of shadow.

How long had it been since I last expressed gratitude to you like this after a duel?

I knew well that I hadn’t uttered these words even once since she awakened all three special talents at once and surged far ahead of me.

Though it might seem like a trivial expression, it was an extension of my commitment to always show gratitude to her, and so a gentle curve naturally formed at the corners of my mouth.

It was around then that a small crack appeared in Shizu’s expression of feigned calmness and apology.

“…!!”

With a slight blush spreading across both cheeks as if embarrassed, Shizu opened her eyes wide in surprise.

Her already beautiful eyes grew even larger, enhancing her beauty.

Finding her so adorable, I felt the desire to raise my hand and pat her head, but:

Stroke, stroke

The momentary desire quickly faded away as Shizu stood on her tiptoes and gently stroked my crown.

“Um… Shizu?”

After barely managing to calm my mouth, which was about to fail to produce any words out of surprise, I carefully called out to Shizu, but:

Stroke, stroke

Seeing gratitude and concern intermingled in Shizu’s expression as she stroked my head:

Words ultimately failed to come to my lips.

I should have carefully called out to Shizu to make her pause what she was doing.

I should have told her to show some restraint since many eyes were watching.

But Shizu’s touch on my head was so gentle that:

I simply couldn’t bring myself to say what needed to be said.

Only then did I realize.

The warmth of your touch—you whom I wanted to protect for a lifetime:

It turns me into such a fool.

In this situation, there were only a few actions I could take:

Bending my upper body so that she wouldn’t be uncomfortable as she stroked me.

And lowering my head as much as possible to hide the fact that my face was on fire from others’ eyes.

These two things were all I could do.