Chapter 22: Cryonic

“…What?”

Sara’s words made no sense.
I must have misheard. I calmly asked again,

“What did you do to me?”

“Linea carried you, gracefully.”

“…And?”

“And she carried you all the way here, across the academy grounds. Hee hee.”

Sara mimed a princess carry,
as if she were holding me in her arms.

Carried me all the way here?
Impossible.

I would have noticed. She was lying.

I didn’t believe her. I looked at Linne.

Linne just shrugged, as if it was no big deal.

“You were just standing there, so Sara suggested I carry you. And you didn’t object.”

“You actually carried me? Like that?”

“Oh, Sara also suggested that particular way of carrying you.”

I see. It made sense now.

She carried me because I was just standing there.

I felt surprisingly refreshed, not stiff or sore at all.
Linne’s princess carry must have been very…comfortable.

And it was all thanks to Sara.
I had to thank her, for the sake of appearances, at least.

“Sara, you…”

The training grounds had stacks of wooden swords.
I grabbed a sturdy-looking one.

I turned to deliver some well-deserved justice, but Sara was already far away.

She created a patch of ice under her feet and glided away gracefully.

“Ugh…Sara, come back here! You’re dead meat when I catch you!”

“To use that level of water and ice magic without a water source… Sara’s impressive.”

Linne was admiring Sara’s skills, completely oblivious to my feelings. It was infuriating.

Fine, she didn’t mean any harm. Getting angry at her would make me just as foolish.

…But I was still angry.

Hiss—

“Whoa! Ellie, that’s dangerous!”

“If it weren’t for you…! Give me back my Sword Saint title, you pervert!!”

I swung the sword wildly, but my training hadn’t gone to waste. Even in my rage, the sword moved smoothly, following the proper form.

I imagined myself slashing and stabbing Linne, leaving her covered in wounds. She would be too stunned to react. That’s what she deserved.

“You slippery little… Stop dodging!”

“Calm down, Ellie!”

“Huff…huff… I am calm! Just…let me hit you…once!”

She was surprisingly agile for her size.

I thought I could give her at least three bumps on her head.
But this wasn’t satisfying at all.

I continued my rampage.

“You’re…huff…so dead when I…cough! …catch you…!”

“Ellie, let’s…just stay like this for a while, okay?”

Linne suddenly grabbed me, trapping me in a tight hug. I couldn’t escape.

“Mmmph?! Mmmph!!”

“Just calm down. You’re not feeling well.”

I struggled, but my arms were weak. I gasped for air against her…ample chest, my strength fading.

My sword slipped from my grasp.

Thud.

I dropped my sword.
A swordsman’s shame, Ellie.

I needed to get away from Linne’s chest…Linne’s…chest…

Linne’s…chest…

…Hee hee…

Linne continued hugging me tightly, until I was breathless, and my anger finally subsided.

“Feeling better now, Ellie?”

“Y…yes…”

“She’s…broken, isn’t she? Is she going to be okay?!”

“Ellie said she’s fine. She’ll be okay, Nina.”

****

Class started, my mind cleared, and Sara returned.

“Hee hee. Glad to see you’ve recovered.”

“I’m being the bigger person here. I’m letting you off the hook this time.”

I magnanimously forgave Sara.

If I resorted to violence again, I’d be no better than a beastkin.
I reminded myself and controlled my anger.

The classroom was crowded.
More and more students had arrived before class. Now, it was a dizzying array of colorful hair.

A woman stepped onto the platform. A slender woman with an armband that read “Instructor” began the lesson.

“As you all know, today’s class is a free-for-all sparring session.”

I’d never seen her before. Was she from the Imperial Army? She wore a sword at her hip. Her slender physique seemed well-suited for swordsmanship.

But I wasn’t interested. She seemed strict. That was my only impression.

The rules of the free-for-all were simple: no lethal magic.

Non-lethal magic was permitted. The uniforms offered some magical resistance.

Unfortunately, my Flame Sword was clearly lethal. I’d have to rely solely on swordsmanship.

But I didn’t mind. I could overcome any magical advantage with my skills.

Besides that, there were no other rules. We were free to negotiate additional conditions with our opponents.

I liked the casual nature of this free-for-all.

I picked up the wooden sword I’d used earlier,
pointing it at Sara without hesitation.

“Why don’t you spar with Linea instead?”

Sara smiled sweetly, declining my offer. I smiled back.

“I want to spar with you.”

This wasn’t violence against a girl. It was just sparring.

Of course, things could get…heated.
And I might accidentally…lose control of my strength.

“The winner of a spar with Linea gets a wish granted. Wouldn’t it be better to have two wishes?”

“I still want to spar with you.”

I poked Sara’s chest with the wooden sword. It was soft and yielding, quite entertaining to poke. A pervert deserved such treatment.

Crack—

“…?”

A strange cracking sound.

I’d never heard that before. I looked down, towards the sound.

“Wh…what…?”

My wooden sword was frozen solid, a crack running down the middle.

“Oops, my hand slipped.”

Sara didn’t even bother hiding her actions. She just smiled sweetly, covering her mouth.

She looked beautiful.
If I didn’t know her true nature, I might have been captivated.

If only her actions matched her looks, she could be a saint.

Though still not as good as Sister.

“Did you know…”

Sara whispered, gently stroking the frozen sword,

“…the human body contains a lot of water?”

Her breath tickled my ear.

I didn’t understand her intentions. Was she threatening to…freeze me?

It seemed impossible, but knowing Sara, she was capable of it.

“…Much more than this piece of wood.”

Whoosh—

“Eek?!”

I stumbled back, clutching my ears. They were thankfully unfrozen.

As I sat there, dazed, Sara spoke,

“If you defeat Linea, I’ll grant you a wish as well. Two wishes are better than one, wouldn’t you say?”

That sounded reasonable. Sparring with Linne made more sense now. Perhaps I wanted to spar with her from the beginning.

I stood up, acting nonchalant.

“Ahem! If you insist, I’ll spar with Linne. I’m going easy on you this time, Sara.”

“Oh, there’s no need to hold back. I’ll gladly accept a spar with you anytime.”

“N…no, I wanted to spar with Linne…”

“Hee hee…you’re so different from your sister, despite being from the same family.”

Her fingers poked my cheek.

That pervert…
How dare she touch me with her filthy hands…

I couldn’t take it anymore.

I was about to swat her hand away when I remembered the frozen, shattered sword.

If I attacked her recklessly, I might end up like that sword…

Gulp.

I imagined myself frozen solid, trapped in mid-attack, a frozen statue. Sara exerted more force, and the statue cracked.

I shook my head, dispelling the image. My anger subsided, replaced by a chilling fear.

Sara was still playing with my cheek, as if it were a toy.

Ugh…I would have my revenge one day.

I cursed her internally, hating my own helplessness.