episode_0064
by fnovelpiaI explained to Johanna how I ended up sparring with Ascal. But for some reason, Johanna’s expression was still dark.
“…Then what’s with the mask story?” ‘If I lose here, I’ll show you my face?’ ‘Do you really want to see my face that much?’ “Ah…” The conversation I’d just had with Ascal flashed through my mind. It was a conversation we’d had before Johanna appeared, but it seemed she’d overheard it.
“Of course, I was just joking. It’s not like I’d lose anything even if I lost the spar.” “…Don’t make jokes like that in the future.” Even though I said it was a joke, Johanna’s expression remained dark.
“Honestly, even if I really took off the mask, nothing big would happen. At most, Princess Ascal might fall for me?” I tried a triumphant joke to lighten the mood, but there was no reaction. Instead, it grew even colder. “…………….”
Without a word, Johanna grabbed my arm tightly. It was so tight that I felt pain in my arm. “Senior?”
Still holding my arm, Johanna took a step closer. It was a distance where even a slight movement of someone’s head would cause them to bump. It was the first time I’d seen Johanna’s face this close. Even at this proximity, her fair skin showed no blemishes. Johanna’s expression was cold, but for some reason, her breathing was rough.
Johanna’s hand, which had been gripping me tightly, loosened its grip. “Haaah…!” I was about to sigh in relief, thinking she was finally letting go, but then I held my breath. Johanna’s hand was moving up my arm. Arm, shoulder, chest, neck. And even my face. Johanna’s hand, slow but deliberate, drew on my body as if it were a canvas.
“Senior???” Johanna ignored my words and continued moving her hand. When she couldn’t touch my face because of the mask, she frowned and moved her hand to my neck.
“Senior, you haven’t eaten yet, have you?” “…………….” Johanna, ignoring my words, caressed the back of my neck. She kept touching it, not stopping, as if leaving a mark on her own possession.
“When we get back to the academy, would you like to have dinner with me? I know a good place!” Hearing my words, Johanna’s hand faltered.
“Just the two of us?” Then, her caressing hand stopped. But it still hadn’t left my neck.
“Yes, just the two of us.” Honestly, there was no one else I could call. And I couldn’t call Yerika either.
“If there’s anyone you want to invite, Senior, you can…” “No.” Johanna cut me off, stating firmly.
And she asked various questions about where we’d eat dinner. Exactly when we would go, what kind of food the place sold, if I’d been there with anyone else, and if it was soundproof.
‘Why is she asking about soundproofing, though?’ Johanna’s lips, which had been set in a cold expression, slowly curved upwards as we talked.
“Hey~ There are other people here, so how about saving the displays of affection for when you’re alone?” Startled, Johanna finally took her hand off the back of my neck. Then she lowered her head and mumbled to herself. “…When we’re alone…displays of affection…” Though I was close, she spoke too softly for me to hear what she was saying.
“Senior, I’ll go spar with Princess Ascal now.” As I walked towards Ascal, I looked towards where Duke Freya and the Duchess were. Then I turned my gaze away. I absolutely did not see Duke Freya drawing his sword and looking at me, nor the Duchess trying to stop him beside him.
“Princess, huh? That’s disappointing. You called me ‘Noona’ so intimately just a moment ago.” Ascal said, her lips curving upwards as she looked at me. I felt an eerie presence behind me, but I didn’t turn around.
“Someone might misunderstand if they heard that.” “Misunderstand, huh… Anyway, if you don’t have a sword with you right now, should I lend you one?” Not understanding Ascal’s words, I checked my hand. In my hand was a sword-stick, which looked like a staff but was actually a sword.
‘No way?’ *As I heard, you have a unique getup.* “I heard you eat with your mask on?” Of course, it’s natural not to think of this as a sword if you see it for the first time. But I thought she would naturally know, since it seemed she’d heard things about me. If she doesn’t know about this sword-stick, then it’s possible she doesn’t know about my unique magic either. I became famous after my duel with Ropri, which left him incapacitated, but for some reason, the story about my unique magic didn’t spread widely.
“Loki?” “I’d be grateful if you lent me a sword. I came in such a hurry that I left my sword back at the dormitory.” “Right, it’d be stranger to bring a sword when you were suddenly invited. Alright, I’ll go get a sword for a moment.” “Then I’ll go put this staff away. It’s a staff I used when I injured my leg a long time ago, and now I feel empty without it, so I always carry it around.”
I walked closer to Johanna, as if making sure Ascal saw. “Loki?” Johanna called out to me, seemingly not understanding the current situation. Johanna knew well that this was a sword, so she wouldn’t understand why I was asking to borrow one.
“Shhh.” I put my index finger to my lips and said to Johanna. “Alright then, Senior Johanna. Could you please hold onto this ‘staff’ until the spar is over?” I handed the sword-stick to Johanna.
“…Okay.” Johanna took the sword-stick I offered and flinched. Because that one was a fake made of illusion. The real one was currently in sub-space.
If Ascal already knew about my abilities, there was a high chance I’d lose. But what if she didn’t know about me? Even if she was from the Imperial Knights, I was confident I could win. I discarded the plan I’d just made and formulated a new one.
“Alright, I brought a good one.” I received a sword from Ascal. Since it was a sword from a ducal family, it looked good even at a glance.
“Ready?” “Of course.” Ascal took a silver coin from her pocket. And tossed it high. She didn’t say it, but I knew. The spar would begin when that silver coin hit the ground. Both Ascal and I took our stances. The coin fell to the ground. Both of us charged towards each other. Clang!!!! Swords clashed.
* * *
Ten minutes passed since the spar began. Swish. Whoosh. Loki continuously swung his sword at Ascal, but Ascal dodged or blocked with her sword. After dodging Loki’s swing, Ascal immediately swung her sword at Loki, but Loki used Shadow Step to evade.
‘His movements are unusual.’ Ascal created distance and looked at Loki. Loki’s swordsmanship wasn’t particularly special. However, the reason why the match hadn’t been decided despite the time passed was due to those unusual movements.
“Tsk.” Just now, the sword should have clearly hit Loki’s body, but for some reason, it didn’t reach him. That was enough to cause a swordsman stress. But if Ascal had wavered just from stress, she wouldn’t have become an Imperial Knight.
Just as Loki was about to push off the ground to attack again. Ascal, with her lower body reinforced by mana, exploded off the ground and charged at Loki.
Clang! Clang! Whoosh! Swish! As if not giving Loki time to use Shadow Step, Ascal swung her sword without stopping. Clang! Clang!
Loki, barely blocking the relentless assault, seized an opening and used Shadow Step to escape. Swish! But Ascal immediately followed and swung her sword. She wasn’t moving based on where he went, but predicting where he would move. She couldn’t read the process of his movement, but she could read the result and react. This was Ascal’s solution to Shadow Step.
Loki rolled on the ground to avoid Ascal’s attack. ‘She’s ridiculously strong.’ Her stamina and mana to continue such a fierce assault. Her ability to react to unfamiliar movements and her practical experience. Ascal Freya was indeed strong. But not so strong that he couldn’t endure.
Clang! Once again, swords clashed.
“You can’t defeat me just by running away. Surely, that’s not all you have?” Ascal, with sword in hand, was so serious she seemed like a different person from before the spar. Ascal continuously swung her sword, her body reinforced with mana, yet she showed no signs of fatigue. If it continued like this, he would lose to Ascal, but he had no intention of letting it continue like this.
“No way, of course not. It starts now.” Loki reinforced his sword with mana, as if showing Ascal. And then he took a stance as if he was about to spring forward.
“Are you planning to unleash an all-out strike?” Ascal took a stance as if she would receive that strike. Bang! The sound of air bursting was heard, and Loki charged towards Ascal.
“Has he been hiding his strength until now?” Ascal watched Loki charging at a speed incomparable to before. She was surprised by his speed, which was faster than expected, but it wasn’t so fast that she couldn’t react. Ascal also swung her sword downwards towards the charging Loki. Just before their swords clashed. Loki let go of his sword.
“I don’t like all-out strikes like that; they’re childish.” Ascal’s blade cut through Loki’s sword, which had been abandoned in mid-air. As Ascal’s sword swung from top to bottom, a natural opening appeared in her body. Despite this, Ascal quickly assessed the situation. ‘Loki’s sword is already shattered.’ She could endure a mana-reinforced punch, at most.
Snap! But then, the sound of fingers snapping echoed in the air, and the staff Loki had been holding earlier appeared in his hand. Only by seeing it up close now could she tell. That staff was a sword. The tip of the staff was pointed like a blade.
Loki swung the sword-stick towards Ascal’s exposed body, but Ascal quickly pushed off the ground and dodged the sword. Having averted the crisis, Ascal quickly looked at Johanna. The staff of Loki’s that Johanna had been holding had vanished from her hand.
Snap! Snap! Snap! Snap! Then, the sound of fingers snapping echoed in the air. Ascal looked at Loki. Every time he snapped his fingers, daggers appeared in Loki’s hand.
“Princess Ascal, what do you think my ability is?” Loki, holding several daggers in one hand, asked Ascal.
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