Once I completed my hellish training with Albi, I headed for Eternal Darkness.
My goal for the day was to have a sparring match with the radiant star. The cocoons used for simulation battles could be found in just about any dungeon. I mean, they were so useful, why wouldn’t you want some around? They were a necessity for gaining battle experience and a must-have item for professional adventurers and mercenaries.
As long as we were in a simulation, I could experience a master’s sword skills firsthand with no fear of losing my life.
Haruka was a real prodigy. In fact, she was something special even among prodigies. How gifted was she? I once told her about the skills of a certain swordsman from the Dungeon Magia canon—easily one of the top five strongest—and she was able to perfectly replicate his skills from my description alone. That was how impressive she was.
She left me speechless. Then she furrowed her brow and tried to tell me this and that about what kind of skills were easier to replicate. But the fact of the matter was, we were talking about a skill that was practically impossible to pull off in the first place. This was a move capable of changing the very history of swordsmanship, and she’d just performed it as though it were a simple feat of acrobatics. It was mind-boggling.
Plus, she still had her best years ahead of her. The prospect of what she might one day be capable of had me equal parts excited and terrified.
It should go without saying that in a match against someone so talented, I didn’t stand a chance.
“Whoo-hoo! Today was a blast, huh?”
Still full of energy, she stretched, her back to the setting sun. Then she took a big swig of her yogurt drink. She was as lively as ever.
“Thanks for the match,” I said. “I learned a lot today.”
“I should be the one thanking you. I learned a lot today, too, Mr. Kyouichirou.”
We exchanged humble pleasantries. But the facade soon broke, and we burst out laughing.
I loved spending time with Haruka. It didn’t matter how tough the training was. As long as I was with her, I could muster up enough energy to keep going.
“That said, something’s off about you today, Kyou. Did something happen?”
We were sitting outside on a bench when she made this sharp observation.
…How does she know?
“Oh yeah? I got my ass kicked just like I always do, though.”
“No, something’s different. You’re usually way stronger… It’s almost like you were fighting at two-thirds your normal strength.”
Bull’s-eye. Is this chick psychic or what?
“…You’re right. My spirit’s a bit under the weather right now. But I know what’s causing it, and I’m gonna make sure it gets sorted out before our next battle, so don’t worry about it.”
“Hmmm…”
“Why are you gawking at me like that? Wait—you’re trying to read my thoughts from the look on my face again, aren’t you?!”
“It doesn’t look like you’re lying. But I can tell you’re hiding something.”
Damn it! Why the hell am I so easy to read?! I seriously need to invest in something to hide my face.
“By the way…” Once our conversation came to a natural lull, Haruka changed the topic. By this point, the chatter of birds had petered out, replaced by the gentle hooting of owls (this place had actual wild owls). “…Is Jupi doing all right?”
“Huh? She’s fine. She’s probably playing games with Albi as we speak.”
“Oh yeah…? That’s good to hear…”
“Yeah…”
Huh? Something doesn’t feel right. This isn’t like Haruka at all.
If she was worried about Jupiter, wouldn’t she just drop by to see the girl for herself? She’d already come by a few times the previous week to poke her nose into Jupiter’s business.
She’d kept up her end of the promise we made that night beneath the fireworks, and her devotion to the girl was obvious.
Wait, hold on. Something is definitely off.
Haruka’s most recent visit had been only two days prior. She’d spent the whole day hanging out with Jupiter, cooking with her and so on. She’d left right at five o’clock.
Everything about her visits was perfectly courteous. The time of day she visited, the frequency of her visits, and how the two of them spent their time were all normal and in no way excessive.
To be honest, I’d initially expected her to come around every single day—not that I was hoping for that or anything.
But instead, she’d been so very reasonable. On the one hand, it was perfectly polite and sensible. But on the other hand…
“Hmm.”
I stared at the radiant star. Her face, which stood out even in the twilight, held a shadow of concern. Wait, hold up. Look at those long eyelashes! Is she a model or what?!
“Wh-what is it, Kyou? Is something on my face? You really shouldn’t stare at people like that.”
“You know what they say: What goes around comes around. How does it feel to be the one being gawked at for once?”
I continued gazing at her beautiful face, trying to vent my pent-up frustration.
I guess eyes really are the windows to the soul. Even a dense lunkhead like me can get an idea of what she’s thinking if I stare hard enough.
“You’re being overly cautious around Jupiter, aren’t you?”
The radiant star’s head jerked. Her reaction told me everything.
“Ugh, darn it,” she said. “And here I was, thinking I wasn’t the type to be so saccharine.”
“‘Saccharine’? Now there’s a word you don’t hear much anymore.”
“Seriously? But my mom said that’s how all the hip young girls talk.”
“Riiight. Probably best to assume any words your mom thinks are ‘hip’ have long since become lame.”
I finally understand why Haruka’s sister always spoke in such a weirdly exaggerated way… Oops, better get back on topic.
“I think you’re very considerate,” I said. “And I mean that in a good way.”
It was easy to get distracted by Haruka’s excitable, borderline psychotic personality, but the truth was, she had pretty well-developed social skills. She was proactive when it came to starting conversations and really good at expanding them into other topics. She was a great listener, and her smile felt natural. Closing the personal space between herself and her conversation partner came easily to her. Basically, she was really well put together.
And yet—or maybe because of that—she was overly considerate. Right now, she was holding back, keeping Jupiter at arm’s length.