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504 – 「If It Doesn’t Hurt, You Won’t Learn」

 

After finishing our preparations, we headed to the Shrine. This time, no one stayed on the Black Lotus—we were all setting out together. Though I said ‘setting out’ it’s not like we’re heading off to battle or anything.

「We’ve been expecting you. Welcome.」

「She looks so annoyed…」

And so, at the entrance to the Shrine of the Holy Vuelzarus Empire, we were greeted by Konoha—the samurai girl with round animal ears—who wore an incredibly displeased expression. Why, though?

「If you’re that bothered by our presence, we can just leave, you know…」

「That’s not what I meant… Fushin-dono is waiting for you all. Please, follow me.」

With those words, Konoha turned on her heel and began quietly leading us. The mental waves she was giving off were minimal, making it hard to gauge her emotions. Most likely, she’s been trained to suppress such feelings from leaking out.

Still, I don’t get it. Why is Konoha being so cold? Not just to us in general, but especially to me. I don’t remember doing anything to make her dislike me.

「Why do you think she’s being so cold?」

「Who knows? Maybe she’s just a neat freak.」

「She probably thinks you’re a scumbag for keeping all these women around.」

「Yeah, there’s no talking my way out of that one…」

I want to say in my defense that it’s not like I’m actively gathering women or that I’m not indiscriminate, but objectively speaking, it’s true that the number of women I’m involved with is quite high. And considering the fact that I spent last night entangled with all of them—although I hardly remember any of it—I can’t really deny I like women, so if that’s the reason she dislikes me, I can do little to change her opinion.

We all removed our shoes and made our way to the inner room we were shown yesterday. Inside the room was Fushin waiting for us.

「Oh, we’ve been expecting you. I’m glad to see you’re all looking well today.」

「Thanks. We came because you invited us, but I feel a bit guilty about taking up your time like this.」

「Oh, no need to worry about that. This is part of our duty, after all. I hope you enjoy your time here to the fullest.」

☆★☆

「So, you’ve decided to observe the training of the guards?」

「Well, the main reason I contacted the Holy Vuelzarus Empire is to learn more about Spiritual Power and how to use it, so it only makes sense, right?」

「I see…」

Konoha was guiding me to the Shrine’s training grounds, but looked really annoyed and was clearly displeased about having to guide me.

Seriously, why are you so cold to me? What did I do to you? Well, since the opportunity has presented itself, I might as well ask. Fortunately, only me and Konoha are heading to the training grounds. No one else is with us.

「I’m not one for beating around the bush, so I’ll ask directly—did I do something to upset you?」

「…No.」

「Yeah, that’s a lie…」

That pause at the start tells me everything. The problem is, I have no idea what it could be. Hmm, could it really be, as Elma suggested, that she’s just a neat freak?

「Is it because you’re not happy with how close I am with several women, or something like that?」

「…That’s not entirely unrelated, sigh…」

She sighed and glanced back at me briefly.

「Why are you involved with other women when you already enjoy the affection of the priestess?」

「Huh? What kind of question is that? By the time I met Kugi, there were already five other women in my life. Should I have neglected them just because she showed up? That’d make me an even bigger scumbag, don’t you think?」

Well, Dr. Shouko and Neve joined my crew after Kugi had already joined us, but there were reasons. Shouko was not just someone I had personal feelings for—having a doctor on board is necessary to protect everyone. And as for Neve, it was pretty much a given that if I didn’t take her in, she’d have died on the streets. Well, maybe not that extreme. It’s possible some noble would have picked her up, to use her as a political pawn.

「T-that may be true, but…」

「From your perspective, I’m probably just a no-good playboy for being involved with other women besides Kugi, and I won’t deny it. But I’m serious about all of them. I’m doing my best to treat them with respect and face them honestly. I’m not perfect, and I know I probably can’t make everyone perfectly happy all the time, but I’m making an effort. And it’s not just me—it’s all of us, working together, supporting each other.」

In fact, I think I’m the one being supported by everyone more than the other way around. I’ve completely left things like organizing the rotation for sharing me to the girls. I think Mei is mainly the one handling that. I really can’t thank everyone enough for following her arrangements without fighting between themselves, and still care for me.

「That said, I don’t plan on pushing my way of thinking onto you. Anyway, I understand now why you dislike me. If you get a chance, could you try talking to Kugi? She might have some concerns she can only share with someone from her homeland. And if you hear any complaints about me, I’d appreciate it if you let me know.」

「…I’ll think about it.」

It seemed like my words had reached her, even if only slightly, as Konoha’s attitude softened a little. Communication really is important, after all.

☆★☆

「Alright, let’s fight!」

Ranshin beamed as he declared this when he saw me arrive at the training grounds guided by Konoha.

Is his brain made of muscle too?

「Uh, I’m actually just here to observe the training… And not for sword-fighting, I came to see Spiritual Power training.」

「Ah, that’s a bit difficult, Hiro-dono.」

「Why?」

「This colony is too fragile for us to use our Spiritual Power in battle. If we had the right facilities, it would be a different story.」

「Facilities, huh? What kind of setup would that take?」

I knew how much damage the First Spiritual Form—telekinetic-based psionic power—could do in battle, so I was curious about what sort of equipment could withstand an attack of that magnitude.

「We have a specialized facility that deploys a type of mental space where you can train without worrying about bodily harm or damage to your surroundings. Unfortunately, such advanced facilities are only available in the homeland.」

Ranshin sighed with a look of genuine regret after answering my question. Wait, what?! They have facilities that allow them to train at full strength, and even simulate a life-or-death battle? Are these guys even more muscle-brained than I thought?

「Isn’t there a more… I don’t know, peaceful way to train? Kugi taught me some basic telekinesis exercises that I could do in my room.」

「Ah, I must admit, I’m not very good with such slow and steady training.」

「Commander Ranshin excels in enhancing his own abilities with the First Spiritual Form. On the other hand, he’s not as proficient in projecting Spiritual Power outside of his body.」

Besides the slightly embarrassed Ranshin, Moegi explained with a wry smile on her face.

I see… so he’s the type who enhances his own body rather than firing off attacks.

「What exactly is First Spiritual Form enhancement? What can it do?」

「My specialty lies in improving my physical abilities, enhancing self-healing, and reinforcing the durability of my body and weapons.」

「I’m still not quite getting it… How effective are those body enhancements compared to the enhancements received by the nobles from the Grakkan Empire?

「Ah, I’ve sparred with some nobles before using mock swords. Their reaction speed was decent, but their strength and speed were lacking. And, frankly, they were far too fragile.」

「Okay, I think I get it now.」

It’s probably safe to assume Ranshin’s body reinforcement is strong enough to treat Grakkan nobles like children. He might even rival Mei in terms of physical ability, or maybe he surpasses her. The fact that he casually described this colony as ‘fragile’ suggests his power is well beyond that. If he can destroy the colony with his bare hands, those enhancements must give him power on the level of a Titan-class combat bot or worse. That’s terrifying.

「Sigh… Let’s do it. A mock battle. But just so you know, I’m only slightly above average in terms of physical strength. If you hit me with a mock sword, I’ll definitely end up with broken bones and coughing up blood.」

「Haha, in that case, let me teach you how to use Spiritual Power to enhance your body. The best way to learn how to use it is a real battle.」

「Will it hurt?」

「If it doesn’t hurt, you won’t learn.」

「Someone stop this guy!」

Ranshin tossed me a mock sword—or rather, a mock katana—and began closing the distance with a terrifyingly cheerful smile.

Help!