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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: A New Training Partner and a Confrontation
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The Greatsword Ironwoman.
Aisha Bizbell.
A top-tier practitioner in martial arts among the first-years.
And now, she was kneeling before me, her head bowed.
"I-I'm so sorry. I didn't realize anyone was here."
The greatsword that had nearly bisected me.
It was a greatsword Aisha had accidentally thrown.
I had been startled too, but with time, I'd calmed down.
Aisha, on the other hand, still seemed flustered at the thought of almost hitting someone with her greatsword.
"It's fine. You can get up. I'm not hurt."
First, I needed to calm her down.
I didn't know what the other kids would say if they saw this.
But Aisha still hadn't risen from her bowed posture.
"I'm so sorry. If there's any problem, please come find me and I'll accept any charges you might make. I truly apologize."
Was Aisha really the type to apologize so excessively?
Since the game revolved around Lucas,
I hadn't known the personalities of the lower-grade students in detail.
"No, really, it's fine. I'm completely alright. More importantly, how did the greatsword fly off like that?"
At that moment, Aisha flinched.
Seeing her flinch, I raised an eyebrow.
Was there something she couldn't talk about?
But Aisha seemed to think it wasn't right to hide anything from someone she'd inconvenienced.
She spoke, still in her bowed posture.
"W-well, I was doing a windmill spin and I let go."
And after hearing her next words, I blinked.
A windmill.
So Aisha had been spinning around and around while holding her greatsword.
Aisha, true to her image as the Greatsword Ironwoman, always gave off a strong, weighty impression.
The thought of her doing something like, "Spinning Cyclone!"
Honestly, it was a bit absurd and broke her serious image.
'It would be fun to watch, though.'
Spinning something around has a primal appeal.
However, it's usually a game one graduates from in childhood.
Aisha seemed to know this, as her ears flushed red with embarrassment.
She buried her head so deep it was like a rabbit burrowing into its hole.
"U-um, I'm really sorry, but could you possibly keep this a secret?"
"That wouldn't be too hard, but..."
Come to think of it, Aisha was only 17.
It's an age where high schoolers often do random, silly things.
And it's also an age where they know how to be embarrassed about what they've done.
Considering her age, everything made sense.
"Ah, now that you mention it."
A good idea popped into my head.
And I almost, inadvertently, said her name, but stopped.
I shouldn't know her name if we're not acquainted.
I need to be careful.
"Your name is?"
"Aisha Bizbell. I'm a first-year."
It's hard to pretend not to know something you already do.
"I'm Hanon Airey. I transferred in yesterday as a second-year."
"You're a senior!"
"But you've been at the academy longer, Aisha. So in a way, you're more of a senior."
"M-me, a senior?"
Aisha's eyes darted around, as if she didn't dislike the idea of being called a senior.
A little cute.
If it weren't for the greatsword deeply embedded next to her.
"Aisha, do you train every morning?"
"Oh, yes, it's part of my routine."
How diligent.
Rain or shine, Aisha trained here every morning.
Knowing that fact well, I smiled.
"Would it be possible for me to join you when you train?"
"Join my training?"
"Yeah, I want to get a bit stronger too."
In 'Flames of Butterfly,' the concept of 'stats' existed.
Stats would naturally increase as one repeatedly performed actions or mastered specific abilities.
However, sadly, no windows popped up before my eyes.
One day, I tried shouting out every window I could think of, starting with the stat window.
Nothing appeared.
'Since it's become reality.'
I just assumed there was no stat window.
Instead, I concluded that the concept of stats itself still existed in the same way.
This was confirmed by several incidents I'd experienced before transferring to the academy.
'Repeated actions and mastery of specific abilities definitely raise stats.'
Even if I couldn't see it with my eyes, my body directly felt the sensation.
'Well, it's basically the same in reality too.'
For example, there's a more concrete sensation of 'breaking through a wall.'
Furthermore, I became certain of one more thing here.
'In this world, talent is the speed at which stats increase.'
The stronger one's innate predisposition in a particular field, the faster the related stats would rise.
So, training was important.
My strong point was stamina.
To operate as a member of the martial arts department, I had to somehow increase my combat abilities.
'The mock battle exam is just a few days away.'
Combat ability was essential to take Lucas's place.
Aisha was called the Greatsword Ironwoman and possessed top-tier skills among first-years.
And I knew what her main stat was.
'Stamina, just like mine.'
Aisha's unique trait: 'Ironwoman.'
Training with her would definitely be beneficial.
"T-training mate."
Despite it potentially being an annoying request, Aisha's eyes visibly lit up.
I felt Aisha's gaze quickly scan over my body.
It was like the look of a gym rat assessing the level of a newbie friend who'd just agreed to train with them.
"...Are you really sure you want to train with *me*?"
Aisha asked, a slightly worried expression on her face.
But the corners of her mouth were turned up, which inexplicably made me uneasy.
Her eyes were scary.
Her breath looked fierce.
The eyes of a veteran, looking as if they were about to devour the newbie at any moment.
Did I make a mistake?
But now, this opportunity was too good to miss.
"Yes, I'd appreciate it."
I'd just commit first and see what happened.
Aisha clenched both her fists.
"Excellent! If I can help a senior like that, then of course I'd be happy!"
"That's a relief."
Her gaze was a little *too* intense, though.
Still, I'd gained a reliable training partner.
"W-what are you doing?"
At that moment, I heard a familiar voice and froze.
I turned my head, and there stood a woman in light clothing, as if she'd just come out for a walk.
Honey-blonde hair reminiscent of the sun.
Beneath it, there should have been a bright, sunflower-like face.
But what met my eyes were deep dark circles under vacant eyes and messy hair.
Isabel Luna.
The protagonist, Lucas's childhood friend and one of the main heroines.
'Looks like she had trouble sleeping again today.'
After Lucas's death, Isabel hadn't been able to sleep properly and had developed insomnia.
Thanks to that, her once bright appearance now only held gloom.
It seemed she'd come out for a short walk, unable to bear the insomnia any longer.
And just then, she'd run right into me.
For some reason, her eyes were wide.
And I belatedly realized my situation.
Aisha was still kneeling before me, her head bowed.
I had left her be since she wouldn't get up even when I told her to.
To outsiders, it looked like a second-year boy had forced a first-year girl to her knees.
Naturally, it wasn't a good look.
Normally, I would have cleared up the misunderstanding first.
The problem was, the person was Isabel.
"Ah, w-wait a moment. This is..."
Just as Aisha, belatedly realizing the situation, was about to explain it was a misunderstanding.
I stepped in front of her.
Instead, I glared at Isabel with rude eyes.
This was my chance.
A chance to drastically lower Isabel's favorability.
"She caused me trouble, so I made her apologize. Got a problem with that?"
"What?"
Isabel stared at me with a blank expression.
She must have expected an explanation for the situation.
My brazen response, asking if *she* had a problem, clearly caught her off guard.
"I suffered a detriment, so I received an apology. I don't see how that's any of your business, Isabel Luna."
In 'Flames of Butterfly,' addressing someone by both their first and last name was a form of warning.
A warning not to interfere in unnecessary matters.
Isabel's lips parted.
And soon, she glared at me with eyes trembling with rage, clenching her fists.
"You're truly the scum of the earth."
"Rather, I find it puzzling. I merely received an apology for something that warranted one. Just like yesterday, you're incredibly nosy."
"How is getting angry because you insulted Lucas 'nosy'!"
Isabel snapped.
Others would likely never have seen her, who was usually bright enough to be called a sunflower, get so angry.
Even I had only seen Isabel this furious when Lucas returned after doing something dangerous.
But now, this anger was exactly what I needed more than anything.
I had to somehow draw out her emotions.
"Then what's your relationship with Lucas?"
Isabel flinched.
"Are you siblings? Or lovers?"
"...He's my friend."
Isabel glared at me, her face asking what the problem was with that.
I said nothing.
I simply made a disgusted face.
"Birds of a feather, I suppose."
*Whoosh!*
At that moment.
I saw Isabel's fist, now aimed right in front of my nose.
My hair gently swayed with the movement of Isabel's fist.
Damn fast.
I'd also trained in fist-related combat for quite a while.
My eyes could barely keep up with it.
She, too, was among the top-tier members of the second-year martial arts department.
Her movements, naturally, far exceeded human limits.
"I told you."
Isabel's low, chilling voice reached my ears.
"Don't insult Lucas."
I silently looked at Isabel's fist.
If I'd been hit there, I'd probably be sprawled on the ground right now.
This was Isabel's final warning.
"Then prove it."
I lightly tapped Isabel's fist with my hand and glared at her.
"Whether your friend's skill and death were in vain or not."
Isabel slowly lowered her fist.
In her eyes, a fighting spirit that hadn't been there before quietly ignited.
"This upcoming mock battle exam."
She mentioned the mock battle exam that was just around the corner.
"I'll turn you into a pulp there. We'll see if you're still saying the same thing then."
Typical Isabel.
She was angry enough to have already fought me, and then some.
Yet she deliberately declared she would fight me in the mock battle.
It was her kindness, not to carelessly throw punches outside, no matter how furious she was.
"Just so you know, Lucas was far stronger than someone like me."
I gazed at Isabel's retreating back.
And then I exhaled.
Ugh, I thought I was going to suffocate.
My face felt stiff, probably from maintaining such a sharp expression.
'More importantly, the mock exam.'
The mock exam was right around the corner.
All I could do was let out a hollow laugh.
'If this is the case, I need to implement my plans even faster.'
Otherwise, Isabel would utterly crush me.
"Uh, e-excuse me."
Then I suddenly realized Aisha was still there.
"Ah, sorry, I ended up dragging you into that."
Perhaps because I apologized so easily, unlike my stern expression just moments ago.
Aisha looked bewildered, as if feeling a disconnect from before.
"...Are you and Senior Isabel not on good terms?"
Aisha asked cautiously.
Isabel had quite a reputation among the second-year martial arts students.
So Aisha knew her name well.
"As it appears."
It's a complicated situation.
"Hmm, it seems like there are complicated circumstances."
"If you think you'll get caught in the crossfire, you don't have to help me with training."
I had no intention of creating unnecessary conflict just for training.
So when I said that, Aisha shook her head.
"No way! We made a promise, didn't we? I'm a woman who always keeps her promises!"
A magnificent woman.
Aisha, with her tall stature, fidgeted with her fingers.
"And I don't think Senior Hanon would do something like that without a reason."
"How long have you known me?"
"A woman's intuition."
I'm more into the edible kind of 'sense.'
"Alright, I'll be counting on you for training, Aisha."
"Yes, of course!"
"Then, could you perhaps get up now?"
"Oh."
Aisha quickly stood up, her face flushed crimson.
With her tall stature, she bent down and brushed off her knees.
For a moment, her collar slipped down, drawing my gaze to another, heavier area, but I resolutely lowered my eyes further.
Then I saw her crimson-red knees.
Had she been kneeling for so long that her knees got like that?
"U-um, and, ahem, Senior, when should we start training?"
Aisha's eyes sparkled with anticipation.
Her breath was quite fierce.
...Did I make the wrong choice?