Chapter 100: Those who had Grown Up

Those who had Grown Up

“Dorashaaaa—!” (Reus)

“Muu!?” (Sirius)

Due to the characteristics of the style, Reus mostly swung his sword down from directly above, but this time, he was moving sideways.

I was hesitating on whether to crouch or leap high, but thinking about the motive of his action, I crouched to avoid his sword.

Although there was a gap when Reus swung his sword, Albert interrupted from a blind sport during that exquisite interval and slashed his sword diagonally from the shoulder.

““Haaaa!”” (Albert)

If I leaped due to the previous attack, I would have to accept this attack in midair. There was [Air Step], which would let me kick in the air, but I prohibited myself from using it in the mock battles.

However, since I was firmly fixing my legs on the ground, I held the wooden sword diagonally and warded Albert’s sword.

“Again!” (Sirius)

I rotated without killing the momentum of the swinging sword, and that momentum was loaded towards Reus and pushed him away. He made a lower swing this time, but instead of leaping high, I stepped back to avoid it.

Reus concentrated on attacking, while Albert filled the gap. It was their established assault tactics by making full use of their individual strength.

Reus would expose his unprotected back when he rotated his body, but as he depended on Albert, he devoted himself to attack and completely abandoned the defense. Maybe because of that, it was a bit difficult to avoid or repel them off.

I felt that I was gradually being driven to a corner due to their coordinated assault that was getting better each time the mock battle was repeated, but I was also pleased with their growth at the same time.

“That’s good! But, it is still not enough!” (Sirius)

“I’m not done yet!” (Reus)

“Reus!” (Albert)

Thereupon, they suddenly switched offense and defense where Reus’ attack frequency dropped while Albert’s attacks became intensified.

They were taking turns, huh… It wasn’t a bad tactic to break the pace.

Albert was no longer hesitant. His sword swing was well-manifested by the powerfulness that reminded me about Reus’ stormy assault.

Reus was also being discreet, like Albert. He wasn’t only pressing with force, he was also moving in order to restrain my movements by thrusting with his sword by aiming at the gap, and made smaller swings.

At first… I think it might be somewhat better if they became a stimulus to each other, but for them to improve this much… The compatibility between these two seemed better than I expected.

They had really… grown up.

Now, what would they show me next?

“Damn, Aniki is smiling! It’s still not enough!” (Reus)

“If it so, let’s do that! I will match with you!” (Albert)

“Ouu!” (Reus)

When Albert gave the signal, he stood in front of me and hid Reus’ figure behind his back.

It was fine to create a blind spot, but I would also be invisible from Reus’ view, and it would be harder for him to attack.

When I started to run towards Albert while being cautious of Reus at the rear, I felt a surge of mana from Reus…

“Dorashaaaa—!” (Reus)

Shock waves that emanated from the sword that swung down were unleashed to the front. It seemed that ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’ – [Break Thrust] was unleashed.

If Reus unleashed from there, it would involved Albert, but he avoided by leaping just when Reus was about to unleash it.

Since Albert avoided without looking back, that was evident that he was fully synchronized with Reus.

“Not bad!” (Sirius)

Since I noticed this just before the shock waves were unleashed, I kicked the ground while invoking [Boost] and diagonally flew ahead to the right side. I could immediately get out of the range, since [Break Thrust] mowed down in fan shape.

Immediately after the shock waves passed through, while Reus’ body still shook because of the aftermath, I changed the direction of my leap, trying to jump into his bosom, and pressed him.

Let’s bring down Reus first before Albert, since he was unable to freely move until landing.

“Aniki!” (Reus)

However, since Reus also predicted that I would avoid that, he immediately swung the sword up, which was swung down earlier, and tried to counter.

I killed the speed by slightly kicking the ground to avoid that blow, and when I tried to bring him down by taking advantage of the time lag of one person, I turned to the emanating bloodlust from the side…

“Shishou!” (Albert)

Albert was approaching before me and swung his wooden sword down.

Chronologically, he shouldn’t have landed on the ground yet, so why he was so fast? As if he was kicking in midair…

“Cheh!?” (Sirius)

Rather than thinking, I should put up a defense. Quickly switching my thoughts, I received Albert’s assault with the wooden sword I had.

At the moment when the momentum was taken and I seemed to be pushed down, Reus’ wooden sword, which had been swung up, was about to be swung down again.

So the [Break Thrust] and subsequent slashing earlier were diversions, and the real attack was this one? If he had his usual greatsword, he would have to stop after swinging up, but I guessed that this was possible because of the light wooden sword?

That wasn’t bad… they understood the situation and took the best action to win.

“How about this!” (Reus)

Even if I wanted to stop that, my wooden sword was occupied by Albert’s assault. And if I directly accepted Reus’ blow, my wooden sword would be smashed.

So…

“Owaa!?” (Albert)

“Oh no!?” (Reus)

I stopped resisting Albert’s assault and rolled on the ground together with him.

Although Reus’ slashed down wooden sword was likely to hit Albert, he forced the trajectory of the sword to knock the ground.

In the meantime, I was rolling on the ground together with Albert for several times, and I finally stopped when I got on a horseback riding stance.

Reus immediately came closer, but when he saw my hand, which was attached to Albert’s neck, he had no choice but to stop his feet.

“…I gave up.” (Albert)

“No… it’s my defeat.” (Sirius)

Albert who understood the situation admitted his loss, but it was my loss in this mock battle.

“Wait. Why did Aniki lose?” (Reus)

“Look at my flank.” (Sirius)

The victory condition of the mock battles for these two was to give me a blow… in brief, they needed to hit me with an attack that I couldn’t defend, and it was decided when Albert’s wooden sword was touching my side.

While I was on the ground together with Albert, I was moving to take the top side, but even in such a state, Albert swung his wooden sword and hit my flank.

I wasn’t sure whether it was coincidence or unknowingly, and there was no pain at all. However, let’s admit defeat like an adult.

“Although it was rash, but this is fine, right?” (Albert)

“Your coordination and swordsmanship have sufficiently grown. If you show me that technique, there is no way that I won’t admit it.” (Sirius)

“Really!?” (Albert)

At that time, Albert, who leaped just above Reus, probably used [Air Step] to immediately attack me. When I tried to sense mana, I could feel some mana residue from where Albert took a leap.

I didn’t remember teaching that to him. I guessed he probably learned it from Reus. I prohibited myself from using it, but I didn’t remember prohibiting those two, so it was fine.

I thought that I went a bit easy on them. As expected, it was a pity that I couldn’t challenge the results because of training, but it was good enough for me, since Albert had also splendidly grown up.

However, since Albert unnecessarily spent too much mana because he wasn’t familiar with [Air Step] yet, he couldn’t get up because of mana exhaustion.

Nevertheless, Albert trembled with joy and was smiling from ear to ear.

“Your hard work pays off, Albert. Would you like to challenge Guirdjieff tomorrow?” (Sirius)

“Yes!” (Albert)

“That’s great, Al!” (Reus)

I had various restrictions, but I didn’t remember cutting corners.

I made such rules in order for them to acquire preparedness and strength, and I was glad that he made it in time.

Regarding the remaining days, it would be enough, since he had four days left, even if that didn’t include the time needed to go to Parade. If I asked Hokuto to find Guirdjieff, he would probably quickly find it.

“Alright! Let’s go back and tell Marina!” (Reus)

“There are many things I want to do now, but I can’t move my body yet. Please let me have a rest awhile for now.” (Albert)

“If it so, I will carry you. Lady at the front, so you are at the back!” (Reus)

“I told you… Owaa!?” (Albert)

“I’m going!” (Reus)

“Haa… what a troublesome guy.” (Albert)

Reus, who was completely pleased like it was really his matter, started to run while forcibly carrying Albert. Albert was bitterly smiling, and it wasn’t my imagination that he looked somewhat happy.

These two really became friends.

There were also times when they quarreled due to differences in opinion, but their bonds deepened day by day, maybe because their ages were close, and they were finally able to display a stunning coordination during the previous mock battle.

They seemed to have learned each other’s tactics, so it was a success to pair them together.

Of course, not only mock battles, I also trained them individually. Hence, the present Albert was much stronger than before we met.

“Dear me. Even though I can’t move myself, you are still fine.” (Albert)

“That’s a matter of course, since you used Aniki’s technique. Even though it’s kind of a waste.” (Reus)

“Don’t say that. I also understand it.” (Albert)

“Hahaha! Well, hold still.” (Reus)

I looked at them, who ran happily while making jokes to each other, with a satisfied feeling.

—

Finally, that night after passing my trials, there was a slightly extravagant dinner with the objective to defeat Guidjieff.

Recently, not only Hokuto, the ladies were also finding food sources, so I didn’t feel like just sticking with the training.

Anyway, Hokuto and the ladies got various edible wild plants, and we were having steam-grilled river fish. Besides, I made curry, which was the sibling’s favorite, since we went to the town several times to get a supply of spices.

“You finally passed the trial, Aniue!” (Marina)

“Yeah. Since the real thing starts from here, I need to prepare my mind.” (Albert)

Albert, who was only able to eat normally a few days ago, ate one thing after another to regain the exhausted strength.

Emilia and Fia were amazed with the way he cleared his throat in a hurry with water.

“It’s alright to prepare yourself, but how about eating more slowly?” (FIa)

“That’s right. Sirius-sama cooked this meal, so you should savor the taste more.” (Emilia)

“I’m sorry. This is the long-awaited curry, I’m going to enjoy this.” (Albert)

“By the way, the curry tastes better after keeping it for a day. That’s why you should keep it for tomorrow, you know?” (Sirius)

“Really!? But… Hmmm, this is troubling…” (Albert)

“Aniue. Why don’t you have a cup today, and have the rest tomorrow.” (Marina)

“Aah, I can do that, right?” (Albert)

The siblings were able to endure the temptation in this way.

Besides, speaking the gluttons in the house…

“I want more, Aniki!” (Reus)

“Another, please.” (Reese)

It was a correct decision to make two pots of curry for us and the siblings. One pot for these gluttons, and the other was for the rest of us.

As expected, I didn’t think they would secretly eat the portion for others, but just to be sure, I asked Hokuto to watch the pot.

After everyone finished eating, we put the curry in the cold box in the carriage. We, then, talked about tomorrow’s schedule, while drinking some tea Emilia made.

“First thing in the morning tomorrow, we will go to the mountain. Since Hokuto remembers the smell of Guirdjieff, there is no way we can’t find it.” (Sirius)

“As expected of Hokuto-san. By the way, when did you learn the smell of Guirdjieff?” (Albert)

“…Woof.” (Hokuto)

Even if that wasn’t translated, I understood it. Well… it felt like he was trying to avoid the question while averting his eyes. It wasn’t possible for him to say that the Guirdjieff had already been hunted while he went out to procure food.

Besides, if I had to say this, I also wanted to fight Guirdjieff.

Since Albert would be its fighting opponent, I wanted to know whether he could challenge it alone. Since the two were beaten after the training, I went out while waiting for their recovery.

By directly fighting it, I would judge whether the present Albert could win or not.

Originally, Albert was highly capable in terms of avoidance, and he might be able to do it somehow if he worked hard for a bit longer, but his offensive approach and his attacks… to be brief, he didn’t have enough offensive power.

However, based on how he fought together with Reus, I was convinced that he could defeat Guirdjieff, assuming that he wouldn’t be careless.

“Of course, I understand, but that is because Guirdjieff and I are completely different in movement and body size. By firmly understanding its characteristics, you will be able to fight it.” (Sirius)

“Yes, I will focus on precise attacks and avoidance. But, can I really defeat it now?” (Albert)

“I never fought it, but I don’t think it is stronger than Aniki, and more than anything, it is nothing big compared to Hokuto-san.” (Reus)

“Is that so? Knowing more or less about Guirdjieff… makes me feel like I can do anything.” (Albert)

That was because he was exposed to bloodlust many times during the mock battles, and he fought Hokuto as well.

Not only did Hokuto lightly avoid the simultaneous attacks by those two, they were hopeless, since their assaults were easily warded off with paws and tail.

I was also concern about the feeling of fear and trauma, but with Albert’s self-confidence, I could properly rest today.

—

The next day, we stepped into the depths of the mountain to look for Guirdjieff.

The members were me, Albert and Marina, while Reus and Hokuto went to find Guirdjieff, and Reese was there for medical treatment. The pitiable Emilia and Fia had to stay and take care of the base.

With Hokuto as the lead, we pushed through the trees. We kept climbing the mountain, while crossing rivers and cliffs. After a while, we reached a cliff, and then, Hokuto stopped while moving his nose.

“…Woof!” (Hokuto)

“Aniki, it is under the cliff there.” (Reus)

“Good job, Hokuto. Well, are you ready?” (Sirius)

“…I can do this anytime.” (Albert)

“Please do your best, Aniue.” (Marina)

“I can cure injuries, but please do not push yourself.” (Reese)

It seemed that it hadn’t noticed us yet, so we quietly approached and when we peered under the cliff, we saw Guirdjieff laying down on a rocky surface.

It was a flying dragon with a splendid horn that grew on its head and the size of its tail was probably three times my size. When I looked at it again, it seemed quite powerful.

Since the distance between us was not that high, it seemed to be alright if we directly jumped under the cliff…

“Are you kidding me? There are three of them. Although, one horn is enough…” (Marina)

“Dang, three dragons are impossible, after all.” (Albert)

“What will you do, Aniki?” (Reus)

“There will be no changes. There will be no problem if Reus and Hokuto take one each.” (Sirius)

If there was room, I was planning to let Reus challenge it alone, and this could save time. It seemed that today’s dinner would be a party with Guirdjieff’s meat.

I would stay here just to prepare for any unfavorable circumstances, and I would use [Impact] to stop Guirdjieff from running away.

“Which one is Al going to fight? All three of them are the same size.” (Reus)

“I think that I will aim for the middle one.” (Albert)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

“Alright, I’m going for the left.” (Reus)

Trees were not growing under the cliff, and since it was a place with scattered rocks, if the dragons were well-divided, they would be able to fight without affecting the others.

Incidentally, when they were about go for their targets, Reese and Marina apologetically came between us.

“Hmm… May I join in too?” (Reese)

“I don’t really mind, but it is unusual for Reese to say that you want to fight too.” (Sirius)

“There is a spell that I want to try, and I was wondering if it is effective against that dragon as an opponent…” (Reese)

“I-I also have a spell that I want to try!” (Marina)

It was necessary for them to know the limits that they could do.

I’d been saying that over and over again, so there was no reason to stop them, if they wanted to do it.

Since Reus wanted to fight alone, Reese and Marina would be supported by Hokuto,

but Albert was making a sullen face.

“Marina, you don’t have to go that far, you know?” (Albert)

“You’re right, but you are not the only one who has grown up. I have become stronger by learning a lot from everyone.” (Marina)

“But…” (Albert)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

Albert was hesitating, but when Hokuto barked as if to entrust them to him, he gave permission while letting out a sigh.

Since he himself knew Hokuto’s strength, he understood that Hokuto could protect her better than him.

“Listen, instead of Hokuto-san, aren’t you the one who’s supposed to go forward? They will only use magic as a backup.” (Sirius)

“I won’t be defeated, so I’ll be alright. More importantly, Aniue will fight one of them alone. Please be careful.” (Marina)

Thus, the allocation was decided. They were divided into three teams on the top of the cliff so that they wouldn’t affluence the other’s battles. They would start at the same time with my signal.

Just to be sure, I checked the surroundings with [Search], and there was no reaction of a large monster approaching us. It seemed that they could concentrate on Guirdjieff.

And when everyone was ready, I gave a signal with [Call].

[Begin.] (Sirius)

—

After that, they successfully dispersed the Guirdjieffs and started their respective battles, but… to be honest, I thought that there was no problem, except for Albert.

Hokuto had already defeated one earlier, and rather, it was a test sample for Reese’s and Marina’s spells. On the contrary, that Guirdjieff seemed pitiful.

Reus was fighting his opponent alone to gather experience, and if he could fully demonstrate his strength, he could defeat it.

Hence, my line-of-sight naturally turned to Albert’s side.

“…I have no grudge against you, but I will get that horn!” (Albert)

Albert had his usual sword, and he was staring at the Guirdjieff, which was roaring.

After a while, the Guirdjieff spread its wings with a shrill roar, and it flew to the sky while largely flapping them.

Although it could possibly escape at any moment, a flying dragon was basically a proud creature that won’t run away. In other words, it was probably trying to attack Albert, who stood before it.

Guirdjieff excelled at aerial battle. It was a flying dragon that could freely fly in the sky and assaulted with nails and ramming attacks from the air.

It was a threat, especially when it got closer for ramming attacks. If Albert received it from the front, he would be killed by the splendid horn on it’s head.

Since it always stayed in the sky, Albert, who had no long-range attacks, would inevitably have to attack when the other side attacked him.

However, Guirdjieff had solid scales, so he wouldn’t be able to connect the attacks because he had to focus on avoidance.

Well… that was the story before I trained Albert.

Albert avoided by leaping sideways and rotated once as the Guirdjieff that came closer fell.

“It is fast… but, it can be avoided!” (Albert)

Although it was coming from the air, he desperately avoided the straight ramming attack. Rather, he had received Hokuto’s and my attacks, so I would be angry if he couldn’t avoid it.

If it was before, it would be too much for him to avoid the attack. but it could be seen that the present Albert was using some strategies.

The Guirdjieff repeatedly did ramming attacks and swung its nails, but Albert continued to evade by a hair’s breadth.

“Let’s do this!” (Albert)

Albert probably got used to the Guirdjieff movements. As he prepared his sword and rearrange his mind, the Guirdjieff was approaching again to do another ramming attack.

And then, before it’s eyes, Albert leaped over to avoid it, instead to moving sideways.

“Over there!” (Albert)

Albert turned his body in midair, and he swung the sword down, just before the Guirdjieff passed right under.

Albert landed after Guirdjieff passed by him, and when he looked into the sky, he saw the appearance of the flying dragon shedding blood from its eye, while roaring in anger.

Considering the movement of Guirdjieff that was approaching with such speed, did he accurately slice its eye that wasn’t covered with scales? He was more dexterous in swordsmanship compared to Reus.

Above all, he was making use of what he learned from the training.

The angry Guirdjieff stopped attacking from the air. It descended before Albert, and loudly roared.

The dragon roar unleashed from the front was intimidating, but Albert kept his sword without hesitation.

“It’s big, but… it’s small. It is too small compared to Shishou and Hokuto-san. I can win… no, I will win!” (Albert)

Instead of waiting for the opponent’s attack, he kicked the ground and unleashed his attacks.

The Guirdjieff‘s nails were swung to cut the enemy in front of it, but Albert swung his sword according to its movement and hit its nails.

However, no matter how much training he had, it was a flying dragon… so there was no way for him to surpass a dragon that was several times bigger than him.

In a normal situation, the sword would be crushed by the nails, or he would be overwhelmed by its strength and its claws would gouge out his body.

“Although it is not necessary to be like Shishou or Reus, I…” (Albert)

However, Albert kicked the ground with his sword that hit the nails as the base point. He, then, lifted his body and avoided the assault.

Previously, Albert would fix his body on the spot. He would either ward off opponent’s attack with his sword or averted the trajectory of the attack, and because of that, he was often pushed away by opponents who held an outstanding strength like Reus.

But now, since he learned how to avert the attack while moving his whole body, he was able to attack at the same time he avoided the attack.

“This is my attack!” (Albert)

Albert, who leaped into the opponent’s chest, rotated in the air while avoiding the attack. And then, he swung the sword, which was loaded with momentum, at the Guirdjieff’s neck with his full power.

After repeated training with Reus, Albert’s sword, which imitated a blow of ‘Single Strike Ultimate Destruction Sword Style’, was sharp. The sword was swung through and slashed Guirdjieff scales.

However, Guirdjieff neck was big. With Albert’s sword, only half of the neck could be reach by the blade. I thought that if it was Reus’ greatsword, but… Albert’s attack wasn’t over yet.

“One more!” (Albert)

This time, he kicked the air with [Air Step] that used an excessive amount of mana. He approached the neck, which failed to be cut, and swung his sword.

When Albert landed while losing balance a little… the Guirdjieff’s head fell on the ground.

“…Did I win?” (Albert)

Even though there was almost no creature that could remain alive after its neck was cut, he stayed alert and kept holding his sword.

He didn’t let his guard down after the battle… That was a pass.

“…That was splendid.” (Sirius)

I honestly praised him because he had precisely aimed at the weak point and even when he jumped into its bosom, he was attacking when he couldn’t properly see it.

It took some time until he could see the opponent’s attacks, and although some modification could be seen, the results were good, especially when he could do it in less than half a month.

When Albert defeated it, he looked at Reus this time, but it was a bit different from what he expected.

Reus could see the Guirdjieff’s movements faster than Albert, but he didn’t cut it in half from the front. In fact, he was fighting it while trying various things.

Was this also influenced by Albert? I had a feeling that it was a bit different from the usual Lior-Jiisan, but I was unspeakably happy.

Reus swung his greatsword many times while solely repelling the rush attacks. He gradually sliced Guirdjieff’s tail from the tip toward its root. He probably practiced precise sword swings.

And when the tail was completely gone, he jumped just above Guirdjieff like Albert. He swung the sword against the opponent that passed him under.

“This is it!” (Reus)

The difference was that, Reus would swing the sword with his full power on its back, and not its eyes.

The Guirdjieff, which was struck by Reus’ strength, hit the ground. It, then, slid down while gouging out the ground.

“Here I come!” (Reus)

Finally, when Reus caught up with the opponent that stopped moving, he swung the sword down, and sliced Guirdjieff’s neck with a blow.

After confirming that the movement of the opponent had completely stopped, he waved at me and headed towards Albert.

“You did it, Albert!” (Reus)

“Ah, aah, yeah! By the way, how’s Marina!?” (Albert)

Although he was pleased after defeating the targeted dragon, he couldn’t rest easy because his sister, Marina, was still fighting.

I judged that it wasn’t necessary to worry, but when he turned his eyes toward Reese and Marina, I also did the same.

There…

“Hey, I’m here!” (Reese)

“The real thing is here.” (Marina)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

There was a pitiful ‘lamb’ being toyed by mysterious illusions created by Marina.

Previously, she said that her limit of creating image of herself was two, but now, not only herself, there were also a number of illusions of Reese and Hokuto created along with her.

Furthermore, since the visibility was obstructed by Reese’s [Aqua Mist], the Guirdjieff was confused and randomly flew around.

However, since Marina’s expression was pale, it seemed that she was hitting the limit of maintaining the illusions.

“Are you alright, Marina? It’s not good to push yourself, you know?” (Reese)

“Haa…haa… Sorry. As expected, I still can’t keep it for too long.” (Marina)

“You will get used to it when you do it over and over again. You seem to understand the importance of ‘Image’.” (Reese)

“Yes. Thanks to everyone.” (Marina)

Creating illusions was her unique ability, but it was close to a spell because it used mana. Therefore, An ‘Image’ was very important when using magic, but if it was used too much, it would cause mana exhaustion.

Marina erased the illusions as she reached her limit and at the same time, Reese also erased her fog. It seemed that the Guirdjieff was finally able to grasp the figures of its enemies.

“From here on, you can leave it to me. Hokuto, please!” (Reese)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

And then, the Guirdjieff tried to rush while aiming at Reese and Marina, but Hokuto, who was moving below in that moment, jumped up and bit the Guirdjie’s tail.

After Hokuto twisted his body as he was, the Guirdjieff swirled in the air, and hit the ground a little ahead of Reese.

“Thanks, Hokuto! Don’t get closer because it is dangerous!” (Reese)

She said that there was a spell she wanted to try, but I had seen that movement.

That was probably something I thought of in the past, and when I thought why Reese greatly raised her hands high…

“With the power of everyone… [Aqua Cutter]!” (Reese)

While discharging some high-pressured water from her hands, she swung down at the Guirdjieff.

No… was it supposed to be water?

That one long straight line of water was like a laser that not only cut the Guirdjieff into two, it even cut the rocks at the rear.

Originally, it was a spell that would blow the enemy away by the momentum of the water, rather than cutting. The momentum would drop if it was a little away, but now both its strength and range were at unimaginable levels.

The person herself stared at her hands that unleashed such a blow while bitterly smiling.

“Ah, ahaha… As I expected. It’s not good if I don’t do it until that degree.” (Reese)

She probably wanted to try what would happen if she unleashed it with full power…

With the determination of getting stronger and having Water Spirits that always followed her, it seemed that Reese had grown up without knowing.

I felt that I had a glimpse of the abnormality of Spirit Magic by these sudden changes.

“To easily win against the dragon that I struggled to defeat…” (Albert)

“Aniue, get a hold of yourself!” (Marina)

“Dang. Not only Nee-chan, Reese-ane also has magic that can slice, huh? I have to make sure that I won’t lose.” (Reus)

Although, it became a delicate situation, Albert successfully and safely acquired the horn of Guirdjieff.

—

Extra

The scene of a certain training.

“Let’s have a training of fighting a horse-riding opponent.” (Sirius)

“Uhmm, is that necessary?” (Albert)

“Well it is an experience as well. You should think about it as a fight against a taller opponent.” (Sirius)

“I see. But, there is no horse, right?” (Albert)

So, when Sirius blew a finger whistle, Hokuto appeared with flying dust at the same time.

And then, Reus naturally straddled Hokuto and raised one hand into the sky.

“Aniki! I don’t think it’s good to consider Hokuto-san a horse!” (Reus)

“I can probably break through the center if it is just with Hokuto-san, but the war potential is way too much! It doesn’t match with the training content!” (Albert)

Whether they obviously wanted to become a terrible duo, they frantically appealed.

“But, you know, isn’t this like killing three birds with one stone?” (Sirius)

“Wh-what do you mean by three birds? I am really scared.” (Reus)

“I can do intense training with you guys, and Hokuto is pleased when I am with him. And you guys will also know a new despair.” (Sirius)

““This is somehow weird until the end!!”” (Reus/Albert)

“Anyways, do it, Hokuto!” (Sirius)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

““Hiiiii—!”” (Reus/Albert)

And the despair had just begun…

—

Hokuto everyday… Part 1.

Hokuto was a dog in his previous life, but now he was a Hundred Wolves.

Because of that, although there were necessary things for dogs, there were many things he didn’t need as a Hundred Wolves.

For example… he basically didn’t need to eat because he could live by absorbing mana in the atmosphere.

There was no need for him to excrete.

There were also many other things, but in short, he didn’t need to do things like when he was a dog.

It wasn’t really bad, but… here’s one story for that.

It was when I was about to see Hokuto later.

“Woof…” (Hokuto)

“Hmm, what is it?” (Sirius)

When I was preparing some dishes, Hokuto came beside me and started to appeal for something.

“Aniki. Hokuto-san is somehow wanting to gnaw a bone. By the way, what is bone gum(1)?” (Reus)

“Is that necessary?” (Sirius)

Which reminds me, I used to give it to Hokuto in my previous life.

Roughly speaking, a bone gum for dogs seemed to help clean the dog’s teeth and to relieve stress.

However, since there were many times that he accidentally swallowed it, I remembered that it was quite difficult to train him so he wouldn’t swallow it.

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

“He didn’t really need it, but he wanted to gnaw something hard. So, what is bone gum again? Is it delicious?” (Reus)

“Well… why don’t you try this?” (Sirius)

What I gave to him was a bone of a monster that I used to make a stock.

Hokuto seemed to be happy with it…

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

*Crunch*!

“Aah… it become like this, huh.” (Sirius)

And the jaw of a Hundred Wolves that could easily tear monster’s flesh apart…

It was a bone used for stock, so it was easily crushed even when he lightly gnawed it.

“Woof…” (Hokuto)

“Aah, I got enough stock already, so there is no problem if it breaks, you know? You don’t have to feel depressed.” (Sirius)

“…Woof!” (Hokuto)

“I’ll give you another piece. Say Aniki, bone gum is…” (Reus)

“You can gnaw this.” (Sirius)

I stuck a bone in the mouth of the noisy Reus, and I gave a new bone to Hokuto.

This time, he carefully held it in his mouth, and as he gladly wag his tail…

*Crunch*!

He looked happy when receiving the bone from me, but he crushed the bone again as he made a mistake in adjusting his strength.

“…Woof.” (Hokuto)

“Say, what’s wrong? You don’t really need to brush your teeth, and if you are stressed, you can play with something, right?” (Sirius)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

“Uhmm… he wants to do play-biting with Aniki. But since you will injure Aniki with that strength just now, please practice with the degree of bone gum.” (Reus)

Well yeah, I did play-biting with him in my previous life.

Even without doing such things, I could spoil him in many ways, and it was necessary to do that since he could communicate his feelings through Reus.

Was this because his dog habits still remained?

Well, if he said that he wanted to remember the feeling, let’s proactively cooperate as well.

“Alright, shall I prepare a harder one? A sturdy bone— no, how about an ore? If it’s sturdy, it should be a Gravilite—…” (Sirius)

“…Woof.” (Hokuto)

My eyes and Hokuto’s were directed to Reus’ sword which was made of Gravilite.

“Uhmm…” (Reus)

Reus, who was quietly gnawing a bone, quietly ran away.

Since it was pitiful for the sword, we stopped chasing him.

—

And now…

Although Hokuto knew how to adjust his strength, we didn’t stop looking for bones.

“Here you go, Hokuto.” (Sirius)

“Woof!” (Hokuto)

*Crunch*!

“…It’s no good, huh. The Guirdjieff’s bones are surprisingly fragile.” (Sirius)

“Woof…” (Hokuto)

It seemed that the search for the ultimate bone gum for Hokuto would still need some time.

And…

“Aniki! Guirdjieff’s bones have a slight smell, but the taste is quite good!” (Reus)

Reus was also gnawing bones once again.