Volume 1 Chapter 20 The Great Villain Of The World, Witnessing The Legendary Swordsmanship
"Okay. Here comes the 'meow.' Shikei."
"...meow, meow?"
"Kaou. Make it more cat-like. Forget that you're human."
"That's right, Shikei. Next, roll on the ground and say 'meow, meow.'."
"...meow, meow... no, I didn't come here to study abroad to become a cat..."
"Kaou. Focus!"
"Shikei. Do your best!"
"Ugh! Meow, meow!!"
Shikei and I are practicing 'Beast Body Guidance' in the shape of a cat.
Shikei has good potential, but his movements are stiff. He doesn't seem used to being a cat.
"──Alright. That's enough."
Clap, Master Raikou clapped her hands.
Master helped Shikei and me get up and placed her fingers on our hands and necks. She's checking our meridians and the flow of 'ki' energy in our bodies.
Then Master nodded with satisfaction.
"Yeah. The state of 'ki' energy (nairyoku) seems good. It's no wonder with the guidance method my master left behind. Tenhou is also learning well. Each of your movements is solid. I can see why you were able to resist the thugs with this guidance method."
"Thank you, Master."
"What about you, Kaou? How did it feel?"
"...I feel kind of... warm all over."
Yeah. I can see it.
Kaou-shikei's skin looks like he just got out of a hot bath.
At first, I and Seirei were like that too.
My body felt warm, and it was so nice that there were times we just took a nap together.
"I don't feel bad at all. In fact, I feel like all the 'ki' in my body is getting energized."
"Good, good. Then, let's keep doing this with Tenhou from now on."
"Yes, Master."
"If you want, I can lend you the guidebook for 'Beast Body Guidance.'."
I'm already memorizing the contents of the book, so I don't need it with me.
"That way, Shikei can practice at home too, right? What do you think?"
"No, it's not good to do it alone."
Suddenly, Master Raikou said in a strict tone.
"Kaou, you should only do 'Beast Body Guidance' when you're with Tenhou. This is an order from your master."
"Y-yes. I understand. But..."
"You want to say that Tenhou is doing 'Beast Body Guidance' at home, right?"
"...Yes."
"But you see, Tenhou is doing it with his little sister. They started together from the beginning. This guidance is powerful, so the 'ki' can get too strong. But if there are 2 people, one can help calm the other's 'ki,' right?"
Master placed a hand on Kaou-shikei's shoulder and spoke gently.
"So, don't do it alone. Do you understand?"
"Yes! I will follow your words, Master!!"
"Good. Kaou is obedient, which is nice."
"...Um, Master."
"What is it, Tenhou?"
"Should I also only do 'Beast Body Guidance' when I'm with Shikei?"
"No, you should continue doing it with your little sister."
"Is that so?"
"You should continue 'Beast Body Guidance' at home with your sister, Seirei-kun. Sounds good?"
"Y-yes, Master."
"Good. You're a good kid. Let me pat both of your heads."
Saying that, Master Raikou started to pat my head and Kaou-shikei's head.
...But why is Master so focused on 'Beast Body Guidance'?
In the game, 'Beast Body Guidance' can only be equipped by those with low 'ki' energy, and it only slightly increases the 'ki' energy parameter.
Maybe it works differently in this world.
Well, I'll leave the training to Master Raikou. I promised to follow her instructions.
"Alright, Kaou. Starting today, let's begin training in 'Four Divine Beasts Swordsmanship' and the 'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords.'."
"'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords'!? For me!?"
"...'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords'?"
As I tilted my head in confusion, Kaou-shikei looked surprised.
"You don't know!? 'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords' is a sword technique that only Master can use!? Master promised to tell me when my 'ki' energy increases!"
"Is it a sword technique where dragons or tigers jump out from behind!?"
"What kind of sword technique is that...?"
It's a sword technique from the game, though.
"'Seiryuu Four Sword' 'Byakko Four Sword' 'Suzaku Four Sword' 'Genbu Four Sword'――together, they are called the 'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords.' Dragons and tigers don't actually jump out, but it's a sword technique shaped like them."
Master Raikou picked up the wooden sword that was hanging on the wall.
She lightly gripped it and faced the tree in the courtyard.
"Now, let me show you. The form of the Seiryuu――'Storm of the Lurking Dragon King' (Lurking Dragon King gazes at the sky)!!"
Master Raikou swung her long hair and raised the wooden sword.
There were no flashy sounds or effects.
But I felt like I could see a dragon rising up, splashing from behind my master.
There's no technique called 'Storm of the Lurking Dragon King' in the 'History of Swordmaster.'
Actually, this is Master Raikou's normal attack.
That top-class character has effects just from a regular attack.
What I saw of my master's technique was――so fast that I could barely see it.
What I did see was the thick branch of the garden tree being cut off and――
――lots of leaves blown away by my master's 'ki' falling down.
For a moment, it felt like a storm had started.
The trunk of the big tree swayed greatly from side to side.
Branches that couldn't withstand the pressure of my master's 'ki' broke and fell.
...Amazing. So this is Master Raikou's technique.
The impact is completely different from when I saw it on the game screen.
Plus, the weapons that the martial artist Raikou used in the game were fine swords and blades, but right in front of me, my master used a training wooden sword.
But Master cut the tree branch in half. A branch as thick as my legs.
If he had just broken it, that would be understandable.
But Master used a wooden sword to slice through the thick branch.
Of course, the wooden sword didn't break.
There wasn't even a scratch on it.
Seeing it in person... it's really amazing.
This is Master Raikou's swordsmanship....
"Wow, wow, Tenhou!? Did you see that!? This is Master's 'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords'!"
"Y-yes. I saw it."
"'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords' is a sword technique, but it can be used without weapons too. In that case, it becomes 'Sixteen Palms' or 'Sixteen Kicks'."
"That's amazing. It's so versatile."
"Yeah. This is our Master. How incredible..."
Kaou-shikei's voice was trembling.
Shikei was watching Master's technique with shining eyes.
Shikei really respects Master Raikou....
...Yeah. It's better not to disturb Shikei.
Actually, it's the opposite. I should help Shikei learn Master's secret techniques more easily.
Kaou-shikei is a good person.
Even though he probably wants to keep Master all to himself, he accepted me as his junior.
The world might get chaotic from now on, but... I want someone like Shikei to be happy.
Small leaves are dancing in the wind like flower petals.
Master Raikou――maybe realizing that cutting the garden trees too much would be bad, kept showing only the form of 'Seiryuu Four Swords.' After that, she beckoned Kaou-shikei over.
Eventually, Kaou-shikei stepped forward with a wooden sword in hand.
I thought to myself, "That's so cool," as I watched.
Then――
"What are you doing, Tenhou? Come over here."
"Eh? I don't really know anything about swordsmanship..."
"You can at least do some basic forms, right? That's okay, right, Master?"
At Kaou-shikei's words, Master Raikou nodded.
Well, I just promised not to get in the way...
"Tenhou, you promised to follow Master's guidance, didn't you?"
"...Yeah, I did."
"Hurry up. It's uncomfortable being watched like this."
"Alright, if that's how it is."
I took the wooden sword hanging on the wall and went over to Kaou-shikei.
Then, under Master Raikou's instruction, I started practicing the basic forms.
I had hardly ever held a sword before.
I didn't have any 'ki' energy or inner force, so I never thought about using a sword.
So, my practice was pretty clumsy. Master Raikou had to correct me many times, and the flow of the sword forms kept stopping.
Still, after finishing the basic flow――
"Tenhou, it's definitely better with you here."
Wiping the sweat from his brow, Kaou-shikei said.
"When I watch your movements, I can see where beginners struggle. By paying attention to that, I can learn Master's forms better. Please join me for sword training again tomorrow."
"Am I really helping you, Shikei?"
"Of course! I'd be in trouble without you."
"...You'd be in trouble without me?"
"I'm, no, it's not in a weird way! Don't misunderstand, okay!?"
"I, I understand!"
"It's about competing together."
Kaou-shikei cleared his throat and said,
"You will follow Master's policy, right? Master agreed to practice together, you know?"
"...I understand."
"Good. That's my little brother disciple."
Saying that, Kaou-shikei smiled.
He really was a nice person.
I wished there was someone like Kaou-shikei on the side of Kou Tenhou in the game.
If there was, maybe that guy wouldn't have hurt people or abused his power.
While looking at Shikei's smile, I was thinking about such things.
After that, Shikei and I received instruction on 'Four Divine Steps.'
'Four Divine Steps' has the same walking techniques as 'Sixteen Divine Beast Swords,' which are the Seiryuu, Byakko, Suzaku, and Genbu. The Seiryuu sways its long body smoothly, the Suzaku spreads its wings brilliantly, the Byakko is sharp like its claws, and the Genbu is mysterious—such were the techniques.
"From now on, I'm going to run around the garden. Kaou and Tenhou, try to catch me together. If you touch my clothes with a wooden sword or your hands or feet, you win."
After saying that, Kaou-shikei and I chased after Master, but――
"...I can't even touch Master's clothes, let alone her shadow."
"...huff, huff. Haah..."
A few minutes later.
I was stunned, and Kaou-shikei sat on the ground, breathing heavily, as we both gave up.
My master said, "You did better than I expected," but maybe she was just trying to comfort me.
The courtyard was about the size of half a classroom from my past life. It wasn't that big.
Yet, we couldn't even touch my master's clothes or his shadow.
"Not letting the opponent notice your movements is a feature of this technique."
Master was jumping around without any warning, moving forward, backward, and sideways.
While she took one step, I and Kaou-shikei had to take 5 steps to catch up.
And master's movements were incredibly small.
She looked like she was just standing there casually, but we couldn't catch up. Before we knew it, she was getting farther away.
"...This is 'Four Divine Steps.'."
It's an amazing technique. With this, I could escape from any danger.
Even if a death flag like in a game appeared, I should be able to survive...
"Can I do something like master...?"
"That's up to you. Now, let's start with the basic footwork."
"Please!!"
"What about you, Kaou? Do you want to rest a bit more?"
"...No, I'll do it too."
Kaou-shikei stood up while catching his breath.
"I'm Tenhou's senior disciple. I can't show my junior disciple any embarrassing moments."
"No, I respect Shikei. The swordsmanship I saw earlier was beautiful, and I couldn't help but be captivated. Plus, I know how much Shikei cares about our master. No matter how Shikei looks, I won't think it's embarrassing!"
"Is that why you say those things!?"
"Huh!?"
"Hehe. You two get along well. I'm glad you are my disciples."
Master watched over us with warm eyes as Shikei and I continued our training.
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