Trails with Cuddle-Cuddle Osbon
Translator: Tsukii
Editor: Helen
Read at Watashi wa Sugoi Desu!
Author Note:
The battle chapter.
I do think the last bit was a little rushed and forced, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.
Also, thanks for the typo reports as always.
Chapter 017 – Fufufu, son. It’s the April Field Study⑥ [A]
“Hou, so this is the rumored vagrant child who opposed the ducal family, huh?”
Rean could hear the voice of a noble, who seemed to have mistaken him to be knocked unconscious on his back.
Rean’s clothes were worn out, his face and limbs had been beaten and his skin was discolored from internal bleeding, and he lay as if he had been seriously injured. After the said nobles spoke a few more words, they left the jail satisfied.
In reality, it was Celestin’s make-up that made him look that way, and Rean himself had an easy job of simply lying on his back.
However, that could be said to be the reason for the backlash that was about to happen.
“……………!………………up!…………ke…………up!”
This jail wasn’t in the mansion of Marquis Hyarms.
After the explanation earlier, Rean was taken by Aurelia outside Saint-Arkh and guided to a mansion built to hide from people.
Rean found it a pity that he couldn’t proceed with a marathon inside, but he was sure he would have the chance once the request was over, so he prepared for the battle against Aurelia.
“Wake up, you!”
Then for the first time, Rean noticed that there was something black sittingon his chest.
When he opened his eyes, he saw Celine who was looking at him with a worried expression on her face.
Rean lightly stroked Celine’s head, held her body, and lifted his upper body up.
“Celine, why are you here?”
“You didn’t return after so long, so I came to check on you. Then……”
Celine’s words stopped.
Celine looked at Rean’s face and body, which was painful to look at, and realized he was seriously injured on the surface.
Rean reassured Celine that he was okay, but she seemed very agitated.
“H-healing spell… wait a minute. I actually um… really don’t want to do this… but this is not the time to insist on that——”
“No Celine, this is just special make-up and I’m not actually injured.”
“Heh?”
“Actually——”
Rean stroked Celine and told her why he was in this place.
By the time Rean said the reason the special make-up was applied on to make him seem seriously injured, to make the noble in question to drop his wariness, a cat punch hit to his face.
“Y-y-y-y-y-y-y-you!!”
“But hey, I told you from the start that I’m oka——”
“Shut up!”
It took some time to calm the violent Celine down, but Rean managed to do so.
Celine, who was breathing heavily, seemed to have gone from angry to irritated, but since she still didn’t make eye contact with Rean, he could feel that she was still really worried about him.
[“Fufufu, Miss Celine. If tsundereness was not understood, this personality could be seen as unpleasant.”]
“Shut up!”
{“Celine. You should just honestly say that you are worried about Rean.”}
“Wha-wha-wha.”
“Is that so? Come on, Celine. Why don’t we sleep together tonight?”
“～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～!!”
Because of the men who were inconsiderate of her, Celine’s emotions, which should have calmed down, went beyond the limit of her shame, so she slipped away from Rean’s embrace, leaving a real scratch wound, and ran away.
Although Rean regretted her leaving figure, he felt the pain from his scratched cheek and began to meditate while lying down.
The person he would fight tomorrow was a powerful opponent, one that he hadn’t experienced since the Old Master.
Since the theme was to show him being lynched, Rean would fight with his total abilities at start…… so the Power of Ashen and power of ogre would be unleashed once he warmed up.
Aurelia had told Rean to just focus on himself and not think about anything else, so Rean decided to do just that.
Dad, what are you going to do tomorrow?
[“Fufufu, it’s time for you to grow up, son. It is boorish for a parent to step in. I might give words of encouragement, but don’t expect any direct help.”]
{“Fumu. Does Osbon have a way to help Rean?”}
[“That’s right, Vali-kun. But certainly, mastering Vali-kun’s consciousness may also lead to an improvement in the Power of Ashen. Son, why don’t you try tactical link?”]
What do you mean by trying a tactical link?
[“ARCUS made spiritual links possible. If so, it should be possible to establish a link with the current Vali-kun, who could be considered a conscious life form.”
I never thought of that…… Maybe it’s possible to communicate with ghosts through that?
[“Fufufu, son. That’s a pretty fun idea you have there, but do you have any networking with any so-called ghosts?”]
I think Emma and others would know them better. Rosine should have heard rumors about them in the church, and perhaps Beryl’s guardian spirit might turn out to be a ghost. Hahah, I’m starting to look forward to going back. Valimar, please take care of me tomorrow.
{“Request accepted. Let’s defeat that warrior together.”}
Thinking about the battle for tomorrow, Rean fell asleep while talking about various things with Valimar.
The showdown against the Golden Rakshasa was just around the corner.
＊
As night passed and the sun reached its peak, Aurelia and Rean appeared on the battlefield.
In contrast to Aurelia, who was fully equipped, Rean’s torn clothes and special make-up injuries made him look like a corpse.
What echoed through the wall was the laughter of the nobles. Rean’s ears also caught the voice of the noble yesterday.
The reason why that noble was here was simple.
He had to come to watch the battle between Aurelia and Rean.
Or to be more precise, he was here to see Rean getting lynched by Aurelia.
The noble seemed to have imagined the face of the boy who had interfered with his plan getting defeated and couldn’t help but let out a vulgar laugh, but it was unpleasant to Rean’s ear, so he immediately removed it from his focus.
It was Rean’s job to make the said noble stay so he didn’t escape, at least until the evidence was secured.
That was why his injury was staged yesterday to stop the noble.
Anyway, they sure have such a convenient location.
[“Fufufu, it looks like it’s been used a lot. It seems to be a pretty deep business.”]
In ancient times, there was an area called the Colloseum that flourished as a spectacle of human battles.
It was said that most of the spectators were influential people, but some ordinary people would also come to watch people fight with all their might, but that wasn’t that surprising. It was just that there were more people than one thought who wanted to see how other people die.
It was especially noticeable in the empire, among the nobles.
Since they could have most of the things they wanted, they sought new stimuli, especially those who held the power over the life and death of other people.
Therefore, all the invited guests were basically guilty people, and Aurelia told Rean that there was no need to be considerate.
Perhaps the reason why monsters were bred was so that they could secretly make them fight people and enjoy shows like this……
Rean’s guess was correct.
It was mainly used by jaegers to tame military use monsters, but it was also used as a place to vent their excitement in the meantime.
Pitting people against each other was also used as a secret social gathering among nobles.
Of course, neither Marquis Hyarms nor Aurelia had anything to do with that.
This was because this mansion was built on the side of Sutherland Province with only the intention of cutting off the trail when things got awry and pushing all the blame to Marquis Hyarms.
It was no exaggeration that this was what Aurelia Le Guin was after.
She was the trump card sent to destroy all the nobles present along with the evidence of incrimination.
However, that very person was looking forward for the training session that went by the name of lynching at the moment.
Ever since she had heard that the boy who destroyed the monster breeding facility was a 17-years old student of Thors Military Academy, she was intrigued about him.
Although the direction was different, that boy was as talented as a certain girl that Aurelia had been acquainted with. When she met him yesterday, she wanted to confirm that personally.
I guess I should focus solely on defense for a while?
Aah. Fulfill your role to be a spectacle. You can guess from the momentum when to take off your shackle.
I understand. Until then, let’s warm up.
Rean and Aurelia, who were good at reading the intentions of each other, had a conversation without the nobles finding out, and wielded their respective weapons.
The training session, which was held in an arena with no referees, began with a casual flash slash from Aurelia.
Rean would normally parry it, but out of concern of his current appearance, he chose to accept it and was blown away.
Thanks to Aurelia, who raised a cold of sweep of dust through her movement, Rean was able to correct his posture midway and break his fall without the spectators finding out.
His highly honed hearing sensed the roar of the nobles in the audience.
As expected, Aurelia’s ability was well-known, and it seemed the audience held high expectations for the show that had just started.
Anyway, for the time being——
Rean, who was trying to wait until his vision cleared, noticed Aurelia sprinting past the dust cloud that had been dissipated by the pressure of her sword and he rolled to avoid her.
There was a slight tremor as Aurelia’s sword gouged the earth and split it.
Naturally, Rean wasn’t bothered by it, but the panicked voices of the nobles from afar sounded refreshing.
I guess that’s what you mean, Aurelia-san.
“Flame Impact!”
Rean struck his flame tachi with an exaggerated big swing.
Aurelia sensed Rean’s intention, parried it with her red sword, and redirected the tachi to the ground.
In addition, her own sword struck to create a combined force that caused the earth to shake once again.
[“Son. Your appearance is still that of someone who is fighting with a battered body. You should show them a fight with you looking a little more injured.”]
Oops, you’re right.
As Rean blatantly showed a unsteady posture, Aurelia relentlessly approached him.
“Don’t be hasty—— there’s no need for you to act.”
In that instant, Rean’s stomach exploded.
Although Rean knew it was just an illusion, the impact was so strong that he felt his body was falling apart starting from his stomach.
“Gah, ah…………”
Rean was keeping a close eye on Aurelia’s movement.
He could see her approaching him.
However, her sword skillfully penetrated his defense, and Rean was hit hard by the flat of her sword, causing him to fall and slump on the ground.
The taste of blood in his mouth, which he hadn’t tasted in a while, was perhaps meant as a warning to Rean who underestimated the deathmatch (training session) against Aurelia.
“There’s no harm in learning how to fight while injured, Schwarzer.”
Aurelia looked down at Rean while speaking in a voice that the nobles couldn’t hear.
Her appearance that was so fitting like a picture to the situation was like a general overlooking the battlefield.
As Rean couldn’t help but attempt to use either the Power of Ashen or power of ogre, Valimar admonished him.
{“Rean. The signal isn’t out yet. Try to fight with your own strength until then.”}
It’s not like I’m belittling her, but perhaps I thought I could do more than what I actually could, thought Rean to himself.
Rean had controlled the power of ogre, received the intermediate grade of Eight Leaves One Blade, and had never faced any real struggle even in Thors Military Academy.
Even when collecting combat data from the battle with Valimar, and when controlling the power of Ashen, he did it together with his friends Emma, Rosine, and Beryl, so joy was felt before any struggle could be felt.
However, the bitterness and pain that surpassed all that, as well as frustration that made him feel not worthy, were stimulated through Aurelia’s sword.
If you’re going to use me, then show me the ability that deserves it.
Aurelia seemed to say that.
Rean slowly stood up, feeling a dull pain that traveled from his abdomen to his entire body.
From this moment onward, things about nobles were eliminated from Rean’s mind.
“Eight Leaves One Blade, intermediate grade, Rean Schwarzer… Here I come!”
This was the moment that the training session between Rean Schwarzer and Aurelia Le Guin began in the true sense.
Aurelia didn’t even conceal the smile on her face and swung her sword sideways at Rean, who was running as fast as the wind.
Rean set his posture lower than Aurelia’s knees as he avoided the attacks and rushed toward her chin.
Aurelia pulled back lightly to avoid Rean’s slash, then immediately pivoted her body in front of the blade that was approaching in front of her, and used that momentum to slash at Rean.
Realizing that she was aiming at his arm, Rean immediately let go of his tachi and withdrew his hand.
The instant the slash passed him, he immediately took the hilt and pretended to raise it again and rode on top of the sword that Aurelia swung down 1
“Hah……!”
Just as Rean was about to use the sword as a foothold, Aurelia raised her sword upward.
Naturally, Rean, who was riding on the sword, was thrown high into the air and ended up in a defenseless position in the air.
Aurelia was already ready with her sword below.
Avoiding it is impossible, in that case…!
Judging that it was impossible to avoid, Rean roared as if trying to erase the dull pain that ached.
“Flame Dragon!”
“————Dynast Sunder.”
The fiery dragon that enveloped Rean’s tachi was severed by the king’s blade.
At the same time, it also proved that Rean’s body had been cut deeply.
“…………ah…………”
As Rean’s body splattered with blood, a shadow appeared over his body.
A clot of blot dripped from the corner of his mouth.
When he looked up half-reflexively, he saw Aurelia thrusting her sword down.
“Prismatic Tetra Blade.”
Aurelia’s Craft, which was unleashed before they landed, hit Rean mercilessly —— and cut the arena into a cross.
＊
“Hiiiiihhhhhhhhh!”
“Uwaaaaahhhhh!”
Screams from the nobles could be heard.
Aurelia’s Craft cut the arena and caused the walls of the audience seats to collapse without mercy.
The nobles were in a state of panic with no walls to protect them and one after another hurriedly sought responsibility from Aurelia.
Among them were the nobles of the Lamare Province that Aurelia was in charge of.
Of course they would be here. After all, Aurelia intended to dispose of them here to begin with.
“Now then, everyone. What will begin from now on is a real battlefield, a battlefield with flying debris and wild blades lined with deadly weapons that can easily destroy a person’s life even with just a single fragment. It’s an arena sponsored by Aurelia Le Guin, please enjoy.”
At the same time as Aurelia’s declaration, someone responded to her voice.
“——Come, Power of Ashen, Loa Valimar.”
The boy who was supposed to have been drowned in a pool of blood earlier stood up.
A gray aura overflowed around Rean, taking the form of a large dragon and enveloped him.
Rean was placed in the center of the giant body with only its upper half visible, just like that of a Panzer Soldat, Aurelia thought.
According to the data of Schmidt’s classroom, one of the reasons why Emperor Dreichels won the War of the Lion was because of the energy entity of the ancient giant known as the Ashen Knight…… But it is said that Schwarzer still can’t handle it properly.
That was why the boy accepted the offer for a training session, trying to learn how to control it.
Until just now, Rean blocked external powers and fought only with his own power, but that has come to an end.
The nobles could no longer escape.
This was because a barrier had enveloped the entire arena, leaving no place for escape.
It wasn’t very strong, since it could be broken if one had the power to break stone, but it was impossible for those nobles, who weren’t even martial artists, to escape. All that mattered was to direct the collateral damage inside instead of outside.
It was thanks to the unexpected collaborator —— Aurelia didn’t expect to see a talking cat, but she just thought something like that could exist in the vast Zemuria and accepted it.
He ended up deceiving Vander and the students of Thors Military Academy, but I don’t think it will be a problem. If he had that kind of hidden cheat, he should have told me sooner.
Celine, the talking cat’s collaborator, said that her master was Rean’s friend, so she had no choice but to lend a helping hand for the sake of her master’s friend, but apparently, while the cat talked like a human, she seemed to have feelings like that of a pure little girl.
No matter how Aurelia saw it, it was definitely the behavior of a girl who was worried about someone she cared about.
For some reason, the boy named Schwarzer seemed to have been blessed with some strange connection.
Moreover……
In order to catch the eyes of the nobles, Aurelia dyed Rean red with blood from his wounds, but he seemed to have already healed.
Perhaps it was the blessing from the Power of Ashen, but there was no sign of blood flowing from the other side of the bloodstained clothes.
That seemed to be another unknown Art, but one with a combined attack and healing power was rare.
“Well then, you should have warmed up enough. Let’s start the training session now. A master of Arseid and Vander style, Aurelia Le Guin. Let’s go……”
In a moment, the huge body covering Rean was in front of her.
However, Aurelia’s entire body was already filled with a golden fighting spirit and with sword on her waist, fully prepared to intercept.
First of all, it was a battle of brute force in place of greetings.
The right arm of Power of Ashen known as Loa Valimar was swung down toward Aurelia —— and a blow from her treasured sword, Arcadia, cut off the giant’s arm.
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