Chapter 72: Fast horse mackerel

Translator: Soafp

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On the night when I accommodated the girls, I began training in the newly created training room, activating my magic equipment. It was a specially constructed room powered by magic, several times larger than the usual space. I had installed a door in a corner of the house, and passing through it would lead to this room.

“It’s not good to push yourself too hard right away.”

“No, I’ll be fine…”

“If you say so… Then I’ll have to do my best too.”

She left the training room. She must have headed to her research lab.

“I want to grasp the feeling firmly… It will be beneficial for the future.”

To lighten the burden on them as much as possible, I must do my best. Especially because they are high school students, and their studies must not be affected. That’s why I must train secretly. If I were to train late at night, kind-hearted girls like them would either stop me or insist on doing it together. That wouldn’t be good. It would be a burden, and above all, it wouldn’t be good for their skin. If their silky smooth skin were to get damaged… I would have to perform a full naked apology.

Well, anyway, I’m casually jumping and swinging my sword, but the one I’m currently using is a black sword. And I’m wearing a black robe.

Several different types of “magical equipment” have been completed, as I requested.

My talented companion finished them for me in just one night.

Each “magical equipment” has a unique magic-equipped technique, similar to a finishing move, ranging from direct offensive power to supportive illusions.

Furthermore, a single “magical equipment” can have up to three “magic-equipped technique,” so choosing the right ones to use is crucial.

Tonight, I’m not sure if I’ll be able to sleep. On that night, I dedicated myself to rigorous training.

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The next day, I woke up from my bed. However, I couldn’t shake off the drowsiness… I went downstairs trying not to show it on my face.

“Good morning, Izayoi-kun. Breakfast is ready.”

Huh? Could it be that she styled her hair in braids? It looks cute. She’s wearing my mother’s casual outfit, just a simple t-shirt. But Gindou Kohaku looks fabulous, radiating a mature aura from the morning.

“Good morning. Sorry for waking you up so early.”

“No, it’s fine… Uhm, how does it look? This style…”

She lightly touches her braids. It’s so enchanting.

“Uh… It really suits you. I-i-it’s super cute.”

“T-Thank you very much.”

Oops, I stumbled over my words… It’s the morning, after all. My mouth didn’t move as smoothly as I wanted. I’m not feeling nervous or anything like that.

The dining table has scrambled eggs, miso soup, white rice, and pickles. It’s a healthy breakfast.

“””””Itadakimasu”””””

Everyone starts eating. I never imagined that I would have such a breakfast one day. It’s truly a touching moment for me. But then, Kataumi Aoi speaks to everyone.

“Uhm, I need to talk to my parents face-to-face, so I’ll go home for today.”

“Huh? Didn’t you already get permission from your parents?”

“Well yes, but I still want to have a conversation with them.”

“Well, I immediately got the okay from my parents, and the movers will be here today.”

“Isn’t that a bit too rushed… Anyway, I’ll be heading home for now.”

“I’m going to miss you. …… I can’t believe Aoi-chan’s leaving.”

“I’ll come back right away.”

I guess there are various moving and family circumstances to consider. It can’t be helped.

“Izayoi-kun, my parents have given their approval, so I’m thinking of asking the moving company today. Is that okay?”

“Of course.”

“I’ll do the same… Maybe I’ll ask the movers today. Is that okay?”

“Yes.”

“Uhm, Izayoi… I’ve already asked the movers, but is it alright with you?”

“There’s no problem.”

“It’ll probably take about a week for my stuff to arrive, but is it okay for you?”

“Absolutely, no problem.”

From an outsider’s perspective, it might seem like I’m a protagonist from a light novel. Living together with beautiful girls… Well, this is the best plan to gather their strength and strengthen their bond.

After finishing breakfast, I didn’t have any specific plans for the day, so I wanted to do some training. Of course, I also wanted the girls to participate to some extent.

In the “Story,” they do train, but not to this extent. Of course, I don’t intend to burden them too much, but they need to steadily build up their skills every day.

“After our break, how about heading to the training room? It’s important to get used to our magical equipment”

“Sounds good… Status enhancement is essential”

“I’ll be leaving in the afternoon, so until then is fine”

So, after the meal break… Mel and the girls sat on the sofa while I took a seat at the dining table. It’s a bit nerve-wracking to enter that room.

But anyway… seeing Mel and the girls side by side brings back memories. As I gazed at them on the sofa, I noticed myself on the news.

[Friend or foe. Female or male. Mysterious black warrior appears!!]

Ouch, it seems “Eternal Forever” is trending at the top… spare me. On TV, I easily defeated the monster Drakula.

The demons may be watching cautiously for now, but they’ll surely keep sending more monsters. And this afternoon too… I’ll defeat them in no time…

After a 30-minute break, we headed to the training room.

“All right, please activate your magical equipment. I’ll give you some guidance.”

The girls activated their magical equipment. It’s absurd to think about it, but they look adorable. The sailor uniforms Gindou Kohaku is wearing… I can see her legs since it’s a miniskirt… I can’t help but glance. And Kataumi Aoi’s kimono is revealing her shoulders, so I can’t help but look…

“…Izayoi… you’re looking too much… It’s embarrassing, so hold back a bit. Also, Aoi’s shoulders, Moegi’s legs, and Kohaku’s chest”

“Oh, sorry.”

Everyone’s cheeks turned slightly red… and I was also embarrassed. It’s awkward to be found out like this. I need to pull myself together.

“All right, let’s start with some light jumping practice”

We all started jumping lightly. The girls were struggling to get the hang of it, but I could smoothly jump and even perform a mid-air somersault.

“Izayoi-kun, you’re amazing…”

“No no, it’s nothing, really.”

“As expected…”

“Isn’t that a bit too easy for you? Were you secretly training on your own? It’s still amazing, though.”

“Good job.”

A small self-satisfied smile. Well, I did train yesterday. No, I’m training even today.

“Hmm, I still have a long way to go. Despite having a tremendous amount of magical power, it feels like I haven’t fully mastered its manipulation yet. First, I need to sense the magic, then infuse it throughout my body, strengthening the areas I want to enhance… Once you can do this all over your body or in specific parts, you’ll be invincible”

“D-Difficult isn’t it…..”

“It’s not supposed to be easy. It’s all about the sensation and imagination, and strong emotions are necessary to draw out more magical power. Well, it’s common that mastering magical manipulation takes time…”

“Then why is Izayoi so skilled at it?”

“He has a clear and composed aura. That’s him.”

“The amount of magical power he’s able to draw out is on a different level…”

“W-Well? How can he be that good at it? I don’t understand, it’s impossible to reach this level overnight, right? It’s unbelievable…”

It seems my magical manipulation skills are remarkable. I suspected as much. However, the suspicious glances from everyone… I’ll play dumb for now.

“Eh? Am I really that good at it? I had no idea”

“You obviously know. Why do you have to phrase it so annoyingly?”

“Izayoi … acting like he did something.”

“You’re not very good at acting dumb”

“It’s easy to tell when you’re lying.”

“Lies in Two Seconds.”

It seems I managed to deceive them successfully.

Now, why am I so skilled at drawing out and manipulating magical power? One reason is my strong feelings. I want to protect the girls, and I’m willing to do anything for that. Such intense emotions allow me to draw out an unusually large amount of magical power.

The other reason dates back to the time when I admired heroes in the past.

Back then, I used to imagine things like concentrating power in my muscles, gathering magic in the air as a strong wind, or converting the wind into magic and absorbing it. I even imagined sitting in meditation, visualizing the magic as a transparent and pure aura.

Each of these experiences perfectly aligned with the concept of magical manipulation in this world.

The concept of magic that I once imagined. Even after gaining the ability to sense magic, I continued to imagine it, wrapping it like the wind I once felt, infusing it with strength, absorbing it, and finally achieving an unwavering unity of pure spirit.

That’s how I perfected my magical manipulation.

The concept of imagining magic power… I imagined it like the wind, enveloping myself with it, exerting force, controlling, absorbing, and achieving a pure and unwavering spiritual unity.

That’s what perfected my magic power manipulation.

“Izayoi-kun, if there’s any technique or trick, I’d like you to teach us…”

“Eh?”

“Yes, please tell us.”

“Well, keeping the technique all to yourself isn’t good…”

“I’m asking too!”

…What should I do? In ‘The Story,’ as they fought, they gained experience and gradually improved… But if I were to reveal this special trick and enable them to manipulate magic power, then…

“Well, it’s like enveloping yourself in the wind…”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, like this… Imagining yourself facing the fierce wind, embracing it with your whole body, then sticking it to your arms or whole body to create a barrier… You can also try meditation and unifying your spirit. It might help create a good image… I think the key is to imagine it and then grasp the sensation… It’s best to try different methods that suit you.”

“I see, from the imagination… Izayoi-kun, you’re amazing. How do you come up with such ideas?”

“…Um, well… That…

“Kohaku, don’t push Izayoi any further… Izayoi, thank you. I’ll give it a try.”

“Uhm, well… i-it’s a unique approach, but it was a very helpful story, right? Aoi-chan?”

“Yeah…”

I was met with warm gazes…

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After the training, we finished lunch and headed to the station to see off Kataumi Aoi. We chatted about trivial things while waiting for her bus at the bus stop.

When the bus arrived, it was time to say goodbye.

“Well then, see you later.”

“Ugh, come back soon, okay?”

“You don’t have to cry… Well, thanks.”

“Aoi-senpai, I’ll miss you…”

“Like I said, I’ll be back soon… Thanks…”

“We only spent one day together, but I kinda like you, Aoi… See you later…”

“You said you’ll be back soon, right? You don’t have to hold back like that… bye bye, see you soon.”

“You can call me anytime if you miss me.”

“I won’t say it anymore… but thank you.”

I should say something thoughtful and moving too, right? Everyone seems to be saying something nice.

“Kataumi-senpai, parting is sad, but people meet again, so even if we’re apart, our hearts…”

“Are you teasing me? Are you trying to make me angry?”

“Ah, sorry.”

“…See you later.”

Huh? Only I didn’t get a “thank you.” A little sad…

She got on the bus and left… It was around 1 PM. The next monster would appear above the outlet mall at 3 PM, just like yesterday. The plan was for everyone to go back together, but I decided to go a head.

“Oh, I wanted to buy something.”

“Eh? In that case, I’ll come with you.”

“No, no, please go home ahead of me, everyone. Here’s the house key. See you!”

I left the group and headed towards the outlet mall. It should be fine for me to handle the early battles alone. There’s no need for them to fight until they get used to their magical armors.

I want to keep them away from danger.

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[Moegi PoV]

“Izayoi-kun, I have a feeling you’re hiding something…”

As Kohaku-chan was speaking, she suddenly became serious and fell silent. The three of us looked at her, wondering what was going on.

“More importantly… Izayoi-kun gave me a spare key… Is this some kind of proposal!?”

“No, it’s not.”

“Not at all.”

“I don’t think so.”

“No, it’s definitely a roundabout message from Izayoi-kun. He wants us to get married!”

“No, it’s not.”

“Not at all.”

“I don’t think so.”

After this, it took us thirty minutes to calm down Kohaku-chan.

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[Demon Side]

A large hole opens up above the outlet mall, dark and massive. Modern-day people begin to flee, thinking it’s the notorious monster. Even those nearby hurriedly move away.

From that enormous hole emerges a creature resembling a half-fish, crackling with electrifying energy—

“Kyaaa—!”

“A-A monster!”

“Run!”

Screams, screams. And from the large hole emerges Torpedo Man.

“Yay! I’m fast! There’s no use running!”

The monster moves towards the direction of the screams, attempting to draw out negative emotions from the humans. However, it spots one man left behind, unable to escape. He wears ordinary clothes, and his front hair obscures his vision, resembling the protagonist of a gal game.

“Hiiii! Help me!”

“Oh!? You’re the straggler, huh? Let me hear more screams! I’ll electrocute you to death!”

“Uwaaaaaa! It’s over… I’m done…”

“Kuhahaha! That’s the spirit! Gagyah!”

Suddenly, a sword materializes in the man’s hand, and he thrusts it into the monster, causing green blood to spill out.

“Y-You… Who are you?”

In that moment, magical symbols unfold around the man, and he dons a robe. A mysterious man, who could he be?

“Pfft, just a nobody.”

He withdraws the sword and then conjures a black sphere. Torpedo Man, already wounded from the sword, can’t move.

If it takes that black sphere, it knows it will die. The Torpedo Man prepares for the inevitable and mumbles desperately.

“Damn you. If only I could start, I’m the …fastest…and yet…”

Even in the face of death, it insists on being the fastest, trying to intimidate the man. Hearing this, the robed man responds with a murmur.

“‘If only I could start’… you’re slower than me when you’re thinking about it.”

Torpedo Man is swallowed by the black sphere. In an instant, it is reduced to nothing but dust.

“Mission accomplished…..”