Gentle Hydrangea 7: Knife Magic.
A mysterious white space filled with a pure white, enigmatic mist.
“………”
I stood there, stock-still in that space.
I know this place. I come here every time I sleep.
Every time I sleep… Right. I collapsed.
Collapsed. Ah, I… I lost to Alveld von Rootbert.
He… that guy surpassed me in every single way.
His overwhelming power left me completely helpless. It’s frustrating. Frustrating. Frustrating.
This is the first time I’ve felt such frustration, such unbearable hatred, such malice welling up inside me.
It was so unreasonable; that power destroyed everything.
Frustrating. Frustrating. Frustrating. Frustrating.
No. I can’t cry. But… but still.
“Wof.”
A mystical, peerlessly beautiful woman, possessing the glint of a blade and seemingly not of this world, appeared.
She approached, and upon seeing my tear-streaked face, she gasped.
“What happened— Kyaa!”
Before I knew it, I was clinging to the beautiful woman—to the Lady Goddess of Knives.
And then I cried. Out of frustration, shame, misery, and sadness.
Burying my face in the Goddess-sama’s ample bosom, I cried and cried my heart out.
Sobbing, I complained, raised my voice, and screamed. I poured out everything in my heart.
Ugly, pathetic, dirty, awful, disgraceful—I vented everything onto the Goddess-sama.
Goddess-sama listened in silence, gently stroking my head, and stayed like that until I stopped crying.
Eventually, exhausted, I stopped crying and slowly pulled away from Goddess-sama.
“Are you alright now, Wof?”
“Y-Yes. Um, I’m sorry… for that unsightly display…”
I had impulsively burst into tears in the Lady Goddess of Knives’s arms.
And what’s more… saying that and that… It’s embarrassing. My face flushed red.
“No. It’s quite alright. That is how boys grow stronger.”
Goddess-sama smiled. A true archaic smile.
That smile made me feel… I have to say something.
“…Um, why am I here?”
“Well. I did not call you here merely to console you. However, your intentions have been fully conveyed. Wof. Do you wish to become stronger?”
“Yes. I want to become stronger.”
“Do you wish to defeat Alveld von Rootbert?”
“I want to defeat him!”
“As you are now, you cannot even step onto the stage to fight him.”
“That’s… yes.”
“And Wof. Beyond being strong or weak, you are far too ignorant.”
The Lady Goddess of Knives took something in her hand.
That’s… the Goddess of Knives’s protective charm knife.
“Goddess-sama?”
“Take up the same knife. From now, you will acquire a Relic.”
“A Relic?”
“That Relic is [ Knife Magic ].”
“Acquire?”
“There are three generally known methods for acquiring Relics. Being born with one. Using a Relic Plate. Compatibility with OOPArts. Actually, there is one more method. It is acquisition through practicing and mastering the movements and actions that have already become a Relic.”
“Such a method exists…!”
“It is not generally known. Nor is there any need to tell others going forward. Please do not spread this information carelessly. It would put you in danger as well.”
Goddess-sama warned me.
“I-I understand.”
“From now, you will acquire the Relic [ Knife Magic ] through practical combat training. Do not worry; with the cooperation of the Goddess of Dreams, the time in this dream world has been compressed. One minute outside is about one hour here.”
“Eh?”
One minute is one hour?
“Also, since this is a dream, you will not die no matter what injuries you sustain. You won’t get hungry or thirsty either. However, you will feel pain and fatigue.”
“…Practical combat? Is my opponent Goddess-sama?”
“Yes. Do you object?”
“No.”
“I am the Goddess of Knives. Therefore, I have mastered the knife. I will ensure you acquire it.”
As Goddess-sama said this, she elegantly rolled the knife between her fingers, flipped it once in the air, and caught it.
It was a brilliant technique, but it felt like the kind of trick a thug who licks knives would do.
“P-Please go easy on me.”
I readied my knife.
In that instant, an invisible blade slashed me.
I want to get stronger. For the first time, I truly thought that.
I open my eyes. It’s pitch black. Meaning it’s night.
That itself is hard to believe first.
I must have been in that space for months, but now I understand that it was a dream.
It really was a dream, but I definitely acquired the Relic [ Knife Magic ].
After acquiring it while feeling like I was about to die, Goddess-sama spoke to me.
Apparently, she had done something quite reckless this time.
She had originally planned to have me acquire [ Knife Magic ] when I had broken my 30th knife.
However, due to Alveld’s surprise attack, she moved the schedule forward.
What is even going on?
The next time I can meet her is when I’ve broken my 20th knife.
She said I’d see her soon, but I won’t let that happen so easily.
But I ended up breaking two in quick succession. And one of them I had just gotten, too!
Damn you, Alveld.
“………?”
Strange. This is weird. I recognize this ceiling. In fact, it’s all I recognize.
And these sheets and this duvet. Could this be…
“My house………?”
Wasn’t I captured? I should have been defeated by Alveld and kidnapped.
So I fully expected to be in some unfamiliar prison cell or something.
“Oh my, oh my, you’re finally awake.”
“Eh?”
Hearing a voice, I looked up.
A woman was sitting on the bed, angled slightly away from me.
Elongated beast ears. Long hair shining a dull silver. And beneath it, three tails.
Even through her black clothes, her sensual silhouette was clearly visible.
Wait, can I really tell that much? She is wearing clothes, right?
Close by, she offered a gentle smile in the dim light.
“…The Witch?”
Ah, it’s the Witch.
“Hmm, hmm. Doesn’t seem like you have a fever.”
The Witch gently touched my forehead and stroked my hair.
Somehow, the Witch feels incredibly close today.
Physically, yes, but mentally too, she feels closer.
Her three tails were swaying as well.
“Witch. I……… I lost. To Alveld von Rootbert…”
“Hoh hoh. So you fought him.”
“It wasn’t even a fight. Not even a battle…”
“I see, I see. That one, that one, he is, you know. A Tier I Seeker called ‘The Ruinator’, and he also serves as the Clan Master of Koon Hunt. A truly strong one, indeed.”
“R-Really?”
That guy is the boss of Koon Hunt.
Isn’t he the enemy leader? That guy.
“Even so, even so, does Wof-shounen still want to defeat him?”
The Witch asked calmly, shifting her body onto the bed.
Then she gently took my head and placed it on her lap.
“Witch. What are you?”
“Fufu, fufu, sometimes, you know.”
She stroked my head. Touched my cheek.
The Witch’s hands were cool, small, and smooth.
My heart pounded with surprise at the sudden lap pillow.
But somehow, I felt embarrassed about letting her know.
So I answered the Witch’s question.
“I want to win. No, next time I will win… I’ll defeat him. So, Witch. I have a request. Please… make me stronger. I want to become stronger. No matter what… I want to beat him. Defeat him. This time for sure.”
I pleaded, not with the chest above my head, but with the Witch’s face visible through the gap.
For the first time in my life, I wanted to become this strong.
Why hadn’t I tried to become stronger until now?
I know the reason.
Deep down, I was conceited, thinking I was strong.
And worse, that strength came from the Relics I hated.
How foolish. Alveld made me realize that.
The Witch looked down at me diagonally.
Her cheeks were slightly flushed, and she let out a sweet sigh.
“Good, good. Wof-shounen wasn’t interested in strength, you see. Normally, you know. Losing is only natural, you see. That’s Alveld von Rootbert for you, you see. But you want to win, burning with fighting spirit, seeking a rematch. Finally, Wof-shounen’s true nature is starting to show.”
“My true nature… Maybe so.”
I firmed my resolve.
The Witch caressed my cheek. She stroked it gently with one hand, as if enveloping it. It felt nice.
“Fufufu, fufufu, that brave attitude is quite pleasing, you know. Of course, of course. Wof-shounen. As your master, Kon won’t hesitate to cooperate either.”
“Thank you very much. Ah, um, by the way, why am I here? Alveld said he was asked to kidnap me as part of a request, so I thought for sure…”
I thought I’d been taken away to a prison cell or something, but I was at home.
“That, that is, you know. Thanks to ‘Sword of Swords’.”
“‘Sword of Swords’…?”
I-I was surprised by the unexpected name.
Why would the Tier I Seeker ‘Sword of Swords’ be involved?
“See, see, Wof-shounen. You helped search for the dog, right?”
“Yes. I helped Celeste-san and we found it.”
“Actually, actually, she. Is ‘Sword of Swords’s’ disciple, you see.”
“R-Really…?”
It made sense, yet it was also surprising.
“So, so, perhaps as thanks for that, ‘Sword of Swords’ took Wof-shounen back from Alveld, you see. Even he knows that seriously fighting ‘Sword of Swords’ carries high risks, you see. And then, while ‘Sword of Swords’ was carrying Wof-shounen, Mineha and the others found them, you see. So well, that’s how things turned out.”
“Is that what happened…”
I owe everyone my thanks. Especially ‘Sword of Swords’-san, a huge thanks.
The Witch placed a finger on my lips. She poked them softly.
“Well, well, actually, actually, you see. Just the other day, Kon went and stormed the Koon Hunt headquarters, you see.”
“…You stormed it?”
“That’s only natural, of course, you see. Because they tried to kidnap Kon’s beloved disciple, you see. There’s no way I could forgive that, you see. Together with Shiro and the others, we half-destroyed the headquarters, but the top executive Forcut and that guy weren’t there, you see.”
Half-destroyed… I see. So Alveld wasn’t there.
Part of me is glad. Part of me is disappointed.
“Honestly, honestly. Even though the ‘Great O’Browns’ is close at hand, what are they thinking, I wonder. I thought about giving them a ‘thank you’ gift right when we met, but since Wof boy will get his revenge, Kon will just watch over you, I suppose.”
“Thank you… Speaking of which, he said something about Narcissus.”
As my consciousness faded, he was clearly voicing his dissatisfaction.
The Witch grins slyly. Ah, that’s the Witch’s smile.
The Witch’s smile that’s so reassuring it’s unsettling.
“Well now, well now, Wof boy. That’s quite a scoop, you know. Narcissus. Narcissus Utopia is the ‘Reappearance of Generous’, you see.”
“Eh…? In that case… The one who requested my kidnapping was the ‘Reappearance of Generous’…?”
That means they know I can become [Generous].
I don’t know how they found out, but they know.
The Witch narrowed her eyes, gazing at me intently.
“My, oh my. This year’s festival looks like it’ll be full of turmoil, doesn’t it.”
“Witch. I’m sorry.”
“Oh my, oh my, there’s no need for Wof boy to apologize, you know. Look, you still need to rest slowly, you see.”
“…Yes. But the gauntlet… the gauntlet the Witch made for me…”
Alveld smashed it to pieces.
It’s an unbearable regret. Then the Witch looked puzzled.
“Hm? Hm? The gauntlet is right there, you see.”
“Eh… Ah, you’re right… Eh?”
Beside my pillow lay the ‘Gauntlet of Still Saint’, completely unharmed.
Not a single scratch. Why?
“Did the Witch perhaps bring it here and repair it for me?”
“No, no. When Kon saw Wof boy sleeping here, it was already placed there just like this, you see.”
“Eh?”
“That’s why, that’s why, Kon thought Wof boy must have forgotten it, you see.”
“No, I definitely put it on…”
Huh? I was wearing it, right? It got smashed to pieces, right?
Why is it just sitting there like nothing happened? Huh?
“Ah, ah, perhaps that’s it, you see. Maybe its self-repair and tracking instinct activated, you see.”
“Eh?”
“Actually, actually, just in case something like this happened, I used some special materials with self-repair properties and an instinct to track its owner no matter what, you see. So that even if it got smashed to pieces, it could repair itself and return, you see. It seems that worked out well, you see.”
“I-Is that so…?”
Convenient, but scary.
“Now then, now then, Wof boy. If you want to get stronger, it’s time for training, you see.”
“Y-Yes…”
“Also, also, you might be attacked again at any time. This place is dangerous, what with the Lab and all, you see.”
“Y-Yes.”
“That’s why, that’s why, that’s why, you see. For the time being… you’ll be staying at Kon’s house, you see. For Wof boy’s safety, too, you see.”
“I-I suppose that’s true.”
The Witch toyed with my eyelids with her fingers, then pressed from the corner of my eye to the tip of my nose. What’s so fun about that, I wonder.
Her green eyes shone mysteriously, like jade.
“Well, well, anyway, anyway. For tonight, for today, just take it easy, you see.”
“I’m tired too. Somehow my body feels… completely exhausted.”
Even though they said being in a dream doesn’t affect your physical body, my body feels strangely heavy.
I felt incredibly sluggish.
“Well, well, that’s understandable, you see. After all, after all, you’ve been sleeping soundly for four whole days, you see.”
“…Eh?… Four days?”
“Yep, yep. You’ve been sleeping for that long, long time, you see.”
The Witch gently poked my forehead with her fingertip as I stared in shock.
No wonder my body felt too sluggish to move at all.
Haaah, I want to get stronger.