Episode 74: Turns Out I Don’t Actually Have Any Talent
After waiting for a while, Issei, who had rushed to get his phone, entered the training grounds, out of breath.
“Hah… Hah…! Sorry to keep you waiting!”
“O-Oh…”
Kazuma, who honestly felt creeped out, was hesitant enough to consider not exchanging contact information after all.
However, having already said he would exchange it, he couldn’t back out.
In the first place, if he were to say such a thing, he didn’t know how Issei would react.
It would be fine if Issei just got visibly dejected, but if he handled it poorly and Issei went on a rampage, it would be unbearable.
The worst-case scenario was Issei’s Gift forcibly controlling Tsubaki and having her attack him.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t win, but it would at least be a tough fight without using his full power.
If a second Hero was summoned on top of that, he would truly have no choice but to use magic.
He wanted to avoid it if possible, but it would be difficult against two Heroes.
After careful consideration, Kazuma forced a smile and decided to exchange contact information with Issei.
“W-Well, this is my contact info.”
“Oooh! Finally, a guy friend’s contact info!”
“…Good for you.”
Watching Issei excitedly holding up his phone, Kazuma was thoroughly put off.
He intensely regretted becoming friends, but it was too late.
He had already exchanged contact information, so there was no escape.
If he deleted the contact, Issei would probably appear directly in front of him.
He would undoubtedly press him, demanding to know why he deleted it.
“…My apologies. My Master truly only has acquaintances of the opposite sex,” Tsubaki said.
“That in itself is detestable,” Kazuma replied.
“Kazuma-kun. I would be grateful if you could get along with him. Also, if you could correct that personality of his where he gets overly excited just from making a male friend…” Tsubaki continued.
“You say surprisingly harsh things, even though he’s your Master,” Kazuma remarked.
“If the Master you served acted in such a creepy manner, what would you think?” Tsubaki asked.
“Sorry. My bad. I’ll try to tell him indirectly, at least,” Kazuma conceded.
“I’m indebted to you,” Tsubaki said.
Hearing Tsubaki’s words, Kazuma realized the gravity of the situation and apologized frankly.
Indeed, if the master he served were to get so overjoyed just from obtaining a same-sex contact, he wouldn’t want to see that very much.
Of course, he knew such preferences existed, but if confronted with it directly, he doubted he could understand.
He might not be able to accept it, but he could tolerate it.
As long as it didn’t affect him, that is.
However, Issei didn’t have such hobbies, so there was probably no need to worry.
“Hey, Kisaragi. Don’t keep celebrating forever.”
“Ah, sorry. I just got so happy…”
“If you act like that every time you get contact info from a guy friend, you’ll definitely be ostracized, you know?”
“Ugh…! I’ll be careful.”
“Do that.”
For now, he had given him a light warning, so Issei would probably be more reserved in the future.
However, there was no guarantee he would make any more male friends in the future.
This time, Kazuma had just happened to become his friend, but it would be difficult for other males around Issei to acknowledge him as a friend.
As Kazuma had said, because Issei unconsciously had multiple women fawning over him, he was antagonized by many males, and it would be very hard for Issei to make more male friends in his life ahead.
“Well, there’s still time until bedtime. What do you want to do?” Kazuma asked.
“Eh? You’ll still train with me!?” Issei exclaimed.
“I already accepted. I plan to see it through to the end.”
“Um, well, about what time do you go to bed, Kazuma?”
“Hm? Why do you ask?”
“Well, I’d feel bad making you stay up that late…”
“Don’t worry about it. This is nothing.”
“Oh! Thanks, Kazuma!”
“I get it, so let go. Don’t grab my hand every time.”
“Ah, sorry…”
With a dejected face like a scolded dog, Issei moved away from Kazuma.
If he had really been a dog, Kazuma might have felt some affection, but since it was Issei, whom he didn’t particularly like, he felt nothing special.
If anything, he just thought Issei’s way of closing the distance was odd.
“Kazuma-kun. Even if you say training, what will we do?” Tsubaki asked.
“Let’s see… What do you usually do?” Kazuma wondered.
“You really don’t have much interest in Master, do you? I believe I told you a little while ago?” Tsubaki said, a hint of exasperation in her voice.
“I’m sorry. I’ll listen seriously, so please tell me,” Kazuma replied.
“Understood. Then, I will explain again. Usually, he practices forms and then does practical combat training. I serve as his opponent at that time. Of course, I myself bear handicaps.”
“Hmm, hmm. Well, that sounds good,” Kazuma said. “For now, practice your forms, and then we’ll do practical combat training. Ah, of course, I’ll go easy on you.”
After Tsubaki once again explained the usual training routine, Kazuma turned to Issei.
“Yeah, I get it. That’s fine, but…” Issei trailed off.
Seeing Issei looking somewhat dissatisfied, Kazuma and Tsubaki exchanged glances.
They wondered if there was something wrong with the plan, but Tsubaki assured them it was no different from his usual training.
If so, they wondered if he was dissatisfied with Kazuma being his opponent, but Issei was the one who had asked in the first place.
Then why did he look so dissatisfied? Kazuma and Tsubaki pondered.
“…Why do you two look so friendly? Even though Kazuma killed Tsubaki,” Issei muttered.
“You say some pretty outrageous things… Well, it’s true, though,” Kazuma replied.
“The era I lived in was brutal, so I don’t mind it much…” Tsubaki said. “Besides, we’ve been conversing normally for a while now, so I think it’s a bit late to bring that up.”
“No, I guess so, but… I feel kind of left out and lonely,” Issei whined.
“Ugh. You’re creepy,” Kazuma said flatly.
However, Kazuma remembered saying something similar himself, so he couldn’t really criticize others.
“Whatever. For now, hurry up and finish your form practice. We’ll talk after that.”
“Ugh, okay.”
Kazuma kicked Issei, who was reluctantly heading to the center of the training grounds, in the rear, ordering him to quickly practice his forms.
While Issei was practicing his forms in the center, Kazuma was engrossed in conversation with Tsubaki.
“Is that karate?” Kazuma asked.
“Yes, it is. I taught him,” Tsubaki replied.
“Why? I’d think teaching him mixed martial arts would be better, if anything.”
“That’s also an option, but considering strikes and kicks, I thought karate was best. Also, since he’s Japanese, karate is more familiar and easier to teach.”
“I see. Still, those are clean forms.”
“Yes. The fundamentals are the most important thing.”
“What else are you teaching him?” Kazuma asked.
“I’m teaching him a little swordsmanship,” Tsubaki said. “Now that Ayame-san, the expert, is here, I teach him martial arts, and Ayame-san teaches him swordsmanship.”
“That’s enviable.”
“He’s a Master worth teaching.”
“Yeah. I bet. Can I ask you something?”
“Anything I can answer.”
“Tsubaki-san, you fought me, so I think you understand, but who do you think has more talent, me or Kisaragi?”
“…You might think I’m biased towards my own, but I’ll say it clearly. If it’s purely about talent, I believe it’s Master.”
Hearing those words, Kazuma didn’t get angry, nor did he feel sad; he accepted it as if it were a fact and smiled brightly.
“Your judgment is sound, Tsubaki-san. In terms of talent, I also think Kisaragi is above me.”
“As I thought…” Tsubaki murmured.
“How long has Kisaragi been doing this kind of training?” Kazuma asked.
“Since the beginning of this year, perhaps? Though in terms of actual hours, I think it’s much shorter,” Tsubaki replied.
“Only in the mornings and evenings? Probably.”
“Correct. Until just a little while ago, I was thoroughly teaching him martial arts in the mornings and evenings, but now it’s split into martial arts in the morning and swordsmanship in the evening.”
“And he’s reached that level of proficiency…? He’s really talented~.”
“But I think you have plenty of talent too, Kazuma-kun,” Tsubaki offered.
“No, no, flattery won’t get you anywhere. I have less talent than Kisaragi. The only reason I’m stronger is because of the difference in experience.”
“…That’s not…”
Tsubaki tried to defend Kazuma, who was disparaging himself, but he shook his head, indicating that consolation was unnecessary.
“Tsubaki-san, didn’t you think so at first? That I wasn’t as strong as you expected.”
“…Pardon my rudeness, but yes. I did think that. However, as we fought, I changed my mind and keenly felt that you were an unparalleled warrior.”
“Yeah, well, you’re not wrong in that assessment. Because even my master certified me as having no talent.”
“Eh…”
“That’s why the fundamentals were thoroughly drilled into me, and I was trained to be able to respond to any and all situations.”
“I see. So that’s why it felt like you were gradually getting stronger,” Tsubaki realized.
“Exactly. To be blunt, I’m weak against enemies I’m seeing for the first time. But if I learn and memorize their movements and habits, well, then I can probably win due to the difference in experience. Of course, I said I’m weak against first encounters, but unless they have a certain level of skill, I can still shut them down completely.”
“Ah, so that’s why I felt you were getting stronger each time we fought,” Tsubaki exclaimed.
The source of her unease was revealed, and a weight was lifted from Tsubaki’s chest.
At first, it was an instant kill, then a kill in seconds. The fact that she could land a blow in the end was because Kazuma couldn’t adapt to her initial movements.
But he quickly adapted to that too, and in the end, she was annihilated. Although there was no decisive conclusion, Tsubaki knew she would have been the one to lose.
“Then, Kazuma-kun, does that mean you possess not one ultimate technique, but a hundred exquisite skills?” Tsubaki asked.
“Ah, now that you mention it, that might be true. If we fought under rules like only martial arts or only swordsmanship, I’d probably lose.”
“But, his experience level is so much higher that there’s virtually no chance he’ll lose.”
“Well, yeah. I don’t think I’d lose to students, y’know~”
Watching Kazuma declare it with such confidence, Tsubaki thought it was probably true.
If there was anyone who could defeat Kazuma, it would likely only be a handful of geniuses who had devoted themselves to training since early childhood.