He had already warmed up as a result of the duel in the morning, so he got straight into his routine. Drawing his katana, Kay swung it up and down, training his muscles. Layla was a little distance away, stabbing at a dummy with her rapier. Her movements were fast, but they appeared weak, not really damaging the material that the dummy was made of.
Kay was increasing his pace, trying to get more swings in per minute than usual. His muscles had become significantly more toned in just the short amount of time that he'd been training. His healing ability, along with his dedication, significantly sped up the rate of his muscle development. Advancing at a rapid rate, he considered challenging some of the higher ranks, although he didn't really see much of an advantage in doing so.
After working for around half an hour, Layla approached him.
"So... y-you're in class 1-A, right?"
Kay was standing by the side, wiping some sweat from his body. As Layla looked over, her cheeks suddenly became a bright tone of red. Before he answered, she quickly looked away, staring at the leather dummy.
"Yep."
She took a few moments to think of her next sentence.
"Well, u-um... how's it, in the class, I mean."
"It's fine."
Kay had gotten back up, practising his movements again. Layla was starting to get worried by his apathetic responses, but she continued to talk.
"Does your sword have a special story?" she asked.
"A special story? What do you mean?"
"O-oh, like my rapier was made by my father before he passed away. He spent his entire life trying to make the best weapon possible... just for me."
"Ah, well, I got my katana a few days ago from the reception."
"Huh? From the reception of the training centre?"
"Yep, I got a coupon for it from the student council treasurer."
She seemed somewhat disappointed by his story.
"I didn't realise the school gave coupons for swords..."
"Well, I didn't have a proper weapon before, so it was pretty helpful."
"I see..."
Layla decided to take a short break after working for a while. Sipping some water from her drink bottle, she stretched out her calf.
"Was your father a blacksmith?"
She was suddenly taken aback by Kay's sudden initiation.
"Y-yeah, but our family was quite poor."
Trying out some more complex movements, Kay swung his sword around, imitating his instructor yesterday. As he practised, he leaned his head back, listening in to Layla.
"My father was in a lot of debt after losing all of his money in a failed investment. He also had to take care of my mother, who was sick at the time. Along with her, he also had to take care of my little sister and me."
Walking back across to the dummy, she swung her rapier. There was a light scratching sound as her blade slashed across the straw-like leather. Her expression became more sorrowful.
"Ah, you probably don't like speaking to me that much... I'll shut up..."
Suddenly, Kay turned around.
"It's true. I don't like speaking to you."
Layla's heart dropped.
"...however, I don't mind listening."
"—huh?"
"The thing about me is that I have nothing to talk about."
Layla began walking toward Kay.
"That's not true! You're amazing. I saw your fight before."
"No. The thing is that I don't have any stories to tell. I have no experiences to share."
"...what do you mean?"
"I have neither sad nor happy stories. My entire life, I've been forced into something that I have no interest in. Well, the truth is that I don't really have an interest in anything."
The training room went silent.
Suddenly, Kay heard something in his head.
—Ah, Rudy. You might not have any interests. You might not have any stories to share. That's fine. Because I've got more than enough for us.
Accompanying the voice was a scorching headache.
"Kay! Are you alright?"
Kay was on the ground, holding his head in pain. Layla rushed over.
Slowly pulling himself up, Kay pushed her away.
"I'm fine."
"Are you sure? I'll go get the school nurse."
Suddenly, Kay grabbed her arm.
"No, I'm fine."
Layla's face went bright red as Kay held onto her arm. There were an awkward few seconds as he didn't let go. She gently tugged away, but he continued to hold onto her. Finally, Kay let go, drawing his katana.
Layla walked back as Kay began doing his exercises again.
"Anyways, class is ending soon, so I'm going to go soon," he said.
"Ah, okay. J-just one question... that girl who was with you before. Was she your girlfriend?"
"No. She's my supervisor."
"Well, I'm not really sure what that means... but I'm glad..."
Layla hid her face under her sleeves as she secretly smiled to herself. With a slight blush on her face, she turned around.
"Well, I'll see you around."