Chapter 6: Praise The Sun (1)
"YOU ARE HOLDING THE HILT WRONG!"
"YOUR SPINE IS TOO STRAIGHT!"
"PLEASE PUT MORE STRENGTH INTO THE SWING! IT'S OBVIOUS THAT YOU'RE STRONGER THAN YOU LOOK!"
"DON'T HOLD BACK!"
"YOUR LEFT LEG IS A BIT TOO FORWARD!"
"USE YOUR HIPS!"
"GOOD, NOW 5,000 MORE SWINGS!"
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My only regret in this life was asking Alice to teach me swordsmanship.
She was way too serious about swords.
For the past month, rather than fighting, the only thing I learned was how to properly hold a sword and some basic swings, along with exercises to increase my stamina.
Despite copying the basic techniques from Alice using Great Sage and having them transferred to my brain, my body still couldn't perform them properly because of the enormous difference in our physical stats, not to mention the lack of experience.
Alice's swordsmanship was perfectly tailored to suit her body, so the bones it snapped were extremely painful.
Since that was the case, I had Great Sage focus on magic-related things instead.
'Maybe it's because of my lack of talent in swordsmanship?'
As someone who had never bothered to do something physically challenging in both of his lives, this much training was mentally exhausting, despite how my body would handle it with fair ease.
I hated physical work with all of my being.
In my previous life, my body was too weak, so much so that at one point, even lifting a backpack was impossible, and that led to my disinterest in physical training, which was still there in this life. Using Gravity Magic to train my body was also an option, but for now, it was best to go along with Alice's training to set up a proper base.
However, I'd much rather 'enhance' my body artificially to increase my physical strength, durability, and stuff like that than physically work hard for them.
That kind of hard work suited me better.
"Oh, you're doing it again." Alice walked towards me, crouched down, grabbed my left ankle, and adjusted it slightly. "Remember, even the slightest bit of error will decrease your efficiency." After a few seconds, she smiled. "Good, now your posture is almost perfect. We can begin actual training tomorrow."
"You are good at this, Alice."
That wasn't a lie; she was a good, diligent teacher. Not to mention that the way she explained it was easy to understand, at least for me.
"No…" After hearing that compliment, Alice turned around and avoided looking at me. "With enough practice, anyone can do this much..."
Right.
Contrary to her always neutral expression, she was extremely weak to compliments, especially from those she was close to.
While Alice was busy avoiding eye contact with me, my eyes drifted towards her waist, which was on full display since she was only wearing a black sports bra, a black pair of shorts, and sports shoes. Following that, my eyes started moving towards her perfectly shaped buttocks.
Although she worked out a lot, her muscles weren't that defined.
Alice's body proportions were perfect—neither too small nor too big—a very alluring body, I had to say.
'It's been a while since I last sucked on her breasts, too…'
The last time was two days ago when we were taking a bath together after training.
It was hard for me to grow out of a habit built up since birth, and Alice liked it, too.
'Oh, well. 4,931 swings to go.'
After looking at her for a good few seconds, I decided to ask something before continuing my training again.
"Hey, Alice…" At that callout, she turned back towards me. "Why did you choose this area as your territory? Not only is it close to the Fallen Angels' region, but there's barely anything here."
Currently, it was just the two of us in a secluded mountain field that was within Alice's territory.
When someone becomes an Ultimate Class Devil, they receive the right to choose a part of the Underworld as their territory, regardless of their background. Naturally, Alice was no exception.
Her territory was a very secluded place within the Devils' region, and coupled with the fact that it wasn't that far away from the Fallen Angels' region, it was a place no one would ever visit. Apart from the small castle where we stayed in, this place had nothing in it.
Coincidentally, it was one of the places Great Sage had picked up for me to build a research facility, but since this was Alice's territory, that option no longer existed.
"There's no particular reason, to be honest. I had plenty on my plate back then, so choosing a territory that'd need my attention was a no-go, and I picked a place to use as a training ground and relax every once in a while. The best part is that this place reminds me of where I grew up."
Our eyes met, and she smiled at me.
"You know, you look beautiful."
It was an honest compliment.
"Thank you." At my sudden compliment, it took her a few seconds to reply. "But you should save those words for the girl you will fall in love with in the future, as saying them randomly will decrease their value."
It was always the single people who gave the best relationship advice.
"But I love you, Alice."
"I see." Alice leaned forward, patted my head, and replied with a smile. "If your thoughts don't change in ten years, please say that again at that time, and then I will give you an honest answer… However, you still have to train."
A child would most likely forget a conversation like this—was probably what she had on her mind.
It was rare, but my favourite [Knight] could act like an adult sometimes.
"I know."
I took a stance and waited for Alice to examine it.
"Mmh." She nodded with a happy smile. "It's good. Compared to your first day, there are barely any flaws."
'It took me a month to even hold a sword properly, huh? Talk about talentless.'
That thought made me laugh a bit.
"4,931."
"4,930."
"4,929."
My body moved in a repetitive motion, vertically slashing the wooden sword in my hands.
"I will go and prepare things for your actual training." The Astaroth Clan's Magic Circle appeared under Alice's feet before she disappeared. "Please don't overdo it."
She knew me well enough to believe I wouldn't slack off from my training, something she wasn't wrong about.
Regardless of my hatred for physical workouts, I wouldn't give up halfway on something. In most cases, at least.
My current schedule was simple.
In a week, I'd stay in Alice's territory for three days, training with her, before returning home and staying there for four days, continuing my studies.
At first, Latia accompanied us here, but after some time, she was shooed away by me.
All she did was eat snacks and laze around to disturb me, so after a little teasing, she was diligently training the [Power of Time] with Vanessa.
She didn't want me to leave her behind, so she started to train even harder.
I had no idea that kids could be so competent.
Back in the day, my teenage self was pretty incompetent since everything was so easy to obtain, at least before my brother died, an incident that completely changed my life.
My family was filthy rich, with everyone praising me for nonsensical stuff. I had a decent enough face, and although my body was weaker than average, it didn't bother me much back then.
Not to mention, my parents were overly doting on me and my brother, and whatever we wanted was handed to us on a silver platter.
Maybe it was because of that, but my brother's death hit my parents very hard, which, coupled with the news of my soon-approaching death within two years, was too much for my mother, who couldn't take it and ended up passing away a month after it.
To continue the family's death streak, my father fell into depression and soon committed suicide, leaving me, a seventeen-year-old body, waiting for death, alone and scared.
It was the lowest point of my life, but now, it was more of a personal joke about how such a perfect family fell to ruin within months.
In all honesty, they deserved better.
My parents were kind people who loved their family, but alas, it was painfully obvious that kindness didn't guarantee a good life. Their deaths were one thing that pushed me to cure myself and change my fate.
Even so, that didn't change the fact that they left me to suffer and die alone, something that pissed me off for a long time.
It was obvious that they went through something traumatic, losing a child and knowing about the other's soon-approaching death, but I couldn't let go of the anger for many years.
That incident, coupled with what happened with my girlfriend, taught me two things.
First, never expect something from anyone, no matter who they were. Caring for people around me was natural, but when it came down to it, only I would be there for myself, and expecting something from them would only lead to disappointment.
I expected my parents to support me through my hard times, but what did I get to see? My father's dead body with a note saying, 'I am sorry, but I can't go on.'
The second thing it did was give me a superiority complex.
Be it my brother, my parents, my girlfriend, or the several most brilliant minds around the world, who gave up on the virus created by my blood, stating it as 'incurable with their current medical advancements,' but I never gave up, and I was better than them, no matter how one looked at it.
If the people around me weren't that weak, I would've peacefully died at the age of nineteen without any regrets, not becoming what I currently was.
'Ah, fuck… Just thinking about it ruins the flow of training.'
Moving on, if it weren't for my sickness, the chances of me ending up as a Young Master-type character were high.
That was a truly terrifying thought.
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Zzz*
Zzz*
Zzz*
"Please don't sleep inside a bath, Azrail."
While I was peacefully imitating a dead body floating on water, Alice's voice came from the side, causing me to open my eyes and glance at her.
She had nothing but a towel wrapped around her body as she walked towards the bath, which, coupled with the light steam coming from the hot water, made it a sight for sore eyes.
"I've been doing this since the age of three, but every time we bathe together, you still say the same thing."
"And even after all that, you still wouldn't listen to me."
Alice entered the bath with a small sigh. The towel around her removed itself, settling down on her head like a crown without any physical contact.
Although it looked like telekinesis, it wasn't. All she did was a simple application of [Wind Magic], which also happened to be her favourite attribute.
"Aah~ Nothing beats a warm bath after training."
"The only one who trained was me, no?"
"You shouldn't be picky about the little details. Girls don't like that type of a man."
"Such wisdom from someone who never had a boyfriend her entire life."
"I'm still a girl…" Alice retorted at my sarcastic comment. "And you shouldn't tease adults like that."
"By the way, Alice, there's something I wanted to ask you. Remember when Vanessa teased you about your relationship status a month ago?"
"It's hard to forget, but go on…"
"What did she mean by Ajuka telling her and Sebas to keep your existence a secret when you arrived at the Astaroth Clan, even from father and mother?"
Alice looked at me for a few seconds, but ultimately, she didn't reply.
"So you can't talk about it, huh? Well, fine. I'll figure it out myself."
Or maybe she didn't want to tell me?
It could be either.
"Thank you for your understanding."
My body randomly floated through the bath, only to soon arrive directly in front of Alice.
Our eyes met, and she observed the bland expression on my face as if pondering about something.
"Your face looks very different from My Lord's, but your expression is the same as his…"
For some reason, I found that offensive.
"Of course, he takes after our mother, unlike me, who takes after our father. As for Sebas, he takes after both of them."
I once saw Ajuka's childhood and teenage pictures, and by the name of Lucifer, he made Astolfo look like a boy in comparison.
After that, my mother showed me a picture of him dressed up as a girl, which made it impossible for me to recognise him. At first, I mistook it for my mother's picture from when she was a teenager.
"Hmmm. Your eyes are so red that they might even glow in the dark."
What kind of childish observation was that?
"Your face is too close... I can feel your breath on my face, you know?"
"Ah, sorry…"
Alice straightened her back, bringing her arms towards the back of her head, stretching a bit.
There was an awkward silence between us, which was a bit weird, and that made me say whatever came to mind.
"Alice, you said my actual training will start tomorrow, but what exactly will you teach me?"
"Swordsmanship, of course."
'Too vague, but she's cute...'
The stars shining in her eyes made it difficult for me to complain.
"But really, thank you for teaching me. I doubt anyone else could've done it without giving up."
There was no way my talent in swordsmanship was up to Alice's standards, but she still entertained my request to learn swordsmanship.
"Hm? What do you mean by that?"
"I mean, it took me a month to even hold a sword properly, yet you're still teaching me diligently without giving up on me, something I doubt anyone else could've done. If I were in your shoes, giving up on a talentless kid in a few days would be a no-brainer."
"That's not it!"
The sudden rise in her voice surprised me, but before I could say anything, Alice grabbed me by the shoulders, bringing my face in front of her face, directly staring into my eyes.
'I'm five, you know? At least wait until I'm ten.'
Yeah, I hated myself, too, so please don't comment about it.
"Uh, Alice?"
"You're not talentless, not at all. You're one of the most talented and hardworking people I've ever taught. You had the patience to go through my training without any complaints, unlike others I've taught… Everyone gave up after saying that spending so much time on how to hold a sword was a waste, so please, don't have such low self-esteem."
That was... intense?
My statement wasn't meant to show my low self-esteem. All I did was state my thoughts on that matter.
Even if I were to train in swordsmanship for a decade, it wouldn't become something I'd suddenly start judging my worth over.
"I get what you mean, Alice, but you won't kiss me, right?"
"I am not a paedophile."
"That's the issue here, and considering that we're Devils, no one would mind if one of their own is a paedophile."
I certainly wouldn't if it was Alice.
"No matter the race, paedophiles must die."
Alice placed me back into the water, letting me imitate a dead body again.
"You're right."
I once had a friend who believed that being a paedophile wasn't a mental illness but a way of life.
The keyword in this sentence was 'had,' as he was never seen or heard from again.
Somehow, he disappeared overnight to who knows where.
Legends on Reddit said that the FBI got him, but everyone knew it was 4chan.
"Moving on, you've taught other people as well?"
"Yeah, a lot. But only a few of them could endure the training."
"For example?"
"Do you know Souji Okita, Lord Lucifer's [Knight]? After he reincarnated as a Devil, I sparred with him for a while, and he asked to become my student... I taught him for a few years, and ever since then, he has been trying to beat me in a match. I've taught others as well, and most of them gave up, saying that my training was unreasonable, but that's where they're wrong because basic movements are the foundation of a good swordsman."
You read too many cultivation novels, Alice. And I wasn't pointing out the details, but the way she talked like a Sword Grandmaster.
"How many [Knight] Pieces did it take to reincarnate you?"
"I'll leave that up to your imagination."
'So she can't even say that, huh?'
The more I learned about her past, the more it piqued my curiosity.
Alice wasn't a Rating Game participant, which was the most common way to rise through the ranks, so it was still a mystery how she attained the rank of Ultimate-Class Devil since she wasn't even there during the Devil Civil War.
The only main detail I had about her past was when Vanessa mentioned how Ajuka brought her out of the blue when she was a kid, even telling them to keep her existence a secret.
It was an intriguing topic, even more so since I couldn't investigate it.
"Then, do you think I can beat you in the future?"
"In a fight, most likely, as I'm sure you'd surpass me soon."
"What about pure swordsmanship and combat skills?"
"Never."
Alice's confidence in her swordsmanship was incredible.
"I'm flattered that you think that I can surpass you."
"Not really, though it'll be good if you acted like your age, even if it's a once-in-a-while thing."
"Ain't happening. That's just the kind of person I am."
"Lady Celis told me that My Lord was like that, too, but I believe you're missing the most enjoyable part of your childhood… After all, it's something that everyone should cherish."
While she said that, I couldn't help but notice that Alice looked a bit sad, making me wonder what was up with her.
Even now, I couldn't properly grasp how someone could live for centuries and not become a nihilist. After completing what I considered my life's purpose, there was nothing for me to live for, which greatly changed my outlook on life.
It made me realise how there was a difference between living and simply existing.
But still, it was my first time seeing Alice sad, and it made me a bit uncomfortable, so I changed the topic to something she was always ready to talk about.
"Can you tell me about Holy Swords?"
"Holy Swords?"
At the mention of swords, Alice brightened up almost instantly.
Never in my wildest expectations had I expected a sword addict to be this cute.
"Yeah."
"Holy Swords, like the name suggests, are weapons infused with Holy Power, and they're considered the ultimate weapons against Devils, Fallen Angels, and Vampires. Other than boosting their user's physical and magical attributes, along with granting different abilities depending on the unique sword, they also grant a passive ability called the Holy Aura, which actively suppresses a Devil's strength in its presence. It's like a portable version of how creatures of darkness can't go to religious places."
"Is there a way to avoid the suppression created by the Holy Aura?"
"Well, if you have strong Demonic Power, it doesn't pose much threat, but it still affects Devils, even the strongest ones."
"I see."
"However, not all humans can wield Holy Swords, as a natural-born wielder would only appear once a decade. I've fought many Holy Sword wielders over the years and even lost to one—a human from the Church who wielded Durandal."
"You... lost to a human?"
That was probably the most surprising information my ears had heard today.
"Although humans are weak in general, there are always some exceptions. The man I fought was Vasco Strada, the former Cardinal Preist, and he was an absolute monster in a battle."
"Unlike what I expected, you seem to respect this Vasco."
"I do respect him, both as a swordsman and a person. He is an honourable character, going as far as sparing my life because he thought our fight was unfair, even though I denied it. And contrary to what one would expect from a Priest, he had no innate hatred for Devils."
"Unfair, how?"
"Before Vasco arrived at the battlefield, I was fighting against two Fallen Angel Cadres, but when I shifted my attention to him, the fallen angels escaped… According to Vasco, it wasn't a fair fight, as my condition wasn't at its peak when he arrived, so he didn't finish me off, and he never declared himself the winner, either. Officially, our match is still considered a tie."
"Who was stronger? The Fallen Angels or Vasco?"
"Vasco, of course."
Well, damn. From the moment I came to this world, humans were always stated to be the weakest species with the least potential without Sacred Gears, at least after the Great War, but it seemed like they still had some competent people.
'This Vasco sounds like the new-era version of King Arthur or something...'
The power scaling in this world never made much sense, but now, it appeared to be even worse than I thought.
It was like a battle shonen where characters were getting buffed and nerfed throughout the series to keep the plot going, filling the story with inconsistencies and plot holes.
"Do you think you can beat him now?"
"I've improved a lot from back then, and Vasco's seventy-plus now, so the match isn't fair."
Even someone that strong couldn't overcome his racial limitations, huh?
"Then, what about his prime?"
"My speed surpasses his prime now, but I don't have enough firepower to damage him much…" Alice placed her index finger on her chin, pondering. "I'd have much better odds than him if I activated my Sacred Gear even back then, and it'll turn into a guaranteed win with my Balance—!"
Realising what she was on about, the blonde struck her tongue out, biting it between her teeth while avoiding eye contact with me.
'Man, this day is filled with surprises…'
Looking at Alice, who stopped talking midway, a smile appeared on my face.
"Don't worry. My lips are sealed." I did the action of zipping my lips using my index finger and thumb. "Although, I need something in return."
Am I being blackmailed?—was what Alice's expression said, but she still complied.
"And what would that be?"
It took all my willpower to stop myself from saying 'Bend over' or 'On all fours, now' before covering both my eyes with bangs.
"Take me to the Human World, and while we're at it, show me around that world, too."
"Is that all?" Alice tilted her head in confusion.
Was it that simple of a request?
"How many places in the Human World have you marked with the teleportation circle?"
Alice pondered for a few seconds after hearing my question.
"Most of the major places."
"I see… So, when can we go?"
At my words, she smiled.
"Anytime you wish, as I have the permission to teleport between worlds from the Satan Beelzebub."
How convenient my favourite [Knight] was.
'Great Sage, create a list of places to visit and mark them with my teleportation circles depending on the locations of my desired test subjects…'
'And while you're at it, sort out the places you selected to build research facilities in. I'll visit them after the tour with Alice is done...'
[Answer. Understood.]
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On an unrelated note, no matter how much a devil stayed inside water, their skin wouldn't go through Maceration, so bathing for prolonged periods was fine.
For those who didn't understand, skin maceration was when someone's fingers became soft, wet, or wrinkly after a long bath because of being exposed to moisture for a long time.
"By the way, Alice."
Just as she stepped out of the bath and wrapped the towel around her body, I called her out.
"Yes?"
"What'll you make for dinner?"
"I haven't decided yet... Is there anything specific you want?"
"Then, make hamburgers."
Ever since I started eating in this life, my focus has always been on eating as much junk food as possible.
In my past life, I had a very tight diet because my stomach couldn't digest most things, so making up for that in this life was the only natural reaction.
And to top it all off, Devils didn't get fat regardless of how much they ate and would always stay in good physical condition.
It was a blessing for someone like me.
"Okay, I'll make them." Alice walked towards the door, but just as she was about to leave, she turned around. "Right. Can you please use a [Clean] spell before leaving?"
[Clean] was a Custom Spell that Alice used in front of me once, and it did exactly what the name suggested. It cleaned stuff up.
Watching the spell once was enough for me to copy it without any difficulty since it was a fairly simple spell.
"Sure."
"Thank you."
With that, she left.
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Words: 4228
The chapter is a bit late. Hope you all still have the stones saved…