Mixing Note

by Shūsuke Amagi

  After breakfast, the three of them were drinking tea together.

  "Wuu..."

  Looking at a very sad Selina, Nina was speechless.

  "Nina, that's a trick she uses all the time" reminded Leu quietly.

  She knew this as well. As soon as Selina was in a situation that was disadvantageous to her, she would put on a childlike appearance. It was her solution to everything.

  Even though Nina knew this...

  "I can't...?"

  "Wuu..."

  She couldn't do anything against this expression of Selina's. And her everyday meals were always made by this person who they always wanted to thank. When it came to any of her requests, they always felt that it was hard to deny her.

  (No, quickly remember, Nina Antalk. Selina wants to keep a ferret. That horrific beast. Have you forgotten Mitessha's tragedy?)

  Nina continually shook her head, reminding herself in her heart.

  Okay, I'm going to refuse...as she thought this, she looked up at Selina.

  "If that child doesn't find an owner he's going to be disposed. He's very pitiful...am I still not allowed to keep him?"

  It was completely unfair to be saying this sort of thing with an expression as if she were going to cry.

  "Okay, okay...I understand."

  As she said this in a tiny voice, Leu who was sitting beside her quietly said "Idiot."

  "Really? Really? Thank you so much!"

  "On one condition! Quickly tell him to never get close to me!"

  "Okay, I got it."

  Seeing Selina happily make her promise, Nina showed a trace of glumness.

  Noon that day.

  Layfon was startled to see a languished Nina come into the training area.

  Could it be because of yesterday's training? Aware of the possibility, Layfon was worried. Nina showed an exhausted smile and shook her head.

  "It has nothing to do with yesterday's training. It's just, this morning...it was like that."

  In response to a vague reply like that, Layfon cast a confounded look over to Nina, but she didn't attempt to explain it any further.

  "Let's just train for now. What are we doing today? Are we continuing what we did yesterday?"

  Nina thought that she would need that kind of strong defense.

  "Today we're doing basic training."

  "Why? I want to get the essentials of that move."

  "I think you've already got the basics of that move. I said it yesterday too, Kongoukei is a very simple Kei technique. If you just memorize the technique, you'll be able to do it very quickly. But to use it correctly is a different thing."

  "That's why we have to..."

  "That's why, just by memorizing we cannot understand the true nature of Kongoukei" asserted Layfon, and Nina closed her mouth.

  "Concentration isn't something which will be easily trained, and if you want to be able to bring out Kongoukei's original use, raising your basic abilities is very important. And if your foundations are very strong, then your overall abilities will be raised as well. No matter how you look at it, isn't it very good?"

  As he said this, Layfon walked towards one side of the room, and started to prepare for training.

  Nina watched Layfon's back quietly.

  Layfon seemed even further from Nina. Nina only saw the inter-platoon battle before her...and a bit further away, the inter-city battle.

  But Layfon looked even further, thinking of doing battle with filth monsters.

  This was the original purpose of Military Artists, right? She knew that it was the Military Artist's job to fight the filth monsters that attacked the city.

  But the inter-city battles with other Academy cities... the battle with other Military Artists from other cities was unavoidable.

  "Then, what am I supposed to do about that area...Waah!"

  Halfway in her sentence, Nina fell backwards to the floor, and frowned.

  On the ground, many balls the size of fists rolled around. These were things which Nina bought with the platoon's budget according to Layfon's request.

  "But that sort of thing is perfectly normal for Military Artists."

  The two were practicing their stances on top of the rolling balls.

  As they practiced the basics of being aware of Kei within their weapons, they had to be careful of the balls they were stepping on and insert Kei into the balls to stop them from rolling. If it was just standing on the balls, even Nina could do it as she was right now. But to do it as she was practicing her stances was very hard. As she continued to step on the balls and adjust her stances, she had to use her nerves to adjust the direction of the Kei flow.

  "Indeed, battling with filth monsters is different from fighting other military artists, but the only difference is the fighting methods, as the essence of the Kei technique hasn't changed."

  Nina moved about slowly, while Layfon leisurely stepped between poses. The balls he stepped on didn't move at all. Seeing this, Nina realized just how great the gap between herself and Layfon was.

  "Let's just use Kongoukei as an example. You don't know how strong your opponent's attack will be. You don't know how much power you need to defend against the attack. For argument's sake, you don't even know who your opponent is. Even with your standards now, you might still run into some trouble. But in order to get the greatest result, isn't it better to be working hard for that? You'll never waste hard work. "

  "...Speaking of which, are you practicing properly right now?"

  "I am, wouldn't you say that I am doing training very seriously?"

  "You're actually holding back to coordinate with me, right?"

  "I haven't actually thought about that..."

  Being asked that question all of a sudden by Nina, Layfon scratched his face uneasily.

  "Well, I certainly wouldn't do this in individual training, and this place isn't a specialized facility, so I can't do it properly, so doing this seems a lot more appropriate" said Layfon, balancing on a ball with a single leg.

  Seeing this change, Nina observed Layfon's feet.

  Thick Kei rotated around Layfon in a whirl.

  The first thing that Layfon had taught Nina was how to observe an opponent's Kei. As she observes the movements of the body, she also has to capture the flow of her opponent's Kei. If she did that, before her opponent used any moves she would be able to detect any changes in the flow of his Kei.

  She could nearly...do it. But she didn't understand it. If she could see the flow of the Kei, then as her opponent used any techniques she would also be able to see the change in the flow.

  Even though she understood this, that's all she could do. If she reproduced the flow of Kei, in theory she could use the same technique, but she couldn't do it in reality.

  (Ah...it's true.)

  Layfon was full of unbelievable aspects to him. Geniuses were hard to understand in the first place. And Nina herself was a rare student who was made a platoon member as a first year, so many people around her might think she was a genius as well, but she wanted to deny it. She didn't actually think that she was a genius, all she did was work harder than people expected her to. Even though she always felt that no matter how much she did she was always short of something, she still kept on working hard.

  Layfon easily reached a level she could never reach no matter how hard she worked.

  Even if that was the case, when people praised him, he accepted it unenthusiastically. He thought that it was something that was perfectly normal. He was a little proud.

  After Layfon had taught her the basics to Kei, she felt it even more. Layfon was filled with an even greater aura that made everything he did seem perfectly natural for everyone else. Of course he would be like that.

  Of course, he could do it all.

  He never thought that he wouldn't be able to achieve anything.

  If someone did point out a problem, he wouldn't accept it, as if he lost to someone else.

  Perhaps Layfon was also aware that things that he
told others to do were a little difficult for them. That's what Nina felt. She couldn't complete the exercises Layfon had set for her, but she wouldn't feel impatient; she wouldn't start yelling curses at herself.

  Even though he was proud, but he wasn't indifferent.

  (Ah, it really is...)

  Nina mumbled again to herself in her heart, and then she renewed her training with the stances.

  He was a hopeless genius,

  hopelessly proud,

  and hopelessly gentle.

  When that bit of gentleness wasn't seen in his Military Arts, his whole being would seem completely unreliable, but when he did show it, it made one's chest feel tight just like that.

  That sort of change was completely unbelievable, it seemed difficult to accept.

  (Why...is it like this...)

  Inadvertently thinking of this, Nina shook her head trying to chase the thought out of her head.

  Now wasn't the time to be thinking about those things.

  Why did Layfon make others think like this...it really is unbelievable, and

  (It really does make people angry.)

  I guess I'll try and see...thought Nina. No matter what, she wanted to try it out. No matter what it was that she could learn from him, she would try and learn it.

  In order for her to protect this city, she had to turn his power into her own.

  "Shu~~"

  Remembering the cries of the evil beast, Nina was so terrified she nearly lost it.

  "Ah, Nina."

  After leaving the training area, Nina and Layfon walked towards the nearby shopping street. They had agreed earlier that they would go to a Military Arts specialist store and have a look around. They needed to resupply on the anti-slip perishables, as well as look at some other methods of training.

  They were nearly at the large store when she was stopped by a call from Selina.

  And then, there was that evil monster's cry.

  "Wh-Why did you bring that to this kind of place?"

  Nina protested with an expression of terror. The Devil's spawn named Steven was running around Selina in circles.

  "Because I need to buy a leash for this child when we go out for walks, and I have to buy some other things that he needs" replied Selina awkwardly as she stood in front of a pet store.

  "But in comparison...Nina, you..."

  Selina smiled at Nina teasingly.

  "Nina, you guys are getting pretty heated up over there, right?"

  As she said this, Nina finally realized the situation that she was in.

  "That..."

  Layfon's awkward face was just in front of her.

  "...Eh? Eh? Waa Waaaa!"

  Noticing that she was tightly holding onto Layfon, she suddenly let go with a shriek. Her cheeks were burning hot. She knew that right now her face was probably beet red.

  "No need to be shy."

  "It's totally not what you think!"

  Even as she said that with a red face, Selina pretended not to hear.

  "Ah, Nina, I'm going to take Steven for a walk, so I'll leave these things for you to take home."

  She forced the large paper bags she was holding onto Nina, and then leading Steven along she walked away.

  "When we get back, I'm going to tell you all about what Steven did today."

  "Wait..."

  Eh, we have to buy things as well...Even though she wanted to say this, she knew that Selina wouldn't listen to what others say, and she was also slightly afraid of Steven, so she was unable to put up a more demanding front.

  "...Do you hate animals?"

  Layfon asked Nina as her extended hand dropped powerlessly to her side.

  "It's not like that."

  Looking at Selina's gradually shrinking shadow, her shoulders dropped powerlessly as well. Other than shake her head in helplessly, Nina couldn't do anything.

  As a result, they had so many things that she was forced to ask for Layfon's help to carry it. No, it wasn't that Nina bought a lot of things, but it was Selina who actually bought too much.

  "She didn't think of the consequences at all, geez."

  Nina complained quietly, walking towards her dorm.

  Even though this sort of thing happened, she still felt a little annoyed.

  Today was really way to strange. She felt like she couldn't control her mood properly.

  Layfon followed silently behind her. Layfon was holding what Selina bought for Steven. They didn't know what was inside, but it was surprising that to keep Steven that she would need such a large thing.

  Layfon noticed where Nina was looking, she was looking his way. The thing wasn't really heavy for a Military Artist, but it was still pretty big. Before she had seen through the thin gap in the paper bag, Layfon looked over and she turned around immediately.

  After they arrived at the dorm, she placed the stuff they bought in the kitchen while Layfon sat in the drawing room waiting. Nina returned to her own room.

  As she changed into her casual clothes, she thought about making some tea for Layfon. The snacks Selina had baked a couple of days ago still had many left over.

  As she was changing, she couldn't help it and she started humming. She looked beside her bed.

  Her bed was placed beside the wall, and next to it there was a windowsill. On the windowsill, Nina had left some miscellaneous items she had as a girl there as a decoration.

  In the middle, there was something that felt different from normal. It was a blank, white space, there was a strange feeling.

  "...Why?"

  She stopped humming.

  Something that was meant to be there was gone. She realized instantly that something was gone, that she was missing something. Thinking this... She calmly organized her memories again, and she looked around her room with a tense expression.

  It really was gone.

  Mitessha was gone.

  Nina was feeling slightly dizzy, and she held onto the side of her desk to stop herself from falling over.

  "Why...?"

  Still carrying a feeling of uncertainty, Nina put on a serious expression as she went through her memories again.

  This morning, her day had been completely messed up by that devil Steven, but before that, as Nina woke up she had placed Mitessha in his special place.

  After that...What happened after that. Even though she wasn't too sure, but she couldn't remember moving Mitessha. She still remembered that to escape Steven she ran out of the room and quickly changed and left the dorm.

  What did she do at that time? No, Mitessha should still be in the same spot.

  She couldn't answer that question with her memories.

  Which meant that something happened when Nina wasn't in the room. It was impossible for her to have moved Mitessha, so something or someone had moved her poor panda plushie.

  As Nina was thinking about this, there was a light knocking sound at the door.

  "Umm... senpai?"

  On the other side of the door, was Layfon's voice. Right now Nina didn't have any time to spare to worry about Layfon.

  "Ahhhh...I really am an idiot."

  Making a cold sound that surprised even herself, Nina looked up. Layfon had opened the door and was looking over at her with surprise.

  "Poor Mitessha, I just left him there and went out, I bet he hates me now."

  "That...senpai?"

  She understood that Layfon was calling to her, but if she didn't get her conclusion of her chest, she couldn't calm down.

  "I really am an idiot. At that time, how horrified must he have been, as he saw his own death nearing. Even if it was like that, I still fell to my own horrors, and left him behind and ran away myself. It's perfectly normal for me to be hated now."

  "Senpai? Hello?"

  "Mitessha couldn't move, so he lost his life and departed. I have to do everything in my power. If I don't correct my mistakes...yes, if I don't do that then..."

  "Senpai? Please return to earth now..."

  As he said this, Layfo
n gradually got further away from Nina. Nina was probably blaming herself for not taking responsibility.

  "But Mitessha hasn't returned, has he?"

  "Who is this Mitessha you're talking about?"

  "I have to do it."

  "Do what?"

  Letting out a miserable cry, Nina had already lost all signs of answering Layfon.

  "I'm home~"

  A completely carefree voice came from downstairs.

  It was Selina

  That means, if Salina was here, that was here as well.

  "Coming."

  As Nina muttered to herself, she pushed Layfon out of the way and ran towards the front door.

  "Wuu...isn't anyone home?"

  At the front door, Selina was carrying Steven who was testing his claws and looking around the room. There was nobody on the first floor.

  "And I thought Nina had come back."

  Selina had already forgotten that Nina was afraid of Steven.

  No, she actually thought that because of how cute the little thing was, that they definitely could make it up to each other and have a good relationship.

  Selina thought of this as she heard footsteps upstairs.

  "Ah, Nina thanks for carrying..."

  Smiling like always, Selina was waving at Nina, then she froze.

  Nina walked out with a scary expression on her face.

  For some reason she was holding a pair of restored Dites...Metal whips.

  "Nina...?"

  While she was still mumbling to herself, stunned, Nina had already walked over in front of her.

  She didn't have time to be afraid. She stood up immediately, but as soon as she did, she got knocked over by a strong blast of wind.

  "What are you doing?"

  This time the person crying out was Layfon.

  Why are you getting in my way?

  Nina's eyes were shining fiercely.

  Using his sword, he pushed back the metal whips, Layfon's back shaking slightly.

  Nina's whole body was overflowing with Kei. Like a broken pipe. Even her breathing was mingled with Kei, as if she was fighting some monstrous being from a nightmare.

  "Saying that I'm in your way..."

  Layfon was shaking slightly as he replied.

  "If I don't do this, Mitessha won't return."