Chapter 3: With Ease and Perfect Harmony (Patreon)

A flash of silver light.

"GAAAAAH!"

A sharp slash grazed the shoulder guard of an Evilus soldier, sending him flying. The towering beastman crashed into a crumbling wall, chunks of brick thudding down around him as his shortsword skittered into a puddle.

Before anyone nearby could react, a golden figure had already cut through the smoke.

"Ais, don't push too far ahead!"

Riveria's voice carried from behind her.

"There are still three enemy units up front — fall back and regroup with Raul first!"

The golden-haired girl didn't slow down.

"I'm fine. I can handle it."

Her answer was short, but her feet moved faster than her words.

Her pale blue combat uniform flashed across the collapsed street, golden hair streaming in the wind. Her small frame skipped over tilted paving stones, using a collapsed wall as a springboard to leap up, longsword spinning in midair as she cut precisely at an Amazon trying to flank her from the side.

The blade didn't land on the throat. It didn't cut into the chest either.

At the last instant Ais shifted the angle, the edge slicing along the outside of her opponent's weapon arm, severing vambrace and shoulder strap. The Amazon cried out, her arm going limp, and she pitched forward.

"Enemy on the right!" someone shouted.

"No, there's more behind too!"

"She's alone — surround her!"

Evilus soldiers poured out from both sides of the ruins.

They had been driving a group of residents who'd taken shelter in a factory. Several children had been shoved to the ground; the old man guarding them gripped a wooden stick, struggling even to back away from the well-armed soldiers.

When the black-clad soldiers spotted Ais, their overwhelming formation hesitated for a brief moment.

Golden hair.

Golden eyes.

A pale blue combat uniform.

And that longsword that had already become famous among Orario's adventurers.

"A girl with golden hair and golden eyes!"

"Could she be the Sword Princess of the Loki Familia?"

"Isn't she only nine years old?"

"Who cares how old she is — kill her first!"

Several figures lunged at once.

Ais raised her face amid the shouting.

Her expression barely changed, but her golden eyes locked onto every movement around her.

"I'll take you all down."

Her voice was clear, her tone calm.

In the next instant, she plunged into the crowd.

Her longsword swept past the flank of a towering beastman, the blade avoiding vital points to cleanly cut the strap holding his weapon at his waist. Before he could even look down to check, Ais had already spun, driving her sword's hilt into his ribs and slamming him sideways to the ground.

A second enemy swung his blade down at her.

Ais sidestepped, planting her foot on the flat of the blade while her other hand thrust her sword upward. The blade was knocked aside, exposing his chest. She struck his jaw with the flat of her sword; the Evilus soldier's vision went dark and he crumpled to his knees.

A third attacker swung a hand-axe from behind.

Ais moved as if she'd already known the strike would come from there, her body folding forward.

The axe grazed the top of her head.

"Above."

Artorias's voice came from the other end of the street.

Ais didn't turn back.

Mid-flip, she reversed her grip on the longsword and swept the blade backward in a thin arc. The attacker's axe handle snapped, forcing both his arms up high. As she rose, she drove an elbow squarely into his stomach.

The figure dropped.

Artorias gripped his shortsword tightly, standing beside Adi, eyes sweeping the surroundings.

His body, still not fully adjusted after returning to human form, wasn't yet used to combat. The clothes he wore were borrowed for the occasion; bandages wrapped beneath his white cloak, and even slight strain on his abdomen sent a tearing pain through him.

But his hearing and sense of smell remained sharp.

The rain had thinned the smell of blood, but it hadn't washed away the sulfurous residue of the Flame Stones.

"There are more people behind the house on the left."

He raised a hand, pointing toward a stretch of ruins veiled in smoke.

"Three of them. One's standing on higher ground, the other two are crouched, and their weapons have metal guards."

Ais finally glanced back at him.

Just a brief look — then she turned and ran toward where he'd pointed.

Adi's brow twitched, almost imperceptibly.

She'd meant to warn Artorias not to push himself too hard, but what came out instead was something else entirely.

"Artorias, are you sure you heard right?"

"Yes."

"Then stay close to me."

Adi held Sacred Oath level in front of her, gaze following Ais's retreating back.

"Stop staring at her all the time."

Artorias froze.

Adi immediately looked away.

"What I mean is — you should be watching the enemies around us. You're hurt. You can't spend all your attention calling out positions for Ais."

"I know."

Artorias nodded seriously.

"Ais needs someone to tell her where the enemies are too."

Adi looked at his utterly matter-of-fact expression and fell silent for half a second.

They'd only just met.

This was nothing more than teamwork improvised on a battlefield.

And yet the exchange between the two of them was quick and effortless. Artorias called out a position, and Ais moved instantly, without even pausing to confirm. When Ais changed direction, she adjusted her path almost unconsciously based on his cues.

This kind of rapport had come far too fast.

Fast enough that something indefinably prickly rose in Adi's chest.

She quickly pushed the feeling down.

This wasn't the time for that.

There were still residents in the industrial district, and more Evilus soldiers closing in. If she let herself get distracted even slightly, Artorias beside her could be caught off guard.

"Ahead, Ais!" Adi called out suddenly. "Flame Stone, upper right!"

Ais, halfway through her charge, stopped dead the instant she heard the warning.

A red stone flew out from behind a chimney, landing exactly where she would have been.

BOOM!

The blast threw up a wave of scorching heat.

Ais used a broken pillar nearby to leap clear, her body twisting in midair to avoid the center of the shockwave. Artorias raised a hand to shield his face, while Adi angled her blade like a shield to block flying brick and stone.

Flames spread along the street.

Two Evilus soldiers used the smoke as cover to rush Ais.

Artorias was about to call a warning when Ais had already adjusted her stance mid-air.

"One on the right, two behind."

Artorias shouted.

The instant Ais landed, she swung her sword sideways.

A silver arc of light cut through the smoke.

The first attacker was struck at the knee by the flat of the blade, his balance instantly gone. Ais used his shoulder as a springboard to leap backward, her sword changing direction twice in midair.

The first strike knocked away a shortsword.

The second shattered a vambrace.

Both soldiers dropped in succession.

She didn't linger after landing, rolling forward instead to dodge a hammer falling behind her. The hammer crashed down hard on the stone where she'd just been standing, sending debris flying.

Ais spun and struck.

The hammer-wielder's weapon flew from his grip, and the sword's hilt caught him square in the chest.

Silence fell once more.

Artorias stared at the fallen enemies, eyes widening despite himself.

"She didn't kill them."

"I noticed." Adi answered, her tone still even, though she couldn't stop glancing at Ais.

Ais's swordplay was fast — faster than many adult adventurers. Yet every time, she pulled back at the last moment, avoiding arteries and organs, striking instead with the flat, the hilt, or the guard.

This wasn't simply a difference in strength.

It was control over strike placement, precise to an astonishing degree.

"Is this how everyone in the Loki Familia fights?" Artorias asked.

"No." Adi tightened her grip on her sword's hilt. "She's the exceptional one."

No sooner had she spoken than Ais had already charged the next group of enemies.

Her silver blade met the long knives of Evilus soldiers again and again, sparks flashing across the gloomy street. Each time steel met steel, Ais would shift the angle to redirect the force, deflecting enemy weapons aside before slipping through the opening.

The Evilus formation was torn apart in moments.

A short man raised a crossbow from the side, and Artorias instantly caught the sound of the bowstring drawing taut.

"Ais, behind you!"

The girl didn't turn.

Her left foot slid back half a step, her body pivoting toward the sound. The bolt grazed past her golden hair; the next instant, Ais was already standing in front of the crossbowman.

The scabbard struck his wrist.

The crossbow dropped.

The hilt struck his shoulder.

The man fell.

Ais sheathed her sword and turned, her gaze meeting Artorias's.

"Thanks."

"Don't mention it."

"Anyone left on the left?"

Artorias closed his eyes and listened for a moment.

"No. But there are five people in the warehouse ahead, moving things."

"Flame Stones?"

"Doesn't sound like it. Metal clanking in the crates — probably shortswords and chains."

Ais nodded and moved toward the warehouse without hesitation.

Adi watched the exchange between them, her lips pressing thin.

They were already anticipating each other's next moves.

She was the one who'd stayed by Artorias's side all along.

She was the one who'd just accurately called out the Flame Stone's position for Ais too.

So why did he fall into sync so instantly the moment he heard Ais's voice?

A faint prickle of feeling had barely surfaced before it was drowned out by a sudden scream from somewhere in the distance.

"Someone's been captured!"

A resident's shriek rang out from the eastern side of the industrial district.

Adi spun around at once.

"Artorias, stay close!"

"Ais is over there."

"She can handle what's in front of her."

Without waiting for him to finish, Adi grabbed his wrist and ran toward the east side.

She moved quickly but kept her pace deliberately controlled, making sure Artorias wouldn't fall and tear his wound open.

"Adi, over there!" Artorias suddenly stopped.

He raised a hand, pointing to a half-collapsed workshop.

"Not the east side. The sound's underground. Someone was just dragged in there."

Adi changed course instantly.

The two of them circled around the burning warehouse and came up behind the workshop. Faint impact sounds came from beneath the cracked floor, along with muffled cries for help.

"There are enemies above." Artorias listened closely. "Two of them, guarding the entrance."

Adi raised her sword, stepping in front of him.

"Wait here for me."

"I can tell you their movements."

"I know."

Adi stepped forward. "So I'll be listening."

She charged the workshop entrance.

The enemy on the left emerged from behind a crate, his long knife slashing diagonally. Artorias shouted from behind.

"He's going to change the strike!"

Adi didn't take the blow head-on. She blocked the first strike with the flat of her blade, then slid along the back of his knife. Sure enough, the Evilus soldier's wrist dropped, the blade's angle shifting to aim at her side.

Adi pressed her hilt down, pinning his weapon in place, then drove her knee into his stomach.

The other enemy hurled a throwing knife from the right.

"Right side!" Artorias shouted, faster than the enemy could act.

Adi sidestepped; the knife embedded itself in a wooden post behind her. She spun and kicked the second man in the knee, then leveled Sacred Oath at his throat.

"Drop your weapon."

The Evilus soldier gritted his teeth. "You think we'll—"

Adi drove the hilt forward, striking his jaw.

"I'm not negotiating with you."

Both enemies fell.

Adi turned to look at Artorias. "Your timing just now was good."

"Ais does the same thing."

Artorias walked over to the underground entrance.

"So I know when to call it out."

Hearing that, the faint sourness still lingering in Adi's chest stirred again, ever so slightly.

But in the next instant, the sound of metal snapping came from below.

Artorias's face changed.

"Someone down there's about to light a fire!"

Adi didn't hesitate; she kicked open the wooden board blocking the entrance.

Inside the basement, three residents were chained in a corner, beside a pile of crates full of Flame Stones. An Evilus soldier held a lit ember, about to touch it to the fuse.

Adi charged down the stairs.

Artorias grabbed a piece of rubble and hurled it at the man's wrist.

The stone didn't carry much force, but it struck true, knocking the flame aside.

The spark hit the ground and went out.

Adi cut the chains and pulled the residents behind her. The soldier roared and lunged, but she ducked low to avoid his blade, then swung the scabbard backhand into the back of his neck.

The enemy dropped.

"Move!"

Adi shielded the residents as they retreated toward the surface.

The moment they reached ground level, a golden figure dropped down from the other side of the street.

Ais's pale blue combat uniform was covered in dust and grime, but her longsword bore no bloodstains.

Behind her, several Evilus soldiers lay sprawled across the ground.

"Adi." Ais looked at her. "Did you get them out?"

"We got them out." Adi nodded, then added, "Artorias found the basement."

Ais turned to the black-haired boy. "Well done."

Artorias looked away, a little uncomfortable.

"You did great too."

"Mm." Ais accepted the compliment seriously. "So did you."

The exchange happened again, effortlessly, between the two of them.

Adi stood off to the side, one eyebrow lifting slightly.

This time, she didn't say anything.

What was there to compare, really?

The more people who could help each other on a battlefield, the better. Artorias could use his strengths, and Ais could avoid unnecessary injuries. As long as the residents were saved, it didn't matter who they were paired with.

As Adi thought this through, the prickle in her chest was quickly scattered by commotion breaking out on the other side of the ruins.

"More enemies!"

Ais drew her sword.

Artorias closed his eyes at once.

"Six of them, coming from the north. Two with crossbows, three with knives, and one carrying a Flame Stone."

Riveria arrived with Raul and the others.

She listened to Artorias's report and immediately began assigning tasks.

"Raul, take two people and deal with the crossbowmen. Adi, protect the residents. Ais, you take the one with the Flame Stone — but don't stray more than ten steps from the group."

"Understood."

Ais and Artorias answered at the exact same moment.

Their words landed almost perfectly in sync.

Adi finally couldn't help but look at the two of them.

"When did you two get so in sync?"

Ais blinked. "Just now."

Artorias answered seriously. "Just now?" "Working together, just now." Ais nodded.

Adi looked between them, falling silent for a moment.

Then she raised her sword, blocking a crossbow bolt flying in from the north.

"Then keep it up — just don't get in my way."

Her tone came out slightly sharper than usual.

Artorias didn't notice.

Neither did Ais.

The two of them charged the enemy together.

Ais handled the frontal assault while Artorias, staying behind her, kept calling out enemy positions and movements.

"Left!"

Ais swung to block.

"Above!"

She ducked under a crossbow bolt.

"He's about to throw the Flame Stone!"

Ais didn't press the attack — instead she spun and slashed at the man's wrist, knocking the Flame Stone away along with its fuse.

The red stone landed in an empty water trough.

In the next instant, the explosion was smothered by the water and stone walls, producing nothing more than a muffled tremor.

Ais burst out of the smoke, driving the sword's hilt into the last enemy's chest.

The Evilus unit was wiped out once more.

The residents were escorted to a safe area.

The fires, too, gradually died down under the mages' chants.

Riveria surveyed the outcome before her, her expression not relaxing, though her gaze lingered a moment between Ais and Artorias.

The girl's fighting style was still far too direct.

The black-haired boy's body hadn't fully recovered either.

And yet, in their first battle fighting side by side, the two of them had already learned to cover each other's gaps.

This kind of rapport was both startling and reassuring.

Adi sheathed Sacred Oath and walked over to Artorias.

"Are you all right?"

"A little tired."

"Then rest."

She reached out and pulled his cloak tighter, the motion naturally blocking his line of sight toward Ais.

This time, she was the first to notice how deliberate that gesture had been.

Adi cleared her throat and turned back to Ais.

"You need to see to your gear too."

Ais glanced down at her sword. "It still works fine."

"I meant you."

Adi pulled out a clean cloth and handed it to the girl.

"There's ash on your face."

Ais took the cloth and wiped at her face carelessly, only smearing the dirt around further.

Watching her, Artorias couldn't help speaking up.

"There's still some on the right."

Ais raised her hand and wiped the left side.

"The other side."

She wiped the wrong spot again.

Adi closed her eyes, finally taking the cloth from Artorias's hand.

"Give it here."

She walked over to Ais and wiped the ash from her face herself.

Ais stood quietly, letting Adi work.

Standing off to the side watching this, Artorias suddenly thought Adi's expression looked strange.

"Adi, are you angry?"

"No."

"But your voice sounds—"

"I'm just tired." Adi cut him off, her movements a touch quicker than before. "And there's still a lot to do."

Once Ais's face was clean, her golden eyes showed clearly again.

She looked at Artorias.

"Where's next?"

Artorias turned toward the ruined factory in the distance.

"Southwest. There are a lot of people over there — might be trapped in a warehouse."

Ais nodded. "Let's go together."

Adi had meant to say Artorias needed to rest.

But she looked at the residents who'd just been rescued, and at the warehouse still burning in the distance.

In the end, she simply slung the medical kit over her own shoulder and tightened her grip on her sword.

"Then let's all go."

The three of them fell in with the rescue team.

Riveria watched their retreating backs and let out a quiet sigh.

She knew this war wouldn't end just because of one victory.

Evilus still held the city walls, Valletta was still plotting the next attack, and Zald and Alfia were both still hiding somewhere in the city.

But at least, along this street cut off by fire and rubble, the Astraea Familia had saved its residents.

Ais had learned to trust in her companions.

Artorias had found a place where he could put his abilities to use.

And that fleeting flicker of jealousy in Adi's chest had already been swept away entirely by a new alarm.

"Ambush on the right!"

Artorias called out again.

Ais's hand was already on her sword's hilt.

Adi pulled him behind her for cover.

The three of them turned together toward the source of the sound.

Before the next battle began, Ais and Artorias exchanged a nod.

The rapport formed at their first meeting was still holding strong.