Chapter 319

Chapter 319: Chapter 319

Across the street, Alfia watched from the roof beneath the concealment of Bakudō #26: Kyokkō

Rayleigh could feel her presence through their Reiraku even while sparring, although Bell and Hestia had no idea she was there.

Bell rushed him again.

This time Rayleigh increased the pressure slightly.

His practice sword came down toward Bell’s head quickly enough that the boy had no chance to counterattack.

Bell raised Tachikaze with both hands, blocked the strike, and immediately bent his knees rather than allowing the force to drive him backward.

Rayleigh changed direction and swept toward his ribs.

Bell ducked.

A third strike came from below, and Bell twisted his body sideways before answering with a quick cut toward Rayleigh’s exposed wrist.

Rayleigh pulled back.

Tachikaze missed by only a few centimeters.

Bell’s eyes widened.

He had realized it too!

"That was close!"

"Don’t celebrate before the fight is finished."

Rayleigh’s foot hooked behind Bell’s ankle.

Bell hit the ground.

Hestia winced loudly from the side.

Rayleigh lowered the wooden sword and waited until Bell sat up.

"You nearly touched me because you finally stopped trying to overpower the exchange. Tachikaze is a short weapon. If you fight someone with greater reach, forcing your way through the front only gives them more opportunities to hit you. Use your speed to enter when their attack has already committed, strike quickly, then move before they recover."

Bell climbed back onto his feet while rubbing his hip. "So I should keep moving instead of trading attacks?"

"Most of the time. You’re built for speed, and Tachikaze suits that. If you eventually become strong enough to stand there and exchange blows with a Minotaur, great. Until then, I’d rather you avoid finding out how much stronger their arms are than yours."

The memory of the Fifth Floor immediately removed any temptation Bell might have had to argue.

He tightened his grip and attacked again.

For the next hour, Rayleigh kept the lesson simple.

He corrected Bell’s feet, shortened several unnecessarily wide swings, showed him how to use Tachikaze’s smaller size in cramped passages, and forced him to defend immediately after every attack.

Bell was still hit constantly, yet each mistake appeared less often than the last.

By the end, sweat had soaked through the back of Bell’s shirt and his breathing had become rough, but he remained standing.

Rayleigh finally lowered the wooden sword.

"Enough physical training. Sit down."

Bell obeyed immediately, dropping onto the ground with visible relief.

Rayleigh sat several steps in front of him and pointed toward Tachikaze.

"Now close your eyes and put the blade across your lap."

Bell followed the instruction.

"This isn’t Magic, so stop trying to force anything. You’ve already heard Tachikaze’s name once. The next step is learning to recognize the blade when it speaks again. Breathe normally, keep your attention on the connection you felt during the forging, and let everything else settle."

Bell closed his eyes.

Several minutes passed.

Hestia also became unusually quiet while watching.

Rayleigh could sense the faint movement of Reiryoku between Bell and Tachikaze, but he did nothing to interfere.

This part belonged to the wielder.

Eventually Bell’s brow tightened.

His fingers shifted against Tachikaze’s sheath.

A faint breeze passed through the training yard even though the surrounding air had been still moments earlier.

Rayleigh noticed immediately.

Bell opened his eyes.

"I heard something."

"What?"

Bell looked down at the weapon with uncertainty. "I couldn’t understand the words clearly. It felt like someone was telling me to stop sitting around."

Rayleigh stared at Tachikaze for a moment before laughing.

"That sounds about right."

Bell looked confused, but Rayleigh did not explain further.

Tachikaze had never been the patient type, and apparently its personality had survived the transition into this world perfectly well.

"Don’t worry about Shikai yet. Keep doing this every day, especially after using Tachikaze in real combat. The more experience you share with the blade, the clearer the connection becomes."

Bell nodded and carefully returned Tachikaze to his waist.

Hestia immediately approached with water and a towel, fussing over him while complaining that Rayleigh had been hitting him too hard.

Rayleigh ignored the accusation because Bell had received nothing worse than bruises, and judging from the grin he was trying to hide while drinking, he was already thinking about returning to the Dungeon.

That enthusiasm would need supervision.

Fortunately, Eina could handle that problem.

...

Rayleigh waited until Bell and Hestia left for the Guild before crossing the street and joining Alfia on the rooftop.

He released Kyokkō, revealing her concealed figure beside the chimney.

She had watched the entire session without saying a word.

Rayleigh leaned against the stone railing. "Well?"

Alfia kept her attention on the street where Bell had disappeared.

"He is inexperienced, wastes movement, exposes his right side whenever he becomes excited, and relies too heavily on instinct."

Rayleigh nodded slowly. "You managed to list every flaw before saying anything good."

"You asked for my assessment."

"I should’ve known better."

Alfia finally looked toward him, and there was far less criticism in her expression than her words suggested.

"He learns quickly. Much faster than someone with only a week of experience should."

"His new Skill is probably responsible for part of it. Hephaestus wouldn’t tell me the details because the Skill belongs to Hestia Familia, but she made it clear his growth is abnormal."

Alfia’s gaze sharpened slightly.

"Do not become careless simply because he improves quickly. Fast growth creates its own weaknesses. His body may become stronger faster than his judgment develops."

Rayleigh understood exactly why she was worried.

"I’ll keep the training focused on fundamentals. Bell still has Eina handling his Dungeon progression, Hestia managing his Falna, and me for Tachikaze. He doesn’t need another person pushing him toward stronger monsters."

Alfia gave a small nod.

That was apparently the answer she wanted.

They left the rooftop shortly afterward and returned home separately to avoid attracting attention.

...

Rayleigh’s quiet afternoon ended the moment he returned to Hephaestus Familia.

Ardi was waiting inside the workshop.

The Ganesha Familia adventurer had changed considerably over the years.

She still carried the same easy warmth Rayleigh remembered, but experience had sharpened her posture and given her the calm confidence of someone accustomed to commanding others during dangerous situations.

Nejibana rested at her side, and several rolled documents were tucked beneath one arm.

The moment Rayleigh entered, her face brightened.

"Perfect timing! I was about to go looking for you."

Rayleigh looked at the documents.

"That sentence usually means I’m about to lose my afternoon."

"Tomorrow too."

Ardi dropped the papers onto his workbench and unrolled the top sheet, revealing maps of several Orario districts along with security routes and containment positions.

Rayleigh recognized the event before she said the name.

Monsterphilia.

Ardi pointed toward several marked locations near the festival grounds.

"Ganesha Familia is handling the main security, but the number of monsters we’re bringing to the surface this year is large enough that Lord Ganesha asked several allied Familias for support. Hephaestus already agreed to provide equipment maintenance, and I specifically requested you for emergency containment."

Rayleigh scanned the map.

"With Bakudō."

"Exactly. If one of the exhibition monsters breaks loose, killing it in the middle of a crowd should be our last option. Your restraints and barriers give us a much cleaner solution."

That was reasonable.

Rayleigh continued examining the security arrangement while Ardi explained the sections Ganesha Familia had divided between its members.

Most of the plan was straightforward: controlled transport, reinforced cages, adventurers stationed at intersections, and evacuation routes leading away from the central arena.

Then he noticed another name on one of the support lists.

Hestia Familia.

Rayleigh tapped it.

"Bell is helping?"

"Hestia volunteered her Familia for basic festival work. They’re only assigned to supply transport and outer-area assistance, so her rookie isn’t supposed to be anywhere near the monster cages."

Rayleigh stared at Bell’s name for another second.

Given the boy’s luck so far, the words isn’t supposed to did very little to reassure him.

Ardi noticed his expression and laughed. "You know him?"

"I forged him a Zanpakutō yesterday."

Her eyes widened.

"You gave a Zanpakutō to a Level One you’ve known for two days?"

"He’s an interesting kid."

Ardi folded her arms and studied him with immediate suspicion. "That is exactly the kind of answer you give before something becomes everyone’s problem!"

Rayleigh rolled the security map closed and handed it back to her.

"I’ll be there tomorrow."

"Good. Report to the western containment area in the morning. Shakti will coordinate the field teams, and I’ll be moving between the cages and the public route."

Ardi gathered the remaining papers and headed for the door, only to stop when Rayleigh called after her.

"Ardi."

She looked back.

"If anything goes wrong tomorrow, keep the evacuation routes open first. Don’t worry about protecting the cages."

Her expression became more serious.

"You expecting trouble?"

Rayleigh looked toward the Monsterphilia map still lying on his workbench.

He remembered enough of the future to know that the festival deserved caution, but far too much had changed for him to assume the same people would make the same moves for the same reasons.

"I’m expecting monsters to behave like monsters. That’s enough reason to prepare."

Ardi accepted that answer and left.

Rayleigh remained at the workbench for another moment before picking up the map again.

Bell would be at Monsterphilia.

So would Ganesha Familia, Ardi, and thousands of civilians.

He folded the map, secured Benihime and Shinsō at his waist, then headed for the supply room to start preparing additional binding tags before tomorrow morning.