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Chapter 12
The next day, the grueling spring-cleaning campaign continued.
Everyone groaned that their knees and backs were aching, but Kata was still full of energy.
It happened while she was cleaning the windows of the indoor training hall.
Peter approached her hesitantly.
“Kata, here.”
“Hm?”
“It’s a cleaning solution made by mixing salt and vinegar. If you use this, it leaves fewer streaks.”
Sure enough, he was right.
The windows, wiped clean of even the remaining moisture, shone as if they were brand new.
“Oh!”
Kata’s eyes sparkled.
Peter cleared his throat awkwardly.
“I think you can clean the rest like this too.”
The two of them worked together, cleaning the training hall windows one by one.
Peter sprayed the solution, Kata quickly wiped it down, and Peter finished the final polish.
Everything was going smoothly.
Then—
A rolled-up rag suddenly flew in from somewhere, smacking Peter on the head before dropping to the floor.
“Hey! You couldn’t dodge that?”
Zellus burst into laughter.
He looked genuinely entertained.
“What are you doing? Pick it up.”
“…”
Peter’s face turned bright red.
As he hesitantly picked up the rag, Zellus let out another booming laugh.
“Guess you didn’t see that one coming with your foresight.”
Foresight?
Startled, Kata looked at Peter.
At that moment—
“This too.”
Thwack!
Zellus smacked Peter on the head again.
There wasn’t much force behind it, but it was humiliating all the same.
“S-Stop—”
“Huh? Why are you making that face? It’s just a joke.”
Peter awkwardly backed away.
Standing by the window, Kata’s face was hidden beneath the pale light streaming in.
Peter’s ears burned red.
Then—
“Ah!”
A wet rag flew through the air and latched onto Zellus’s head like a flying squirrel.
It carried the peculiar scent of metal mixed with vinegar.
“Peter, we don’t have time to fool around. We still have windows to clean.”
Kata, who had thrown the rag, spoke casually.
Silence fell.
Then Zellus slowly ground his teeth.
“…Yeah. That’s more like it.”
There happened to be no one else in the training hall.
He casually tossed aside the rag and walked toward Kata.
Peter’s face went pale.
“W-Wait…”
But there was no time to stop him.
Crack!
Kata’s head snapped sideways.
For a moment she staggered—
Then, at blinding speed, she drove her fist into Zellus’s jaw.
“Ghk!”
Peter’s mouth fell open at the surreal sight.
Zellus stumbled before regaining his footing.
As he rubbed his jaw, murderous intent flickered in his eyes.
“You little…”
He reached toward a nearby weapon rack and grabbed the first sword he could.
“So that’s how you want to play?”
A killing aura rose from the dagger in his hand.
Kata’s expression hardened.
Zellus grinned, eyes gleaming.
“Scared?”
The next instant—
Whoosh!
The dagger sliced through the air.
There was no time to think.
Kata ducked and snatched up the handle of a large mop leaning against the wall.
“K-Kata!”
Peter’s scream echoed uselessly as Zellus’s attacks narrowly missed her again and again.
Dodging the dagger, Kata struck precisely at Zellus’s side.
“Ugh!”
His body lurched.
But that was all.
The mop handle failed to do any significant damage against his sturdy physique.
Judging from his expression, it had only provoked his bloodlust further.
“You… damn brat!”
Lowering her stance, Kata targeted the back of his knee this time.
Thud!
A heavy sound echoed.
“AAAAAGH!”
Apparently, that only fueled his killing intent too.
Kata quickly estimated how much force would be needed to subdue Zellus.
Hummm—
Cracks spread across the mop handle as she infused it with sword aura.
Then she thrust it forward.
Zellus’s pupils widened.
The gust created by the long staff lifted his bangs before letting them settle again.
But the tip of the handle stopped.
Just a fingernail’s breadth beneath his chin.
“…Kata?”
Peter called out in confusion.
But Kata remained frozen.
Help me.
Ah.
It’s happening again.
Another nightmare…
Seizing the opportunity, Zellus swung his sword.
Peter might have screamed.
“DIEEE!”
His furious roar sounded distant.
The strength was leaving Kata’s hands.
Then—
“Miss!”
A resolute voice shook her consciousness.
Hettashi.
In an instant, it felt as if cold water had been poured over her head.
Kata gritted her teeth and raised the mop handle, blocking the sword infused with aura head-on.
BOOOOM!
The handle shattered.
At the same time, Kata was sent crashing into the wall.
The doors to the training hall burst open.
Zellus, who had been advancing toward her with terrifying intent, froze.
“Right now…”
Kata slid down the wall.
Perhaps one of her wounds had reopened, because something warm trickled from the corner of her lips.
“Right now, this…”
“…”
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?!”
Arthur’s furious roar thundered throughout the training hall.
Zellus hurriedly withdrew his sword aura.
But it was already too late.
Kata, clutching the broken mop handle, looked unmistakably like a victim defending herself against a sudden attack.
“Katarenia! Are you alright?”
“Cough… Yes. I’m alright.”
“Can you stand?”
“Yes, I can stand.”
As Kata staggered to her feet, Arthur exploded.
“Who told you to stand up?! Sit back down!”
“…”
As she awkwardly sat down again, Arthur knelt before her and examined her swollen cheek.
After a long silence, he spoke.
“Zellus.”
“Yes.”
“You’re going to explain yourself. You used sword aura against an unarmed opponent, so this certainly wasn’t a spar.”
“…”
“I’ll be reporting today’s incident to our superiors. Zellus, and you…”
Arthur turned toward Peter but couldn’t continue.
It seemed he couldn’t remember Peter—a trainee whose appearance and ability were both unremarkable.
Peter quickly supplied the answer.
“Peter Rain, sir.”
“Right. Peter, you’ll come with me as well.”
Then Arthur looked at Kata.
“Can you get to the infirmary by yourself, Katarenia?”
“Yes, I’ll be fine.”
Arthur tore his gaze away from the split corner of her mouth.
“…Very well. Get treatment first.”
On the way to the infirmary,
Kata trudged along, her eyes gloomy.
For someone specialized in combat, being unable to predict even herself was a serious weakness.
And ever since she turned ten years old, Kata had always lived in a state of unpredictability.
The evergreen trees stretched their branches overhead in vibrant green.
Sunlight shattered across the stone walls, dazzling enough to make her squint.
In the distance, someone walked toward her, their features washed out by the sunlight.
A brass bucket filled clumsily to the brim with water.
Droplets dripping steadily onto the dirt path.
Pale wrists visible beneath rolled-up sleeves.
Huh?
“Zenon?”
Zenon had two mop handles tucked beneath one arm and was carrying a large brass bucket in each hand.
Exhausted from two days of nonstop cleaning, his expression wasn’t particularly pleasant either.
The already stiff look on his face twisted noticeably the moment he heard Kata’s voice.
As if intending to ignore her and walk right past, his tightly closed lips gradually parted as the distance between them narrowed.
“…”
Coming to an abrupt stop, Zenon slowly looked Kata up and down.
His gaze lingered for a long moment on her swollen cheek.
