Chapter 76 - 076: Sparring with Mari

On the practice room Mari lying on the floor with a body full of sweat and uneven breaths, her body is very weak and can't muster the strength to stand up, and at her side, there is Arthur with a towel on his hand.

"What do you feel? Are you satisfied now?" Arthur wipe some of her sweat on her face

"Well, I think... I satisfied for now. But next time I will give you more resistance"

Well, what happened here? Let's go back to the time before the sparring session is started.

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When Mari enter the practice room after equipping her battle suit there is Arthur waiting still with her uniform and didn't take out his CAD.

"What the meaning of this, Arthur?" Mari asks with a slightly annoyed voice because she thinks Arthur didn't take her seriously.

"I didn't have a battle suit and I also didn't have CAD"

"If you need CAD there is quite a lot in the HQ, come back here after you get what you want"

"We can start now, I didn't need CAD"

"Are you underestimating me?" This time Mari look at Arthur with sharp eyes

"You're wrong... underestimating your enemy is just for someone with a slight advantage. For someone who can come out victorious easily, there is no need to estimate the opponent at all" Arthur make a replica of Kusanagi sword from ice and held it. "Come, let me show you the difference in our strength" Arthur point his sword to Mari and provoke her

Mari dashes out from her place and appear at Arthur side and swing her baton shape CAD at Arthur's neck, but Arthur raises his sword and easily block Mari's attack. When Arthur wants to make counterattack Mari already looped to his rear and out of his range.

"Personal speed magic... as I tough, this is different" Arthur muttered after seeing Mari combat style, this is very different with how it must be.

The clash between Mari and Arthur didn't end up just like that, enhanced with her magic Mari launch an attack from various angles but all of that is just futile attempt.

Without the help of magic, Arthur can react immediately to her attack but he didn't counterattack, Mari adopts a hit and run tactics, every time her attack is blocked she will retreat immediately.

The sound of something hard clashing is heard continuously from the practice room, no matter how many times the baton shape CAD hit the ice sword there is no crack on Arthur sword.

There is no longer feeling for punishing Arthur on Mari's minds, she is focusing try to hit him at least once, she pushes herself nearly limit and use various techniques she knew. Arthur sometimes didn't block Mari's attack but stabbed his sword to where Mari will step, he didn't even lift his foot even once from the time they start to sparring.

Time goes just like that

In the end, Mari exhausted herself with continuously using magic to speed up herself, she is lying on the floor because there is no strength left in her body to stand up.

"Well, you will catch a cold if you lying here Mari-senpai"

"You can take me to the room at the right side, there is a room for the temporary infirmary in case there is an accident in practice room" Mari answer and still trying to catch a breath

"Then, please forgive me" Arthur pick her up in princess carry and head to the room that Mari pointed in

"Whoa?! Hey! You just need to help me stand up and walking!" Mari let out a protest but her voice is quite weak

"Do you really have the strength to walk? You nearly push yourself beyond your body capability, you're exhausted mentally and physically. At least you need to rest until the afternoon to get some strength to move around" Arthur didn't bother with her protests again and walk, In the infirmary, Arthur put her down on the bed.

"Hey! What are you doing now?!"

"I'm helping you take off the protector" Arthur taking off Mari's head protector and her body protector, leaving here with just black full body suit before covering her with a blanket.

"I can't help wipe your sweat ok your body so I need to use magic, sorry if there is some uncomfortable feeling" Arthur use magic and disperse the sweat on Mari body before taking a seat and look at the outside of the window.

"Thank you... but I will more appreciate if you didn't take it off like before"

"Sorry, when I think about it now I was slightly impulsive before" Arthur stand up and turn his body and bow a little to Mari

"Well, as long as you didn't tell other people about it" Mari pull up the blanket and just make her face that uncovers by it "Can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can" Arthur once again turn his back and take a seat because maybe Mari will feel disturbed if he staring at her all the time. Even if she didn't nȧkėd, the outline of her figure is there expose under the blanket.

"How can you become strong like that?"

"At first, I just got a lucky chance and after that, I risk myself to get stronger every day... there are several times I nearly died but I can avoid it and still alive. After I think I was strong enough... I meet with someone I think worth to be protected by me, so until now I try to get stronger every day" Arthur turns his head and look at Mari's face "What I want to tell you is.. first, you need a reason why you need become strong. Second, there is no strength gain without pain. Third, you must stay alive to get stronger every day"

Mari close her eyes and try to digest Arthur advice

"But, come to think of this, why you didn't use Watanabe family dojigiri?" But sudden realization hit him after he asks it, and Mari answer confirms it

"I was from a low ranking branch of the Watanabe family, there is no way I can learn techniques from the main family when I was just bȧrėly qualified to use the family name?" There is a pained smile on her face

"I'm sorry, I didn't think properly before asking"

"It's fine, it's not a secret after all"

"So the reason for you to be stronger is..."

"Yes, I want to prove even if I was from a lower-level branch family, I can become as strong as them or even surpass them. That's why I learn at Chiba clan dojo. Are you have advice or a way so I can get stronger?" Mari ask hesitantly

"Hmm... there is"

Excellent as a maid, driver, and also a bodyguard. Even if the system just state she is very proficient with the sword, that's coming from the system, not from a human.

"How about you come to my house? There someone who is very proficient with a sword, maybe you can learn something new there? Don't worry there will be someone who escorts you back to your house"

"As strong as you?"

"Hmm... how to say it... I and she are different types. I fight use my instinct and fully depend on my body reaction and reflexes, but she learns the art of the sword, so she depends on technique different with me" looking at her hesitates face Arthur make the last offer "then how about you try it once before decide to accept or decline?"

"Alright, thanks to Arthur"

"You're welcome, just have a rest for now"

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"So what we have here?"

When Arthur and Mari enter the student's council room there is Miyuki, Emilia and the vice president of students council Hattori in the midst of an argument.

"Arthur, Mari, where the two of you going before? I can't find you two" Mayumi raise her voice intentionally for drawing attention

"We are patrolling the school grounds, what happened here?" Mari answer shortly and ask back Mayumi

"Well, Hanzo-kun object my recommendation for Tatsuya-kun join the Public Moral Committee" Mayumi has a complicated look on her face

"Mayumi-senpai, can I ask you questions?"

"What do you want to ask, Arthur?"

"I just want to ask, are you a president or him?"

Mayumi is taken aback by Arthur question, Hattori on the other hand look at Arthur with an annoyed face.

"Who do you think you're? This is not a place for a new student like you to make a comment"

"Oh, you didn't know me? Then I must introduce myself, my name is Arthur Spencer a new members of Public Moral Committee" before continuing to talk Arthur take a glance at Miyuki and Emilia first "Because this conversation leading to dangerous ending I need to interfere, also as long as a command of president is not something that demerits for the school and there is no objection from the teachers, all of member students council and every student need to accept and follow it. And you didn't have an objection right in this command"

"There is no precedent for appointing a Weed to the Public Moral Committee."

Hattori's rebuttal was laced with the derogatory term. Upon hearing this, Mari slightly raised an eyebrow.

"That's a taboo term, Vice President Hattori. A taboo term as banned by the Public Moral Committee. You have a lot of nerve using that in front of me, the Chair of the Public Moral Committee."

Facing Mari's reprimand, warning, or maybe a little of both, Hattori showed no sign of weakness.

"You can ban that term all you want. Do you plan on punishing a third of the entire student body? The difference between Blooms and Weeds is something that is written into the school system and acknowledged by the school itself. The source of the difference between Blooms and Weeds is the difference in ability. Public Moral Committee members are responsible for the task of subjugating students that break school rules. A Weed with inferior abilities is incapable of accomplishing that task."

After his proud ȧssertion, Hattori feels a cold sharp thing on his neck and backs.

"As you say previously, 'Public Moral Committee members are responsible for the task of subjugating students that break school rules' right? And Mari-senpai already reminds you that terms are included in the banned term by Public Moral Committee, so you're also breaking the rule right?" Arthur has a smile on his face but there is no one who believes he is smiling inside "A third of the entire student body is it? Come, you can gather all of them. If all of the students break the rule then I can use my magic to apprehend all of them. Just information for you, my ability in group combat, is higher than my interpersonal combat ability"

There is a skeleton made from the ice crystals entirely with a scythe on the left hand and short sword on the right hand, the skeleton looks like can easily cut Hattori's throat or stab his heart from the back with the short sword. And the one who makes this thing is the smiling Arthur.