Chapter Eleven: Sensei

Chapter Eleven: Sensei

Amelia gripped the wooden sword with both hands and stared down her opponent. Serena was turned slightly to the side, her own wooden sword pointed to the floor as she extruded confidence. The wind gently rustled her black hair, contrasting against the evening sky.

“First lesson,” she said as she slowly approached Amelia, who gripped the wooden sword even tighter as the threat loomed. “Don’t grip the sword too tightly; you don’t want to tire your hands.”

Amelia relaxed her hands a little and the moment she did a flick of Serena’s wrist wrenched the sword from her grasp and flung it to the ground.

“Not that loose,” Serena said, a smile forming on her lips.

Amelia grabbed the weapon and once again faced the captain as a titter of chuckles sounded from the others. They were on the first deck, and a circle of demons had formed, providing an impromptu arena. After asking Serena why so many of the crew were watching, the captain shrugged and said, ‘Evening entertainment’!

“Second, let’s fix the stance,” Serena motioned with her sword. “Feet. Keep them slightly more than shoulder-width apart for better balance.” After adjusting her stance, the sword was pointed at her knees. “Don’t lock your knees; stay flexible and ready to move. Bend them slightly to lower your center of gravity.”

“Like this?” Amelia adjusted her stance as best she could from the instructions.

“Yes. Your stance is the most important thing. Everything else will be built from it. This one is called Hachiji-dachi and is the natural stance. Now, tense your body and feel how little force is needed to tip you over.” Amelia clenched her core and Serena placed a hand on her collar, slowly applying pressure. Doing her best to ignore how her heartbeat skyrocketed, she focused on how her body quickly began tipping backwards. Unconsciously, she moved her back foot to stabilise herself.

“Not a lot, right? Hachiji-dachi is your gun and sword, it-” Serena stopped at the questioning look Amelia cast her way. “... What?”

“Gun and sword? Is that an expression?”

“... Yeah. It means your foundation. Something you become so proficient in you can always fall back to it.”

“We have an expression like that! We call it your ‘bread and butter’! Wait! Do you even have butter here!?” As she thought about it, suddenly a lot of food from her home might not exist here! What about cheese!?

Oh no. She wasn’t sure she could survive without cheese!

“Yes, we have butter. Focus on the lesson, idiot.”

“Sorry!” Amelia gave her a small smile.

“Sorry, what?”

“Sorry, Lady Halen!”

“Idiot. Call me sensei when I’m training you!”

“Yes, sensei!” She squeaked. The crew forming a circle chuckled at that, and a few jeers were thrown in.

“Don’t be too harsh on her, Cap’n!”

“It’s like I’m back at the academy!”

“Little mouse looks out of her depth!”

“You’re going to find out why the humans call her the hellfire captain!”

Amelia felt her mouth quiver as a flash of anxiety rippled through her. Maybe asking the captain to train her wasn’t a good idea. Serena did have that look in her eye, after all.

“Fifty push-ups, go on.”

“Y-yes, sensei!” Amelia got down, but before she could even begin... “Idiot, why have you let go of your sword? Never let go of your weapon. The weapon is the warrior, and the warrior is the weapon. You are one! Grip your sword and do it on your knuckles!”

Serena was enjoying this, wasn’t she? Amelia gripped her sword in her right hand and began doing push ups. She was far tougher than a normal human, so the pressure on her knuckles didn’t bother her at all. Soon, she was lost in the rhythmic motion of the exercise. How much time had passed? She had lost count! Just as she started to feel her muscles slightly protest, a voice called out to her.

“Stop! Up!” Amelia scrambled up. “I said fifty, and you did a hundred. What am I to do with a student who cannot follow instructions, I wonder?” Serena tilted her head, placing two fingers on her cheek with an expression of mock distress.

She was definitely enjoying this.

“Still, your physical endurance is exceptional, which is expected of someone who has communed the First Word. You have your wards active, yes?”

“Yes, sensei!”

“It depends on the talent of the mage, but ward-spells are roughly equivalent to a warrior's aura in defensive ability.” Serena took out her firearm, pointed it at Amelia's chest and pulled the trigger.

The gunshot was like a crack of thunder. Amelia flinched, felt an impact, and smelled gunpowder. She... she had shot her!

“You shot me!” She exclaimed.

“Yes, it was rather an enjoyable experience.” Serena spun the firearm on her finger before bringing the barrel to a stop under her lips and blowing on the smoke. Amelia had to admit, it looked pretty cool! “I’ll make a habit of it if you don’t follow my instructions.”

“From the attempt on your life, you’re already aware of how difficult it is to hurt you with conventional weapons. However, the noise of gunfire will still induce panic and shock to the inexperienced, so we’ll work on fixing that with you.”

“Because of the human?”

“That’s right.”

The side door opened, and Amelia stepped out. “What’s happening because of me?”

“Kenhoro authorities sticking their-” she looked in Amelia’s direction, reflexively taking a breath. “What are you wearing?” Amelia had removed her uniform and was left in only her undergarments, the loose-fitting top and shorts that left her midriff and legs bare. To make matters worse, she had been cleaning herself up and had gotten enough water on her top that it had started to... cling to her chest.

“What? I was sweaty from the training, and if you remember, I have no other clothes!” Amelia put her hands on her hips, and Serena found it difficult to keep her eyes from wandering. Amelia was well-proportioned but lacked the muscle definition a trained warrior would have. She looked... soft.

Tsk! As if I would find a human... attractive! Serena chastised herself mentally.

“First etiquette lesson. Displaying yourself like that-”

“Like what?”

“Like that!” Serena waved a hand, gesturing in Amelia’s direction. “In the presence of not just a captain - but also a noble - is improper, and if anyone finds out, that would only lead to rumours, especially for me!”

Amelia tilted her head in confusion. “Why, especially for you?”

“I...” She bit her tongue. That was a mistake. She shouldn’t have this conversation now. She had started to suspect Amelia was somewhat... impressed by her. To discuss the rumours that had been started during her academy days within the all-women’s dorm... would complicate things further.

Even if, as the saying goes, where there was smoke, there was fire.

“Nevermind. If anyone comes, you disappear into the bedroom, got it?”

“Yes, sensei!”

“It’s only sensei when we’re training, idiot.”

“Okay!” Amelia gave two enthusiastic thumbs up. The raising of her arms caused her chest to compress, and Serena could not stop her eyes from flickering to the location.

Damn it!

“What do you want, anyway?” She said, not able to keep a hint of frustration from her voice.

“I heard you were talking about me.”

“... Right. We’re being escorted by two Kenhoro authority ships.”

“Cool! Can I see them?”

“No, idiot. They’re most likely here because you’re here. They’re keeping an eye on us to see if anything happens. You won't be going on deck tomorrow. You can spend some time with Tomes. He’ll get you started on your letters.”

“Okay,” said Amelia. “Can I do my katas here? It’s easier to move around like this, and the bedroom is too small. I’ll be quiet! Promise!”

“... Can’t you do anything else? I’m trying to work.”

“Well, I would read, but I can’t really do that, can I? I don’t want to go to sleep just yet... I’ve spent enough time in bed!” Amelia shook her head from side to side. “Besides, doing the katas is fun! It’s a bit like meditation!”

“Did you... enjoy the training?” Serena asked.

“Mmm, mmm! Sure did! Apart from you shooting me!” Serena couldn’t help but smile at that. It was amusing to see Amelia so flustered. She would have to shoot and stab her at random times in the future - to add some variety and entertainment to her daily life.

“You’ve got that look in your eye again, Captain,” said Anathor.

“What look!?”

“... Nothing.”

“Do your katas. Be quiet, and don’t ask for any help. I have a letter to write.”

“Okay!” Amelia began going through the motions she had memorised so quickly earlier that evening. Serena set about writing her letter, but no matter how much she tried to focus, her eyes kept being drawn from the paper to the person in front of her. She would only look when Amelia was facing away from her, and the more she caught herself looking, and the more she realised where she was looking, the more the realisation slowly dawned in her mind.

Over a human. She thought. Really, Serena? You’re such an idiot.

Eventually, as the last of the evening light faded and the night came, Serena got up from her chair and, despite her earlier statements, gave Amelia some further instructions.

After all, it was somewhat exciting to feel how her heartbeat sped up.

When they were close.