Chapter 32 – Down Memory Lane
It's 0500. It's time to train. I'm sorry, Yoshika, but Big Daddy has to ensure that he will be at least able to TRY to oppose that Neuroi Matriarch…
He used time dilution, wanting to get out of the bed, but all of a sudden, he found himself in Ami's realm.
"The fuck?!"
"I managed to pull it off, Toshiro!" Amaterasu cheered. "The time ratio here is now, wait for it, one-to-ten!"
"Wooooooah! But that's epic!"
"Ain't it?" Kye appeared. "Toshiro, from today, you'll train three times a day for two hours, which will amount for two and a half of training each day."
"Reasonable."
"I know. And convenient, since the perks of training here are still the same, namely you're fatigue accumulation is slowed down, and you don't need any form of sustenance."
"Convenient indeed. And who will be training me? Is Ami taking that function again?"
"Sadly no, Toshiro. Kye found somebody more suited for that role."
"Oh do tell."
Out of the thin air, a blonde beauty in a pink kimono appeared.
"Wooo! Livy? You'll be training me?" Toshiro asked genuinely surprised.
"I hope you'll accept me as your mentor, Master Toshiro. I have been tasked with training you, and this task I will execute with utmost precision."
"Mmmm… Yeeeeees… This might work… So, I'm starting right off the bat?"
"Yup," Kye said. "Now, come on, Ami, let's remove ourselves from Toshiro's vision. Have a good time, Toshiro, Livy will train you like nobody else!"
The two goddesses disappeared, and Livy said, "I will start with something important, but rather easy to grasp."
"Okay, go for it."
Livy spawned some rod out of thin air and just held it horizontally before her.
"This is lonsdaleite, 50% tougher than a diamond. Just cut this in half, Master."
"Really? Just that? No strings attached?"
"I swear on my real master, the Allgod."
"Well okay…" he mumbled and summoned Aganaimaru. "Here it goes…"
He lazily placed the blade over the rod and just let it weigh down his hand. The blade cut through the rod with ease, not even budging for a micrometer.
"Done and done, and what did that teach me?"
"Nothing yet, Master," Livy said and threw the two pieces of the rod away into the grass.
She simply waved her hand and a pine branch appeared in her hand. The side branches fell of as if cut off by magic, and she said, "Now, cut THIS in half."
Does she think I'm retarded? That smells from a mile! But okay, I'll bite.
Toshiro did the same lazy movement, but this time, Livy flared up with a black-white aura, and the sword just plinked off the branch.
"And this taught me, that you're a fucking cheater."
"No, my dear Master, it has another meaning."
"Judge not the branch by the bark?"
Livy chuckled and said, "No, Master! Think!"
"Then tell me already, I need to train."
"The sharpness of the sword, or the resistance of an armor is only one factor governing its usability. For example, Aganaimaru can literally cut through 99.9% of the stuff in the universe, but I deflected it with a branch."
"Which you pumped full of your Celestial shit."
"The Matriarch could use the same principle and reinforce her body, so Aganaimaru would just bounce off of it."
"I see where you're going at… So, how do I make my cuts count?"
"If you feel that the enemy might be harder that it meets the eye, just pour all your strength into the attack, both physical, mental and magical. Want to try?"
"So to cut a fucking branch, I'll need to go all out? Harumpf!"
"Oh, please Master, don't be so fussy and come on. Or I may result to punishment..."
"Can you even do that?" he asked.
"There's an exemption to every rule, Master."
"Hurrr, okay… Do your magic."
The branch and Livy flared up with the Celestial Aura.
"You really think I could smash through this Aura?"
"Not on my body, but I guess there's a snowballs chance in hell you could cut the branch apart…" Livy smiled wryly. "Ah, and just for clarification, Master, I have the power of a mortal right now."
"Rigged trial is rigged anyway," Toshiro sighed. "Let's begin then…"
Toshiro held Aganaimaru to his side, the blade pointing towards the ground.
"First, the Sacred Flame."
His body blazed with an orange-white flame.
"Then, the Flame of Kōjin."
Toshiro felt as the armor clad him all round.
"Very good, Master," she smiled.
"Yup, I'm quite satisfied myself. Now, let's add a bit of flare…"
The sword lit up with a white-hot flame.
"And now, the coup de grace!"
Violent blue flames surrounded the sword, mixing with the white flames in a spectacle of fire.
"Finishing it off with cranking my Super Strength!"
The black gauntlets appeared on Toshiro's hands.
"But fuck that, and replace all of this with my Celestial Aura!"
The flames on him and his sword were extinguished as if a powerful gust of wind blew at them. He suddenly stood there clad in the same black-and-white sparkling aura as Livy.
"And add a bit of sprinkles with an unearthly shout! TENKAI REPPUZAN!"
Toshiro swung the sword with an overhead strike. The sword banged against the branch, but it recoiled and Toshiro was sent into a rock.
"For fucks sake…" he mumbled, wedged into the enormous boulder.
"Oh Master…." Livy sighed and dispelled her aura.
At the same time, the branch, which she waved with one hand, simply fell apart into splinters. Livy pursed her lips and looked at Toshiro with her eyebrows raised.
"I forgot to add that I added the properties of the Atomzerleger to the attack, heheh…"
"Now who's the cheater, huh, Master?"
"The winners write the history, Livylein. Besides, a branch isn't really suitable to be channeled with magic energy…"
"True, true… But if I got a real blade, may it be some lesser quality katana like Mio's Masakuni, I doubt you would shatter it."
"Yes, not a chance I guess."
"And you dived anyway."
"Oh did I, Master…?"
"I saw it. I tried a super duper time dilution, and I saw a microscopic fluctuation in the aura surrounding the branch. That's where I struck."
"Bravo, Master… How fast was it?"
"Yuki?"
"Eight thousand times or so," she said through Toshiro. "Since it was such a short notice, I couldn't get to ten thousand."
"My, my… I must congratulate you, Master. You saw an opening that I created for only ten microseconds…"
"It sure feels weird when you compliment me like that…"
"I feel a bit weird too, Master… But yes, I was pulling your leg, there's no way you would have cut that branch if I was dead serious."
"Kye told me that everything will end well, but how would it end well if, for example, the Matriarch has and impenetrable defense?"
"There is no impenetrable defense, Master Toshiro. She herself could smite me just like that."
"But that's a blatant disproportion of power on a universal scale!"
"To rephrase, every defense has a weakness. You saw the weakness I have created, and you've exploited it."
"Otherwise we would be standing here till January, which you admitted."
"Heheh… So, what did you learn today?"
"Nothing is true, everything is permitted."
"You're not an assassin from some fictional universe, Master…" she sighed
"Heh… Exploit weaknesses, focus your attacks?"
"Verily. Don't get lazy just because the enemies around you are total nincompoops, which you can demolish with a fart, as you'd like to joke."
"With a fart you say…" Toshiro scratched his chin.
"Did you just think of…"
"Yeah…"
"Incredible…" she shook her head. "Okay, let's have a light spar, Master."
"Light spar she says… You're probably septillion to the billionth power times stronger than me…"
"I'll restrain myself, I promise. I can restrict myself accordingly."
"Unless I'd piss you off…"
"That would be unfortunate, but I have a good temper…"
"You've got to die of something… Let's rumble!"
An hour later, Toshiro was sitting under the tree and breathing heavily. Livy sat beside him, and she said,
"You did very good, Master. This is indeed a mark of your excellence, and I will improve your skill much more above that.
"And you promised to restrain yourself…"
"Hard to do it when you're being attacked by a sword able to cut through time with the speed of two hundred thousand meters per second, right, Master?"
"I guess I was a bit too serious on my side…"
"Well, you said it. Okay now, let's continue with some theory after you catch your breath."
"Yeah, I will soon," he said. "Wait, more theory?"
"Yes, Master. I will cram into your head knowledge that the mortals of this time and planet don't know yet, so you will utilize the power of the Celestial Order in a better way."
Toshiro found himself before the main building.
Whew, that was fucking intense… Time to get some grub…
In the common room, he saw Mio sitting at the table.
"I saw your little fight with who again?"
"Oh really now… Kye showed you?"
"Well, yeah, she appeared and said that you'll be training in Amaterasu's realm and whatnot. So who is that blonde again?"
"Livy? She's an Elder God like Kye."
"Gods…"
"Heh…"
"And you could fight a bit damn slower! Kye had to slow down time so I could see everything…"
"What can I say…? Livy brings out the best from me in combat…"
"What a monster you are…" Mio sighed. "But I guess we need every bit of strength to win…"
"I suppose so…" Toshiro said and fetched himself some cool water. "Time to take a bath…"
"Don't need bath supplies?"
"I don't need a towel to dry off. The rest is rather irrelevant, since I can scrub myself so hard that everything will come off."
"Then I'll be going with you."
"Be my guest… But remember that I WILL scrub you hard!"
"Nothing like some hard scrubbing to start the day, hahaha!" Mio laughed loudly.
They undressed themselves before the showers and entered under one.
"You look rather clean, Mio…"
"But you on the other hand look like you've exited a coal mine; bend your knees a bit and I'll scrub you down!"
"Well ok…."
Mio suddenly kissed him on the lips, briefly, but strongly.
"Geez, Mio, what was that about?"
"I never thanked you properly for all the things you've done for me since September…" she said with slightly red cheeks. "And that you gave me some freedom yesterday…"
"Mio…" Yuki grumbled.
"Yes, Yuki, I know. But how can a woman express her gratitude and not give away her body in whole?"
"You could just say that "blahblah I'm thankful blah something et cetera", and not kiss this oaf…"
"Ha! You should know me better!"
"Well, yeah… But seriously, don't. I know you're all liberal when it comes to sex and stuff, but if you want to kiss Toshiro as a thank you, lips are off limits."
"Well okay… But I can scrub him?"
"As long as you don't want to plane his pole, why not…"
"Understood!"
"That Yuki…" Toshiro sighed.
"Come on, big guy, let's do it!"
Toshiro sighed and let himself be scrubbed by Mio's hands. Afterwards, they went into the bath for a few minutes, and after another few minutes, Toshiro was in his bed.
"And where you when you weren't here, Mister?" Yoshika embraced him, and kissed him on the cheek just as he dropped down on the bed.
"Sparring, learning… I want to get stronger, you know…"
"As I thought… But you sure do smell like Mio…"
"We bathed together."
"Oh okay… Get your rest if you want, there's still a bit of time till I prepare breakfast."
"I profusely thank you for the opportunity to rest."
"Heehee… Take a quick nap; I can see you're tired."
"Sure…" Toshiro rolled over to the side and fell asleep, feeling Yoshika's arms embracing him
Toshiro woke up on his own volition and went to the common room, where everyone was sitting at the table.
"Oh, I was about to get you!" Yoshika cheered.
"It seems I've got a sense for food, heh…"
"Were you training already, Toshiro?" Trude asked.
"Sure thing, Cous. Nothing like swinging a sword at dawn!"
"Pfah! We have a second Mio here!" Shirley laughed.
"Only without boobs, heheh…" Francesca giggled.
"Don't even, Kye…"
"Okay, okay…"
Minna looks a bit tense… Oh well, after what happened yesterday… I'll just talk to her later while we're doing paperwork…
"Ah, ladies, I learned a new trick!" Toshiro shouted suddenly.
"Oh, show us!" Francesca cheered.
Toshiro spawned a simple rock in his hand, and started toying with it with one hand.
"That's a rock…" Francesca pouted. "We can have that every day…"
"But now I can just do this…" Toshiro squeezed the rock and opened his palm. "Tada! Nothing!"
"Hey, no dust!" Yoshika noticed.
"Dude, how did you do that?" Shirley asked.
"I finally learned to dissolve matter completely," Toshiro smirked. "So if you need some dirty laundry disposed of, you can ask me."
"Oh, I want to dispose of something!" Erica raised her hand.
Trude smacked her on the head and said, "You'll wash your damn clothes by yourself!"
"Crap…" Erica muttered.
After breakfast, Sanya asked, "Hey, Toshiro, will you be studying now?"
"I…"
"Toshiro will be helping me with something important now," Minna interrupted.
"Oh, okay…"
Toshiro raised his eyebrow towards Minna, but she nodded her head towards the exit.
Huh?
He sighed and stood up, following Minna. She silently led him into the office and closed the door behind him once they were both inside.
"So what does my favorite crimson haired Oberst want from me?"
"This may sound selfish but… Since the rest of our compatriots already did it, I thought I could also do it… The timing may be a bit unfortunate but…"
"Spit it out, Minna, I ain't the Holy Spirit…"
"I want to visit my home in Posnania."
"Ok, sure."
"Just like that?!"
"Just like that. We'll be traveling inside the borders of Karlsland, and we can do whatever we wish in Karlsland. True, the two highest-ranking officers will be absent, but we might as well have Mio do the honors of filling in for me. The girls can do their training on their own, but we can send them off with Trude in Mio's stead. Any more questions?"
"Are you God?"
"I wish that would be the case… I would kill off all the damn Neuroi in one go and enter peaceful times…"
"Heh…" Minna smirked.
"So, let's announce everything, look at a map and go."
"Verstanden!" Minna replied with a smile and ran to the PA panel. "Mio, Trude, get in the office ASAP."
Mio entered in no more than ten second, with Trude following her close by.
"What is it? I was about to go training with the girls," Mio asked.
"Trude, you'll be training the girls today. Mio, you'll be the acting commander until we return," Toshiro said.
The addressees of the orders tilted their heads.
"We're going to Posnania…" Minna mumbled.
"Oh…" the two replied in the same time.
"Well, good luck, Minna," Trude smiled.
"Yes, good luck!" Mio shouted. "But you'll owe me for this commanding job!"
"Maybe there's something good left in my home, I'll see…" Minna winked. "Mio, make yourself comfortable already and Trudy… Hmmm… Just let the girls do what they must do. Mio must have hammered a routine into their heads already."
"Okay," Trude said and went out.
"Not taking anyone with you?" Mio asked.
"This is too personal… I'm only taking Toshiro out of… practical reasons."
"Well fuck you very much…" Toshiro puffed his cheek and sat on his desk. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Toooshirooo… Pleeeaaaaseee…" Minna pled with tears in her eyes.
"Urgh, you really are exploiting the fact that I hate when girls cry… But I hope you just worded it weirdly, right?"
"Yes… Sorry… I meant I'm taking you because I'm afraid to go alone…"
"I wouldn't let you, no fucking way. Come on, Minna; time to take a stroll down Memory Lane."
"Okay!" Minna cheered like a little girl.
"Be careful you two, I'm telling this as your commander, hahaha!" Mio laughed in her usual manner.
"Who died and made you boss?! Oh wait…"
The three snickered and Toshiro went with Minna to the war room. They looked at the map on the table.
"Let's see… Straight north-east to the point where the most north-western part of Ostmark is… then to Breslau and straight to Posnania," Toshiro said as me moved his finger across the map.
"If and only if there aren't any surprise Hives."
"I doubt it, but we will be flying just under the cloud cover, if there is any today. Remember that Posnania is still under the control of the Berlin Hive, if it didn't expand its radius…" Toshiro's eyes wandered up and he saw a small dot. "Karlskrone…"
"What is it, Toshiro?"
"And here it is! Klausdorf! Holy shit, now I literally HAVE to go with you!"
"Huh?"
"Did you forget or didn't I tell you? The previous Kaiser had his affair in Klausdorf, and my grandma and father were living there! My step-grandfather is also buried there…"
"Oh my… Yes… We definitely will have to make a stop there. Ready?"
"Like hell I am! Let's go!"
The quickly ran down to the hangar. Minna took a bag with her.
"You never know if I don't want to take something."
"True, true. Pragmatic as a true Posnanian, hehe…"
"Oh can it…" she mumbled.
Both in turn took MG 151's with some spare ammo, and off they went, unbothered by anyone.
There was slight overcast, much to their relief. The ominous hive over Berlin was visible from any given point in a three hundred kilometer radius, or even more.
"Think we should coin a term for that Hive?" Minna asked.
"Mother Hive?"
"I bet Command already used that. Fine with me."
They passed city after city and village after village. Since Karlsland was the place where the Neuroi invasion began, the damage was the heaviest there. Then they finally saw it, the city placed on the Warthe river.
"Mein Gott… Such destruction…" Minna gasped.
"Where do you live, Minna?"
"In the Old Town, dead center of Posnania."
"Hmmm… What's that enormous hole in the ground to the east of the Old Town?"
"That was supposed to be the Maltasee, but… war happened…"
"Is it me… or are there FOUR churches there?"
"Yes, Toshiro. The Church of St. Catherine the Martyr, the Church of the Holiest Blood of Jesus, the Church of St. Anthony Padewski, and the Church of The Holiest Heart of Jesus and Our Lady of Consolation."
"You sure know your churches…"
"A well-educated girl should at least know the history of her district, heehee…"
"Nice marketplace by the way…"
"Yes… All the old buildings… Only some of them intact… In case you're wondering, my home is on the corner of the first street to the north of it, Krämer Straße and Krähen Straße."
"I don't know shit about the streets of Posnania, but I see where your pad is."
They landed on the corner of the cobblestone streets. The gray painted tenement house looked at them from above.
"This whole shit is yours?"
"Heh… Let's say that my grandparents cashed it in big…"
Minna tiptoed in her Striker and opened the door with a key.
"Come on in, let's store our stuff in the vestibule, and start the tour from the top."
"From top to bottom… Efficient…"
They placed their equipment inside and locked the door behind them.
"What are you afraid of, Minna? There isn't a living soul here. Even the cockroaches have died."
"Oh you never know… You didn't know a goddess would choose you to be her champion, right?"
"True…"
They scaled the multiple stairs leading to the top floor. Minna took a deep breath and entered the only room there.
"I guess this is your room?" Toshiro said while looking around the attic room. "It's well lit, well stocked with books… A rather small bed… Toys... And…"
"This old thing?" she said while picking up a violin from a stand. "A Guarneri…"
"Minna, how rich are you? Honestly."
"Oh, well… I guess I could retire now and never lift a finger again…"
"I guess I could do the same with a bit of grease here and there… So, will you be taking the violin?"
"This was one of the things I wanted to take from here. Now back to the ground floor."
"What?"
"We don't use the in-between floors. I wanted my own room atop so I wouldn't wake up anybody when I practiced in the night."
"Well okay."
They ran down the stairs and Minna led him to the saloon.
"Damn…" he said quietly after admiring the enormous room, worthy of a prince.
Minna approached the piano and dusted off the bench before it. Toshiro noticed big, golden letters forming a 'STEINWAY' sign on it.
Cough…
"A little performance especially for me, Minna?"
"Yeah… I have to see if this piano still works…"
"If the money spent on it was an indicator of quality, it should play until the 22nd century with only small maintenance."
"Heh… You're almost right."
Minna lifted the lid over the keyboard. She quickly warmed up her fingers in the air and started playing. Toshiro sat on the dusty couch and listened with his eyes closed. After a few minutes, Minna finished and Toshiro opened his eyes.
He looked at Minna, who had her face all wet from tears. Toshiro approached Minna and sat beside her, embracing her firmly.
"I miss my normal life… I miss everything… And I still miss Kurt…" she whimpered.
"Don't worry, Minna… This will all be over soon…"
"But Kurt won't come back anyway…"
"Yes, I know. But can't you really find a man whom you'll devote your whole life? It would be a shame if the Wilcke family ended on you… Minna, there's always a man out there, who will take you in his arms and say, "I will protect you till death do us part." And who will support you in your dream of studying in Vienna…"
"Oh Toshiro…" Minna said sorrowfully and tucked herself into his body. "Why do you always find the proper words to soothe a woman's heart?"
"It's because that fact that for seventeen years, my role model was my mother. She taught me the social skills that no book could teach me. With her gentle demeanor and intelligence, she made me who I am now. Before Dad was pronounced dead, and especially after, Mom had her breakdowns… You could say I had the perfect practice for such situations like now… But despite everything, she never drank, and she never let it out on me… She was a saint…"
"I think I can finally let go of the painful side of the memories of Kurt… He died a hero's death, fast and painless… I know he's probably in a better place right now…"
"Yes…"
After a few minutes of silence, Toshiro asked, "What was that piece you played?"
"Chopin's Waltz in A-flat major, Op. 64 No. 3."
"That doesn't tell me shit, but it sounded nice, heh…"
Minna smiled and said, "Thanks…"
"So, what's the plan for now?"
"I'll go to my parents' bedroom and you scour the basement for some preserves and alcohol."
"You sure have specific demands…"
"I remember like through fog that we should have that in the basement… Down the corridor and to the right."
"Okay, will do."
"Oh, and take the bag from where I dumped it."
"Sure."
Minna went upstairs, and Toshiro, after getting the bag, went into the basement, lighting his way with the Sacred Flame.
Compared to Heidemarie's, this was a rather normal basement. Coal and firewood were piling up on one side, and the rest was on the other side. Toshiro looked through the jars and saw that a similar amount like in Trudy's case was edible. He kept rummaging the supplies, and found a whiskey bottle of unknown brand and age. But when he was about to go, he saw a chest.
Hmmm… I really shouldn't…
He looked around the house with the Hebigan and saw that Minna was still upstairs.
Ah, what the hell!
Toshiro laid down the bag and he grabbed the lid of the chest. Much to his surprise, it opened smoothly.
Inside he saw a lot of papers and books. He took one of the sheets of paper, and after turning it around, he saw a drawing. Primitive in its form, it was a drawing made by a child. A serene scene, three stick figures, a house, a sun.
"Minna Dietlinde-Wilcke, 3 years old… Minna could sign herself like that at the age of three? Not bad…"
"That wasn't the only thing I could do at that age," Minna said suddenly from behind his back, making Toshiro jump ups slightly.
"Eh… Sorry for rummaging a bit too intensively…"
"I don't mind. That chest is the me from years past. My drawings, my musical compositions, my first '1' from a test…"
"Minna, just how intelligent are you?"
"A psychologist in a private visit evaluated me at 165, age 7."
"Gods… Why weren't you taken into the Genie Einfuhrung Programm?"
"The result of my IQ test was confidential, and my parents knew that if that test ever saw the light of day, I would be sent somewhere far away from home at the age of ten or less…"
"So, where is it?"
"Allow me, Toshiro."
She approached the chest and dabbled under the lid. She pulled out a single piece of paper and gave it to Toshiro.
Standardintelligenzquotienttest, beigetragen bei Prof. Herman Winkel. Resultat: 165 Punkte an die Stanford-Binet Scala…
"Looks legit… You were always an intelligent beast, but now I have it on paper, haha!"
"Heh… I guess I can take this with me, no harm done," she smiled.
"What's that you placed on the ground by the way?"
"Oh, I took the photo album from my father's desk."
"So we're going to have a little show and tell?"
"Yes. But Trude didn't show her pics, right?"
"Indeeeeeeed… Make it a double feature, heh…"
"Actually, let's make it a triple. I still didn't show you all the pics I've gotten from Granny," Toshiro snickered.
"Ah, so we'll have a nice, evening picture show, heehee…"
"Be sure to take everything you need, Minna. The bag still has some space inside."
"Then here…" Minna stuffed the photo album inside the bag. "No need, Toshiro. Everything else is in my heart…"
"Heh, how cute. Let's roll then. Where did you leave the violin?"
"On my Striker."
"Be sure to stuff it inside the bag, just in case we get attacked and shit."
"Sure, sure."
They went up the stairs and took their gear. Minna closed the door behind them and they kicked off.
The two of them passed Karlskrone, with its two majestic lakes and headed for the small settlement of Klausdorf to the north.
It was a small village with a park in the center, in which the ruins of a palace stood. There was a cemetery at the outskirts, connected to the cobblestone road going through the whole village.
"Where first, Toshiro?"
"Cemetery."
"I see two."
"The first one."
They landed before the gate of the small cemetery. After jumping out of their Strikers and placing everything on the ground, they entered the grounds.
"So, where do you think we should look?"
"Methodical search, Minna. You take the left half; I'll take the right half. When one of us finds it, he or she just says it, no shouts."
"Understood."
They split up, and after some time, Toshiro finally said, "I got it."
"Conrad Edelweiss…" Minna read off the simple tombstone. "The man that gave you your family name…"
"Yeah... But if I knew earlier I was a Barkhorn, who knows, heh…"
"Toshiro Barkhorn… Sounds a bit off…" Minna grinned.
"A bit… Okay, I saw what I needed to see… He's a total stranger to me, but at least I've paid my respects. Now let's see the palace."
They jumped over with their jets in a moment. The palace ruins were standing in the center of the park. The grass hasn't been cut in at least six years, so the lawn was in bad condition.
"Well, it probably was a nice place…" Minna said. "But now it's just a ruin…"
"The Kaisers arrival here must have been something… The dogs are barking with their asses here…"
"If there were some, we'd find out, heheh…"
"One dead relative, one destroyed palace… But I think I saw the house where Grandma lived."
"How did you recognize it?'
"One of the photos I received was made in front of the house. I saw it on the way here, it's near the crossroad."
"Let's go then."
After a quick jump, they landed in front of the house.
"I wonder if it's open…" Toshiro pondered aloud.
"I bet that won't stop you…"
"Nope…"
Toshiro pressed the door handle, and surprisingly, it opened. He directly entered the kitchen.
"Small, poor, dark… Mr. and Mrs. Edelweiss weren't the rich kind I see…" Minna said.
"Grandma was only a maid, and she was probably fired as soon as it was known she was pregnant. I wonder what Gramps did for a living…"
They entered into the living room. There was an old sofa, a table with some chairs, a holy picture on the wall.
"Wow… They were damn poor…" Toshiro said.
"And yet, they managed to raise your father."
"I bet they ate half-portions just so my dad would get his nourishment…"
They proceeded to the next room. It was full of clay pots, and there was a potter's wheel in the corner.
"I guess that's what raked in the pfenigs…" Minna sighed. "But the pots look nice…"
"There was probably a marketplace in Karlskrone… So Gramps probably was a potter selling his own goods in the nearest town…"
"Most likely. We have one more room."
Toshiro opened it, and they saw a simple bedroom, with one cupboard, one wardrobe, one bigger bed, and a chest.
"You should probably check the chest."
"Well no shit, Minna…"
He opened the chest. There wasn't much there, but there were things that Toshiro looked carefully at. He opened a small white paper box.
"Hair?" he asked.
"This must be the hair from your father's first haircut," Minna said. "It's a tradition in the eastern parts of Karlsland, especially in… heh, YOUR region…"
"My… Ooooooh… Riiiiiiight… Erzherzog and shit…"
"Are you taking that?" Minna asked.
"You know what… Yes… I'll take this and anything of sentimental value. Or legal value, I'm the only damn heir."
Toshiro dug through the contents of the chest and found Lucas's birth certificate, and the deed to the house and land.
"Should be enough…" Minna said. "Are we going?"
"Not yet," Toshiro grinned, and then he pulled out a small green bottle of wine out of the bottom of the chest.
"Toshiro…" Minna read off the label. "Oh my… Is that what I think it is?"
"Grandma was a Barkhorn after all," Toshiro said softly. "I think Trudy will be content with this discovery."
"Just don't let her drink most of it," Minna winked. "So, now, should we go?"
"Yes, we should… Maybe I should give this house to somebody in need…?"
"You'll think about that when the time comes. For now, it's home going time."
"Sure…"
The trip back was rather peaceful, but somewhere around Breslau, some Towers popped out.
"Quick decision, Minna."
"I have the feeling I can do something with them… Hmmm. Let's stop for a second…"
Minna stared fiercely on one of the Towers below her. Suddenly, it fired at one of its kind. It fired another time, and another, until it destroyed all the surrounding enemies.
"Toshiro…" the pale faced Minna said. "Kill that one…"
Toshiro simply channeled some magic into his gun and shot off one bullet, straight into the core, destroying it with one shot.
He quickly flew up to Minna as she wobbled in the air and caught her in the waist.
"Than… Hurm…" she mumbled and fainted.
And we have a whole set of Final Arts now. Well, technically Shizuka doesn't have one, but it would be probably doubled with Yoshika's anyway… So Minna's Final Art is some kind of mind control… Hummm… But the Neuroi are a damn hive mind so… I'll get down to the core of this later…
Toshiro quickly flew back to the base while holding Minna. A minute of flight before it, Minna slowly woke up.
"Oh damn… That was tiresome…"
"What was tiresome?" he asked.
"I controlled that one Tower. I saw the world through its… eyes or stuff… But at the same time, I had to suppress an enormously powerful presence trying to drill my head…"
"The Neuroi are a hive mind, so you probably had to fend off ALL the Neuroi connected to that one Tower while simultaneously controlling it. A great feat if you ask me…"
"Heheh… How nice… But you won't be mad if I go and take a nap?"
"Not at all, Minna, not at all…"
Minna managed to land on her own and stowed away her stuff.
"Hey, Minna, you look damn pale…" Shirley said. "Anything happened?"
"Minna learned a new trick," Toshiro said. "It kinda drained her."
"Ah, yes. After the first time I used time dilution, I was beat like hell!"
"Pretty much it… Heh…" Minna said with a weak voice.
"Shirley, get Minna to her room, okay? I have to relieve Mio before she gets cuckoo."
"Okay! Come on, Minna."
"Thanks, Shirley…"
They went hand in hand into the building, and Toshiro slowly followed them. He arrived at the office and entered it.
"Toshiro, finally!" Mio shouted.
"What, anything happen?"
"NOTHING! I thought I would get mad! Only the fish in the tank kept me sane!"
"Well then, it will please you that I'm now going to relieve you. Shoo."
"Yes!" Mio pumped her fist in the air. "Wait, where's Minna?"
"Heading to her room."
"And what's all that stuff you have in the bag?"
"Preserves, whiskey, a photo album, some stuff I picked up in the house of my grandparents and a violin."
"You sure didn't waste your time…" Mio said and went towards the door but stopped halfway. "I'll take that bag from you."
"Promise you won't do anything shady?"
"Let the gods smite me!"
"Yes?" Livy asked as she appeared.
"Ha, not so fast!" Mio laughed. "Ah, by the way, nice to meet you in person."
"I know you saw me train with my Master," Livy smiled. "Thank you for taking care of him on the beginning of his journey in the military."
"Master, huh?" Mio looked crookedly at Toshiro. "You won't hear a goshujinsama from me, oh no…"
"That's the way Livy is…" Toshiro sighed. "Okay, Livy, you can go."
"As you wish, Master," Livy said and evacuated herself.
Toshiro handed over the bag to Mio. "I'll be doing some usual paperwork now."
"Have at it."
Mio exited the room and Toshiro sat down and started doing the paperwork. But only after a minute, he appeared in Amaterasu's realm.
"Ugh, Livy? Maybe give me a warning?"
"Pardon, Master Toshiro. From now on, I will give you a one minute warning."
"Sounds fair. Okay then, training time!"
After returning from training, he went to the common room. The girls that were training themselves were currently cooling down.
"So, how was training with Trude?" he asked.
"We just did what we usually do, minus the excessive yelling…" Erica shrugged.
"Well, there was some yelling, Erica…" Lynne said.
"Yes, I joined them for the last two hours, ha!" Mio said proudly.
"But Toshiro asked about training with Trude, so I answered accordingly, not taking into account the training with Sakamoto afterwards."
"True…" Toshiro said. "It's still a bit weird hearing a full sentence longer than five words and not adhering to eating or sleeping from Erica, heh…"
"I told you I'd start changing…" Erica replied with a pout. "But let's not jump the gun, haste makes waste."
"Were you on a trip, Toshiro? Because I saw you flying somewhere with Minna…" Yoshika asked.
"Yeah, we were in Posnania. Minna visited her home and stuff. Let her tell you later, okay?"
"Yeah, sure. Did you do all your paperwork?"
"Uh… Actually no…."
"Hmmm? This is odd… What happened?"
"Stuff happened, I'll tell you later. Trude, would it kill you to do some paperwork for me? I will explain everything during dinner."
"Sure thing. But remember that everything will have to be signed by you anyway."
"Roger that, Trudy!"
"I guess it's time to start preparing dinner." Yoshika said.
"I'll go study a bit of Orussian."
"You called?" Sanya giggled from the top of the stairs?"
"Da!"
Later, during dinner, Minna told the rest what happened on the trip to Posnania and back. She also showed the paper she pulled out of the chest.
"My, my… So we have another genius in our ranks…" Mio said. "I feel kind of stupid around you…"
"Stupid is the one who thinks he's stupid. You're a genius of your own scale, Mio," Toshiro said.
"Well, thanks…"
"I didn't tell you, and Minna didn't hint it, but I managed to visit the home of my grandparents and my fathers in Klausdorf. Geez, what a bummer…"
"Why, Bro?" Erica asked.
"They were poor as church mice judging by the home interior. Grandma was probably unemployed, and gramps was a potter. The decorations of the home were really Spartan…"
"It seems poverty runs in your blood…" Erica sighed.
"At least up until my father and I got self-reliant. But our parents didn't get out of it till death…" Toshiro sighed along. "But I guess it forged our characters…" He shrugged. "Now I can tell my grandchildren, that in my days, a stick was the only toy we had!"
The girls gave off an earnest laugh.
"So, there's this thing I wanted to announce. Starting from today, I'm unavailable for two hours in the morning, two noon and two afternoon. I mean literally unavailable."
"Huh? What's happening?" Minna asked.
"I got an offer of training in the realm of my goddess. Time flows ten times slower there, so I'm getting the most out of it as I can."
"I see… But wait, that means I'll have more paperwork to do!"
"Sorry, Minna but…"
"I understand, don't worry yourself about it," Minna smiled warmly.
"And I got a message from Kye that she will visit you guys while I'm gone and train you with your Final Arts et cetera."
"Baawww…" Erica mumbled.
"Oh, Kye is gonna traina us? Hah! That Neuroi bitch is dead already, hahaha!" Mio laughed.
"Okay, dismissed everyone, and be sure to have some time available after supper."
"Oh, what's happen'?" Francesca asked.
Toshiro looked at Minna and Trude, and said, "A little entertainment."
Trude tilted her head slightly but the rest simply walked away.
"What entertainment?" Trude asked.
"You still haven't showed everyone those photos of yours…"
"Errr… Ah, I totally forgot, my bad!"
"No prob, Cousin. Minna and I will also have some pics to show."
"Oh, nice! We'll have a picture show, just like one big family!" Trude cheered.
"Yeah, the 501st is one big family… Have anything I could help you with?"
"Nah, nothing."
"Then I'll go and read a bit. Training is still out of the question today, but from tomorrow, I'll be doing it seriously."
"You'd better… I have the feeling you're the only one that could help us win the war…"
"Heh, nice of you to have so much fate in me, Cousin," Toshiro said and unexpectedly patted her on the head.
"W-What are you doing?!"
"Come on; give in to the hand…"
"Oh… Okay…" she mumbled with red cheeks. "It is pleasant…"
"You need to get accustomed to such pleasantries; you'll probably get a man someday…"
"First and foremost, I'll take care of Chris until she can leave my side. That's the most important thing…"
"Sure, sure…" Toshiro gave her a couple more strokes and went his way.
He entered his room and saw Sanya and Yoshika sitting on the bed already and studying.
"My, what a diligent fiancé I have…"
"Well, I told you I'd learn it, and I will!"
"Of course you will, my little genius, heheh…"
They were studying, with Eila joining them midsession.
"And what do you want, Eila?" Toshiro asked when the Suomi joined.
"I'm lonely…" she mumbled.
"Then come to your love, but don't interrupt us?"
"Oh, can I, Sanya?"
"Of course you can, silly. But don't interrupt us, or I'll show you the door."
"Okay!" Eila cheered and sat beside Sanya.
Somewhere along the way, Toshiro got swiped for training.
"Welp, at least you warned me…" Toshiro sighed.
"Of course Master, I'm a woman of my word," Livy replied.
"So, what will I learn now?"
"Right now, you will learn the basics of all magic types. The Celestial Order power enables you to learn all of them, so it's crucial that you at least taste all of them."
"Hmm… That sounds like a reasonable tactic… But Livy, isn't an all-purpose tool a non-purpose tool?"
"I know what you want to say, Master, but with the Celestial Order it's quite different. It surpasses the innate magic capabilities, granted you learn how to use the magic types."
"Let's get at it, Sweetie."
After supper, Trude, Minna and Toshiro went and got their photo albums, or the box and frame in Toshiro's case. A lot of laughs were had, and some tears were shed involuntarily. Trude was surprised dead that Toshiro brought his "Barkhorn wine", and she downed it with him exclusively.
Yoshika and Toshiro were lying in the bed after everything.
"Wow that was surely fun…" Yoshika said.
"We had the most fun from Trudy's reactions, right?"
"Heehee, yeah… But the pre-school Minna was sooooo cuuuuuute!"
"Yeah, I admit, she was such a sweetie…"
"Comparable to me?"
"From what I could see in your memories, and you rarely looked into a mirror, you were also a wee little shweetie pie…" Toshiro said while tickling Yoshika in the nose.
"Hahahaha! Okay, you just earned the right to pound for today, hahaha!"
"And I will use it right away," Toshiro said with a smirk. "But you want to see something, Yoshika?"
"If it's something else than Little Toshiro, be my guest," Yoshika laughed.
Toshiro enveloped himself with the Celestial Aura and raised his both arms into the air. Multicolored dots appeared on the backsides of his hands, glowing with varying intensity.
"Wow, pretty…" Yoshika said. "Does it have a meaning?"
"This is a nice way to track my mastery of each type of magic, Yoshika," Toshiro said. "Livy taught me this nice trick, and she taught me the knowledge of various magic types."
Yoshika looked carefully at the dots, and said, "This white dot is shining a bit bright, but the black dot is barely discernible from the aura… Light and dark magic…?" she asked herself. "I guess you're a good guy, hehehe…"
"Oh if that depended on my character, my light magic affinity would be resplendent, heheh… But thankfully, it doesn't."
"And this slightly blueish dot?"
"That's Neutral magic, raw magic, non-elemental magic – you name it."
"Mmmm… But tell me… Why are the three organized in a triangular pattern and why are they the only dots on your right hand?"
"Oh you like to poke in…" Toshiro giggled. "The three are thrown away to my right hand so I can track those separately. If I manage to combine the three, then…"
"Pow, Zen Magic!" Kye appeared out of nowhere, startling Yoshika heavily.
"Gwah!"
"Yeah, what she said," Toshiro sighed. "Can you not scare the living daylight out of Yoshika?"
"Puh…" Kye puffed her cheeks. "You know, I'm curious whether you can master Zen… I really am…"
"You know it already, so don't' bother…"
"I chose not to," Kye smirked. "How about we have a bet?"
"Oh?"
"If you manage to at least evoke Zen, I'll kiss you. Straight on the lips, maybe even with some tongue."
"Pffff…" Toshiro snorted. "But I shudder what you have in mind for me if I don't manage to do it till… when exactly?"
"You have your whole life, Bub. And no, it's a one sided bet."
"It means that you either believe in me, or outright don't. What say you, Yoshika?"
"Well… Uh, whatever, have at it," she shrugged. "It's just a kiss from a friend."
"Deal?" Kye extended her hand.
"Deal!" Toshiro smirked and shook the hand.
"Now, you can return to the pounding," Kye giggled and disappeared.
"You heard the lady," Yoshika said, already undressed.
"Well then…"
"Um, Master…" Livy said shyly from behind him.
"Well then squared…" Toshiro said with a devilish grin.
Okay then, it's time to list all of the Final Arts with their proper names!
Yoshika, Shizuka to an extent – Rapid Healing – immensely increased healing rate over her inherent magic, and the ability to heal multiple persons at once. Her hands get clad in a green aura once she uses it.
Mio - Magan Kai (lit. Improved Magic Eye) - Mio can activate her second eye and gain a 360-degree view, with night and thermal vision capabilities.
Minna - Total Invigilation - Minna can tap into the brain (or whatever Neuroi have) of any living being (multiple targets included, humans excluded) in a 5 km radius. However, while controlling Neuroi, she has to suppress the Hive Mind.
Trude - Zero Point Pulverizing - Trude can manipulate gravity at a point-blank range, giving her attacks overwhelming force.
Shirley - Time Bending - Shirley can bend time just like Toshiro (albeit limited to x10 scale)
Francesca - Sol Invictus (google it) – Francesca uses the power of the Sun (even with clouds present) to collect a massive amount of energy and discharge it as a beam of light energy.
Perrine - Éclair (lit. lighting) - Perrine throws a bolt of lightning which bounces between targets, increasing its magnitude with each bounce.
Lynne - Swallow Shot - Lynne fires a magic clad projectile, which she can steer at will. Yes, I've read One Winged Witches.
Erica - Blitzkrieg - Erica combines a cold and hot Sturm to create a static electricity generating ball that discharges upon contact (and likes to attract natural lightning)
Sanya - Ley Line Attenuation - Sanya can use the earth's ley lines to communicate with any given receiver on the whole wide world, and pinpoint her and the enemies location with incredible precision.
Eila - Future Imperfect - Eila can project a false self into the enemies... minds, which she can steer freely.
Heidi – Wodans Auge (lit. Wodan's Eye) - Heidi's eyes can pierce any cloud, mist and even some solid objects as if they are inexistent
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