"Ugh, you are really getting better at this"
Diz says as she uses her powers to heal the injury I just gave her
"Honestly, I thought that after we trained a few times I would be able to get the hang of you, but it seems like it gets worse everytime"
She compliments me, in my base state we are almost equal in power, but if I use my 100%, she isn't able to give me any real injuries and I always win a matter of minutes if we fight seriously
However, Diz is also impressive for being able to withstand more than one of my serious attacks without being defeated
"Thanks, but I'm still nowhere near as good as you in this taijustsu stuff"
Lately, I've been getting the hang of hand-to-hand combat, Diz has pushing me to work out and teaching me martial arts to combine them with my esper abilities
"Tsk, no need to be modest, as expected of a Kageyama you grew a lot in just a few days of training, it's something to be proud"
"T-thanks"
I say a little embarassed
"And how is that new technique of yours? Any improvements?"
I nod
"Yes, I've been getting better at it, though it still pains me a little to be copying something that my father's enemy used to do..."
"I don't see any trouble, it's not like you'll be using it for the same purposes anyway"
"Guess you are right, but I have all of you to thank for that, if it wasn't for this training, I proably would have took a lot longer to realize how to do it"
Mayumi has been aiding with developing new techniques and focus, Galard and Manaki have been helping me in control, teamwork and sustaining my energy while Diz has been training me physically in order to increase my own balance, thanks to all of them I've been able to increase my mastery over this new technique
"I didn't knew physical training could have so much to do with it, center of gravity training is something that never even crossed my mind"
The training I've been doing with Diz is different from average physical training, she has been doing exercises that put to use the full structure of my body and test my balance by using my center of gravity, that way it not only improves my strength, but I've been feeling that my sense of balance has improved quite a lot
"Compliments won't make me go easier on you"
Diz says with a mocking expression and I chuckle before answering
"No, serious, I really mean it, thank you"
When I say this, Diz turns her face and replies in a barely audible voice
"Y-you're welcome..."
She says and then proceeds to finish her drink
"Ah, this is really good!"
Diz is currently wearing spandex pants and a tanktop, whenever we train I can't help but admire her body... n-not in a sexual way!
You see, she is incredibly well built, even though she has a bishoujo face and great curves, her muscles and height would easily make her a beast in combat even without using any of her powers
And as a guy, well...
Everytime I look at her I feel a bit of... jealousy? Oh well, it is jealously, no matter how I put it.
It's like she was draw in Araki's style at Stardust Crusaders and I was draw in the Jojolion style!
I know it's stupid, I barely worked out in my life, because I never actually needed it, but any guy would feel weird in this situation
As I'm wondering about this stuff, Diz looks at me with her face reddened
"W-what are you looking at?!"
I put my hands forward
"S-sorry! I was just thinking about how much training you must have done to keep your build, that's all!"
After I say this, Diz puts her bottle down and sighs
"I see... I'm Liliana-sama's [Rook], I've never been very good at other things besides fighting, so I have to try my hardest to become stronger"
She smiles at me, but it's a forced smile, I can tell there's a hint of sadness behind it
"It's not normal for a girl to be strong like this, it grosses you out, right?"
"Of course not!"
I blurt out, there's no way I'm grossed by her!
Diz is taken back and looks at me surprised
"I think you look amazing and I'm impressed by the work you put into it! In fact, I'm even a little jealous of it!"
She stays silent for a while, her red eyes wide and staring at me
Did I go too far? Maybe it sounded weird?
"Talking like this about a girl's body, you pervert..."
So I did end up sounding weird! Ah, I wanna shove my head in a hole!
"But... thank you"
She smiles at me, a genuine smile that doesn't really suit a tough girl like her, but makes me glad I'm able to see it
"So you wanna grow some muscle, huh?"
"H-hey!"
Diz puts a hand over my shoulder and pulls me in a hold while she starts messing with my hair
"Then we're going to train for real right now, be ready to face hell!"
Ah, why do I think I made a mistake telling her that?
Part 2
"Ugh, I'm beat"
Diz really pulled the shit out of me in the training, she even gave me a training regimen for me to do at home
"I don't think I'm going to survive this..."
I say as I make my way to another section of the training grounds where Aya and Mayumi are supposed to be at
Actually, thinking about it now, this will be the first time I'll see Aya-chan's training first-hand, she only talks about it sometimes, but it seems like they are going pretty hard on her
VOOOOOM
A strong gust of wind blows and I hear a loud noise
"W-what was that?"
I fly towards the direction of the noise and when I arrive at the place
"Fufufu, Aya-chan, you really are improving, last time you were barely able to stand an attack like this"
Mayumi is in front of a destroyed patch of land where Aya-chan is standing, she seems to be injured!
"Thank you, Mayumi-san, I'm glad to see all of this is paying off!"
Aya-chan says as she jumps into the air and several maigc cyrcles appear
Youjustsu, a special type of magic unique to youkais, since Aya is from a guardian youkai species, she seems to have an aptitude for defensive and reinforcement abilities
"Haaa!"
She yells as bursts of different magic attributes fly towards Mayumi
"Fufufu, you are good, but onee-san here still has trickes up her sleeve!"
The wind beneath Mayumi proples her upwards as she doges some of the attacks and uses blades made from air itself to cut through Aya's attacks
So this is the kind of training they are having?! It's way too intense! Aya-chan seems to be getting hurt for real!
Galard is standing a few feet away from the fight, watching it, so I land close to him
"Hah, Tatseyo, so you and Diz have finished your training?"
"Yeah, but what the hell is going on here?"
I ask nervous, this training looks way too serious for her!
"Well, this is Aya-chan's training"
He says nonchantly
"This is her usual training?"
Galard laughs
"I know, strange, right? But this was Aya's request herself"
He taps his cane on the floor
"[If I don't learn proper combat, I can't fight against the Khaos Brigade], were her words, since then we have been making a very tough training"
I look again at the battle, cuts have started appearing on Aya's skin and blood starts to leak
"S-so that was her choice..."
Aya chose this, a combat training that seems to be way too hard for someone with little combat experience like her, just to be able to fight against the Khaos Brigade
"She has a tremendous determination, this girl..."
Galard says
"Yes, indeed"
I say amazed, in fact, this even makes me feel kinda bad
Aya-chan seems to be bravely resisting while putting up a fight, she covers herself with Touki, so she's been learning Senjutsu too...
"Ara, you are wearing reinforcement spells combined with your touki? Nice move, but how do you deal with this?"
Mayumi teleports to Aya-chan's side and sends an array of wind attacks
The fight is incredibly tricky, from all the members of Liliana's peerage, Mayumi is definitely one of the hardest ones to fight, I have never fought with her, but the fact alone that she can read minds and teleport makes her an incredibly difficult opponent
However, even at a huge disavantage, Aya fights back, true to what Mayumi and Liliana said, she has an amazing talent for Youjutsu
After a while, the fight seems to have reached a conclusion, Aya became too tired to move and was sitting beneath a tree catching her breath
She's covered in bruises while Mayumi didn't received any injuries
Me and Galard approach them, when Aya sees me her eyes wide
"Tatseyo-san!" - She tries to stand up but limps and almost falls down
"H-hey! Easy there!"
I rush and help her stand up
"Ugh, I'm sorry... looks like I pushed myself too much"
Aya says with an awkward laugh
"Well, I guess it's time to do my thing"
Galard says and walks towards Aya-chan
"You fought very well today, here, let me see those wounds"
"Ah, thank you, Galard-san"
He kneels and starts healing her injuries
"I didn't knew you were doing such an extreme training"
It really surprised me, I knew Aya was training for combat, but not on this level
"T-thank you, but I still have a long way to go..."
She says with a bitter expression
"Ara, don't make this face, you are growing up very well, specially for someone who didn't know real combat untill a few weeks ago"
Mayumi says with a smile as Galard has finished the healing
I nod
"Mayumi is right, it's incredible that you are so talented at Youjutsu and Senjutsu"
"Thank you, I've trained with mom and dad sometimes..."
Aya-chan says with a bitter smile, she must be remembering her family
I pat her head
"I'm sure your parents would be proud to see you're growing strong"
Aya's face turns brighter at my words, but I scratch my cheek with a troubled expression
"Just don't push yourself too hard, alright? I get worried about you too"
"Y-yes, thank you"
Aya-chan says while blushing
"Fufufu, I see Tatseyo really treasures his little cousin"
"S-so you heard about that?"
I turn embarassed towards Mayumi who has a hand covering her giggles
"Of course~ I wonder if you would worry so much about me as well"
Mayumi comes closer to me
"I'm not your cousin, but I'm still a girl you know?"
She pokes me in the chest, how the hell am I supposed to answer to this?!
"Kakakakakaka!,"
I hear Galard's laughter, why do people seem to enjoy when I'm put into these situations?
"I'm a girl too!"
Aya stands up and hugs my arm
"H-hey Aya-chan is it okay for you to be standing up?"
Aya nods, she then pouts at Mayumi with tearful eyes
"I'm not Tatseyo-san's real cousin, so I wanna be treated like a girl too!"
What are you talking about?! Treated like a girl?
"I-if something happens, then of course I'll protect both of you! You are all important to me"
I say it without thinking, it seems such a cliché line that I feel embarassed right afterwards
Aya-chan hugs my arm tighter and her face went red
"Huh?"
But just then... a scene that I did not expect appeared in front of my eyes
"Are you alright, Mayumi?"
Her face went red? Mayumi's face? Am I really seeing this right?
She turns around and answers with her back turned to us
"Y-yes, I'm okay, y-you just said something that I didn't expect"
Eh, is it because I said something without thinking first? Is that how you get her off guard?
I made Mayumi blush?
"I'm going back now, you can call me if you need anything"
Mayumi says in a hurry and disappears before we can say anything, leaving me dumbfounded
"What was that..."
"Kakakaka, Mayumi does not react well to surprises"
Galard states while stroking his beard
"Telepaths usually have trouble when dealing with someone they can't predict, specially Mayumi, who uses her power almost all of the time"
A familiar voice says this, when I turn to look, it's Manaki!
"Hey, Manaki, what are you doing here?"
"Liliana-sama asked me to help you if you need something, since she is not here today"
Like she said, Liliana said she had to see a friend today so she wouldn't be able to make us company
"Well, since we are done with training for today, I thought about resting for a while"
"Me too.."
Aya-chan says with a tired expression
"I see, if you would like I could guide you to the casino's dining area, or would you rather go back to the office?"
I wide my eyes at her offer and when I look at Aya-chan, she has the same expression on her face
Truth be told, we haven't seem the casino's gambling area yet, it's making me curious now
"Do you want to see the casino, Aya-chan?"
She nods
"Yes!"
Manaki then makes an inviting gesture with her hand
"Then come with us"
Part 3
Manaki and Galard lead us to the floors where the casino operates
We walk through an extremely fancy corridor decorated in bright colors
"Wow!"
What awaited us at the of the corridor was the Casino's gambling area
There are dazzling lights everywhere, music was playing as beautiful waitresses served drinks and food to well-dressed gamblers. Stairs leading up show us that there is even more to this place
Besides the music, voices from several people could be heard, we could barely make sense of anything as the voices and music were also mixed with the sounds coming from the gambling machines.
"Amazing..."
I've never been inside a real casino, but from what I've seen from movies, this wouldn't lose to any of them!
"Liliana-sama has contacts with casinos all over both worlds, the Dark Devil was designed by some of the most famous engineers and architects of the underworld"
I didn't even knew that, damn, Liliana is amazing
"If you are blown away by this, you should see the projects Caim-sama, Liliana's father, has been doing."
Galard says with a laugh and Manaki nods her head
"After the peace treaty, they have been doing projects with the fallen angels to build an entire gambling city in the underworld"
An entire gambling city?!
"Ahhh..."
When I look at Aya-chan, she has smoke coming out of her mouth and spinning eyes, has the ambient overwhelmed her already?!
"Aya-chan! Get a hold of yourself!"
I grab her by the shoulders and shake her
"Perhaps it would be better if we took Aya-chan to the restaurant area"
Manaki suggests
"Good idea"
We took Aya-chan to a fancy restaurant inside the casino
"Ahh, sorry, I was just too impressed by everything"
Aya-chan apologizes while drinking a glass of juice
"I didn't expect this place to be so..."
I don't have words to express my amazement
Galard laughs
"Hahaha, wait untill you've tasted the food, underworld culinary is top notch!"
He says while laughing, I had already tasted the casino's food from that night after we rescued Aya-chan, but the menu is huge! I could easily eat here for a month without ever repeating dishes
RING RING
It's my phone
"Sorry, I gotta pick up"
My eyes wide when I look at the name on the screen
"Ayumu..."
"Oh, so it's the famous childhood friend Liliana was talking about?"
Galard asks
"Yes, sorry, but I have to answer it"
"Go ahead"
Manaki says and I accept the call
"Tachan?"
The unmistakable voice and the greeting that only she would call me reaches my ears from the other side of line
"Hi, Ayumu, how are you?" - I say, trying my best to keep cool
"Everything's fine, hey listen, I finally got permission to go to Kuoh town!"
She says in an energetic voice
"R-really? When are you coming?"
This is good news! When Ayumu arrives I can talk to her and decide how we are going to explain this situation to the esper community
"This weekend, I even got the tickets already!"
I smile a little at her words, for some reason, speaking to her just makes me feel more relaxed
"That's great, you already got my address, so I'll be waiting you"
"Yes, but... Tachan, is everything alright in there?"
She asks in a nervous tone
"Everything is fine in here, don't worry, once you arrive I promisse I'll explain everything to you"
I answer trying to ease her
"Okay, but take care, alright?"
"Yes, of course, you take care too, see you soon"
"See ya, Tachan"
We hang up and when I look back at them, Aya, Galard and Manaki have different reactions on their faces
"I see, so it's another girl like that..."
"Kakakaka, that's Tatseyo for you!"
"Guh, another girl, Tatseyo-san surely has a lot of options..." - Aya says with a troubled expression while finishing her juice
Hey, what are you all talking about?!
"She's just my friend we have nothing like... wait, is this really what we should be talking about? Ayumu is coming to town, shouldn't we warn Liliana?"
Manaki adjusts her glasses
"Yes, we should, she must be in the meeting, but I'll use a magic circle for contact so that we can at least send a message"
And so, the arrival of my childhood friend approached, I wonder how things are going to play out when she's finally here...