The mock battle between Rei and Lindy had begun quite abruptly.
Even now, some twenty minutes after it started, that mock battle was still ongoing.
Twenty minutes might sound short to some, but this was twenty minutes of full-body exertion.
Just how draining that could be was something Rei understood well as he parried Lindy's longsword strikes with a nearly broken spear.
What came to mind was the boxing he had watched on TV back in Japan.
A single round was only three minutes, but by the fifth or sixth round... and certainly by the ninth, the boxers were completely spent.
Nine rounds—in other words, twenty-seven minutes.
And that was with rest breaks every three minutes, yet they still reached that level of exhaustion.
Given all that, the fact Lindy could still move this much was proof she had trained properly all along.
The difference in training methods between those who lived in Japan and those in this world. Or perhaps it was an evolution born from spending her entire life fighting monsters.
Of course, it could also be the sheer drive and grit that came from wanting power—power to protect Anne and Camila, and to find Golias.
"Not bad."
"Yeah."
Two of the assassins watching the match exchanged those words.
They had originally come to see Rei's abilities with their own eyes, but they found themselves impressed by Lindy's unexpected tenacity instead.
Moreover, the number of spectators had grown since the start.
Word that Rei was holding a mock battle had evidently spread, drawing the curious.
For the assassins, wanting to know Rei's true capabilities was only natural.
Given that this was the Fusetsu hideout, it was hardly surprising that information about the mock battle had traveled fast.
Rei, who was busy parrying Lindy's longsword, was naturally aware of this as well.
But his honest feeling was simple: so what?
As far as he was concerned, there was no issue with people watching.
He judged that having a few of his movements observed posed no real problem.
The fact that they were currently cooperating allies, as Lindy herself had pointed out, did factor into his reasoning somewhat.
"See, there's an opening when you transition to your next attack. Anyone with decent skill would target that spot in an instant."
A strike that seemed to exploit a gap in her combo landed on Lindy's right shoulder.
Unlike Lindy's full-power attacks, however, it carried only enough force to lightly touch her.
At that level of power, there was naturally no damage.
No damage, but Lindy obviously felt the touch on her shoulder, and she understood it was a direct reflection of her own immaturity.
"Kuh!"
Understanding that, however, did not make her halt the match.
Lindy had a firm grasp on the gap in ability between herself and Rei.
Given that, temporarily stopping every time an attack like that landed would defeat the entire purpose.
What she needed was to move her body in a way that eliminated even the slightest opening during combat.
In the heat of battle—and precisely because her opponent was someone of Rei's caliber—she could push herself to grow mid-fight.
Incidentally, though Lindy herself remained unaware of it, the ability to do so was a talent in its own right.
As if to prove the point, her technique was steadily improving over the course of this very fight.
It was not a dramatic surge visible to any casual observer, but the openings between her attacks were shrinking to a degree Rei could fully appreciate as her opponent.
Had Lindy possessed more obvious talent, it would not have been the openings shrinking but vanishing entirely... but unfortunately, she did not have that level of gift.
"Hoh, that woman... she's actually growing during the fight?"
"It's not that rare, is it? Growing mid-battle is normal. Normal."
"I see your point, but I'd still call it fairly remarkable. ...Judging by her demeanor, I'm not even sure she realizes it herself."
"Ah, fool. You're concentrating too hard on attacking!"
Simultaneous with one watching assassin's remark, the butt of Rei's spear swept Lindy's legs out from under her.
"Kyaa!"
Until now he had only lightly touched his target, but this time he hooked her ankle and sent her tumbling.
"You're focusing too much on your attacks. And always watch your footing—that's where your attention goes last."
"Ugh... understood."
Though he had knocked her down, Rei had been careful to avoid causing injury.
In fact, despite the fall, she suffered no twisted ankle or bruise severe enough to immobilize her. It stung a little, but she could stand normally.
Taking Rei's advice to heart, Lindy raised her longsword once more.
She took a deep breath to steady the ragged breathing from the fight so far... then charged at Rei again.
Every slashing attack with her longsword was parried by his spear.
Given that, the next method Lindy chose was a thrust—her fastest attack, and a point strike that would not be so easily deflected.
The thrust shot forward, aimed to pierce Rei's body, but...
"Good judgment, but the attack speed itself is too slow."
With those words, even the thrust was effortlessly knocked aside.
Honestly, Lindy had never expected her thrust to be parried.
She understood what Rei had done.
She understood it—but if someone told her to replicate it, she would declare with absolute certainty that it was impossible.
That was how much Rei's feat resembled divine technique to Lindy.
"Look, just because your thrust got parried, don't freeze up in shock."
The spear that had deflected Lindy's thrust reversed direction with a flick of his wrist and touched her body.
Seeing it tap her sword arm, Lindy flashed a frustrated scowl, then leaped backward and reset her stance.
Still won't break, huh.
Her eyes held a fierce will that said this much would not be enough.
That she needed more power—power to protect Anne and to find Golias.
Faced with Lindy broadcasting that resolve through every fiber of her being, Rei felt genuine admiration, though he kept it from his face.
In this situation, that unyielding strength of spirit was probably Lindy's greatest talent.
"Seems you're still good to go. In that case... I'll take the initiative next."
The moment he murmured that, Rei kicked off the floor.
His speed was such that even the assassins watching from a distance saw it as instantaneous movement.
Naturally, Lindy—seeing it up close—barely reacted before the spear tip pressed against her torso.
"Kuh."
Lindy muttered in frustration as she received the blow.
She had never expected to be struck so effortlessly.
She understood the gulf between them, but from the exchanges so far, she believed she had grown at least somewhat—perhaps more than somewhat—stronger.
That was why being touched so easily stung. It was simply not fun.
Or perhaps she recognized it as pure humiliation.
Rei could not tell which, but either way, that last strike had unquestionably lit a fire in Lindy.
In a mock battle, having such a gap in ability laid bare and still having the opponent come charging—that was something Rei could only welcome.
Then again, she's still lacking, though.
That was Rei's honest assessment, and for Lindy—the one being assessed—it was undoubtedly a bitter pill.
The real issue was that the bar Rei set for a comrade was simply too high.
But considering he might have to face the Dolan Workshop's golems, or take on multiple Workshop-hired adventurers at once, strict standards were only natural.
Had Rei explained those circumstances, things might have played out differently.
"I'm not done yet! Don't you dare think this is enough to finish me!"
Channeling her frustration into fuel, Lindy lunged at Rei.
But her fastest attack—the thrust—had just been deflected with ease.
Given that, what Lindy needed now was not a single-strike gambit like a thrust, but a combination of combos and thrusts to create an opening for a clean hit.
Of course, Rei saw through every bit of it.
"Good, keep that up. Compared to earlier, the power behind each strike has clearly grown. Hold on to that feeling. That combo of yours is solid enough to land even against a superior opponent."
It was a simple change—working thrusts into her combos—but it transformed what had been slash-only patterns into something far more varied.
Her rapid-fire attacks came one after another, each one parried or evaded by Rei.
In the gaps between them, his spear tip grazed her body, more than enough to drill home where her openings remained.
And so the mock battle continued for a while longer...
"Haa, haa, haa, haa... I can't... anymore..."
Just how long had they been fighting?
Lindy collapsed onto the floor, looking as though she could not move another step.
Beads of sweat streamed down her face, and her breathing was so ragged she could barely catch her wind.
Every line of her body said she was done.
In stark contrast, Rei showed no sign of fatigue whatsoever—without so much as a heavy breath, he simply watched her.
"Looks like you've hit your limit."
"Y... yeah... I guess..."
Lindy managed between ragged breaths.
Rei considered telling her to get back up, but decided that preaching willpower in this state would be pointless, so he held his tongue.
That said, he was not dismissing the value of grit entirely.
Especially in real combat—when lives were genuinely on the line—sheer willpower was nothing to scoff at.
"For now, rest until you can move again. I'm going to keep training a bit longer."
"...You're a monster..."
Lindy muttered, her tone leaning more toward exasperation than surprise.
Lindy was not exceptionally weak among adventurers.
Yet she had served as Rei's sparring partner, and while she was gasping for air, he showed no hint of fatigue.
He had even been sparring against imaginary foes using Death Scythe and the Twilight Spear.
Seeing all this, she felt the gulf between them driven home all over again.
Then again, she had known Rei's strength going in. That was precisely why she had challenged him.
In that sense, the outcome was only to be expected.
Hearing her words, Rei paused his movements and spoke.
"If you work as an adventurer in Gilm, you'll naturally build yourself up to about this level. ...Want to give Gilm a try? It used to be a magnet for skilled adventurers, and right now they need people for the expansion construction. It's the frontier, of course, so there's always the chance of running into vicious monsters, but..."
"I'll pass."
Without a second's thought, Lindy turned him down.
Rei, not expecting such an immediate refusal, was mildly surprised.
"I'm fine working as an adventurer right here. I still have my goal of finding Golias, and from here I can get back to the orphanage quickly."
In this case, "quickly" did not mean Rei's version of quick—traveling by riding Seto through the sky. She meant quick by walking, or by carriage or horse.
Understanding that, Rei decided there was nothing more to say if Lindy had already made up her mind.
Given her personality, pushing her to come to Gilm would likely be a waste of breath.
Clearly, she had no intention of leaving Egginis.
"Understood. I won't try to drag you to Gilm anymore. You're free to operate in Egginis however you like—follow your own path. Do that, and sooner or later, a way forward will open up."
At Rei's words, Lindy—thoroughly exhausted as she was—managed a smile.