A work vessel was falling.
A pretty massive one at that.
Most likely one of those crafts that doubled as a worker transport.
The reason I could afford to stay calm was that my Imperial Guard was top-notch.
I was in no real danger.
As long as I had my combat suit properly equipped, that is.
A guard member on patrol in a humanoid fighter intercepted and stopped the falling vessel.
The medical team waiting on standby for me immediately contacted the general hospital.
As for me, I slipped in alongside Charlotte and the Rosaria Army rescue team.
"Where's the work vessel's loading entrance?!"
"It won't open from the outside! The hatch is warped, so we'll have to cut through to breach!"
They brought out a plasma cutter.
Going at it with that would take over an hour.
They wouldn't make it in time.
That said, a humanoid fighter was too bulky for such delicate work.
As for humanoid heavy machinery... none around, huh?
"I'll handle it."
Katana in hand, I stepped outside the ship.
I touched down on the loading entrance.
Thank goodness. There was a foothold.
I'd have to switch things up from my usual trick of using my body weight to generate kinetic energy.
Guess I'll have to make do with raw muscle and speed.
Iai... or so I'd like to say, but quick-draw techniques weren't my strong suit.
I've always been clumsy with such delicate, precision skills.
Still, there was no helping it, since that was the best way to get maximum speed out of an opening strike.
Focus... wait, being so full of openings while gathering focus was why I hated it in the first place.
If I just worked it into a standard combo routine, I could pull it off without even thinking.
Right. I just need to do an iai combo.
After letting those pointless thoughts run their course, I blanked my mind... I was the type who performed worse the more I overthought things anyway.
Sliding the blade as I drew it from the sheath, I slashed diagonally upward through the door.
It cut as soft as butter.
Gripping the hilt with both hands, I brought it down.
Twisting the blade, I slashed upward.
A horizontal sweep.
I unleashed slash after slash in rapid succession.
"I can't even see it..." Charlotte muttered.
Well, you can see it if you're at Katori-sensei's level, you know.
Not that he dodges after seeing it.
Since he already knows I'll aim for vitals, the trajectory is predictable.
From there, he just reads my killing intent, predicts the path, and parries it.
If I mess up, he'll even disarm me mid-swing.
The guy's a monster.
Just as that complaint crossed my mind, the combo ended.
The clean sensation felt just like slicing through butter. That did it.
The door crumbled into pieces.
Phew... I really need to practice this more.
Specifically, I need to reach the point where I can throw in feints at any given moment mid-combo without thinking.
"M-Monster... You are far too monstrous..."
Charlotte, that's mean!
Besides, all I did was stay out of the katana's way.
Almost all of that was the blade's own doing.
This thing was incredible.
A supreme masterpiece, crafted through Zork-processing.
Though it was just a prototype, as long as I didn't get in the way of the cut, it could cleave through an outer hull like this.
Now then, time to breach.
Whoops, there were several workers right by the loading entrance.
There was an internal broadcast unit near the doorway.
"You can evacuate through the loading entrance! Everyone, get out now!"
The moment I shouted, the workers came rushing over.
Some carried injured colleagues in groups.
Others dragged their feet along the floor.
Charlotte and her squad stepped inside and began helping them out.
"Forgive me, King Leo. You saved us! I will surely repay this favor!"
"Don't worry about it. Allies help each other out~"
Within our means, of course.
We could help with rescues.
We couldn't supply Zork-processed outer hull plating due to a lack of resources.
That was the line we drew.
Both the Galactic Empire and Chronos placed great value on honor and compassion.
We kept our promises, and we helped as much as we could.
It was all about maintaining that delicate balance.
The injured were rushed to the university hospital where Kevin worked aboard a Chronos transport ship.
Having a launch pad for transport aircraft right on-site was exceedingly convenient.
They were transferred straight into emergency care.
We parted ways there.
I left the transport paperwork to the medical team.
Fortunately, it seemed everyone got away with just injuries.
Having a swarm of Jesters around was truly reassuring at times like this.
I was about to assist with further rescue efforts... only to be escorted back to the palace by the Imperial Guard.
I underwent an examination by the palace doctor.
Clean bill of health.
There hadn't been any moment where I could have gotten hurt to begin with.
Now then, before I forgot the feel of that iai slash against the outer hull, off to the dojo.
I practiced the combo using a blunted sword meant for iai.
I don't need that initial pause to focus right after sheathing.
If I could eliminate that, I should be able to whip out a lightning-fast quick-draw from a sheathed stance just like in a fighting game.
I could weave it right into combos, too.
The way iai was portrayed in shonen manga battles was probably just an excuse to buy time to focus by shouting out cool lines.
What a terrifying tactical ploy.
"Whatcha doing?"
Katori-sensei walked in.
"I was wondering if I could incorporate iai into my combos like in a fighting game."
"You... Has your brain completely rotted away from video games?"
"No, look, I figured if I skipped the part where I focus and just sheathed the sword quickly, it might work."
"The whole damn thing is just theatrical performance to begin with! What the hell's the point of going out of your way to sheath your sword in a fight?!"
He had a point.
Katori-sensei was completely, utterly right.
Still, I'll argue back. Just a little.
I managed to pull off something really cool today, after all!
"Well, I actually managed to slice open a loading entrance door using iai out in space."
"Now that's an interesting story all of a sudden. I see... So that's a proper practical use for it, huh?"
"I was thinking it might even work in humanoid fighter combat."
At that, Katori-sensei gripped both of my shoulders.
A supremely wicked grin spread across his face.
"You bastard~! Why do you always have to come up with such fun-sounding ideas?! Man, you're the worst~!"
Then he started pounding on my shoulders.
"Ahahaha! Sounds fun, right?!"
The Imperial Guard members nearby buried their faces in their hands.
It seemed they couldn't keep up with a conversation that was simultaneously high-level martial theory and utterly brain-dead.
To begin with, if there hadn't been a foothold, I had planned to accelerate with my suit's thrusters to deliver the slash.
Though that was a double-edged sword, since missing would mean slamming face-first into the door!
In that case, iai was way safer!
"Hahaha!...We're testing this out right now."
"Thought you'd say that."
And so, our experiments in the dojo began.
"How'd you do it the first time, anyway?"
"Well, since I haven't practiced it much, I just focused... or rather, blanked my mind so I wouldn't get in the katana's way during the slash. After drawing it, I flowed right into the combo..."
Saying that, I drew the blade in a single breath and executed the sequence.
Everything finished in the space of a single respiration.
"Phew..."
"Look at that, you can do it just fine."
"I can't pull it off unless I'm actively thinking about it, so fundamentally, I just haven't practiced enough."
"Ah~, I see. You cut out all the overly complex techniques, didn't you?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
To be fair, iai was just absurdly difficult.
Aiming for true mastery required extraordinary physical control.
And reaching a level where you could execute it purely on instinct would completely monopolize your skill set.
I had the breathing room to tackle it now, but back during the Zork War or when I first arrived here, it would have been totally out of the question.
"Alright, let's create the Kamishiro-style together, shall we?"
Ah, there was that evil look on his face.
This old man was definitely scheming something.