Chapter 115: Frame Training [I]

“You’re asking where I found her?” Koya asked while placing a hand on Mable’s head.

He couldn’t say it was a reward from the System’s mystery box.

’Which reminds me, I have like 5 mystery boxes that I haven’t opened yet… I’ll do it after lunch and also check the site properly. There’s a lot to get through before mid-terms.’

Now that Mable was on his lap, he could feel a connection between them similar to the ones that he had with his Familiars though unlike the other Familiars like Riffi, he would have to actively teach her to ensure that she didn’t turn out bad.

She was a child, not just a summon… That was a different kind of responsibility entirely.

Nami and Reona weren’t at the table which was understandable since this was a weekday and they were at school and work respectively.

“Right.” Victoria spoke up from her side. “We were very surprised when Disguise Master brought an egg home and the egg even hatched into a cute little girl that looked exactly like you… so Hubby, did you do it with a monster?”

She clenched her palms. Did he decide to do it with a dragon or something?

Because she didn’t want to have sex yet and if he had gone that far with a monster while she was sitting here…

’I’m a disgrace of a wife.’ She thought with a downcast expression and Koya turned to her with a shocked expression on his face.

“No, I’m not that stressed.” Koya said.

“Naturally…” Hakai chimed in. “Since it was an egg, I assume Koya-kun was filling the egg with his mana. Mable, do you remember anything?”

“No I don’t.” She said with a smile as she moved her head to Koya’s chest and curled there. “But I remember Papa was giving me really warm mana until I was full and couldn’t take anymore. I love my Papa.”

Koya didn’t know why but he felt proud of himself.

“I’m glad that’s the case then.” Victoria said as Disguise Master came back in with a tray of food and set it down on Koya’s side of the table.

“Right… Did you see any other thing next to the egg?” Koya asked. They had only talked about the egg… what about the DragonHart Amber? Was there any part of it remaining?

“Oh you mean that sweet thing.” Mable perked up immediately. “It entered the egg and I ate it up too, it made me really strong as well. You can ask Mama Hakai.”

Hakai could barely conceal her excitement.

Mable had obliged to some tests and she could use a lot of magical elements at a higher degree… she needed more training to handle them properly but her potential was genuinely high.

All the elements that the Great Clans had were within this girl, present and active without any education.

If this was just the effect of Koya placing his mana in a dragon egg then she couldn’t wait for her own turn to get his baby.

’Sakura reported that she hadn’t gotten the time to make advances yet, she really should. And Mio too…’ She thought while tapping her chin.

The more children Koya had the more diversity they would create… Since she was the last line of the Hoshigaki clan, they could build something entirely new from the foundation he was laying down without even realizing it.

Maybe even make an Amagi clan.

“Mable’s right, she has different kinds of affinities and if you’ll give me permission I want to give her some personal elemental training.” Hakai brought up. “It takes two parents to come to an agreement after all… you’re my husband and she’s our daughter so naturally you have a say.”

“Hey, I’m her Mother too! I was his first wife.”

Hakai gave Victoria a smile.

“I’m his first official wife.” She said confidently, setting her cup down smugly. “Catch up.”

That alone made Victoria pout. She really didn’t have a clap-back to it.

The distinction between first wife and first official wife was technically real and she was on the wrong side of it, it wasn’t like she could quite literally show their Blood Pact since it existed in their souls…

“I see…” Koya said, spooning karadon into Mable’s mouth.

She ate it without complaint, which surprised him… he had half expected a dragon to have opinions about human food.

She chewed once and swallowed and opened her mouth again immediately like a bird waiting to be fed.

“Also, I want to train these other two.” Hakai looked over to Akemi and Yuna. “They’ve gotten a good deal stronger since the last time you went out but they’re still lacking in several places which I can handle. Since you care for them, I won’t go too hard on them either.”

From their faces, both of them cared for him in their own way, so there was a chance they would help carry more of his children down the line… while they couldn’t be wives, they would fit more or less as concubines, and strong ones at that.

Disguise Master sighed as she served food to Riffi on the floor beside him and was watching the Familiar eat with a quietly proud smile on her face.

“What do you all think?” He asked, taking a bite of food himself.

Since Hakai had a whole organization of assassins she was naturally the best person to train them, though her training could be a bit much but he wouldn’t be there to see it especially since he was heading back to the Academy and had a full week of mid-terms ahead which was both theoretical and practical.

“Well Papa, if it helps me get stronger then I’ll train with Mama Hakai. She’s plenty strong, even stronger than you.” Mable said.

The other two… Akemi and Yuna turned to look at Hakai when Mable said it.

The woman didn’t have anything visibly special about her other than the star-shaped silver tattoo on her face, sitting there like a single point rather than the straight line crests normally came in.

A single star meant nothing in the grading system as far as either of them knew… and she didn’t even give off any mana either. They looked at the crest, looked at each other, and quietly agreed not to put too much stock in it.

“Mable sweetheart, you flatter Mama too much.” Hakai fanned her face and blushed. “So does that mean a yes?”

“Of cour- Mph.” Koya stuffed food into her mouth before she could finish and dabbed the sides of her lips with the napkin to get rid of the sauce.

“Don’t talk while you eat unless you’ll choke.” He said.

She swallowed.

“Dragons don’t choke.”

“Are you arguing with Papa? How rude… Maybe I should get another daughter that’ll be obedient.” Koya said.

The prideful dragon’s eyes teared up immediately.

“Papa wants to… replace… me?”

He received glares from Hakai, both girls, and Disguise Master from directly behind him all at once.

How many hearts had this girl already won in this household in a single afternoon?

“N-No, Papa isn’t replac-”

She stabbed food directly into his mouth and laughed.

The tears were completely fake… She had been in the world for less than a week, not even properly a week and had already learned how to manufacture them on demand and use them as a tool.

’Deceiving little girl… she’s more like Hakai than me.’ He thought, then swallowed and laughed. All of them at the table laughed too, even Disguise Master from her position behind him.

“So as I was saying, Mama Hakai, I’ll train with you… but is Mama Victoria there as well? I need someone to massage my back when we’re resting.” She said and Koya’s eye twitched.

She had essentially turned his wife into her personal attendant.

“I’m joining in naturally and I’m just as powerful as Hakai now.” Victoria puffed out her chest. “Don’t worry, I’ll massage your back properly too and get rid of all those back pains from running around.”

“Very good.” Hakai nodded and turned to the two girls. “What about you two, I’m not forcing you… but aren’t you trying to impress Koya? While I might not be that much of a fighter…”

Both Koya and Victoria gave her a side-eye which nearly made her cough up her coffee.

“Like I was saying, I’ll teach you to maximize everything to the best of my abilities. So will you take up my offer? You’ll train with your Familiars too. Besides, aren’t you both trying to impress Koya-kun? Who knows… if he’s happy enough with your growth, he might just let you—”

“I accept.” Akemi said with a small bow of her head with no hesitation. “Please teach me to become stronger so I can protect him.”

“I see… Protection, huh?” Hakai said.

She looked at Akemi for a moment longer than necessary and then nodded. The orange haired woman would really fit the role that she had in mind for her…

“Fine. What about you?”

“The same with me, ma’am.” Yuna nodded and Hakai clapped once.

“Very good. Since Koya is awake now, I’ll leave him with you.” She looked at Disguise Master and she nodded. “After lunch, we’ll head out for training. Victoria, they’ll be joining our daily regimen.”

“I see.” Victoria said and looked at the three girls. “Well finish up and let’s prepare, I’ll show you how it’s done.”

She finished her food quickly and came around to the father-daughter side of the table.

“Come on Mable, we bought a tracksuit for you yesterday, let me put it on for you.” She said and Mable opened her arms and let Victoria lift her up.

Victoria then leaned down and kissed Koya on the cheek with her hand resting briefly on his shoulder.

“Take care. I’ll bring her back to you safe and sound…” She said and ran upstairs with Mable giggling behind her, telling her to giddy up and slapping her shoulder like a jockey.

Hakai watched them go with an expression that was doing its best to be neutral.

’Right now, once they leave, I need to…’ He closed his eyes.

…

Koya opened his eyes in the training room dressed in a personal tracksuit and let out a deep breath while rolling his shoulders and cracking his stiff bones.

“Train.”

It wasn’t exactly training so much as practicing his current abilities… Disguise Master was standing at the control panel of the Training Room next to Riffi who had followed him down without being asked and was now sitting on top of the panel looking at all the buttons with curious eyes.

“So what exactly happened on Familiar Isle after I got knocked out?” He asked.

Disguise Master let out a breath and straightened up from the panel.

“Well Master… Your injuries were so severe that you had to be placed in a tube filled with Healing Fluid. All members of the Furious Four died as well as several students. That Class 5 girl, Ichinose Yui, was deemed an accomplice and had to give 90% of the income she received from the stream to the Dean of Familiars and the family of the boy that orchestrated it. The Sendou student that tried to frame you and died… his family was destroyed by one of the Dean’s Familiars.” She reported, counting each point off without visible emotion. “Also the whole thing wouldn’t have been possible if one of the Furious Four members, Aizawa, hadn’t helped him. She died in the initial explosion from Ysterion. That is all.”

’Ah…’ Koya thought. A lot had happened but the situation was settled and the Academies were still open.

“However Familiar Isle didn’t go scot-free. A lot of complaints and riots are being made against the place as well as the Dean for the lack of security, though I doubt it’ll amount to much.” She added at the end.

The door of the training room opened and Mio stepped in wearing casual clothes.

“Ah, Mio. Glad you’re here.”

“Yes, I came as fast as I could.” Mio said while looking at Koya standing in the center of the room, her lips quivering slightly. “Are you doing well, Koya-kun?”

“As well as I’ll ever be. Like I told you over the phone… I’ll need a training partner.” Koya said. “I have a few things I want to test out. I would have asked Disguise Master but…”

The face of Disguise Master reddened from behind the control panel.

“Hey! It’s not my fault that I don’t fight…”

“I think it’s cute you’re weak.”

She turned her face away fully and blushed.

It was technically a compliment in that he was calling her cute… the weak part however was accurate and they both knew it, so the blush had two different causes simultaneously.

“Anyway, will you help me out?” He asked Mio, who took a sword from the weapon rack nearby and stood opposite him.

“Of course…”

“I want to try Frame Skip so I’ll need Pale.” Koya said. He was sure the goddess would be able to keep up.

Mio nodded and closed her eyes.

A second passed and when she opened them they were blue… not her usual dark eyes.

Her aura shifted outward and her stance straightened with a different kind of posture while her long black hair brightened to pale white, and even her chest filled out noticeably against the fabric of her shirt.

“Haha! I’m finally back.” Pale said while blowing him a kiss without any preamble. “And I see you’re all ready and active. Let’s get to it.”

Koya took a step forward.

The aches in his body were completely gone now due to the Blessing and then he began running. As he closed the distance between himself and Pale, he activated it.

’Frame Skip!’

The world shattered immediately.

Unlike the time when he had been forcing himself to exist in the realm mid-fight with his brain burning from Speed Blitz output… this was different and much more comfortable, like a door being opened from the correct side rather than forced.

The frames appeared all around the space in every direction and the training room existing as a hundred layered still images of itself.

On the opposite side stood Pale with a smile on her face, her white hair catching the fractured light of the frame layer.

“So you found out that I can use Frame Skip as well, huh? Aren’t you just full of surprises?” She asked.

Koya already had his suspicions.

Back when she had blitzed past Numb during that exchange, she had been moving in a way where her body left one location and appeared in another which was the same as Frame Skip and the Takeru fight had given him the knowledge to confirm his suspicions though he wondered how she could do it.

“I’m guessing Mio can use it too?” He asked.

“Naturally. Since she’s exposed to a higher realm than this one on a daily basis, she can move through the Frame World and with me in her soul she can use the frames.” Pale explained. “Though she’s not the most natural at it and can only manage three frames. But yes.”

That confirmed his other suspicion when he had been kidnapped, when she had appeared behind that Four-liner within four blinks.

“It makes the ability feel less exclusive honestly.” Koya said. “Before I know it, everybody will be using it.”

“Well… the Kurohane clan is one of the only clans with a natural affinity to exist in the Frame World, though even their time here is limited.” Pale said. “In the Order Archives it’s written that their original Clan Head stayed within this realm for several years on end… so I doubt many people will be able to reach us here.”

She tilted her head. “Anyway, did you only want to talk?”

“No. I wanted to train.” He took his stance. “Spar with me.”

Pale looked at him and a small smile came up on her lips.

“Fine, we’ll do the spar in the Frame World and I’ll teach you how to use these frames properly.” She said. “However if you win by making me surrender before you, could you do something for me?”

Koya raised an eyebrow.

“Once we’re done, I want you to kiss Mio…” She said simply.

Behind her, Mio’s astral form immediately appeared and started shaking her head and waving her hands, mouthing something that was very clearly a protest but he couldn’t see her and Pale grinned but didn’t turn around. “Deep with tongue. You’re experienced with that right?”

“Sure, if she wants it.” Koya said.

Just giving the girl a kiss to learn how to use the frames properly was a fair trade by any standard… in fact it was a bit cheap.

“Well then.” Pale took her stance with her feet planted on the ground and her sword angled properly while her eyes flicked all over the room like she was memorizing everything.

After that, she ran forward, crossing through one of the frames and appearing directly in front of him without passing through the space between.

“Impress me!”

She brought her sword down, aiming for his head to cut him clean in half however her blade was parried in an instant and Koya made her shoot backward.

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