Chapter 74: Sword Visionary

Solomon stomped through the hallways of the academy, no longer caring if people thought he was crazy for talking to himself out loud.

Raizel was just that damned annoying.

“You dirty doggy.”

“Shut up.”

“I’ve never really seen you look at a woman like that… Kind of gross, if I’m being completely honest, but I am glad to see you happy at the very least.”

Solomon’s brow furrowed.

“…Do you think that maybe it’s too soon for me to-”

“No.” Raizel denied. “You deserve to be happy, brother. And pursuing that is not a betrayal of the departed. But I believe you already know that.”

Solomon hated it when his brother actually talked sense. It made it harder for him to dismiss him as a stumbling, sword-obsessed fool.

“I just… don’t know if I understand why you would choose a woman old enough to be our mother.”

A vein bulged in Solomon’s head.

“…She’s not that old, you punk.”

“She’s not that young either.”

Solomon swung, and Raizel ducked underneath the swing, laughing like mad as he floated through the air.

Oh, how Solomon longed for the days when his brother still had a corporeal body that could feel pain.

“…How long’s it been since you and I crossed swords?”

Raizel stared at his brother out of the corner of his eye.

“…It has been some time, I admit. Why? Do you long for enlightenment into what true swordsmanship is once again?”

Solomon’s lips curl into a cocky, yet charming smile.

“I just thought it had been a while since you were knocked around a good bit. Might be why you’re so damn chatty lately.”

Raizel’s laugh was deep and genuine. “You’ve been Disaster for all of five minutes, and already you think you’re the best swordsman since Cain Olethros. I know the Yaksha makes you a little more arrogant, but isn’t this a bit much?”

“Is it really arrogance if I am truly this exceptional?”

“I literally don’t think I’ve ever heard a more arrogant thing in my life.”

The men laughed for a few moments before inevitably falling silent.

“…”

“…”

“…Loser cleans up after Bansha for the next two weeks.”

“Three.”

“You’re digging a mighty big hole for yourself, brother. I accept.”

They immediately turned on their heels and headed back to the gymnasium.

–

Dakota was in the gymnasium herself when the brothers entered. As was Nila.

The raven-haired young girl was hanging upside down from one of the gymnastics bars.

Meanwhile, Nila was in the ground struggling to pull off a single split.

The girls naturally noticed when Solomon and Raizel entered, because their movements were more excited than normal.

Dakota didn’t know if she had ever seen Solomon actually cheerful before.

She immediately dropped down from the bar and hit the ground before making her way over to the boys.

“Wait! Help me up first!” Nila held out her hand.

Dakota begrudgingly helped up her companion.

“Oh, good, the two of you are here.” Solomon smiled once they reached him.

Before Dakota could speak, Solomon was handing her a three-headed hound no bigger than a loaf of bread.

“Hold my baby for me, would you? I want her to see me beat up her uncle.”

“…Baby?”

Dakota locked eyes with the small Cerberus.

Bansha growled in response.

“Hey, stop that. Be nice.” Solomon said firmly.

The pup begrudgingly settled down.

Solomon placed Bansha on top of Dakota’s head before he and Raizel walked away.

A large circle was painted on the floor to represent a ring.

After picking up a spare sword, Raizel returned to the center of the ring.

He gave his weapon a few cautionary swings to get used to the balance and the reach of his metal body.

“I must say, I’m feeling pretty dangerous in this form, brother… last chance to back out and accept your cleaning duties gracefully.”

A gruff snort escapes Solomon’s nostrils as he stretches his muscles.

He starts to draw the sword at his back before Raizel stops him.

“Don’t bother with that toy. At least take this seriously and use the real one.”

Solomon’s brow twitched. “You know damn well why I can’t.”

“Oh…” Raizel’s voice suddenly sounded sad. “I get it. You think I can’t handle you at your best. Because I’m..”

“Don’t you say it!”

“Dead as shit.”

“Damn it, Raizel, stop the guilt tripping!”

“Won’t you fulfill the last wishes of this poor, pitiful spirit and-”

“You insufferable little bag of-”

“Metal? I know…” Raizel sighed. “It’s a cold, hollow existence, but it’s the best I can-”

“FINE, FINE, FUCK!”

Solomon hurled his sword aside out of frustration.

However, rather than summoning his own greatsword, he turned to borrow one from another.

“Nila. Let me use your sword for a moment.”

Nila gasped as she clutched her enormous sword to her chest.

“But… Thunder-Splitter is akin to my arm..! This weapon is an extension of myself, and-”

“You want to see me beat up Raizel with it or not?”

“…” Nila kissed her sword once before hurling it at Solomon. “It had better come back to me without a scratch.”

Seeing Nila throw a sword that weighed more than a grown man like it was a frisbee was intimidating enough. Solomon would have returned her sword to her in perfect condition even if she hadn’t asked.

After catching the weapon, he realized that Thunder-Splitter was lighter than Solomon’s own greatsword. But it would do for a simple exercise.

“Last chance to take your punishment like a man.” Raizel goaded.

“Funny. I was just going to say the same to you.”

Solomon can’t explain it, but his eyes begin to play tricks on him.

He sees his brother, not as an immortal giant, but as a child again.

That roguish smile. The unabashed confidence.

The unexplained wave of nostalgia hit Solomon full force in the chest.

He would have stopped to bask in it for longer if Raizel’s next words hadn’t shocked him out of it.

“Now that I don’t have to pretend to be a regular little kid anymore, I can really cut loose… try to absorb what you can from the blueprint, yeah?”

Solomon starts to laugh in his brother’s face when Raizel makes his first move.

Raizel is only slightly slower than when he was alive.

For Solomon, that felt like a considerable difference.

He started to meet his brother’s sword with an overhead block when Raizel suddenly performed a strange maneuver.

His sword wove itself at impossible angles to slip past Solomon’s defense.

Solomon had to roll out of the way to avoid the sudden addition of a new hole in his face.

The expression he made in the aftermath was one of pure incredulity.

At no point in the boys’ past had Solomon ever seen Raizel make a move like that one. He was as stunned by it as he was curious.

“If you stay down like that, you’re basically admitting defeat… You know, I think now is about the time to start experimenting with the little mutt’s diet. Oatmeal runs right through me, but… I dunno, maybe she’ll like it” Raizel tapped his chin thoughtfully.

Grinning, Solomon got back to his feet using the tip of his sword.

“… I hope that flashy little move isn’t all you were keeping up your sleeve. I won’t be impressed if all you were hiding is an awkward way to bend your arm.”

Raizel could not change his expression, but Solomon knew that his brother’s soul was smiling.

The boys crossed swords for hours. But Solomon barely even felt the time go by.

During the course of their fight, Solomon remembered why he had admired his brother so much in the first place.

Raizel was a sword visionary. His ingenuity, knowledge, and talent for swordsmanship were the greatest that Solomon had ever seen.

As a child, Solomon had spent his life chasing after the bits of talent that Raizel showed.

Only now was he learning that he had barely seen the surface of his brother’s potential.

How long would it take him to reach his brother’s level, and most importantly, how much had he gone through to get to this level of expertise?

Hours went by before Raizel and Solomon realized that it was already dark outside.

They slowly looked around to find several eyes watching them within the gymnasium. They weren’t quite being crowded around, but they were being stared at from behind a great number of racks and equipment.

The sudden attention made them feel the slightest bit self conscious.

Ironically, Nila had gone to sleep at some point. Her head rested on Dakota’s leg as she slept on the floor like a grizzly bear in the winter.

“…Do you think we bored her?” Solomon chuckled wryly.

“No, far from it, actually.” Raizel lowered his sword. “She adheres to a rather strict bedtime. Gets cranky when she misses it, so to avoid making messes, she kind of just curls up and sleeps wherever.”

“Aww. You know so much about her. How adorable.” Solomon mocked.

“Oh, it’s easy when there’s only twenty years of information to learn… You, on the other hand have-”

Solomon swung at his brother again, and this time he succeeded in knocking his head off and sending it flying towards the indoor pool.

“I win.” Solomon rested Nila’s sword on his shoulder and walked away confidently.

“That so does not count, and you know it! You had your hands full just trying to stay upright!”

Solomon yawned. “Ah. The whining of losers is so harsh on one’s ears…”

“I couldn’t agree more.” A new voice said.

Solomon and Raizel looked over their shoulders to find a young man approaching them. He was strong. They could tell that much at first glance.

His skin was almost obsidian in color. His head was bald and shiny, his features sharp.

His body was lithe like a weapon.

“Do the two of you have a moment to talk, perchance? I promise to make it worth your while.”

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