Seraphim is a Bystander

First Training with Father – Part 3
 
 

Aoi pointed excitedly at the scythe with a beaming smile, and Father rubbed his temple in disbelief. It wasn’t every day that your three-year-old son, when told to pick any weapon he liked, would point at a scythe, of all things.
“〈Have you two decided on your weapons?〉”
While Father was still at a loss, Ichijou-sensei’s voice called out. Before Father could respond, Aoi enthusiastically answered.

“We’ve decided!”
“〈Let’s see now… Kouta-kun has selected the standard greatsword used for anti-hostile simulations. And Aoi-kun… quite the bold taste you have!〉”
Before Father could object, Ichijou-sensei adjusted the weapon data and then went silent, ignoring any further input.

“…Aoi, that weapon is very hard to handle. Are you sure about this?”
“Yeah! I want this one!”
Seeing Aoi’s innocent smile, Father could only sigh and nod in reluctant acceptance. Just then, Ichijou-sensei spoke again.

“〈All right, adjustments are complete. Please infuse your bracelets with your special ability now!〉”
““Okay!””
With short replies, Aoi and Father poured their special abilities into the bracelets. Not knowing how much power was appropriate, both poured in as much as they could.

“〈Stop! Any more and it won’t stay within the set parameters!〉”
At Ichijou-sensei’s warning, they halted. Then, a clear stream of water burst from Father’s bracelet, and blue flames from Aoi’s. Their respective powers condensed at their hands and took shape—Father’s power becoming a pale-blue greatsword, Aoi’s becoming a scythe tinged in deep blue.
“〈Yes, yes. Everything materialized just fine and according to settings.〉”

As Ichijou-sensei said, the greatsword matched Father’s build, and Aoi’s scythe had been sized appropriately for a child. Father gave his weapon a few experimental swings with one hand, ending with a perfectly controlled overhead strike that stopped precisely at eye level.
“No issues. If anything, this feels better than my usual gear.”
“Of course it does! I customized it specifically for you both!”

While they exchanged words, Aoi stared in fascination at his own scythe. It was plain, unadorned—just a long staff equal to his height with a curved blade and a metal end cap.
“Hyaa!”
Trying to imitate his father, Aoi gripped the scythe with both hands and took a swing. The training version wasn’t too heavy, but he still lost his balance, the blade pointing skyward while the staff hit the ground. The momentum caused him to fall on his butt.
“Oww…”

“Aoi, are you alright?”
Father approached and extended a hand to the boy, who was dangling his arms with a numb expression. He had been silently observing, ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) always within arm’s reach if needed.
“It hurt a little, but I’m okay.”

“Alright, then let’s train until you can use it properly.”
Helping Aoi to his feet, Father smiled. Aoi nodded enthusiastically, undeterred by his fall.
After that, Father began teaching the basics of form practice. Since he himself wasn’t familiar with scythes, he summoned one for himself to feel its weight and motion while instructing Aoi.

“For now, focus only on raising it high and bringing it down with control.”
“Yes, sir!”
Since it was Aoi’s first time handling a weapon, they started from square one—building foundational movement through repeated practice. Aoi, displaying natural athletic talent, quickly absorbed the lessons by copying his father’s motions.

“Good. Now try to put more of your hips into the swing.”
“Haa… haa… okay!”
Aoi steadily improved under his father’s guidance, but his limited physical strength meant he was reaching his limit. Father seemed to realize this as well.

“…Alright, I think that’s enough for now. Let’s end today with a test strike.”
Stopping Aoi’s practice, Father turned toward Ichijou-sensei and said something. A moment later, her voice came back:
“〈Roger that! Just a moment~〉”

Soon after, a white cylindrical dummy appeared in the room for the test.
“I’ll go first—watch closely and then copy me.”
Father approached the dummy, raised his scythe, and brought it down in a clean diagonal slash. The scythe bisected the dummy cleanly and stopped just above the ground.

“Whoa…”
Aoi was in awe. After finishing the move, Father dismissed his scythe and turned back, guiding Aoi to stand in front of the dummy.
“For you, the proper distance is… here. Go ahead.”

“Okay…”
Aoi stood before the dummy, visualizing his father’s form, then mimicked the motion.
“Hyaa!”

With a spirited yell, he swung the scythe down in an arc. It struck the dummy but only managed to cut a third of the way before stopping.
“Aw… I couldn’t do it…”
Aoi slumped in disappointment. Father gently patted his head.

“You didn’t finish the cut, but your form was solid. With practice, you’ll get much better.”
“…Yeah!”
Seeing Aoi smile again, Father smiled back. As the dummy disappeared, Father began helping Aoi wipe his sweat and get ready to leave. Then, a translucent display popped up in front of him—an incoming call with a name on it. Father turned around and accepted the call.

“Yes, this is Futaba Kouta. …Ah, that matter? …You need it right away? …I see. I’ll head over now.”
After ending the call, he crouched to Aoi’s level and spoke.
“Aoi, I’m sorry. Something came up. Can you rest here for about ten minutes?”

“…Okay. Do your best, Dad.”
Though looking a bit sad, Father patted Aoi’s head and jogged out toward the elevator. Aoi watched his father go, then sat against the wall to rest. Exhaustion overtook him, and his eyes slowly shut—when Ichijou-sensei’s voice rang out.
“〈Sera-kun, could I borrow you for a moment~?〉”

Sigh. I’d rather not… but I don’t want to wake Aoi either.
“What is it? Please keep it brief.”
As I switched places mentally, Aoi’s fatigue faded. As I expected, just having me in control boosts all of his parameters. Still, I’ll enhance his healing while I’m here…

“〈If you don’t mind, Sera-kun, would you demonstrate fighting a virtual enemy for me?〉”
“…Why?”
“〈Oh, just simple curiosity~ I won’t call it a proper thank-you for the presents, but… just a little, okay?〉”

Hmm… Well, both bracelets turned out to be quite useful. Can’t really refuse now.
“…Just once. That’s it.”
“〈Really?! Great, I’ll start the simulation right away!〉”

As soon as Ichijou-sensei said that, the room around me transformed. The blank training space was replaced with a jagged mountain landscape with exposed rocky cliffs. Looking up, I spotted a massive flying creature—like a pteranodon—circling overhead, eyes locked on me.
“Virtual enemy: Large winged dragon-type. Threat Level: A+. Training start.”
As the announcement finished, the creature began a rapid dive straight toward me. I poured power into the bracelet, and particles of light burst out—Aoi’s former scythe reappeared, now glowing faintly with a crystalline, otherworldly gleam.

“〈Form shift〉”
It was still dulled for training, so I made a few adjustments—sharpened the blade and rebalanced the weight. Holding it in one hand, it fit my grip perfectly.
“Screeeeech!!”

With a roar, the wyvern closed in, moments away from impact.
“Never tried this before… but let’s see.”
“Scree—!”

As it dove, I swung upward.
The creature, charging headlong at me, passed by in a blur—and then plummeted past me. Still in my swing posture, I watched it fall. A few moments later, the scene reverted to the empty training room.
I dismissed the glowing scythe, which had shimmered like crystal in the light, and Ichijou-sensei’s bewildered voice came through.

“〈U-uh… what just happened? Can you explain in terms a non-combatant would understand?〉”
“…It came straight at me, so I sliced through its head. That’s all.”
Over the connection, I could hear her audibly gasp and choke.

Well, technically I adjusted the butt end of the weapon to push the body upward after the strike so it wouldn’t crash into me. She’ll see that in the playback later.
“Anyway, that’s enough, right?”
“〈Y-yeah… Thanks, Sera-kun…〉”

I didn’t point out that her tone had slipped.
I returned to Aoi’s original resting posture and resumed our mental switch. As I did, the weariness of Aoi’s small body immediately hit me. And so, I watched over the peacefully sleeping Aoi until Father returned.