Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093092581245166/episodes/16818093094734402120
Carla was still in the woods behind the dojo. It was basically a place that not many people come to, and in the game, Miter said that she had been training here since she was a child.
In that forest, Carla was using an unbreakable doll for practice, practicing the technique that Odie had just shown her.
“Carla!”
Sol called out to Carla. At the sound of Sol’s voice, Carla stopped practicing.
“Huh? What’s wrong, Sol? Even Odie?”
“Can I watch you train like I always do?”
“Of course! I mean, maybe Odie can watch, too? That’s kind of embarrassing. ……”
Carla scratched her head in embarrassment.
“It’s okay! We’ll be doing what we want to a certain extent, and Carla can go about her business as usual! Right, Odie!”
“Eh? Oh, well, …….”
Odie looked away from Carla as quickly as he could, as if he was still uncomfortable. But, perhaps thinking that this was a bad idea, Odie looked at Carla again.
“I’m going to train properly too, so if you don’t mind……”
“Okay! Ehehe, It’s been a while since we trained together!”
“Yeah, right.”
Carla laughed, and Odie laughed as well. Carla smiled at Odie’s smile, and he smiled back at her.
“Then we’ll both do our best!”
With that, Carla began practicing again.
Carla kicked the four-legged doll as hard as she could. But the doll did not come up to the ground with the same sharpness as Odie’s, perhaps because it was hit in a slightly different place.
Sol opened his mouth to Odie, who was looking blankly.
“If Odie wants to train too, do you want me to get you what you need?”
“No, I’ll take care of that myself …….”
“I want Odie to watch Carla train, so don’t worry about it. So don’t worry about it.”
“…… okay. Thanks. Then I’ll need a training doll, a canteen of water, and a towel to wipe the sweat off my face. ……”
Sol wrote down what he was asked to bring, and thought idly, “Oh, yeah, I should bring that”
◆
Then Odie and Carla each began training. Sol, too, began training to control his magic and increase his speed of activation without getting in their way.
However, it is now midnight. It is Carla’s nature to want to try it out herself right now, no matter what time it is, but it is a tough time for ordinary people.
Sol, moderating his own training, sat down in a nearby tree. Then Odie noticed and stopped his training.
Then he looked at Carla.
“Carla, it’s time ……”
“Odie.”
Odie tried to stop Carla, but Sol stopped him. Then he called out to Odie.
“Carla will never stop unless you use force,”
“No, but it’s a physical strain …… “
“You see that potion right there? I’m always recovering infinitely from that.
And I’m often scolded for it, but Lepios heals me too.”
When Sol said this, Odie clenched his fists. Then he let out a small breath and sat down next to Sol.
“Really, Sol, does it give you courage to watch Carla train?”
Odie said, clutching his knees, but never taking his eyes off Carla.
“Yeah. What about you, Odie?”
“I feel miserable. much more miserable than I did before I found out how Carla was doing.”
Carla had been practicing the same moves ever since she started training. She was better than before, but still nothing like what Odie had shown her.
Carla, however, did not stop training, even though she was sweating all over. And her face was smiling happily.
“…… should we go to bed? I brought you a blanket.”
“No, I’ll watch Carla a little longer. I just want the blanket.”
With that, Odie wrapped himself up in the blanket. But Odie did not take his eyes off Carla.
Sol understood Odie’s feelings. As a young man, he had always felt miserable watching his brother’s back and his actions.
But Yuto knew. He knew that his brother had worked harder than him, both academically and athletically, while he had been running away from reality. He could not hate his brother until the end of his life.
“Odie! Sol!”
Carla’s words woke Sol up. He was probably asleep. When he came to, it was light outside.
He was rubbing his eyes as if he had just woken up from sleep.
“I can do it now! Look!”
Carla kicked at the base of the doll’s legs in the morning sunlight. The doll rotated and traced a perfect path, the part that hit the heart facing Carla. Carla stuck out her hand to the doll without missing a beat.
“How’s that? It feels good, doesn’t it?”
Seeing Carla laughing like that, Odie held his head up and brushed his hair.
“She’s crazy. It’s really crazy. Why, you’re lying. …… Maybe …… since I went to bed.”
Drips of water soaked the ground.
“I can’t do this much. I can’t try this hard. There’s no way I can win like this…”
“Odie ……”
“Since when ……? Since when did Carla start working this hard ……? How many dozens, no, hundreds of hours have passed since we decided to work hard together……? This is too miserable to be losing at the point of effort. ……”
Seeing Odie like that, Carla seemed to have noticed something strange, and approached Odie with a concerned look on her face. Odie also stood up, wiping away the tears that were falling down his face.
“Carla is amazing. She’s made it her own. I’ve been working on this for days, and I’ve finally mastered it.”
“Eh ……? Oh, but this one is …….”
“Sorry, Carla. I and Carla can’t be rivals after all.”
Odie said quietly. But he did not look away from Carla.
“I get it. I’ll never be able to compete with Carla. I can’t work this hard. I want you to know that and do me a favor.”
Odie smiled at Carla.
“I want you to stay strong. And this time, I want you to compete with me not as a rival, but as someone I admire. Then I’ll feel like I have to work even harder.”
Carla looked surprised for a moment at Odie’s words. Carla, however, smiled happily at Odie.
“Yeah! I’ll do my best to stay strong! So let’s have lots and lots of games again!”
“Yeah! Promise!”
At these words, both Carla and Odie simultaneously thrust out their fists and matched them.
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