Nido Tensei Shita Shounen wa S-rank Boukensha Toshite Heion ni Sugosu ~ Zense ga Kenja de Eiyūdatta Boku wa Raisede wa Jimi ni Ikiru ~

Episode 53: Training in the Land of the Sea and Sky

“I would like to express my gratitude for helping me in a dangerous situation.
My name is Maryleen Kazatia.”

A soaking wet woman approaches us, bowing and thanking us.
She is the captain who was leading the Vertino fleet, which was being chased by the Megalo Whale just moments ago.

We had rescued them from the overturned ship that was unfortunately hit by a mysterious big wave, and now we were discussing things while docked at the edge of the sea.

“Oh, don’t worry about the Vertino ship.
I took responsibility and recovered it.
It was a bit damaged, but it should be fine after repairs.
Well, compared to being completely wiped out, overturning and getting soaked is not a big deal!”

“My name is Burn Dobag! I am the captain of the state-of-the-art battleship Good Luther MK.1, and also the commander of the Great Inner Sea Knights of the Tion Kingdom!”

Burn introduces himself with the exact same content as before.
Maybe he really likes it.

“You are from the Tion Kingdom.
It is truly remarkable that you were able to repel that extraordinary monster.”

“Oh no, I just gave the orders, I didn’t do anything significant.
It was all thanks to the excellent efforts of my subordinates.”

“How modest…”

Amazing, the conversation is still going on even though they are not on the same page.

“Please, everyone, use this to dry yourselves.”

The first mate interrupts the conversation by handing out towels as it goes off track.

“I appreciate this.”

“By the way, Captain, shouldn’t we get to the main point soon?”

“Oh, right.”

“The main point…?”

Thanks to the first mate’s course correction, Burn remembers his original purpose.

“Yes, we came all the way to the estuary to investigate the monster we encountered earlier.”

“Do you know anything about that monster!?”

Upon learning that we came to investigate the Megalo Whale, Maryleen anxiously asks Burn for an explanation.

“Very well.
We also hoped to have a detailed discussion with the Vertino people regarding the investigation of the monster.”

“That would be much appreciated.
We have been troubled by that monster as well.”

“Oh, really!?”

Maryleen smiles and shakes Burn’s hand, causing him to blush visibly.
Despite wiping her wet hair, Maryleen’s long hair clings to her skin in a slightly seductive manner.
I see, Burn must have a thing for seductive people.
Well, it’s not really important information.
Anyway, with that, we set off for the Vertino Kingdom.

“So, we are waiting until Burn and the others finish their meeting.”

Burn and the Vertino people have gone to the castle of this country for a meeting.
Perhaps because Vertino is a coastal country, the capital is also located by the sea, not far from the estuary.
However, since we are commoners, we cannot go with Burn and the others.
So, we were supposed to stay on the ship with the other crew members, but thanks to Maryleen’s arrangement, we were able to borrow her villa.

“Since you saved our lives, this is the least we can do to repay you.”

She said that and lent us a gorgeous villa.
It even came with servants and a private beach…

“Wow! This is amazing!”

“Is that person some kind of high-class lady?”

“We can’t tell her that we were the cause of the shipwreck, right?”

While Gyro is excited, Liliera and Mina turn pale with shock and guilt.
Don’t worry, it’s the Megalo Whale’s fault.
So… we might have a chance!

“Anyway, it’s nice to be able to stay on land.
Traveling on a ship for a long time can be tiring.”

Oh, I can understand that.
When I went to save the continent across the sea in my past life, I felt relieved when I set foot on land.
I even thought about becoming one of the people on this continent rather than crossing this sea again to go back.

“Then, let’s go to the town of Vertino!”

“Stop.”

I grab Meguri by the collar as she gets excited to head to the capital of Vertino.

“Let go! The capital is running away!”

“It’s not running away.
Besides, there’s something I want everyone to remember.”

“Remember what?”

Everyone’s gaze is focused on me.

“Well, I want everyone to learn flight magic.”

Yes, since we have some free time now, I decided to teach everyone the flight magic that Liliera had been requesting.

“Really!? Can we fly in the sky like our big brother!?”

“It depends on your training.”

Upon hearing about learning flight magic, everyone’s faces become serious.

“It would be convenient if we could learn it.
We would be able to ignore the terrain no matter where we go.”

“Yes, especially for this mission, I think flight magic will be crucial.
If we can fly, even though we are not magic users, we can fight against enemies on water with swords and spears.
And most importantly, having an emergency evacuation method is significant.”

“That’s right, although we need to be careful not to use too much magic power for transportation.”

“I just want to learn it quickly and go to the capital!”

Meguri is always so carefree.

“Alright, from now on, we will start training in flight magic.
Please change into this and gather on the sandy beach.”

“Yes!”

“So, we will now begin training in flight magic.”

I declare the start of the training to everyone who has gathered.

“Wait a minute.
I have something I want to ask before that.”

“What is it, Liliera?”

“What is this training outfit? There’s hardly any fabric!”

“Huh? There’s enough fabric, isn’t there?”

Liliera and the others were wearing the swimsuits I prepared.
The men wore regular shorts, while the women wore bikini-type swimsuits.

It’s a good thing I learned how to make clothes for survival situations in my past life.
It’s fortunate that I prepared them in case we came to a coastal country for flight magic training.
Since we’re not in a survival environment this time, I was able to prepare the materials in advance.

“T-This is underwear! It’s not a training outfit at all!”

“Rex is a pervert…”

For some reason, the women seem embarrassed.
Maybe they don’t know about swimsuits because they are from an inland country?

“Oh, what a sight.”

“Um, it’s a bit too stimulating for me…”

Gyro smiles mischievously, causing Norbu to blush and look down.
Oh, he’s got a nosebleed.

“It’s not underwear, it’s a swimsuit.
It’s the outfit for activities and playing in the water.”

Yes, if we’re going to train in the sea, swimsuits are necessary.
By the way, I didn’t know everyone’s sizes, so the swimsuits are adjustable with strings.

“Why does water have to do with flight magic training?”

“Because flying in the air requires it.”

“I demand a more convincing explanation!”

Yes, explanations are important.
I need to properly explain what to do in case of failure before starting the training.

“Alright, everyone, flight magic is a magic that allows you to fly in the air.
However, it is also a very dangerous magic.”

“Is it dangerous just to fly?”

Norbu raises his hand and asks a question.

“That’s right.
Think about it, humans don’t have wings like birds.
In other words, humans are not naturally capable of flying.”

Everyone nods in agreement with my words.

“And this training aims to forcefully make humans who cannot fly fly.
Is that clear so far?”

“Yes!”

“Then let’s move on.
Let’s say you continue the training and actually manage to fly in the air.”

“Yes!”

“But what if you lose control the next moment and fall to the ground? What would happen to a human in that situation? Yes, Liliera.”

“Huh? Me? Um… depending on the height, I might die.
At best, it would be a serious injury.”

“Yes, exactly.
Even if you activate body strengthening magic, you might be able to withstand it to some extent, but there are still limits.
And there is no guarantee that you can activate body strengthening magic conveniently when you are in a panic.”

I point to the sea in front of us.

“That’s why we will train in this sea.”

Finally understanding the meaning of the swimsuits, Mina exclaims.

“I see, if it’s on the water, even if we fall, we won’t get hurt!”

But if it’s too high, you might still get injured.

“Yes, that’s why it’s a swimsuit that can get wet.”

“I see…”

Finally, there are voices of agreement regarding wearing swimsuits here.

“But can’t we wear a little more clothing? I feel embarrassed showing too much skin.”

“If there’s too much fabric, it will absorb water and make it easier to drown.”

“I’m fine with swimsuits!””It’s embarrassing… hurry up and change.”

Gyro-kun raises his voice in excitement, while Meguri-san blushes and still seems concerned about the capital city, her gaze wandering.

“Alright, let’s start the flight magic training.
There are various types of flight magic, but what’s important is to have an image that matches your own attribute and aptitude.”

“What do you mean by aptitude?”

Minako-san actively asks questions about magic techniques she doesn’t know.

“Well, for example, people who are good at wind magic manipulate flight magic while imagining themselves becoming the wind or wrapping their bodies in wind.
But if it’s a different attribute, the same image won’t work.
For example, even if someone who is good at earth magic imagines themselves covered in soil, they won’t be able to fly in the sky, right?”

“So, you need to have an image that makes you feel like you can fly in the sky?”

“Yes, and furthermore, Gyro-kun can use high-speed movement using fire attribute enhancement, which can be used for flight if you increase the output.”

“Seriously!? Can I fly in the sky too!?”

“If you adjust the output well.”

“Alright, I’ll give it a try!”

As soon as he says that, Gyro-kun activates his body strengthening magic and spews flames from behind him.

“Whoa!!”

Flames spew out from behind Gyro-kun, who is full of determination, and he floats gently in the air.

“They… they’re flying!?”

Everyone exclaims in surprise as Gyro-kun crashes down with a “pofyu” sound.

“Ouch.”

“Are you okay, Gyro-kun?”

As I approach the fallen Gyro-kun, he sprawls out on the ground with an exhausted expression.

“What the heck, this is so tiring.”

“Ah, you’re releasing magic power unnecessarily.
People who fly like Gyro-kun need to focus their power in specific areas.”

“Focus?”

“Yes, instead of releasing all the power at once, you need to focus it in a small area to increase momentum.
Like this.”

Saying that, I release flames of magic power from the soles of my feet and soar into the sky.

“At first, it might be difficult to control your posture, so it might be helpful to release magic power from your hands as well to maintain balance.”

Saying that, I release flames from the palms of my hands and fingertips to adjust my body balance.

“Wow! So that’s how you should fly! Alright, I’ll try it once my magic power recovers!”

“Do your best!”

They’re full of motivation.

“Um, according to the explanation earlier, as someone who is good at earth attribute defense, does that mean I don’t have the talent to fly in the sky?”

Norbu-san asks with a dejected expression.

“No need to worry.
As I mentioned earlier, what’s important is to have an image that matches your own aptitude.
For someone with earth attribute, it seems good to imagine an invisible ground in the sky.
Like this.”

“An invisible ground?”

“Yes, instead of wrapping magic power around your body to fly, you create a force field of magic power at your feet and stand on it.
Like this.”

“You stopped in mid-air!?”

“Well, that’s the idea.
The key to flight magic is to think about how you would fly if you were to fly in the sky and how to use your own aptitude.
There’s not just one type of flight magic.”

“So there are as many types of flight magic as there are magic users.”

“Exactly.
Flight magic is said to have as many types as there are magic users.
So try to think of your own way of flying.”

“I wonder if I can do it well?”

“Just give it a try!”

Minako-san lacks confidence, but Meguri-san starts jumping in the air while enveloping herself in magic power, determined to try flying.

“When you all fly, please do it towards the sea.
I’ll try to catch you if something happens, but there’s a risk that I won’t be able to make it in time.”

“Understood!”

Yeah, everyone’s giving serious responses because their lives are at stake.

“Whoa!”

Gyro-kun, who jumped into the air, fails to control his posture and crashes into the sea.
He jumped with great force, so he crashes into the water with the same momentum.

“Whoa!”

Minako-san’s output of the force field she created in the air is not enough, causing her to fall through.
It looked a bit like pantomime and was funny.

“Kyaa!”

Meguri-san fails to control the wind and falls into the sea while spinning around.

“Oh no!”

Norbu-san was floating in the air steadily, but when he tried to move forward, he couldn’t maintain the floating power and crashed into the sea.

“Ah, ah, ah!”

Liliera-san jumped into the air with considerable force and seemed to be flying well, but she failed to turn and fell into the sea.

“Well, this is how it is in the beginning.”

It’s okay because even if they fail, there’s no worry of getting hurt here.

“Kyukyukyu!”

Meanwhile, Mofumofu runs on the surface of the water and catches a fish while jumping.
Then, it starts eating the fish on the water’s surface, looking delicious.

Oh, it looks like it’s walking on water, but it’s actually using flight magic.
It’s quite a skillful way of flying, as if running on the surface of the sea.

“Damn it, why can that creature do it but not me?”

“By the way, what is that creature?”

When everyone looks at Mofumofu, who has mastered flight magic, it seems to realize it and smirks at them.

“Pukyu!”

“Wha-!?”

“You little rascal! You laughed at us with your nose!”

Well, come on, it’s Mofumofu, you know?

“Even though you’re just a beast, you pity me, a mage!?”

Hold on, Minako-san, calm down.

“God said, ‘Thou shalt not be arrogant.’ It might be better not to rely too much on your own power.”

Ah, Norbu-san too.

“…We’ll postpone going to the capital city for a little while.
I’ll get serious now.”

Yeah, Meguri-san, please get serious from the beginning.

“…”

Good, Liliera-san is calm.

“I’ll pretend it’s a coincidence and drag them into the sea.”

No! That’s not calm at all!

“I’ll do it! Oraaaa!”

“Oooorah!”

Well, if they’re motivated, I guess it’s fine?

“Ukyaa! My swimsuit got washed away!”

“Buhuhu!”

“I’ll go get it now.
And Norbu-san, please use recovery magic on yourself.”

“Whoa! I can’t maintain my posture well!”

“Gyro-kun, calm down.
Before panicking, lower the output.
That’s the golden rule for acceleration magic.
Look, like this.”

I advise Gyro-kun, who is confused about which way he is facing due to accelerating too much.
I also fly at high speed by releasing flames from under my feet, then lower the output to a level where I won’t fall.
I maintain my altitude by adjusting my posture with flames coming out of my palms, regardless of the angle or posture.

“See?”

“Alright, alright.
It’s difficult to maintain the output.”

“Minako-san, instead of trying to control the wind, how about imagining that the wind is carrying you? Like this, from below.”

Since Minako-san was having trouble with wind control, I suggest a more free-spirited image of the wind.
I demonstrate by imagining the wind carrying me from below.
The wind lifts me up and carries me wherever I want.

“See, the wind will lift and carry you, so you won’t fall.”

“Kuuu! Uwaa! Abubu!”

“Norbu-san, if that’s your type, try imagining that your body is being lifted and carried by yourself.
It’s like having big hands holding you.
Like this.”

Since Norbu-san was having trouble with movement, I suggest imagining that someone else is carrying them.
I also imagine that I’m being held by someone’s hands and move my body as if playing with a doll.

“The key is to imagine that there’s a doll of yourself in your own hands.”

“Yotto, nunununu!”

“Meguri-san, instead of trying to control the wind, how about imagining that the wind is carrying you? Like this, from below.”

Since Meguri-san was struggling with wind control, I suggest a different approach and imagine the wind carrying her.
I demonstrate by lifting myself with wind from below and then moving freely in the air.

“See, the wind will lift and carry you, so you won’t fall no matter what posture you’re in.”

“Kyaah!”

“Liliera, calm down.
Please remember what it’s like when we fly together.
When flying, it’s better to go slower.
Imagine yourself being enveloped by the wind.”

Liliera, who was floating in the air unsteadily, seemed to resonate with my flying image, so I held her hand and flew together.

“Let’s start by eliminating the part that makes you the most anxious when flying in the usual way.”

And as the sun began to set…

“Alright! I can fly!”

“Now we just need to work on pacing ourselves for longer flights.”

“I’m getting used to it.
It’s difficult to fly fast, but I can make delicate movements and stay in the same place for a long time.”

“Yeah, I can fly faster now.
With this, I can zoom all the way to the capital!”

“Ah, it feels great to be able to fly on my own.
Goodbye to a life of relying on others’ flying magic and feeling insecure!”

Everyone has become really good at flying.

“Yeah, if we can fly this much, we’ll be fine.”

With this, our ability to handle any trouble that comes our way will expand!

“But, there’s something that doesn’t sit right with me.”

“Oh, me too, me too.”

“I think I feel the same way.”

“Actually, me too.”

“Same here.
We went through so much hardship.”

And everyone seems to be looking at me for some reason.

“Um, what’s wrong, everyone?”

“Why is it that everyone can fly the same way as if it’s natural?!”

Huh? I feel like I’m being complained to for an unreasonable reason.