Editing Saijaku Muhai no Bahamut:Volume 2 Episode 1 (section)

===Part 6===

“Kyaaaaaaaaah!?”

It happened when Lux and Krulcifer returned to the practice field and was about to begin training.

One female student wearing a Machine Dragon was shot down in the air and struck the ground.

The present training was a mock battle of combat form, a composition of one-on-one between fellow students, but––

“Hahaha! As expected, it’s only to this level, huh! You aren’t worthy of the glorious reputation of officer cadets.”

A triumphant voice could be heard from the man with a muscular body standing still in mid-air.

Three men came over as temporary instructors.

Under the pretense of “guidance”, they forcibly constrained mock battles with students.

Men should basically be inferior to women in Machine Dragon aptitude value, but they utterly defeated the girls by their many years of experience and exercise performance.

“I would like you to restrain such dangerous behavior!”

Raigree glared at the man in mid-air and tried to remonstrate him in a strong tone.

“Raigree-dono, too, will you stop pampering them? We are only teaching them the severity of battle in this way. If the thought of ‘they are women, so go easy on them’ is rooted, then there will be no future for this country’s military force.”

But the men’s faces, far from reflecting, revealed smiles of mockery.

“Kuh…!”

“U-Um… Sensei. I’m not injured in particular, so––”

The somewhat mature girl, who was just knocked down, got up.

Although she said so, her expression was still depressed.

“Hey, please stop it! What are you temporary instructors doing since some time now?! Launching a surprise attack which we haven’t even learnt in class and continuing to pursue the students who fell down, such a thing–– can’t be called training!”

As a girl with a serious expression who equipped a <Wyrm> said so and stood in the way,

“Hou, as expected of young ladies who grew up spoiled by the New Kingdom system. You seem to want to say that we should care about you because it’s training for battle. Hahahahaha! You’re all to stay for supplementary lessons after school today, I will be affectionate with you plenty enough!”

The man with a stern face laughed loudly and the other men also laughed as they followed.

“Then, I will be your opponent!”

“All right. Come.”

The female student, who spoke sharply, came slashing with her blade head on. However,

“Haa! It’s only that?”

“Eh…!?”

The moment when the <Wyrm>’s blade came slashing, the instructor took distance by skillfully pulling back and aimed at the wrist armor which swung completely.

The blade held by the girl was quickly sent flying and it pierced the ground of the practice field.

“You’ve not enough training. Young lady.”

“P-Please wait a minute! My weapon is––”

When the man was about to swing downward his weapon to the girl who drew back frightened––

<nowiki>*</nowiki>bashing* A Drag-Ride’s arm parried and stopped his hand.

“Ngh…? What is it now?”

Breaking in was Lux wearing his <Wyvern>.

“I’m sorry to interfere with your guidance.”

With a calm expression and tone, he lightly bowed his head first.

“What are you planning, you bastard? In the first place, why is a man here––”

When the man emitted a question, he glared at Lux.

His gaze focused on Lux’s characteristic silver hair and black collar,

“Haa…! I was wondering who it was, but it’s just the Chore Prince of the Old Empire, huh. Why are you in such a place? Were you entrusted with a weeding job?”

He said so as he treated Lux with contempt.

In no way perturbed by this clear insult, Lux returned a calm smile.

“No, due to some circumstances, I now commute here as a student. Setting that aside, could I replace you for instruction? I promise to teach her from now on, so”

“Eh…?”

As Lux told so to the man, the girl with a too serious expression showed a surprised face.

Of course, he did not make such a promise. It was just an excuse he thought of just now.

“What did you say…?”

The man in front of Lux and the other two men turned openly displeased expressions towards Lux.

No, they were glaring at Lux with clear hostility.

Even so, Lux not even daunted, answered with a cool face.

“And –– also all the girls present here. I had a prior engagement to teach them how to operate a Drag-Ride after school, so supplementary lessons won’t be necessary.”

“…!?Don’t get carried away, brat. We’re the instructors from the army! You lowly criminal and fallen Prince!”

To Lux’s indifferent tone, the temporary instructor revealed anger.

The atmosphere of a critical situation drifted and Lux was surrounded by the three men.

“Let’s see––. Then, shall we settle it with a fight between you and us?”

The male temporary instructor with a stern face which seemed to be the leader said so.

“You’ve to show the proof whether you really have enough skill to replace us. If you’ve any complaint, take back your earlier words––”

“I don’t mind.”

Lux readily nodded.

The surrounding female students who were watching the course of events became astir.

The male leader knitted his brows as he got angry at Lux’s reaction,

“But, we have been fighting continuously, so we’re more exhausted than you. Therefore, we will have you attached gyves of weight on your Machine Dragon, but is that still all right with you?”

When Lux nodded at his question, the men smirkingly laughed.

The three men were also people ranked to some extent in the Capital’s tournament.

They knew about the fact that Lux was a Drag-Knight good at defense called the “Weakest Undefeated”.

But, on top of the peculiarity of battles where he does not attack by himself, if you also put the difference between the number of people and a handicap, they estimated that they would easily defeat him.

Beat up those who oppose as an example and make the female students who watched it surrender.

The aim of the man who was dyed with the Old Empire’s ideology was transparent and visible to Lux.

“All right. We will slightly tamper with your Drag-Ride.”

“Certainly.”

The temporary instructors began to attach parts for weights that were in a corner of the practice field to Lux’s <Wyvern>.

Seeing that, Lisha who was on break also ran up.

“Lux, is it all right? If you want, I can fight instead––”

“You’d better stop it. I think that if you who is a princess beat them up, it will be somewhat troublesome––. So this time, let’s leave it to me.”

“But––”

“It’ll be all right. Please, leave it to me.”

While Lux replied so, the attachment of parts for weight was over.

“Kukuku. With this, we’re even. Then, shall we start the match?”

The men laughed and made the female students who were on the practice field step back to the edges (of the field).

Seeing the situation, the female students raised trembling voices.

“Hey, what is this…? No matter how you look at it, it’s unfair!”

“Aren’t the weight parts attached almost to the limit!? Such an airframe–– can’t even properly fly with that weight.”

“Even if it’s Lux-kun, like that––”

They forcibly attached parts for weights to Lux’s <Wyvern> which already had armor with thick weight.

Even someone with little knowledge of Machine Dragon maintenance would judge that it would be impossible to control the overweight.

“It’s something that you approved. You’ll surely have no complaint, won’t you?”

“––I understand”

The three men burst into laughter at Lux’s reply.

“You fool” “This guy doesn’t seem to understand Machine Dragons” “Well it’s fine, we will fully teach him”

And the lean man who drove a <Wyvern> approached Lux.

“Let’s see. Then, I will test mobility which is the basics of a Drag-Ride. Of how many times I can sneak behind him within five minutes––”

Though it was common in all fights, taking the opponent’s back was a basic tactic.

Especially in a fight between fellow <Wyverns> that mainly assumed air battles, it could be said that how many times one could attack the defenseless back that had a weak barrier was the key to victory.

But Lux, on whom weights were attached to the extent that it could be called overweight, was already in a situation of certain defeat.

Then, the muscular man using a <Wyrm> folded his arms and looked down at Lux.

“Then, I guess I’ll test the evasion technique. Let’s test which one of us can fend off more attacks in actual combat.”

Finally, the male leader who operated a <Drake> set up a sniper rifle and laughed.

“Then, I will test attacking. It’s a match about which one can hit more than the other. Oops, there’s probably not much time left for practice, so let’s the three of us test him all at once.”

Stirring voices leaked from the female students in the audience seating.

“People of the army, I would like you to stop this prank.”

Instructor Raigree knitted her brows to the confrontation which could not even be called a decent match, but the men ignored her and turned to Lux.

“Hey, if you grovel on the ground now and apologize, I don’t mind stopping. Ingratiating yourself to people is your specialty, isn't it? Dear Prince.”

“If you’ve already decided the match format, can we begin?”

“What?”

To Lux’s calm words, the lean man revealed an uncanny look.

“Hahaha. Don’t pretend to be tough and show off. The current you can’t even take off from the ground––”

When the lean man showered scornful laughter, the back wings of Lux’s <Wyvern> shone.

It released wind from the jet hole and rose from the ground.

Small cheers leaked out from the female students in the audience seating.

“W-What…?”

The lean man’s eyes were opened wide in shock.

Originally, it should be enough weight to not be able to decently move let alone fly, but Lux calmly performed it.

“Please, give the signal. Instructor.”

“…Is it all right?”

Instructor Raigree asked with a dubious face.

But, seeing Lux nod without hesitation, she sent a signal to the official in charge in the audience seating.

“Mock battle, start!”

Shortly after, the signal of the battle starting was given.

A moment later, the three temporary instructors began to move.

“Haa…! You fool!”

Chasing Lux who flew in a somewhat low altitude, the lean man also flew.

Exactly as his words said “mobility test”, he came aiming at Lux’s back.

Regardless of the fact that they both used <Wyvern>, there was a big difference in speed due to the gyves of weight (handicap).

“Ha, what’s wrong? What’s wrong?! Were you energetic only at the beginning?!”

Although Lux was able to fly, as expected the man, who stuck on the back of Lux who could not gather speed, raised his voice and laughed.

Far from turning around and taking his opponent’s back, it looked like running away by flying straight was the best Lux could do.

The lean man who saw that became more arrogant.

“Fall down unsightly! You fallen Prince!”

The moment when the man who pressed hard on Lux’s back was about to slash with his blade––

“Wha!?”

The <Wyvern> of Lux who had his back turned made a somersault and arrived exactly at the back of the man flying straight on.

As a result, before he knew it the man found himself before the wall surrounding the practice field.

Thus –– in order to avoid a crash, he could not help but suddenly stop (he was compelled to a sudden stop).

“Gah!?”

Without overlooking his defenseless back, Lux’s lightning slash knocked him down.

The lean man, still wearing his <Wyvern>, violently crashed onto the ground and the wall.

“––––”

At the dust which rose up, and the sound, the audience seating of the practice field fell silent.

“That is... no way.”

When Lisha was amazed, Krulcifer beside her also nodded.

“Yes, if you can’t generate enough speed to sneak behind your opponent, you should just let him stick closely on your back and then sneak behind him with a somersault. He seems to have been aiming for this since the beginning.”

It was easy to explain like this, but pulling it off was an extremely difficult task.

The students with the ability level to know that were speechless, and the other students raised shouts of joy.

“Hmm. As expected, my eyes weren’t wrong. All right, I shall make him join the “Knight Squadron” as soon as possible, a-and as for that other request––”

“That’s good and all, but right now, he’s my lover.”

“Ngh…!”

When Krulcifer and Lisha mutually clashed with their gazes,

“Don't get carried away! You brat!”

The muscular man wearing the <Wyrm> raised an angry voice and set up his cannon.

Due to the load of weight parts, the mobility of Lux’s <Wyvern> was extremely reduced.

Furthermore, since flight took up energy, he should not be able to fully stretch a barrier.

By focusing all the energy in a single blow of the main armament, he could certainly make Lux unable to continue fighting.

The man who planned so fired the cannon aiming at Lux.

“...!”

But, Lux deflected the main armament’s shooting from point-blank range with the point of his blade clad in energy, and evaded it.

The man changed his aim and continued shooting a second, and then a third time, but the result was exactly the same.

“W-Why?! How can you apply your sword so accurately and deflect the attacks?”

“It’s because your aiming was relatively simple.”

As Lux answered indifferently, the muscular man became speechless.

“It’s basic to aim for the center of a Machine Dragon if you only think about blowing away your opponent, and it seems that you’ve also been doing so all the time even in the tournament of the Capital, but––. Thanks to that, I was able to minimize the barrier and use energy in the blade.”

“Wha…!?”

While the muscular man was flustered, the male leader wearing the <Drake> ground his teeth with his sniper rifle still set up.

He was 300 Mel away from one edge of the practice field where Lux fought.

From that safety zone where he could never receive the opponent’s counterattack, he intended to one-sidedly snipe at Lux whose attention was attracted by his two comrades, but––

“What the hell is happening––?”

In a state of overweight where it was originally impossible to operate, Lux had conducted himself more than equally against three machines of the Capital’s army as opponents.

The <Wyvern> of the lean man was flown by Lux as his back was taken by Lux, and the <Wyrm>’s cannon was altogether flipped by Lux’s blade, too.

And, although he aimed at Lux with his sniper rifle, his attacks were all evaded by movements which, while in low speed, did not let him focus his aim; and not even one of his attacks hit.

To that too much of an unreal spectacle, he felt irritation and shivered.

The men intended to torment (bully) Lux who defied them.

“But –– like this, it’s as if…!”

The Drag-Knights of the army, even though there were three, were led around by the nose by the officer cadet Lux who bore a tremendous handicap.

“Aren’t we the ones who have been humiliated…?!”

That humiliation caused the man to make a certain choice (option).