Chương 29: Book 1, Chapter 29: Teaching Moment

The morning was a bit awkward, if only because John had to deliver food to Kaito. Obviously, the man didn't give him any problem when he was being untied. No, believing someone has superhuman abilities and can casually crush your skull goes a long way to making someone behave. Most of the uncomfortable silence came from seeing "Lord" John casually deliver food, untie him, and wait for him to eat, but there was no better solution as he wouldn't let Aiki or Haru take that risk.

The man tried to inhale the food, presumably to not waste his time, and nearly choked a few times on the fruit. He was glad he didn't have to perform the Heimlich maneuver on the poor guy, although he still had to leave him tied up afterward. That still didn't feel right. Even prisoners back home still got to walk around their cells and had yard time, meal periods outside their cells, and more. John would probably add a proper exterior latch to the room when he had a chance, then they could afford to let him free…

but first, he had higher priority things to do today. First, he had to find Yuki and talk to her about getting in contact with the kappa again. When he left the main building, the air smelled strangely ozone-y… Yet the skies were clear and there was no rain on the ground. No dew, even, given he slept in a bit after yesterday's late night. Of course, this put him on guard, and he immediately started looking around for any oddities. It didn't take him long to find one.

After all, a kitsune and a dragon woman sitting cross-legged on top of a warehouse and floating were pretty obvious. Yuki was wrapped in an aura of translucent light, looking almost like cloth wrapped around her, subtly billowing in the breeze. Since when could she levitate, and what the hell was its function? Perhaps it was a lesser version of the ability to leap off air that some higher-tier combatants had that she mentioned.

On the other hand, Rin had droplets of water and ice floating around her as she "sat" opposite Yuki, faint lightning occasionally impossibly arcing between the drops, explaining that weird smell. Now that he was closer, he could feel the Presence in the air, dancing at the edge of his perception. It was not overpowering, like when the two duelled, no. It was almost like a quiet whisper, just barely able to be heard over the sounds of the forest.

Seemingly, these last few days, he was getting much better at picking out Presence from the background. Then again, he was exposed to it for roughly half a decade, give or take a few months; the only change was that he only learned what it was recently. It was not like he was suddenly gaining the ability to smell, but like having possessed it for ages, only consciously realizing it when someone pointed it out. That simile was a bit tortured, but it was the closest idea he could compare it to.

Curiously, John closed in. Next to the building was a pile of stone slabs from an abandoned project to reinforce things in case of a siege by flying yokai, which he used to silently climb up onto the building after them. He didn't shimmy onto the roof until he made sure it would hold his weight, though, and he was very thankful that Rin didn't watch him awkwardly raise a leg to chest level and onto the tiles and feel around with his weight.

After being satisfied, he crept up, the strange feelings of Presence in use intensifying the whole time. It felt unnatural and electric, almost like being near a powerful industrial generator or live transmission box. He settled down to watch, Rin's back to him. The two distinct styles intermingled with one another, at least to his unrefined senses, and he couldn't say too much about Rin's but Yuki's felt… peaceful and caring, and this close he could feel it in his own chest like that fateful day they met.

It rose and fell alongside her breathing and slow, powerful heartbeat. Rin was muted in comparison, but not entirely overwhelmed, despite feeling like she should be. It was then that John noticed something strange. He could feel the cycle of Rin's breathing and heartbeat somewhere beneath it all, yet it was off in a way he couldn't explain. It was like a song, just slightly off—Wait, that was it!

The way he felt Rin's stormy tension pushing against his mind wasn't just pulsing with her own life, it was with Yuki's as well, even if it was mostly buried beneath! Was Yuki aiding her in some way? He assumed the process must be linked to recovery, given that the kitsune noted that she needed time outside under the sun and moon to heal. Rin wasn't hurt, at least not in any obvious way, so… was Yuki accelerating the growth of the dragon-blooded Unbound's power somehow? That had to be it!

He had no doubt that Yuki had already noticed him, given how incredibly observant she was, but Rin's lack of reaction showed that she did not. Carefully, he settled out of the way, pulling out his notebook and jotting down his observations as the pair continued their exercise. This… this was nothing he had ever seen before. He had to get them to do this in front of some of his equipment at some point; the things he could learn about ambient magic flow were immense!

Even just looking at this, feeling it, he was starting to get ideas. The fact that Yuki could feed energy over the air to Rin alone was a revelation, and something he had long assumed was impossible. If he could replicate that… that would allow him to create truly wireless power, even if it would be lossy. Before now, he was limited to what would be energy efficient enough to work off a capacitor embedded in his gauntlet, but something like that?

If he could cover the whole base in a field, he'd have functionally infinite use time on his gauntlet with a large enough capacitor bank. Even beyond that, John could create a whole new generation of magical focus that runs off external power as long as he stays within range! There were many, many things that were impractical due to weight or volatility limitations, and if John could lift them even a bit via offloading it elsewhere… Even beyond that, he wondered where this fit into how Unbound got more powerful.

He knew they consumed yokai material to do it somehow, but this seemed entirely unrelated. Not only was Yuki far from a water spirit, and likely pretty useless for those purposes, she was also pretty full of toxins, last he heard. Given how much those had to be limiting her, he imagined that a couple of drops of kitsune blood might lead to a very sick Rin rather than any growth, alongside many uncomfortable questions.

The next half hour to hour or so was spent in idle thought, watching the two levitate and putting his thoughts to paper. Aiki and Haru passed below once on the way to the field—perhaps to pick some brunch for themselves—and he offered them a friendly wave, which they responded to with hurried bows and vacating the area, much to his disappointment. Soon enough, though, the pair drifted down, settling back onto the tiled roof.

"And that concludes our meditation," Yuki said, eyes flicking open.

"Your breathing needs some work, but it is acceptable for now. Did you keep track of how I was doing it?"

"Yes, Mistress Yuki!" she responded, raising her head, although John couldn't see her eyes open.

"Was that really Tenfold Paths Breathing? That technique was lost centuries ago!" Something complicated flashed across Yuki's expression, and her lips pulled tight.

"There are many benefits to being a kitsune, it seems. You'll find I know many things no longer commonly known in the mortal world." Rin nodded, albeit with a bit of hesitation.

"I'll do my best to be worthy of it!" Yuki's eyes flicked to meet John's, a faint smile appearing on her muzzle, but she said nothing. Damn, this was a perfect chance to build up that mysterious teacher image, wasn't it? One of his earliest lessons about working on difficult tasks came to mind, so perhaps passing it on could do some good for her, too.

"You are unsure of your ability to replicate it adequately," John simply stated after a moment of thought. Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. The dragon-blooded woman jumped from her sitting position with a yelp, spinning to face him in a low stance. Her eyes were wide with shock, but she was clearly more shocked than anything.

"Good reflexes," John commented flatly. Silence hung between the two, and an amused smirk painted Yuki's face, although Rin couldn't see it.

"I… don't think I can do it justice at this point," she finally admitted, her cheeks flushing red. He did his best to nod knowingly with a sage expression, hoping it didn't look stupid.

"Interesting. Tell me, Rin, what's the best way to eat a whale?"

"What?" she blurted, the non-sequitur shocking her. After a moment, she reddened further.

"My apologies! I meant, no, I don't, Sensei John." Sensei? That was… an extra title he didn't have yesterday. Hmm. He wasn't sure how he felt about that; he didn't feel particularly suited to teach her much of anything, given that he had never actually personally handled magic before, it's always been through artificial conduits. Still, he could try to at least impart some wisdom to her.

"The same way you eat everything else: one bite at a time," he explained, momentarily letting that mysterious statement stand alone.

"To put it simply, almost every massive task that seems impossible at first glance is merely a series of smaller problems to be solved. Break it down into smaller parts. Focus on one part of the technique first. Improve it." It was very, very simple advice that pretty much everyone has heard at some point, but something easy to lose sight of or never see the true meaning behind.

"I… see," Rin replied, although a frown crept across her face. They should start with something she does know, then.

"You've said you've been adventuring, yes? How many mortals would you say you've seen wielding swords?" John asked.

"Hundreds, maybe thousands, sensei," came her quick reply, although her tone was still unsteady, unsure.

"And what were the three most common shortfalls of their forms?" John continued. She paused, slipping deep into thought.

"The worst is poor follow-through, I think," she slowly began.

"Most of them weren't formally trained, and it shows. They strike as if they want the blade to tap their foe's skin, not bite into them. The second… probably poor stances. You have to always be prepared to move, but it seems like even the majority of those who know that still end up with a stance that's not wide enough. Last, I'd wager it would be that they never feint without making it obvious.

Every attack was always a complete commitment, leaving them open to a follow-up or, even worse, for an Unbound or yokai to choose to absorb the attack and trade a hit." By the end, her words were flowing freely and with confidence. John nodded sagely, like she had echoed some well-known truth, even though this was all new to him.

"I think you already know a bit about breaking things down into parts," he said, and when she opened her mouth to respond, he continued.

"Your next line is going to be about how this is just what you were taught. Yet, you still understand it." Rin's eyes widened, and her mouth snapped shut.

"Now. Think about the last time you were outmatched in raw skill, not just strength, by someone in blade-to-blade combat."

"I… Sparred against my brother. I won, but it shouldn't have been that close. I was stronger and faster, but he kept striking from angles I didn't expect. I only won when I heavily committed to a strike he couldn't dodge to lock him in place and wrestled him to the ground." The dragon-woman almost sounded wistful in her reminiscing.

"And why did that keep happening, if you were faster?" John needled.

"Because he was more skilled, sensei," Rin said, her frown deepening.

"No," he replied, perhaps a tad too quickly and loudly.

"Did he outmatch you in every way? Was he so hopelessly above you that you had no clue what he was doing?"

"No, sensei. I… caught my brother off guard a few times. Once I realized he could predict what I was planning to do."

"And when did you first catch him off guard?"

"When I did a move that I hadn't before in the fight, the twin helm splitting—" Rin cut herself off, realization flashing across her face. John remained silent, unwilling to add something wrong and ruin the illusion.

"I've been doing this before, just… without thinking of it, haven't I?" she breathlessly asked.

"He was more skilled, because I couldn't predict him while he could read me. I solved the second by acting more wildly, and the first by overpowering him the moment I had an opportunity!" Her expression morphed into a giddy smile as he nodded. He was glad she came to that conclusion herself; he would have had a hell of a time trying to get her to that conclusion if she actually had to have it all broken down further.

"Some teachers think that it's most important to teach their students what to think, so they can fill the role that's planned for them most effectively," he dramatically paused, and if he had a teacup, he'd sip at it to keep her in suspense a bit longer.

"I think it's more important to teach others how to think. What you just learned? That's one of the secret ways to improve at almost anything or make any huge, impossible task easier. It's not just meditation. It's not just sword fighting. Now. I'll ask you again, how do you eat a whale?"

"One bite at a time, sensei!" she shouted, bouncing on her feet, tail whipping wildly behind her.

"You got it!" he replied, mirroring her volume. Something about her enthusiasm was infectious. What did he come up here for, again? Right! He had to talk to Yuki! He had entirely forgotten… And he just did the whole "wise teacher" thing in front of her.

"Would you mind leaving us alone for a moment? I have to discuss something with Lady Yuki. I would ask you to leave yourself available, though."

"Of course, sensei!" Rin said, and she… dramatically jumped off the roof, doing a flip on the way down before racing to the wall.

"Sensei, huh?" John muttered as he watched her go.

"It fits. That little bit of teaching was worthy of the greatest of tutors," Yuki singsonged, eyes full of mischief.

"Perhaps I should start calling you that, too." Yuki cleared her throat, and her voice was lighter and younger when she spoke next.

"Oh, Sensei John! How did you ever come up with your flying disc? Sensei! This stove is so complicated! Could you explain it again?"" Please no," he whispered, aghast.

"Rin can't hear us, can she?" John tensely asked, muscles coiled like he would have to dodge a blow.

"No. Her hearing is not that sharp," Yuki confirmed, lightly chuckling.

"Still, I expected we'd have to figure out a way for you to teach her later to keep up the illusion. A few notes from me and some vague advice would have been enough for you to play your part, but perhaps you can write your own lessons."

"No way," he emphatically declined, shaking his head.

"I was quoting someone from back home, it just kind of… came to mind. If she actually went into her sword play or stances, or god forbid, how she uses her storm stuff, I'd probably have been stuck going 'Hmm, I see' while trying to come up with some vague proverb." Yuki shrugged.

"I trust in your ability to fabricate half-truths if such a scenario comes to pass." He… wasn't entirely sure if he was supposed to say thank you to that.

"Say, what was that you were doing, anyhow?" John inquired, eagerly moving the conversation away from his sorry excuse for teaching.

"Unbound get stronger by consuming pieces from yokai, don't they?"

"That's not… entirely untrue, and it is close to a layman's interpretation," she admitted, "but it's incomplete. The Unbinding ritual makes them less flesh and more spirit, and increasing one's latent spiritual power by stealing that of another has its place, but it more increases the maximum one can achieve rather than their power in and of itself.

The richest man in the land could drown himself in the finest reagents, and accomplish little other than wasting his money and perhaps marginally extending his lifespan." Yuki dramatically breathed in, a faint halo of light forming around her before she released it.

"One's spirit needs tempering, much akin to a mortal's muscles, and Rin was taking in the power of the supernal and bending it to her will, strengthening herself. With the aid of my technique, it will be greatly accelerated, especially if I continue as I was, drawing the power in for her to absorb." Oh! So Yuki was acting almost like… a pump getting fuel for another machine there? That made sense, kinda.

He was starting to get a half-decent picture of the whole process, and he felt a bit less bad about not being able to do it without consequences, if everything that Yuki was saying was accurate. What was that she said before? Something about how he already had something going on with his "Presence" that would get in the way and make him useless for months, were he to want to?

It might require him to entirely give up his engineering nonsense in favour of meditating for weeks, months, years on end to catch up to where he is now! That was something he flatly couldn't afford. Speaking of delays, he really had to—" Your next line is going to be about how we need to talk to the kappa about who's fishing where to find that depot," she cheerily added, bringing his chain of thought to a shrieking halt. He sighed.

"Yes," he admitted.

"Shall we get going?"