Rueful Robilina Reproach

The pressure it exerted knocked the wind out of me. The next thing I knew, I was flying backward through the air. She hit me with a lot more force than when I threw myself across the classroom.

“Nullify.” Vaguely, I was aware of Yuumondou’s voice, even though all I could see was the sky above. Before I realized it, two muscular oni arms wrapped themselves around my torso. The coach had caught me as she landed.

“Sei, are you OK? Hang in there!” Blooming Flame Blossom was the first to reach us. Yuumondou was close behind. Robolina trailed after, unable to run as quickly as the others.

“I’m fine. See?” I tried to stand, but stumbled backward. The coach propped me up until I could find my balance. “I’m not hurt, at least.”

“Sit down,” Yuumondou commanded. “You took a Sanctify at point blank. You shouldn’t be conscious after that, let alone standing.”

“Sei, I’m--” Robolina started to apologize. I knew I had to stop her. She had intervened for my sake, but she’d still be punished for attacking a teacher.

“Thank you very much for the demonstration.” I bowed to her. Turning to the coach, I bowed again. “And thank you as well.”

“Yamaguchi, what are you playing at?” Yuumondou demanded.

“This was all a demonstration of real-world magic for my sake. Coach didn’t really ‘lay hands’ on me, as you put it. More importantly, Robolina didn’t really attack her.”

“What?” Blooming Flame Blossom scoffed. “No way. Coach was way out of line. They both were.”

Just as Blooming Flame Blossom had done something she didn’t want to for my sake, it was my turn to protect Robolina. “Please, for me.” If I ever had a hope of distancing myself from her, it was now gone.

Blooming Flame Blossom looked from me to Yuumondou. The latter frowned. “It’s not that simple. You were unscathed this time, but the next student might not be so lucky.”

“You learned your lesson, right Coach?” I asked.

“I was just trying to make them take this seriously. It won’t happen again.”

“Well…” Yuumondou’s brow furrowed. “I’ll have to talk with the principal. For now, you should get to the infirmary, Yamaguchi.”

“I’m OK, really.” Finally steady on my feet, I beat my chest to demonstrate that I was perfectly healthy.

“I’ll be the judge of that.” Pushing past Yuumondou, Robolina placed her hand in front of my forehead. “Analyze.”

Immense pressure bore down on me from every angle. There was no doubt in my mind that this spell was even stronger than her Sanctify. My knees buckled, but I managed to remain standing. As I got used to the pressure, I felt something else. Best as I can explain it, It was like her spell was disassembling my soul, examining each piece, and then putting it back together.

“He’s unharmed,” she announced. “The Sanctify spell had minimal effect on him.”

Yuumondou nodded. “I’ll take your word for it. Guess it helped that he’s not a demon.” He turned to address the rest of the club, who were still watching us. “OK, everyone, we’re ending early again today. Use the time to review the safety rules for magic combat.”

⁂

Robolina didn’t say much after practice. She barely looked me in the eye as she led me to more shrines across the city. Occasionally, I overheard her whispering a prayer to some god or another as we walked.

Perhaps the strangest shrine was to a god of efficient heat dissipation, installed in front of the entrance to a public pool. Outside a library, there was a shrine to a goddess that resolves misunderstandings. It positively reeked of incense, leaving no doubt that Robolina prayed here often.

But that was nothing compared to the last shrine on our list. Located in an alleyway outside a karaoke place, Robolina had constructed an ornate shrine metal shrine with a relief etching depicting golems, humans, elves, orcs, beastkin, angels, and demons sitting together under a blooming sakura. Despite being located outdoors, it was spotless and polished to a sheen.

“Jinkichouwa no Hikari is a goddess that promotes friendship between golems and other peoples,” Robolina explained. She opened her mouth to say more but shut it and began praying.

I couldn’t help but feel bad for her. If this drawing represented the kind of life she wanted on Earth, she was far from it. No wonder she was so distraught when she thought I wanted to break ties with her.

Joining her in prayer, I plead fervently with Jinkichouwa no Hikari to help Robolina get along better with everyone at school. I reported how Shizuho Yuumondou had belittled her; how she had snapped at Tetsukiba’s compliment, thinking it an insult; and how she had fought with the coach until it nearly came to blows.

But I also recounted how she had taken me under her wing, encouraged me, and taught me magic. She lacked common sense, and because of that, she often took things too far, but I was happy that she considered me a friend. I pleaded with Jinkichouwa no Hikari to open Robolina’s heart to those like Tetsukiba, and in turn to open others’ hearts to her.

As I finished my prayer, Robolina took a deep, exaggerated breath, which was weird, because I’d never noticed her breathe before. “Sei, we’re alone. Will you let me apologize to you now?”

“You should probably apologize to the coach instead. From what I understand, you could have seriously injured her, or worse.”

“I know. I will, but Sei, the gods are mad at me for attacking you. I’m mad at myself. I keep rushing things and you keep getting hurt.”

“That’s not… Yeah, you have. But I’ve been in just as much of a hurry. If it weren’t for you, I’d be screwed. I can’t really blame you when you’ve got my back. But before I accept your apology, I need to know exactly what you’re apologizing for. Why did you try to Sanctify the coach?”

“Because I’m in over my head just as much as you are. The gods are growing bored of me. They could decide to take my mana back on a whim, and then I’d have nowhere to go. When she pulled out that club, I knew I could claim self-defense, and I thought, maybe if I killed a demon they’d pay more attention to me. It was just a moment of weakness. When I realized what I was doing, I tried to stop it, but then you… It was still wrong of me. I’m sorry.”

That was darker than I expected. I thought maybe she’d say she was scared, or because she was angry that I’d been hurt. But to decide to murder just so you could continue to use magic was selfish. I wasn’t sure I could forgive that.

Then I took another look at the drawing on the shrine and realized Robolina didn’t really want to kill demons. She wanted to befriend them. She must have really felt like she was backed into a corner to even consider it.

“I forgive you.”

“Thanks. I--” She cut herself off as a man walked past. Whatever she wanted to say, it was too personal for a public conversation. “It’s getting late. We should go home.”

We made our way to the nearest subway station. Since it was well after rush hour, the train was only half full. Just as we had settled in for an uneventful ride, the doors opened at the next stop and the coach crouch-walked into the car.

She looked ridiculous squatting down like that, but I suppose she didn’t have a choice if she wanted to ride the train. Made me wonder if she did the same thing at home, or if she had an extra-tall house.

When she noticed us, her eyes went wide like a deer caught in the headlights. She tried to shuffle backward, but the doors closed behind her. “Shit. I’m not supposed to be around you kids unsupervised anymore.”

“I won’t tell if you don’t,” I said.

Robolina raised one hand over her head. “Would you like some more space? Interior Expansion.” The roof of the train pushed upward until the coach had enough room to stand. Slowly, she pushed herself upright.

“How’d you do that without hitting the tunnel?” the coach asked.

“I simply intersected a pocket dimension with this reality. It’s convenient for making extra space. I use it in my closet at home to store all my g--things I brought from Mechanoria.”

“Intersecting a pocket dimension?” The coach scoffed. “That’s impossible.”

“That’s what everyone says about my magic, and yet, you can clearly see the results for yourself.”

“Guess so. Hey, could you teach me how to cast this spell? I might actually be able to go inside the school building.”

“Of course, but first, I should apologize for–”

The coach held out a hand to stop her. “I don’t wanna hear it. You did exactly what I would’ve done in your position. You didn’t even hesitate. That kind of quick thinking is exactly what it takes to survive in a dungeon. If anyone’s at fault, it’s me. I let my guard down because I didn’t think you were a threat. I won’t make that mistake again.”

“Uh, coach,” I said, “she almost killed you.”

“Because I could have killed her. Destroyed, whatever. I don’t expect you to understand, Yamaguchi, but most places, doesn’t matter who’s right and who’s wrong. All that matters is who survives and who comes out on top. Today, Robolina was stronger, so she was right.”

“That’s--” I started to protest, but Robolina put a hand on my shoulder to stop me.

“I can live with being right. Now, about that spell…”

Coach’s words still didn’t sit right with me, but as I watched them converse, I realized it wasn’t as important as what was happening in the present: The coach was listening intently and nodding her head. Robolina was gesticulating while talking in a relaxed manner. The two of them were getting along. They’d only ever bickered, but now they were acting almost like friends.

⁂

“Would you like to come in?” Normally, inviting a girl into my house would make me so sweaty that you’d be forgiven for mistaking me for a water elemental. But Robolina had already been in my house, and as she made clear earlier, she’s not built for romance. We’re just friends.

“Sei, I need to tell you something important,” she said, once we were inside. “I found something when I cast Analyze on you.”

“You’re making it sound like I’m gonna die or something.”