"Remain calm and nimble," Silverain said. "Stay on your toes. Be aware. An opportunity will always come, and you must seize that moment the second it reveals itself."

I dashed forward with a sword in my hands. With every slash, I felt myself getting more and more used to the blade. Even so, Silverain parried and dodged my strikes with relative ease.

"Do not lose your grip," she demanded. "Hold it firm!"

I tightened my grip and swung as hard as I could, but it was no good. She pulled her arm back, holding her blade at just the right angle to completely negate my slash. With not even a second to react, she immediately disappeared from my line of sight and was somehow holding her blade to my neck.

"Of course, a level of strength is necessary to pull off a successful strike," Silverain chuckled. "However, in exchange for brute forcing your way through, you sacrifice control. Look at your grip."

I bent my head down and was surprised to see that my hands were more towards the lower end of the handle, a direct contrast to before when my left hand was touching the hilt.

Silverain removed her blade from my neck and walked away. She turned around while holding the same stance that I was using.

"For any aspiring swordsman, this stance is the most basic," she said. "It is meant to create a balance between offensive and defensive techniques. Steel your grip, and do not allow your sword to move in the slightest. The moment you lose even an inch of the handle, you've already lost."

Her words resonated in my head, forcing a subtle reaction. I didn't even realize that my hands were already tightened around the top of the handle.

"Ready, Darling?" Silverain smiled.

"Yeah," I replied.

For a moment longer, we clashed blades. All the while, I tried my best to be as observant as possible, taking measures to ensure that Silverain's advice did not go to waste.

A slash from the left—blocked. An overhead strike—dodged. A stab from the center—parried. No matter what approach I took, Silverain effortlessly evaded them all.

Even though I failed every attempt, I couldn't help but admire her. Her maneuvers and counteractions made it seem like she was dancing as opposed to fighting. Calm and elegant, there was a reason behind every step she made. It was breathtaking.

"And, cut!" she abruptly shouted.

As soon as I went in for a final strike, Silverain ducked down for an uppercut. Her blade moved faster than I could see, and only a split second afterward, my sword went flying across the air.

"Tsk, tsk. It seems you really have forgotten everything, Darling," she scoffed. "Including your skills."

"Was I skillful back then?" I asked.

"Very much so. After all, I was the one who taught you back then. I may not be the best swordsman in the world, but I know my way around the blade that most don't. Also... Ah... Never mind. I'll leave that one out just in case 'they' are listening."

There she goes again, talking about... I don't even know. Even when it comes up, she puts an emphasis on 'them' to avoid saying their name out loud. Wouldn't that also get their attention if they really are listening?

Whoever they are, they must be someone of great importance. Why would they feel the need to watch us? I don't know, and I have to be satisfied with just that. I don't want to disappoint Silverain. One thing's for sure, whoever they are, they must be scary for someone as confident as her to be on edge.

Silverain sheathed her blade and reached her arms up for a stretch. She then plopped onto the ground with a sigh.

"Come here, Darling," she smiled as she patted the ground. "Sit with me."

When I did, she gently put her arm around my head and pulled it onto her shoulder. 

"Miss Silverain..." I mumbled.

"Just Silverain is fine, Darling," she scoffed.

"Erm... Silverain... Ma'am..."

"Hah. Say my name as I've instructed you to."

No matter how much I think about it, I can't figure out why I'm so adamantly refusing to call her informally. Does it have something to do with my past? It just doesn't feel right, for some reason.

Regardless, I tried my best to say her name, but it was still... fairly difficult.

"Sil... S-Silverain..." I mumbled.

"Pft... Pahaha~!" she laughed wholeheartedly. "Good attempt, Darling. It's a shame, though. Before, we would call each other by our names. We even had nicknames. Ah, but don't worry. We'll get there eventually. Anyway, what's on your mind?"

"Before I lost my memories... Were we close?"

That question seemed to have caught her off guard, as she visibly flinched. For just a second, her smile faded, but it returned just as immediately.

"Close, huh?" she whispered. "Hm... I wouldn't necessarily say we were 'close,' but we did have sweet little moments like these every now and then. Just the two of us, lying on the grass and stargazing. Well, I guess instead of grass and stars, there's just rocks."

"Was our relationship... Y-you know..." My awkwardness took center stage before I could finish that sentence.

Silverain let out a soft giggle. "Hm? Do you mean to ask if we were in love?"

"...Yeah."

I tilted my head away, but she wouldn't let me feel embarrassed by myself. Her head tilted over, and even though I couldn't see it, I knew she was giving me a cheeky smile.

"Quite the funny reaction, Darling," she said. "I'm not sure if 'they' will allow me to say it, but I can't hold this one back. We weren't in love, per se. You're far too young for me. However, our relationship... It certainly was a type of love."

"A type?" I asked.

"Hehe. I'm sure you're very curious, but that's as much as I can give. Just know that I care about you very much, Darling. More than you could ever imagine."

It wasn't the answer I wanted, but I could at least breathe a sigh of relief. The less important I am to her, the better it is.

"You look sad," Silverain noticed. "What's wrong?"

"Well... It just... feels bad," I replied.

"Feels bad? Heh. What do you mean? Am so unappealing that you don't enjoy being next to me like this?"

"N-no! I do like it! It's just... There's the possibility that I may never regain my memories. If that's the case, then I'll remain as a lost soul in the body of a person you once cared about. Don't you hate me for that?"

Much to my surprise, Silverain immediately pulled me into her arms, holding me tight. Her warmth took over my body, a strong contrast to the usual cold in this damp, dark cave.

"No, I don't, and don't you ever assume otherwise," she whispered. "You may never be who you once were, but that's okay. I'm completely fine with that, because to me... Through and through, you'll always be my little darling."

Slowly, I rested my arms on her back. "Can I do that...? Even as I am now... can I stay with you?"

"Of course, Darling," she replied, soothing my doubts. "No matter what, we'll always be connected to each other, even if we're not together."

Is it because this body is used to being in her arms that I feel so relaxed right now? Her words made me happy, but more than anything else, I was grateful simply for her presence alone. However, that lurking feeling remained. Parallel to that happiness was a hint of sadness.

"Alright," Silverain said as she let go of me. "That's enough training for one night. Let's eat, shall we?"

I nodded my head.

From her satchel, she pulled out two loaves of bread and gave them to me. Right as I was about to take a bite, she rested something on the ground.

It's... a jar. Silverain lifted the lid, revealing some kind of yellowish substance within.

"What is that?" I asked.

"Butter," she answered with a smile. "Take a small scoop and dab it on the piece that you're gonna bite into. Trust me. You'll be shocked by how delicious it is."

Without hesitation, I did as she asked. After putting a small amount of butter on the edge, I took a bite.

My eyes immediately widened, and Silverain noticed it very quickly.

"It's... good..." I gasped.

"Hehe. Isn't it?" she giggled. "I thought I'd change it a bit today. You've been eating the same thing since you woke up."

"I don't really mind it, though."

"Even if you don't, it still hurts me that stale bread is all I can give you. Eat as much as you can, and don't leave crumbs."

I paused for a moment to look at Silverain while she was lost in thought. She... really does care about me. Just what kind of relationship did we have back then? Maybe I'll find out one day.