Monthly Bushiroad Short Novels: Cardfight!! Vanguard

2015 Issue | March: The Overlapping Thoughts

"Hmm, time's up."

"What, that's just two minutes..."

"You're right, silly kid. Let's see... as you said, the Princess of Ancient Roses and the Deep Green Lord have mastered Stride. You should learn from them---"

"Yes, I'll bear that in mind... argh."

"It's finished... I haven't finished telling..."

Seen from afar is verdant green, and one could see vivid yellow and red when they walk close. Here is "Neo Nectar", a land of "Zoo", the nation with the richest nature among the six nations of Cray, and the home of sentient flowers and grass.

"Lady Ahsha! Lady Ahsha!"

"Eh, Padmini?"

In this green nation sits the home of Ahsha, a towering tree decorated by ivies and flowers. It is a "magnificient mansion" by "Neo Nectar"'s standards. Rays of light entered the house through round windows, and shone upon the bed of flower petals with feather-like gentleness---shone upon Ahsha who was still rubbing her eyes.

"You always look dull after doing things like Striding."

"Sorry. That consumes a lot of power, physically and mentally."

Yes, Ahsha is a girl of noble background. She was born in the family of a long and honorable history, dating back to the first bioroid created by the founder and when the nation was established, and had contributed to the cultivation of the land with the founder.

"After all... don't Stride on the bed of your house! We don't know what would happen!"

"Mmm... Sorry. Next time I will try it properly in the temple..."

"And, please practise before Miss Jusil's eyes!"

Ahsha is a girl one step behind perfection. Without considering her weak points, she is nearly perfect in terms of academic and physical prowess, and her demeanor is more than excellent. The fly in the ointment, however, is her strange behaviour of "doing silly things occasionally".

"I thought I can do that!"

"Don't think like that!"

With the thought "I though I can do this", she can do the most reckless thing in the world, and with the thought "I thought I can do that", she can do the most ridiculous thing in the world. Most things she performs in these ways end up fruitless, and caretakers are busy with settling things right and reproving her.

"Ye-es. And for a change of mood..."

"Before going to farms, you'll have swordsmanship lessons first!"

"I, I know."

The stance of her fearing the caretaker one head shorter than her resembles more like a frightened critter than a girl of noble background.

"I feel that Padmini has become more solemn since the training of Stride began..."

Ahsha, looking exhausted after the training, came to farms several kilometres from her house. The farms are lands of her family, though.

"You've had some hard training, milady."

"You've worked hard too, Cela . Everyone's fine here?"

"Of course. Oh, 'seems everyone noticed you."

The girl talking to Ahsha is called "Cela", a relaxed caretaker with an opposite personality to Padmini. The scenery from her finger is boundless farmlands as vast as seas. In the farmlands, many farmers waved hands to Ahsha, and Ahsha waved her hands in response.