"She originally only used shelling recoil to help her dodge, but later a smith modified her equipment. Her fighting style changed after that..."
Altaïr explained for Isis.
Ted stuffed the nearly empty bottle back into Malika's hands and gazed at Isis. She held her Gunlance high, her face bright with anticipation as she waited for his praise. His eyes shone with pride, but his expression was complicated.
"Not a bad move. Following that rapid advance with a powerful strike goes a long way toward compensating for the Gunlance's poor mobility."
He beckoned Isis over, took the Glavenus Gunlance from her, and opened the breech with a click to inspect it.
"It's been fitted with a muzzle brake. That's Kamura technology. Was the modification done there?"
Isis shook her head, then nodded. "Not exactly. But the smith who worked on it did say he'd learned the modification technique from a smith in Kamura Village."
"Just as I thought. That move of yours is a little like Kamura Village's Blast Dash. I considered learning it myself back in the day, but I was too heavy to get much out of it.
"Only someone like you, with no excess weight holding you back, plenty of strength, and excellent coordination, can fully master it."
Ted returned the Glavenus Gunlance to Isis. "Got any other moves? Show me."
Isis obediently nodded, hopped back a few steps, and demonstrated everything from her basic moves to her "Gymnastic" combos.
In truth, there were not that many moves to demonstrate. Unlike the Long Sword or Dual Blades, the Gunlance had a rather limited repertoire.
That left her a little self-conscious. She felt the only move she could truly show off was the Blast Dash she had demonstrated at the start.
To her surprise, however, Ted smiled and applauded after watching her demonstration, looking even happier than before.
"Excellent! Very good! I was worried you'd chase after flashy gimmicks and neglect the Gunlance's solid fundamentals. But you haven't! You're doing great!
"Your basic moves are clearly different from the standard forms. You've incorporated techniques from other weapons, haven't you? Did you figure that out yourself?"
Malika nodded beside him. "They're clearly based on the Great Sword's Surge Slash Combo. I can see Rising Slash, Falling Slash, and Vortex Slash in them, but you've integrated them well."
"Altaïr helped me adapt them," Isis said honestly.
"Hoh, you know a fair bit, kid." Ted chuckled and glanced at Altaïr. Then he folded his arms and said to Isis, "I don't have anything in particular to teach you.
"Your foundation is solid, and you've developed your own style of movement. Just keep polishing it.
"At its core, the Gunlance is about guarding, striking, and shelling. There's no need to make it too complicated. The key is doing the right thing at the right time.
"That Blast Dash of yours is decent, but remember not to overuse it.
"Once both feet leave the ground, you lose your stable footing. In the future, you'll face more Monsters that react quickly, move fast, and are highly intelligent.
"They could read an attack like that and swat you straight out of the air. It's dangerous."
Whether Isis took that advice to heart was anyone's guess, but Altaïr certainly did. Master Amos had given him similar warnings many times.
"Helm Breaker may be powerful, but don't go spamming it."
He made a mental note to grab Isis by the ear later and remind her a few more times.
Hearing that Ted did not plan to teach her any new moves, Isis looked a little disappointed, but she nodded obediently all the same.
Malika shoved her husband's shoulder and shot him a pointed look. Was he really not going to teach Isis anything? They had not seen her in so long; the least he could do was offer a few more pointers.
Ted frowned and fell silent for a few seconds, but ultimately gave in under Isis's aggrieved gaze.
"...Fine." Ted extended his broad hand toward Isis as if offering a handshake. "Here, little Isis. Grab my hand and try to twist it."
Isis was a little confused, but she set down her weapon and did as he asked.
Ted's palm was more than twice the width of hers. She struggled to grip it, and trying to turn it felt like wrestling with a cast-iron lock. Even after putting every ounce of strength into the attempt, she only managed to shift his hand a fraction.
"All right, that's enough." Ted released her hand. He had been using the exercise to test her wrist strength.
"This isn't really a technique, just a little trick. It demands tremendous wrist strength and an exceptionally stable stance."
Ted beckoned to Isis. Realizing what he wanted, she excitedly handed him her Glavenus Gunlance and Large Shield.
An ordinary person would have struggled even to lift the heavy Gunlance, but in Ted's hands, it felt as light as a reed. He gave it a couple of swings to get a feel for it, reloading as he did.
"Watch closely."
He abruptly thrust the Gunlance diagonally upward and pulled the trigger at the same time.
"Boom, boom, boom!" The shelling reports blended into a single burst as all three shells in the chamber fired at once.
A Full Burst.
The tremendous recoil flung the Gunlance behind Ted, but he seemed not to feel it. He thrust the Gunlance diagonally upward again.
At the exact instant of the second thrust, a violent blast of force and searing flame erupted, forming a massive fireball before the muzzle.
Was that Wyvern's Fire?!
Ted swung the Gunlance back once more, casually neutralizing recoil powerful enough to send a person flying.
Then he lowered the muzzle, completing his demonstration. The entire sequence had taken less than three seconds.
Under normal circumstances, charging and firing Wyvern's Fire alone took about that long.
"How did you do that?!" Isis's eyes went wide.
She could tell what Ted had done. Simply put, he had begun charging Wyvern's Fire at the outset, then fit two thrusts and one Full Burst into its charge time.
It sounded simple enough.
Everyone knew how powerful Wyvern's Fire was. And what was its drawback? Naturally, the two-to-three-second charge time.
During that time, Gunlance users could neither move nor guard. Mistime it, and a Monster could seriously injure them.
That was why Gunlance users generally saved Wyvern's Fire for when a Monster was down, stunned, or otherwise unable to move.
Why did they not attack or guard while Wyvern's Fire charged? Was it because they did not want to? Of course not! It was because doing so was incredibly difficult!
To build sufficient temperature and chamber pressure, the barrel shook violently while Wyvern's Fire charged. Just keeping the muzzle steady was exhausting, let alone performing another action.
As a Gunlance user herself, Isis noticed even more.
How had Ted so effortlessly neutralized the recoil from the Full Burst and the Wyvern's Fire that followed? Those two thrusts had been crucial.
He had timed both the Full Burst and Wyvern's Fire to go off at the exact instant he thrust the Gunlance forward, using the opposing forces to cancel out a considerable portion of the recoil.
Swinging the Gunlance backward absorbed even more.
What remained, he had simply muscled through with his wrist strength and impossibly stable footing.
Ted claimed it was not really a technique, merely a little trick, but in Isis's eyes, performing this so-called "little trick" was even harder than executing her own Blast Dash.
"The key is control," Ted began. "The thrust, Full Burst, backswing to absorb the recoil, and second thrust all have to flow together perfectly.
"The thrust's momentum and the Full Burst's recoil can both help you steady the Gunlance.
"You don't have to treat this as a fixed combo. Once you've truly mastered the principle, you can use other movements to overcome the lockup while Wyvern's Fire charges."
Ted did not explain every detail. He trusted that what he had said was enough for Isis to grasp the key points; all that remained was repeated practice and refinement.
"Oh, and don't try this in a real fight before you've mastered it. I shouldn't need to explain how dangerous it would be to lose control of the muzzle before Wyvern's Fire goes off."
Isis nodded rapidly.
Malika looked displeased. "You fat bastard, didn't I tell you to teach Isis something she can use in the defense battle a few days from now? Are you up to it or not?"
Ted's eyes immediately went wide.
"Who says I'm not? Come on, Isis. I'll teach you something you can use right away!"
P.S. This technique is actually AA Flare I.
(Translated by yourtl.app)