Often enough light novel style stories don't address the rude stuff that male characters do, so that's a welcome change here.
(Even if the supposedly suave aide character is hurting as much as he is helping this chapter.)
I need Kotarou to walk away from his defeated attacker while saying something like "Compared to Tae, your strength is... lacking." It's as cheesy as it gets, but you need that once in a while.