Chapter 20: A Story During Training — A Story in the Bath

I did say I’d give it everything I had… but no one told me it would be worse than actually dying.

Right now, I’m collapsed in a forest (inside a dream), barely clinging to consciousness. Honestly, even breathing is painful—but if I stop, I die, so I have no choice but to force myself. If I lose consciousness, there’s a real chance I’ll die, so I’m desperately keeping myself tethered by sheer will.

"…Huff… huff… we’ll take a short break here. Saint, please treat His Majesty."

"U-Understood!!"

Alicia is desperately trying to reposition my body with her not-so-well-trained arms, but since I have absolutely no strength left, I can only let her do as she pleases.

I’m currently lying face down, and she’s somehow trying to flip me over—but unfortunately, my weight has increased quite a bit over these past few months (in the dream), making it difficult.

"A-Are you okay!? Can you drink some water!?"

"Hhh… hhh…"

I want to respond, but no voice comes out. Still, I need to recover even a little, so I point with the barely functioning fingers of my right hand toward the water flask.

Noticing this, Alicia brings the flask to my lips, and I gulp down its contents, not caring if it spills.

"Lord Toma… you really should stop this…"

At some point, she started calling me “Lord Toma,” but I can’t react to that now. Her light magic heals my major wounds.

There isn’t time to heal everything, so she focuses only on the areas that would hinder movement. Apparently, she learned this kind of targeted healing during this training camp. Honestly, she’s growing even more than I am—which is a good thing.

"Your Majesty, let us resume. The rules remain the same."

"W-Wait, Captain!! It’s only been ten minutes since—"

"Ten minutes already. Your Majesty has overcome repeated deaths. That is precisely why you must now learn how not to die. And this is the only way I know how to teach that."

The countless, literal death matches with Carol forced me to overcome my fear of battle. Now, I can calmly observe both my own attacks and the enemy’s.

But in exchange, I’ve died far too many times.

In other words… I’ve become someone who dies easily.

After repeatedly experiencing death and rewinding to try again, it seems I started fighting with the assumption that I would die. I was aware of it myself, but building the right mindset toward combat had to come first.

"Your Majesty. Land ten hits on me without being killed. If you succeed, you may rest again. Repeat this for one hundred sets, and you may sleep. If you die midway, you start over from the beginning."

Regaining a fear of death in a space where I can keep dying endlessly is extremely difficult. That’s why this training method was devised—but it’s truly brutal.

Landing ten hits on the Captain is already incredibly hard. On top of that, even if he isn’t going all out, he is seriously trying to kill me. If I get killed, escaping this hell is pushed further away—so I dodge with everything I have.

The time I nearly finished a set but lost focus at the very end and got killed… being forced to start over made me genuinely want to die. It’s so harsh it feels like torture.

No matter how much I cry, scream, or despair, I can’t escape this loop. I just have to keep living and landing hits—nothing else matters.

"So please, stop this!! Lord Toma is already at his limit…!!"

"Hhh… hhh… s-sorry, but… I can still… go…"

I’m grateful she tries to stop it. I can feel Alicia’s kindness—it even makes me happy.

But the Captain will never stop this training. And neither will I.

He’s already prepared himself to be hated. He declared as much, and true to his words, he puts me through training harsh enough to make me resent him. He said this was his duty.

And how did I respond to that?

"Give me the strength to pursue my ideals—through the training you believe suits me best. I want to earn that strength myself."

He is the kind of man who can kneel before a child who merely happened to draw the holy sword.

And I asked that man to make me stronger.

Then what he’s doing now is exactly what I wished for.

I don’t want to become the kind of person who runs away from something I chose for myself. Even if I want to escape… even if I want relief… I know I shouldn’t.

If I did, I wouldn’t be able to face the childhood friend who’s still doing her best just to stay by my side.

So—

"The break… is over…!! Stay with me… just a little longer…!!"

"…Splendid, Your Majesty. Then—here I come."

I will resist with everything I have—so that I don’t die.

"………………"

"………………"

After the training ended and I returned to reality, I was soaking in a hot spring within the ‘Magic Mist Forest.’

Together with the Captain. Just two men.

Technically, we could enter a bath inside the dream too, but that would leave our real bodies unattended. Since this training method causes effects in the dream to carry over into reality, it’s better to handle things like eating in the real world.

On the flip side, if you eat your fill in reality, you can go about half a day without food in real time—which means you can focus several times longer on training inside the dream.

That’s why we were able to continue that endless combat training without stopping for meals.

Well, there are also practical concerns—like taking care of bodily needs in reality, and making sure your physical senses don’t feel off when you return. Unless you’re truly pressed for time, the ‘Magic Mist Forest’ boot camp is surprisingly inconvenient.

"………………"

"………………"

More importantly—someone please do something about this hellish atmosphere.

Two guys in a bath, sitting in total silence… the air is unbearably heavy. What is this? It feels like the air itself weighs a ton. At this rate, I’ll start physically feeling its mass.

Unable to endure it, I decide to practice using the Holy Sword’s power—starting with body enhancement. Even without holding the sword, I’ve gotten used to drawing out some of its power.

I still haven’t grasped the third ability, and adapting to the poison meals in the dream is also taking longer than expected.

At least my combat experience is increasing—but I’d like some new tricks up my sleeve.

"—I’m telling you, hot springs are all about—!!"

"That’s not—! Big sis, you seriously don’t get it—"

"Shut it, you hag!!"

"I’ll kill you, you brat—"

My senses are enhanced, and as a result, I can hear the women’s bath conversation even though it should be quite far away.

My reason tells me I shouldn’t listen.

But my instincts completely reject that.

The result?

A total defeat for reason.

Driven by instinct, I start eavesdropping on their conversation.

"By the way, don’t you girls have any romantic stories or anything? Seriously? Aren’t modern boys and girls supposed to be all friendly and going at it like crazy?"

The first thing I hear is Carol saying that. At that moment, I realize there’s no way this conversation is going to turn into anything light and cheerful.

Man… that elf really is shameless. Maybe she’s actually pretty caring deep down, but the phrase “none of your business” has never suited someone better.

"I just came from some backwater countryside. Like I’d have anything like that."

"I have my duties as a Saint… and as Lord Toma’s aide, I need to focus on what I can do right now."

"Gah!! You’re both so dried up!! Especially you, Alicia!! With a chest and ass so good they’d make even a girl want to grab them, and yet you’re totally detached from worldly desires—"

"Cut the harassment, you tiny elf. Just because you’re jealous doesn’t mean this body’s gonna become yours."

"My growth already stopped, so I don’t care—but you’ve still got room to grow, don’t you? Start working on it now. You’ve got potential. Eat well and you’ll develop."

"I’m fine as I am. Haven’t had any problems like this."

This is definitely the kind of conversation that would get me killed if they found out I heard it.

So Alicia’s the type who looks slimmer than she really is, huh… Yeah, that low-exposure nun outfit—well, she’s wearing something more practical now, but it still doesn’t show much skin. So that’s what’s been hidden underneath…

As for Hikari, from what I know, she’s about average in both chest and hips. I learned that from some old guy at the liquor shop who used to harass her. He got beaten up by her every single time and never learned his lesson. I still respect that indomitable spirit.

"Heh heh heh… you can only say that while you’re still young… Act all confident now, but once your growth stops, you’ll be like, ‘Man, I should’ve eaten better back then…’"

"That sounded way too real…"

Carol’s words make me recall her body.

During our literal fights to the death, I didn’t have the luxury of noticing—but I do remember cutting her clothes a few times.

Underneath… well… how do I put this… gentle slopes? A flat plain? It really makes you realize how unfair the world can be.

Still, even taking that into account, her skin—probably from living in the ‘Magic Mist Forest’—was pale, flawless, and almost translucent. She puts herself down, but it’s not like she lacks charm. If anything, she has a mysterious allure that ordinary girls don’t.

"...Hey, Captain. What do you think would happen if I told Carol, ‘Even without a chest, you’re still attractive’?"

"You would most likely be killed. I would also prefer not to deal with her when she’s serious."

Yeah… figured.

More importantly, saying something like that would expose the fact that I’m eavesdropping. And if Carol finds out, it’s only a matter of time before Hikari and the others do too.

Alicia might be forgiving—but if Hikari finds out, I might actually die. That’s how serious it is to overhear a maiden’s private conversation.

…Well, that’s exactly why it’s so interesting. No way I’m stopping now!!!

"Still… I never thought I’d die that many times… or that I’d get used to dying. If you and the others hadn’t corrected me, I probably would’ve just dropped dead in the real world too."

"You experienced being killed repeatedly in a short span and used that experience to defeat opponents you should never have been able to beat. While that mindset of ‘it can’t be helped if it’s for gathering information’ was necessary, we had to correct it—and build your body into one capable of proper combat."

That’s what that hellish training was for.

Honestly, I can’t imagine anything worse than that endless abyss disguised as “training.” I genuinely want to praise myself for surviving it so many times.

"That said, my predecessor as Captain would likely have trained you far more effectively than I have. She was even more of a disciplinarian than me, but I believe her methods would have suited your sword talent and magical power better."

"Sword talent…? I have that?"

"If you didn’t, you would have struggled far more to land even a single hit on me. Without a doubt, you are a genius when it comes to combat. That said, your mentality is not suited for it—but that simply reflects the peaceful life you’ve lived."

He’s probably right. I can’t recall any real hardship in my life.

That’s all thanks to my mother’s efforts. I’ve been sending money back ever since becoming Sword King, but I still worry sometimes if she’s really doing okay.

Someday, when things settle down, I want to go see her. I’ll probably have guards with me, but… I guess I’ll just have to accept that.

"But if you say that, Captain, then your predecessor must’ve been even harsher than you. I can’t even imagine it."

"She was a woman who rose to lead the knights of this country. In the ‘King’s War’ during Your Majesty’s absence, she even fought as a substitute and secured victories. A veteran who has even battled the current Spear King. However, the moment she got married, she moved out to the countryside. I haven’t seen her since… though she’s not the type to die easily, so she’s likely fine."

"Wow… hearing that alone makes me not want to meet her. I feel like I’d go through something even worse than this."

"For Your Majesty, that may be a blessing…"

Seeing Captain Richard stare off into the distance, I instinctively realize that the one who planted the idea for this endless hell of training into his head was probably that former Captain.

Seriously… what a thing to pass on.

At the same time, realizing he must’ve gone through something similar to reach this level makes me feel a strange sense of camaraderie.

Still… a woman stronger than this bear-like Captain? What kind of gorilla is she?

I’m a little curious—but more than that, I want to change the subject, so I steer the conversation toward the Captain and his adjutant.

"Achoo!! …Judging from that sneeze, someone’s talking about me, huh? Probably… that idiot son of mine. Maybe I should go check on him myself."

I still didn’t know yet—

That hell was about to manifest in reality.