Chapter 31 - Memorial Flames and the Path to Strength
Memorial Flames and the Path to Strength
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Dusky90
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: Memorial Flames and the Path to Strength
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“How could I possibly….”
Camille couldn’t bring himself to accept Otto’s offer so easily.
“You’re also Father’s son, Elder Brother. Father thought of you as his own son. So he’ll be happy if we light the incense together.”
“But….”
“You don’t want to? If you don’t, then forget it.”
"....."
“I only said it because I thought Father would be happy if you lit the incense with me, Elder Brother.”
“…I’ll do it.”
Camille accepted Otto’s proposal.
“We’ll hold the memorial rite three days from now, so get ready.”
“I’ll follow your command.”
Three days later.
The Kingdom of Lota held a memorial and rite for Lord Orix and his wife.
Otto and Camille lifted the censer together and lit the incense within.
For Camille, once only a servant born of commoners, this signified his formal acceptance as a true member of the Scuderia family.
‘Father. Otto has succeeded in avenging you. And he has changed so much. He has turned over a new leaf and is showing the qualities of a fine ruler. So please… rest peacefully….’
As Camille prayed for Lord Orix’s repose, a sense of calm settled within him.
Once the memorial rite concluded.
“Sir Camille.”
“Yes, I am here.”
At Otto’s call, Camille knelt on one knee.
“I grant you a surname.”
“Huh…?”
“From today onward, I recognize Knight Camille as an official member of the Scuderia family and permit you to use the Scuderia surname.”
"....!"
“Now you really are my brother. Camille de Scuderia.”
“Your Highness…!”
“But it’s still a fact that you’re my subordinate, so don’t think about committing insubordination.”
“I am… endlessly grateful.”
At that moment, a notification window popped up before Otto.
[Notification: Camille de Scuderia’s affection toward you has shifted to 'Absolute Loyalty'!]
From now on, Camille would no longer oppose or distrust Otto.
He might still think Otto is pathetic at times, but he was resolved to lay down his own life without hesitation for Otto’s sake.
* * *
Once the memorial rite concluded, Otto hosted a banquet to reward the palace staff who had endured so much.
In truth, the ones who suffered most were not Otto himself but the people of the palace.
The maids and attendants had endured no small amount of torment under Angeles’s atrocities, so it was only fitting to hold a banquet to console them.
The next day.
“Hm?”
When Olive, the head maid, went to wake Otto, she blinked in surprise to find him already awake early in the morning.
Otto was notoriously fond of sleeping in, and unless someone dragged him out of bed, he usually didn’t wake until nearly midday.
“You’re already up? And you even folded your blanket neatly?”
“If you want to change the world, you have to wake up early and start by folding your blanket.”
“That’s a good mindset. But where are you headed?”
“I’m going to take part in the morning training. Now that the curse is gone, I figured it’s time to start working out again.”
“Oh?”
“I’ll be going now.”
As soon as Otto changed into his training clothes, he headed to the drill ground.
Every morning, Instructor Spooner oversaw physical training there, and Otto was heading out to take part in it.
‘I need to raise my physical condition first.’
The [Utterly pathetic man] curse had been lifted and he’d reached level 30, but that didn’t mean his health suddenly improved.
He had grown dangerously underweight, with barely any muscle to speak of.
In that state, it went without saying that his strength and endurance were abysmal.
‘With my body in this state, even if I open the Sanctuary, I won’t be able to survive inside it.’
Opening the [Sanctuary] was only the first step.
To claim the ancient powers within, one needed to be at least level 70.
So for now, the most important thing was to focus on raising his level while strengthening his body.
Naturally, there was some fear as well.
‘Will I be able to keep up?’
Otto had completed his military service, but even during active duty his stamina hadn’t been very good.
Since he’d been in a non-combat unit, physical training hadn’t been a major part of his service.
And after being discharged, he hadn’t stepped into a gym even once, so of course he felt anxious.
‘Ah, whatever. It’s not like it’ll kill me.’
Otto marched toward the drill yard with determined strides.
If he wanted to survive in this world, he had to grow stronger….
* * *
“S-Salute!”
Even the legendary Instructor Spooner seemed a bit startled to see Otto show up.
“Staff Sergeant Spooner! Morning training is being prepared!”
“At ease.”
“At ease!”
As Otto returned the salute, Spooner asked.
“Your Highness, what brings you here?”
“I’m here for physical training. I plan to join starting today.”
“Huh…?”
“Why? Is that a problem?”
“It’s not that you can’t, but… Your Highness is the king of this Kingdo....”
“That doesn’t matter. They say a nation’s strength comes from its fitness. Rank and status don’t matter when you’re working out. We’ll just sweat together.”
“That may be true, but… my training style is…”
“Treat me exactly like the soldiers. Make it hard.”
“B-But….”
“It’s an order.”
Otto drew a clear line.
“While we train together, I’m giving up rank and status. Just treat me like an ordinary soldier and push me as hard as you want.”
“U-Understood.”
And three minutes later, Otto regretted everything.
“Hahk! Huff! Hahk! Hahk! Huuuhk! Uegh! Ueoohhh!”
Barely three minutes into the 5-kilometer run, Otto was already wheezing and lagging at the back.
“W-wait… for… me… hahk! Huuuhk! Ueoohhh!”
Just as he was about to drop to the ground.
“What do you think you’re doing!”
An instructor came over and shoved Otto forward.
“Trainee, you can’t even run five kilometers? Is your stamina really that low?!”
“M-my… breath… huff… I-I’m… out of… huff… huff… air….”
“Five kilometers is something you can finish on willpower alone! Get up! Why are you sitting down! Will you collapse like that on a battlefield too? Will you just sit there and die while the enemy’s coming after you?!”
“N-No, sir!”
“Then run! Move it!”
“Huff! Huff! Hahk! Huff!”
In the end, Otto was the very last among everyone who started the run to make it back to the drill yard.
*Thud!*
As soon as he crossed back into the drill yard, he collapsed from sheer exhaustion.
‘The guy who killed Condor can’t even handle a 5-kilometer run?’
‘The one who was said to use sword-energy techniques… why is he like this?’
The soldiers vividly remembered Otto defeating Condor in a one-on-one fight, and using sword-energy techniques to take down a chimera.
Who would have imagined that someone that strong would have such awful stamina that he could barely finish a 5-kilometer run….
The soldiers had no way of knowing that Otto’s strength came from equipment, so of course they were confused.
“Huff… Haaaaa….”
Otto lay sprawled out on the drill ground, gasping for breath.
But he wasn’t allowed to rest.
“Alright! Next is push-ups! Nice and easy—20 reps, 5 sets! Begin!”
“Start!”
The push-up session started.
“M-my arms… won’t… move… grrk!”
“What are you doing! Get up! Push harder! I’ll help you! Grit your teeth and push! Move!”
“Hrrrraaaaagh!”
But the push-ups were only the beginning.
“Everyone, hang from the pull-up bar! Begin!”
“Start!”
“We’re doing pull-ups now! If you can’t finish all 20, you’ll be eating your meal up on the bar, understood?!”
“Argh!”
Once the push-ups were over and the pull-ups started, Otto couldn’t manage even one.
He’d barely scraped together 100 push-ups with the instructor’s help, but his arms were so drained that he slipped right off the pull-up bar with a thud!
“Medic! Move His High.. no! Move the trainee to the infirmary at once!”
“Yes, sir!”
In the end, Otto couldn’t finish the morning training.
He had the determination, but his body just wasn’t able to follow through.
* * *
That evening.
“Ugh… nnngh….”
Otto ended up bedridden after pushing himself too hard during the morning training.
Regardless of his level, the aftereffects of the curse had left his basic stamina dangerously low.
“Is it true you collapsed during morning training?”
“When I suddenly tried to do it, my body just wouldn’t cooperate… ugh.”
“You probably won’t even be able to get up tomorrow. Muscle soreness always hits harder the day after you work out.”
“Y-Yeah, that makes sense.”
“I’ll help you.”
“Huh…?”
“Clench your teeth.”
“What do you mean, all of a sudd—”
At that moment.
*Smack!*
Olive’s large fist slammed into Otto’s back.
“Keuhk!”
Otto almost vomited from the blow.
It felt like his insides had been rattled.
Otto’s pitifully weak body simply couldn’t handle the sheer force behind Olive’s punch.
“W-Why did you suddenly hit me…?”
Right then.
[Notification: You have received treatment (physical)!]
[Notification: Muscle soreness restored by 1!]
[Notification: Fatigue has recovered by 1!]
An unfamiliar notification window appeared before Otto’s eyes.
‘This counts as treatment? She’s just beating me up.’
But he had no time to dwell on it.
*Thud!* *Smack!*
Olive’s fists started pounding every part of Otto’s body.
“Argh! Aaaahhhh!”
“Quit whining! Hold still!”
“Gyaaah!”
“Why are you squealing like a pig being slaughtered! Keep your mouth shut and endure it!”
“Aaaaagh!”
Olive rained punches without mercy on every part of Otto’s body that had major muscle groups... his back, stomach, chest, arms, and legs.
[Notification: You have received treatment (physical)!]
[Notification: Muscle pain has recovered by 1!]
[Notification: Fatigue has recovered by 1!]
The results were astonishing.
[Notification: Muscle soreness has been completely healed!]
[Notification: Fatigue has been completely relieved!]
[Notification: Strength has increased!]
[Notification: Muscular endurance has increased!]
[Notification: Cardio-respiratory function improved!]
After about 30 minutes of being pounded as if dust were being knocked up on a rainy day, Otto managed to fully recover from the muscle soreness and fatigue he got during morning training.
He even experienced a bit of growth, with small increases in strength, endurance, and cardio capacity.
“How is it?”
“It doesn’t hurt at all. I actually feel refreshed?”
“This is a traditional healing method passed down in our tribe.”
“Oh! That’s incredible!”
“But this isn’t the end.”
“Huh…?”
“Your whole body is out of balance right now. Your neck leans forward, your shoulders are rounded, your lower back arches too much, and even your left–right balance is uneven.”
“Really? Then what do I….”
“Lie down.”
Olive gestured toward the bed.
“R-Right now?”
“If I tell you to lie down, then lie down! Why so many questions?”
“Argh!”
Otto was forced onto the bed by Olive.
“Clench your teeth and bear it.”
With that, Olive climbed right onto Otto’s back as he lay facedown.
“W-What are you doing…?”
At the moment Otto grew flustered.
*Crack!*
“Aaaaaargh!”
*Crack!* *Crack!*
“S-Someone... aaaaagh!”
*Crack!*
Olive used her big hands to massage Otto’s back, shoulders, waist, thighs, and calves, working every area evenly.
[Notification: Skeleton realigned!]
[Notification: Knotted muscles loosened!]
[Notification: Muscles becoming more flexible!]
[Notification: Joint mobility increased!]
As it turned out, Olive was not only good at physical treatment but also a highly skilled masseuse.
“Aaaaaaaaargh!!!”
The only problem was that the person receiving the treatment was in excruciating pain….
“Your Highness!”
Just then, Camille rushed into the bedroom after hearing Otto’s scream.
“What’s goi...”
Camille froze when he saw Otto trapped under Olive, flailing helplessly.
Then he backed away awkwardly, step by step.
“M-My apologies. I’ll… leave you two to your intimate moment….”
“Hey! What do you mean intimate... aaaaagh!”
Otto couldn’t clarify anything to Camille.
Olive’s massage was so painful that all he could do was scream.