Chapter 140: I Want to Leave
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 140: I Want to Leave
Standing in the center of a circular arena made of sandstone, I raised my shield and identified the enemy before me.
My opponent was a single skeleton soldier holding a bow. It was a pathetic excuse for an enemy, one I could defeat just by closing the distance and bashing it with my shield.
However, this wasn't a drill for a practical combat situation. I had to stand still and wait for the skeleton soldier to make its next move.
Indeed, the skeleton soldier and I were maintaining a considerable gap while practicing 'Arrow Catching.'
The only spectators watching our confrontation from the arena stands were the Three Villainesses. The training consisted of them controlling the skeleton soldier to fire arrows at me, which I then had to catch.
“.....”
Soon, the skeleton soldier silently notched an arrow to its string.
This was the ninety-fifth attempt. Probably. It would be the 100th soon. Trying to catch arrows under the scorching sun was absolute hell.
When is it going to fire?
About a minute had passed since the skeleton soldier raised its bow.
Breaking into a cold sweat, I concentrated all my focus to react to the incoming arrow. Another two minutes passed like that.
There was no telling when the monster would fire. Since the Villainesses fired whenever they felt like it, I had no way of knowing when the arrow would come flying, forcing me to remain tense until the moment of release.
That period of waiting imposed immense pressure and stress. The more I felt mentally cornered, the sharper my senses became.
That was likely their goal—to push my sensitivity to the limit by imposing extreme stress.
Even though I saw right through the Villainesses' scheme, I had no choice but to be dragged along by their training.
I, too, knew that this method was the most effective.
Dammit.
Mabel’s 8th Circle Protection Magic wasn't active here. If I failed to catch the incoming arrow, it would pierce right through my body.
Since this was a dream, I wouldn't die even if an arrow got lodged in my head, but the pain was identical to what I would feel in reality. That was how it had been set up.
In short, I had to repeatedly experience pain so agonizing it felt like death.
If I missed, I had to feel that pain all over again. The pain was always fresh and vivid.
You don't get used to pain. Even if you're hit in the same spot, it hurts just as much as the first time.
As the pain gnawed at me, my hands moved faster and faster in a compulsive effort to catch the arrows.
Now, my body was defending itself instinctively. As my mind gradually broke down, my physical reaction speed only increased.
The Villainesses called this a process of breaking down reason and awakening primal instinct—a process of dismantling rationality to deepen the well of instinct.
I feel like I’m going to die.
If I failed to block the arrow, I would have to roll on the ground again, forcibly pulling the shaft out of my own flesh.
If I wanted to avoid the agony, I had to succeed in this attempt. The Villainesses would mock me as I lay there with an arrow sticking out of me. If I didn't want to cry while pulling an arrow out of my body amidst their ridicule...
I had to succeed.
“Pain is the best catalyst for growth.”
“Khehehe. Big sis, look at his face. He’s totally shitting himself.”
“You don't know when it's coming, do you? Stay on your toes.”
The Villainesses jeered and mocked me from the spectator seats.
It was a tactic to break my concentration. I couldn't fall for it. The moment I turned my attention toward them, that damn skeleton would fire an arrow at me.
Shit.
Enough time passed for my mouth to go bone-dry.
The sun continued to beat down, and heat haze shimmered between the creature and me.
I was exhausted. Nevertheless, I waited. Until the moment it fired.
It’s about... time it fired...
I couldn't tell how many hours had passed. Weary from the wait, my eyes began to flutter shut, and I dozed off for a split second while standing there.
Twang—!
Along with the sound of the bowstring snapping, an arrow flew right before my eyes.
Fuck!
Instinctively, I threw my arm up. The moment my eyes perceived the arrow, my body reacted first.
But I felt a sensation slightly different from before.
This is...!
I don't know how to describe this feeling.
Have you ever experienced a moment where everything clicks perfectly?
Like when you throw a basketball and know it’s going in before you even see the result.
Like when you kick a soccer ball and feel, without having to watch it fly, that it’s a guaranteed goal.
I just knew.
The moment my fingertips brushed the tip of the arrow, I knew this attempt at Arrow Catching was a success.
My fingertips touched the arrow, and the arrow vanished.
I had succeeded in a literally perfect catch.
“I did it!!!!!!”
I had to remember this feeling, this sensation.
When you reach that moment where things align exquisitely to produce a truly ridiculous, 'perfect result'—I had to internalize this cathartic sense of satisfaction that felt like a weight being lifted off my chest.
“What?”
“He actually succeeded?”
“...Success? Already? It hasn't even been 100 times yet?”
The Villainesses looked at me as if they were bewildered.
Were those hags seriously hoping I’d keep failing?
Sorry to disappoint, but it seems my talent was a bit higher than their expectations.
“I succeeded.”
I pulled the arrow out of my Inventory. The arrow, emerging from the Subspace Pocket, shot forward and shattered the skeleton soldier’s head.
Perfect. The arrow had entered my Subspace Pocket while retaining its flight momentum, and as soon as I pulled it out, it fired in the direction I drew it.
On the ninety-fifth attempt, I finally succeeded in Arrow Catching. At the same time, I realized that the kinetic energy of the arrow didn't disappear while trapped inside the Inventory.
Of course, this was only possible because this was a dream. It would only be a true success once I pulled it off in reality.
Still, I could enjoy this joy for now, couldn't I? It was halfway to success.
“I didn't even hit a hundred! Kuaaa! It’s a success!!”
I stretched and sprawled out in the center of the arena.
Since I caught the arrow while wearing the Dynamic Vision Enhancement Goggles given to me by the Tower Lord, I felt like I could reliably catch arrows if I practiced a few more times while remembering this sensation.
I can rest now, right?
“Hmm. You don't think the training ends here, do you?”
“You just caught an arrow fired from the front by a stationary enemy! You’ve still got a long way to go!”
“I wonder if you can block it when multiple enemies are moving and firing from all directions? I’m curious, aren't you, big sis?”
“That sounds like so much fun! Let’s do it right now!”
Could I really block such erratic attacks? To be honest, I wasn't particularly curious since making that possible would require me to suffer even more than I already had, but I supposed I had to learn how to deal with it through training.
Enemies wouldn't exactly stand right in front of me and fire arrows like gentlemen.
“Catch it again.”
“This time, there are two.”
“Two!?”
The number of skeleton soldiers increased to two.
The real hell was just beginning.
It felt like roughly three months had passed.
In the dream world, where the flow of time could be manipulated at will, I had been put through the wringer for three months in a way that defied common sense.
Starting with arrows, then moving on to javelins, axes, and even shuriken and daggers. I felt like I had caught every type of object an enemy could throw using my Subspace Pocket.
Having my heart pierced, my body bisected, and my limbs severed was par for the course—I couldn't even count how many times I’d been hit. But thanks to that, I was able to perfectly master the sensation of Arrow Catching.
Under the premise that I was wearing the Dynamic Vision Enhancement Goggles, there was now nothing I couldn't catch.
“You brat. You’ve reached the pinnacle of Arrow Catching.”
“Big sis, big sis. There’s no other way now!”
“If we want to kill him with a ranged weapon... we’ll have to bring that out.”
“E-Excuse me. What are you bringing out now...? Please, just end the training already... I want to go out.”
Honestly, I just wanted to rest.
In this dream space where I didn't get hungry and didn't feel sleepy even without rest, spending three whole months solely on training was mentally exhausting.
I felt literally burnt out. After being worked like a dog for a month, I was so mentally cornered I was on the verge of collapsing.
“Try blocking this.”
“Khehehehe. If you block this, then Arrow Catching training is officially meaningless.”
“Ta-da!”
As I sat there, drained of energy, the Villainesses showed me the final weapon they would use for the Arrow Catching training.
“No! This is going too far!”
The object they brought out was a massive cannon.
A siege weapon used to tear down enemy castle walls during a siege had made its appearance.
If a human took a direct hit from that, their body would be blown to bits.
“Now! Stand up!”
“If you block this, we’ll let you wake up from this dream.”
“Khehe. Give it your best shot.”
I had to catch a cannonball to wake up?
This was a freaking nightmare. An insane nightmare where the Villainesses worked me like a dog.
“Shit. Let’s do it.”
I had to do it anyway.
I’d caught javelins thrown by trolls.
I could now catch greatswords thrown by High Orcs without much trouble.
Could I really not catch that one thing? Let’s just catch this and wake up.
“I’ll be generous and count to three before firing.”
“Alright, here we go!”
“Three!”
“Two!”
“One!”
BOOM—!!!!!
A cannonball the size of a human torso came flying.
My body was already moving forward naturally.
After catching ranged projectiles hundreds of times, I’d learned that pulling back is actually worse.
You have to move toward the incoming direction and swing your hand as if snatching it, sweeping the projectile into the Inventory.
That was the best way to snatch a projectile.
Crazy...!
But the cannonball was coming much faster than I expected.
I even tripped slightly, and my center of gravity shifted too far forward. At this rate, I was going to fall. Because my balance was broken, I felt like I would miss the catch by a tenth of a second.
If the perfect moment didn't present itself, I couldn't catch it.
If I mess up once, everything will spiral... I’ll have to suffer through at least seven more agonizing deaths...!!!
At that moment, a fierce tenacity flared up inside me.
The intense desire to finally wake up from this nightmare forced my exhausted body upright. Even as I fell from the botched step, I forced my arm to swing toward the incoming cannonball.
“...!”
“He caught that?”
“I fired that to kill him, so it’s a bit awkward if he catches it!”
“You seriously fired that to kill me?!”
If I hadn't caught it, my upper body would have been obliterated by the cannonball as I tripped.
But I managed to snatch it even while off-balance. This was a total success. I had already mastered the perfect sensation of catching projectiles.
“Ugh...”
Once I broke through the Villainesses' final test, my mind finally reached its limit. My thoughts were fragmented, unable to connect anymore.
I couldn't do this anymore. Wasn't this enough training? No matter how much I’d resolved to push myself, if I was pushed this hard, my spirit might actually break.
I wanted to rest.
“I want to leave the dream now. Hey. You Villainesses. Please just let me go now.”
I pleaded with them while lying down, lacking the strength to even stand.
Even though this dream was technically mine, it was running under the control of the Three Villainesses, so I couldn't escape it of my own will.
“Shall we call it a day?”
“Yeah. If we push him any further, he might actually break.”
“Hey. As soon as you wake up, start your physical conditioning. With your current body, this level of output seems to be the limit. Got it?”
“Yeah, yeah...”
Seeing my half-hearted response, the Villainesses finally liberated me from the nightmare, seemingly deciding that further conversation was impossible.
I had been trapped in the wasteland for a little over a month.
It was time to go outside.