Chapter 17
Chapter 17
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 17
Chapter Title: Training (1)
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Early dawn. When the brightly shining stars densely filled the night sky.
Even at this late hour, someone was heading toward the academy dormitory.
"Ugh... my body feels all stiff."
He should have stayed in the hospital a bit longer to recover from the wounds inflicted by Hardin and his gang.
But with training sessions with Serin and the upcoming midterm exams, I didn't have time to just lie around.
"I didn't expect it to hurt this much..."
When an unconscious patient suddenly announced he wanted to be discharged at dawn the next day, the doctor gave him a look as if doubting his own ears.
Unable to send him out half-dead, the doctor poured every medicinal herb and healing spell available into him.
Unlike holy power, which directly healed wounds, healing magic felt more like boosting the body's natural regeneration.
Of course, it came with side effects like some pain and temporarily reduced regenerative ability.
Well, most priests were out on the front lines anyway, so there was no choice.
As Serin had mentioned in the previous class, with the Demon King's army on the offensive, the allied forces' front lines were being pushed back, sending the priests and cardinals of the Holy Kingdom to the battlefield.
Very few priests remained in the rear.
But to receive healing from them, one had to pay a donation.
The problem was that the donation fee was far beyond what a poor academy student like me could afford...
Holy power was an innate talent that also required faith.
Naturally, priests were few and far between, and with far more people seeking healing, the donations ended up exorbitantly expensive.
"I wonder if the Saintess would heal me for free."
Unlike the Pope's decree to prioritize those who donated the most,
the Saintess followed the doctrine of treating everyone equally, helping as many people as possible.
Thanks to that, she earned the nickname "Saintess Mom" among users.
"Not that I'd actually do that."
A stranger showing up out of nowhere complaining of pain would be pretty off-putting.
I needed to get on good terms with the Saintess eventually, so I didn't want to leave a bad impression.
Anyway, had my stats gone up a bit?
Oh, Stamina went up by 2.
Running around looking for Lea must have paid off, along with getting beaten up by Hardin and his crew.
Of course, reaching the max of 100 was still a long way off.
And it wasn't easy to max them out anyway. For now, stats were rising steadily.
As long as I had the minimum specs to clear a dungeon and get the items needed before midterms, it wouldn't be a big issue.
"Gonna have to work my ass off from now on."
Time wasn't exactly abundant, so rapid growth was necessary.
And I hated stories where someone slacks off now and regrets it later.
Lost in thoughts of future plans, the academy dormitory came into view before he knew it.
I headed inside to grab my necessary belongings.
The dormitory was silent, as if everyone was asleep.
I quietly climbed the stairs, one step, two steps, suppressing my presence as much as possible.
Coming in late at night and making noise would be the last thing anyone wanted to see.
Moving carefully to avoid any sounds, he soon reached his door.
"Arien's probably asleep too, right?"
No need to knock and wake him up.
Morning would come soon enough. He could just grab his stuff and head out.
With some time to spare, maybe a light workout—thinking this, I cautiously opened the door and stepped in.
"...Why are you coming back now?"
Arien, who didn't seem to have slept at all, was sitting on his bed, waiting for me.
His expression was curt, like a family member grilling someone who came home late at dawn.
"Ahaha, were you worried about me, Arien?"
"Shut up. Why would I worry about you?"
Tch, always grumbling but soft at heart.
Of course, if a guy acted like that, it'd be creepy.
But coming from Arien, it made me feel oddly proud.
The guy who had told him to "get lost" when they first met now worried about me.
Was this how parents felt watching their child grow day by day...?
"Don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong, you weakling. What gave you the confidence to pull that stunt?"
"I wanted to call you too, but it would've taken too long. And if I didn't step in, no one else would help."
The original plan was to call Arien and heroically save Lea to get them closer.
But that would've delayed finding Lea.
In fact, a little later and Lea might have gotten hurt.
It was a shame he couldn't connect Arien and Lea, but he had no regrets about his actions.
"...I was so scared something might happen to you."
"Huh? I didn't hear that, Arien. Could you say it again?"
"I didn't say anything. Don't do stupid stuff next time. Help is something strong people give."
With that, Arien, looking exhausted, lay down and pulled the covers over himself.
What the heck. He's got me all curious.
I swore he said something, but it was too quiet to catch.
Probably not important anyway.
Seeing Arien's blanket rise and fall as he quickly fell asleep,
I washed up roughly, changed clothes for tomorrow's classes, and headed to the academy training room.
After finishing my dawn workout,
I arrived at Class D for lessons and was waiting ahead of time.
"Does Lian just eat and gym or what...?"
I thought it'd be empty so early,
but Lucas and Lian were already working out, like they lived in the gym.
Entering the training room, I got their awestruck looks, feeling soul-pierced...
But somehow, they stopped short of injuring my still-recovering body.
While basking in the warm morning sunlight waiting for Serin,
"Huh? Rowen! You already got discharged?"
A bright, cheerful voice called out to me from ahead.
Just hearing it warmed my heart. I knew the owner.
Sure enough, opening his eyes confirmed Lea approaching with a smile.
A brief flicker of surprise crossed her face, as if she hadn't expected my discharge yet, but she quickly lit up happily.
"Ehehe, mind if I sit next to you?"
"Of course. What kind of friends ask that?"
Lea flashed a mischievous grin, as if she knew I'd say that, and plopped down beside me.
"But Rowen, why'd you get discharged so soon? The nurse said you needed a full week of rest..."
"Gotta get stronger."
Lea looked at me with worried eyes.
She must have been through a lot herself, yet here she was worrying about me. It showed her warm heart.
"That fight really drove it home. How weak I am. And I almost couldn't protect you."
"Eek... Still, don't push yourself. It hurts me when you get hurt..."
Lea bowed her head sadly, continuing carefully.
Recalling yesterday, her voice trembled with tears.
"Hearing Estelle yesterday made me realize... I never thanked you once. I'm a bad person who just makes you suffer without giving anything back..."
"No, Lea. I'm really fine. And thanks between friends? Seeing you smile is enough for me."
Lea had a lot of tears bottled up.
Behind her constant bright smiles, she must have had worries I didn't know about.
Better to let it out like this than bottle it up.
Hearing him, Lea scrunched her face, wiped her tears with her sleeve,
then smiled purely, looking truly happy.
"See? You look way prettier smiling."
"...Eek."
Smiling suited her much better than a sad face.
She blushed and looked away for some reason.
Probably still thinking about yesterday.
"...How did I end up liking a playboy like you..."
"Huh?"
"Don't say that to other girls!"
Was my hearing going bad lately?
Sometimes things just didn't register...
And telling me not to say that to other girls.
I was just talking normally.
My way of speaking must come off wrong to girls.
Even before possession, talking to girls made them blush, panic, and stutter.
Good thing Lea was so kind to stay friends...
Thus, endlessly moved by Lea's generosity, I swallowed tears inwardly.
Oblivious to her watching me with a strange expression...