Morning Greeting (3)

I must have dozed off for a bit. When I opened my eyes, Erinn was lying right beside me. For a moment I couldn't process what I was looking at. I just stared blankly at her before my brain finally caught up and I shouted.

"You… what are you doing here!?"

"Hmm~? You were sleeping, so."

"What does me sleeping have to do with you being here…!"

It wasn't just the shock. The whole situation was a headache on several levels. Erinn's behavior was the last thing my already complicated thoughts needed.

Of course, unlike Letisia, Erinn only saw me as a valued comrade… but she was still devastatingly beautiful, and there was no way I could just ignore that.

Whether she knew it or not, Erinn tilted her head like she couldn't see the problem. I was so floored I had to ask.

"You really think this is fine? If Clara saw you like this…"

"Clara went shopping with Letisia."

"…Huh?"

"Your lizard's asleep too~. So if I wanted to make sure nothing weird happened, I had to stay right next to you… and you were out cold, weren't you? Didn't even notice someone crawling up beside you like a bear♡"

…So she was here for my safety. Once she put it that way, I couldn't really argue. Still, one thing didn't add up.

"Th-then sitting next to me would've been enough, right? Why are you lying down?"

If protection was the goal, being nearby should have covered it. There was no reason to climb into the bed and lie there with me. When I pointed that out, Erinn giggled.

"Because if I'm right next to you when you wake up, you'll freak out just like this~? Your reactions are hilarious, pfft♡"

"……."

So she'd been doing this just to mess with me. This little mesugaki…

I clenched my fist. Then, while she was still snickering, I brought it down on her forehead.

"Ow!?"

Erinn squinted, then opened her eyes and gave me a look that said what the hell was that. I felt zero guilt. She'd started it. I was in the right.

"You started it."

Apparently even Erinn agreed my response was fair, because she didn't get mad about the forehead flick. Instead, she immediately started looking for a new angle to needle me with.

"So you hit a delicate little girl…? Worst~♡"

"Delicate little girl? Even if you lined up a hundred of me, you'd still be stronger."

"…Hmph. You wouldn't have hit Clara if she did this."

"Why are you suddenly bringing up Clara?"

You and Clara are not the same person.

I stared at her, dumbfounded. Erinn scowled back for a second, then seemed to lose interest. She turned her head and sat up.

"…You were sleeping pretty hard, though. Is that woman working you into the ground?"

"That woman" meant Agresia. She was probably still worried about the ugly history between Agresia and this body.

I shook my head slightly.

"Helping with her research isn't that tiring. Learning magic is the hard part."

"What, that's just because you're a dummy~♡"

"…I'm not a dummy."

This girl was asking for another forehead flick.

"So."

"Hm?"

"Any progress?"

"…Obviously."

That, I could answer with confidence. A good teacher really did make all the difference. Ever since I'd started learning from Agresia, Lord of the Magic Tower, I'd improved a lot.

See? My stats had changed quite a bit.

Without even using the Crystal of Aether I'd obtained last time, pure effort alone had raised my mana by seventeen points. All that mental work learning magic had even bumped my intelligence by one.

The gradual gains in strength and vitality were probably from the occasional training sessions at the martial arts academy. Nothing dramatic — only nine points each — but still.

Considering mana is what I'm focusing on right now, it's not bad.

More important were the skill levels. Mana Circulation and Mana Recovery had each gone up by one, which meant I could spend mana a little more freely and recover it faster.

I felt bad saying it after how earnestly Letisia had taught me, but when it came to magic instruction, no one could match the Lord of the Magic Tower.

"I've been improving a lot."

"…So it's helping. Good enough, then."

"?"

Good enough for what? What was she going to say if it hadn't been helping…

Not that there's any way it wouldn't help.

This was the Lord of the Magic Tower's teaching. Worrying about it was pointless.

Even so, I still wasn't at a level that matched Erinn and the rest of the party. I made sure she didn't get the wrong idea.

"That doesn't mean I've gotten strong enough to be satisfied. I still need more…"

"Hmm, I haven't said a word yet~?"

"…Just in case."

"Don't worry~."

Erinn said.

"If you don't want it, I have no intention of forcing you."

"…Alright."

I nodded. Erinn, who usually grinned with that mischievous spark, smiled with a strangely bitter edge. Then she asked,

"Going back to sleep?"

"…No."

If I slept again she'd definitely mess with me. Better to just get up.

"I was thinking of heading to the martial arts academy."

"Wouldn't it be better to wait until Clara gets ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠back~?"

"You're here anyway."

Going off alone with Letisia would have been a different story, but Erinn had no feelings for me beyond camaraderie. Going with her shouldn't be a problem.

But the look on Erinn's face when she heard that was… complicated.

"…You want to go with me?"

"What, am I allowed to go alone?"

"Absolutely not."

"See? Then I don't have a choice."

Erinn stared at me blankly for a second. I had no idea why she was looking at me like that, but nothing I'd said was wrong, so I stood my ground.

"Haa."

She let out a small sigh, then nodded.

"…Fine. Let's go."

I wondered what the sigh was about, but since she'd agreed to come, I didn't press it.

"This works out, actually."

"What does?"

"I've been curious how you train. Figured I'd see just how inefficiently you're doing it~♡"

…Then just teach me already.

"I'm just building stamina and strength. What's there to be efficient about?"

"I'll know when I see it~."

I had a bad feeling I was about to get an earful.

But I'd been the one to suggest it, so I couldn't back out now.

"If it looks completely wrong, just tell me."

"…Me?"

"It's not like you've got anything else to do while you're stuck here."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

Something I'd noticed lately: these girls mostly just hovered around me without doing much of anything. Erinn didn't argue the point either.

If anything, she seemed interested. She smirked.

"You sure about that~?"

"Works for me."

"It's gonna be rough, though~? A stamina scrub like you might drop dead♡"

"…I'm not that much of a scrub."

I'd hit a vitality of 130, thank you very much. Compared to her it was still nothing, sure.

Even so, if I got the chance, I genuinely wanted her to watch my training. This wasn't just anyone — this was the Hero offering to help. Of course I wanted it.

"Hey, Albrecht."

"Yeah?"

"……Never mind."

"?"

She'd started like she was about to ask something, then didn't. She shook her head.

"Quit zoning out and let's go already~♡"

"Let me change first, and I'll tell Caesius where we're headed."

"Sure~."

Erinn and I arrived at the Kalari Payat Martial Arts Academy. Cooperating with the Magic Tower meant I couldn't attend classes anymore, but I still used the facilities here to work out.

I showed Erinn where I trained.

"This is where I exercise."

"Hmm."

"Not impressed?"

"No~? The facilities look solid."

Erinn gave it a passing grade.

"You're training somewhere proper, at least."

So the facilities were fine. Next I'd just show her my usual routine. I picked up the Geumswaebong I'd brought from home.

Erinn eyed it.

"I was wondering why you brought that club…"

"I don't really have time to learn a proper weapon, so I figured I'd use this instead."

"It's fine, but the reach is so short it doesn't look like it'd be useful much~?"

"Ah, generally speaking, yeah… but it's for special cases."

"Special?"

I explained.

"Against people who fight with mana-infused weapons, I suppress their mana, close the distance, and beat them with this."

"……Pfft♡"

"Why are you laughing…?"

Was it that weird? When I asked if she thought it was a bad idea, Erinn shook her head.

"No, the idea's just funny~ Honestly, it's a pretty solid method. Easy to handle, too~."

"Right?"

Hearing something positive was a relief. I raised the club and started thrashing a wooden training dummy.

"Hold it. Stop~."

"What?"

"Dummy~♡ You trying to wreck your shoulder~?"

Erinn reached out and grabbed my forearm. I almost flinched. Her hand was harder than I'd expected.

Calluses. I was wearing a thin top for the sweat, but even accounting for that, the roughness came through clearly. From the outside her hands looked pretty — I never would have guessed the palms were this rough.

It was a quiet, indirect reminder of everything she'd put herself through to become a Hero. The fact that a country girl like Erinn had become this powerful… it all came from a background like this.

Erinn guided my arm with practiced ease and corrected my stance.

"Like this. So you don't hurt yourself."

"Uh…"

"Hm?… Pfft♡"

She suddenly laughed and said,

"What~? Did I startle you by getting so close~?"

"…What?"

"You're staring at me all blank~♡"

Ah.

"…That's not it. Your hands were harder than I expected. Just surprised me."

"……Ah."

At my explanation, Erinn gave a slightly awkward smile and pulled her hand back.

"What's wrong?"

She seemed embarrassed, so I asked. Erinn muttered like she was making an excuse.

"A girl's hands being all rough is weird, right…? So I just~."

"What's weird about it."

"…It's not weird?"

"It's not like I don't know who you are."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

I answered simply.

"Those are the result of your hard work. Why would I think they're weird? If anything, they're cool."

…Why was I suddenly so good with words? Even I had to admit that was a solid answer.

Erinn stared at me blankly for a moment after hearing it.

Was she moved? Well, who else would say something nice to a brat who acted like that all the time. Really, it was just me. Only me.

I was busy congratulating myself when Erinn smirked.

"…Pfft, did you think saying that would make you look cool~?"

"…Why are you saying weird stuff all of a sudden?"

…Did she actually have mind-reading powers. Sometimes it felt like she could see straight through my thoughts, and it was terrifying.

"It is cool~♡"

"…What?"

I looked at her in surprise. Erinn giggled.

"I said it's cool."

"…."

"Not a lot of people can say something like that. Guess Clara has her reasons for liking you~?"

……So that was what this was about. I almost — no, I really almost got flustered. Erinn was still snickering, and looking at her, I felt a little sheepish myself.

"…That came out of nowhere."

"Why~? Embarrassed 'cause I complimented you~? Pfft♡"

"No."

I denied it shortly and went back to training. Fortunately, Erinn seemed to decide further talk would just get in the way, and she didn't drag it out.

Aside from a few bits of small talk during the session, the training time passed peacefully.

…Or so I thought.

"So this is where you were."

That was before a low, tension-thickening voice cut through the air toward us.

"They say the darkest place is under the lamp. I should have searched Parvata first."

The man had dark blue hair, cut rough like he'd hacked it off himself. Beside him stood a beautiful woman who looked like a mage — soft purple hair and green eyes.

I knew who they were. Of course I did. We'd never met, but as a player of Dungeon in Evil, there was no way I wouldn't recognize those faces.

Even if I'd somehow gotten the face wrong, there was no mistaking the massive spear strapped to his back.

I tensed a little.

"…I think they're talking about us?"

"……Hah."

Erinn recognized them too. Hostility rolled off her as she spoke.

"You chased us all the way here. What are you, a stalker~?"

"This is no time for jokes."

He was the Hero who wielded the Holy Spear — the holy relic ranked alongside the Holy Sword itself as one of the greatest.

"Hero Erinn."

Karna.

"I have a few questions. Answer them truthfully."