Rest in the Meadow
Even if it's just a little bit is fine, the students of the Hero Academy were still sweating profusely today, working hard.
That massive, evil-filled tower that hadn't fallen yet loomed in the distance. In this imminent moment of fate, they were determined to save the world, their friends, and themselves. They didn't question it for even a moment. This was what they had to do. Even though the hero's destiny was extremely grueling and lonely, since it was a duty that someone had to fulfill, they were willing to give everything they had.
“Um… Instructor?”
Originally, Enril would have been training alongside the students, especially with the new approach she had just learned—the Mana Cultivation Technique. She had prepared herself to pour even more effort into mastering it freely. She had planned to cut down on meal times and split her sleep periods just to train relentlessly.
But the place she found herself in now was neither the internal training ground nor any private mana chamber—
“Am I really allowed to do this?”
“I told you multiple times that I gave permission.”
“That’s not it! Why are we here instead of training…?”
Looking around in confusion, Enril found herself at a complete loss. The spot she stood in was a vast green meadow where a gentle breeze carried the scent of spring. Sparkling sunlight melted into warmth, and the faint fragrance of wildflowers blooming here and there filled the air.
“Why. I chose the most quiet and secluded place. Did it not suit your taste?”
“That’s not it! So why did I come here with you…?”
“I came to rest. Then, shall we train a bit even here?”
It would have been better if I had done that. Defeated again by the one who couldn't bring down the tower, the owner of that place. Even the one who had received a life-saving grace from himself, did he have the right to rest?
Training, training, and more training. No matter how hard it was, the only obligation was to clench his teeth and become stronger.
“Enril.”
As if he knew every thought running through her mind, Rion clicked his tongue and continued.
“Say nothing now, think of nothing. Just rest. Feel the wind touching your skin, smell the flowers' fragrance lingering at the tip of your nose, and take in the sparkling world with your eyes.”
“But Instructor….”
“As an instructor, this is an order. Rest. That is your task for today.”
“Still….”
“Answer.”
“I understand….”
With a very strict tone, Rion forced her to answer. He sat Enril down on the grass and told her he would go around the area for a moment.
“You’re not coming with me?”
“The one who needs to rest is you, not me. I’ll go around for a bit, so stay comfortable. Ah. I won’t accept any other opinions. I said it clearly. This is an order as an instructor, a kind of training process. Rest. Enril.”
With those words, Rion suddenly left the spot.
Thanks to that, Enril was left alone in a very awkward situation. It wasn't that she didn't want to be alone, but rather that this moment felt unfamiliar. Since being selected as a hero, when had she ever been in such a peaceful place? The academy was a place to prepare for fighting demonic beasts and bringing down the tower. She couldn't even think of peaceful daily life, and she didn't have the time for it. And when she left that place, she always had to face terrifying battles.
Warm sunlight, gentle breeze, subtle fragrance, sparkling world. Enril, who was blankly feeling all of that with her whole body, slowly wrapped her arms around her knees.
“Rest…”
She had thought resting was an absurd thing to do. Since she hadn't fulfilled her destiny, she thought she had to go further. To complete the task as a hero or meet her end. Until then, she had vowed never to rest or stop.
“Rest, Enril.”
As Rion walked around the area, checking for any possible demonic beasts, Enril thought of him. For someone other than herself. For the hero who had returned defeated. Thinking of her instructor who was enduring invisible hardship for her—
“Pfft—”
Enril couldn't help but smile. It was a bit strange and unbelievable, yet not unpleasant. A little, yes, it was good.
“Huff!”
Unlike before, she took a deep and large breath. Warmth, softness, fragrance—all of it filled her lungs together. And when she exhaled, both her head and chest, which had been hazy, became much clearer. She had never felt such lightness or such refreshing sensation. It seemed that all the confusion had finally been sorted out a little.
“Did Instructor say to rest because of this?”
No one in the world had ever said such words. Rest? How could one say that? For a hero, stopping meant the world's destruction was approaching. It was something neither the one saying it nor the hero herself could accept. But Rion willingly said it. To the one who had failed to fulfill the duty and hadn't completed the destiny. To the incomplete hero who still hadn't done the duty. So, you must rest, he seemed to say, that you have the right to do so.
“Sleepy.”
Suddenly, such a thought came to mind. Sleep suddenly poured out. Trying desperately to resist, she couldn't win against it. She had trained to endure basic desires and physiological phenomena at the academy. She had reached a level where she could fight demonic beasts without sleeping for days. It was truly surprising that she couldn't overcome even a short nap.
“Take a nap.”
From behind, a very emotionless voice came. But to Enril, it was the warmest whisper in the world. Turning her head slightly, she saw Rion sitting with his back to her.
“I’ll be right here.”
As soon as she heard that, her eyes naturally closed. Enril herself no longer resisted, surrendering to the sleep.
“Thank you, Instructor Rion…”
Believing that the one who willingly offered his back would stay until she woke.
*
The breathing sounds from beyond her back gradually became even. The mana fluctuations calmed down. Finally, when Enril fell into a deep sleep, Rion smiled.
“It seems perfect. Good, good. Very perfect.”
The reason he had suddenly taken Enril to this distant place was to resolve one of the problems with the Mana Cultivation Technique. He had been compressing and refining the mana by forcefully slamming it inside. By repeating that action, he changed the mana heart's constitution and made it aware of the change. So that from now on, whenever mana was input, the body would react automatically to the technique. Without the person trying to do it, the body would naturally enter the mana cultivation technique. Currently, it was something learned through training, but later it would become natural like breathing. This was the foundation of the Mana Cultivation Technique, more important than quantity over quality. Of course, this was not everything. It was just a simplified explanation. And there were countless things he had to do in the process. For example, fixing the chaotic mana and its center at the moment like now.
“This was the perfect place. No humans around to disturb, good scenery to stabilize mind and body, no monsters or demonic beasts wandering nearby, and very abundant pure mana.”
Enril's body after learning the Mana Cultivation Technique was in a very unstable state. She didn't know it herself, but since she had slammed the new method into her mana heart, adaptation wouldn't happen. What was needed at this timing was natural fusion. And that fusion would achieve maximum efficiency when the mind and body were extremely stable. And if the mana was abundant there, it would be perfect. That's why Rion had brought Enril here. It wasn't that he said rest because it was an instructor's order or something. Everything was an action aimed at her becoming stronger. To one day face the Tower Master in a fair duel, himself. To finally stab the hero's sword into his heart and restore everything to normal.
“Let me see. Is it going well?”
Taking advantage of Enril's sleep, Rion secretly checked her mana heart. Fortunately, the fluctuating mana and the shaking mana heart had calmed down. If he let it continue like this for a while, it would surely settle firmly. His head nodded on its own. Since the plan was progressing as expected, he felt relieved. It was said that the beginning is half the battle, but he hadn't properly grasped that half. That's why he had unconsciously moved too much.
“Ugh…”
As the back she was leaning on shook, Enril moved restlessly. Startled, Rion quickly stiffened his body and held his breath. To make sure she didn't wake, he was very cautious.
“It’s not just fatigue or sleepiness that’s coming now. It was the sleep that inevitably came during the process of mana fusion and the technique taking root. It was only due to the changing mana heart. In this process, to achieve perfection without any gaps, one must always take sleep. This was like, yes, taking a break while cooking. If disturbed, the results of all the hard work could be ruined.”
“Did she not wake? Phew. Good.”
Thinking that it was worse than anything to ruin it with his own hands, Rion continued to support Enril as time passed. In fact, Enril had woken from a very brief sleep, but he didn't know it.
“…”
Feeling her body move cautiously, as if checking if she would wake. Enril, who had clearly noticed that Rion had offered his back without even holding his breath, felt gratitude or something else. With that, Enril fell into a deep sleep once more.