Their Training
“Hmm~”
Varis’s reaction lingered in my mind. ‘Whoa?!’
‘S-sorry! Arnold! Anyway!! How about we call it a day?!’
‘Yeah… that sounds good!’
It was odd how he’d bolted from training like he was fleeing, but what really threw me for a loop was that moment when we tumbled over. Squish—
‘Squish…?’
That sensation brushing my fingertips. I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what I’d touched. But the soft, yielding feel had traveled straight from my fingers to my brain, nagging at my memory over and over.
“……”
It didn’t feel bad. But it didn’t sit right either. More like an itch I couldn’t scratch, a nagging doubt churning in my head.
‘Does a guy even have a part that feels like that?’
I shook my head lightly, but the question wouldn’t budge.
“What the hell was it?”
The more I thought about it, the weirder it got. It was like gripping a water balloon. But Varis was lean at a glance—no bulky muscles or extra padding. His build didn’t match that kind of softness.
‘Then… no way… that spot…?’
A certain part suddenly came to mind. The one place on a man that might feel soft and pliant.
“No way…”
Nah, that was ridiculous. Not because I didn’t want to believe it—logically, it was impossible. I’d just said it myself: it enveloped my whole hand. Hell, one hand couldn’t even cover it all. No way it was that.
‘So what did I touch…?’
I replayed the memory slowly. If I had to compare… it felt like groping a woman’s breast. And Varis wasn’t wearing armor then, so a protrusion like that could fit.
But that made even less sense. Simple reason.
“W-why are you staring like that……?”
Varis was a guy. As someone who knew he was the original story’s protagonist, I was crystal clear on that. No way his chest felt like that.
“Nah, it’s nothing…”
What could it possibly be? Maybe I’d misremembered, twisted the sensation in my head. It was a stretch, but the most realistic guess.
“Master, what are you thinking so hard about?”
My mind was getting messier by the second. But Eily’s head-tilt and curious question snapped me out of it. No point dwelling.
“Nothing, don’t worry about it. Just had something on my mind.”
I shook my head side to side to clear the cobwebs. It still bugged me, but I resolved to let it go.
“Really? If you’ve got worries, tell your Eily anytime! I’m ready to take on everything about you!”
No sense racking my brain alone—answers wouldn’t come. And letting something this trivial mess up my day was foolish. It nagged a bit, but time to drop it.
“Arnold, something happen with Varis?”
Even after our spar, Varis’s vibe was off. Slumped over the table like a deflated rice cake, far from his usual bubbly energy. He looked like an overworked office drone, utterly dejected.
“Yeah, what’s his deal? Bad backstory or something?”
“Nyaa~”
Everyone else noticed his gloom too. Elisha eyed him curiously with her face on the table, sighing. Melina tilted her head with intrigued eyes. Rathus mewed softly, wagging his tail in sympathy.
“N-no, I’m fine……”
Varis said that, but his body stayed limp. His flushed cheeks stood out, and whenever our eyes met, he whipped his head away like a guilty thief.
“Come to think of it, didn’t you two slip away alone today, Master?”
Eily tapped her chin with a finger. At her words, Elisha and Melina’s eyes lit up with interest.
“Hmm, really? What happened?”
“Alone with Arnold?”
A hint of jealousy tinged their tones. Like even a guy spending time with me meant something.
“Nothing big. He was moping about being too weak, so I sparred with him as a partner.”
I leaned back in my chair, arms crossed, playing it casual.
“Hmm, training with Arnold, huh~”
Elisha pondered, then smirked.
“Then Arnold, mind sparring with me too sometime?”
A bad feeling stirred. And sure enough, she tacked on a weird condition.
“If I land a solid hit on you, grant me one wish—like last time!”
Ridiculous proposal. But surprisingly, the first to react wasn’t me.
“Hold on. How’d you jump to that? What does your training have to do with my master granting wishes?”
It was Eily, firing off a fierce protest. Her sharp eyes pierced Elisha. Her voice was firm, laced with fierce loyalty and jealousy toward her master.
Elisha faltered at Eily’s intensity but quickly recovered, lifting her chin confidently.
“Because I’m Arnold’s fiancée! Getting stronger helps him as my fiancé, right? And a little reward motive makes me try harder, don’t you think?”
She tossed her head back without hesitation, drawing every eye in the room. Elisha flashed a smug, satisfied grin.
“Ugh…!”
Eily bit her lip in frustration. Her gaze stabbed like a needle, unyielding pride burning in her eyes.
“Fine. Then I’m joining too.”
Eily declared firmly, shooting to her feet and glaring at Elisha like she’d thrown down the gauntlet.
“Winner gets the wish coupon.”
‘Wait… what?’
Their chat flowed so naturally, I was left blinking in confusion. Were they really deciding this without me? They hadn’t even asked.
“What? Why you too!”
Elisha yelped, excited. But Eily didn’t budge.
“I’m Master’s maid. By your logic, I qualify as someone serving him too.”
Their stares clashed like thunderbolts. The air grew taut. Neither would back down now.
“Heh~ Sounds fun. Count me in!”
Melina chimed in from the side, chuckling with interest.
“Lady Melina, why?”
Eily shot back, baffled. But Melina smiled leisurely, hand on her chest.
“I’m different from you two. Not that close to Arnold, but…”
She paused, eyes twinkling mischievously.
“As someone who likes him, a wish coupon sounds tempting.”
Rathus wagged his tail wildly, pawing the air like clumsy shadowboxing in cheer.
“Ugh, fine! It’s a showdown then!”
Melina pumped her fists, roaring with spirit.
“We three spar at once. Winner gets Arnold all to herself for a day!”
Their talk had veered way off original topic. Part of me wanted to stop it.
‘Wait… this could be kinda interesting?’
A wicked curiosity bubbled up. Excluding Eily, Elisha and Melina were game heroines. The original never had them clash strength-wise. My intrigue grew.
Sure, I’d have to hang with the winner like a prize, but it’d fire up these eager girls plenty.
“Sounds good. A three-way bout could help everyone’s training.”
I lit the fuse. At my approval, the three flashed suspicious smirks and glared at each other.
“Varis, you in?”
I nudged the guy beside me.
“Wh-what?! N-no thanks! I wanna rest today!”
Varis flailed his hands, shaking his head frantically. He looked like a spooked fawn, trembling.
Trauma-level? Face beet-red, midday’s events clearly replaying in his head.
“Ugh……”
He curled up quietly. Today, Varis somehow seemed… girlishly delicate.