Training Camp (1)
After spending an intense night in the underground training hall of Illyana's house in Fernin, Eunhyeon carried the utterly exhausted Illyana—nearly half-melted from fatigue—back to the Dungeon House in secret.
Swept up in the mood afterward, they made love several more times before falling asleep. The next morning, Eunhyeon forced himself to stretch, loosening his stiff muscles as he rose from the bed.
"Mmgh…."
He gently cradled Illyana, who was frowning and tossing in her sleep.
"Illyana, wake up. It's morning."
"…Mm, no. I wanna sleep more."
"You skipping breakfast?"
"My back hurts so much right now…."
Perhaps because last night's experience had been too intense, Illyana looked utterly languid, her whole body still throbbing with lingering pain that showed no sign of fading.
"Want me to grab something for you?"
"Water… my throat's so dry."
"Well, after last night, yeah…."
"Shut up! Don't remind me!"
Illyana smacked Eunhyeon's chest and flushed red, drawing a amused smile from him.
"Got it. I'll get the water. Hang on a sec."
Eunhyeon kissed her cheek and got out of bed, leaving the room.
"…Gotta air this place out first."
As soon as he stepped out, he felt the noticeably fresher air. He ducked back in, activated the new wind-magic artifact he'd crafted, and watched as clean air filled his room. An exhaust fan in the corner of the window vented out the stale air.
This building was inside a dungeon, so simply opening the windows wouldn't bring in fresh air. No one knew what pathogens might lurk in the dungeon's dusty, murky atmosphere or what effects they could have on the human body. Eunhyeon's solution was to block out the external dungeon air entirely while maintaining purified air inside the structure.
Confirming the artifact was running smoothly, he nodded in satisfaction and finally left the room.
As he walked down the long hallway toward the living room, he spotted Alex and Merdin emerging from their rooms at almost the same time.
"Sleep okay?"
"Passed out the second I hit the bed."
"Slept like a rock, thanks to you. It's… unbelievable."
For Alex, the sheer scale of this massive structure built inside a dungeon in such a short time was shocking enough, but the incredibly comfortable environment was another level of mystery altogether.
What couldn't Eunhyeon do? What else was he capable of now? It was only natural to wonder where his limits truly lay.
"Breakfast's on soon, so wake everyone up. And make sure to tell them they'll regret skipping it."
"Will do."
Alex nodded and headed off with Merdin to rouse the women.
Eunhyeon went straight to the kitchen, tied on an apron, and started preparing breakfast. He'd been making morning meals for Illyana and Erin every day, so this was just a matter of scaling up—no big deal.
"Ah, smells so good…."
Erin had wandered in at some point, slumping over the table with her arms stretched out, grinning blissfully as she inhaled the aroma from Eunhyeon's cooking.
"You're up."
"Yeah."
"Eira?"
"She'll be here soon. Hey, Hyeon, are we really gonna live here from now on?"
"Not full-time. You've got school, and Illyana's still the curator of the Merbiss Magic Library, technically. We'll commute."
"Then why build a house here at all?"
"Various reasons."
"Hmm, gotcha."
"Got everyone."
Mid-conversation with Erin as he cooked, Eunhyeon glanced over at Alex's voice and saw the group.
"Great. Everyone, have a seat. It's almost ready."
"You can cook too?"
Yuria narrowed her eyes at him questioningly.
"One kid in the house, one total slacker—turns out I'm the only one who can keep 'em fed."
"I-I can cook too!"
Erin bristled at the teasing and shouted at him. Eunhyeon chuckled, transferring the toast from the pan to plates and plating it meticulously. Even without being asked, Erin started carrying the dishes to the table one by one—a habitual routine from Illyana's house that the others watched quietly.
It was a meager spread for a noble breakfast, but the savory aroma from the French toast made with eggs tickled everyone's noses.
Once everyone was seated with toast, salad, and milk in front of them, Yuria swallowed hard, staring intently. Eunhyeon clapped once to signal the end of prep.
"Alright, dig in."
"Huh? But Hyeon, where's Lady Illyana?"
"She overdid it helping with the construction yesterday. Body's sore."
For someone who hated moving even a muscle like Illyana, last night's vigorous "exercise" was hitting her with serious backlash.
"Sore? The witch?"
Did a high-rank mage like Illyana even need to do manual labor? Alex was puzzled, but he didn't catch Eunhyeon's little white lie. Elenoa alone furrowed her brow, pondering the implication, but kept it to herself.
Yuria sliced her bread with the knife Eunhyeon provided, speared a small piece with her fork, and chewed thoughtfully. Tastier than what I used to make…. Comparing it to her Earth-life cooking filled her with an odd sense of defeat. She shook it off and looked at Eunhyeon.
"So? What's next for us? You mentioned another plan."
Recalling how Eunhyeon—now master of this dungeon after clearing the Palace of Trials—had hinted at future steps, Yuria cut straight to it.
"Training."
"Training?"
"Yeah. For the next three weeks or so, I'll be training everyone here."
"…Says who?"
Hearing this for the first time, Yuria scowled.
Springing this without prior notice and slotting her into his plans unilaterally was far from welcome from her perspective.
"The moment you were assigned to this expedition via Alex, this was set in stone. No take-backs."
"Th-this is tyranny! How dare you treat a princess of the realm like—"
"Illyana's magic lessons. Could be useful, right?"
"This kind of treatment… what did you say?"
The instant Illyana's name left Eunhyeon's lips, Yuria's indignant expression turned to wide-eyed shock as she blurted the question.
"The Black Witch herself… teaching me?"
Illyana, bearer of immense fame and the title of great hero, was notoriously reclusive, avoiding close ties with others.
Her very presence in Pernias Kingdom was only possible thanks to her friend Riod mediating to curb excessive royal interference.
Because of that personality, she shunned deep connections, never taking disciples like other mages to pass on her knowledge or nurture successors.
But if Yuria could study under Illyana here and become her first disciple, her value in the kingdom would skyrocket—obvious as day.
It grated that this golden opportunity came from Eunhyeon, not Illyana herself, but Yuria clenched her trembling fists, swallowed her pride, and forced the words out.
"I'll do it."
"Oh? For real? You called it tyranny a second ago."
Eunhyeon smirked, and Yuria's face burned even redder.
"Please let me learn magic from Lady Illyana. I beg you."
It killed her pride to beg him, and she ground her teeth.
"Sure. Good."
"For now, Erin, Eira, Princess, and Alex—you four are confirmed. What about you two?"
Eunhyeon turned to Merdin and Aisha directly. They looked just as flustered.
"Weren't we… supposed to join too?"
"I-I wanna train with Senpai!"
"Your role in this expedition wasn't just guarding the princess—it was also standing by Alex out of loyalty, right? Honestly, from my view, your participation was unexpected. So I don't wanna force it without your say-so. Plus, you're officially with Cracir."
Unlike Erin, whom he was raising as his protégé; Eira, Riod's daughter; Alex; or Yuria, roped in at Alex's request—this was different.
"He didn't even ask me first…."
At Yuria's grumble, Alex gave a wry smile.
"Sorry, Princess. I was the one who pushed to drag you into this."
"Sigh, no. I know you're looking out for my growth. It's just… bending to that guy's whims rubs me the wrong way."
"Seems like you have some weird rivalry with Eunhyeon, Princess."
"Maybe… you're right."
Yuria mistakenly believed Eunhyeon was a reincarnator like her, another Earthling. Conscious of his all-purpose, cheat-like abilities versus her own powerlessness and lack of achievements, she fixated on their differences.
What sets us apart? It frustrated her endlessly.
"Talking like that now just puts us on the spot. At least after coming this far, I definitely wanna see what your training's like."
"Me too!"
Having witnessed Eunhyeon's bottomless power firsthand, they had no doubt he could elevate their skills.
Eunhyeon smiled and nodded at their enthusiasm.
"Then everyone finish breakfast, and meet in the first-floor training hall in an hour."
He stood, gathering his food onto a tray.
"Huh? Where you going?"
Erin blinked wide-eyed, mid-bite of her toast with a goofy grin.
"To bring some to Illyana. Can't skip breakfast."
"Oh, right."
Erin nodded acceptingly, but Elenoa—who'd been watching Eunhyeon closely—could only narrow her eyes.
He was heading to his own room, claiming to deliver food to Illyana. The implication was clear: she was sleeping there.
Elenoa knew Illyana had her own assigned room. For her to spend the night in Eunhyeon's instead meant their relationship had obviously deepened.
"So… it happened. Sigh…."
Among all the breakfast eaters, Elenoa alone picked up on the shift. Unable to pin down the complex emotions blooming in her chest, she let out a quiet sigh.
"But… why are we all gathered? I'm the only mage here, so the magic lessons should just be for me, right…?"
Yuria muttered in confusion, and Elenoa averted her gaze, dodging the question. Yuria sharpened her eyes and pressed her.
"Elenoa, you know something, don't you? Is that guy plotting to screw me over again?"
"Well…."
As Elenoa hesitated on how to respond, Eunhyeon entered the training hall.
"Hey! What're you—"
Yuria whirled to grill him but trailed off at his outfit.
Even in the sunless indoor training hall, Eunhyeon sported black sunglasses that drew every eye. Paired with an angular black cap, black t-shirt, green-dominant camouflage pants, and walker-style shoes, his look made Yuria frown as ominous thoughts bubbled up.
This feels… familiar.
Her Earth memories stirred a vague sense of déjà vu.
She'd never experienced it herself, but she'd seen similar outfits in internet clips and TV. Whatever this was, it screamed bad news.
Finally pinning down the dread, Yuria's face paled in horror.
That's it! Boot camp—the military training thing!
As a woman in her past life, Yuria couldn't recall the exact term, but she remembered countless guys her age—veterans all—shuddering at the mere mention.
Realizing what Eunhyeon had in store, Yuria clenched her fists, trembling with rage.
Magic lessons my ass… that bastard tricked me again!