Didn't You Like Me?
Iana swung her sword lightly in the training grounds. The blade slicing through the moonlight resembled a work of art. It flowed like water yet cut with razor sharpness at anything in its path. Her face was utterly serious as she honed her swordsmanship. What came to mind was Ian's technique from the previous gate.
He said he targeted the monster's weak points and cleaved them off.
That man had effortlessly felled a golem that even a regular sword couldn't touch. Given the golem's rocky nature, he'd struck along the seams connecting its joints, following the grain.
......Easy to say.
Spotting the connections on a golem he'd never seen before in an instant. Dodging attacks that could kill with one hit. How many swordsmen could precisely slice those narrow gaps? It went beyond mere strength. Even someone stronger than Ian couldn't conceive of it, let alone execute it on the spot.
He's on another level.
As a fellow swordswoman, she could feel it. That wasn't a realm one could reach overnight through training. It demanded crossing countless brushes with death, then bleeding through relentless practice to conquer them seriously. To Iana, it felt impossibly high.
Even trying to mimic his technique exactly now, she wasn't confident she could replicate it. Could she ever match that man's sword? The more time passed, the more doubts piled up.
But... I don't want to give up and just collapse like this.
Before she knew it, Ian's swordsmanship had become her goal. Admiration, respect, or perhaps rivalry. She wanted to stand on the same level as him—no matter what.
If she crumbled now and couldn't keep up, that man would surely charge ahead, leaving her behind. She didn't want to be the girl just protected in his wake. That wasn't the way of Iana the swordswoman.
No more sitting idly by like last time, dazed as she watched him fight in awe. She refused.
"Hoo!"
With those thoughts fueling her, she kept swinging. Lately, it felt like all she did from dawn till bedtime was train. Not that she had much else to do, but with his swordplay still burned into her mind, she wanted to grow even a little stronger while it lingered.
And it was paying off.
My swordsmanship, reflexes, focus, stamina—everything's improved.
Iana could feel it herself. The experience of fighting a golem with her life on the line. Witnessing Ian's technique dismantle the remnants up close. The bloody training to make it her own. It all fused together, elevating Iana the swordswoman to a whole new stage.
Probably... way stronger than when I first arrived in this territory?
The countless real battles had helped immensely. She'd hit a plateau during her travels, her growth stalling. For her to advance this far now... She couldn't deny that the man was first-rate, from swordsmanship to teaching.
And it wasn't just her—a swordswoman. Luna and Jenice had grown far stronger too.
"Hmph! You think I'll keep staring at your back forever? Someday I'll stand by your side—or leap right over you."
Renewing her resolve, Iana sheathed her sword. After swinging it all day, it was time to refuel and rest. She'd once pushed till she collapsed, but she now knew overtraining backfired.
......Thanks to Ian's guidance, of course.
"Ugh, training leaves me all sticky. Shower first."
Her whole body was drenched in sweat from the exertion. Her clothes had turned half-transparent, outlining her voluptuous curves perfectly. White fabric was the worst—her black bra peeked through faintly.
Becoming self-conscious about such things was a change since arriving here.
...My body's shape feels different too.
More training than during travels, plus eating well—maybe that's why? Her figure had toned up while growing even more feminine. Especially her thighs and chest, the changes stood out.
Worried about running into a guy and feeling embarrassed, Iana headed for a building with fewer people.
This way should be empty at this hour, right?
It was the annex right across from the lord's mansion. Close enough for her to leap over, but rarely used, so sparsely populated.
As she walked the hall, the lord's office came into view through a window. The mansion was dark and empty, but that room alone glowed with light.
That man was surely still working.
...Staff's all gone home, yet he's grinding away.
The more she saw, the more she admired him as a lord and noble. More than anyone she'd known.
She smiled and moved to pass—then her superhuman swordsman's eyes caught it.
"Ahh! Haah! My lord...! There... aaah...♥"
The silhouettes of a near-naked—no, fully naked—man and woman.
"............Huh?"
Iana froze, staring at the window. Ian, stripped bare. Beside him, his aide Tavi, down to nothing—not even underwear. Her blue hair swayed as she bared her massive breasts and hips. Her pale skin glistened with moisture, tracing her alluring feminine curves.
The two, embracing nude, biting and sucking wildly, approached the window. Tavi braced against it with her hands; Ian gripped her waist—
"Wh-what the hell are they doing?!"
The words burst out reflexively. Lucky they were too far to hear—or unlucky?
Her face burned crimson; her head throbbed like it'd been hammered. Yet their sex continued. Each thrust from Ian made Tavi's huge breasts bounce.
"Aaah♥ Haah♥ So deep... My lord...♥ Reaching all the way inside... so goood...♥ Ahhhn♥"
Tavi, usually so poised and cool, was lost in a hazy ecstasy, reveling in it. Her expression was foolish yet radiated raw eroticism.
Ian smacked her ass.
"Aaah♥"
If you knew her voice, it was unimaginable. A sweet, melting moan laced with coquettish allure toward her man.
She took the spank like a child, her face brimming with blissful pleasure.
"Ugh, ughh…."
Today, her exceptional eyesight and hearing felt like curses. A top-tier swordswoman's senses sharpened to the extreme—every twitch, every breath a vital combat clue.
But who dreamed she'd use them to witness another couple's raw office sex!
"Ahhn... Yes, my lord. Spank my ass more...♥"
"You get off on ass spanks? Our aide's a total perv."
"Haaaah♥ N-no...♥ I love it when you do it... Ah, there... so deep...♥ Ah... like that... ugh! Gonna cum...♥"
"How starved were you? I'll fuck you till you pass out tonight."
"Ahh... don't say that...! Your stamina's... haah! too good... I can't last if you... ah! Aaah! Haaah! Haaaah♥"
Secure no one would see? Or did nudity make them this uninhibited? Tavi spouted unthinkable words and flirty teases, seducing Ian nonstop.
In response, he ravaged her fiercely.
"W-whoa…."
......Yeah, ravaged. No other word fit. Ian's muscled frame dwarfed Tavi's slender one. Yet her voluptuous body was stunning even to another woman. Those jiggling breasts and shaking hips could tempt any man.
No—somehow, she even seemed prettier than usual.
Does it feel that good?
Even alone, for that intellectual woman to break like this... A twinge of disgust, but curiosity and bafflement won out.
What made sex so mind-blowing? Wasn't it just bodies mingling?
"Aaah♥ Haaah♥ My lord... I'm... haaaaaahn♥"
Tavi shuddered mid-thrust. Iana knew that was the "climax." Tongue lolling, eyes rolling white, Tavi wasn't the sharp aide anymore—she was pure female in heat.
Ian pulled the twitching Tavi along. Probably to do more inside.
"Ha."
Only then did Iana's tension ease. She'd been so focused she could feel it herself.
Shock and thrill faded, replaced by bewilderment.
More precisely….
That lord... didn't like me... did he?}
It stemmed from that delusion. How her heart had fluttered over it!
"He said I was the most precious last time—even in front of that aide!"
Of course, he hadn't followed up. No heart-fluttering events either.
With the chaos, she'd vaguely assumed no time for romance. As a love novice, she'd been excited yet clueless what to do.
Her respect and fondness for Ian had been growing amid it all….
But to think he was this close with the aide!
...Are they officially dating? Must be, to go that far.
Ian liking her... she still believed it, somewhat. Why else treat a mere adventurer so specially?
But as Luna's novels said, young passions flare and fade fast. Interest in a woman he wasn't even dating, barely knew—could change anytime.
Hmm... something must've happened on that trip with the aide.
Surprisingly, novice Iana nailed it!
Makes sense—prime-age man and woman sharing nights. Tavi's pretty even to another woman; getting close isn't weird.
Beyond that, they were closest professionally. Meals together, not just work. Hot guy and babe in proximity—sparks fly. Adventurers hooked up, got pregnant, retired into marriage all the time.
"Ugh."
No reason for her to dwell. Not like she and the lord were anything. No romantic vibes at all.
More blood, sweat, swords, and peril.
She respected him, sure—but hadn't liked him as a man.
So their relationship, whoever he dated—none of her business….
"Uuuuuugh!"
Yet Iana felt heat rising to her head, chest tightening inexplicably.