Volume 4 Chapter 11-2 Fasting Practice
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
It’s like a skill that grows from the very root, the core──like the root directory on a computer.
A skill that does nothing but burn through proficiency points when you use it.
Normally, it’s a completely useless skill.
But I have to admit, I was a little moved.
To think I could create such a convenient skill… maybe I’m a genius.
Well, I only made it because I had extra proficiency points lying around.
Might as well spend them with a bang.
Before, it was like trying to drink a dam dry.
Now, it’s like cutting the dam open──total release.
At this rate, all my proficiency points will vanish in less than a year.
Still, a year here is a blink outside.
It’s within acceptable limits, I guess.
Might be a waste to let them all disappear.
I’ll keep some around──just enough to not explode.
”Hey, hold up. What do you think you’re doing, just throwing away the proficiency points I gave you?”
Lady Uno’s sudden voice makes me stop using the skill on reflex.
It reminds me of getting caught reading manga when I was supposed to be doing homework.
”It’s incredibly rude to waste the proficiency points I’ve granted you, don’t you think? Yes, very rude to me.”
If I try to weasel out of this, it’ll be like walking into a sword fight unarmed.
The problem is, Lady Uno can see right through lies.
Wait a sec…
Maybe this could work in my favor.
If I’m honest, she might just believe me.
”I really do think it’s a waste too. I wouldn’t want to throw away the proficiency points I worked so hard for. But it’s Astronomy proficiency. If I digest it through normal training, I’ll run out of time before I can even leave here.”
So it all started because Lady Uno totally sucks at numbers.
Thanks to her screw-up, our skill XP shot up like a rocket.
I bet Lady Uno still has no clue what 2 to the 40-second power even looks like.
It’s a number so dumb, nobody can picture it.
Not like I could crunch something that crazy in my head, either.
But anyone who survived middle school knows how fast exponents blow things up.
They say if you fold a newspaper that many times, it’ll reach the moon.
It’s one of those wild, astronomer-tier numbers──billions, trillions, whatever.
I wish people would get why it’s impossible to actually do this by the book.
Feels pretty unfair getting chewed out when it’s not just my fault.
”Oh, that’s what you were worried about?”
And just like that, Lady Uno cracked up.
She started laughing her head off.
It’s cute how she flips between moods so fast.
But for a legendary dragon?
Maybe not so dignified.
”Fine, I’ll make you ageless while you’re here. Special treatment! So quit freaking out and focus on your training.”
Ageless, huh?
She just dropped a god-tier cheat like it’s nothing.
Well, if I don’t have to stress about my lifespan, I can stay in here 3 more days, no problem.
If a day here equals 30 years outside… that’s 90 years of training.
Dang.
”What’s wrong? You don’t look happy. Even if you act all zen, you humans always want eternal youth, right?”
”Honestly, I am glad I won’t end up like Urashima Taro.”
Aaand now I’ve done it.
Because I opened my big mouth, I have to explain the whole Urashima Taro story.
Even the spirits started gathering, wanting to hear.
Never seen so many at once.
Not like there’s a lot of fun stuff to do around here anyway.
With a crowd like that, I did my best to make it entertaining, but… Urashima Taro is just Urashima Taro.
Can’t make that story any more or less than what it is.
And really, that’s the thing──it’s so simple, so perfect, there’s no room for me to mess with it.
”I bet that story’s all true. It’s way too well-made for a fairy tale.”
Then Lady Uno just drops this bombshell.
”There’s a dragon named Otto who manages the sea dungeon. Clearly, Otohime is Otto. Sure, Otto’s a boy, but he’s rumored to love dressing up. It all makes sense──he totally lured Urashima Taro down there and toyed with him!”
I’m gonna skip the nitty-gritty and get to the point.
But hey, isn’t it cute how they can’t tell fantasy from reality?
Like a little kid, really.
”I’ve never heard of a ‘Tamatebako’ item, but mine is safer. Exceneca, prepare a special meal for our guest.”
Emerging from the light at Lady Uno’s call was a tall woman, nailing the look in what seemed to be a butler’s outfit.
Is her name Exceneca, maybe?
She looks around 30… or, let’s say, late twenties.
Her neatly tied platinum blonde hair and poised appearance give off a smart vibe.
She’s got a lot in common with Miss Floria.
And that’s a good thing, of course.
”Please.”
Exceneca produced a crystal goblet as if performing a magic trick, filled with a clear liquid.
”Water of Life. Drink this every few days, and you won’t age──or need food.”
Lady Uno boasts, but is it really that great to skip meals?
When I took a sip, it was just water.
Most well water here has a high mineral content, but this was unusually soft.
Even less flavor than Japanese tap water.
Maybe it’s close to pure water.
The change happened inside me.
My body heated up a bit, a sense of strength spreading through me.
It felt like being healed by magic.
Come to think of it, there are a few priests who succeeded in fasting for decades, trading constant hunger for eternal youth.
I used to laugh at the idea of giving up delicious food, but here I am in a similar spot.
At least I’m not hungry.
That’s something.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
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