Volume 5 Chapter 8 Reminiscence 8️⃣
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
The morning of an apprentice adventurer comes early.
I wake up with the sunrise, get ready, go to the river to fetch water, and while I’m at it, do some washing as well. Afterward, I quickly return home and prepare breakfast before my master wakes up.
Less than a month after being taken in by her, I had already adapted to this kind of lifestyle. Even though I had been spoiled for ten years by Vintenica Mama, I originally came from a slave background. My body still remembered this kind of labor.
Fortunately, the delinquent elf wakes up late.
My master, who stays up late every night, doesn’t get up until the sun is high in the sky unless something extraordinary happens.
”Mmm… good morning… Soyuz,” she murmured groggily, blinking her eyes open.
”Good morning, Master. The sun’s already up, though. More like, ‘Hello,’” I replied with a teasing tone.
”No matter what time I wake up, it’s still morning… Humans are too hasty,” she said, stretching lazily.
Of course, I didn’t actually say, “You elves are too laid-back.”
”Anyway, please wash your face here. Ah, your beautiful hair is ruined. Please, sit down,” she ordered, half-smiling despite her sleepiness.
I sat my half-asleep master in front of the washbasin, washed her face, and combed through her hair, which was a complete mess from sleep. My master, who was weak in the mornings, obeyed me like a child, getting herself ready. Then, she finally took a late breakfast. She really seemed like a big child.
—Of course, this isn’t because she completely trusts me, or anything like that.
It’s probably because she thinks that no matter how ill-intentioned I might be, I’m not worth fearing.
In fact, I once tried to ambush her while she was sleeping, thinking, ‘I might win in this state,’ but I was easily beaten back.
As she often says,
”If you think you can find an opening, feel free to strike.”
So, I thought to myself, I’ll sneak into her room early in the morning, and while she’s lying down, I’ll swing my sword down as if to slash through the bed.
* * *
The next moment, I was thrown across the room and slammed onto the floor.
And before I knew it, my master had gotten up, still half-asleep with her eyes half-closed, her nightclothes disheveled, and with a yawn, she said,
”You shouldn’t bring such rude things into a maiden’s bedroom. Yawn…”
She showed me the sword she had taken from me (I didn’t even realize when she had taken it) and casually tossed it aside.
”Listen, Soyuz. Unless you intend to embrace someone, you should never sneak into a woman’s bedroom. It’s fundamental etiquette between men and women,” she lectured gently.
She straddled my stomach, which was lying on the floor.
”Got it?”
Then she reached behind and gripped my balls hard.
”AAAHHHH! I’M SORRY! SO SORRY! I WON’T DO IT AGAIN, PLEASE FORGIVE ME!” I screamed.
Yeah. I thought my balls were about to get crushed.
It was more terrifying than being slashed with a sword or having magic spells shot at me.
* * *
After breakfast, my master finally woke up completely. She would teach me for a while…
”Come on, come on. Don’t focus on the sword too much,” she teased as she attacked.
While I was trying to dodge her sword attack, she rushed in and swept my legs.
As always, she showed no mercy.
She relentlessly swung her real sword at me and fired various types of magic. She even used spirit magic, which should’ve been ‘impossible’ for her to use casually, without any hesitation.
Even now, a month after my first lesson, I ended up battered and bruised.
──But, my dear master.
Today, things are different!
”I see it!” I shouted, dodging her attack with a small, quick movement.
I took advantage of the opening as she lost her balance to slash at her unprotected back.
Of course, my master had already anticipated my move. She had somehow switched her sword to her left hand and blocked my attack.
”Huh?!” I exclaimed in frustration.
In truth, that was the moment I had been waiting for.
My eccentric master always showed off a variety of skills—whether to teach me or just to show off—and the unusual dual-sword style she was currently using was one of them.
It went without saying that it was a troublesome technique.
Even if I tried to get close and engage in hand-to-hand combat, I would still be within range of her daggers. I would be easily defeated if we fought fairly.
I had no cards left to play.
That’s what I wanted her to think, so I quickly took a step back──
”Shh!” I whispered sharply.
As I retreated, I threw the darts I had hidden in my sleeve.
Three of them, all at once.
”Huh?!” my master gasped, slightly surprised.
Apparently, she couldn’t dodge all of them at such close range, and one of the darts hit her side. And then──
”…I see. You did learn from ‘that person,’ didn’t you, Vintanica,” she said with a glare, her beautiful azure eyes twisted in anger as she knelt on one knee.
”Don’t worry, it’s just a light poison that will immobilize you for a moment,” she continued calmly.
That’s right. The darts I threw were coated in poison.
Not the kind that would take her life, of course.
A mushroom I found while wandering through the forest—the Paralysis Mushroom.
If its spores are ingested, they can temporarily paralyze the body. This effect doesn’t change, even if you’re an elf.
”I see… How sneaky,” she said, smirking slightly.
I couldn’t help but smile when I saw the rare look of regret on her face. Yeah, I’m sure I’m wearing a really bad expression right now.
”Even you, Master, can’t do anything in this situation. So, I win, right? Right? Right? Right?”
Unable to move with one knee on the ground, she glared at me with an intense look.
I stepped closer, ready to get back at her for all the things she’s done to me in the last month.
”Come on, Master, say ‘I give up.’ Please, say it. Can’t you hear me? Even though you’re an elf?” I whispered in her ear.
”Hii!?”
Finally, she let out a strange noise.
Hehehe, but even after all this, she still can’t move a finger.
Now, say it. Say it, Master. “I give up!”
Just as I was about to poke at her elven ears to push her further,
”Just kidding, you know.”
My right hand, pointing with my index finger, was suddenly seized tightly by her──
The next moment, I was slammed into the ground again.
”Wh-Why…” I groaned, looking up at her through my flipped vision.
”A dart, huh? Pretty clever. Experimenting like that is a good thing,” she said, half-smiling.
She flipped up the clothes she was wearing.
The dart’s needle was stuck into a slime-like ball of water, not touching her skin at all.
”Spirit magic!? How dirty…” I muttered in disbelief.
”What’s so dirty about it? To win a fight, you use whatever skills you have to the fullest. It’s no different from what you just did, right?” she countered with a shrug.
She tossed the dart aside, grabbed the water ball, and took a lick.
”Hmm, it’s definitely the Paralysis Mushroom. It grows in abundance in these forests. Using what’s nearby, getting creative, and greedily striving for victory—you’ve got the right mindset for an adventurer. That’s a very good thing.”
She grinned.
With a smile that was almost terrifying, she once again straddled my stomach.
”But you’re too careless. Falling for such a cheap trick like that? If you keep that up, seasoned adventurers will easily take advantage of you… And also──”
With a smile, she raised her fist.
Uh, wait a second, this doesn’t look like something good… She’s kind of mad, isn’t she?
”You tried to touch my ears, didn’t you? That’s not allowed. For us elves, our ears are very important. They shouldn’t be touched so casually. For an elf to ‘let someone touch their ears’ is the same as letting them touch their breasts or genitals. Unless you have a very deep relationship, that is something that is never permitted. Do you understand?” she lectured, narrowing her eyes.
”Y-yes,” I stammered.
While lecturing me with her usual nonchalant expression, my master continued to punch my face.
But somehow, there was more force behind it than usual. It seemed she was actually quite angry. I might end up getting killed.
”Well, putting that aside, I suppose I can acknowledge your efforts. You don’t have any particular talent for swordsmanship. Your magic is average, and your physical skills aren’t particularly outstanding either. I can give you some credit for your speed, but that’s still within the range of an ordinary person. In other words, everything is half-hearted. You’re what they call a jack of all trades, master of none,” she said, punching me lightly again as if we were just having a casual chat. Ah, she really is angry.
”However, if that’s the case, you might as well aim to be the ultimate jack of all trades. That will surely be the way for you to maximize your abilities. And above all, poison and throwing darts. Those sneaky weapons are actually a great match for your traits. Make sure to master them. If you combine all your half-hearted powers like that, it could become a very powerful weapon that doesn’t fall short of a top swordsman or magician—something uniquely yours. You should continue to strive even harder from now on.”
My master, who kindly gave me this valuable advice while cheerfully punching me, seemed to have finally lightened up.
With a “Well then,” and a rather aunt-like exclamation, she got up from beside me and brushed off the dust from her body.
”Wow, today was quite an intense training session, so I ended up sweating a lot… I need to take a bath. Hey, Soyuz, how long are you going to keep sleeping? We’re going to the river,” she said, digging into my side with her toes, as if I were just a rag lying there.
Will I be able to live to see tomorrow morning…?
Notes:
• Vintenica – She is a tall, slender magic user, appeared as the new mistress buying six boys, wearing a deep purple robe with her right half face hidden by a white mask, half beautiful young woman and half eerie with blood-red lips, mysterious and slightly frightening.
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Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.
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