Volume 2 Chapter 2 Daytime Comrades, Nighttime Lovers (Hypnosis) I
Edited by: Kanaa-senpai
After blocking dozens of attacks from the wooden sword relying on her physical abilities, Serena pushed back the final strike with her strength and jumped back about 15m (49,2ft) to land.
”Ugh…”
Serena’s expression twisted in irritation, revealing her frustration.
Kian silently held the wooden sword in a ready stance.
In terms of physical ability, the Wolfmen were far superior to humans.
In fact, within a 15-meter range, Kian needed to use ‘Leap’ to reach her, while Serena could close the distance with just a single step.
The difference in range and speed of attack was immense.
Yet, he couldn’t press the attack.
Serena likely bit her lip in frustration at her own inadequacy, thinking it would be easier than this.
’Well, that’s to be expected.’
The ‘glasses’ in his pocket muttered in disbelief.
’Against someone who just recovered, your body has rejuvenated, and with your recent diet and training, your bones and tendons have been dramatically strengthened. That girl, who is inferior in skills and experience, has no chance of winning when even her only advantage in physical ability is being narrowed down.’
That’s right.
Kian’s body, having absorbed vampires and drawn energy from Aliona and Serena, had become youthful, resembling that of a late teenager to early twenties.
He was also eating 3 meals a day of high-quality food from ‘The Boar’s Trot Inn.’ He had asked Esther to minimize the oil, and the meals were carefully calculated with the right amounts of meat, grains, and vegetables──simple yet nutritionally perfect.
In these 3 weeks, his physical abilities had improved significantly compared to his previous impoverished state.
Considering the speed of his metabolism, in another month, his body’s cells would completely renew, transforming him into a different person.
The gap was starting to show compared to Serena, who was living a frugal life.
(But I won’t hold back. This is a serious match, even if it’s practice. I’ll give it my all!)
Kian narrowed his eyes, a murderous intent glimmering in his gaze.
Serena’s dog ears perked up.
”…”
Did her beastman instincts sense that she was about to be attacked? Serena’s eyes widened, and sweat trickled down from her temples.
Kian gathered his magic power and used ‘Leap’ to close the distance in front of Serena.
”…!”
Serena defended against Kian’s horizontally swung wooden sword by holding both ends of her own sword.
However, unfortunately, this attack ended the moment she blocked it.
”Eh…?”
With a dull thud, Serena’s wooden sword shattered from the inside.
(‘Impact’ application technique, ‘Break’. By channeling energy into the opponent’s weapon during a clash, it breaks from the inside…!)
Just as Kian was about to say “It’s over” while pointing the tip of his sword at her, Serena’s body bent backward in a flexible manner, almost like a cat.
She quickly placed her hands on the ground and kicked up at Kian’s wrist with her booted foot.
Of course, he jumped back to dodge.
Serena used that momentum to rise back up.
Kian wondered if she still intended to fight with her bare hands when suddenly, Serena wobbled and knelt down.
”──────!? O-oi, Serena!”
(Did the energy transfer to her body too!?)
He rushed over to her in a panic.
In that instant, Serena looked up, and her eyes sparkled.
”Ha…?”
”Hmph!”
As he reached out to support her, she deflected his arm and leaped at him like a wild beast ready to attack.
The sweet scent of a girl’s sweat brushed past his nose, and right after, she grabbed his shoulders and pushed him down.
He instinctively tensed his neck muscles to protect the back of his head.
Serena barely managed to pull Kian’s upper body away from the ground.
Then, she pressed down on his shoulders and leaned in to look at him.
With silver eyebrows and sharp light blue eyes, the girl’s beautiful face filled his view.
Serena wore a beaming smile.
”I did it! My win!”
It was a face he had never seen before.
She flashed a bright smile, showing her white teeth.
Kian furrowed his brows.
”…Isn’t that cheating?”
”The outcome of a match isn’t clear until the last ‘Leap’. Kian, you lost for showing kindness to the enemy.”
”Hmph…”
”If you had done that in a real fight, you would have been dead.”
”I’m worried about you because this is just a practice match… But as you said, a loss is a loss. I’ll bow my head gracefully. I give up.”
He raised both hands in surrender.
Serena smiled softly and tightened her grip on his shoulders.
Her white fingers dug into his shoulder muscles.
”I’ll make sure to win against Kian head-on next time.”
”To do that, you need to recover your weakened body first.”
”It’s not just about recovering my body. Soon, I think I’ll be able to surprise Kian, so look forward to it.”
”Haah…”
As Kian nodded vaguely, Serena leaned in closer.
”Fighting you seriously was just as fun as I expected. Hey Kian, will you fight me seriously again?”
”If I have free time, I’d be happy to.”
”Hehehe.”
Serena laughed fiercely.
The excitement from the fight made her smile wider, and her cheeks flushed.
Although she looked like a delicate teenage beauty, at that moment, she radiated a wild, beastly aura.
”Hah, hah… hehehe.”
”…, …”
They were so close that their breaths mingled.
They could even smell each other’s skin.
”…Could you back off a bit?”
”――――!?”
Serena tilted her head slightly at Kian’s words, but then she wrinkled her nose and jumped back suddenly.
”Thank you. But your reaction is like you’re trying to get away from something filthy…”
He chuckled wryly as he sat up.
It might have been an appropriate reaction for a man nearing 30, but being treated that way still stung.
Serena quickly shook her head.
”No, that’s not it… K-Kian, you kind of… smell.”
”Eh…? You mean I smell like sweat?”
He leaned closer to his flashy new armor.
He wasn’t sure himself.
But he was definitely sweating, and maybe his inner shirt was smelling too.
”That’s not it.”
”Not it…? Hm? Hey, your face is really red. Are you okay?”
He stood up and leaned in to look at her flushed face.
She was still recovering, so she shouldn’t push herself.
”Serena?”
”…Nn♡”
Kian whispered lowly in her ear to gauge her mood, causing Serena to flinch and let out a sultry voice.
She seemed surprised by her own voice, her eyes wide as she looked up at Kian.
Her light blue eyes were shimmering as if in a daze.
However, she quickly shook her head and took a few steps back from Kian.
”Serena?”
”…N-no, it’s nothing. More importantly, I want to train with you thoroughly today.”
”Of course, I’m all for it. I need to sharpen my senses before the exam. But are you okay, Serena?”
”My body is fine.”
”No, I mean the Quest? Money is tight, right?”
”Actually, I just checked the Guild’s bulletin board, and it seems like as a low-rank adventurer, I can’t get decent requests… Goblin hunting and undead slaying offer extremely low rewards for the effort.”
”Ah, I see. The Guild’s rules changed, and now the lucrative low-rank requests are prioritized for Rank 10 newbies.”
”Yeah. I earn twice as much when I work for Ms. Aliona.”
”That’s just because Ms. Aliona pays too well.”
Serena pursed her lips tightly.
”And right now, I don’t feel like forming a party with anyone else… To be honest, I lack confidence. Griffin, Night Wraith, vampire──none of them I could handle alone. I was completely relying on you and Ms. Aliona… I’m weak. I need to become stronger, or I might end up witnessing my comrades being killed in front of me like my brother did.”
”I see.”
”That’s why if you invest in me, I want to use the time you give me to improve myself. I promise I won’t let you down.”
”If it were anyone else, I might not care, but if you, a Wolfmen, say that, I’m happy to support your self-improvement.”
”Thank you.”
Serena smiled softly and drew her long sword from her waist.
Her expression became serious.
”Ms. Aliona’s part-time job starts in the evening. Until then, I want to practice with you. …But please, don’t use that break technique on my weapon.”
* * *
During the day, Kian practiced swordsmanship.
At night, he trained in magic.
This had been Kian’s routine for the past 3 weeks.
By the way, the magic he was learning wasn’t the usual kind; it was the vampire magic taught to him by ‘glasses.’
He aimed to improve the precision of Absorb Essence, increase his familiars, and master techniques to charm opponents.
Today, after dinner, Kian returned to his room and took ‘glasses’ out of his chest pocket.
Outside the window, it was twilight.
The time when day turns into night.
In the dimly lit room of ‘The Boar’s Trot Inn,’ Kian silently looked down at ‘glasses’.
Please bookmark this series and rate ☆☆☆☆☆ on here!
Edited by Kanaa-senpai.
Thanks for reading.