Chapter 22: After the Training Ended

At long last, the brutal training period—one that left us drenched in blood—came to an end, and the day finally arrived to leave the "Demonic Mist Forest." I’d completely lost my sense of time, spending each day anxiously wondering how much longer it would last. But now that it was over… yeah, I didn’t feel even a little sentimental.

I just wanted to get out of there immediately. Honestly, it’s a miracle I endured it at all. I even told Captain Richard that if he ever put Hikari through the same training, I’d never forgive him.

Thankfully, it seems Carol was in charge of Hikari’s training. It was strict, sure, but apparently peaceful—no bloodshed involved.

Meanwhile, over here, blood was pouring nonstop. I got used to dying—no, that’s not quite right. I was trained not to get used to it, to engrave the fear of death into my mind. It went beyond Spartan—something even harsher than that. There’s no doubt I got stronger, but if you told me to go through it again, I’d refuse without hesitation. It was that bad.

"Alright, let’s get going. Everyone’s got their stuff? Don’t forget anything. Hey, Carol, hurry it up."

"Why are you talking like it’s a given that I’m coming with you???"

"If you stay holed up in a place like this, your mind’s going to break sooner or later. And if you snap and come after us, that’d be a real problem."

I was completely serious. There’s no way someone could remain in a place like this—where dreams and reality blur together—for years without being affected.

To be blunt, Carol is insanely strong. And precisely because she’s so strong, if she lost her mind here, stopping her would cause massive damage. We needed to get her out before it was too late.

"If Carol were to go insane, it’d be the Swordria Knights’ job to stop her—but that would definitely lead to heavy casualties. As the Sword King, I’d rather prevent that in advance. That’s my judgment."

"And personally?"

"I just don’t want you staying alone in a place like this. It’d be a waste, after we’ve finally gotten along."

In the end, my personal feelings were stronger—but after everything I went through, I think I’ve earned the right to be a little selfish.

Still, she hesitated to leave the place she had grown used to. I understood that feeling all too well—I’d only recently been torn away from my own home.

So, I played my final card.

"W-What’s with that scary look? That won’t work on me. I’ve got my reasons for staying here—"

"There’s a kid at the royal castle researching cutting-edge magic tools. A genuine genius. I bet they’ve got tons of incredible stuff—things like this and that."

"What are you waiting for? Let’s go already. I don’t need luggage. If I want to come back, I can anytime."

"Wow… the moment you dropped the bait, she snapped it up like a swarm of carp…"

Don’t say that, Hikari. I understand her feelings very—very, very well.

Even if our interests differ, our passion for what we love is exactly the same. With her, appealing to desire works faster than logical arguments—and puts her in a better mood afterward, too.

"As expected of you, Lord Toma."

"Praise won’t get you anything. Oh—want some sweet raspberries I brought as a snack?"

"Aren’t you just as easy to win over??"

Well, Alicia’s about the only one who praises me. The captain does sometimes too, but it’s usually when I’m collapsed and covered in blood, so I don’t really catch what he says.

"Hikari, you could praise me too, you know?"

"No thanks. Every time you get cocky, you mess up and end up hurting yourself."

Wow, she really knows me well. Though I don’t remember messing up that much…

Anyway, now everyone we’re taking back is gathered. It feels like I’ve been here for about a year, but in reality, it’s probably been less than a month.

I didn’t want to drag things out any longer. More than anything, I just wanted to leave. Honestly, there’s a good chance this place has already traumatized me.

"So the trip isn’t over until we get home… Hopefully nothing happens."

"Hey, stop raising death flags, Hikari???"

No, seriously, I just hoped we could make it back without any trouble… It’s not that far, so we should be fine, right?

…

…

…

"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?"

"Geh!? You’re back already!? I-It’s not my fault!!!"

"Yeah right, this is totally your fault."

Yep. We finally made it back from the "Demonic Mist Forest," only to find the royal castle completely wrapped in translucent, bluish, slimy tentacles. Probably a slime. The three with me were left speechless.

The only one who wasn’t speechless was the absurdly powerful elf magic-tool maniac, who had already grasped the situation completely with her magic eyes. And as for that elf—

"This is amazing!! The objects it absorbs are gradually appearing on the surface—but wait, is it actually generating them inside its body!? Right now it’s just using materials from the royal castle, but depending on how you use this, it could become an absolutely insane bio-type magic tool!!"

"Oh!! You figured it out well!! This is the slime I created over the past month—it absorbs objects and replicates them. I call it… Torikopi-Slime-chan!!!!"

"I’m amazed by the talent and creativity it took to make this in a month… and by the unstoppable passion that no one could rein in. Just so you know—I’m not praising you."

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry!!! It’s my fault for not stopping her!!! Hey, you apologize too!!!"

"Nyah!? Don’t grab my head!! I just finished styling my hair!?"

The argument between Erius—who still had common sense—and Clarice—who had traded hers for talent and passion—quickly broke out. Well, Erius is simply stronger, and since Clarice does nothing but research and never exercises, she loses every single time.

Still, watching their exchange somehow soothed me. Ahh… this is such good couple content. I forgive everything now. Just seeing this makes it all worth it. If enduring a year’s worth of suffering—at least from my perspective—led to witnessing this scene, then I have no regrets in life.

"So precious… so precious… ahh, the beauty of childhood-friend bickering couples… the caring boy and the completely incapable girl… this is wonderful…"

"Yeah, he’s done for. Toma’s useless now—we’ll have to handle this ourselves."

Without thinking, I dropped to my knees and clasped my hands together in prayer. The lack of content had been painful… This alone is enough to make me happy.

That aside, what are we supposed to do about these tentacles? It’s strange we didn’t notice anything until we passed through the castle gates.

"Ahh, there’s a magical device here managing the visuals so people outside can’t see it. It’s set up around the castle, hiding everything from view. And the mana efficiency is excellent—one skilled mage could keep it running for a long time. Who could’ve made something like this…?"

"Oh, that? I made it on the side while creating Torikopi-Slime-chan. I got bored and wanted to watch the Sword King’s training, so I built a transmitter to view things remotely and a receiver to project the images in the air. But Erius looked like he’d interfere with Slime-chan, so I added an image-manipulation function before finishing it."

Please stop casually making absurd inventions like that. Seriously, how is this genius even capable of it?

Still, using something this advanced just for concealment… it might be a problem that Erius is the only one acting as a stopper. We need someone with actual common sense—someone who can step in when things get out of hand.

For the record, there are about twenty staff members in the magic research lab, but almost all of them are just like Clarice, so expecting them to stop anything is pointless.

Apparently, they never exceed their budget—but they complete requested items using less than half, then spend the rest building unnecessary extras. When Minister Depron told me that, I was honestly stunned by how uselessly competent they were.

At this rate, Erius is going to collapse eventually. We really need some sensible people… preferably a boy and a girl who’d also be nice to watch as a couple.

"Ugh!?"

"Thank you, Toma!!! Really, thank you!!! I’m so happy I came here!!!"

While I was lost in thoughts about the future, my arm was suddenly yanked—and before I knew it, my face was buried in Carol’s chest. On top of that, she wrapped her arms around my head, so I couldn’t pull away.

She may not have much there, but the softness unique to a woman—and her scent—made my head spin. Actually, the smell reminded me of the Demonic Mist Forest, and my trauma nearly made me black out.

My body went limp, and I couldn’t resist, so I had no choice but to let it happen. Though, if this is considered a reward for that training, then maybe it was worth enduring after all.

"You’re totally enjoying that, aren’t you? I can see you grinning through the gap, you pervert."

"Hm? What is it, Hikari? Jealous I’m all cuddled up with Toma? Here, you can have him."

The moment I was released, I was shoved—and ended up diving face-first into something soft. Thanks to my improved balance, I didn’t fall, but I instinctively grabbed onto it.

And I recognized it. I’d felt this exact sensation before.

Slowly lifting my gaze, I saw Hikari—her pale face flushed bright red. Meanwhile, the absurdly powerful elf magic-tool maniac who caused this situation had already lost interest and was running toward Torikopi-Slime-chan. Could she at least pay attention to what’s happening around her?

"H-Hikari, listen—this isn’t what it looks like! This wasn’t my intention—more like an accident—my will had nothing to do with it—"

"…I know. So stop trembling like that. Getting mad at you for this would be ridiculous."

"Kindness… your kindness pierces my soul…"

My childhood friend really proves she’s nothing like those violent heroines you see nowadays. Still, if I stayed like that any longer, I’d probably get punched for real, so I quickly pulled away.

Anyway, I shifted my attention to Torikopi-Slime-chan, wondering what to do. There haven’t been any casualties, and the castle isn’t damaged, but getting inside like this would be a hassle, so we need to deal with it somehow.

Thankfully, thanks to Clarice’s invention, the castle town has no idea what’s happening, so there’s no panic. Still, I never expected the first monster I’d see in this world to be something created by an ally…

Using a sword might not work, and I can only use two types of magic right now, so that’s unreliable too. It’s wrapped around the entire castle, so anything we try will likely require a large-scale effort.

"L-Lord Toma!? Torikopi-Slime-chan is coming this way!!"

"Huh?"

"Oh, I forgot to mention—Torikopi-Slime-chan tends to go after those with high mana. Well, not attack, exactly—it just wants to play."

While I was thinking, part of its body had already wrapped around me. Who even benefits from tentacle play with a guy? Before I could process that, I was lifted up and carried away.

Just as Clarice said, it didn’t feel dangerous—more like it just wanted to play. So I didn’t panic. Being lifted and moved around almost felt like a roller coaster—it was unexpectedly fun.

Surprisingly, it wasn’t even that slimy. It felt more like a cool cushion—actually kind of pleasant. Though apparently, I was the only one thinking that.

"Let go of Toma, you freaky creature!!!! I’ll slice you into a thousand pieces!!!"

"Such spirit. Your Majesty, please wait a moment. I will deal with this immediately."

"Wait!? We haven’t analyzed it yet!! And with this, we might even solve food shortages and more!!!"

"That’s right!! Slime-chan is my pet!!! I’ll feed it and even take it for walks!!!"

"And I’ll end up being the one taking care of it in the end, won’t I!!!"

"M-More importantly, we need to save Lord Toma!!!"

Yeah… this is complete chaos. It’s funny how the people around me are panicking more than the one actually being “attacked.” Personally, I don’t really mind this situation.

Still, realizing that this kind of noisy chaos would become my everyday life felt… a little strange.

And at the same time, I thought—if it’s to protect moments like this, then I can keep fighting.