Chapter 3

Today, I have two works to submit, so please check them out first.

"Today's training is over!! Dismiss and rest your bodies!"

A clear and dignified voice echoed through the training ground in the castle's garden. The voice belonged to a beautiful woman with a large, well-endowed chest, wearing a chest plate, a skirt designed for female knights, and flowing blue hair.

Elka Verso —— that was the woman's name.

It had been nearly a week since this training, aimed at harnessing everyone's powerful abilities, had begun.

At first, they couldn't even cast proper magic, but now they had become respectable mages, growing incredibly fast due to their inherent power.

A significant part of this rapid growth could be attributed to the beautiful blue-haired knight, Elka.

Elka Verso —— she was a magic warrior and the leader of the castle's soldiers, a formidable woman despite her youthful appearance. The male classmates were captivated by her at first sight, and I've heard the girls call her "Onee-sama" behind her back.

But Elka was actually my former comrade.

Elka, the Ice Swordswoman —— she was so strong that this nickname had spread far and wide.

That's why I couldn't understand something.

Why was Elka, of all people, in charge of our training...? Normally, she should be on the front lines of the war. There must be some reason...

――――... Well, there's no point in thinking too deeply about it now. Thanks to her being our instructor, their levels have been improving. I don't really care about my classmates, but I don't want them to die either. It's great that they're becoming less likely to die. On the contrary, I need them to be strong enough to protect Yūhi even without me.

As I was about to return to my room with the other classmates, someone put an arm around my shoulder in a familiar manner.

"Hey, Necra Yuki, got a minute?"

It was the bully, Endo, and his cronies.

I tried hard not to sigh and let myself be led to our usual spot by them.

"Take this!"

"..."

Endo's magic-enhanced kick hit my stomach.

This place was behind the castle, in the shadows, where there was almost no one around. Think of it like the back of a modern gym.

I jumped dramatically as I was kicked and intentionally slammed into the castle wall. I made sure to show a pained expression and let out a natural groan.

Over the past few days, I had perfected the act of being beaten, which was actually painless, but Endo and his cronies seemed to enjoy it, their faces twisted in pleasure.

"We're lucky! We have such a good punching bag! You guys, go ahead!"

"Sure thing!"

"Perfect for trying out the magic we've been practicing!"

Taking advantage of the lack of witnesses, they started to beat me up as they pleased.

For the past few days, they had been attacking me in a way that wouldn't leave any marks, which was actually a problem for me.

To appear weak, I had to pretend to be beaten. I used my own magic to burn the spots where fireballs hit me and hit myself when I had the chance to make it look real. It was frustrating, but to be seen as useless, I needed to pay attention to these details.

Eventually, the Endo family (laughs) left after using a healing spell (recovery magic) on me as a token of apology. As the pain subsided, I returned to my room, but no one said anything about the injuries, even if they were visible. Yūhi might have been worried, but unfortunately, I haven't seen him recently.

These guys, centered around Kōma's class, were a head taller than the other classmates in terms of strength. Therefore, they were being taught a different curriculum by someone else. They were even given special treatment, staying in a separate area from the rest of us, so I never saw them after training. Occasionally, I heard their names from Elka, so I assumed they were doing well.

"Hey! We're trying out a new move today!"

"Seriously, Endo?"

"Go for it!"

I almost forgot. In front of me, Endo was enthusiastically casting a spell, and a fiery red ball was forming in his hand. Hmm, a variation of Fireball?

"Here it comes! Corona Ball!"

The spell, which was quite hot, was heading towards me.

It was small in scale but had a lot of heat. If it hit, it might burn the skin.

Should I take it? —— Just as I relaxed my body,

Endo's ball (laughs) froze in front of me.

"Huh?"

Endo let out a surprised and foolish voice, but I knew who the culprit was.

"You guys, if you're going to fight, I'd like to see it happen in front of me."

"Elka...?"

The Ice Swordswoman, Elka, appeared with a firm attitude, and cold air was emanating from her hand. The name "Ice Swordswoman" came from her expertise in ice magic. She was also a skilled swordsman, but her true strength lay in her ice magic.

"What should we do, Endo?"

"Damn... Let's go. Sorry, Elka, we were just playing around, no need to worry."

"Alright, be careful."

"Sure. Come on, guys."

"Ah, yeah."

"Okay..."

The three of them returned to the castle. It was refreshing to see them listen to Elka.

Well, I should at least thank her.

"Thank you."

"It's no problem. But from now on, I'd like you to protect yourself. I'm not always available."

...Huh?

"Why don't you try to get stronger? There are ways, like physical training. At the very least, I don't want to have to intervene again."

...Huh? Huh?

"If you can't fight, at least try not to be a burden. This country doesn't have the luxury to spare resources on the incompetent."

I see... In other words, there's no room for the weak...

Hehehe... My Elka has really grown, hasn't she?

"Discipline... time."

"Hehe... Haha..."

"――――What, you've become quite the big shot, haven't you?"

"Ah!? Squeal!!"

Whoosh!

A sudden gust of wind blew Elka's blue hair and lifted her body into the air. I jumped and carried her on my shoulder, holding her securely with my arm.

"What are you doing!? Let me go!!"

"I need to discipline a slave who talks back to me!"

"What are you saying――――ahh!!"

My hand slapped Elka's butt, which was right next to her face.

I pulled down her skirt and started slapping her perfectly rounded butt.

Smack! Smack! Smack!

"Ahh! Doing this... ngh! It won't end here... ahn!"

"Still don't remember! I'll do this to you!"

I put more force into my slaps.

I had forgotten the right amount of force, but gradually, I got back into the rhythm of "how I used to do it."

"This... ah! The way you hit... ah! Could it be... ahn!"

"Ah? Finally remember, Elka?"

"Ahh!! Master Setsu!! Ahn!!"

As a reward for remembering, I gave her one last, hard slap.

She convulsed and became quiet, but when I put her down to rest, she quickly regained her composure.

"Master Setsu!! I was so lonely!? Not being able to be hit by you was really tough!?"

I covered Elka's noisy mouth with my hand.

"Ah! Shut up, shut up!! I'm sorry, I'll stop..."

"Phew!! I'm serious!! When I heard that you were forcibly returned to this country, I really didn't know what to do..."

When I let her speak, her expression became increasingly dark.

"――――... I'm sorry for worrying you. I'm back."

"Welcome back――――Master Setsu!"

I hugged Elka.

...It's been a while since I felt this way. It finally feels like I'm back in this world.

"Hmm... Master Setsu's smell after five years... hmm..."

...You really ruined the moment... this feeling...

"Discipline time!!"

"Ahh!! Stop rubbing my head!!"

―――――Here, let me share some insider information about Elka Verso that no one knows.

"You serious, you perverted, serious girl!!"

"Stop rubbing my head!!―――――Wait? It feels kind of good..."

She is, in this world, a pure

Pervert

Don't you think perverted girls are wonderful?