Chapter 44

"Phew... After a busy day, taking a bath is really too comfortable..."

Fiona immersed herself in the bathtub, the warm water enveloping her skin and easing her fatigue.

Women from any world generally enjoy cleanliness and bathing, as it not only relaxes their minds but also makes their skin whiter and smoother.

Since the collapse of the Golden Rose family, she hadn't relaxed in a bathtub like this for a long time.

The only downside was the lack of petals in the bath.

Not only that...

"What's with the foam on the water? Didn't Tina instruct the maids to change the water regularly?"

Fiona was a bit dissatisfied, and at the same time, she noticed a faint fragrance in the air.

"This smell is... mint?"

Fiona was surprised. Following the scent, her gaze fell on a small, peculiar object placed by the bathtub.

"What is this?"

Fiona curiously picked up the object. It felt slippery and hard to hold, with a refreshing mint scent that was very pleasant to smell.

"I've never seen this before..."

Fiona frowned slightly.

"Phew—Ah! Refreshing!"

At that moment, there was a splash in the center of the bathtub, and a person emerged, splashing water on Fiona's face, which left her stunned.

As the steam cleared, a naked Tang En appeared before Fiona, his strong and clean body exuding a strange charm that made it hard for her to look away.

"It's been a long time since I felt this refreshed. The mint soap is really powerful. If—"

Tang En's voice suddenly stopped as his gaze fell on Fiona by the bathtub.

There was a soft sound of swallowing.

"It must be an illusion, definitely an illusion."

Tang En nodded, then calmly walked out of the bathtub and left the room.

"He, he, he..."

Fiona's lips trembled, unable to understand why Tang En was here.

She was completely exposed!

Totally exposed!

She would never be able to marry now!

Fiona's mind went blank; she couldn't believe what had just happened.

Yet, despite the awkward and embarrassing situation, the image still lingered in her mind...

Not only was she exposed, but she had also seen him...

This must be a cruel joke by the gods!

"Ah——"

A sharp scream tore through the tranquility of the lord's mansion. Tang En, who had just stepped out of the bathroom, shuddered and quickly returned to his bedroom, grabbing his clothes.

"This is going to be a big problem..."

Tang En scratched his wet hair, feeling a bit troubled. He certainly didn't think what he saw was an illusion; a powerful mage being deceived by an illusion would be ridiculous.

He had just pretended to be calm to spare Fiona's dignity, but in reality, Tang En still felt very awkward.

How could this happen so coincidentally?

Fiona didn't go in the morning or evening, but she happened to be there when he went...

Tang En muttered to himself, "God... If you're really watching this world, then tell me this is a cruel joke..."

"Boom!"

A thunderclap echoed through the sky.

Tang En shuddered, laughed nervously, and put on his clothes. The moisture on his body evaporated instantly, leaving him clean and refreshed.

Regardless of whether this was a prank by the gods, Tang En knew that Fiona would probably be too embarrassed to see him for a few days.

Sniffing his arm, Tang En felt very relaxed. The mint soap had been a success; the scent of mint essential oil lingered on his body after the bath, which was much better than before.

Thinking that Fiona might come out soon, Tang En felt a bit restless. After some thought, he decided to slip out.

"Lord!"

Just as he stepped out, he encountered Elsa, who was running towards him. She waved a few sheets of paper and, after a quick run, said happily, "This is the training method for the guard you requested. I've organized it."

"Oh! Great, let's find a place to talk!"

Tang En glanced back at the lord's mansion and saw Fiona rushing out with a sword in hand. His heart skipped a beat, and he grabbed Elsa's hand and ran out.

"Huh!? Huh!? Lord!?"

Suddenly grabbed by the hand, Elsa was startled and didn't react in time as she was dragged along.

The lord's strength was so great!

Elsa felt both shy and surprised. She was known for her strength, and even ordinary warriors dared not compete with her, but she was being dragged by Tang En.

And... the lord's hand was so big and warm...

Elsa felt a bit shy, looked up at Tang En, and then quickly looked down, shaking her head. Now wasn't the time to daydream, Elsa!

Tang En and Elsa ran all the way to the treehouse, where he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Fiona wouldn't chase them here, right?

Once she calmed down, it would be fine...

Tang En felt a bit awkward. Although it was Fiona who had mistakenly entered the bathroom, in such a situation, everyone would think the girl was the one who suffered. It was understandable why Fiona was so angry.

Thinking about this, Tang En felt a bit wronged. It seemed that gender inequality existed in every world. He had been exposed too, after all...

Hmm, maybe he should introduce a law to protect men's rights in Ellington to soothe his wounded heart?

"Lord? Lord?"

"Ah? Ah!"

Tang En snapped back to reality.

"Lord, um, this..."

Elsa felt a bit awkward and fidgeted, her gaze constantly dropping.

Tang En looked down and smiled, letting go of her hand. "Sorry, Elsa. I was a bit in a hurry... Um, what were we supposed to discuss again?"

Elsa felt a bit strange. "The guard's training, Lord."

"Right! That's it! The guard's training!"

Tang En's expression turned serious. "The guard is the foundation of our security in Ellington. We must take it seriously and never slack off."

"Do you want to look at what I wrote?"

Elsa pointed to the sheets of paper.

Tang En cleared his throat and looked at them.

The handwriting was beautiful.

That was Tang En's first impression.

Then...

Words?

"Huh? Elsa, you can read?"

Tang En was very surprised. The literacy rate in Plandar was not high, and many commoners had no opportunity to learn to read. Generally, only nobles could read, which was one reason why mages, who needed to learn a lot of written knowledge, were considered a noble profession.

"Yes, my mother taught me. What's wrong?"

What's wrong? This was a big issue...

Tang En looked at Elsa meaningfully and then focused on the sheets of paper again.

The training methods for the guard, though written on several pages, were surprisingly simple. Most of it involved lifting heavy objects, such as rolling logs and stone rollers, with some simple simulated combat—nothing like the intense competitions on Earth—very basic, just for comparison.

There was no high-intensity training or discipline training on the paper. The only thing that seemed a bit advanced was the basic military swordsmanship training.

Unfortunately, since it was called basic military swordsmanship, it was very basic, involving only chopping, thrusting, and stabbing.

In the heat of battle, this was the simplest and most efficient swordsmanship.

After reading Elsa's summary of the training methods, Tang En fell into deep thought.

He thought about the military training on Earth.

The first thing college freshmen did was to undergo military training. Regardless of its effectiveness, after a month, the new students' spirit and appearance were completely transformed. Those who had undergone military training were clearly different from those who hadn't.

"Do you have a pen?"

"I do."

Elsa handed the pen to Tang En.

The paper and pen in Plandar were similar to those from early Earth. The pen was an invention of the dwarves, similar to a fountain pen, and the paper, due to material issues, was expensive and hard to preserve. Most wealthy people used parchment—Tang En preferred to call it vellum.

Tang En took the paper and pen and started writing on the back.

To be honest, he didn't know the specific military training methods, but he could infer that they were more intense, more efficient, and more disciplined.

Considering the specific situation in Plandar, Tang En felt he could be even more exaggerated.

Since the warriors here could harness blood energy, their individual combat power was much greater than on Earth, so the training intensity had to be increased to be effective.

In Tang En's view, the training methods Elsa used were too simple. The guards felt no pressure and thus lacked the motivation to improve.

Fatigue training was the best solution.

"Ten kilometers of weighted running before breakfast, then return for breakfast. After breakfast, start with arm strength training. Fifteen kilograms of dumbbells? Too light, start with thirty kilograms, two hundred reps. Then two hundred sit-ups, followed by two hours of standing at attention, with a five-minute break in between... After lunch, rest for half an hour, then one hundred push-ups... Hmm? Too simple? Weighted push-ups, one hundred reps, then relax in the Emerald River, swim five kilometers back and forth... What about those who can't swim? I don't care..."

Tang En happily formulated a simple yet detailed training plan for the Ellington guard. In the process, he felt an extraordinary sense of pleasure.

Could this be how the instructors on Earth felt when they trained them?

"Lord, is this kind of training really okay?"

Elsa looked doubtful. It was just simple running, standing, weight training, and swimming, which didn't seem much different from before.

Tang En waved his hand. "Start with this."

"Oh, right," Tang En added, "Record the top three and the bottom three performers each day, and give me a monthly summary. The top three get extra rewards, and the bottom three get corresponding punishments."

Elsa suddenly understood. "I get it!"

"Training starts the day after tomorrow. Tomorrow morning, take the guards to the Emerald River and wait for me. We have something to do." === PS: Favoriting and voting after reading is a good habit that makes the author happy...