Rupegia Ch. 04: Nour's Gift

"So, you're still alive?" Toga asks, mildly surprised.

Not even a greeting, just a mean gaze and straight words.

"Uh, were you expecting the contrary?" I ask worriedly.

He casually nods and answers, "You didn't come back for more training. That usually means you recklessly went into a dungeon and got yourself killed."

I chuckle self-deprecatingly. "Wow, that's not far from the truth, but I played it safe and went to Royd's Kerfuffle."

He purses his lips reprovingly. "Even that was dangerous. Did you hear an Orc Headhunter was found at the sixth level? That could've been you."

So, this means you care about me, Toga? Awn, I'm touched.

I smile wryly and respond, "Well... t-that was me. I fought the Orc Headhunter with three other people."

Toga doesn't even twitch, he just stares at me, judging my words, then he looks at one of the guys at the bench, the same on that healed me after the last beating I got.

"Harper! Who was the guy that killed the Orc Headhunter?!" Toga yells.

"I think it was some Wolf Ryder!" Harper yells back.

Toga slowly turns his head towards me in a perfectly creepy movement, then he stares at me even harder, as if his eyes could pierce my soul, and I see a small smile forming on his mouth.

"So, Mr. Slayer, are you here for more training?" He asks, his voice sounding even more threatening than before.

I avoid his gaze and tense up. "Y-yes... I would like to spar again," I answer meekly.

He immediately throws me a wooden sword. "Pull up your guard!"

And then he beats me again, even harder this time.

The other students and teachers start cheering me, encouraging me to not give up, crying in joy every time I managed to block, and flinching with every blow I receive. I think some are even betting, but I can't pay any more attention to them because my life and dignity are on the line.

This time, Toga doesn't just beat me, he turns it into a marathon of a beating. He wears me down and then lets me rest with the perfect balancing, making me last the whole afternoon, ending only when I can barely stand anymore. The beating is so bad that my shirt gets even bloodied.

Toga suddenly stops and lowers his sword. "That's enough. Today was a productive day, I'm pleased with the results," he says, and I swear his voice is tinged with sadism.

More like pleased in seeing me suffer.

"Thank you... for the session." Those are all the words I can say until I'm fully healed, and it takes two instructors to heal me to full.

--

I get back to the inn, and Selina greets me.

"Welcome back, Mr. Ryder, did you fight something fearsome again today?" She asks innocently.

"Just a bloodthirsty instructor," I answer with a wry smile.

She raises her eyebrows in surprise, then immediately grins. "Ah! I-I'm sorry..." She understands the joke, then hides her mouth with her hand and starts giggling.

I shake my head tiredly. "Don't be, it's training... it's a life I chose."

"Thank you for your effort." She bows and walks away while smiling.

When I get back to the bed, I take a look at my stats. My "Endurance" and "Willpower" increased by 1, while [Block], [Parry], and [Dodge] increased by 3, which is rather impressive. Though I guess I just didn't have much of a chance to use my sword for attack during this beating.

Then I remembered that there's a skill called [Shield Use], so why didn't I learn it, already? Is this an offensive skill like [Sword Use]? Do I need to attach a blade and kill something with it so it doesn't count as [Shield Bash]?

Whatever. If it isn't increasing, then I'll just ignore it for now until I learn more about skills.

This is my progress so far:

-

['Info']

[Name: Wolf Ryder | Age: 18 | Race: Human]

[HP: 100 | MP: 135 | Magic Power: 190]

[Level: 10 | Experience: 189/1500]

-

['Stats']

[Strength: 8 | Endurance: 9 | Dexterity: 9]

[Speed: 10 | Intelligence: 20 | Wisdom: 15]

[Willpower: 13 | Charisma: 10 | Piety: 3]

[Perception: 15 | Sanity: 8]

-

['Other']

[Status Effects: NONE | Titles: NONE]

[Affiliations: NONE]

[Companions: NONE]

[Crimes: NONE]

--

['Wolf Ryder Skill Report']

['Physical']

[Skill Name: Level | Skill Name: Level | Skill Name: Level]

[Sword Use: 9+2 | Dodge: 3+4 | Parry: 3+4]

[Block: 3+4 | Shield Bash: 0+1]

-

['Magical']

[Skill Name: Level | Skill Name: Level | Skill Name: Level]

[Mana Efficiency: 4+0 | Mana Recovery: 4+0 | Reduced Mana Cost 4+0]

[Fire Magic: 1+0 | Nature Magic: 5+0 | Blessing Magic: 5+0]

-

['Miscellaneous']

[Skill Name: Level]

[Andraste Language: 10+0]

[OBS: Level means (free point)+(trained point)]

-

After that, I go to sleep, and I have a few confusing dreams about fighting, so I don't sleep very well.

--

Today, my body is way too sore for training, and it hurts to even walk around.

Since I don't have much to do, I wanted to talk to Selina, but she's way too busy this time. Our relationship is kind of awkward. It's not like we're real friends, and I can't call her any time I want. Also, we only talk during mealtime, and I don't even know where she goes outside of that.

Since I don't know what to do, I eat my breakfast and spend the morning in bed, dozing on and off until it's almost time for lunch, then I get the energy to walk around and search for some exotic food.

I find a place with a super spicy Dragolite soup, and it has a hint of curry in it. The problem is, it's hotter than Satan's butthole, so it takes me some effort to eat it, but I do it. I'm not weak to spicy food, so I wonder what the hell was the cook thinking when he made this.

Then I decide to go to the hunters guild to train magic. People should already know I have Fire and [Electric Magic], so I'm just going to train my mana pool.

I tell the manager that I'm going to train with [Fireball], and he gives me the ok, so I go to the furthest corner of the magic training area. Over here, people won't notice that I don't chant, and also I can stay far away from Toga's sadistic gaze.

I observe the other mages use [Fireball], and I notice that a small one can chanted nearly instantly. I think about putting points in [Mana Control] so I can change the size of the [Fireball], but I don't think it'd be necessary to go to this level of deceit.

I put all my points into combat skills and start casting [Fireball] until my mana is exhausted. I can only cast it twelve times until my MP is gone, then I put all my points in [Mana Recovery] and meditate until I'm back to full. I try casting it thirteen times, but I nearly faint from mana overuse, and due to embarrassment, I decide to not do it again.

I read in the dungeoneering tips book that powerful mages with lots of mana that get their MP too low or use it up too fast can suffer from loss of senses, painful headaches, and sore muscles. This happens because of the large amount of mana leaving your body hurts the soul, or something like that, so it affects people with large mana pools more often. This is called "mana overuse," and the skill [Mana Overuse Resistance] counters it, but it's really hard to get it. The book advises that mages should exhaust their mana every day until they develop this skill, but it doesn't seem like a lot of people follow this advice, though.

After someone uses all their mana, their MP goes into the negative if they continue casting magic, but this means that they use part of their soul as a source of power. This damages their HP, and normally leads to unconsciousness, but there's the [Blackout Resistance] skill that counters that. The biggest advantage of this skill is that for a backline caster that should always have full health, being able to trade their HP for MP is huge. It just isn't recommended to be used often because it reduces someone's lifespan. Also, it's necessary to first deal with the feedback from overuse before blackout becomes relevant, so it's a skill that's even more difficult to learn.

If I keep practicing my magic like this every day, then maybe I could learn it in a year, but it'll take a lot of diligence.

I quickly realize that this sort of training is really taxing mentally. My head starts to hurt when I'm low on mana, and it takes quite some effort for me to concentrate on meditating, but I manage to keep training until it's almost dusk, then I go back to the inn.

I'm starving.

It seems that using mana makes you more hungry than normal as I have to ask for a second serving of the already generous meal the inn gives.

"What's gotten you so hungry?" Selina asks as she puts down the plate for me.

"It seems training magic makes you super hungry," I answer and dig in.

She sits down and coos in wonder. "O~h? You can use magic, too? That's amazing. What spells can you cast?"

I swallow hurriedly and respond, "Oh... i-it's nothing. Just a small [Fireball] and support spells for myself, like [Regeneration] and [Wind Armor]."

She giggles cutely. "'Nothing'? You're quite humble. A magician who knows the sword is such a romantic way of fighting."

I stop eating and frown in confusion. "Uh... what do you mean by 'romantic'?"

She rests her chin on her hand and starts talking excitedly, "Most stories of heroes are about people like you: melee fighters with a trump card in magic. They live dangerous and exciting adventures that give them the wisdom to push their powers to the limit.

"My favorite is about a mage whose entire strategy revolved around finding the chance to cast a single [Shocking Touch] on the eyes of his enemies. His way of fighting was all or nothing, and he bet it all on that spell when he fought a dragon. A huge, dangerous, and feared monster being brought down with a single, simple spell. He was so witty he convinced the dragon into getting close, even though it knew what the adventurer was capable of. I got chills when I read that book."

Is this what a normal girl of this world thinks about or are you just special?

"Indeed, it sounds like a poetic fight," I answer and chuckle.

Selina gives me a smile that melts my heart and continues telling her stories.

But then I remember Lily...

It's hard to admit this, but I believe I'll have to stay in this world for a long, long time. My growth is slow, transmigration is something unknown to the natives, and I have absolutely zero idea why I'm here. I don't even have a mentor figure to guide me and then get killed in the middle of the story to give me an impetus to fight.

I'm stuck here. And if "God's" message wasn't a lie, then it's for the rest of my life.

What happened on Earth? Did time stop? Are they looking for me? Are they even still alive?

I know that Lily wouldn't wait for me, and I shouldn't wait, too. We aren't idealists who believe in the existence of "true love," we're bitter realists who just found happiness with each other. We wouldn't want the other to spend who knows how long waiting for me to return. We love each other to the point we'd want the other to find happiness, even if it isn't together. We're just that pragmatic.

I can't just do this all by myself forever. I need someone to rely on... but I'm too scared to get close to anyone.

I drop on my bed and sigh, then I curl up into a ball.

It's not even a month and I'm already breaking down, but to be fair, in just a few days I've already gone through enough of life and death situations to last an entire lifetime on Earth.

I need to think only about myself, otherwise, I don't think I'll last long. This world will have no mercy for someone delicate like me. I need to change, but I don't want to.

Silent tears run along my cheeks and I cry myself to sleep.

--

I have a nightmare of the Headhunter staring at me with his beady little eyes. It does nothing and just stares at me, like an ever-present threat.

--

Today, I wake up with my body feeling better, but I'm still not good enough to be beaten into a pulp again. My "Strength" didn't increase, too, so I think I should start a muscle training regimen. I can just do some quick exercises before bath like I did on Earth, but I need something to replace dumbbells.

I look at my MP and see it increased by 30 (now 165). That's a nice amount. I can certainly cast [Fireball] one more time now. No "Magic Power" increase though, so I wonder what's needed for that.

Breakfast is bean salad with not-corn crumbs and a leg of Rabid Rabbit. Honestly, the cuisine around here is not bad, but I just really miss rice.

Now, what do I do today? I'm not really in the mood for exploring the town since my head is still heavy with the thoughts from last night.

I feel like I've mentally cornered myself. I'm stuck in a dilemma caused by two conflicting parts of my beliefs. Any decision I make will end up hurting a part of me, so how should I even start to make this choice? It's easy to find the logical path to follow, but it's hard to actually go through with it.

I try to pick up the romance book to read, but I can't concentrate, so I just absentmindedly turn around the pages without absorbing anything.

--

After wasting my morning, I just pick a random stall and eat lunch on the street. I barely even pay attention to what I'm eating, I just know that it's bland.

After that, I decide to hurt myself and go to the training ground to increase my MP again.

This time, Toga doesn't stare so much at me. He seems satisfied with the amount of pain I'm giving to myself.

Besides forgoing shame and losing my senses five times from overuse, nothing really happens, and I just robotically repeat my training sequence with [Fireball] followed by [Mana Recovery]-enhanced meditation. It gives me a bit of a headache, though.

After dusk, I come back and absentmindedly eat my dinner. Selina isn't serving today and I don't ask why.

I go to sleep with my mood worse than when I woke up.

--

I dream of the Gargling Goblin again. This time, I tell him to fuck off, but it doesn't help, and I wake up in the middle of the night sweating cold.

--

Selina wakes me up and immediately look at my MP. It increased by 50 (now 215). It's quite a large amount, so I believe I did well on yesterday's training.

Now, it's finally the day to buy a slave. I anxiously eat my breakfast, then I go to the Golden Necklace.

I don't even know what I want from it anymore...

The same butler-like old man greets me with a bow as he says, "Welcome again, Grand Sir. Would you like to go to the meeting room immediately? I'll call the Head; the new shipment is ready for inspection."

"Sure, please do."

I enter the room and remember the heavenly cookies and tea. My sweet-tooth aching takes some of the edge off.

The not-butler comes a few seconds later with a tray of cookies and tea, then leaves me alone to devour them. There's double the amount than the other day.

Did he notice I liked them?

Ghulam comes in a does a quick bow. "Welcome again to the Golden Necklace, Mr. Ryder. I'm glad you waited. I'm sure that you'll be pleased with the new shipment, they're astounding."

He sits and claps his hand, then the not-butler opens the door.

Two women come in, two beautiful women. I suck in a breath and freeze.

Astounding indeed.

The first is a fox girl. She has light brown, almost orange hair styled in a cute bob cut, a diamond-shaped jaw, thin lips, a small nose, round orange eyes, and pointy orange fox ears on top of her head. Such an incredibly cute face.

When she walks, I see an orange fox tail dangling about, and it even has a white tip. It looks so soft I want to hug it.

The second is an elven girl. She has silver straight hair that's so glossy it almost shines, an adorably short stature, skin as white as snow, an oval face, upturned blue eyes that look almost Asian, a small and pointy nose, small red lips, and the unmistakable long pointy ears of the elves protruding at a right angle from her head.

That's honestly not what I thought he meant when he said the new slaves would be even better than the previous ones. I imagined a bigger monster than the dragonkin would appear, or something like that. And judging my current state, I don't think I should be in this room with these two girls.

Ghulam smiles at me with grace, making it hard to look away from him as he says, "These are my two new prizes. The werefox is Alissa. She's an offering from an exclusive deal Rabanara has with the Misty Low Forest. They raise and train a slave every three years, then sell it to us. It took me a lot of luck, but I managed to acquire her.

"She has been taught since she was a child that her destiny is to be a combat slave, and due to her beauty, she has also been trained on how to serve a man. She's the most skilled archer and hunter of her clan, and you won't find someone better than her outside of a Lord's retinue. Her 'Speed' and 'Dexterity' are very high, which gives her pinpoint accuracy and high lethality. Her olfact and hearing are extremely sharp, and she even has the rare [Sense Presence], making her the perfect scout. She was also trained in the traditional lifestyle magic so she's ready to live even among the nobility.

"The other one is called Silvane. She's the daughter of a fallen noble from the elven lands of Elaria, so she has no relation to the elves on this side of the continent. Her father, mother, and brother were executed as punishment for failing to fulfill their duties as nobles, so she hopes in finding a master who achieves heroic feats to regain her honor, and perhaps even her noble status. Like all nobility, she was trained in serving men and women, and how to care and manage a house or a business.

"Her skills are in [Light Magic], [Blessing Magic], [Wind Magic], [Nature Magic], [Earth Magic] and [Fire Magic]. She has an amazing mana pool since she was training to help her family in managing the dungeons on their territory. She's guaranteed to become an amazing magician in the future, if you train her right.

"Both accept being sex slaves, and they're virgins. They also have contracts for life," he adds, his tone is deep and husky, calling forth feelings I'm not proud of having.

Oh, boy.

I need to leave this place. I'm not in the right mindset to make a rational decision right now. Only one of the women talked about being a "sex slave," so I didn't even think of this, but now, seeing these girls who are ready (and willing?), my body aches for comfort. This craving fights against my fragmented will and my guilt from my love for Lily.

What am I supposed to do? Wait, there's a way out! They must cost an exorbitant amount, there's no way I can buy them, right?

"W-What's the cost? They must be t-too expensive for me," I ask, barely containing my anxiety.

Ghulam whispers honeyed words to me, "With the discount from your recommendation, sixty gold for the elf, seventy for the werefox."

NO!

He laughs gently and adds, "There's no rush. If you want to talk or observe them closer it's allowed. Such an investment shouldn't be done hastily." Then he grins.

He noticed how I'm desperately holding myself. He trapped me here, and there's no way I'm leaving without buying one of them now.

I force my self to breath deeply, managing to calm down a little.

I'm weak... I'm sorry, Lily... but I'm far too weak. Being alone in this world hurts too much, and I'm far too scared that I'll die to pass on the chance of some happiness.

There's a devil disguising as a man who's tempting me. He threw two wonderful women in front of me and said: "Here! Pick one, grab her, fuck her, make her yours. She will be your thing, your toy, forever. No strings attached, no messy relationships, no love dynamics, no anxiety from rejection, she's your perfect woman. Even the fucking gods tell you it's okay to do it, now fucking choose!"

I'm sorry Lily... I'm a bad man. I'm sorry you fell in love with me, and it's okay to not wait for me. I'll do what I want in this fucking world because there's no one fucking else that'll help me. I was abandoned here without care, so I'll abandon whatever is holding me back from my previous world. This world will be mine... wait no, too far.