Contrary to my worries, the night had been sowhat bearable. It was thanks to Iris’s blessing and the makeshift bed I had crafted with branches and leaves, using the survival skills I had learned during my rcenary days. It hadn’t been comfortable by any ans, but it was manageable.
Still, compared to the other cadets, this is a luxury, I thought.
At this mont, most of them were probably exhausted, barely holding on. Camping without proper knowledge often drained more energy than simply staying awake.
That was probably part of the lesson as well.
If this were rely a practical tracking exercise, they wouldn’t have released such an unreasonable type of demonic monster. Feline-type monsters were notoriously swift and left almost no trace, which made them far harder to track than other monsters with the sa number of eyes.
They must’ve anticipated that the cadets wouldn’t be able to capture all the demonic monsters in a single day, I surmised.
That was why Professor Kane hadn’t given the cadets any warning to prepare thoroughly. The true purpose of this class wasn’t just giving the cadets experience in tracking demonic monsters but also teaching them how to survive, set up camp, secure food, and endure.
This ant that keeping watch for potential dangers while observing Iris as she slept peacefully was also part of the lesson.
I recalled the way her face had lit up in pure delight the previous night as she had excitedly kicked her feet while eating ran. It only reaffird sothing I was already sure of. Even if all our mories together were erased, Iris is still Iris.
It was such an obvious fact, and yet, it filled with an overwhelming sense of relief. I can’t wait to see the others too. Yuren, Berald, and Senior Sophia, I wonder what they are all up to now?
As I reminisced about my old comrades, lost in thought, Camilla’s voice snapped out of my reverie. “What’s with that creepy smile?”
“What, am I not allowed to smile now?” I replied.
“Hmph! That was definitely a suspicious smile!”
“Stop spouting nonsense and wake Iris up. We should get moving.”
“Tsk.” Camilla hesitantly approached Iris and gently shook her shoulder. “Milady, it’s ti to wake up—Hyaaak?!”
Still half-asleep, Iris pulled Camilla into an embrace, nuzzling her cheek against Camilla’s chest as if she were a pillow. “Annghh... Just a little more.”
“M-Milady, this isn’t proper!”
“Mm... What is this? So stiff,” Iris sleepily said.
“Wake up already, you idiot.” Camilla snapped and smacked Iris on the back, making her eyes flutter open. Then, she said, “Are you awake now, Milady?”
Yawning, Iris replied, “Yeah, I’m up. But why does my back feel sore?”
“Well, you did sleep on the ground with just so leaves as padding,” Camilla replied.
“Oh, right, we camped out. No wonder sothing felt stiff and flat against my cheek earlier,” Iris said.
Looking at Camilla’s reaction to that remark, I thought, Calm down, Camilla. She's your master.
“Now that you’re awake, let’s get moving,” I said.
“Moving? Where to?” Iris asked.
“I found so monster tracks while scouting earlier this morning,” I answered.
We had gained enough experience camping out in the wild. It was ti to resu tracking for the demonic monsters.
***
After a quick wash-up at a nearby stream, our party followed the tracks carefully. A few hours passed before we finally spotted a demonic monster drinking water from the stream in the distance.
Another feline-type demonic monster, huh, I thought. It didn’t have a beak-like mouth like the one we captured before, but their overall appearance was quite similar. The key difference? This one had four eyes instead of three—a step above the one we captured the previous day.
Now that I recall, I heard about this. In my previous life, one of the three demonic monsters released into the forest was said to be particularly fast and difficult to capture. It was the reason the cadets had taken three whole days to capture all the demonic monsters.
The sight of this high-level demonic monster right before my eyes was yet another reminder of how much I had changed since my return. Back then, my party couldn’t even catch a three-eyed one, let alone a four-eyed one.
In a slightly tense voice, Camilla said, “It has an extra eye.”
“Want to take this one?” I asked.
Determined not to back down, Camilla stepped forward. “Hmph. Three eyes or four, it makes no difference.”
I shrugged and moved to block the escape route, just as I had done the previous day. Camilla also repeated her actions, sprinting toward the demonic monster at my signal.
The monster, which had been focused on drinking, jerked its head up in alarm. It quickly turned, attempting to flee, only to find blocking its escape route. As it hesitated, glancing between Camilla and , it finally made its decision and charged Camilla.
It’s trying to break through. I glanced at Camilla, who was already drawing her sword with a confident smirk.
“If you’re going to co, then co!” she said.
The monster lunged at her. The soul stigmata on Camilla’s chest glowed, enveloping her blade in white light. She aid for the monster’s neck, but suddenly, a red warning notification flashed on her Hero Watch.
[Warning. If you kill the training-purposed demonic monster instead of capturing it, all bonus points will be revoked.]
“Ugh!” Camilla hastily twisted her sword’s trajectory. However, stopping a swing mid-motion was impossible.
Clang!
Her sword barely grazed the monster’s neck. Frustrated, she glared at the flashing warning on her Hero Watch. “Damn it! They should’ve warned us about this beforehand!”
She was so distracted by the ssage that she failed to realize what exactly she had cut.
“Grrrr!”
The restraint-type magical device on the monster’s neck split in two, falling to the ground. The monster’s four eyes glead with a nacing red light.
“Grrrrah!”
Freed from its restraints, it bolted forward, much faster than before.
Stunned at first, Camilla turned to follow its movent, but it had already passed her.
The direction it was now charging toward, its glowing red eyes locked on target, was none other than that of our remaining party mber.
Forgetting all formalities, Camilla scread, “I-Iris!”
Iris tried to dodge the demonic monster lunging at her, but avoiding such a sudden charge was impossible for soone untrained in hand-to-hand combat.
Just as the demonic monster’s savage fangs closed in on her, I took action. “See, I told you I’d handle this.”
I stood in front of the demonic monster and used Berald Combat Style: Sky Flip.
Booom!
With the force of its own charge turned against itself, the demonic monster crashed headfirst into the ground, letting out a painful shriek. Seizing the opportunity, I struck the writhing creature’s head with the flat side of my sword.
A dull thud echoed as my sheathed sword slamd into the demonic monster’s skull. At that instant, its red eyes lost their glow. I then turned to Iris. “Are you okay?”
Still dazed, Iris nodded. “Ah... Yes.”
She then took my hand and stood up.
Camilla ca rushing over, her face pale with worry. “Iris, a-are you hurt anywhere?!”
“No, I’m fine.”
Letting out a deep sigh of relief, Camilla clenched her teeth and bowed at a perfect ninety-degree angle. “I sincerely apologize, Milady! This incident must be formally reported to the Holy Empire. I will receive my due punishnt.”
“No, there’s no need for that.”
“B-but!” Camilla tried to retort.
With a gentle smile, Iris placed a hand on Camilla’s shoulder and straightened her up. “I said, it’s fine. I was also unaware that we weren’t supposed to kill the demonic monsters.”
Still looking remorseful, Camilla turned to . “Thank you. I will make sure to repay this debt.”
“Hmm. And how exactly do you plan to repay ?” I asked playfully.
“I’ll do anything within my power,” she replied.
“Oh? Really? Anything at all?” I said.
“A-as long as it’s not sothing disgusting, like eating poop!”
“Hey now,” I replied. Just what kind of person does she take for?
“Forget the whole repaynt thing. Just call it even.” I looked at her.
“Call what even?” she asked.
“When I flung you through the air last week.”
“T-that was!” Camilla flustered, fumbling for an excuse about how she had let her guard down.
Ignoring her rambling, I approached the shattered remains of the restraints lying on the ground. “Will it still register in this condition?”
Tilting my head, I held my Hero Watch over it. A clear chi rang, and a holographic window popped up.
[Capture confird for the party of Iris, Camilla Vediche, and Dale Han.]
[Since all demonic monsters have been captured, the ‘Practical Combat Training’ has concluded.]
[Cadets, please proceed to the training ground entrance imdiately.]
Clicking my tongue, I stared at the floating ssage. “Looks like another team got to the last one.”
If I hadn’t spent the night camping with Iris and had kept hunting instead, we could have captured all three. But, oh well. No use dwelling on it now.
“Let’s head back,” I said.
“Understood.” Camilla nodded and followed .
Just like that, the two of us walked in the direction of the training ground. Wait, the two of us? Hmmm?
“Iris?” I said.
“Ah, sorry! I was lost in thought for a mont,” she replied.
“W-wait, don’t tell you are actually hurt?!” Camilla asked worryingly.
“No, it’s nothing like that,” Iris answered.
Camilla looked at her. “What do you an nothing! Your face is completely red!”
“I-it’s not what you think!” Iris quickly ducked her head, her cheeks flushed, and hurried her pace.
Camilla imdiately chased after her. “Ah! Milady, wait!”
Watching Iris’s retreating figure, I frowned. “What’s this?”
For just a split second, only for a fleeting mont, her gaze had reminded of the way she used to look at in our past life.
Let’s stop overthinking and just move. Shaking off the thought, I followed the two ahead.
***
I had approached him out of pure curiosity. I was only wondering why. Why had he looked at , soone he had never even spoken to before, and cried so sadly like that?
At first, all I felt was discomfort. However, as ti passed, that feeling faded, and curiosity took root in its place. Before I knew it, my mind was consud with thoughts of the man who had gazed at and said, “Really... I’m so glad.”
What exactly was he glad about? I kept questioning it, but the answer never ca. Instead, the more I thought about him, the more a strange realization surfaced. He feels... familiar.
Even though we had never spoken before, even though I had no mories of him, the way he looked at and the way he spoke to —sohow, none of it felt unfamiliar.
No, more than that, it felt welcoming. So much so that my heart started racing without realizing it.
Why am I feeling like this? It was ridiculous, like I was a lost lover reunited with my beloved after lifetis apart. The thought was laughable. It was absurd.
And then, before the training class, Professor Kane said, “For today’s class, you’ll be forming groups of three. You are free to find your teammates.”
The mont I heard that, before I even realized it, I was walking straight toward him.
When I looked back at it, I realized it was incredibly impulsive—not at all how a Saintess was supposed to behave. But I didn’t regret it. It had only been a day, but spending ti with him hadn’t been bad at all. No, if I were being honest, it had made happy, much happier than I expected.
Tracking demonic monsters with him through the forest, tasting ran for the first ti, and watching him step in to protect from danger.
Then, he reached out his hand to as I fell, asking , “Are you okay?”.
At that mont, a spark of electricity had jolted through , awakening emotions I had never felt before, feelings that I was not supposed to have as a Saintess.
“Haa! What do I do now?” I sighed, lost in thought.
Then suddenly, mories ca rushing back.
“Hey, who the hell do you think you are, calling by my first na? Do I know you?
“Fine, I’ll let that slide since we’re in the sa year. But what the hell was yesterday about? Huh? Who do you think you are, attacking my friend out of nowhere, you crazy fucker?
“Oh, by the way. You’d better forget everything that happened today. Otherwise... You’re dead, got it?
“Oh my God! What is this?! This is fucking amazing! This is crazy!!”
“Wait! Holy fuck?” The words escaped my lips. What the hell am I supposed to do now?
User Comments
0 comments from readers