A Little Game
1011 Words
The presence of Mana is closely tied to one's physical constitution. This is one of the reasons why it is rare for commoners in the empire to achieve social mobility. Many of them struggle to even get enough food, making it difficult to cultivate Mana.
If one's body cannot store a significant amount of Mana, then becoming a professional warrior or mage is simply out of reach.
Even Ira was not someone who climbed from the ranks of commoners. In fact, he was noticed by the former king while he was still a minor noble, effectively propelling him to success in a single leap.
For nobles and royalty, having superior physical conditions means they do not need to labor for survival. Even if they lack talent or are lazy, they still have the capacity to become professional warriors or mages.
This is why the children of nobles remain nobles.
However, Satania’s situation was rather lacking. Despite having access to proper food and other necessities and showing dedication to her Mana training, her basic physical fitness was somewhat weak.
Perhaps she never underwent specialized training for it...
"Run, keep running!"
Ira urged Satania as she jogged around the 400-meter track. Turning to Silena, who was observing from the side, he asked, "The Crimson Demon King—Satania’s father—how did he train her?"
"The former Demon King never really trained her," Silena replied. "Whenever he returned from the battlefield, he would only play with her. There was never any formal training."
Ira nodded, beginning to understand why Satania lacked systematic training.
"You never trained her either?" he asked.
"Us? Teaching the Demon King?" Silena hesitated. "Wouldn’t that be overstepping?"
Isn’t the Demon King’s castle supposed to be rather lax? Aren’t you all pragmatists who don’t care much about royal dignity?
Why are you suddenly so strict about hierarchy now?!
Suppressing his internal complaints, Ira watched as Satania stopped, panting heavily. He flipped the hourglass on the table and noted the time.
"Good endurance. You can rest for five minutes," he said. "But stand while resting—walk around slowly. Don’t sit down immediately."
"Huff... huff..."
Satania, having just completed the designated laps, had been about to collapse into a chair. Hearing Ira’s instructions, she frowned but obeyed, pacing around the field instead.
"Ira, why—"
Before Silena could finish her question, Ira interrupted, "Satania seems to have practiced combat techniques on her own. What weapon does she prefer? The same as her father?"
Silena nodded. "The same."
So it’s the Crimson Reaper Scythe.
"That’s unfortunate," Ira muttered, shaking his head. "I don’t know how to use it. She’ll have to figure it out herself."
He had no expertise with such an unconventional weapon. That was why he never channeled his Crimson Dragon Mana into his fourth wing pillar (melee combat).
He could freely switch between his first wing pillar (core), second (mobility), and third (ranged), but melee combat was something he always avoided.
"But no one else knows how to use it either," Vera interjected.
She pulled Silena aside, glancing cautiously at Ira, and whispered, "Silena, Ira doesn’t like people interfering with his training methods."
"Really? But I still don’t understand why he insists on moving during rest breaks…"
"Ah, just don’t worry about it," Vera said. "I didn’t get it at first either, but even Emperor Yuse approves of Ira’s training… and, well, it turned out to be quite effective."
She sneaked another glance at Ira, confirming that he was out of earshot, and then added in a conspiratorial whisper, "If you question him too much, he’ll beat you. Right on the butt. And trust me, even a succubus wouldn’t be able to take it."
"Eh?"
Silena’s face turned red. "What does being a succubus have to do with whether or not I can take a beating?"
"It’s obviously related—let me explain—"
Before Vera could start her nonsense, Ira’s voice rang out, deliberately drawn out.
"Vera…"
Vera stiffened.
"I recall being very careful to avoid any critical areas when I hit you," Ira said. "And I only did it because of your nonsense."
"Ugh…"
Caught red-handed, Vera let out a strange noise, shrinking under Silena’s amused gaze. She shuffled awkwardly back into Ira’s line of sight, scratching her head.
"You could hear that?" she asked. "You’re not mad, right?"
Ira didn’t respond. He simply cast her a glance before turning to Satania, who was working hard to maintain a stable fireball in her hands.
"Next," he said, "you’re going to be Satania’s target dummy."
Vera paled. "Uh… that doesn’t sound good…"
"I wasn’t asking," Ira replied. "It’s an announcement."
As Satania approached, displaying her well-formed fireball, Ira nodded in approval.
"Four hours of training so far. Let’s play a little game."
"A game?"
Satania perked up, her interest piqued. She watched as Ira grabbed Vera by the collar to keep her from running away.
"For the next five minutes," Ira explained, "you will stand at the farthest point of the field and continuously generate fireballs to attack Vera. She will be confined to a limited area but can use short-range teleportation to dodge. However, she must wait five seconds between each teleport."
Vera struggled, but Ira held her firm, grinning.
"If you hit her even once, training is over for the day," he continued. "If she avoids every attack, I’ll give her half of my salary next month."
Vera immediately stopped resisting.
"Really?" she asked, her eyes lighting up.
"Of course. Silena and Satania are witnesses."
"Alright!"
Revitalized, Vera strode confidently to her designated area. "So, from the back wall to that mop over there? That’s a pretty generous space! Sorry, Demon King, but I am going to win!"
"I… won’t lose either," Satania said, her expression sharpening.
She steadied the fireball in her hands. She knew the training was for her own good, but it was exhausting. If she could end it early and get some rest, she would not hold back!
"Alright then," Ira said with a smirk.
"Three… two… one…"
"Begin."
- Writer
