21-Episode 21: Efforts Will Not Betray



 I had just destroyed all my muscles and was running out of blessings to heal them, so I decided to have Lyna hit me with the sword immediately.

''Now that I said I'm going to do it, I'm really serious about it too, right? Don't whine on the way out, okay?
Of course.



 --and thirty minutes later.

''Also, no more! I'm really going to die any more!
Not yet. Come on.
You're covered in blood!
Don't worry. You can't be too close to death. It's not as difficult as finding the line of death. ...I'm still five steps away from death.
'My heart is broken as I'm beating it long ago!
Don't whine,
'That was supposed to be my line!

 For some reason, Laina had reached her limit before him.

''I knew you were a terrible dominant person! d*mn, it was a mistake to go along with this pervert's training!

 Then, when he'd been beaten up enough more, Lyna threw her sword away as if she didn't want to anymore.

''Hm. Well, let's just leave it at that.''

 I was a wreck all over.

''Haha, that's a lot of pain, indeed.''

 I couldn't help but laugh.
 My mouth was full of blood, so that was enough to send blood splatters flying through the air.

''........I've never seen or heard of this kind of training......''

 Laina slumped to the ground with a blue face.
 Even for a swordsman, he usually rarely sees blood or injuries thanks to his blessings.
 So I guess I'm not too used to it.

''But I'm hungry. Anyway, let's have breakfast.
'Don't try to take a meal in that form without a care in the world! Quickly drink the holy water!
That won't be necessary. One of these days the blessings will come back and it will heal on its own.
"....stupid, this guy...

 I'm out of my mind.
 I'm only doing what's perfectly normal.

If you're trying to rise to the top of the swordsman's ladder without a job, this is the least you can do.

"But will this really help me learn the Toughness skill?
I don't think so.
What?
That's not enough. That's why we have to do this a hundred times over at the lowest point.
"Whew, whew, whew, a hundred times?

 I said to Laina as her eyes widened.

'So I'll ask you about ninety-nine more times,'





'You said, "Now that I said I'd do it, I really mean it, too."'
"Because I didn't know how crazy you were then! Oh, a hundred times like that, it's insane by any stretch of the imagination!

 After breakfast we were back in the training room again.

 By the way, my wounds had healed.
 It was because Lilia had forced me to drink holy water.

 But holy water is expensive.
 I'm going to repeat this at least ninety-nine more times.
 I'm not sure how much money I would have to spend if I had to drink holy water each time.

In the first place, there was no guarantee that he would be able to master the Robustness skill this way! A skill is a goddess' blessing! Hence, it's not something that a human being can acquire on his own!
That being said, I could use some of them, couldn't I?
G.....

 I'm rather curious.
 It's not just about Laina, but why is everyone so caught up in stereotypes like this?

 You don't know if it's impossible or not until you actually try it.

 Impossible.
 It's hard.
 We can't do it.

 Only those who have actually tried and tried and tried and tried and tried, and confirmed for themselves that it's not possible are allowed to say so.
 To declare it impossible before you even try is nothing short of foolishness.

"Lend me that sword for a moment.
"? Okay, but it's too heavy for you, isn't it?

 I accept Laina's sword.
 It is indeed quite heavy.
 It's probably many times heavier than normal.
 But, well, this is no problem for me.

 Bam-bam-bam!

What...? How can you just shake it off? And that speed......... Because of my monstrous skills, I can unleash a slash as fast as an ordinary swordsman!
"Double-bladed slayer.

 Boom!

You're not going to use that sword to do a double-bladed slash...?
No, that was a mistake. It's hard to cut with this sword, but you'll be able to do it sooner or later. But you'll be able to do it eventually.
'Why? How could you, an unemployed person...
I don't have any super strength skills, of course. But I can train my muscles.

 And the way to do that, of course.

Strength training.
Strength training...?

 This guy doesn't know anything about strength training?

'It's all about training for muscle strength. Because the more you train a person's muscles, the stronger they become.
Yeah, I know a lot about that! But ... it's not like that...
So this is nothing compared to your superpower as a gift?
....

 Laina keeps her mouth shut.
 Apparently, she's finally starting to realize her firm beliefs.

'Since my rematch with you the other day, I've been doing muscle training every day without fail. For example, standing on my head with one hand and doing push-ups from there. That's one (...) day, one (...) ten thousand (...) times.
Ten thousand?
And this is the result.

 I rolled up the sleeves of my clothes, exposing my arms.
 As I put more effort into it, my muscles swelled up with munchies.

''~~~~?

 Laina is stunned.

'Hmm. I'm getting along a bit better there, but it's not quite there yet. Well, in a week and a bit, this is how it should be.

 In the past, I used to run 10,000 dashes every day to learn the Agility skill, but I think that took about three months.
 Agility is essential for the [Sword Princess].

''In short, what I'm trying to say is. Effort is not to be betrayed.''