episode_0154

153.

“What’s the meaning of this?”

Asti is confronting Yama, the captain of the guard, in the guard barracks, his former workplace. His involvement with Erina’s affairs had essentially led to his retirement from city guard duty.

Erina’s considerable influence in the city rendered the issue largely irrelevant. However, Asti still couldn’t completely ignore it.

“Exactly what it sounds like.” Yama replies in a troubled voice.

He had come to the guard post hoping to resume his work after a long absence, but instead found himself faced with unpleasant news.

“Is that… the reason why the city’s population has decreased?”

“I can’t say it isn’t, but I can’t say it is either. I haven’t confirmed whether the population has actually decreased.”

“…That’s not like you, Captain.”

“True. But what can I do? Skilled individuals don’t want to join the city guard.”

With the Adventurer’s Guild so prominently established, there’s little reason to choose the more arduous work of the city guard. They can earn as much money as they want and work as much as they want.

“I understand that. Still, there has to be a limit, doesn’t there?”

“That’s not like you.”

Asti, who rarely displayed emotions, was surprisingly expressive.

“…….”

“Personally, I think it’s good…”

“That’s not the point! We could hire external personnel, or even commission the guild?!”

“You know we don’t have the funds. Even if we work hard, there are always going to be shortages.”

As a city, rather than national, entity, all operating expenses came from the Lord. Besides basic salaries and equipment, there was no income. While the salaries and stipends weren’t ridiculously low, they were gone as soon as they were used.

Moreover, they’d already requested those funds. In Yama’s judgment, demanding more would be unacceptable conduct for a guard captain.

“The Lord isn’t a stubborn person. They would understand if we asked for more funds.”

“They collapsed recently.”

“……Isn’t there Rosa?”

“Well, we are trying to resolve things our way, aren’t we? Even if it’s inconvenient, we need to secure our position.”

The usual political maneuvering. As someone who’d become guard captain more through physical prowess than intellect, he couldn’t avoid it. Their efforts weren’t false; they simply lacked resources.

Asti, understanding this, felt further questioning was pointless.

“I’ll request aid from the church. They shouldn’t mind.”

“Erina…nim? I did consider that… but…”

The incident where the church had completely disappeared made it difficult to bring up lightly. While Asti’s mediation would be welcome, they couldn’t rely on it entirely.

Asti, having spoken out of frustration, reconsidered. He knew how hard she worked, and didn’t want to burden her further.

“Of course, I don’t know how many people will be available.”

“If we can get some help, it would be great, but I don’t want to impose. Your help alone is a huge contribution.”

“……I still don’t understand. Surely, there’s no reason for security to deteriorate this suddenly?”

“I don’t know either. Who would have thought monsters would emerge from within? It’s as if someone has malicious intentions… no, I’m rambling.”

The current major threat to Baraham’s security was, in fact, monsters. After Erina’s church vanished, monsters began appearing rapidly, as if they’d been waiting for an opportunity. With so many adventurers around, they could manage the monsters outside the city quickly enough. However, they were gradually increasing, making their efforts futile.

Even the large number of adventurers had its limits. It was fine if physical or magical attacks worked, but their efforts were incredibly hampered when only divine-type attacks were effective.

Furthermore, the largest religious order, the Freed Church, was directly at odds with Erina’s Pai Church, leading to a desperate lack of manpower.

To make matters worse, they’d recently received reports of monsters appearing within the city itself. As those responsible for security, they couldn’t help but be on edge. They were doing their best to deal with the monsters harming people, but their unpredictable nature only increased their already extreme stress.

Asti took a deep breath and calmed himself. Pointless rage would solve nothing. Elves didn’t live for centuries for nothing.

“So, that’s why it’s so empty here.”

“Everyone is on patrol, apart from those training in the back.”

“Training….”

While she had been busy for the past few months, she hadn’t engaged in proper training. Even if she said so herself, it was true. In terms of her biological sense of time, it was only a month or so for her, but the feeling of her body being a little sluggish was undeniable. This was also part of the reason her body and physique had become so much more substantial through modifications.

“May I also participate in the training?”

“Hmm. While you were away… the content has changed a bit, perhaps considerably. I believe you’ll do well.”

Asti paused. Had there been any changes that would warrant this? The way he’s speaking strongly suggests a difference from the past, but she has no idea what it could be.

“What kind of… training?”

“…It’s quicker to show you.”

Yama stood up and gestured for Asti to follow him to the training ground. It wasn’t far; a short walk would suffice. As they walked, the distinctive smell of sweat became increasingly intense. Even with her relatively low sensitivity to smells, the strong, concentrated aroma was noticeable. It was the kind of smell that would make anyone wrinkle their nose upon first encounter. Even with the open training ground, the sweat of a dozen people training at once overwhelmed the ventilation. The smell would somewhat dissipate when they weren’t training.

Thinking things were still as normal, Asti noticed something different. The body movements, if anything, were unusually quiet.

She soon found out why.

“This is…?!”

“Since you left, we’ve refined the training. A completely new approach, actually.”

The scene wasn’t unfamiliar. Quite the contrary—it was familiar. However, she had absolutely never expected to encounter such a scene here.

“Aah♡ Aaah♡ Aah!!”

“Ooo―!!!! Ooo!!”

“Aaah aah♡ Ongooh♡ Kkutt Oooot―♡”

“One, two. One, two!! Your waist is stopping there!!”

Various moans filled the training ground. With stationary dildos fixed to the floor, trainees were raising and lowering their waists according to the instructor’s instructions. They were sweating profusely, their arms raised behind their heads in a female posture, as they trained.

“Of course, we still incorporate the old training, but this type has proven more efficient, so we are gradually shifting towards it.”

“…It seems to be influenced by Erina.”

“That’s right. I was commissioned to devise training to enable operation as a holy knight order. Though their divine power is zero.”

Furthermore, to match the increasingly revealing guard uniforms, the training uniforms were now essentially underwear. Their breasts were unconstrained by their clothing, jiggling with every up and down movement of their waists, creating a spectacular sight. If Erina were here, she would be lewdly spreading her legs and selecting someone to take her futanari cock, rubbing and fucking.

The thought of it made her underwear slightly damp.

“What… benefit does this training provide?”

Regardless, she had to ask. Considering her past sexual training, this was surely beneficial. Erina, having personally trained her to use her vagina, hadn’t completely passed on many of her techniques, so a more systematic training system would be more helpful.

However, the current enemy was demons. Honing sexual skill would be of little use.

“Because it’s a type of muscle training, just like swinging a sword. Training in swordsmanship and archery is good, but this way you can learn how to gain Erina nim’s affection♡”

“…That’s absurd.”

Asti’s face hardened.

“Aah♡ Aaah♡ Gooood―♡”

“Can’t you do it properly over there?!”

The sounds of training continued, even in the brief silence.

“What?”

“……They could never reach that size through training.”

“That’s true…”

Yama, having been personally trained by Erina, would naturally know what size that was referring to.

Yama is stroking his crotch while toying with his erect nipples. The hardness was visible even through his clothes, indicating he went around without underwear.

“Captain. I will demonstrate. Join me. Isn’t there… a real cock here?”

“Unfortunately not. Together… That’s right. I can’t be lazy either.”

His blushing face indicated his anticipation.

Asti spreads the gospel to the city guard using her own lewdly modified body.