Ch.180Chapter 180: Daily Life (1)

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…The sound of birds chirping reaches my ears.

No doubt it’s the birds replenishing their energy for the day by pecking at insects as soon as dawn breaks.

Which means… sigh.

I expected it, but it still stings.

It seems yesterday evening’s sparring match ended with me being one-sidedly beaten, aside from the small achievement of leaving a sword mark on Fafnir’s red dragon armor.

He must have sent me back to my room without forcibly waking me after I collapsed.

As consciousness gradually returns, the events leading up to my collapse resurface in my mind.

I remember briefly struggling to get up and avoid Fafnir’s attack after falling.

I can barely recall being directly hit by the vacuum wave from his sharp kick, which made me lose consciousness completely.

The fact that I can’t remember anything else confirms it.

Last night’s sparring session definitely ended with me collapsing in an unsightly manner.

“Phew…”

I let out a soft sigh of disappointment.

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Bird sounds respond to my sigh from outside, quietly reaching my ears.

“…Is it morning?”

After confirming the time and space with my first words as consciousness returned, I open my eyes.

“Ugh.”

I clear my throat and lightly raise my body.

Then I walk toward the long mirror in the room to check my physical condition.

Despite being beaten badly enough by Fafnir to collapse in an unsightly manner…

My steps toward the mirror were light, perhaps thanks to my super-regeneration ability healing all external wounds.

Looking at my reflection in the mirror…

As expected, I could confirm there wasn’t a single wound on my face.

During yesterday evening’s sparring, Fafnir had unusually targeted physical blows persistently at my face and entire body.

Thanks to my significantly improved endurance, it only ended with me losing consciousness.

With each hit, I realized his attacks contained lethal power that would instantly kill ordinary people.

Yet not a single trace of those fierce attacks remained on my face…

“…Is this happening because my super-regeneration ability is improving?”

I mutter with satisfaction while turning my head this way and that, confirming from various angles that there wasn’t a single wound.

It was a convenient ability in many ways.

Although I hadn’t tested its limits…

The fact that I had developed this ability enough to actively use my body to protect others, breaking through the psychological barrier of self-preservation that emerges in dangerous situations, gave me satisfaction.

Now that I’d finished checking my face, it was time to examine my upper body, which had taken Fafnir’s attacks head-on.

Since I didn’t feel any stinging sensation of flesh rubbing against clothes or any pain while walking…

I was confident that, like my face, no wounds or bruises remained on my body.

But since I’m the type who needs visual confirmation to be satisfied…

I removed my tattered upper garment without hesitation after the unprecedented fierce battle.

Though it wasn’t dirty…

I could see that the right shoulder area, which had directly taken Fafnir’s vacuum wave at the end, was torn vertically.

“…This can’t be mended.”

Although I’m not so destitute after my regression that I need to worry about a single piece of clothing…

Due to the influence of my miserable pre-regression life, when I had to be frugal even with clothes just to survive…

I realized these words had unconsciously escaped my lips while looking at the tattered garment, and a bitter smile formed on my face.

After regressing, I’ve spared no effort to change myself, and I’ve felt a sense of achievement seeing myself change little by little, albeit slightly.

But I realize I’ve still lived less than a tenth of the time I spent in that wretched and miserable life.

“Well, someday this too will be forgotten to the point where I’ll have to struggle to remember it.”

Good memories last long, bad memories fade away.

After continuing my soliloquy in a voice so small no one else could hear…

I threw the upper garment in my hand toward the bed and stood in front of the mirror again.

As expected, like my face, there were no wounds on my upper body, not even bruises indicating I had been in a fierce battle.

When I first acquired this super-regeneration ability, it didn’t actively regenerate wounds as I had thought.

After taking Fafnir’s blow, my entire body would be covered in dark bruises that I’d hide under clothes, only for them to regenerate at unexpected times.

But as I encountered more situations where I was wounded and the ability activated frequently…

I could now confirm that this ability had developed to the point where it actively regenerated my wounds.

Well, enough of that.

Now that I’ve confirmed my body is properly maintained despite such a fierce battle…

There’s only one thing to do.

“…Let’s rest a bit more.”

I walked away from the mirror toward the bed.

Although my wounds had healed, slight fatigue remained, so I needed to rest more.

To prepare for the upcoming trial of the Sword Mound (Kentsuuka)…

My physical condition needs to be perfect, as it will be of great significance to me whether I succeed or fail.

I thought it was well past sunrise because of the bird sounds, but the morning sunlight filtering through the window indicated it was still early dawn, making it perfect conditions for getting some more sleep in bed.

“Yaaawn…”

Due to the mental energy spent examining my wounds in the mirror and recalling the sparring match, my doubled fatigue was released through a yawn.

As I lay back down on the bed, feeling the weight of my closing eyelids…

My resolve to do better in the next sparring match with Fafnir faded in my drowsy consciousness.

Just two more hours.

That was my last thought before my eyes closed and consciousness dimmed.

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The bird sounds, more energetic than when I first woke up, indicated that quite some time had passed.

Perhaps they had replenished their energy by pecking at insects.

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The birds’ chirping grew increasingly louder.

As my consciousness was clearer than just before lying down on the bed…

“…I should get up.”

My voice as I slowly raised my body was quiet but clear even to my own ears.

The blanket on the sheet was quite fluffy.

The warmth and softness of the blanket that had led me into a deep sleep for about two hours was perfect.

…Wait.

Softness?

“…”

Noticing something strange, my gaze fixed on the sheet.

I could easily see something next to where I had been lying that was presumably what had given me that soft feeling.

I say “presumably” rather than definitively because…

This unidentified something was wrapped up in my blanket, concealing its appearance.

Someone with little courage might faint at the sight of such a shape next to them while they slept.

But I’ve been through too many hellish situations to faint over something like this.

“Phew…”

Exhaling a light sigh to steady my breathing, I carefully removed the blanket that had been the source of my momentary confusion.

It was a confident gesture, certain that whatever emerged couldn’t harm me.

But just as I was about to gently lift one layer of the blanket, golden hair like molten pure gold peeked out, making its presence known.

And the moment that hair entered my vision, I sensed the fragrance of golden osmanthus spreading throughout my room as if perfume had been sprayed.

“…Shizu.”

I quietly called the name of the person inside the blanket.

As if waiting for my call, Shizu peeked her head out from under the blanket and with a bright voice…

“…Did you sleep well?”

She greeted me.

Though her voice was cheerful, I could see a reddish glow covering her entire face, indicating that she too knew she was forcing herself to overcome embarrassment with her current action.

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“Since when…?”

“About an hour… ago.”

“You woke me but I didn’t get up. Sor—”

“N-No!”

A loud voice.

I wondered if I had ever heard her raise her voice in such surprise while talking with her before.

Shizu’s voice, interrupting my attempt to apologize, was quite loud.

“S-Sorry.”

Though she apologized in a voice so small an ant could crawl over it immediately after raising her voice.

Before saying anything, I carefully examined her face.

Her skin was so flushed that I could barely remember its original beautiful white complexion.

She was noticeably avoiding eye contact with me, something she rarely refused under normal circumstances.

…Why is she acting like this?

There’s no reason for Shizu to avoid my gaze.

There’s no problem with her, so she must be reacting this way because there’s something wrong with me… Ah.

I finally realized the cause of Shizu’s awkward reaction.

“I’ll put on clothes right away.”

I immediately got up and walked toward the wardrobe.

“You… can… stay… like that.”

I faintly heard Shizu saying something as I walked to the wardrobe.

But it was so quiet that I couldn’t hear it clearly.