Chapter 47

Having spent the entire time sparring, noon arrived in the blink of an eye.

“Why, why can I still not win!?”

The Princess was throwing yet another tantrum.

This round of sparring was another overwhelming victory for me; since the Princess always relied on brute force and reckless lunges, dodging her was a simple matter.

However, following iamat’s instructions to eliminate as much wasted energy as possible was surprisingly taxing.

“Now then, everyone, let us have lunch.”

With a single word from Tiamat, we took a break.

By the way, Tiamat, how is it that you haven’t broken a single sweat after taking on both the Dragon Emperor and his wife?

Without a doubt, Tiamat is the strongest person here.

After slowly finishing every last bite of food to fuel my exhausted body, the training resumed.

However, the Dragon Emperor and Gwyber were absent for the afternoon session due to work or strategic meetings regarding Azi Dahaka.

“We shall now begin the afternoon training. It will not differ much from this morning; after a run, Mr. Ryu will spar with me this time.”

It’s finally here!

Sparring with the Spartan instructor herself. My heart felt similar to when I first sparred with Grandfather.

I was scared, but somehow, I felt an itch of excitement—a feeling that things were about to get interesting.

“Let us begin with the run.”

Once the “not-so-light” run was over, the time for my sparring match with Tiamat arrived.

I had caught glimpses of her while she was handling the Dragon Emperor and his wife this morning, and her level was incredible.

She wasn’t the type to fight with speed like Grandfather, but she carried a similar atmosphere.

I suppose all masters who never let their guard down wrap themselves in that kind of presence.

『Shall we begin?』

…Wait, hold on a second. Why are you still in your dragon form?

“Um, Tiamat? Why are you in your dragon form?”

『My, isn’t it obvious? Your future opponent is a dragon; therefore, isn’t this form more convenient?』

Ah, so that’s it?

Since Azi Dahaka will attack in his dragon form, she wants me to get used to the sensation of punching a dragon beforehand?

“…I wonder if my fists will hold up?”

『That is what this training is for. Now, come at me!』

…Yeah, right. That’s impossible.

Punching a dragon without skills is just a suicide mission.

『…You seem to be under a misunderstanding, but you are allowed to use Skills, you know?』

Oh, really!? Then I can actually land a hit.

“Then, I look forward to the match!!”

『I shall also go a bit harder, so be careful!!』

Wait… “harder”?

『Hah!!』

Nuwaaa! This is bad! She tried to crush me with her foreleg right out of the gate!!

Just landing an attack is going to be incredibly difficult!

Besides, since she’s in her dragon form, I can’t even hit her body unless I jump!

And if I jump, she’ll definitely swat me right back down!!

『Hey! Do not just focus on running away; attack!! What is the point of this training otherwise!!』

Fine! If that’s how it’s going to be, I’ll punch her foreleg!

“Take this!”

…No good. She didn’t even budge.

What the? How am I supposed to overcome a dragon when they have scales this hard and weight this heavy?

『You have no time to be dazed!』

Whoosh!!

“Nuoh!”

I was tossed away by her foreleg!

Wait, she’s following up already!?

Tiamat’s foreleg was right in front of my eyes!

“Guhak!”

Damn, that hurt! I got stepped on with everything she had.

I managed to mitigate some of the damage thanks to my armor and “Battle Spirit,” but this is brutal!

『Stand up quickly. We have only just begun.』

“I get it already, you damn—!”

And so, I continued to be bullied by Tiamat until nightfall.

『Let us call it a day, then.』

Tiamat spoke about thirty minutes before dinner.

“Thank… you… very… much…”

“You endured well. Tomorrow’s content will be similar to today’s, so please rest well after you have finished your meal.”

Finally, finally, it was over.

I wonder how many times I got stepped on before we finished…

So this is the reality of Spartan training.

“Of course, we’re training tomorrow too, right?” I said, pushing myself up.

“I was the one who asked for this, after all. I’m not quitting.”

“Then that is fine.”

I could tell that the smile she gave me then was truly heartfelt.