Chapter 203

#203 Episode Little Lion and the Memory Room (2)

Four hours since training commenced.

“Mmeeeh.”

With a sound that was hard to determine if it was cute or not very girlish, Adelheid lost consciousness and slumped over.

She was in a perfect state of depletion, unable to recover through Holy Magic or the Witch’s special elixirs anymore.

By the standards of knights, who often rolled and jumped all day, four hours might not seem like much, but considering the brutal sparring against the infamous Tin Knight, it was hardly a short amount of time.

Moreover, the Tin Knight had been particularly rough on Adel today, making it all the more intense.

“How intriguing.”

Gale, who was watching the training with interest, spoke up.

“Some scholars say humans are rational beings, but in reality, people aren’t that rational or logical. Even if they understand that something is for their own good, they inevitably hate anyone causing them pain. That’s why a great instructor is usually one of the most disliked individuals.”

Which is why it was curious, Gale thought, casting a questioning glance at the Tin Knight and Adel.

“It seems odd that despite putting up with such rough and grueling training, that girl shows almost no resentment or hostility towards her instructor.”

It wasn’t a simple matter of having a meek temperament.

If she truly were the type who couldn’t even muster hostility towards others, she’d hesitate to harm anyone in battle.

In that aspect, while Adelheid did tend to refrain from lethal force, she was not the type to hesitate when it was truly necessary.

“Dorothea, do you know why?”

“Well, what’s the reason? It’s because it’s convenient for her, I suppose.”

Dorothea frowned.

“Because she felt weak and couldn’t do anything. To achieve something, she must become stronger. It’s like an obsession for her. On the flip side, while she’s trying to grow stronger, this allows her some mental peace.”

Adel often wore a gloomy expression during the Tin Knight’s harsh training, and when there was a break, she would rejoice, yet her restlessness grew as time dragged on, all part of the same context.

Of course, this wasn’t entirely a bad thing.

Aside from Adel’s remarkable talent, her capacity to endure the Tin Knight’s severe training stemmed from this very characteristic of hers.

The problem was that the intensity was gradually escalating.

So much so that even the seemingly heartless Tin Knight suggested a reasonable break, and it appeared that he was beginning to find some leisure for himself, but thanks to recent events, it all came crashing down.

Not only did she learn the shocking truth about her family’s death, but she was also openly told by those responsible for it that “You’re lacking effort” and “Have you been slacking off all this time?” It would be strange if her trauma wasn’t triggered in such circumstances.

“Hm, even so, isn’t this a bit too harsh? It’s only because of the Tin Knight’s skills, Dorothea’s potion, Sophia’s Holy Magic, and Adel’s own constitution that she survives. Normally, even a tenth of this training would leave permanent disabilities.”

“Which makes it meaningful. It has to be at a level that even she would think, ‘Isn’t this a bit much?’ so she won’t overdo it.”

Adelheid not harboring resentment towards the Tin Knight seemed to indicate something else mingled into the equation, but Dorothea didn’t feel the need to mention that.

It was uncertain whether the subject even had an awareness of it, and it remained entirely speculative.

Watching the Tin Knight lay Adel down on a magic circle he had prepared, Dorothea let out a quiet sigh.

They really were a handful, these colleagues.

***

When she suddenly regained her senses, Adel realized she was standing in a long corridor.

“Huh?” The momentary confusion was fleeting.

She soon recognized that she was in the ‘world inside the book.’

Adel absentmindedly started moving her body around.

Blinking rapidly, clenching and unclenching her fists, stretching her limbs, and even doing a few jumps in place.

‘My body feels almost unchanged from the outside.’

According to the White Witch’s explanation, this was similar to being in a dream, but compared to that, there was no numbness in her movements or senses, and her mind was incredibly clear.

Moreover, while one hour in reality was just one hour, here, one hour felt more like around fifteen minutes in the real world.

Simply put, if you were to consider time efficiency, spending time here dreaming was far more beneficial than messing around outside.

Of course, if she just kept sleeping, her real body would weaken, so she needed to master the art of balancing it.

As she was checking her magical power and various other things, a voice suddenly echoed in the air.

《Ahem. Thus, the Little Lion, heir to the hero’s blood, began her adventure.》

“……”

《Ah, if you’re currently thinking ‘What is this person doing?’, please reflect on that. The aesthetics of formality are important here. Even a temporary GM can’t just wing it.》

As if pondering if the Witch was simply a weirdo, Adel couldn’t help but think of comments that would surely irk Dorothea. Gale’s voice continued.

《Also, this is just a pre-recorded voice, so active conversation isn’t possible. If you have anything to say, please wait until you wake up from this dream.》

《I did explain the escape methods before entering, but in case your memory is hazy, I will reiterate.》

《One method is to say “Wake up” three times in a row, the second is to open the door at the end of the corridor, and the third is to simply wait until the set time. By the way, the third method will automatically wake you up even if Miss Adelheid refuses, so be cautious about that.》

《If you have further questions, please wake up now.》

After about ten seconds of silence from Adel, the voice returned.

《There doesn’t seem to be any particular issues. Well then, let’s resume the story.》

《First, we need to decide on an assistant to accompany your journey.》

Three large orbs of light appeared before Adelheid.

《The first is the reliable master! The Tin Knight!》

《The second is the versatile Witch! Dorothea… who is too busy, so she sent the Tin Knight instead!》

《The third is the wise advisor! Sophia… who somehow interjected herself to take over from Sophia!》

《Now, what’s your choice!》

“Uh, but there’s no option available?”

Adel couldn’t help but throw a casual comment, fully aware that the other party couldn’t hear her.

However, as the world goes, thinking differently is part of reality.

So it was a good thing she didn’t have to overthink it, and she simply chose the Tin Knight.

《Yes, your choice has been confirmed. Due to the synchronization process of time dilation, it may take a brief moment, so please hang tight.》

About a minute passed in her perception.

Suddenly, the light orb she chose burst forth with a brilliant light, then split in two from which something sprang out.

A body made of metal. A gleam shining through the helmet slit.

Indeed, it was the Tin Knight.

“Knight… sir?”

To be more accurate, it was the Tin Knight SD.

With a big head and a small body and limbs, the junior knight had an appearance reminiscent of a toy soldier, and it bounced over to wave at Adel.

Feeling an inexplicable flutter in her heart, Adel hurriedly extended her palm towards the Tin Knight.

As the Tin Knight hopped onto her palm, a light weight transferred to her.

Though it felt as if a metal mass the size of her palm was curiously light.

It almost felt as if it was empty inside.

《Also, due to the limitations of the game book, the Tin Knight cannot fight alongside you. As I mentioned earlier, think of him simply as an assistant or advisor.》

[The ‘Tin Knight’ proudly declares that his advice is perfect!]

With that comical yet reassuring figure, a smile blossomed on Adel’s lips.

“Yes, I’m counting on you!”

《When you’re ready, please choose one of the doors in the corridor to begin your adventure.》

At Gale’s voice, Adel looked at the doors lined up evenly along the corridor.

<Labyrinth Room> <Combat Room> <Memory Room>

《The Labyrinth Room follows the original story of this game book. Unlike the various issues that arose from the shuffle of magical books you experienced last time, it’s the ‘original’ tale. However, since this leans more towards play, the time efficiency may be somewhat poor.》

《The Combat Room allows you to fight the enemies that appear in the Labyrinth Room, ignoring the background setting, one after another in an arena. The enemies are set to progressively become stronger, so it’s probably the most convenient for training.》

《The Memory Room is for advanced users. It allows you to summon appropriate opponents from the memories of the participant and the assistant to fight. However, this is a feature hidden by your master, so I also cannot tell you exactly what will emerge, so please be cautious.》

Adel pondered for a moment.

Given the purpose at hand, she set aside the Labyrinth Room, leaving her with the Combat Room and the Memory Room.

She thought the Combat Room would be the most straightforward choice, but she suspected.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ passionately insists on choosing the Memory Room!]

[The ‘Tin Knight’ argues he cannot resist the allure of the boss revival!]

‘Well, I suppose he would say that.’

Though Adel hesitated briefly, she ultimately nodded in agreement.

There was a feeling of some substantial bias, but at least her trust in her master, who had never misled her in the wrong direction when it came to the martial arts, was solid.

Adel opened the door marked Memory Room and stepped inside.

─A blazing heat caressed her skin.

“Hahaha! Stay down, you little brats!!”

“Kill anyone who dares to resist! Don’t let a single one escape!”

Torches fell over, igniting the thicket.

Rampaging thieves. Screaming townsfolk.

Soldiers struggling to fight back against the thieves, falling short, and in the center of those soldiers, a wagon.

And in that wagon, was herself.

With a start, she spotted the leader of the thieves looking back at her through the half-ajar door.

Upon recognizing the man who had once captured her and sold her into slavery, Adel understood what kind of memory this stage was based on.

[The ‘Tin Knight’ cheers on his apprentice, showing the true essence of a time-travel story!]

Once again, the Tin Knight’s words were difficult to comprehend.

But the determination in those words was clearly conveyed, allowing Adel to steady her trembling body against her past recollections.

“…Yes!”

The Little Lion kicked open the wagon and sprinted forth.