Kays Translations

Chapter 2: Start to Level Up

I was pretty sore when I woke up, but it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Still, even a wooden bed with springs proved to be surprisingly comfortable—I wonder when I’d be able to sleep on it again.

(… Should I use the door knocker to call for breakfast? I should have asked how many meals I get a day before then.)

I hope they’re not planning to just starve me… I’d rather not go that far. Starvation would be too much, especially for someone in my growth phase—my body would definitely feel it.

I looked toward the door’s window, wondering when my first meal would arrive. A fairly large tray was slid through the opening, with what looked like a change of clothes and a wooden cup filled with water placed on top.

(Oh, I can drink this normally. Not being able to drink water would really be the end of me… and I also need salt, but I’ll hope I can get that from my meals.)

But from now, I have to face a challenge that could easily lead to dehydration if I make just one mistake.

This world resembles the game I played in my previous life, “Artifact & Blade.” In that world, a novice’s first task is to “practice swings.”

Basically, just swinging your starting equipment—by doing so, you gain experience points and improve your weapon proficiency. The weapon for practice swings can be that wooden sword.

It was a stroke of luck that I managed to bring the wooden sword into the cell. Normally it would have been confiscated during a security check, but Reis didn’t seem to mind—either because he thought it would be of no use to me, or because it seemed like I had nothing else.

(Oh no… my hands are small and it’s hard to hold it properly. Plus, with these soft, delicate hands…)

If practicing swings can raise my proficiency, I’ll need to swing it many times. As preparation, I tore the cloth wrapping the sword and wound it around the handle.

◆◇◆

My first goal was to do 100 swings, but honestly, that was impossible. I’d never done any martial arts or held anything heavier than a fork in my previous life, so the wooden sword was much heavier than I imagined.

(I couldn’t even swing it fifty times… luckily, I didn’t rip my skin.)

 my arms felt numb and heavy. When I swung it, it felt like my body was being pulled away, and it seemed I was using muscles that I don’t normally use, so it was really tough.

If I were in the palace, they would have been able to cast healing spells, but they hadn’t taught me anything like that. I should have snuck into the magic library or visited the church to learn some—since I have magical power, I should be able to learn if I just knew how.

But right now, I first want to see whether my practice is actually paying off. It was possible to judge my own skill level, but I hadn’t planned to do so until I succeeded in summoning a sacred relic. So I don’t know my current state.

(…But I do have a ‘feeling,’ don’t I? That my practice swings are producing some kind of result.)

I tried consciously swinging the sword correctly—paying attention to how I moved my body, trying to keep my swings straight and efficient. When I did that, something felt different.

Is that the way of swinging that increases skill? Not wanting to forget the feeling, I tried to swing the wooden sword for  just a little bit more—then suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

“Hya… y-yes?”

It was so sudden, I almost let out a strange voice. The window in the door opened and the tray was replaced – there was a meal on it.

“This is your breakfast. After you eat, please return it to its place, and we will collect it.”

“Ah… R-Reis-san. Thank you very much.”

“…There’s no need to address me formally, Your Highness,”

“Likewise, you don’t need to either. Just call me Ashrina, please.”

That wasn’t bravado; it was just my true feelings.

I am nothing more than a “former princess” now, so it pains me to be called “Your Highness.”. I’m not at the stage yet to think about somehow regaining my status or anything like that.

“But still, that doesn’t change the fact that you’re a princess, and I am here to look after you,” he said.

He might actually be a very kind person—though I shouldn’t get too optimistic. If he were to do me any favors, it would put him in a bad position, and he probably has no intention of doing that.

“…I shall take my leave now,” he said, then left the door.

After he left, I tore off small pieces of the hard bread and ate them. The crust was so hard it made me want to cry, but soaking it in the soup softened it somewhat.

The soup contained vegetable scraps and a little bit of meat. At first, it tasted so bland I thought it was just water, but I realized that even that was what my body needed.

Mr. Reis is very considerate, but the quality of the meals probably won’t improve from here on. I don’t know who decides the menu, so I can’t say for sure.

(Just as I suspected, I can’t afford to waste any movements now… I have to maximize the efficiency of my swings with the limited energy I have, or I won’t make it in time.)

But for now, I have no choice but to let my body rest. If I push myself too hard and get sick, it’s basically over. Even in this deadlocked situation, I know I shouldn’t be hasty.

Once I can move properly, I’ll start practicing again. Repeating the movements that feel right over and over, optimizing them—seeing if I can get the kind of improvement I expect.

◆◇◆

It’s the third day of life in the old castle—finally, the much-anticipated bath day has arrived, but…

(Washing myself…  that can’t be, right? This is going to be really tough.)

They brought in lukewarm water in a basin, telling me to somehow manage with that.

But I have no choice but to try. First, I wrung out the damp cloth and wiped my body, then washed my hair with the remaining water. Back in the palace, my maids did everything for me, and recalling that made me want to cry —but I held it in because I knew crying would only make me feel even more miserable.

“…I’m done,” 

“I apologize. The guards accompanying you also offered to help with your bath,” 

I almost wanted to say, “Please, I’d appreciate that,” but it caught in my throat. To be honest, I  was also surprised that the guards were still nearby.

“They will return to the palace for now. They’re exhausted from living on the frontier.”

　So this is what they mean when they say “up and down” — but I understand the feeling. Even if I wasn’t locked up, life in the royal capital would be much more comfortable than in a remote area.

“Thank you for telling me.”

“…Is it hard for you, learning about the outside world?”

“No, it’s not. I do worry about the people I’ve known for so long, but I can only hope they’re doing well,” 

It’s not like I should be worried about others now. They might think I’m annoying for even caring.

Or maybe there is no one who cares about me anymore. My maid, Reamia, is someone who serves the royal family, not me, and I think she’s probably serving someone else now.

“…Princess Ashrina. If you stay here like this…”

“…Huh?”

Reis had started saying something, but then someone called him, or he was called away, because he left the door.

The words “stay here like this” probably hinted at a bleak future. I understand that better than anyone.

Nevertheless, I hadn’t given up. I decided to believe stubbornly in this wooden sword that everyone else thought was useless.

(The 1-star sacred relics—were useless in the game also. But there is a way to make them usable. It’s incredibly tough, and something only the eccentric would try, but…)

I picked up the wooden sword and began to swing it. I kept going, taking breaks and sleeping when I was exhausted, doing my best to continue as long as my stamina allowed—I’ve kept count by marking it on the ground, and in the three days I’ve swung it over a thousand times.

But swinging it a thousand times doesn’t cause any noticeable change. In a game, you only practice at first, then stop, but here I’m doing it continuously. Still, even small experience points accumulate—I’m testing if that’s true in this world too.

Right now, I just keep swinging, focusing on making my movements as efficient as possible, trying to eliminate any waste—though I worry that my sense of progress might just be a delusion.

(If it came out through the “Sacred Relic Summoning”, then it is no different to a sacred relic… I believe it’s not just a wooden sword!)

“–Hmph!”

I tried to keep my voice low, but that one swing was different. I could feel a fleeting, intangible sense of achievement with that movement.

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