Please Help Me, Master

Ladies, here's a gift. It's a moisturizing ointment, so apply it often and keep your hands from getting rough.

"Really? You bought this for us?"

"When I thought about how hard you ladies work, I couldn't just walk by."

"Oh my... thank you. I was already bothered because my hands had gotten so rough. I'll use it well."

"There really is no one but Leon. Come here. I'll give you a kiss."

After giving Rinoa her gift, I handed out the ointment I'd prepared to the maids as well.

Naturally, the praise was unanimous.

I could practically hear their fondness for me shooting up.

'If I'd known this would happen, I should've just eaten and played eroge.'

Then I wouldn't have ended up possessed in an eroge game, would I?

If this place were an eroge, I'd have lived a life without ever getting blue balls.

Sigh.

Putting my regrets behind me, I also gave Helena a jar of ointment.

"What's this? Ointment?"

"Yeah. A while ago I went out and stopped by a general store."

I've used a sword myself, so I know this kind of work really wears your hands out.

They get scraped up, blistered, and calloused.

During training, there are days when your hands hurt so much you can't even hold a sword.

I thought the ointment might help at least a little.

"I didn't do much, and you're giving me a present?"

"If it weren't for you, I'd just be swinging at the air by myself. Take it as a bribe to keep helping me from now on. Or do nobles not need bribes?"

"No, I was worried about it anyway. I'll make good use of it. Thanks, hehe."

Even though we worked in the same place, Helena was a noble lady in her own right. If she'd turned it down, it would've been awkward, but thankfully she accepted the gift.

"Tch. Instead of training like you're supposed to, you're just messing around with a girl."

"As expected of a slave, you only pick cheap, foolish things."

The cadets shot me dissatisfied looks as I chatted with Helena. It was obvious jealousy.

I could understand it. Helena was the only woman among the apprentice knights. And a beauty that brought to mind the freshness of spring.

In a place full of grueling training, her presence must have been one of the few comforts they had.

So of course they'd be furious that I, a mere slave, had stolen that comfort away.

'Then you should've been better.'

I still vividly remembered Helena's scornful look when they boycotted me just because they didn't like me.

You were already hopeless long ago.

"Then will you spar with me?"

"M-me? No? I don't spar with slaves."

"Neither do I. Sparring with a slave would just be a waste of time. That's right."

The cadets bolted, disappearing in a hurry.

"Idiots. Sparring with Leon is incredibly helpful."

"What a shame. We should get back to training too."

***

Things kept going smoothly.

I rested well, ate well, trained hard, and hung out with the maids.

Of course, the knights still ostracized me, so training meant self-study or sparring with Helena.

They probably didn't want to teach a slave the swordsmanship they'd honed themselves. It was obvious they were ostracizing me to keep me from improving.

But there was one thing they overlooked.

======

[Proficiency level has increased.]

[Intermediate Swordsmanship Lv. 5 > Lv. 6]

======

Huh, I even improve when I train alone.

'No, that's not it. You can grow even when you train alone.'

Yeah, I just level up a little too well.

Of course, it's slower than being taught, but in some cases self-study is far more meaningful.

If you grow too quickly, the gap between your actual ability and your perception becomes huge. When something that couldn't be done a moment ago suddenly can, it creates a sense of strangeness.

You need time to adapt to your changed body. In that sense, self-study has plenty of value.

Of course, I had a rough time recently because I had to sacrifice my [Basic Physical Strength] proficiency, but thankfully I'd recovered enough to function normally now.

That didn't mean my condition was perfect, though.

-Thwack!

Urk.

Helena's wooden sword struck my wrist. The pain made me drop my sword.

Helena pointed her sword at me, now empty-handed.

Normally, dropping your sword means defeat in a spar. But I'd used tricks before.

Because of that, she never lets up on me until I declare surrender.

I obediently raised both hands.

I lost.

Hehe. I can be serious when I need to be.

Helena smiled with a proud look on her face. I gave a bitter smile in return.

"Is your wrist okay?"

"Yeah. It's just a little sore."

When you're sparring, no matter how careful you are, someone is bound to get hurt.

At times like that, not blaming your opponent is the unspoken rule.

Of course, I'd never hit Helena even once.

"Leon, has something been going on with you lately?"

"Why?"

"You seem unable to focus. Your reactions are getting a little slower, and you don't look well either."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Was it that obvious?

Her guess wasn't wrong. I definitely wasn't able to focus during sparring.

Well, I started noticing something strange a while ago.

"Something strange? What kind?"

"I'm not exactly sure how to put it, but if I had to describe it, I'd say I've become overly sensitive?"

It's like having the skin of my entire body peeled off and feeling the wind against it.

Not just touch, but sight, smell, hearing, and every other sense had become heightened.

With sensations flooding in from every direction, it felt like I had motion sickness twenty-four hours a day.

I couldn't figure out the cause at all.

'I think this started when I rerolled my proficiency.'

I thought it was just a fever at the time, but even now, quite a while later, the symptoms still hadn't disappeared.

Could it be because of mana?

Helena, who had been listening to me, cautiously offered her opinion.

"Mana?"

"Yeah. I heard from a mage friend once that people sensitive to mana perceive the world differently from ordinary people."

"In what way?"

"As you know, mana is in the air too, right? Ordinary people feel the air as empty space, but those people feel it as filled with mana. Like being underwater."

One thing immediately came to mind from her explanation.

'Mana sensitivity....'

A proficiency I had newly gained through rerolling. If this symptom was related to mana, then there was no other explanation.

But knowing the reason didn't solve the problem.

'So what am I even supposed to do with this?'

How was I supposed to get back to normal? It could be mediocre, but it shouldn't be a handicap.

Because of this, even daily life is hard.

"Isn't there some way?"

"Well..."

As the two of us wracked our brains over it, Helena carefully offered a suggestion.

"If nothing's coming to mind, how about asking the young lady?"

"The young lady?"

Why bring Rinoa into this?

"After all, when it comes to mana, a mage would know more than a knight. The young lady might know how to solve it. I don't know whether she'd help, though..."

That made sense.

Rinoa was still an Edelhyde, rotten as she was. In the future, she'd become an incredible archmage. The only problem was that she was a black mage.

Either way, she would definitely know a solution.

"...So you came to me because of that?"

"Yep."

Strike while the iron's hot, as they say. I came to see Rinoa right away.

After hearing my story, Rinoa frowned as if annoyed.

"Do I really look that free? Do I have to counsel slaves too?"

"Don't you just read books all day?"

"Get out."

"Oh come on, don't do that and help me just once. Because of this, I can't even sleep properly, let alone train. I'm so nauseated all day it feels like my head's splitting."

Rinoa, who had been looking at me disapprovingly, let out a sigh. I took that as tacit agreement.

"You think your senses have become too sensitive?"

"Yes. I'm guessing it's because my mana sensitivity increased."

"Why would that suddenly increase?"

"Uh, well... I don't know? I just woke up and it was suddenly like this?"

My half-baked answer drew a suspicious look from Rinoa, but thankfully she didn't press further.

"Your guess is probably right. It's a common symptom among people with high mana sensitivity. Mana hypersensitivity, or hyperesthesia, as it's called."

"How can I fix it?"

"Simple. You just have to drain all the mana out of your body. The mana inside you is what sharpens your senses."

"Huh? How am I supposed to survive in this harsh world without mana...?"

"That's your problem."

Rinoa, who had been sitting in her chair, leaned forward.

"You were the one who said you wanted to become a knight. You were also the one who promised, in front of everyone, that you'd become the best knight. I merely showed generosity and gave you a chance."

"That much is true..."

"In return, I lost the knights' trust and became a spectacle for the lower ranks. But if you break your promise too, what happens to me? What happens to you?"

...

As she said that, Rinoa's lips curved into a smooth smile. But her eyes weren't smiling at all.

"Even if it means my own ruin, I will thoroughly break you, Leon."

Her icy menace made me swallow hard.

I'd been trying to live by the motto that if I couldn't avoid it, I might as well enjoy it, but I was reminded once again of exactly who stood before me.

Having said that much, Rinoa leaned comfortably back in her chair again.

"Anything else?"

"No... then please help me a little more kindly. If I get stronger, it'll be mutually beneficial, won't it?"

"...What?"

Rinoa reacted a beat late, as if she'd just heard something unbelievable.

I ignored her and continued calmly.

"If you keep discouraging me, there's no way I'll have the energy to get stronger. If you supported me and cheered me on from the sidelines, I think it'd help."

"You're really insane, aren't you?"

"This is a world where you can't survive while staying sane. The world made me this way."

Rinoa?

Of course I'm scared.

But what can I do? What changes if I'm scared?

I'm already a slave, aren't I?

If I just sit still, I'll die anyway.

If trembling doesn't change the situation, then I might as well go out with my head held high. At least I'll feel better about it.

'And anyway, Rinoa can't get rid of me.'

That was because Rinoa had already taken on the risk.

It was Rinoa who pushed me, a slave, to become a knight despite the hostile stares around her and the hit to her reputation.

There was no way this was out of pure goodwill; she must have some scheme in mind. That calculating Rinoa would never take a loss for nothing.

That was Rinoa's true intention.

'Rinoa, isolated within the family, wants a knight of her own.'

The quest description that came up during my spar with Gerard.

This was Rinoa's true intention. She wanted to make me into a knight.

I didn't know the exact reason, but for now we were companions heading toward the same goal.

There was no need to act servile all the time.

So, could you help this poor slave just a little?

You...

I understand that you value ability above all else, young lady... In the end, all I have to do is prove myself, right?

...

Rinoa narrowed her eyes and glared at me. Her displeasure was plain as day.

But maybe because I'd relaxed, she only looked like a child throwing a tantrum. And she really was one, after all.

I didn't look away and gave her an easy smile.

And so the tense staring contest went on for quite a while.

-Clack.

With a short sigh, Rinoa closed her book and stood up. She slowly began walking toward me.

What was this ominous feeling?

Had I gone too far?

I'm sorry. To be honest, I didn't mean it. I just got carried away for a moment and said it without thinking...

Shut up.

Rinoa cut me off sharply. Then she took a seat behind me on the sofa.

You'd better remember this. If you don't live up to my expectations, you won't die cleanly. I'll make you regret this moment.

Along with her cold voice, my vision went dark. Something was covering my eyes.

A sensation that was both cool and soft.

Wait, could this be...?

Focus properly. I'm only doing this once.

Ooh.