The First Letter (66)

The week-long training conducted under Professor Derek’s guidance was grueling.

We had to prepare for every possible situation, and he beat us black and blue on the grounds that we had to keep real combat in mind.

He was the sort of man who believed that the closer he drove either the mind or body to its limit, the stronger it became. From the first day of training, Senior Elsie declared that she was quitting midway, but unfortunately, there was no getting off a ship that had already set sail.

Once you boarded the ship, there were only two choices: drown or see it through to the end.

No one would choose the former. Senior Elsie was no exception. In the end, with the help of my encouragement and handaxe, she somehow managed to complete the training.

Celin and Seria, who knew Professor Derek’s reputation, took to the training relatively willingly.

It was training to prepare us for monster hunting. It was obvious that there was no one more suited to the task than Professor Derek, a legendary monster hunter. No matter how difficult it was, it had to be worth it.

But even Celin and Seria had one point they questioned. This was not Professor Derek’s fault; it was mine.

When I asked Professor Derek to help us with our training, I had made one additional special request.

“Could you conduct the training on the assumption that we’ll be facing a powerful monster?”...