I Can’t Run Away From the Girl Who Saved Me

122 – The Instrument (1)

＊

I couldn’t tell how much time had passed since the sun had risen, but it was already noon, as the sun was directly overhead.

For several long hours, from dawn until noon, I rolled around on the dirt floor.

My hair, which was clearly a deep ash color with a hint of blue, had turned yellow from the dirt and dust, and my skin, which had been torn from being constantly thrown on the rough floor, was covered in red blood.

I slowly tried to push myself up onto the floor with my trembling arms, but I no longer had the strength in my arms.

Sylvia, who was approaching me with her teeth clenched as she tried to get up from her sprawled position on the floor, spoke firmly.

“wake up.”

“…I’m trying to wake up.”

“Don’t try to get up, just jump up. Is that something that requires effort?”

Sylvia’s attitude was so firm that it almost felt cold.

I don’t think it was like this even when I was training in magic before…

Isn’t it?

Come to think of it, even when I was training in magic, she would throw ice cubes at me with enough force to blow up a bear’s corpse in one blow.

“We’ve been doing this for hours already… Just let me… rest for a bit…”

“wake up.”

“…shit,”

I let out a short curse at Sylvia’s firm response, biting my lips hard and struggling to get up.

I managed to raise my upper body by bending my waist back with all my might, using the groan that was gushing out through my clenched teeth as motivation, but when I tried to raise my knees, both of my legs shook mercilessly.

Sylvia slowly approached me, crouched down, and met my gaze.

Sadly enough, I had some expectations when I saw Sylvia like that.

I hope that it will stop now,

However, Sylvia’s face had sharp, piercing eyes that were staring straight at me.

Sylvia said, placing the branch she was holding in her hand down in front of me.

“Ash… Look at this. Look at the weapon I’m holding. No, this isn’t even a weapon. It’s just a branch.”

“…ugh,”

“What am I asking you to do? Get up, look straight, and avoid the branches. These are the only three things I asked you to do. I’m not like someone who would say something ridiculous like, “Go cut off the Demon King’s balls right now.”

I banged my head on the floor and ground my teeth at Sylvia’s sarcastic remark about what I had said.

Of course, it wasn’t that I was angry at Sylvia.

I wasn’t so naive as to not know that she was just provoking me to train me, and I also knew that if I couldn’t overcome this much pain, then my journey to catch the Demon King would be nothing more than a pipe dream.

I just felt pathetic.

I felt like my light-hearted determination to follow fate and somehow things would work out was ridiculous.

Maybe this is how Sister Alice felt.

The overwhelming difference in power that Sylvia conveyed with her own body.

This made me realize how irresponsible my words were.

“Alice is right. If this continues, Ash, you will definitely die.”

“I know….”

The goal of the training Sylvia gave me was very simple.

Just once

Just once, you will be able to dodge the branch that Sylvia swings.

That was all Sylvia asked of me.

But in the past few hours I haven’t been able to avoid that one.

I got hit, rolled around, and got up dozens, if not hundreds, of times, but it was no use.

At first I tried to avoid her by watching her, but after collapsing for an hour I realized that I couldn’t follow her movements with my eyes.

Then I tried to run away, but she came towards me at a speed that was almost teleportation.

I tried using magic and asking Pia, but it was no use as the branches she swung were able to tear through both the wind and water barriers.

It was so incomprehensible.

It’s just a tree branch.

Clearly, all she was holding in her hand was a thin stick like a whip, but strangely, every time that thin stick touched my body, a huge shock hit my whole body as if I had been hit by a large hammer.

When it hit my arms or legs, I felt like my limbs were being ripped off, and there were a few times when it hit me right in the middle of my body, my body was lifted up and flew far away.

In fact, it would have been a sight closer to abuse or brutal violence than training.

When I heard about the training from Sister Alice, I was definitely prepared for it, but I thought it would be a little more refined than this.

I complained to Sylvia that it was painful and scary, but she just nodded and repeated the scary words that it was better since it was also a form of physical training.

“It’s even getting slower.”

“…Now, my stamina…”

“What do you need stamina for? Did I tell you to run? Just dodge.”

“Even if I get hurt… I’ll keep chasing after you.”

“of course.”

Sylvia tilted her head in bewilderment.

“If you avoid me so blatantly, then of course they’ll chase after me… right?”

“What is that…”

I don’t know anyone else who can swing their sword at that speed, or who can observe their surroundings at that split second while swinging their sword and change the trajectory of their emotions, except Sylvia.

But, don’t avoid it openly.

What should I do?

When I looked at her with a puzzled expression, she slowly shook her head and muttered as if she realized something.

“No, no… giving too many hints wouldn’t be good either.”

I was dumbfounded by her carelessly muttered monologue.

hint?

Hint,

Is the hint that they’re chasing you because you’re blatantly avoiding them?

It didn’t take long to realize what that meant.

“Are you saying that instead of avoiding in advance, I should avoid when it’s close?”

“…”

“That… can’t be possible…”

Sylvia, who was looking at me protesting in a vain voice, scratched her head for a moment, then slowly got up from her seat and said.

“If you didn’t understand, that’s fine. Okay, take a long rest. Get up again.”

＊

Another hour of senseless violence passes, and the sun slowly disappears between the trees.

The branch Sylvia was holding suddenly broke.

Of course, up until then I hadn’t been able to avoid a single attack.

Every time I was fatally wounded, Sylvia healed me with her divine power, so I didn’t sustain any major injuries on my body. However, I had been beaten all day and had learned violence, so by the end, I was helpless and just took the attacks she swung at me with my body.

Training had long since degenerated into nothing more than building up a stamina reserve.

Sylvia paused for a moment, looking at the broken branch, and I took the opportunity to take a deep breath.

“Haa… huh,”

“Ash…”

“…Ugh,”

I sat down on the floor, spat out water, and hung my head.

I had no energy left in my body, so I couldn’t answer at all.

Sylvia threw the broken branch to the ground and spoke softly.

“what are you doing?”

“…Ha, what are you talking about…”

“What are you doing now?”

Sylvia said in a trembling voice.

I swallowed dry saliva between my incessant gasps for breath and barely managed to move my lips.

“…training,”

“You didn’t even try to avoid it at the end. Are you kidding me?”

Sylvia approached me, her expression crumpled.

Then he grabbed my shoulder, looked me in the eye and shouted.

“You said let’s go catch the Demon King. You said let’s go to the Demon King’s castle. You said let’s get married… you said let’s get married.”

“…”

“But why, don’t you think? Why are you just getting hit? This is just a tree branch. If it was a sword, you’d be dead. Even if it was magic, you’d be dead.”

“…”

“…You don’t want to do it?”

“no…”

“Let’s go catch the Demon King, huh? That’s what I said. But what are you doing now?”

“… I’m sorry…”

“under…”

Sylvia sighed.

“I know it’s hard. I know it’s not easy. But this was definitely a problem with a clear answer. And the Ash I know would have definitely passed.”

“…”

“Are you kidding me?”

“no…”

I opened my parched lips with difficulty and answered in a hoarse voice.

“I can’t avoid it… I don’t know how to avoid it.”

“No, I could tell. Just think about it.”

“…Then it seems I am an idiot.”

“Ash!”

“…”

I couldn’t answer any further.

It wasn’t that I was annoyed by Sylvia’s attitude in questioning me.

Of course, it wasn’t because I was disappointed in my weak body.

I was obviously physically unable to answer.

It seemed like he was extremely tired, having been up all night and running around and getting beaten up all day.

“How do I avoid Sylvia…”

My vision slowly blurred, and then suddenly the ground was rapidly approaching before my eyes.

“Ash!”

I fell forward in surprise as I heard Sylvia’s voice calling my name.

I felt the sharp grains of sand pricking my cheek.

I couldn’t even move a single finger satisfactorily anymore.

Consciousness gradually faded away.

As my consciousness slowly dispersed like paint dissolved in water, the last thing I perceived was Sylvia’s voice muttering softly.

“Ash… will need a trigger.”

meter…?

What on earth is she trying to do…

With that question in mind, my consciousness completely faded away.

＊

It was after midnight when I regained consciousness.

It seemed like my day and night patterns had been reversed again since yesterday.

Despite being beaten all day, I didn’t feel any particular pain in my body.

The only pain I could feel was a stinging sensation in my throat, as if I had fallen asleep with my mouth open.

“under…”

I bet Sylvia had a hard time treating you.

I sighed as I thought about that.

Suddenly, I remembered Sylvia’s face as she scolded me before she fainted.

“Sylvia… you seemed angry…”

I raised my arm, placed it over my eyes, and muttered.

She was right.

I don’t know if it was a problem I could solve, but it was a task that I absolutely had to solve.

It may fail, it may be wrong.

However, I shouldn’t have given up. In the end, I was practically giving up and just taking her attacks.

I felt so pathetic that I felt like tears would burst out at any moment, so I pressed my arms even harder against my eyes.

That was when.

“I’m not mad, Ash.”

“Huh, Sylvia?”

It was only then that I realized that something was off.

There was no pain, but there were strange sensations all over my body.

First of all, it was strangely cold, and secondly, my lower body was damp.

And, I felt a heavy weight as if something heavy was resting on my pelvis.

I slowly removed the arm that was covering my eyes, then lowered my head and looked at my lower body.

There was Sylvia.

“…Sylvia…?”

“Oh, you’re awake… Yeah,”

“Right now… what are you doing…”

Sylvia was sitting on my pelvis.

As I witnessed the sight with my own eyes, the discomfort I had been feeling in my body, especially in my lower body, became clearer and clearer.

She was having s*x with my unconscious body.

“Sylvia… Th, stop, wait, what are you doing?”

“Ha… my stomach… feels warm…”

“…uh?”

I noticed that the moisture soaking my lower body wasn’t just hers.

For a moment, the color seemed to drain from my face.

“… no way.”

“Yeah, huh?”

“No way, no way…”

“Right… Ash.”

Sylvia’s smiling face slowly approached me.

Her lips slowly parted and her sweet, excited voice could be heard.

“Inside me…”

.