Lindsay's Training
I teleported from the training ground to my room.
"Haah, I'm tired.”
I muttered, collapsing onto my bed.
It's not bad, really. It's convenient. But if my skills or memories from my past life were discovered, Father said I'd have to go to the royal palace or something... I really don't want that. Getting engaged to a prince like in a light novel? Or getting condemned like in an otome game? No thanks. First of all, getting engaged to royalty sounds like nothing but trouble. I'm not interested in fancy clothes or accessories either. And from what I read in light novels, it seems like you'd have no personal time... I'm glad Raika recommended those novels to me.
*Knock, knock, knock.*
"Miss Joan~ Lady Julietta and the others are about to leave~!"
Sarah came to call me. I hurried over to my aunts.
"Big Sister Julie, Big Brother Gil, I heard you weren't going to have breakfast, so I made you some lunch. It's just sandwiches, but... please take them if you'd like."
I pulled out a lunch bag from my storage containing sandwiches for two and handed it to them.
"My~ Little Joan, thank you. I'm so happy~ Having a daughter really is wonderful~"
"Who would've thought I'd get a lunchbox before heading to work... (Julie never even gave me one...)"
"And this little bag is so nice. Is it for lunches?"
"Yes, in my past life, I used it to carry things like lunchboxes. It's convenient in terms of size, so I made one."
"Eh!? Joan, you made this yourself?"
Uncle looked surprised.
"Yes, I made it during my free time..."
"Joan? Let's talk about this in more detail later, okay~?"
Mother said with a smile... but her eyes weren't smiling.
"Ah... yes."
I'm definitely going to get interrogated about this, just like with the stretch knitting.
"Hehe. Well, we'll be off now. Father, Mother, see you later. Brother, Maggie, take care. Aran, Vee, don't cause any trouble."
With that, Aunt and Uncle disappeared through the door leading to the mansion in the royal capital.
***
"Alright, Orki."
Grandmother, dressed in comfortable pants, called out to Orki.
"We will be in your care."
[Please take care of us.]The junior private soldiers (7 people), grandchildren (5 people), and servants (4 people) gathered in the training ground to receive my grandmother's instruction.
"First, basic training. Ten laps around the training ground, 100 push-ups, and 100 leg raises. Three sets. Begin——!"
Everyone here cleared it.
"Next, Joan and Zack, 50 sword swings each, left and right. The rest of you, pair up and spar for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, switch partners. Begin——!!"
Ahh, when will I get to spar?
I'm jealous of my brothers.
As I thought this while doing my sword swings, Nancy, who was assisting my grandmother, came over.
"Young lady, your sword tip is steadier than before."
"Yes, I asked Brother Aran and worked on my core strength."
Brother Aran told me I should work on my core, so I've been doing planks—30 seconds, three sets—since that day.
"Alright, stop!!... Okay, let's take a break. Little Joan, if you would."
"Yes!”
At my Grandmother's request, I pulled out sports drinks for everyone from my storage and, with Nancy and Zack's help, handed them out.
"Alright, after a 10-minute break, Little Joan and Zack will spar with Nancy, and the rest of you will spar with me."
"”Okay!”"
Zack and I were looking forward to our first sparring session.
[......]Everyone else was too exhausted to even speak.
"Brother Aran, since I started working on my core like you taught me, my sword tip doesn't wobble as much anymore."
"Ah... that's good."
"Brother Aran, are you okay?"
"Ahh, I'll manage. I didn't think Grandmother's training would be this tough. But Noel looks worse than me."
I looked at Brother Noel. He was completely drained, as if his soul had left his body.
"Brother Noel, are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?"
"Hm? Oh, Jo... I'm not hurt, just tired."
Ahh, he's out of stamina. Brother Noel really doesn't seem to have much endurance. But there's nothing we can do about that... Even a "spell" wouldn't help here...
"Brother Noel, let's hang in there a little longer. You can do it~!"
I said, patting his head. It's just a small comfort, but maybe it'll cheer him up a bit. Even if it's treating him like a child.
"Thanks, Jo. I think I can keep going a little longer."
Brother Noel said with a big smile.
"Um, Joan... me too."
Gan said hesitantly.
"Ahaha. Sure. Gan, let's hang in there a little longer. You can do it~!"
I said, patting Gan's head.
"Thank you! I'll do my best!"
Gan said energetically.
"Ah, that's not fair. Me too?"
"Sure. Martin, let's keep going. You can do it. I'm rooting for you."
I patted Martin's head too.
"Yeah, yeah, I'll do my best!! I can do it!"
Martin stood up and declared his determination.
"Alright, break's over. Martin, you're up first. Come here."
Called by my grandmother, the practical sparring began, but...
"Your stance is weak!! Push harder!! You're leaving openings!! Not good enough!! Too slow!!!"
There was no way anyone could beat Grandmother...
"If you want to stay by Joan's side, you'll have to get stronger."
Lindsay muttered to Martin, who was crouched down and out of breath, before walking away.
After that, no one could win, and everyone collapsed onto the training ground.
What do you think about this chapter?
