TMLLT 32

Chapter 32

“Something Natural”

“Next, those who passed, come over here.”

He turned his attention to the other cadets.

‘Is he tired or something?’

Well, he was handling missions while training us, so it made sense.

But when another cadet passed, he smiled warmly and said:

“The speed at which you rotated the blade vertically was excellent. But be careful using your wrist like that—you’ll tire quickly.”

I was the only one who got just a single “Good.”

Even his expression seemed different. It felt like I was the only one he wasn’t showing any warmth or kindness to.

‘Am I just imagining it?’

The others who passed collapsed into well-earned rest.

I sat among them briefly, then stood back up.

“Serdin, where are you going?”

“I’m going to try again.”

I voluntarily stepped forward to slice the straw targets again.

“Wow, Serdin. Your stamina is insane…”

“You split the lines perfectly. Have you been practicing this secretly?”

I heard whispers like that from my tired peers.

But the person I really wanted to hear something from stayed silent.

I wondered if his expectations of me were so high that he refused to show it.

Driven by that, I slashed the straw over and over.

Eventually, I succeeded in slicing seven straw targets in one go.

“You saw that, didn’t you, senior?”

Exhausted but smiling, I caught my breath.

“Good.”

That was all he said again, this time with a cold expression instead of a warm smile.

“Training is over for today. Go rest.”

“Yes, sir!”

Everyone let out a relieved sigh and stood up.

It was already night outside.

Despite my aching body, I quickly chased after him.

“Senior! Roitz!”

The training grounds were dimly lit by amber lanterns.

I rushed to catch up to him.

But Roitz shook off my hand wordlessly.

His expression was the same distant, indifferent look he reserved for those he wanted to keep at arm’s length.

That gaze—so different from the one two years ago—struck me cold.

“Training’s over. Go back, Serdin Bibi.”

He stood before me like a strict supervisor. Gone was the gaze he once reserved only for me.

“Why are you being so cold to me?”

My voice was half curiosity, half wounded disappointment.

Roitz’s reaction turned even icier.

“Just because we know each other, does that mean I’m supposed to go easy on you?”

His cold stare wrapped around my chest like chains.

‘Why do I feel like this?’

I couldn’t tell if I was angry, hurt, or both.

As I struggled to identify the feeling, my expression shrank.

“Go back.”

With that, Roitz turned and walked away.

And I was left there, unable to follow.

“Serdin, you’re still up?”

It was early dawn. Manon, out for water, was surprised to find me awake.

“I’m thinking.”

I sat by the window, unable to sleep, staring outside.

Suddenly, Manon’s words came to mind.

‘Are you really close?’

Even I had to admit—Roitz had been cold to me.

‘Why? I even joined Elche like I said I would…’

Even when we met again at the racetrack, he wasn’t warm.

‘Was getting into Elche not enough?’

After all the overthinking, I could only reach one conclusion.

‘This must be… a full reset.’

All the impressions Roitz had of me—wiped clean.

In fact, not just reset, but downgraded.

Maybe when he saw me doing remedial training on day one, he thought I was incompetent.

‘Just because we know each other, does that mean I’m supposed to go easy on you?’

That line echoed in my head, tightening around my chest again.

‘Why am I feeling this way?’

I spent the whole night grappling with this unease.

‘Am I really this upset just because Roitz is being cold to me?’

Then the answer hit me during morning training.

‘Of course I am!’

Roitz was about to become the captain here.

‘If I get on his bad side now… life at Elche will be even worse than what Rigi put us through!’

“No way!”

I didn’t risk everything to come here just to screw it up now.

I was only at the beginning of my second life.

Roitz was acting this way because his image of me had dulled. He once saw me as his prized student.

Now, I had to show him just how much I’d grown in those two years.

As dawn broke beyond the fields, I strengthened my resolve.

“Spar with me, senior.”

As soon as the morning training and meal were over, I went to Roitz.

Sparring was the perfect way to show him how much stronger I’d become.

“No.”

He didn’t even seem interested.

There was a time he used to enjoy our one-on-one duels.

“Senior! Are you done resting?”

I followed him around all break time.

“Look what I can do now! Watch this!”

Still, he wouldn’t even glance at me.

I refused to give up.

“Senior! Watch me!”

I deliberately trained in front of him.

“Wow, Serdin. You can infuse aura into a stick too?”

“Yup!”

I even showed techniques I couldn’t do two years ago.

“Impressive, rookie.”

“You were top of your class at Yudelln, right? Is everyone like you there?”

More and more people were noticing me—but Roitz wasn’t one of them.

He was the only person I wanted to notice.

“Serdin, are you secretly five people in one?”

“You’re amazing. I’m dead from just regular training…”

Even I was at my limit. But stubbornness trumps fatigue.

Until Roitz acknowledges me, I can’t stop.

If he were just any knight here, I’d drop it.

But he was about to become captain.

Not to mention, he was one of the biggest reasons I came to Elche.

There was no way I was giving up.

Time passed steadily through our training.

The week-long bootcamp was nearly over.

And still, I hadn’t exchanged more than a few words with Roitz.

“When we go back tomorrow, I’m going to sleep all day…”

After our afternoon physical drills, we lay in the grass, dreaming of freedom.

Everyone was listing off what they wanted to do after training ended.

“Serdin, what do you want to do?”

“Hmm…”

“What do you want most right now?”

The truth was, what I wanted most was to cross swords with Roitz.

‘There has to be a good strategy…’

But showing off my skills wasn’t working.

‘What if I try something he likes?’

It sounded like something a shady court flatterer would do, but I didn’t care.

‘What does Roitz like…’

I remembered the time we watched a puppet show and I gave him a slime doll.

His ears turned red from happiness.

He had everything else, so simple things moved him more than luxury.

Even though it wasn’t in the original story, not all traits make it into the canon.

‘If it were winter, I could pick some Ellicia flowers…’

He once told me he liked them too.

But it was spring now.

‘There are other flowers blooming.’

He also liked Jayzie flowers.

Since he liked flowers in general, maybe any pretty one would work.

As soon as I realized that, I sat upright.

“Serdin, where are you going?”

Manon, sprawled on the grass, asked lazily.

“To do what I want most.”

I answered with a bright smile.