The Villainous Aristocrat's Efforts Led to a Genuine Harem - Episode 17

Episode 17

—Training grounds.

I was facing off against Garing. I was getting trained as usual.

Garing is the one serving as the vice-captain of the corps. According to Zangell, although he’s a bit cheeky, he’s said to be the most skilled in the corps.

He told me to try fighting him once… so now I was having a mock battle with Garing.

Among the spectators were not just soldiers, but also Reem. At this point, it wasn’t strange for her to be here anymore.

That day. Ever since Reem realized my true identity, her interactions with me had increased dramatically.

Of course, part of it was to sniff my scent. But it seemed she also wanted to retrain herself after the fight with the High Wolves.

As I was thinking about that, Garing’s movements suddenly accelerated.

…Before the fight began, his expression had been calm and composed. But as the battle went on, his expression grew increasingly tense.

Probably because I was able to block every one of his attacks.

Maybe because Zangell was his teacher, Garing’s movements were similar to his.

So for me, his movements were easy to read.

“…Tch!”

Garing’s expression grew sharper as he unleashed a powerful attack.

Swinging the sword in his hand with the fastest motion he could, Garing was certainly a threat.

But I blocked all his strikes with the dagger held in both of my hands.

Even though he was attacking, he couldn’t break through. The frustration was clearly visible on Garing’s face.

And in the moment his rhythm faltered—

I switched from defense to offense.

Just as Garing stepped in to strike, I circled around to his side.

“…!?”

Startled, he hurriedly pointed his sword toward me. But a strike without power was easily deflected by my dagger.

I took one more step forward, thrust the dagger at Garing’s neck, and he pressed his lips tightly together.

Zangell watched Garing’s frustrated expression. He then gave me a round of applause.

“That’s enough. Lord Reis. Well done.”

“No, it’s thanks to your training, Zangell.”

“No, it’s the result of your own hard work, Lord Reis.”

Though Zangell said that, he played a big role in my rapid growth.

Thanks to his [Instructor] skill, my basic stats have been greatly boosted.

Of course, my activities as Ryō are also related… but that was mainly for leveling up.

Since level has its limits, boosting base stats requires help from someone with the [Instructor] skill.

“……”

Garing had a frustrated look on his face.

…Well, considering his personality, it’s understandable.

He’s something of a genius and seems very confident in his skills.

I wouldn’t mind if he wanted to pretend this fight didn’t happen, considering I’ve been training using game knowledge.

As I was thinking that, Reem brought over a towel and handed it to me.

“That was amazing.”

“…Well, I just happened to do well this time.”

I don’t know if I’ll be able to win like that next time.

But over the past few months,

Thanks to daily training, I’ve reached top-tier ability within this corps.

…Whether getting this far in just a few months is fast or slow depends on perspective.

In real gameplay time, I could’ve trained to this level in about ten hours.

So in real-world time, it’s taken me a while.

I’ve multiplied the experience points gained during basic training and supplemented combat experience with equipment bonuses.

…Only now does it feel like things are just beginning.

Ultimately, the problem is that we don’t know what level of monsters we’ll be facing during the stampede.

So I don’t know how strong I really need to be.

—

After I finished wiping my sweat, Reem stared intently at the towel.

With a face that looked excited and hopeful, she waited quietly. She was just like a loyal dog begging for food.

When I brought the towel closer, she leaned her face toward it. So I quickly pulled it back—causing her to look disappointed.

“Is this supposed to be teasing? Is that the kind of play you’re into?”

“…It’s not that. Are you seriously going to sniff this?”

Even I can tell I stink of sweat.

Normally, I shower right after training.

But Reem nodded eagerly. Her eyes were almost crazed as she stared at the towel.

“Of course. Even now, just your scent is enough to make me dizzy. Now! Hurry, hand it over!”

With intense pressure, she reached for the towel. So… I reluctantly handed it to her, despite my twitching face.

She immediately pressed it to her face and let out an indescribable sound. She was rubbing it against herself in bliss.

…T-this is scary.

Still, I couldn’t ignore her behavior.

I carefully observed Reem’s condition.

…She was clearly acting strange. I mean, obviously strange, but also in another way.

“Fufu… fufufufufu… fuuu…!”

She had been laughing happily. And then she suddenly let out a shout of joy.

…The surrounding soldiers were visibly recoiling. They were giving me looks of sympathy.

…Actually, Reem has definitely helped soften the attitudes of the soldiers and servants toward me.

And her magic power—before and after sniffing me—is clearly different.

Being face to face like this, I can feel the dense magical aura she’s giving off… and its quality has changed.

…That’s when I remembered something about Reem from the original story.

Among the characters in the game, some had a kind of special move called [Adrenaline Boost].

It’s something like a limit break: it charges when receiving or dealing damage.

When activated, stats are temporarily increased and other benefits occur.

In the game, it was said [Adrenaline Boost] could be triggered by strong emotional disturbance. And the system tracked damage dealt or taken during combat—it’s kind of like entering the “zone” in sports.

[Adrenaline Boost] is unlocked after progressing the story to a certain point, but…

Could it be—Reem has already unlocked it?

“…Fu, fufufu…!”

“…Reem, can I talk to you for a second?”

“What is it?”

“Want to have a quick fight?”

“Huh? Right now? But I just want to spend every second breathing your scent and filling my body with it…”

“If I move around a bit, I’ll sweat again and we can use a fresh towel…”

“A restock!? Yes! Let’s do it!”

Stop saying dumb things.

With a big smile, Reem grabbed her rapier.

Not the one she used during the High Wolf battle, but a training rapier.

That’s not the only gear I gave her.

I’ve provided her with all the equipment needed to boost her stats during basic training.

If she’s going to train, might as well make it efficient.

And not just Reem—Zangell and the other corps members have been given equipment as much as possible too.

Maybe it’s a bit much. But since we’re training anyway, I want to do it efficiently.

…Well, that’s just my gamer’s pride talking.