Hours after practice and study ended, the beautiful moonlight of the kingdom showered upon the castle as the exhausted heroes returned to their rooms.
Many struggled to walk, dragging their feet with minor injuries.
Ryuji and Yumiko didn't escape this, and with the blonde fox clinging to his back, he carried her to their room with the remaining strength in his arms.
'The students without combat class are too weak. I am going to struggle to help those two survive. I knew it would be this way... But I don't want to abandon them.'
Despite eating a hot meal, Ryuji remained hungry because he needed to share his meal with Yumiko. After all, she was now classed as his partner.
The benefit of his class being Rank-C meant he would receive a full, hot meal. Those below him would struggle with cold meals at best.
"Yumiko, are you alright?"
"Mm... My feet are sore, but I should be okay."
Ryuji enjoyed the combat training quite a bit. It involved swinging a heavy axe the size of his body until his arms became weak. Yet it reminded him of being with his mother. With Yumiko by his side, the nostalgic feeling made him want to keep going.
However, those unable to wield weapons fought with instructors until their bodies became filled with bruises and wounds.
Many girls couldn't take it, only to be made to fight each other as punishment.
"Slowly, don't drop me~ I will die if you drop me."
"Don't worry, you are light, and I like the feeling of your buttocks."
"!!!"
They arrived at their shared room after climbing the four flights of stairs. Ryuji felt strange because his stamina and strength seemed to recover faster the more he used them.
Maybe it was a trait of the berserker, but the closer he was to exhaustion, the more power he had in his arms, and a feeling in his abdomen felt like the bruises and muscle pain had already healed.
'Does this mean I can develop muscles faster if I keep pushing myself to the limit? My Mother used to train me and taught me the right ways to do so. Maybe I should give it a try?'
He was determined to grow stronger until he could leave the kingdom's eyes and explore the world.
'However, did I always enjoy fighting this much? My heart fluttered with delight when swinging that heavy axe towards other people...'
"Ryuji?"
"Oi! Ryuji!"
"Hmmm?" Ryuji answered without power.
Then, opening the door to their room and walked inside.
He no longer felt the exhaustion from the training and felt he could train even more, considering some private training before he closed his eyes in thought.
Despite the world having this hand status screen, it lacked indicators of health and mana.
'Maybe I recovered enough?'
Ryuji believed that it might be dangerous to try and estimate his current state because it might lead to a permanent injury or some kind of damage to his body.
"What's the matter, Yumiko?"
"You stink..."
Yumiko pinched her nose, making Ryuji realise he smelled terrible after sweating all day.
"Sorry," Ryuji said as he lowered her onto the bed and left for the washroom. Inside the room, a large stone bathtub, around three metres each way, was surrounded by small stones, one red and the other blue, which were tools for creating hot and cold water.
'They said we could only take one bath a day, though—should I ask if she wants to go first?'
He felt slightly annoyed, but the knights and kingdom no longer cared about Yumiko. It was up to him to make her perform better and learn the martial exercises his mother taught him for martial arts and basic survival.
During training, he realised what she meant by the sweet scent last night. He felt the same when smelling her sweat. Ryuji almost lost control of himself near the end of their training because the scent radiating from her body caused him to erect while swinging his axe.
"Yumiko, do you want to go first?"
"No... together." Ryuji heard her tired reply from behind the door.
'Together?'
Ryuji felt too tired to care.
She was eight years older than him and a grown woman who needed to bathe daily.
'No, there's no reason to turn down a free side dish.'
However, when he opened the door, Yumiko was barefoot. She also didn't try to hide her large breasts with soft pink areola or her fluffy blonde garden, which seemed to need a slight trim.
Yumiko stood naked with an annoyed expression.
"Why are you taking so long? It's cold!"
"Eh? Um... Sorry?" Ryuji apologised, unsure how to react.
Then, walking past him into the bathroom, she entered the bathtub and started using the magic tools to fill it with hot water.
"Come here, help me reach for the soap and bath gel."
Yumiko sat in the tub with her legs stretched, allowing her plump chest to sway on the top of the steaming water, barely hiding her body from Ryuji.
'She doesn't care how slovenly she looks...?'
He decided to stop thinking about it.
Although young and a virgin, he saw many women around her age naked while teaching at the dojo because his mother insisted on installing a mixed bath, forcing him to become used to the occasional 'accidental' bath with the pretty wives from down the street.
He followed her inside, picked up the soap and bath gel, and then handed them to her as she removed all his clothes.
No longer feeling embarrassed about his erection, he climbed into the stone bath, his legs on either side of her hips as she looked at him with a conflicted face.
"You're bigger than I expected..."
Yumiko tried to take advantage, but her face became red as she spoke while washing herself with soap and bath gel.
"Um... Thanks?" Ryuji didn't know how else to respond.
After all, he was used to bathing with other women because of the shared hot spring baths of his mother's martial arts class, but it was different being alone with one naked, beautiful woman who suddenly commented on his manhood.
'Those women used to say I would make many women cry...'
After washing herself with the soap, she gave Ryuji a momentary look.
"Should I wash your back? You worked so hard today, carrying me and sharing your food.
"My body is sore and needs intense scrubbing. So, can you scrub hard?"
"Mmm... I'm not this easy a woman; it's just that our money is useless in this world!"
Yumiko bent forward, and her large breasts sank into the water with a loud splash before her hot sigh reached his back as she rubbed his back.
Ryuji felt her soft hands scrub his back, causing goosebumps on his skin, enjoying the moment of bliss before the painful crack of his muscles sounded.
'Ahh... This feels great!'
"Is it okay? I'm not hurting you, right?"
Yumiko asked as she scrubbed his back, getting deep into Ryuji's muscles.
Her face was slightly red as she seemed to enjoy the feeling of his tight back and shoulder muscles.
"Yeah, it feels good—please continue..." Ryuji replied as he relaxed, letting out a moan of relief.
"Don't make strange sounds..."
After finishing his back, she grabbed the bath gel bottle and poured it on his head, massaging his hair as she washed it with her fingers.
Ryuji felt relaxed as she combed his hair with her nails. But, remembering her previous statement, he asked Yumiko a question he had been curious about.
"Are you okay with bathing with me? I mean, you're a grown woman... Do you not have a husband or partner out there somewhere? After all, a pretty woman like you... there's no way men could leave you alone."
"Ah... what a cute virgin. Don't worry. I don't have a husband who will kill you when he finds out. Fufu, but you have such a silver tongue—are you trying to seduce me?"
"Who would!?"
"We have a special bond..." Yumiko continued in her adult voice. "It seems in this world I must rely on you, whether it hurts my pride or not. So, I'll do anything I can to survive with you."
Ryuji listened carefully to Yumiko, thinking of what kind of life she lived before arriving here.
"Do you have kids?"
"I just told you I am a virgin!" Yumiko repeated as she tugged his hair.
"Haha! So you're a virgin too, damn woman mocking me."
Yumiko sighed as she stopped washing his hair. "When I saw him, look at you with those eyes after you saved that student, my heart ached. My instincts told me you were someone I needed to protect," Yumiko explained as she placed both hands on Ryuji's shoulders.
"I don't know much about the world, but this calamity star seems serious... We should keep talking to understand each other better. I don't want to offend you because of something stupid after all..."
Yumiko hugged Ryuji from behind, pressing her large breasts against his back.
"Hey, you're squishing me..."
"Shut up and listen!" Yumiko scolded Ryuji.
"Yes, Ma'am..." Ryuji replied, ignoring his growing boner.
"I will support you, teach you everything I know, so promise to protect me." Yumiko declared as Ryuji felt her hot breath on his neck.
'Hmm, she's kind of cute for an old woman.'
"Do you want to learn martial arts? My mother was a grandmaster, and your body moves well."
Ryuji offered Yumiko his expertise—this might be the best way for her to survive.
Martial arts suited her better since she was shorter than Ryuji. His mother used a feminine style; even though she was barely five feet three inches tall, he could never overpower her even once, so he thought this might help.
"Martial Arts?" Yumiko asked, curious.
"I guess? Mother called it a superior version of Kickboxing merged with Kenpo, but I never understood what she meant." Ryuji answered.
Yumiko released her embrace as she moved to face him, giving Ryuji a clear view of her wet, exposed flesh. It seemed she forgot where they were for a moment before her lips curled into a wicked smirk, and she teased him.
"Oh my... Ryuji Jr. is poking out of the water—what a brutal weapon you're threatening your little fox maid with."
Ryuji panicked, covering his lower body with bubbles.
"Sorry, you are just too sexy!"
"Hahaha... Don't worry, a big one is better. At least it's not tiny."
'Tsk... this old woman is getting too confident!'
Ryuji wanted to teach Yumiko a lesson but decided not to. Instead, he took advantage of her confidence.
"Okay, let me show you martial arts." Ryuji declared as Yumiko smirked.
"You think you can handle me?"
Yumiko teased Ryuji as she splashed him with water.
****
The pair left the bathroom without wasting time about who would sleep where; they both jumped into the double bed and wrapped themselves in the blanket. Ryuji slept shirtless, his bare upper body exposed to Yumiko, whose gaze made him uncomfortable.
"Stop looking at me like that; it makes me uncomfortable..." Ryuji complained while Yumiko just snorted and pulled apart her robes.
"Here now we're even, damn brat," Yumiko grumbled as Ryuji admired her mature body without shame.
"Nice..." Ryuji muttered without realising, making Yumiko blush as she covered herself with the blanket.
"Goodnight." Yumiko quickly turned to sleep with her back facing Ryuji, making him chuckle.
'Old lady is shy.'
"Night."
Ryuji smiled as he closed his eyes to sleep.
He dreamt of his late mother.
She started talking to him about boys and girls, and he shouldn't make girls cry... Then got angry because he called her old.