I ask her for my waterskin which she tosses to me after taking it out from her bag. I drink half of it almost immediately, feeling very satisfied with the current state of affairs in general. I'm slowly grinding XP, my actual experience has improved quite significantly already, I have the best teacher I could ask for, and of course, I'm still in absolute disbelief that I was actually transmigrated to such a wonderful place.
I have slain 12 monsters so far. My Warrior class reached lvl 2 and my XP is at 38/100.
After a brief respite we stand to continue our activities, but before I can walk out of the chamber I hear her voice from behind me.
"You're pretty good. I expected us to progress slower." she says, and I'm happy to receive her encouraging words. I'm also surprised at how unbothered I am with this whole fighting and killing thing. Even when I'm splashed with blood or see the organs gushing out onto the ground after I pull my spear out of their flesh I don't feel disgust contrary to what I'd expected. In fact, I enjoy this labyrinth clearing quite a lot. Making money this way, even if dangerous, suits me so much better than doing my old desk 9-5 job.
"Thank you, Ayame. With such an amazing teacher I would be ashamed to do any worse."
She hurriedly snaps her head away. Wait?! I just made her blush?! Whenever I flirted with her before she just got annoyed at me…
"I'm glad you think so… You are my first student, so I wasn't sure how I would perform in this new role of mine."
"I'm the first?! Then you should be even prouder. I was sure that you had taught at least a dozen students before me."
She refuses to face my way, but while before I was uncertain, now though, I'm sure she is blushing. Sadly for me, she is blushing because her first student called her a great combat educator and not because she is flustered by my flirting.
At least I finally found her weak point. If I keep improving at a rapid rate and impress her I should have a good chance later down the line to turn it into more. Though, of course, I will also keep flirting with her. It's just too much fun to quit cold turkey.
"Why do you consider me a great teacher?" She inquires softly after a few seconds of silence.
I respond with a torrent of praise, a torrent I didn't even need a second to conjure. "I think it's because your personality is very compatible with mine. I love how composed and considerate you are with me. Your attitude is not overbearing at all, letting me experience everything at my own pace while observing patiently. I also love how kind and uncomplaining you are. Even if I make a mistake, or worse, repeat one I already committed once before, you don't flip out at me, but repeat what I should've done differently with amazing serenity and endless patience in your tone. Not only are you an extremely cute and beautiful girl, but also a serious, diligent and forbearing teacher and combatant, all that is to say, I'm amazed at how great of a person you really are. I'm glad I got the chance to meet you, Ayame."
She turns and glances at me for a few seconds, probably to ascertain if I'm sincere or just flirty as usual. I meant everything I said, so I respond to her questioning eyes by giving off an aura of certainty accompanied by a happy, encouraging smile.
Finally I can see her flustered expression, and just as expected, she is way too adorable. Her slightly red cheeks, her uncertain eyes which seem undecided between being pleased, overjoyed and annoyed (probably due to my cute and beautiful girl comment?) create a lovely end result that I know I won't forget for a very long time.
She averts her gaze once more, "thanks… I'm glad that you think so highly of me as your instructor. I will do my best to remain as patient as I can, so feel free to experiment. You can't become a good combatant if you don't find your own style." Her voice gets audibly flustered, "and I suppose I'm also happy to have met you… I'm glad and proud of myself for remaining steadfast in my resilience despite the cruel situation I found myself in to decline so many prospective buyers as I waited for the best one. I could've gone with a lot of them and enjoyed the outside world much sooner, but instead I waited and waited… Chained to a bed and utterly humiliated every single day…"
The strong girl that had such an imposing aura as she easily fought off any monsters for the past few hours was nowhere to be seen, replaced by one that seemed visibly vulnerable. She appeared so small and weak in this moment. I thought that over the year-long captivity of hers she would get these emotions under control, that she cried all her tears out already and was now just on a path of vengeance, but boy was I wrong. How can you get over her trauma in a year, if ever? If my cherished mother or father betrayed me and sold me into a life of slavery I would most likely become a complete emotional wreck, a shell of a human being devoid of feelings for the rest of my life.
I, as a man and her teammate, couldn't just keep watching as I finally realized just how troubled she really was.
I approached her and put my arm on her shoulder. To be honest, I really wanted to hug her properly, but she might get startled or outright offended if I were to act on such an impulse. She flinches at my touch but doesn't make a move otherwise.
I then begin to speak in a gentle, encouraging tone, "Ayame, you are absolutely correct in that you should be proud of yourself. You got dealt with a hand so horrible that just thinking about it makes me tremble with anger. A sister who committed patricide before turning her blade on you, a year spent chained in a slaver's basement cell, exile from your clan, the king himself sentencing you to a life of slavery…"