Today too, the dragon-girl was thoroughly crushed by the physical training instructor and left the training ground.
During her counterattack, she grazed the instructor's robe, removing his hood and exposing his face.
He appeared to be a human-race with blonde hair and blue eyes. It was a bit surprising given his incredible strength; I had imagined him to be an oni-person or similar. He must compensate with qi.
The children, who had been watching the dragon-girl get battered every day, initially looked depressed each time, but gradually became accustomed to it as part of daily life. At least they realized that if they were obedient to adults, unreasonable violence wouldn't be directed at them.
It was the moment when the idea that "living obediently to adults is easier" took root in the children, just as the adults had expected.
Turning away from them, thinking I was different, I continued to look into my heart through meditation whenever I had time.
And finally, the "qi control training" bore fruit.
While meditating cross-legged at night, I felt something click into place that had been misaligned.
"...Ah."
I felt my field of vision expand. It was similar to when I discovered my third eye—the pit organ.
The sixth sense that I had previously perceived as an invisible presence changed into a clearly visible and audible sense.
Looking at myself, qi was seeping out like a flickering candle flame.
Looking at the oni-person boy sleeping next to me, qi was leaking out slightly.
It seems the amount emitted decreases when unconscious.
After experiencing this new sensation for a while, I decided to sleep early this day to recover from the fatigue of the daytime "endurance training."
***
I realized the problem during the next day's "qi control training."
Just sensing qi isn't useful in combat.
One must either draw qi from within oneself or fill one's body with it.
In "qi control training," drawing qi outside the body is called [qi release], and filling the inside of the body is called [qi filling].
[Qi release] alone can only provide slight enhancement, but mastering it allows one to practice manipulating qi.
And [qi filling], which is learned using [qi release] as a stepping stone, has the effect of strengthening the physical body.
Ordinary people emit qi outside their bodies without doing anything. I do too.
Consciously increasing this amount is [qi release], but this was difficult for me.
I had to watch with frustration as children who had mastered sensing went straight to mastering [qi release].
Ironically, reducing the amount was easy for me. That's apparently a different system of techniques, but not something needed now.
It might have been clearer if I couldn't do either. Then I could have given up on manipulating qi.
There's no way I can consciously reduce the amount of qi but not do the opposite.
I continued to train diligently. If it became known that I was useless, I doubted I could leave this place alive.
***
I truly feel that trials are often given when not sought.
People feel colder during hard times, and no straw is thrown to those drowning. I have no memories of this, but the feeling is there.
If he is God, then he must be either an extreme misanthrope or an extreme sadist.
I had been hoping for a quiet environment to master [qi release], or at the very least, maintaining the status quo, but...
The room arrangements changed due to complaints from some children.
I had thought that room assignments were decided by adults, but what the adults had decided was the allocation of sections for children of the same batch; "who goes into which room" was decided by the children themselves. That's why some places had uneven numbers and were cramped.
I didn't know, but apparently the children who first came out of the self-reflection rooms entered various rooms, and the children who came later had their room assignments decided by those who already had rooms.
I felt warm knowing that my roommates had chosen me in this draft, but at the same time, I felt sad about parting.
And when I moved rooms according to the assignment they proposed, I realized their trap.
At the same time, I felt like breaking the horns of the former oni-person roommate and tearing off the tail of the cat-girl.
Their complaint wasn't that the rooms were too small for the number of people.
"...They dumped her on me...!"
—I had become the "dragon-girl handler."
***
The situation inside that room was miserable.
The futon was scattered, with straw and bird feathers strewn about.
Looking at the wall in dismay, I saw four diagonal claw marks running across it.
...It feels like I've entered a bear's territory.
Even in my memories, there was no time it had been this messy. She probably took out her frustrations after being beaten by the instructor. The fact that she can defy every day despite nearly dying each time must be due to her superior healing ability.
"Sigh."
And then I turn my eyes to the center of the room, which has been demanding attention. Of course, I make sure she doesn't notice my sigh.
"..."
Wow, she's watching closely.
She's a dragon-girl with silver hair, scales, and golden eyes. She has a tail thicker and stronger than mine, which she sways back and forth.
She was lying on the futon in the back, facing the ceiling.
And observing me from the corner of her eye.
She's probably determining whether I'm someone who might offend her.
And at that point, it became clear that she had forgotten me. While I'm relieved not to be targeted, I somehow feel defeated.
But I know how to handle her, so I would never assert "Do you remember me?"
If I had to summarize how to deal with her based on my memories, it would be "Let sleeping dogs lie."
Her personality is proud at best, arrogant at worst.
She strongly dislikes having her pride wounded.
For example, suppose you take her pillow.
Of course, she gets angry. She can't stand being looked down on as someone who can be stolen from.
Conversely, suppose you offer a pillow to her who doesn't have one.
She would get angry at this too. She can't stand being pitied.
When encountering her, whether you choose "talk," "fight," or "run," it's game over.
The correct answer is to let go of the controller and wait trembling for the commands to disappear.
Today, fortunately, she seems to be in a good mood.
...From my perspective, she looks like she's glaring, but I judge it as such.
I bow slightly to show respect.
Otherwise, she'll get angry thinking she's being ignored. The bow comes naturally, ingrained in my body. It seems that I was a master of bowing.
And I look for an intact futon, but the moment I see four piled under her, I give up.
I gather the scattered straw and bird feathers and forcibly stuff them into the torn futon.
Then I tie the torn edges tightly with strips to prevent the contents from leaking out.
And with this makeshift body pillow, I lie down.
I no longer felt her gaze. I must have passed the test.
Her pride remains as high as ever—not fawning, not yielding, not reflecting. Wondering how long her hedgehog-like prickly temperament would last, I fell asleep from exhaustion due to physical exertion and tension.