Once we finished our warm-ups, accompanied by the symphony of Mika and Saori-chan’s screams, I immediately had Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san work through their basic training menu. For beginner explorers, physical fundamentals carried more weight than specialized skills. Once a person became an explorer, their physical abilities improved thanks to the benefits of leveling up, but until they reached a point where that was actually tangible, the strength gained from basic training was what mattered most. I had often seen newcomer explorers collapsed from exhaustion in dungeons because they had neglected their physical conditioning.
It wasn't so bad on the upper floors, where plenty of other explorers were around, but the deeper one went, the fewer people there were and the more dangerous combat became. If you ran out of stamina in a situation like that, the results were rarely pretty.
"Come on, keep your breathing steady. It’s fine to drop the pace a little, but prioritize maintaining your awareness of the surroundings. If your breathing gets ragged and you lose focus, the risk of being attacked by monsters goes up."
"“Hah... hah... yes!”"
As I gave instructions to Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san, who were running around the grounds with labored breath, I kept pace beside them with a light step. It was closer to a fast walk than a run for me, really.
"For an explorer, letting your guard down inside a dungeon just because you’re tired is a foolish move. It's not just monster ambushes; you have to worry about traps as well. Lately, the placement of traps has been somewhat identified, but if you stop paying attention, you're going to get hurt."
"“Yes.”"
I slowed the pace slightly, allowing Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san’s breathing to settle. They nodded with serious expressions at my advice.
"For a while, I won't have you step foot on floors with traps so you can focus on learning how to move in a dungeon first. Eventually, though, I’m planning to take you to a trap training facility run by the Association so you can experience what's out there beforehand."
"A trap training facility?"
"There’s a place like that?"
"There is. It’s basically an amusement park for ordinary people, but since they use actual dungeon traps, it’s a perfect place for newcomer explorers to get a feel for them."
Recalling the facility I had visited before, I told Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san about my plan. Since the facility was open to the general public, safety was guaranteed, making it a convenient place for beginners to gain experience.
The lack of genuine danger meant there wasn't much tension, but it allowed a person to build the mental preparation required for traps far better than encountering them for the first time in a dungeon would. Newcomer explorers who carelessly triggered traps and got injured were a recurring problem. It was always the types who over-relied on trap placement data and failed to do any actual mental conditioning.
"Even so, going there is still a ways off. Right now, there’s no point unless you prioritize building your basic capabilities first."
"I understand. I'll do my best."
"I'll work hard!"
As I explained the roadmap, Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san nodded vigorously, their faces filled with motivation. Since we had been doing nothing but basic training lately, I needed to feed them these small bits of information to keep them engaged. Whether or not a trainee was motivated directly affected the efficiency of their training.
"Well, just do your best within a range where you don't overdo it and get injured. Anyway, we’re almost at the finish line, so give me a last spurt without letting your guard down until the very end."
"“Yes!”"
Though I called it a last spurt, I had them maintain a pace that wouldn't leave them gasping for breath.
When we returned to the starting point, Mika and Saori-chan were practicing sparring forms with slow, deliberate movements under the guidance of Yuji and Hiiragi-san. Mika and Saori-chan were executing their attacks as if checking every single motion, their faces occasionally contorting in suppressed agony.
"Look, you're putting unnecessary strength into it, and that's why pain is shooting through your legs. Your steps need to be more careful and efficient. That's proof your weight transfer is sloppy. Be conscious of the flow of power and step in more smoothly."
"Ye... yes!"
"Saori-chan, your arm swings are too wide. Focus on striking through the shortest distance possible—keep it compact."
"Ye... yes!"
Though they were doing better than before, it was clear that moving still caused them significant muscle pain. Yuji and Hiiragi-san were watching them like hawks, pointing out exactly where the tension was whenever the girls' faces twisted in pain.
"Right, like that. That's better; you're starting to let the wasted strength bleed out."
"Ye... yes!"
"But your hips aren't into the attack now. You're focusing so hard on avoiding the pain that your actual offensive movements are becoming sloppy. Slow is fine, but make sure you're still putting your weight into it."
"Ye... yes. Ow!?"
Mika looked relieved to be praised by Yuji, but she let out a cry of pain the moment she tried to adjust her form. It was probably impossible to fix everything instantly, so she just had to take it slow.
"That's looking good, Saori-chan. Your attacks have much fewer openings than before. Now, let’s add a bit more movement, shall we?"
"M-movement? Um, as I am now..."
"Let’s try moving more dynamically and see how you close the distance. No matter how good your attacks are, they won’t hit the target if your footwork is bad."
"Ye... yes. Ah, ow!?"
Under Hiiragi-san’s guidance, Saori-chan was also practicing efficient movements while letting out occasional cries of pain. Her muscle soreness seemed even worse than Mika's, so I hoped she wouldn't push herself to the point of injury.
"Wow, they both look like they're suffering."
"They said they were sore, but I can't believe they can move like that."
Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san let out voices of admiration with strained smiles. Having seen exactly how much Mika and Saori-chan had struggled with their soreness all day, they looked at the two of them with disbelief.
In the life of an explorer, there were times when you had to move even if you were hurt. A monster wasn't going to give you a pass just because you were having a bad day.
"I'm not saying you'll have to do this right this second, but if you're going to become explorers, you'll eventually have to do training like that too. You should watch them closely."
"“Eh!?”"
"Why the surprised looks? What Mika and the others are doing is training for how to respond when encountering monsters in a dungeon while fatigued or injured. I'll have you two do it at least once eventually. In a dungeon, you won't always be in perfect condition. It's better to experience that as practice first. You need to understand exactly how much your body refuses to move when you're exhausted. In that sense, their muscle soreness was quite convenient. It reproduces those conditions perfectly, making this excellent experience."
As I explained this in a nonchalant tone, Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san’s expressions turned into masks of dread.
"Um, do we really have to do training like that to become explorers?"
"Well, it's not strictly mandatory, but it’s the kind of thing that will save your life later. A lot of newcomer explorers get killed or injured because they misjudge the impact of their own fatigue. They don't understand how much slower they are compared to their peak state."
"Because they try to move the way they normally do, and they end up failing to dodge or land an attack?"
"Exactly. Mid-level explorers with experience understand that gap and adjust, but you can't expect a rookie to figure that out in the heat of a real battle."
Some might argue that it was better to just fail and learn from experience, but unless a person had a rock-solid backup system, that "experience" usually ended in a traumatic, life-altering injury. During the early days of the dungeon opening, plenty of rookies retired for exactly that reason.
"So there's a proper reason for it."
"Of course. We're not making them spar like this just to be mean. We're doing it because it reduces the risk of them getting seriously hurt in a dungeon."
It seemed they had harbored some suspicion that we were just being sadistic. Once I explained the intent, Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san looked much more impressed.
"If you know how you move when you're in bad shape, it gives you the information you need to decide whether to fight or flee."
For example, you could choose a tactic where one person bought time while the other used a recovery potion. In actual combat, a delay in judgment created a fatal opening, so we needed to cultivate the ability to make those calls instantly. That meant being prepared for every scenario.
"It's true that if you don't know how poorly your body performs when it's compromised, you'll hesitate. You might think you can fight, only to realize too late that your body can't keep up... I can see how that would happen."
"Conversely, if you try to run, your legs might feel like lead, and you wouldn't be as fast as you expected."
"Exactly. Newcomer explorers are bad at those calls. Misjudging the time to retreat is how most of them end up as statistics."
As I muttered that while watching the sparring, Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san took on grave expressions.
"Well, it's no use staring at them forever. Shall we get back to your training?"
"“Yes!”"
After sending a silent cheer to Mika and Saori-chan, I got back to the strength training menu with the rookies.
By the time the after-school session wrapped up, Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san were out of breath but looked to have a healthy sense of fatigue. Mika and Saori-chan, on the other hand, were slumped on the ground, looking utterly spent. They had been screaming through their muscle pain the entire time, even during the slow-motion drills. It was only natural they were exhausted; honestly, I was impressed they had stuck it out.
"All right, good work everyone. It’s a bit early, but let’s call it for today. Mika and Saori-chan look like they've hit their limit, and we have Hiiragi-san’s massage care workshop after this."
"Make sure you learn well. If you take care of yourselves after exercise, tomorrow will be much easier," Yuji added.
"I'll be teaching you in the clubroom once we move," Hiiragi-san said with a smile.
Mika and Saori-chan looked like they had found a savior in hell, likely remembering the relief they had felt from the brief massage she had given them earlier.
"The training intensity is only going to increase, so Tatebayashi-san and Hino-san, you should learn this too. The right care makes a world of difference in how much fatigue sticks around."
"Y-yes. Seeing Mika-chan and Saori-chan like that made us realize we'll be in trouble if we don't take this seriously. We'll learn as much as we can."
"Massages can be hard to do on yourself, so I'll learn properly so I can help the others!"
Having seen the consequences of insufficient care firsthand, the rookies were taking the importance of post-training recovery to heart.
"By the way, while I’m teaching them, what are you two going to do, Hirose-kun and Kokonoe-kun? Going home?"
"I'll wait. I can't really let Mika walk home alone in this state, so I'll stay until your workshop is over. I think the school cafeteria is still open."
"If Daiki's staying, I'll grab some tea and wait with him," Yuji said.
"I see, sorry about that. Could you wait for a bit? I don’t think it will take even thirty minutes to go through everything."
"“Understood.”"
If we were waiting in the same room, it would probably just distract the girls. So, Yuji and I decided to change clothes and head to the school cafeteria until they were finished. I’d heard it was open late, but I wondered if the school store was still operating at this hour.