The final point of EXP.
I had no idea how long it had taken just to raise that single point.
I had been swinging my sword with utter focus, but the moment the corner of the screen updated, I stopped in my tracks.
"At last, I've got a skill that isn't just a special skill..."
Basking in a wave of accomplishment, I checked my status.
✤
Name: Erik
Age: 10
Level: 2
Strength: 11
Magic Power: 11
Stamina: 11
Agility: 11
Dexterity: 11
Skills:
[Swordsmanship: 1]
Special Skills:
[Fixed EXP]
Divine Blessings:
——
✤
[Swordsmanship] was now unmistakably listed among my skills.
They always said talent was crucial when it came to acquiring skills.
The skills granted during the ceremony usually gave a rough idea of how someone's potential would unfold.
Magic-type skills, in particular, were treated as the most important.
Yet starting from nothing but a special skill, I had managed to gain the [Swordsmanship] skill on my own.
"Hell yeah!"
A loud shout burst from my throat.
I had tried to hold it in, but the excitement was simply too much.
Overjoyed, I hugged the wooden sword tight and started hopping around on the spot in pure celebration.
"Gah... Wh-What is it?"
"Well~, Mom told me to come get you since it's dinner time, but you looked so happy dancing around out here that I just couldn't bring myself to interrupt."
I felt eyes on me.
Slowly, creakily, like an ungreased hinge, I turned my head toward the inn.
There stood Anna-san, wearing a broad, mischievous smirk.
"Let's make a deal. I'll keep your secret safe, so please pretend you never saw that just now."
"Ehh~, I wonder what I should do~. You're always so quiet and composed, Erik-kun, so I bet Mom and the others would be completely shocked if I told them about this."
She teased me with that knowing grin plastered across her face.
I had intended to keep my mouth shut, but if she was going to push me like that, I had no choice but to fight back.
"Teddy bear panties."
"...?!"
With those three words, Anna-san's expression instantly froze.
"H-How do you know about that, Erik-kun...?"
"As you know, Anna-san, I help out with the inn's laundry every morning. A while back, a pair of your panties got mixed in with the bedsheets."
"Mom, what were you thinking?!"
Realizing how her secret had slipped out, Anna-san shrieked in mortification.
Then, turning back to me, she offered her hand.
"Fine. Let's both agree to forget about this. I just came out here to call Erik-kun for dinner, and that's all. Deal?"
"Deal. Thank you very much."
With our respective secrets safely mutually assured, Anna-san and I shook hands.
"By the way, I'm not sure if it's my place to ask, but why do you still wear underwear like that?"
"...I just want to wear cute things, okay? Is it really that weird to wear panties like that when I'm fifteen?"
"Well, no. If you don't mind it yourself, then who cares? I brought it up just now, but if you hadn't been bothered by it, it wouldn't have worked as leverage in the first place."
"To be honest, I do feel a little embarrassed because I know I should probably wear something more age-appropriate. But even so, I still want to wear them!"
Anna-san made her case with impassioned conviction.
"Is that how it works? Personally, I'm the type who's fine with whatever as long as it's wearable, whether it's underwear or clothes."
"Really? But you never dress sloppily, Erik-kun, so I assumed you actually cared about your outfits."
"I don't have the spare money to care about fashion. Though since coming to the royal capital, I suppose I have started paying a bit more attention. Unlike back in the village, there are so many people here, and I have to interact with townspeople for quests. I just repurpose my worn-out clothes as cleaning rags."
Chatting as we went, we made our way into the dining hall.
The moment we sat down, Amanda-san brought over our dinner.
"That took quite a while just to call him inside. Did something happen?"
"Ah, no, we were just chatting for a bit."
"Right, right! You know how good Erik-kun is at cleaning? I was just asking him what his secret is!"
"Huh~? Anna, asking about cleaning when you hate it so much...?"
Under Amanda-san's piercing gaze, Anna-san looked visibly flustered.
"Well, whatever. You were probably just asking out of idle curiosity anyway."
Hearing Amanda-san let it drop, a look of profound relief washed over Anna-san's face.
After finishing dinner, I headed to the bath.
"Now then, what should my schedule look like starting tomorrow...?"
Fresh from the bath, I returned to my room.
Sitting down on a chair to cool off in the night breeze, I turned my thoughts toward the days ahead.
Assuming I would continue steadily leveling up, I wondered what else I could be doing.
Acquiring [Appraisal] would undoubtedly be an immense asset for my future work.
"Though judging by how it went today, I won't be able to practice it non-stop like [Swordsmanship]."
It had taken several minutes just to gain that single point.
While that might sound quick on paper, it had consumed magic power and required intense concentration.
Once magic power drained away, it didn't recover right away.
Running low made the body feel sluggish and heavy, and depleting it entirely meant blacking out.
Because of that, I figured prolonged training sessions for [Appraisal] simply weren't feasible.
"For tomorrow, I'll take on city quests in the morning as usual, then dedicate the afternoon to training."
After turning it over in my mind for a few minutes, I settled on my plan for the next day.
There might even be a more efficient way to train [Appraisal].
With that in mind, I decided to put leveling on the back burner tomorrow and focus entirely on training instead.
Having mapped out my plans, I climbed into bed and let sleep take me.