The "Training"

The Priestess' cave.

"Young lady, time to wake up."

"Mm…mm…"

"Alya? Wake up! it's time to train!"

"O-o…kay…"

A strange noise, as if a knife being sharpened was heard and a cold feeling made her nose tickle.

Something oily and sharp was touching the tip of her nose.

"I said… wake up!"

One of her eyes opened and there she was, Priestess Adi pointing a sword right in front of her face.

"Just a… wha-WHAAAAAAA―!"

It was dark outside the cave. After crossing the muddy, cold, and deep puddle that separated the priestess home to the outside forest, the strong wind made her nerves wake up instantly.

"Aaaahhnnn it's so cold!"

Alya had only the clothes from last night ―thin borrowed sandals, a red skirt with golden embroidery that covered her thin thighs and a top for her flat chest, all her jewelry got lost in the fight.

Tightening her small body, Alya thought her bones would break at any moment.

"We will get the food for the day!"

"Huh?? Wait… wasn't the food already made?"

"What are you talking about young lady? We need to get food to survive!"

"B-but… can't we just go buy something to the merchants?"

"Young lady, I see you've been spoiled too much. We do things differently here. Besides, this is part of your training."

"But in the palace, we…"

A fierce look from the Priestess almost caused her heart to stop.

"O-okay… W-what should we do?"

"Good thing you ask young lady."

The priest drew a knife and handed it to her.

"What's this?"

"It's called a knife, have you ever seen one?"

"I know what a knife looks like! Sort of…"

Reluctantly, Alya took the rusty handle of the knife with both hands ―the knife being about the size of her forearm.

"Now follow me and do as I say, you understand young lady?"

"Y-yeah…"

Priestess Adi started walking at a fast pace, it was hard to keep up with her even though Alya was a little bit taller than the Priestess.

It was difficult to walk on the muddy and sometimes rocky ground. Branches of all sizes would hit her thin skin; hidden roots would hit her ankles or even make her stumble and insects would bite all over her uncovered body, but Priestess Adi acted as if it was the nicest day ever.

"W-wait… hah… please wait for…!"

The Priestess stopped.

"Be quiet young lady," she whispered, "look."

As the cold breeze gave her a runny nose and a sore throat, Alya looked up.

"Aawwn that rabbit is so cute is resting so peacefully!"

"Shhh! You will scare our meal!"

"A-ah you mean…"

"Yes, I'm going to hunt it and you will peel its skin off."

"Wait, what?"

The Priestess jumped as a predator directly to the rabbit. The small animal with its big ears seemed to know their intentions because of Alya's many noises.

It ran fast.

But the Priestess was faster.

She appeared in front of it with both hands extended. The rabbit changed direction, but after running through the tall weeds, all Alya could see, was the bushes wobble until they stopped.

A small and crippled hand came out from the leaves, holding the prey.

"She caught it… and made it look so easy."

"Ha, ha, haaa! Did you see how this little bastard knew we were around? It took me a bit more to catch it since you kept talking so loud!"

"E-eh… sorry…"

Jumping high in the air, the priestess landed right in front of Alya, acting as if all that physical activity did not have any effect on her old and small body.

Making her lean closer, the Priestess took the animal by its legs and said.

"Now, this is how you kill it fast."

Alya had never seen a dead animal before, all she knew was the well-cooked and prepared food that she ate at the palace.

Her eyes were shaking.

"Is this a… hiii!!!"

The Priestess hit the rabbit on the head, making it an instant dead.

"Did that scare you, darling?"

"A-ah… what are you…"

"Now tie the foot with this…"

"Ah… ah… like this?"

"No… grab it like this…"

"Wha-what are you going to do with that knife…? oh…"

"I'm peeling it… see? It's easy."

It was too much for Alya. Her small hands were shaking every time the priestess told her what to do. Her stomach tickled and her head got cold.

"Ugh… I think I'm going to…"

"Oh sweety, we will be doing this every day, so you better get used to it."

"Huh? Re-really?"

"Yes, you will need a lot of proteins from now on, so you better pay attention. Next one we catch; you will do the peeling for me."

"What?"

"Now sweety, stick your thumb in this little hole and move it around like this."

"Wa-wa-wait!"

"Hurry up! We have a lot of things to do!"

"Ugh… like this?"

"Yes. Now pull it towards me."

"O-okay."

After cleaning and cutting the meat, it was as if a heavy burden was lifted off her chest. The coolness disappeared and her nerves were as sharp as they had never been before.

The next catch was even worse ―Alya was petrified. Priestess Adi even got mad at her and hit her head with the same hammer that used to kill the animals.

It was the worst. Her appetite was completely lost.

How long would she survive doing this? She wondered if she could live with only herbs and fruits with the hopes of not repeating this day; but all these feelings and thoughts, disappeared after she learned how to cook the meat and ate it. Somehow, they tasted even better than the food of the palace.

It was a day that probably she would never forget. Although she did not train as she was expecting, all the tasks that were done, made it seem like the training at the palace that the guards would do every now and then, or maybe these tasks were even harder.

At the end of the day, Alya's body felt like melting. All her limbs could fall at any moment. She could not move even a finger.

"How are you feeling young Alya?"

Laying down with her face thrust on the pillow, she mumbled.

"Hah? Aah… never been… so tired in my life."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha! You mean the chores?"

"The… chores?"

"Yeah! These are the everyday chores… I know we could've done more things, but I needed to make some potions."

"Are you… kidding me?"

"I know you are eager to start with the training, but be patient my dear Alya, we need to make some preparations before we start."

That was the last phrase that Alya heard. She had fallen asleep before she knew.