Tiana's worries

Theo moved down the stairs in silence. He didn't pay much mind to keeping himself silent or carefully placing his steps.

The girl below, however, was too focused on her training to notice the slight noise Theo made anyway.

'An impostor syndrome,' Theo thought once he stood just a few steps behind the girl, watching how her muscles continued their slow dance below the thin layer of her skin.

Not a single one of his disciples appeared to be slacking on their training. The rapid progress they made over just a few days was enough to convince them of the effectiveness of Theo's method. Yet, their training was still way too short for their bodies to get accustomed to it, resulting in a huge amount of sweat produced every day.

For this reason alone Theo went above and beyond and fashioned one of the guest rooms of the inn into a bath. And just like with any other activity that he pushed on his disciples, fetching the water from the well at the back of the inn turned out into yet another form of physical training.

Contrary to the mindless winging of weights, though, this kind of effort allowed them to wash off their sweat before heading to their rooms to get some rest.

Yet, as she continued to train even after all her peers went to sleep, Tiana has yet to clean herself off. Or rather, she had yet to change from her sweat-soaked and practically see-through clothes.

"Pushing yourself too much will be only detrimental to your growth," Theo said just loud enough for his voice to break through the girl's daze.

Between repeating the usual exercise, silently chanting the formulas he prepared for her, and fighting with the overwhelming exhaustion of her body and mind alike, Tiana has long given up on spatial awareness.

Within the confines of Theo's inn, there was no need for her to be wary, after all.

"Huh?" The girl twitched when Theo's words reached her ears. She then shook her head and slowly lowered her weights before looking over her shoulder. "Master…?" she then muttered, unsure how to comment on Theo's late-night visit.

"You shouldn't push yourself that hard," Theo repeated his advice. Then, he could see how the girl's face tensed up.

Tiana quickly averted her eyes and turned her head back to the front, either to escape the scrutiny of Theo's eyes or to hide her expression.

"I still have some juice left in me, so I thought…"

Theo didn't let the girl finish her excuse. He didn't use his voice, though. He simply closed the last few steps of the distance that separated them before gently tapping the girl's back.

"Wha..?!" the girl released a small shout of surprise… Only for her body to lean forward. Then, unable to control her tired muscles properly, she failed to regain stability before tumbling forward. She slid off the stool she sat at and fell face-first to the Inn's floor.

Pac!

The sound created by her sweaty skin clasping against the cold, flat rocks of the floor somehow caused Theo's lips to curve up a bit. Or maybe it was the comical pose that she ended up in when every last part of her body failed to listen to her orders, stopping her from securing her fall with her hands?

"What was that for?!" the girl called out in an accusatory tone, dumbfounded and wronged by the sudden attack at the same time.

"A proof that you are not in the shape to keep on training," Theo calmly replied, moving two more steps forward before leaning down and grabbing the girl's arm.

Theo pulled Tiana up with a single tug, forcing her back on her legs before dropping her back on her stool. He then circled around the girl and stood by the wall of the main room, resting his back against the wooden planks while looking right at Tiana's face.

Looking at her from the back was a lot easier, given how all he could see was her practically naked back. When looking at her from the front, however, Theo had to put in quite a lot of willpower to keep his eyes from roaming all over her delicious-looking body.

"I know how you are feeling right now," Theo revealed, slowly uttering his words one by one. He raised his head and crossed his arms on his chest.

"I was the first one to advance… but how? What makes me so special? Was it just luck? And if it was talent… then how come I can't feel like I'm growing stronger now?" Theo listed out a few kinds of thoughts that could possibly traverse the girl's mind as she trained.

He had no hopes of nailing the exact formulas that poisoned her mind, keeping her from properly focusing on her training. But the gist of her mental struggle had to be the same.

Tiana looked up at Theo's face before biting her lips and moving her eyes down.

"It's like I'm laid bare before your eyes, master," Tiana muttered with her eyes drilling holes in the floor.

A mere second later, the other possible meaning appeared in the girl's mind with how she moved her eyes to her own skin before an intense blush appeared on her cheeks.

'I can see her blushing even with how dark it is,' Theo thought, losing the grip of his eyes and allowing them to follow where the girl herself was looking.

Just like he could tell from what he saw while standing behind her, Tiana's simple shirt failed at hiding even the tiniest detail of her chest. The soaked cloth was glued to her skin so tightly that it revealed every nook and cranny that the girl would likely prefer to hide.

'She's your damn disciple, you horny bastard!' Theo screamed in his thoughts, forcibly pulling his eyes up to the girl's face.

But…

Aware of how she presented herself, Tiana put on an embarrassed yet defenseless look on her face. Her arms twitched and moved up a little, as if in an attempt for the girl to cover her chest with them… Only to fall down right away.

Was she so tired she couldn't even lift her arms to her chest? Or did she decide that trying to hide her charms now would only make it harder for Theo to keep his eyes away from them? Or maybe she was scared that pressing her arms against her chest would only accent the shape of her bust?

Whatever the reason, Tiana gave up on hiding her chest below her hands. And as a result, the embarrassed look on her face now mixed with helplessness… and anticipation?

"Yes," Theo finally spoke out, silently gulping down his saliva.

With all sorts of emotions mixing on the girl's delicate, young face, she made it even harder for Theo. Now, not even her suddenly cute and alluring face could serve as a safe haven for his eyes to rest!

"In a sense, I can see through your soul," Theo forced himself to stay on the topic. "Because I used to be like that too," he added.