The training yard was empty at dawn, which I was grateful for. I had a feeling I was about to embarrass myself, and the fewer witnesses, the better.
Valerie stood in the center of the yard, stretching with practiced ease. She'd changed into form-fitting training attire that allowed for fluid movement, and I tried very hard not to stare.
"So," she said, turning to face me. "What's your level?"
"My level?"
"Your combat ability. Magic affinity. Surely even you know your own capabilities."
Right. In this world, people had levels and affinities. I had been painfully average—ll, evel 12 at best, with barely any magical talent. I had coasted on my family name and never bothered to train seriously.
Meanwhile, Valerie was already level 34 and rising. A prodigy by any standard.
"I'm... not very strong," I admitted. "Level 12, last I checked. Minimal magic affinity."
I expected mockery. Instead, Valerie nodded thoughtfully. "Then we start from the basics."
She walked to the weapon rack and selected two wooden practice swords, tossing one to me. I caught it clumsily.
"Your stance is terrible," she observed. "Feet shoulder-width apart. Knees slightly bent. You're not preparing for a dance, Chase. You're preparing for combat."
I adjusted my stance, and she circled me like a predator examining prey.
"Better. Now, attack me."
"What?"
"Attack me," she repeated. "Don't worry, you won't hurt me."
That stung my pride a bit, but she was right. I swung the wooden sword in what I thought was a decent arc.
Valerie sidestepped effortlessly and tapped my ribs with her blade. "And you're dead. Again."
---
The next hour was absolutely humiliating.
Every attack I made, she countered. Every defense I attempted, she broke through. She moved like water, flowing around my clumsy strikes with an ease that made it look like she wasn't even trying.
"Your footwork is awful," she said, disarming me for the seventh time. "You're standing there like a statue. Combat is about movement and flow. You need to be ready to shift at any moment."
"Easy for you to say," I muttered, retrieving my practice sword.
"It would be easy for you too if you had ever bothered to train properly." She took her stance again. "Once more. And this time, actually move your feet."
I tried. I really did. But years of neglecting my body meant my muscles didn't respond the way I wanted them to. I was too slow, too stiff and predictable.
By the time Valerie finally called a halt, I was drenched in sweat and gasping for air. She, meanwhile, looked like she'd barely warmed up.
"You're not hopeless," she said, tossing me a water skin. "You have decent instincts buried somewhere under all that rust. But you're going to need a lot of work."
I took a long drink, my hands trembling from exhaustion. "Same time tomorrow?"
She studied me for a moment, and I could see her observing my face whether I was serious. "Tomorrow at dawn. Don't be late."
"I won't be."
"We'll see." She turned to leave, then paused. "Chase?"
"Yes?"
"You actually showed up. That's more than I expected from you."
Before I could respond, she walked away, leaving me alone in the training yard with my aching muscles and wounded pride.
---
I spent the rest of the morning trying to move without groaning in pain. Every step reminded me of how thoroughly Valerie had dismantled me. My arms felt like lead, my legs like jelly, and my pride was somewhere in the dirt of the training yard.
But despite all that, I couldn't stop thinking about the way she had looked at me at the end. Not with contempt or disappointment, but with something that might have been cautious interest.
It was a start.
I returned to our chambers to clean up and change. As I washed away the sweat and grime, I caught my reflection in the mirror. The original Chase had been soft, his body showing the effects of years spent drinking and lazing around. I had a long way to go before I would be even remotely capable of protecting anyone.
But I would get there. I had to.
After changing into fresh clothes, I found myself wandering the manor halls, my body too sore to do much else. Servants gave me curious looks, apparently, the young master being awake and active before noon was noteworthy.
I ended up in the library, a place I had rarely visited before. The Morvan family collection was extensive, filled with books on history, magic theory, combat techniques, and political treatises. All knowledge I desperately needed.
I pulled a basic text on fire magic from the shelf and settled into a chair, wincing as my abused muscles protested.
The book explained that magic in this world required three things: innate affinity, mana control, and mental visualization. I had fire affinity, even if it was weak. The other two I would have to develop through practice.
I was so absorbed in reading that I didn't notice Valerie enter until she spoke.
"Educational reading? You really have changed."
I looked up to find her standing in the doorway, now dressed in a elegant day dress, her silver hair cascading over her shoulders. She looked every bit the noble lady, a stark contrast to the fierce warrior from this morning.
"Just trying to understand the basics," I said, holding up the book. "If I'm going to train with you, I should at least know what I'm doing."
She walked over, glancing at the book's cover. "Elementary Fire Magic for Beginners. Starting from the very beginning, I see."
"Have to start somewhere."
Valerie was quiet for a moment, then pulled another book from a nearby shelf. "This one's better. It's more of practical application and less theoretical nonsense."
She handed it to me, Advanced Foundations of Elemental Magic. "Don't let the title fool you. It's more accessible than that children's book you're reading."
"Thank you."
She nodded, then turned to browse the shelves herself. We stayed like that for a while, both reading in comfortable silence. It was strange, peaceful, even. A far cry from the tension of our wedding night.
"Chase," she said eventually, not looking up from her book.
"Yes?"
"Why did you really agree to marry me?"
I closed my book, choosing my words carefully. "Because I saw an opportunity to be part of something greater than myself. And because..." I paused. "Because when I really looked at you, I realized what a fool I had been to never see you before."
She finally looked at me, those crimson eyes searching my face. "You keep saying things like that. Pretty words."
"They're not just words."
"Then prove it." She closed her book with a soft thud. "Words are cheap, Chase. Anyone can say them. It's actions that matter."
"Then I'll prove it. Every day."
Something flickered in her expression, not quite trust, but maybe the possibility of it.
"We'll see," she said, echoing her words from the training yard. Then, softer: "I hope you mean it."
She left the library, leaving me alone with my thoughts and aching muscles.
As I returned to reading, I couldn't help but think: one day down. One morning of training survived. One small step toward changing both our fates.
It wasn't much. But it was a beginning.
---
That evening, we shared dinner together in our chambers, another new routine. The conversation was stilted at first, neither of us quite sure what to say. But gradually, we found our rhythm.
"You'll be sore tomorrow," Valerie said, cutting into her food. "Worse than today, probably."
"I'm looking forward to it," I lied.
She almost smiled. "Liar."
"Okay, maybe not looking forward to it. But I'll be there regardless."
"Hmm." She took a sip of wine. "Most people would have given up after today. The training, I mean. It was deliberately harsh."
"Testing me?"
"Perhaps." She met my eyes. "You passed. Barely."
"I'll take barely."
We ate in silence for a while, and I noticed her glancing at me occasionally, as if trying to figure out some puzzle.
"What are you thinking about?" I asked.
"You," she admitted. "Trying to understand what changed. What's really happening inside your head."
'A lifetime of memories from another world. Knowledge of a future where you become a monster and I die at the protagonist's hands. Desperation to change fate itself.'
"Just trying to be better," I said instead. "Better than I was."
She studied me for a long moment, then nodded slowly. "Then keep trying. I want to see how far you'll go."
"As far as it takes."
That night, as we lay in bed on our respective sides, I stared at the ceiling, my body screaming in protest from the day's training.
But beneath the pain, there was satisfaction. I'd survived day one. I'd shown Valerie I was serious.
Tomorrow, I'd do it again.
And the day after that.
And the day after that.
Until the future I remembered became nothing more than a nightmare that never came true.