Isekai Kansha - Chapter 16

Chapter 16: Warm-ups and a New Encounter

The next morning, Jin woke before the Time alarm he’d set the night before ever went off. True, he had drunk a little yesterday, but not enough to call it heavy drinking. His condition was fine.

As always, his eyes drifted downward to check his health, then, slinging a towel around his neck, he headed downstairs. The inn was already bustling with activity; staff members busied themselves with their morning work.

After finishing with the toilet and washing his face, Jin accepted an early breakfast. Though it was a little earlier than usual, the inn had kindly prepared it for him. Of course, starting today, he returned to his "normal operation" of eating in moderation—just about eighty percent full. Then, after receiving his freshly laundered clothes from the inn’s hostess, he went back up to his room.

He put together a small pouch with a change of clothes and two towels—his "public bath set"—and stored it in his Item Bag. Another pouch, with three more towels and some copper coins, he placed normally in his satchel, not hidden away. A bit of camouflage. With that, his preparations were complete.

Finally, he used Change to instantly equip his gear and then stepped out of the inn, heading for the guild.

There was a reason he was going so early. Aria’s earlier explanation had included something about the guild’s training grounds. They opened an hour before the guild reception began at nine in the morning, free for adventurers to use for practice. With his skills still lacking, Jin thought it best to use that time for some independent training.

Inside the guild, the reception counter was naturally empty, though a few staff could be seen in the back, preparing for the day. Jin headed straight to the training grounds.

At this hour, he seemed to be the only one there. As a warm-up before serious training, he began with radio calisthenics—specifically, the First Routine. He didn’t remember enough of the Second, so he’d fill in later with some stretches.

He raised his hands high, slowly rolled his arms, loosening his body. Breathing in the crisp morning air, Jin earnestly continued his radio exercises.

Just as he finished the final deep breaths at the end, a voice called out from behind him.

"Sorry to intrude. But may I ask… what exactly are you doing?"

Turning around, Jin saw a tall woman with black hair standing there. She was just a little shorter than him—around 175 to 180 cm. For a woman, she was quite tall.

Her figure carried both a womanly softness and solid muscle, well-toned without being overly bulky, suggesting a supple strength. She wore dark leather armor, well-used, though she carried no visible weapon.

Her slightly arched brows and piercing gaze gave her the air of a seasoned warrior. Combined with her sharp presence, she left a somewhat stern impression, yet she was undeniably beautiful—radiant in her early twenties.

Atop her head, two pointed canine ears stood tall. …No, perhaps wolf ears. And then it struck Jin—he’d seen her before.

"Ah, could it be… we met in the courtyard of Traveler’s Rest?"

"That’s right. I was curious even then, but missed the chance to ask. I’ve been wondering about it ever since. Would you mind explaining?"

Jin groaned inwardly. To be caught back then was awkward enough, and now to run into her here, of all places… But then again, this was the training grounds. Exercising wasn’t strange at all.

"I don’t mind. That was something called Radio Calisthenics—a warm-up exercise."

"Warm-up? Not training?"

"It’s something you do to loosen your body before training or any strenuous exercise. A way to prepare your body."

"...? Sorry, I don’t really understand. What purpose does it serve?"

So the concept of warm-ups didn’t exist here? He vaguely recalled hearing that stretching was a modern practice back in his old world. Perhaps this was the same. Thinking for a moment, Jin reached a conclusion.

"Why don’t we try it together? Easier to feel it for yourself than for me to explain."

"Yeah. I’ll rely on you."

Her eager response made Jin smile. So she wanted to try.

"Alright then. I’ll go through the routine again. Just mirror my movements and follow along."

Facing her, Jin explained each motion aloud as he demonstrated, leading her through the calisthenics once more.

"How does that feel? Doesn’t your body feel a little warmer?"

"Yes… I believe it does."

"That’s one of the goals. Light movements to gently warm your body up, so you’re ready for the real training afterward."

"Warming up makes exercise easier, then?"

"Think of a cold morning. Don’t you feel stiff at first? But once you wash your face and move around, it eases up. That’s because your body gradually warms and loosens."

His analogy wasn’t perfect, but it got the idea across. He wasn’t an expert anyway—close enough would have to do.

"This is the same. A light exercise to make your body more responsive. So you’re less stiff when you get serious."

"I see. I kind of get it."

Jin breathed a sigh of relief. Explaining something you weren’t truly knowledgeable about was hard.

"There’s another benefit too: it stretches your muscles, making them move more easily. Didn’t you feel your muscles stretch a bit during the routine?"

"Yes, I did."

Jin had intentionally emphasized stretching during the routine. Evidently, she had felt it too, because she nodded earnestly.

"Our muscles contract and expand to move our bodies, but in their normal state, they’re a little tight. Stretching them out lightly, loosening them up, makes your body more flexible. If you skip that and dive straight into strenuous activity, the strain can tear them. You can’t prevent accidents entirely, but you can reduce the risk a lot by loosening up first."

"Ho. Now that you mention it… my uncle once injured himself, acting too wild for his age. That must have been it."

"Quite possibly. Muscles and joints stiffen more with age. That’s why older people often say their bodies have grown stiff. Doing this every morning can help ease that stiffness a little. It’s not just for warriors, but for anyone."

Jin spoke from personal experience. Back when his body had been unhealthy, he couldn’t handle strenuous activity. The daily radio calisthenics had been his way of pushing through regardless.

"I see. Yeah, that does make sense."

Jin couldn’t help but smile again, finding her straightforward honesty oddly endearing.

"Hehe. I’m glad you understand. But as I mentioned earlier, this exercise is only a light one. It doesn’t quite loosen up the body enough on its own. I was planning to continue with a few other warm-up routines—would you like to join me?"

Technically, he’d already explained what radio calisthenics was, so he could have ended things there. But the way this woman earnestly reacted to every word of his… it was just too cute. Jin decided to invite her along for the rest of his warm-up.

Of course, his "cute" here wasn’t the kind directed at a young woman, but more like the fondness of an old man seeing potential in a promising youth.

"Oh! I'd love to!"

She nodded with enthusiasm, and Jin gladly accepted. Both of them smiled as they resumed.

Knee bends, wrist and ankle rotations, Achilles tendon stretches—Jin carefully explained the purpose of each, mixing in some stretching while they thoroughly warmed up their muscles and joints. He wasn’t exactly an expert, but he squeezed every bit of knowledge he had from TV and past experience to pass it along.

"Hm. I see. My body really does feel warmed up. I’m actually looking forward to training now."

Indeed, even though they were just warm-ups, doing them thoroughly made his body heat up, and Jin found himself lightly sweating.

"Yes. Let’s both give it our all."

Feeling that he had managed to convey the importance of warming up, Jin had a small sense of accomplishment.

"Thank you for sharing such valuable knowledge so freely. Ah—wait, I never asked your name. I’m Erza. Forgive me for introducing myself so late."

After expressing her gratitude, she suddenly realized she hadn’t even exchanged names yet. Bowing apologetically, her wolf-like ears drooped in sync with her gesture. The sight struck Jin—it was moving to see how emotions reached even her ears.

"Not at all. I’m Jin. Personally, I don’t think it’s especially precious knowledge, so don’t worry about it."

Jin couldn’t imagine that in a world where combat was so common, no one had realized the importance of warm-ups. Maybe some martial schools treated it like a secret technique of their style? If that were the case, then sure, it might be considered valuable. But not to Jin. He saw no reason to hide something that reduced injuries and helped maintain health. He wouldn’t go out of his way to spread it, but if asked, he’d gladly teach it.

"I see. Thank you again, Jin."

"You’re welcome, Erza-san."

Naturally, they exchanged smiles. But then Erza suddenly frowned a little.

"…But can’t you drop that tone? I’m eighteen. You’re about the same age, aren’t you? Just talk normally."

Her words were a bit rough, but her expression carried a hint of pouting. To Jin, this candid cuteness left an even stronger impression than the gallant aura she’d shown at first.

"Alright, fair enough. I’m eighteen too, so we’re the same age. Nice to meet you, Erza."

Normally, Jin spoke politely, but there were exceptions. And if the other person wanted casual speech, he had no reason to refuse.

"Yeah. Nice to meet you, Jin."

Erza answered with a bright smile.

After that, the two went their separate ways—Erza heading off for bow training, and Jin beginning his own solo practice with the steel bastard sword. He swung it with one hand, then both, recalling his training with Greg and imagining an opponent before him.

Time passed as he swung. By the time it was past nine in the morning, the only instructor present was one teaching Erza archery. Greg, it seemed, was off today.

So Jin simply kept swinging until another hour had gone by, and he decided to wrap up. Just as he was about to do his cooldown stretches, he realized he hadn’t mentioned them to Erza. She was busy training, so he left it for another time and finished his cool-down on his own.

Wiping away his sweat with the towels he’d prepared, Jin next headed to the guild’s second-floor archive to look for books on skills and magic.

Unfortunately, he didn’t find any on magic, but there were some on skills, so he sat down to read.

According to the text, skills were categorized into three types: Normal Skills, Rare Skills, and Unique Skills. The rarer the skill, the stronger and more unusual it tended to be. That said, the difference between Normal and Rare was mostly about how many people had learned them—it was really just two categories. As for Unique Skills, only one had ever been confirmed; the rest were little more than legends.

As for acquiring skills, it was as he suspected—you had to actually perform the action to qualify. While some people picked them up quickly, others spent years trying without success. Generally speaking, it took time. The difficulty also varied depending on the skill.

Jin reaffirmed that the reason he’d learned Swordsmanship so quickly was likely due to his Martial Talent. Still, no matter how you looked at it, his speed was abnormal. He silently thanked Instructor Greg and Aria for overlooking it. Sadly, not everyone in this world would be so kind, and even though skills could be hidden, he would need to be cautious.

The book also contained a list of confirmed skills. Most were Normal Skills—likely because many people kept their abilities hidden—and even then, the list wasn’t that long. Still, there were a few useful entries, so Jin jotted them down.

Having finished his research, Jin went back downstairs just before noon to check the request board. He once again chose the same two quests as yesterday: gathering Chiriru Grass and Mel Grass. Then, he headed over to Aria at the reception desk.

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