Such a Virtuous Wife

“Hah… hah… hah…”

Ard didn’t know how long he had been walking, or how much time had passed. The saying “a day feels like a year” was a perfect description of his current state. His breathing had become ragged and difficult, his limbs were numb and devoid of feeling, and he was moving forward on pure, primal instinct alone.

His eyelids felt as if they were lined with lead, constantly drooping shut. His brain had ceased all higher functions, and the scenery before him blurred, fading in and out of focus.

Finally, Ard could go on no longer. He collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud, unconscious before he even hit the dirt.

Yexi watched this scene with a calm, analytical gaze. She estimated the time. Ard had put on the gear at eight in the morning; it was now eleven. That meant he had lasted for a full three hours on sheer willpower and physical stamina. This was unexpected. She had originally estimated he would be completely immobile within two hours at most.

She didn’t stop. Instead, she simply grabbed Ard by the collar of his shirt and began to drag him forward. There was still an hour until the scheduled rest time. While she wouldn’t be so cruel as to wake him, she wouldn’t let him sleep comfortably either. Besides, the distance they had covered in those three hours was pathetic—two miles at most. Ard’s pace had been no different from a tortoise’s leisurely crawl.

After dragging him for an hour, Yexi found a spot by a river and dropped him. Looking at the still-slumbering Ard, she began her work.

Half an hour later, Ard, still lost in dreams, was jolted awake by a splash of cold water to the face.

He groggily opened his eyes, his entire body aching and numb, overcome with a profound laziness. At that moment, a peerless beauty appeared before him, holding a bowl of steaming, fragrant rice and a large piece of roasted meat that smelled richly of herbs and smoke.

Yexi’s cold voice drifted over. “Time to get up and eat.”

Ard struggled to prop himself up, but found that his limbs wouldn’t obey his commands. Forget picking up the bowl; even wiggling a finger was an impossible dream.

“I think I’ll eat a little later,” Ard said awkwardly.

“Later? You could wait until the sun burns out and you still wouldn’t be able to get up. I’ve already given you a massage,” Yexi said, looking at him and letting out a small sigh. “It’s a technique I learned in my past life to help alleviate physical fatigue more quickly. Otherwise, you wouldn’t even be able to feel your own hands and feet. Fine. I’ll feed you.”

“Huh?” Ard, who was already stunned to hear that Yexi had given him a full-body massage, was now completely bewildered. She was going to feed him, too? This… this happiness had come too suddenly! Although he had missed the bliss of the massage by being unconscious, he could certainly accept being fed.

Ard obediently opened his mouth, allowing Yexi to feed him, bite by bite, with a spoon and her own delicate hand. Why are my eyes always filled with tears? Because this happiness is too sudden.

“…”

Yexi saw the overwhelmed look on his face and found herself unable to comprehend his thought process. It’s not that big of a deal, is it? I’m just feeding him because he has no strength, so that he’ll have the energy to continue his tortoise crawl later. Why is he so moved he looks like an idiot?

Of course, Ard’s gaze was fixed on Yexi’s hand, so close to his mouth. It was as smooth and perfect as jade, and looked… quite delicious. But he knew that if he bit it, he would be well and truly dead, and life was still very precious. Ard was deeply grateful that he understood this point and could restrain his more… untimely desires.

Yexi fed him quickly and rhythmically. In about ten minutes, Ard had finished his meal. He could only lie back against a tree with a wistful look, watching her busily clean up and prepare for the next leg of their journey. He noticed that his sweat-soaked weighted gear had been washed and was now drying by the fire. His body had already been changed into a set of light, comfortable clothes.

Changing his clothes, washing them, cooking, and even a massage and feeding… Ard had the distinct, and not entirely unpleasant, illusion that he was living the life of a married man, being cared for by a virtuous wife.

But his leisure was short-lived. Ten minutes of light-clothed bliss passed in a flash. Before Ard even knew what was happening, Yexi tossed the thousand-pound garments in front of him. They landed with the force of cannonballs, gouging several large pits in the ground around him. Ard, sitting in the middle of the impact zone, couldn’t help but swallow hard.

“Stop daydreaming. It’s time to change.”

The second time was easier than the first. Ard was no longer so self-conscious. But the feeling of going from blissful lightness back to crushing weight was a unique and exquisite form of torture. This time, with his body already aching all over, Ard’s pace degenerated from a tortoise’s crawl to a snail’s.

He had to distract himself again. “Yexi, did you often do these things back at the Marquis’s estate?”

Yexi replied casually, “Not really. The estate has plenty of servants, and everyone has their own duties. I was mainly responsible for accompanying the Lord or Lady and handling miscellaneous tasks at their command. Like the time Elienla and I went to gather wild vegetables; that was just a whim of the Lady’s, and our job is to accommodate such situations. Cooking and washing are done by others. We only help out when they’re short-staffed. As for changing clothes and feeding…” Yexi shot Ard a sideways glance. “The Lord and his family are not so delicate. They do those things themselves.”

“You don’t seem unfamiliar with it.”

“It’s a skill from my past life.”

“Huh?” Ard looked at her, confused. “An assassin doing these chores?”

“That’s right. For an assassination, one needs to disguise oneself in all sorts of identities. And each identity requires the appropriate words and actions. It’s foolish to arouse suspicion because of clumsy technique. I’ve learned all the various duties of a maid. They’re not difficult; it’s quite easy to get the hang of it.”

“Wait a minute.” Ard felt like he had just heard something incredible. “You said ‘a maid’s duties’? Weren’t you a man in your past life?”

Yexi nodded. “I was. But I could disguise myself as a woman. In some situations, a man is too conspicuous. It’s easier to get close to the target by dressing as a woman.”

“That’s some serious dedication.”

“You can’t just give up a billion-dollar contract because of your gender, can you?” Yexi said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “In fact, for some lecherous targets and those with… special tastes, dressing as a woman makes the job much easier. And what I did was nothing. Some people, to ensure their disguise was perfect, would literally flay their own faces to make it easier to wear someone else’s, or even undergo gender reassignment surgery.”

This was the first time Ard had ever heard of such a thing. “That’s… intense. And incredibly professional. But… flaying faces and changing genders… that’s a bit hard for me to accept.”

“You people are too attached to bringing emotion into your work. It only brings unnecessary baggage and meaningless complications. For example,” she said, her voice dropping, “a certain someone with nothing but mush for brains was staring at my hand the whole time I was feeding him. I wonder what kind of fantasies my practical, time-saving actions sparked in his mind?”

Ard’s expression froze. He hadn’t thought she’d noticed. He could only remain silent in embarrassment. If I don’t admit it, it didn’t happen!

But hearing her words, he realized he was probably the only one she had ever cared for in such a way. Forgive him for being a common man, but he couldn’t help but feel a little smug. For a moment, he actually forgot the crushing exhaustion in his body.

But that momentary joy lasted for an hour at most. After that, Ard had to continue to endure the physical torment. This time, he couldn’t hold on and fainted halfway through. When he woke up, it was dinnertime. He had once again missed Yexi’s massage but was able to enjoy her feeding and admire her “virtuous wife” time.

When the time came, Yexi punctually put his weighted gear back on him. Just as Ard was preparing to start walking again, her voice came from the side. “Don’t walk. We’re not traveling at this time.”

Seeing his confusion, Yexi said, “It’s too late. It’s unnecessary. At this time, you will practice your sword swings.”

“Sword swings?”

“That’s right. One hundred thousand swings in five hours. You can stop when you’re done. Otherwise, you’ll be practicing for the full five hours.”

“…”

Five hours later, Ard felt like both his right and left arms were gone. Why both? Because his right arm had given out halfway through, so Yexi had made him practice with his left.

He had finally made it to midnight. This time, he was conscious to watch Yexi give him a massage. But since the intense activity had only involved his arms, only those two heroes got to enjoy the treatment. He watched her for the first half hour as she worked on his circulation, her focused expression outlined by the campfire, making her look like a fire sprite, adding a touch of enchantment to her beauty.

Suddenly, she spoke. “Daydreaming again?”

“I am,” Ard admitted freely. “Don’t ask me to clear my mind at a time like this. Actually, having these thoughts is quite interesting. At least they can provide some comfort when things get boring. As long as I keep them in check, it’s fine, right?”

“That’s true. But please, consider my feelings, having to endure your lecherous gaze.”

Ard sheepishly averted his eyes, then asked, “By the way, Yexi, why are you willing to go to such lengths? I mean, I suggested you train me, but the level of service is a bit beyond my expectations.”

Yexi raised an eyebrow. “You mean these little things I’m doing now? We just have different values. I just want to see you suffer.”

“???”

Seeing his confused look, Yexi explained, “What you call ‘attentive service’ is just four hours of my day. The workload in those four hours is nothing to me. What you call ‘enjoyment’ is just your subjective feeling. Without these four hours of trivial tasks, I wouldn’t be able to see your fifteen hours of suffering. You probably don’t know how interesting you look when you’re on the verge of death, do you?”

“…” Ard didn’t know what to say. Is this Yexi’s twisted sense of humor? Well, he certainly hadn’t expected that. But it was, strangely, kind of cute.

“By the way, why fifteen hours? Isn’t the rest period only four hours?”

Yexi looked at him like he was an idiot. “You don’t sleep?”

Ard felt like he really was an idiot. “Forgot, forgot,” he said with a wry smile.

“Also, those four hours of rest are just for taking off the weights. For the next five hours of sleep, you’ll be wearing them.”

“Ah!”