The Mob Noble Who Got Reincarnated in a World Where Men Are Naturally Protected—So I Trained Like Crazy to Protect Girls Instead, But Their Love Got Way Too Heavy - Chapter 02: If Only I Weren’t a Man

Chapter 02: If Only I Weren’t a Man

It had been several years since I first begged my mother to train me back when I was just a little kid.

“Phew—last set, done!”

“Haah… haah…! Tect, you’re way too fast…!”

“Isn’t it weird that magic doesn’t boost stamina? Or maybe my magic control just sucks?”

“No, big brother’s just a total stamina monster…”

We wrapped up our endurance training. While my sisters collapsed, gasping for breath, I walked around handing out drinks.

“Thank you, Tect~~! I’m moved to tears. I wanna hug you with all my strength!”

“If you hugged me with all your strength, sis, I’d die.”

“Big brother. I’m not asking for much. Just carry me, pat my head, and feed me while I drink?”

“If that’s not asking much, then what kind of spoiled princess are you aiming to be?”

As I handed out drinks, my sisters teased me nonstop from every direction.

With the gender ratio at 1:30, I was the only boy among eleven siblings—five older sisters above me, five younger sisters below me.

Insane fertility, but Mom was always cheerful about it. Dad, on the other hand, constantly looked drained. Apparently, magic even helped women get through the insane burden of giving birth.

“You girls done with your running? Geez, apart from Tect, you’re all still way too sloppy. Some women you are.”

“Mom!—No, I mean, Master! It’s just that Tect’s super fast, we’ve been working really hard too!”

“Oh? Did you just call me ‘Mom’ during training? Double your reps.”

“Uwaaaaaaaahhhhhh!!”

One of my sisters screamed as she toppled over. Not that it mattered—they were all collapsing from exhaustion anyway.

“Honestly, you girls are hopeless. Once you recover, head to the sword training grounds. Tect, you’re with Mom.”

“You just called yourself ‘Mom’ during training, Master.”

“…Oh? Is that so? Then I’ll just have to double your training load.”

“Wait—did I just dig my own grave!?”

We traded light jabs as I followed after her.

Still, I actually enjoyed training, so even doubling the workload didn’t faze me.

At the sword training grounds, away from my exhausted sisters, Mom and I squared off with wooden swords in hand.

She had studied eastern swordsmanship, favoring katanas over western blades. Because of that, what I practiced was closer to Japanese kendo than western-style fencing.

And so, we took up seigan no kamae—swords raised, facing each other in silence, the tension sharp enough to sting.

The wind stirred. Trees swayed. Even after years under her, every time I stood across from her, the pressure never lessened.

Then—I felt her presence shift.

“Haaaaaahhhh!!”

With overwhelming spirit, Mom slashed down at me.

“Uooooohhh!!”

I roared back and charged, refusing to be crushed by her killing intent.

Her strike came with terrifying force. Blocking it felt like taking a blow from a giant’s greatsword, and I was sent flying.

But I was used to that.

“Gah—kuh—tchaa!”

I rolled, sprung back up, and reset my stance. One of the techniques I’d mastered: taking a clean fall no matter how many times I got launched, without so much as a scratch.

And Mom knew it. Which was exactly why—she never held back, not for a single second.

“Don’t let your guard down yet!”

“Wouldn’t dream of it!”

Mom’s fierce assault didn’t let up. In the blink of an eye, countless cleaver-like strikes came crashing down—but I held my ground against them all.

Parry.

Deflect.

Every move I’d drilled into my body over years of training with her, I brought out now.

Even against blows with crushing power, it wasn’t impossible—so long as I didn’t try to block them head-on. I had no raw strength. But with skill, I could stand up to Mom.

“Wow… big brother really is amazing…”

“I can’t even withstand Master’s attacks. And I’m a girl.”

“Even our eldest sister—already graduated and serving as a knight—still struggles to handle Master. Honestly, Tect’s a prodigy.”

Ever since I’d begged her to train me, Mom had never gone easy on me once inside the training grounds.

And thanks to that, I’d sharpened my skills to a ridiculous degree.

Not just the sword—archery, endurance running, hunting too.

With more pressure on me than anyone else, I pushed myself harder than anyone else. Maybe I had talent as well. Sword, bow, running, hunting—everything seemed to fit me like second nature.

But that was exactly why… everyone always said the same thing:

“If only Tect weren’t a boy…”

As one of my sisters muttered those words, I slipped through Mom’s onslaught, spotted an opening—

—And dashed in with a single, decisive strike.

A clean hit. Perfectly executed.

I knew it landed. 

And yet—Mom spoke.

“Tect! That wouldn’t be enough to take down an enemy!”

“—Tchhh!”

I spun, closing in to press the attack.

But then Mom suddenly tossed her sword aside—

And lunged straight at me.

She caught me. Lifted me up.

So easily—by the mother who was now smaller than me in size.

“Haa… you really did grow up handsome, just like your father.”

“Damn it—let go, damn it!”

I thrashed with everything I had, but I couldn’t even break free from a single hug.

Weak.

My body was no different from the one I’d had in my previous life. A man’s body, one that should’ve obeyed my will.

And yet, against the women of this world… it was useless!

“Argh, damn it! I give up!”

“Yes. Your swordsmanship really is top class. In pure technique, there’s no one in our entire knight order who can beat you anymore.”

She set me back down. I wasn’t even winded, thanks to all my stamina training. Mom, meanwhile, was breathing a little heavier.

But still—the result was absolute. My crushing defeat.

“Magic defense is way too busted!”

I slammed my hand on the ground, groaning in frustration.

Even my full-power strike with a wooden sword hadn’t made her flinch. Not even a twitch of pain.

So this was what it meant for an adult woman to be fully clad in magic power. Ridiculously strong.

While I sulked, Mom crouched down and patted my head.

“I’m sorry, Tect. If only you’d been born a girl… no one would’ve been able to beat you. That’s how strong you’ve become.”

“…Don’t bother comforting me, Master.”

“Mom, you mean. Still… I never really thought about it before, but the difference in strength between men and women really is that huge…”

Mom’s face twisted into something complicated. And realizing I was sulking like a little kid, I suddenly felt embarrassed myself.

Yeah. Nobody here was being cruel. That was just how this world worked. A world where men were this weak.

But still—I thought.

It was clear now. A man’s strength could never pierce through a woman’s magical defense. Trying to close that gap with muscle alone was impossible.

So—I had to let go of that obsession.

Humans weren’t creatures that survived on strength alone. We used tools. We used brains. That was what made us human.

With that in mind, I spoke up.

“Mom, I’ve got a request.”

“What is it, what is it!? Tect’s asking me for something? Mom will do anything for you!”

In total contrast to her sternness earlier, Mom perked up brightly. I gave her my answer.

“Introduce me to someone who can make weapons. Someone skilled—someone who can even craft unusual stuff.”

Sure, I was weak in this world. I’d admit that much.

But you know what… I had something they didn’t.

The cheat called knowledge from my previous life!