With my body feeling so sluggish, I gingerly walked toward the left side of the dojo. I intended to walk around the building and locate the storage shed behind the dojo. As I walked, I noticed a pop-up on the corner of my left eye. Apparently, the pop-up had appeared earlier but was left unnoticed during my confrontation with the evil cat girl. I concentrated on the pop-up and it appeared in front of my eyes. The message read, “Condition: Exhausted. -20% Attributes, Health, Stamina, Magic, Movement.” OUCH! No wonder my movement was so sluggish!

When I dismissed this pop-up, another one appeared and it read, “Minor quest COMPLETED. +100 XP, +1 Strength, +1 Constitution, +100 XP.” OH WOW! I guess Kalistra wasn’t kidding when she said she was going to train me and build up my attributes to meet the prerequisites to enroll in the school. Since she was an NPC, Kalistra qualified as a quest giver and I received a small reward for the quest completion.

As I rounded the back corner of the dojo, I spied the storage shed that my instructor mentioned before. It was a simple, one story building approximately ten feet wide by ten feet long; the building was entirely made of bamboo. I also noticed an outdoor chimney a few yards away. I guessed that, for sanitation purposes, the refuse generated in this gaming world were simply burned rather than collected by municipal workers and transported to landfills as was the practice in big cities back home. It was a miracle that disease hadn’t broken out amongst the population already.

I shook my head at the thought of disease because it really didn’t matter. Life on the frontier was harsh enough with danger lurking beyond the stone wall enclosing this town. If disease broke out, then hopefully the healers and apothecaries had the cure ready and available for anyone who needed it. But then again, access to the medicine would probably come down to an issue of money. Who could afford to buy the medicine? Not the common folk, unfortunately. I marveled at the parallel between this gaming world and my home world in terms of accessibility of health care and life-saving treatment. Some things, apparently, stayed the same. I shook my head again and entered the shed.

Without windows, the building was understandably dark. The only illumination was from the sunlight shining through the doorway. Thankfully, the broom, dustpan, bucket, and scrub were all placed near the door. I grabbed those items and quickly left the storage shed.

I took my time walking back to the pond. Given my depleted physical state, I could easily stumble over a pebble or stone, fall on the ground, and lose my life that way. I was very lucky in making that Dexterity saving throw when Ebenthal tried to stab my heart during our street fight. I couldn’t count on Lady Luck to bless me a second time on the same day. So I continued walking at a snail’s pace. When I finally rounded the corner in front of the dojo, I was greeted with snickers again from the students in the courtyard. Apparently, the officially enrolled students enjoyed watching applicants try to join the school. I wondered if I made a mistake in deciding to join this dojo.

Keeping my head up, I ignored the other students and focused on my task at hand. I dutifully swept the vomit into the dustpan. Then, I took the empty bucket to the well and slowly drew water. Since my strength had been reduced by 20% from the exhaustion condition, I experienced great difficulty in pulling a full bucket of water from the well; I simply wasn't strong enough to lift a full bucket back up. Therefore, I decided to draw half the bucket's capacity instead and I was able to draw water that way.

I slowly pulled the bucket of water from the well to the pond. With my reduced strength, I was unable to drag the bucket of water very far. It took several breaks during which I simply placed the bucket on the ground and sat down next to the bucket while I breathed deeply for a few seconds to regain my strength. Somehow, I managed to take the heavy bucket back to the pond and started scrubbing the floor until the smell was gone.

When I was done, Kalistra walked over to inspect my cleaning. She knelt down and sniffed at the spot. Then she got back to her feet. She looked at me and said, “The smell is almost gone but not quite. When you return to The Noble Lady, please buy one lemon from Vern. When you return to the dojo tomorrow, you can cut the lemon in half and scrub the ground with the halves to remove the smell. Once you burn the rubbish and place the equipment back in the storage shed, you will be permitted to leave the dojo.”

Kalistra thought I will return to this madhouse tomorrow? HAHAHAHAHAHAH! I managed to keep a straight face and nodded obediently. My freedom was in sight. Don't blow it, Larry! I gathered the cleaning tools and slowly walked back to the outdoor chimney. I used a flint and stone that had been left on the ground to start a fire and then poured the rubbish from the dustpan over the fire. I rinsed the pan several times until it was clean and then repeated the process with the broom and scrub. Finally, I slowly poured the waste water from the bucket to put out the fire. I put everything back in the shed and walked back to the front of the dojo.

I saw Kalistra standing in front of the ten students still sitting on the ground blocking the door. Apparently, she was waiting for me at the exit. I continued walking until I stood in front of her.

The cat girl held out her right paw, palm facing up.

I glanced at the paw for a moment. What was I supposed to do? Aha! An idea sprang to mind. "High-five!" I said as I slapped her paw.

Kalistra muttered, "Stupid human," under her breath as the students behind her snickered. She took a moment to regain her composure and said, "You owe five silver coins for today's lesson." She flexed her paw for emphasis.

"Oh!" My lips formed an "O" shape at her demand. Sheepishly, I reached into my waistband and fished out coins from the small hidden pocket. I took five silver coins and handed over my tuition for today's class.

The coins disappeared in the cat girl's own pocket. Kalistra waved her paw in the air.

The students behind her slowly got back to their feet. The ten students lined up into two rows and stood to our left and right.

"You may leave, Lawrence," Kalistra said. She had a gleam in her eye.

Still feeling the effect of Exhaustion, I slowly walked past my tormentor. I prayed to God this will be the last time I see this evil cat girl again! I pulled on the iron door handle on the right door but it would not budge. I tried again and still, it would not move.

I hear snickers again behind me.

With her tail dangling in the air, Kalistra sauntered past me. With very little effort, she pulled on the handle with her right paw and opened the door.

I ignored the smirk on her face and finally left the madhouse.