Crimson System of Vampire Prince

Bang, Bang, Bang!

Victor's face scrunched up as he missed the shots again. He gazed at the dummy standing 20 meters away. A humanoid figure, resembling a Chaos Alien with a big red dot mark on its head. It was a target practice dummy, and all of Victor's shots completely missed it. He refilled his Colt again and pointed at the dummy. 'I won't stop until I get it right.'

Bang, Bang, Bang!

As he practiced in the shooting aisles, Mona entered the weapon hall. The crowd of cadets who had been chatting turned silent and stood up in formation. Three distinct groups, the Blue, Gold, and a black faction, stood upright like proper soldiers. Mona checked every cadet one by one; her smile vanished as she noticed in the black faction Victor was absent. She checked around the weapon hall and found him practicing in the shooting aisles. She ordered, "Luke, go get Victor."

Luke hurriedly nodded and bolted toward him. As he approached, He noticed Victor was focused on target practicing, oblivious to all the other things. Luke stopped him by grabbing his shoulder. He turned to him and asked, "What happened?" Then his eyes drifted toward the training ground.

Luke gave him a nod and ran back to the crowd. Victor put his revolver back. He strode behind Luke and reached beside him. Luke slowed down and whispered, "You do know that these weights are difficult to run with."

Victor nodded to him, "Yes, I know, but you seem to have adjusted to them."

Luke shook his head furiously, "No, I haven't. If I adjust to them even a little bit, the weight increases."

Victor smiled and glanced at his hand, "Yes, you are right. Before, my one bracelet weighed 20 pounds, and now it has become thirty pounds. And overall I'm carrying 120pounds."

Luke exclaimed. "I'm only able to handle 40 pounds, and you're able to carry that much weight." Victor shrugged and stopped near Nana. He observed the blue faction. Kate was standing alone, and Zara stood separately from her. He frowned and examined Kate's face closely. Her sclera was red, with several tear-stain marks on her cheek. On the other hand, Zara's face was extremely serious. And there was a glimmer of confidence. Right behind Zara stood Lyla, staring blankly into space.

'Did something happen between Zara and Kate?' Victor thought.

"Now, everyone, we will continue with the same training. You'll swing the sword and I'll observe your posture." Mona bellowed.

The groans buzzed out from the crowd as they heard the grueling training continuing. Victor smiled and picked up a sword. It was a double-edged short sword. Both sides were dull, and the handle was made of black wood. He held the sword in his hand, and a smile appeared on his face. He felt more familiar, and he knew what he needed to work on. The sword was quite heavy; it was double the weight of his two bracelets.

Clank!

It fell from his hands. All the cadets were struggling similarly with the weight of the sword. He crouched down and picked it up. He held it by both hands and bent his knees.

SLASH!

CLANK!

He lost the balance, and the sword struck the tiled floor. The Vibration was transmitted to his bones, causing the pain. He took a deep breath and raised the sword once again.

"Hupp!" he struck again, but this time he controlled the arc all the way.

"Control the arc of the sword, get used to heavy weights." First Lieutenant Mona's sound echoed in the training area.

'Yes, this feels better. Last time I reached the beginner sword 10%, today's goal is more than that.' Victor nodded and swung again.

Every slash, every cut felt like all his arm muscles of arms would get torn up. The weight was too much, pushing his body to its very limit. One thing that kept him going was his origin magic. Every time he felt pain racking his body, a pulse of crimson energy passed all over his body. All the pain and soreness washed away. That's why he kept going until he exhausted all the energy from his core.

Right around the corner, Kate struggled to swing her sword. She dragged it on the ground, and with all her energy, she brought it above her shoulders. And then slashed.

Clank!

"Argghh!" A groan escaped from her throat, and it dropped as it struck the floor. Holding her right wrist in her left hand, she stared at the sword with resentment. 'I don't like swords. I like daggers, they're lighter in weight than damned swords.' An exasperated sigh escaped from her chest. She picked up the sword, and its end touched the floor. She stood there, not swinging or trying to raise it even a little bit. 'I don't like doing it. So, I'm not gonna do it.'

Kate stood relaxed, her eyes darting around the crowd. She paused on Zara, her eyes flickered, and her chest heaved up. She retracted her eyes and focused on the sword in her hands.

Zara was unusually focused in her training. She slashed with her thin and light katana. One after the other, she cut the air. Even though her posture wasn't good, and every stroke felt wrong, she kept going.

'I know I'm not doing it right, but this is a heavy sword, I can't swing it with one hand.'  She placed the right foot forward and slashed.

Whoosh!

A powerful gust of wind was generated.

"That was a good one, keep striking, "Lyla encouraged her.

Zara gave her nod and continued her practice. Lyla didn't say more than that. Her eyes drifted around the crowd and potted Victor practicing in the corner. She herself was practicing with a blunt claymore, the heaviest sword of all. A light smile tugged on her lips. Motivated, she raised her sword with both hands. She gnashed her teeth and contracted her hip.

Swoosh!

A large gust of wind was generated with her strike.

"Huff, Huff, once more!" She gasped for breath and raised the sword for one more strike.

Later at lunch, in the Main Hall, Zara wolfed down the whole chicken leg. Her mouth smeared with all oil, several girls stared at her with disgust. 'I'm way too hungry to care about your feelings.'

Lyla, sitting beside her, smiled at her and focused on her plate.

Far away from the peaceful environment of the Main Hall, in the blue faction dorm. Aslan stared at the system panel standing before him. A blue system panel, but written on it was.

[Message: Area 49 Lord Raka]

[Thanks for the intel, Kauffman]

[Lord Raka Awarded you with +3 million CP]

"Hahahaha, easy money." He bellowed with a laugh.