Daily Rewards! Transmigrating into a novel as a side-character!

My enemies faced two possible conclusions: either I was significantly stronger than I appeared, which would prompt them to send overwhelming force in the next attempt, or my guards were more capable than they anticipated, leading them to plan around my protection.

Neither scenario favoured me in future encounters.

I needed to maximize my training efficiency while I had time. The academy's training facilities would allow me to push my abilities for now until things cooled down a little. Blood Control, my enhanced physique, and weapon techniques all required constant refinement.

The training grounds were less crowded during evening hours, giving me space to practice without attracting unwanted attention. I had learned today that my true capabilities needed to remain hidden until absolutely necessary.

...

Walking through the corridor, I bumped into Victor Castellane, also known as the Wiseman among the second year students.

He stopped me with a knowing smile. "Adrian, have you heard that Kyle has already broken your record?"

I shook my head. "I haven't heard that news yet."

There was no surprise in my mind, I had expected Kyle to improve at a similar rate. He was the protagonist, after all, and rapid development was practically guaranteed for someone in his position.

Victor's next words caught me slightly off guard. "Would you like to attempt breaking his record? Any instructor is allowed to oversee your attempt, it doesn't necessarily need to be your homeroom teacher."

I studied his face for a moment, noting the expression behind his friendly demeanour. This wasn't just a casual offer, Victor was testing something, though his exact motives remained unclear.

"Thanks, Instructor Victor, but I'm not ready to break the record yet. Maybe another time."

Victor nodded, though I caught a flicker of disappointment in his eyes. "That's unfortunate."

"Perhaps when I'm better prepared."

"Of course. The opportunity remains open whenever you feel ready this week." He paused meaningfully.

With that comment, he continued down the corridor with his hands behind his back. I glanced at his retreating figure before turning away to enter one of the training rooms.

Inside the elite-rank training room I had rented for 1,000 points over two hours, I began practicing my secret art's first form—Null Strike—alongside my {Blood Enhancement} trait. Blood Enhancement was my lowest-level ability, making it the most efficient target for improvement since early-stage skills progressed more rapidly.

My secret art carried Overlord rank, even though I could currently only access its Elite-rank applications. The power was undeniable, and dedicated practice would strengthen both the technique and my overall swordsmanship foundation.

Each repetition of the Null Strike brought subtle improvements to my understanding. The movements became more fluid, the mana channelling more precise, and my grasp of the underlying principles deeper. The art seemed to teach me about swordsmanship on a fundamental level, revealing insights that went beyond mere technique memorization.

Blood Enhancement responded well to repeated activation cycles. I practiced controlling different levels of circulation enhancement, learning to modulate the intensity based on specific needs. Light enhancement for extended periods, moderate boost for general combat, and maximum amplification for critical moments when overwhelming force was necessary.

The training room's reinforced walls and magical barriers contained the effects of my practice, allowing me to push harder without concern for collateral damage. I alternated between solo sword forms and enhancement exercises, building muscle memory for seamless integration during actual combat.

After an hour of intensive practice, sweat covered my body despite my enhanced physique. The combination of physical exertion and mana expenditure was taxing, but I could feel measurable improvement in both abilities.

Time to continue pushing my limits while I had the opportunity.

For the remaining hour, I focused on Blood Control training, pushing my abilities to their current limits. The training room's privacy was crucial, there was no surveillance to monitor students in their reserved spaces, ensuring complete confidentiality for sensitive skill development.

This isolation allowed me to practice Blood Control without concern about observers discovering this rare and potentially alarming ability.

I began experimenting with weapon formation using my own blood. Starting with simple shapes, I gradually worked toward more complex constructs. I was able to create one or two spears of blood without any issue, but controlling them and manoeuvring them around was an issue. Thus, I decided to work on controlling multiple objects in the air at the same time.

I experimented with different kinds of weapons. After spears came maces, requiring me to concentrate the blood into denser formations at the striking end while keeping the handle appropriately balanced. The weight distribution was tricky, but practice improved my control over density variations.

Swords were slightly tricky to make as creating a proper blade edge while maintaining structural integrity throughout the entire weapon tested my manipulation skills. The blood needed to be compressed and hardened differently for the cutting surface versus the tang and grip areas.

Shields didn't present a big challenge to create. I simply had to think about the surface area coverage, balance and defensive positioning. I practiced forming both small bucklers for deflection and larger tower shields for stronger protection.

Each weapon type taught me different aspects of blood manipulation, compression techniques, engineering principles, and the relationship between form and function. The blood responded to my mental commands with increasing responsiveness as my understanding deepened.

By the session's end, I had improved rapidly. I could cycle between different weapon configurations, adapting my arsenal to different combat scenarios. The versatility of Blood Control was becoming apparent, limited only by my imagination and understanding of physics.

The two-hour training session had significantly advanced my practical application of multiple abilities.

Unfortunately, I was still unable to level up any of my traits, but the training wasn't for naught. Despite the visible progression, I could feel it and I was certainly satisfied with the result.

[Student Adrian Blackwood, your training session is over, please head out within the next minute. Any delay might result in a point penalty, or persecution.] A robotic voice sounded within the room.