NOVEL NEXT Chapter 218: Training Part-1
Training: Day-1
Ssshh!
Thud!
Shsshh!
THUCK!!
"Arrhh!!" Azrael gritted her teeth, eyes flashing with frustration as the entire branch crashed down, splinters scattering, even though she had only aimed for a single leaf.
"It's fucking hard! If I had my gun, this would be done in a blink."
Essa, lounging on the tiled rooftop with one leg hanging off the edge,
"A gun is just a tool, Azrael. Out here, your aim is what matters most. You could have a sword, a bow, a spear, even a stick, and it's the same rule... accuracy decides victory, not the weapon."
Azrael groaned, rubbing her aching arm. Of course, she knew that... she wasn't stupid!!
If her magic hadn't been sealed, she'd be mopping the floor with everyone, their faces included. "Tch… These damn limits are driving me insane," she muttered under her breath, her gaze sliding to the others.
She glanced back just in time to see Raphael and Leo locked in a frantic, almost dance-like duel, their wooden swords a blur of motion. Each strike met with a sharp smack, each movement calculated to strike a fatal point.
Leo panted, his breath ragged, sweat pouring down his temples as he struggled to keep his focus on Raphael. His body ached, muscles burning with the effort to keep up, but his vision was blurring, his limbs feeling heavy as stone.
"Come on, Leo! It's not even been a minute!" Essa barked, "You're moving like a zombie! And don't forget... don't breathe!"
Leo tried to steady himself, holding his breath, not even moving his lungs to breathe in or exhale.
Just empty lungs!!
The problem with the technique depended on timing his breathing, using each inhale and exhale to fuel his movement. But if he mistimed his breath, the movement he exhaled deeply, his whole body became sluggish, and his opponent could exploit that weakness in an instant... defeat him, maybe even kill him.
Essa's instructions: hold your breath, empty your chest, and keep fighting.
Raphael pressed harder, her own face set in fierce determination. She lunged again, wooden blade aiming for Leo's side, pushing him backwards, never letting up. "You're too slow, Leo! Imagine a monster's jaws snapping at you... do you want to be dinner?"
Essa leaned forward, her voice sharp as a whip. "That's it, Raphael! Make him feel the danger. One mistake... one breath in the wrong moment, is all it takes for a monster to rip out your throat! Don't give him a second of rest!"
Meanwhile,
"Munch… Muncchh…" Ophis sat cross-legged, biscuits stuffed into her mouth, watching the chaos with bright, amused eyes. "Hehe… Leo, your face is so red it looks like you swallowed a fireball. Are you about to explode? Should I get a bucket? Hahaha!"
Essa shot Ophis a sidelong look, half-exasperated, half-cunning.
Ophis was clearly leagues above anyone else here. There was no point in forcing her to spar with the others, yet Essa couldn't disobey her master's orders.
After all, this insane training regime came straight from her master's twisted mind.
Thud!
Leo toppled with a grunt, Raphael's stick sweeping his knee out from under him. He hit the ground hard, gasping for air.
"Hahaha! You fell down! What was that? Even a baby troll would last longer!" Ophis laughed, nearly choking on her biscuit crumbs.
"Raphael, you broke him! Do we need to get a healer, or is a hug enough? Hufhfu~"
****
Training: Day-2
~Ding~Dong~
"Your Delivery!!"
Essa nodded as she picked up an order from the courier who arrived at the front door.
"What's this?" Everyone turned, curiosity piqued as they watched Essa carry in a big box, sealed with strange symbols... Ophis's eyes grew round with excitement.
Essa glanced at Ophis, a sly grin hidden beneath the hood of her cloak. "Why don't you open it?"
"I can?" Ophis's face lit up with childlike wonder, her curiosity impossible to hide. She bounced on her toes and leaned over the mysterious package, practically vibrating with anticipation.
Essa nodded.
Ophis instantly tore through the packaging, flinging cardboard aside as if unwrapping some mythical treasure.
Inside—
"A treadmill?" Leo blinked, "You ordered… a treadmill?"
Essa nodded, already rolling the heavy machine into place. She began connecting the cables, the machine humming to life.
Once ready, she looked up at Ophis and pointed to the belt. "Step up."
"Me? Why me?" Ophis hesitated, glancing from the machine to Essa, a little wary now.
"Just do it," Essa insisted.
Ophis, always up for a challenge, hopped onto the treadmill with a confident leap, her feet barely making a sound on the moving belt. As the machine started with a low hum, she stumbled for a split second before catching her balance.
"Huh? Wait, you can walk in the same spot?" Ophis's eyes sparkled with delight as she realised the treadmill's magic.
She marched in place, turning her head this way and that, as if expecting the room to start moving instead of her legs.
"This is amazing! I'm walking, but I'm not getting anywhere!"
Essa watched, pleased, then pressed a few buttons. The treadmill's speed began to pick up.
"It's more than just walking,"
Suddenly, the belt sped up, and Ophis had to pick up her pace, arms swinging as her walk became a jog.
"Oh! The ground's running away from me! Leo, look! I'm running, but I haven't moved an inch... hahah!!" she called out, grinning with delight.
Leo smiled gently at her, amusement flickering across his tired face. He leaned toward Essa, "What's the point of this? New training?"
Essa nodded, eyes not leaving the treadmill as Ophis continued to run.
"I'm not done yet," she replied, pressing another button. This time, a heavy brass knob popped up from the console, covered in engraved runes.
She twisted it slowly, and the belt sped up again. Ophis's feet flew across the moving surface, her eyes growing wide, a little panic mixed in with her excitement.
"Uh… Essa? Isn't it getting kind of fast?" Ophis called, her voice strained as she tried to keep up. Her legs were now a blur, running at a speed that defied logic.
"Hey—hey, wait, my legs are about to take off!"
Essa grinned wickedly, turning the knob just a little more. The runes glowed brighter.
"This is for your endurance! Next time don't laugh at others' pain~"
SSSSNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!
Ophis let out a shriek. "S-Stop!! I CAN'T RUN LIKE THA—AAARRRRRRRrrrrr!"
THUD!
Thuck!
Thud…
Snnnngggg!
Ophis skidded right off the back of the treadmill.
The treadmill finally ground to a halt, as Essa and Leo glanced at the gaping hole in the wall.... Ophis's legs were still twitching, her body jammed in like some deranged wall painting.
Essa nodded in satisfaction, spinning a crimson restoration stone in her palm, "You need to keep this level, Ophis~" she called, her voice dangerously cheerful.
From inside the wall, Ophis groaned, her words muffled and slightly obscene as she tried to wriggle free.
"Ugh… someone get me out of here, Leo? Raphael? Azrael?"
"..."
"..."
"..."
Nope, nobody coming to her rescue!
Leo stared at the mangled treadmill. "How did this even get that fast? I've never seen a treadmill like this before. It's… monstrous."
Essa smirked beneath her hood, "Of course you haven't. This model is from my master. Imported, enchanted, and completely custom."
"Oh? So, it's a treadmill for mages?" Leo raised an eyebrow.
Essa nodded solemnly. "And it costs around ten million."
"PUFFFFTT!!!"
"PUUUFFFFFF!!!!"
"Cough, cough!!"
Raphael and Azrael, who had been enjoying their morning coffee from a safe distance, choked so hard they nearly dropped their mugs.
The price shocked them more than Ophis's feet sticking out of the drywall.
Azrael pointed an accusatory finger at the treadmill, disbelief written across her face. "Ten million? For that? I could literally buy two cars!"
Raphael nodded, her eyes wide with horror. "That's enough groceries to feed an army for a decade!"
"…" Azrael just shot Raphael a sidelong, annoyed glare.
Meanwhile, Ophis was still embedded in the wall, making increasingly dramatic threats about destroying all treadmills in existence.
Essa clapped her hands, commanding everyone's attention. "Anyway, that's enough. Today, we push your stamina even further—no one gets a shortcut. Not even you, Ophis."
A collective groan echoed through the house as everyone realised the day wasn't over yet.
And soon… well, very soon, they all started dropping one by one.
"Huff, huff… Did I finish it? Was this the end? My god…" Raphael panted, eyes rolling back as she collapsed on the sofa, her body limp with exhaustion.
"I-I… huff… Hufffff… I can see my prince… He's calling from the other side…" Azrael mumbled from her chair, legs trembling as she clung to consciousness. Her nose flared, sweat streaming down her brow.
Leo—well, he was sprawled in a corner, completely motionless. He'd managed to run for two minutes without breathing, only to pass out immediately and not move an inch since.
And currently—
"I can do it… I can do it, bitch!!!" Ophis screamed, already back on the treadmill, legs a wild blur as she pushed herself faster and faster. Sweat flew from her like rain, and her feet nearly vanished from sight.
Essa leaned on the treadmill, arms folded, watching Ophis with a mixture of pride and mischief. Her fingers crept toward the brass knob, ready to turn it just a little more.
Ophis's face twisted in dread, sweat pouring down in streams, her eyes darting between Essa and the deadly spinning treadmill.
"W-Wait! What are you—no, seriously, stop—!"
SSSSNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!
THUD!
Thuck!
Thud…
Snnnngggg!
"A-Arrrhhh—!!"
She shot across the room like a missile, slamming into the far wall with enough force to rattle the windows. Crumbs and plaster dust rained down, her arms flailing as she became one with the wall.... another tragic mural in the ongoing saga of Essa's training.
Essa nodded with deep satisfaction, her eyes glittering as she admired her handiwork. "Beautiful. Truly a work of art!" she declared, savouring the masterpiece of chaos on the wall.
She looked around the room. The carnage was impressive... everyone else was sprawled across the floor, furniture, or any available surface, barely clinging to consciousness. They all looked half-dead, faces pale and eyes glazed.
"Come on, guys, we're just starting," Essa called out cheerfully, her wicked smile hidden under her hoodie.
"You just need to keep this for an hour, okay ~"
"…"
"…"
"…"
"…"
A deep, heavy silence filled the air. Not a single soul moved. Their faces slowly turned toward Essa in unison, fear dawning in every set of eyes.
And in that moment, as exhaustion and horror settled over the group, they all realised a terrible truth.... who, or rather what, Essa truly was.
A monster!!!