The morning after Adam's trial, the air in the Shadowspire Mountains was sharp and crisp, carrying the scent of pine and damp earth. The sun had barely risen when Adam and Seren stood before Kaelrik's cabin once more, his bodies still aching from the ordeal of the previous day.
Kaelrik, leaning against the wooden railing of his porch, watched them with an impassive gaze. He had already downed half a bottle of what smelled like strong liquor, yet his piercing blue eyes were as sharp as ever. The same eyes that had cut through Adam's pride and body with a mere twig.
"You're still here," Kaelrik muttered, taking another swig. "Figured you'd take the first opportunity to limp away after yesterday."
Adam, arms crossed over his chest, exhaled slowly. "Not a chance."
A smirk ghosted across Kaelrik's lips. "Good answer. But sheer stubbornness won't get you anywhere. You want strength? Fine. But strength is built, not granted. You'll train harder than you ever thought possible, and if you're not dead by the end of it, maybe you'll be worth something."
Seren stood beside Adam, arms folded as well, her green eyes steady. "Then teach us."
Kaelrik scoffed, pushing himself off the railing. "You, girl? Tch. I agreed to train him, not you."
Seren didn't back down. "I won't be a burden. I'll do whatever it takes."
Kaelrik studied her for a long moment before rolling his shoulders. "Whatever, I don't care. Now stop bothering me."
"Kaelrik continued, cracking his knuckles. "Before we start, let's get one thing straight. I don't teach weaklings, and I don't waste my time on those who can't endure. This training isn't just about learning new tricks—it's about becoming someone who can carve through the battlefield like a hurricane. And that takes more than just fancy swordplay."
Then, without looking back, he walked toward the clearing beside the cabin, motioning for them to follow.
"Come. Let's begin."
The clearing was now a designated training ground—a space where Kaelrik had undoubtedly honed his own monstrous strength. The ground was hardened from years of impact, the trees on the perimeter bore scars of past strikes, and remnants of shattered weapons were scattered in the dirt.
Kaelrik gestured for Adam to step forward. "Show me what you've got. No holding back."
Adam exhaled and assumed a ready stance. His nuclear energy flared to life, golden arcs dancing around his body as he surged forward with a powerful, energy-coated punch aimed straight at Kaelrik's face.
Kaelrik didn't move.
In the blink of an eye, his hand shot forward, catching Adam's wrist mid-strike. The impact sent a shockwave through the ground, but Kaelrik remained unmoved.
"Sloppy," Kaelrik muttered.
Adam barely had time to register what had happened before Kaelrik yanked his arm forward, spun him around, and slammed him into the dirt.
The world spun. A dull pain throbbed through his back.
Kaelrik loomed over him. "You fight as if you expect more from your body than it can give. Brute force is meaningless without control. Right now, you're like a beast swinging wildly, wasting more energy than you use effectively."
Adam gritted his teeth and pushed himself up. "Then show me how to fix it."
Kaelrik's Evaluation of Adam
Adam sat near the dying embers of their campfire later that evening, his ribs aching with every breath. Across from him, Kaelrik leaned against a rock, analyzing him with the sharp gaze of a seasoned warrior.
The brief bout Kaelrik had with Adam was all he needed to evaluate Adam.
"Your foundation is a mess," Kaelrik said bluntly.
Adam scowled. "You don't hold back, do you?"
Kaelrik ignored the comment. "You rely too much on brute strength. However, you have neither the physique, power nor skill to implement this. Your technique is clumsy, your stance unbalanced. Worse still, you have no real control over your energy. It bleeds out of you like an open wound."
"That stings." Adam thought as he recalls his glory days as Nuclear Sentinel when his brute force could literally move mountains, skills and technique didn't matter then, he could simply overpower all with brute force.
Adam's fingers curled into a fist. He knew he was rough around the edges, but hearing it laid out so plainly…
Kaelrik continued, voice cold and sharp. "If you fought a real master, they'd cut you down before you could even react. You're like an overpowered child swinging a warhammer he barely knows how to hold."
Adam's jaw tightened. "Then teach me."
Kaelrik studied him for a moment. Then he exhaled.
Kaelrik continues "Like I said, physique, power and skill, these are going to be the basis of your training with each category spanning 4 months. If you vow to endure and push yourself beyond your limits through this gruelling training, then I will make you incomparably stronger than you are now in 12 months. But If you fail…"
He let the sentence linger.
Adam met his gaze, his golden eyes glowing with determination. "I won't fail."
Not far from them, Seren had been listening.
She had seen Adam's resilience, Seren couldn't shake the feeling that she was falling behind.
And she had made a decision to convince Kaelrik to train her too at all cost, She hadn't come all these way to simply watch Adam alone get stronger.
Seren's Plea
The morning of the next day came quickly. Seren, determined to prove herself worthy of Kaelrik's training took action.
"I want to train too," she said, stepping forward with hands resting on the hilt of her sword.
She had always taken pride in her swordsmanship, but after witnessing Kaelrik's effortless display of skill and Adam's rapid progress, she realized that she, too, needed to grow stronger or she would inevitably fall behind.
Seren approached Kaelrik, who was sharpening his blade.
"Please teach me too." She stated firmly.
Kaelrik barely glanced at her. "Not interested."
Seren's brow twitched. "Why not?"
Kaelrik exhaled, looking at her as if she were an insect buzzing in his ear. "You're already decent. You've got skill, although, skill alone won't make you strong enough to survive what's coming."
"Then teach me what will," she countered, standing her ground.
Kaelrik scoffed. "I don't train people who beg."
Seren gritted her teeth, trying to hold her temper. "Fine. Then consider this—if I can keep up with all the chores around here and never miss a task, will you at least take a look at my skills?"
Kaelrik paused. He looked her up and down before smirking. "Fine. I'll watch you flail around with that fancy sword of yours, and then when I prove you're not worth my time, you'll leave me alone. Deal?"
"Deal," Seren said without hesitation.
And so it began.
A Humbling Defeat
True to his word, Kaelrik agreed to a "spar" to evaluate Seren's level. Unlike Adam, whom he tested with a twig, Kaelrik held up only two fingers, his index and middle fingers extended as his sole weapons.
Seren's pride bristled at the blatant disrespect, but she forced herself to focus. "This is just another fight," she told herself. She had bested powerful warriors before, she could at least land one hit.
The moment Kaelrik signaled the match to begin, she lunged, her twin swords flashing.
She didn't even see it happen.
Before she could react, Kaelrik had already closed the distance, his two fingers effortlessly diverting her first strike, his other hand lazily tucked behind his back. Seren barely had time to register what happened before a sharp flick of his fingers struck her wrist, sending a jolt through her arm that nearly made her drop her sword.
What?!
Her mind raced, but her body had already started moving on instinct, adapting to the opening. She spun into a follow-up attack, aiming low, only for Kaelrik to sidestep as if he had already predicted her next move. A moment later, his fingers tapped her forehead lightly.
Seren stumbled back, her vision spinning.
Then, before she could recover, Kaelrik was gone from her sight.
A sharp pain bloomed across her shoulder, and in the next instant, she found herself flat on her back, staring up at the sky, her swords clattering beside her.
Kaelrik stood over her, shaking his head. "Predictable. Sloppy footwork. And you hesitate."
Seren groaned, feeling both humiliated and annoyed.
Kaelrik sat down casually on Adam's back, who was currently planking as part of his physical endurance training. Adam let out a grunt but said nothing, too focused on maintaining his form.
Kaelrik examined Seren as she sat up, rubbing her sore shoulder. Then, his sharp eyes flickered with something akin to recognition.
"Your swordsmanship… I recognize it," he mused, tapping his fingers on his knee. "I used to spar with an old friend who used that exact style. Except, well, his technique was perfect. You, on the other hand, are butchering it."
Seren stiffened. "And who exactly was this 'old friend' of yours?"
Kaelrik smirked. "Count Ferdinand. He was a master swordsman and a noble with a strong sense of duty. Are you by any chance from the Ferdinand fa—"
He stopped.
Seren's flustered expression, the way her body tensed, the subtle flicker of her eyes—it told him everything.
Kaelrik leaned back and waved a hand dismissively. "Forget I said anything."
He didn't pry further, but inwardly, he was already forming theories. "Why is a noble's child hiding out in the wilds?" he thought. "And more importantly, why hasn't she unlocked aura yet?"
Despite being more proficient than some Diamond-class knights, Seren had never unlocked aura. That alone was strange.
Kaelrik's Evaluation of Seren
Kaelrik folded his arms and sighed. "Alright, I'll humor you. You're not a lost cause, but your technique has too many flaws. Here's what you need to work on."
Strong Foundation But Lacks Execution → Seren had strong fundamentals but was too rigid in her movements. "You're fighting like you're trying to follow a textbook. Adapt."
Sloppy Footwork → "Your speed is okay, but you don't use it properly. Your stance is weak, which means you waste too much movement dodging instead of countering."
Hesitation → "Your mind is somewhere else when you fight. Whether it's the past, fear, or doubt—I don't care. Fix it."
No Power Behind Her Strikes → "Skills are good. But strength matters too. A flawless technique is useless if the hit doesn't do damage."
"You're high-potential but incomplete," Kaelrik concluded. "You need to refine what you have, not learn something new."
Training Regimen for Seren
Kaelrik crafted a specific training regimen for her.
Inner Core Strength & Serenity Training
He taught her a special breathing and circulation technique meant to stabilize her inner core.
This would help her refine her swordsmanship, sharpen her awareness, and strengthen her body.
Combat Drills & Speed Training
Sparring against Kaelrik regularly.
Dodging arrows blindfolded to sharpen instincts.
Chasing a rabbit through rough terrain to improve her footwork.
Strength Training
Endurance exercises to increase her speed and power.
Weighted strikes: swinging swords ten thousand times per day to train her muscles.
Unlocking Aura
Kaelrik suspected there was a mental or emotional block keeping her from awakening aura.
The training would force her to break past her limits and find what was holding her back.
The Seeds of Seren's Future
Kaelrik left her with a parting remark:
"Skill alone won't save you. Aura isn't just power—it's will. If you want to reach the heights of true mastery, you'll have to push beyond whatever is holding you back. Figure it out, or stay weak forever."
Seren clenched her fists.
She wouldn't be left behind. Not by Adam, and certainly not by her past.
She would grow stronger.