"I should go eat something and get some sleep. It’s getting kind of late," Zane said, closing the window.
Zane entered the kitchen, prepared some meat and bread, and ate.
After which Zane went back to his room and fell asleep.
Early in the morning Zane wakes up.
He washes himself up and is about to head off to the training grounds when he looks down at his small hands.
"Hey, System."
[YES, MASTER.]
"How can I become strong enough to withstand that power?"
Zane grips his small fists.
The System was quiet for a moment.
[DING!]
[MASTER, IF YOU WANT TO WITHSTAND THIS POWER AND BECOME EVEN STRONGER, YOU NEED TO SURPASS HUMAN PHYSICAL LIMITS.]
Zane narrowed his eyes.
"I see..."
Zane smiled.
"So, all I have to do is endure harsh physical training?"
Zane’s smile widened.
"That sounds interesting."
When Zane arrived at the training ground, he stopped.
"System, can you seal all my abilities away, leaving only my class and inner talent?"
[UNDERSTOOD, MASTER.]
[DING!]
[ALL ABILITIES HAVE BEEN SEALED.]
[CLASS AND INNER TALENT REMAIN ACTIVE.]
Zane’s hand felt the overwhelming power within him dissipate.
He looked at his hands.
"So this is how it feels without all that power."
Zane wasn’t disappointed.
Actually, Zane smiled.
"Good, now I can see how far I can push this body."
[DING!]
[MASTER, SINCE YOU HAVE CHOSEN TO TRAIN YOUR PHYSICAL BODY, THE SYSTEM HAS PREPARED SOMETHING TO ASSIST YOU.]
[REWARD: PHYSICAL TRAINING BRACELETS.]
Two metallic bracelets appeared before Zane’s eyes.
He picked them up and examined them.
"Hmm... These will certainly help."
He looked at the System.
"How much weight?"
[BECAUSE MASTER’S CURRENT BODY IS TOO WEAK AND YOUNG, THE BRACELETS WILL BEGIN AT 10 KG EACH.]
Zane raised an eyebrow.
"Only ten?"
Zane put on the first bracelet and the second.
"Okay, let’s see how these feel."
[DING!]
[PHYSICAL TRAINING BRACELETS ACTIVATING.]
BOOM!
Zane’s whole body was forced to the ground.
"AAAAAH!"
Zane’s knees hit the floor.
"What the--?!"
Zane struggled to get up.
"You should’ve warned me before activating them!"
The System said nothing.
Zane gritted his teeth and painstakingly stood up.
His small legs shook.
"This body..."
Zane wiped the sweat off his brow.
"It’s too weak."
Zane looked at the bracelets.
"I can barely stand with these things on."
But instead of taking them off, Zane smiled.
"Which means they’re perfect."
One Month Later
The first few days were especially grueling.
On the first day, Zane couldn’t even run fifty meters with the bracelets on.
He fell, rested for a while, then forced himself to stand up again.
The second day, he did the same.
And the third.
Up until the end of the week, Zane was able to run a few laps around the training ground.
In the mornings Zane focused on training his physical body.
Running.
Push-ups.
Squats.
Climbing.
Jumping.
All of these exercises made Zane’s small body reach its limits.
In the afternoons, Zane trained with weapons.
He practiced swinging his spear until his palms bled.
He shot arrows with his bow again and again until his fingers ached.
He practiced basic sword movements, slowly learning how to coordinate his body and his weapons.
Every day Zane grew stronger.
Stronger with every passing day the bracelets became lighter.
And Zane trained harder.
One month later Zane stood in the center of the training ground.
Sweat trickled down Zane’s body.
He breathed heavily.
The same ten-kilogram bracelets hung from Zane’s wrists, but this time his body didn’t shake.
Zane looked at them.
He smiled.
"It’s been a month already."
Zane raised his arms easily.
"These have become way too light."
Zane looked at the System.
"System, increase them to twenty kilograms each."
Zane took the bracelets off.
"I don’t need these anymore."
[DING!]
[REQUEST ACCEPTED.]
[PHYSICAL TRAINING BRACELETS HAVE BEEN UPGRADED.]
[NEW WEIGHT: 20 KG EACH.]
Zane looked at the new bracelets.
A grin formed on Zane’s face.
"Let’s see how much harder it gets."
Before Zane put them on, however-
[DING!]
Zane paused.
[MASTER HAS COMPLETED THE FIRST PHYSICAL TRAINING PHASE.]
Zane’s eyes widened.
[ACHIEVEMENTS UNLOCKED.]
[BEGINNER SWORDSMANSHIP.]
[BEGINNER SPEARMANSHIP.]
[BEGINNER ARCHERY.]
[BEGINNER BODY MASTERY.]
[ALL BASIC WEAPON AND PHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS HAVE BEEN ESTABLISHED.]
Zane smiled.
"Hmm..."
Zane scratched his chin.
"Oh yeah. I almost forgot about the rewards."
Zane looked at the System in excitement.
"So, what do you have for me?"
[DING!]
[TRAINING REWARD AVAILABLE.]
Zane’s eyes sparkled.
[REWARD:]
[ONE GOD-TIER MANA CULTIVATION TECHNIQUE.]
Zane was stunned.
"...God-tier?"
For the first time this morning, Zane’s confident smile vanished.
He looked at the message.
"System..."
Zane’s eyes narrowed.
"What exactly have you been hiding from me?"
[DING!]
[TECHNIQUE NAME: HEAVENLY VOID DRAGON ART.]
Zane’s expression changed.
"Void... Dragon?"
[YES, MASTER.]
Suddenly, strange images appeared in Zane’s mind.
A vast black sky.
Countless stars.
And a huge dragon swimming in the sky between the stars.
Its scales were as black as the night sky, but there were strange golden patterns all over its massive body.
Zane couldn’t see the whole thing.
Only its eyes.
Two giant golden eyes stared right through Zane.
Then-
The image was gone.
Zane opened his eyes.
His breathing had become heavier.
"What was that?"
[THE TECHNIQUE HAS BEEN INSTALLED INTO MASTER’S MEMORY.]
Zane stood there silently.
Zane somehow understood the technique.
It wasn’t about pulling mana from the environment.
The technique taught Zane how to circulate the mana within his body, enhancing his muscles, bones, organs, and mana veins.
But there was something else.
Zane’s expression darkened.
"System..."
[YES, MASTER.]
"This technique..."
Zane looked at his hands.
"Why does it feel like I’ve seen it before?"
[THE SYSTEM CANNOT ANSWER THAT QUESTION AT MASTER’S CURRENT LEVEL.]
Zane frowned.
"You can’t answer?"
[CORRECT.]
[MASTER DOES NOT CURRENTLY POSSESS THE AUTHORITY TO ACCESS THAT INFORMATION.]
Zane stared at the message for a few seconds.
Then, he smiled.
"Fine."
Zane sat on the floor.
"If I can’t get the answer now, then I’ll get strong enough to find it myself."
Zane crossed his legs and closed his eyes.
"Let’s try this."
Zane followed the instructions that appeared in his mind.
Slowly, he began to breathe.
In,out, In, out, in, out.
At first, nothing happened.
Zane stayed perfectly still.
Then-
A small amount of mana began to gather around Zane.
Zane’s eyes remained closed.
He could feel it.
A small amount of energy was entering his body.
It was weak.
Almost immeasurable, but it was there.
Zane manipulated the mana according to the instructions.
The energy flowed throughout his body.
His muscles tensed.
His bones shook.
His breathing deepened.
Then-
BOOM!
A surge of energy exploded from Zane’s body.
Zane’s eyes shot open.
"What was that?!"
Zane looked around.
The training ground remained the same.
But something inside Zane had changed.
Zane could feel a small amount of mana circulating in his body.
Zane smiled.
"So this is mana..."
Zane clenched his fist.
It wasn’t much.
Zane couldn’t suddenly begin destroying mountains.
Zane couldn’t unleash a powerful attack.
But it was only the start.
Zane looked at the twenty-kilogram bracelets at his side.
Zane picked them up and put them on.
BOOM!
Zane’s body was suddenly forced to the ground.
Zane gritted his teeth but remained standing.
He looked at his hands and smiled.
"Physical training in the morning."
Zane clenched his fists.
"Mana cultivation afterward."
Zane’s eyes turned to the weapons lying around.
"And weapons in the afternoon."
Zane took a deep breath.
"I’ll get stronger step by step."
The System was quiet.
For once, it did not tell Zane what to do.
It did not give Zane a mission.
It did not decide how much training Zane had to endure.
That was fine with Zane.
Zane didn’t need it to.
Because he already knew what he wanted.
Strength.
And Zane was willing to get it.
Zane knelt down and began to run around the training ground.
One lap.
Another.
The twenty-kilogram bracelets grew heavier.
Zane’s legs began to shake.
Zane’s breathing became labored.
Then-
Zane stumbled.
He caught himself before hitting the floor.
Zane looked at the floor.
For a moment he was silent.
Then, Zane smiled.
"Again."
Zane continued to run.
He stumbled again.
He caught himself.
He repeated the motion.
Because if Zane wanted to surpass the limits of this body, there was only one thing he could do.
Train.
Endure.
Improve.
And repeat.