Chapter 113: Training Begins
After completing two full laps, the students finally returned to Sir Simon.
Most immediately collapsed onto the ground, too exhausted to preserve even the slightest shred of dignity. Some lay flat on their backs, while others struggled to catch their breath on their hands and knees.
Adrian grew even more resentful when he saw them resting while he still had another lap to complete.
By the time he finally returned, his legs were trembling uncontrollably. He staggered toward the others, ready to collapse beside them.
"Stand up and return to formation!" Simon ordered, his voice thundering across the training ground.
Everyone groaned inwardly but immediately forced themselves upright and returned to their original positions.
Adrian looked as though his soul had already departed his body, yet he still joined the line, terrified that Simon might add several more laps as punishment.
Simon stood before them with both hands clasped behind his back. "Now, allow me to introduce myself properly."
He swept his stern gaze across the students. "My name is Simon. For the next five months, I will serve as your physical combat-training instructor."
Shobin slowly raised his hand.
Simon’s eyes shifted toward him. "Did I say you could ask a question?"
Shobin immediately lowered his hand and straightened his posture even further.
"No, sir."
"Then why was your hand raised?"
"Sorry, sir." Shobin braced himself for another round of frog jumps, but Simon merely continued in a calm voice.
"When I speak, you listen. You do not interrupt, whisper, or look elsewhere. You speak only when I permit you to speak."
His stern gaze swept across the students. "Understood?"
"Yes, sir."
"Louder."
"Yes, sir!"
Their answer echoed throughout the training ground. "Good." He then looked toward Shobin. "What did you want to ask?"
Shobin hesitated briefly before speaking. "Sir, Miss Matilda told us that the next two months would be focused on learning Mana Coating. She said our proper combat training would only begin after that."
Simon raised an eyebrow. "So you’re asking why I’m already here?"
"Yes, sir. No, sir. I mean, I wasn’t asking it like that..." Shobin became visibly flustered, unsure how to answer without accidentally offending him.
Simon spared him the struggle and answered anyway.
"Physical training consists of two major stages. The first is building and refining your body. The second is learning how to use that body in combat."
He raised one finger.
"The first stage encompasses strength, stamina, balance, flexibility, coordination, reaction speed, and complete control over every movement your body makes."
Then he raised a second finger.
"The next stage involves weapon and mana masteries, skill usage, tactics, battle awareness, instinct, and adapting under pressure."
His gaze traveled across the assembled students.
"Even an exceptionally gifted student cannot properly master both stages within three months. Five months will not be enough either. For some of you, even a year may prove insufficient."
The students grew even quieter.
"For the first two months, you will focus on rebuilding your physical foundation while continuing to practice mana control and coating outside these training hours."
"During the following three months, your training will shift toward actual combat. You will learn to combine your abilities, weapons, Mana Coating, and physical strength rather than treating them as separate tools."
Marty’s expression grew uneasy. "Does that mean we’re going to spend two months doing nothing but stretches and exercises?"
He wanted to ask, but after witnessing what had happened to Adrian, he wisely kept his mouth shut.
Simon continued, "Starting tomorrow, you will report to this training ground every morning at five."
Several students’ expressions changed instantly.
"Training will continue until noon. After that, your time is your own. Use it however you see fit."
He pointed toward the large building at the edge of the training ground.
"That building contains separate changing rooms and washing facilities for men and women. Your academy-issued training uniforms are already inside and marked with your names."
He glanced toward the clock tower rising in the center of the academy. "You have fifteen minutes to change and return."
His voice suddenly thundered across the field. "Run!"
The students immediately rushed toward the building.
The moment Adrian entered the men’s changing room, he collapsed face-first onto the floor, gasping desperately for breath.
Even the students who normally found him insufferable looked at him with sympathy.
"Does that man harbor some personal grudge against me?" Adrian asked weakly. "How can he treat a nobleman this way?"
Marty crouched beside him. "I don’t think you should use that noble persona around him unless you want to start hopping again."
Daniel shook his head. "I don’t think he’s capable of turning it off."
"It isn’t a persona," Adrian muttered. "It is my natural magnificence."
Daniel gestured toward him. "See?"
After changing into their training uniforms, the students hurried back onto the field and resumed their formation.
Simon checked the time. "Good. At least all of you understand what fifteen minutes means."
He opened his inventory and withdrew several plain bronze bracelets. They appeared completely ordinary except for a thin black line running along the inside of each band.
"Take one and put it on."
The bracelets were passed down the lines. The students examined them curiously before fastening them around their wrists.
The instant the clasps closed, their bodies became impossibly heavy.
Their knees nearly buckled. The strength within their muscles vanished, their enhanced senses dulled, and their breathing grew labored. Even lifting an arm suddenly demanded effort.
It felt as though every one of them had reverted to an ordinary, unawakened human.
"What happened to my strength?" Kelly asked in alarm.
"Mine too," Marty said. "I feel completely normal again."
Zac closed his eyes and examined his body.
He could still sense the mana circulating through his meridians, but his physical attributes had been drastically suppressed.
Simon waited until everyone had adjusted before speaking.
"What you are wearing is called an ’Attribute Suppression Bracelet.’ These devices were specifically developed by New Dawn Academy to train the natural limits of an awakened body."
He raised his own wrist, revealing an identical bracelet.
"When a person awakens, their body undergoes a fundamental transformation. Their muscles, bones, organs, nervous system, and recovery capabilities are all strengthened. Every subsequent level and assigned attribute point enhances those qualities even further."
"That sounds entirely beneficial, and for the most part, it is. However, it also creates a significant problem."
Simon paced slowly before them.
"Imagine that before awakening, your body was capable of producing one hundred units of force. After awakening and allocating attributes, that same body may suddenly produce five hundred or even a thousand units."
"The increase occurs far faster than your mind and body can adapt. You gain tremendous strength, but not necessarily the control required to wield it properly."
"Many of you may be capable of shattering stone with a single punch, yet still fail to regulate the precise amount of force needed to hold something fragile."
"Your movements become faster, but your balance, precision, and judgement do not improve at the same rate."
His gaze hardened. "A powerful body without control is not an advantage. It is a weapon pointed in every direction, including toward yourself."
Simon continued without pause.
"Another common misconception is that someone who trained to the limits of an ordinary human before awakening has already perfected their body."
"That is false."
"Awakening fundamentally alters what your body is capable of becoming. Your muscles can attain greater density, your bones can endure far more pressure, and your organs and nervous system can be developed beyond the limitations of an ordinary human."
"In other words, awakening does not merely grant strength. It raises the natural ceiling of your body."
He tapped the bronze bracelet around his wrist.
"However, allocating attribute points does not mean you have developed that new potential through training. Attribute points grant power directly. They do not teach your body how to generate, endure, or control that power independently."
"These bracelets temporarily suppress the physical enhancements gained through awakening, levels, and attribute allocation."
"They do not truly remove your attributes. They merely prevent you from relying upon them."
"For the next two months, your bodies will be forced to move, train, and improve without the assistance of that borrowed strength."
"By pushing your newly evolved bodies toward their natural limits, you will establish a formidable physical foundation beneath your attributes."
Simon’s eyes moved across the class.
"When these bracelets are finally removed, you will be astonished by how much your bodies have changed."
"Any questions?"
Daniel looked down at the bracelet around his wrist. "So we’re rebuilding our bodies from the ground up?"
Simon glanced at him. "Correct."
He then addressed the entire group.
"And before anyone attempts to remove them, don’t bother. They are bound to your bodies until I decide otherwise. You cannot unlock them, break them, or store them inside your inventories."
Adrian cautiously raised his hand. "What if we absolutely need to remove one?"
"Cut off your hand."
The entire group fell silent.
"That is the only alternative."
[What a charming little device.]
Zac twisted his wrist experimentally, but the bracelet did not shift even slightly.
Simon clasped his hands behind his back.
"Since this is your first day, we will begin with something easy."
Every student stared at him with the same horrified expression. "You call this easy?"
"One hundred squats, one hundred push-ups, one hundred sit-ups, and ten full laps around the training ground."
The group stared at him with their jaws hanging open.
"You will complete that entire sequence three times before noon."
Their jaws dropped even farther.
For several seconds, nobody spoke. The system was the first to break the silence.
[And here comes the world-famous training regimen.]
As for the students, a single thought passed through every mind.
"We are screwed!"