Chapter 231: First Training Session [1]
Chapter 231: Chapter 231: First Training Session [1]
Chapter 231 – First Training Session [1]
Fifteen minutes before 5 a.m., Cassius found himself wide awake, staring at the ceiling of his room in a silent, listless daze.
He was tired.
He would have loved to stay in bed a few more minutes. Just a few more. But he knew those few minutes would turn into an hour, giving his master enough reason to make his life hell.
Now, that was something Cassius would rather avoid.
So with the consequences in mind, he pushed himself up and dragged his feet toward the bathroom.
He was done in ten minutes or so, now refreshed, his mind wide awake after a ruthless cold shower. Wearing his black and purple training suit, Cassius took the small necklace Isolde had gifted him the night before.
It was made of black crystal. And at the end of the chain hung a small black dagger with purple stripes that oddly resembled a cross.
Cassius put on the necklace and tucked it beneath his clothes. By the time he was fully prepared, it was already 5 a.m.
"Well." He took a deep breath. "Shall we?"
Using the authority his master had granted him through an artifact shaped like a silver claw, he channelled his essence and pushed it into the claw.
The space tore open before him like paper, growing wider the more essence he poured in, until it was large enough for him to step through.
Checking one last time that he hadn’t forgotten anything, Cassius stepped into the Realm of Mountains and Rivers.
...
Thud.
Cassius found himself in a wide, empty space, with a huge mountain made of strange stone a few kilometres away.
A mountain so tall its peak disappeared into the sea of clouds overhead.
He cocked his head, thinking he had never truly noticed this mountain before.
"You took your time."
His master’s voice pulled his attention back to the present. He turned toward the sound and stood face to face with her.
Cassius knew his master was old. But she truly didn’t look older than thirty.
She wore a tight silver training suit that clung to her body so closely one would believe the suit had become her skin.
Her hair had been combed many times and held by three jade hairpins.
"Morning, master." He said with a faint smile. "Getting up was a real struggle."
"Morning." She replied curtly. "Let’s start right away. Training will be from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. If you wish to attend class, you’ll have one more hour to get ready."
Cassius nodded, listening attentively.
"Today, though, I’ll let you go early, because I have the meeting for the new teacher." She added.
"Oh? It’s already Wednesday, huh." Cassius said. "So today you’ll recruit Helene?"
"If the others agree." Mallory clarified.
"Oh, they will. Unless they have something against the Church of Death, accepting the High Priestess is... a given."
"We shall see." She said, before clapping her hands. "Now, little bastard, I know you don’t trust me. But I’ll need as much information as possible about what you can do in order to train you better."
She paused, then smiled sharply.
"If you lie to me, and one day you get badly hurt or even killed because of it," her eyes turned dead cold, "I don’t need to say more than that, right?"
"Certainly not, master." Cassius laughed nervously. "I was planning to tell you anyway."
"I’m listening."
He didn’t answer immediately, taking a moment to reorganise everything in his mind and choose what to say first.
Once he was done, Cassius exhaled and parted his lips.
"First, I have an Innate called—!"
"You have what?" Mallory cut in without ceremony, her voice tinged with disbelief. She took one step, now standing close to him.
"Huh?" Cassius blurted out in surprise.
"You have what?" Mallory repeated, her silver eyes slightly wide. "An Innate?"
"...yes?"
"How can you—!" She stopped herself, at a loss for words.
There was hardly anyone who knew more about how rare an Innate was than Mallory. She had lived so long, and wandered the world, even travelling to other continents and meeting an untold number of people.
Some of them talented to the point of insanity.
Yet among those millions, even billions of people... the number who had an Innate could be counted on a single hand.
And they were beings she wouldn’t want on her bad side if they grew strong enough.
There was one of them in particular. An old man living in the Dark Continent, among monsters above Tier Three.
Mallory had never seen a human being so unbelievably strong as that old man.
And...
’...this little bastard has one? An Innate?’
It was hard for her to believe. But Cassius had no reason to lie to her.
Which meant...
’...his potential is beyond anything I previously imagined. If he has an Innate, no matter what it does, then he’s someone who has the potential to go beyond the Fifth rank.’
That alone made Cassius someone to be taken seriously.
"Huh? Master?" Cassius spoke again, drawing Mallory’s attention back to him. "Is everything alright?"
’I know Innates are rare, but chill, master. No need to be so surprised!’
"Clearly," Mallory said, narrowing her eyes, "you don’t understand how immensely rare it is to have an Innate. It’s something many don’t even know exists, and those who do call its holders Myth Makers."
"...that much?" Cassius whispered in surprise.
"Yes, that much. If you live long enough and use your Innate well enough, you’ll naturally become something worthy of a Myth."
’That’s the hard part.’ Mallory added inwardly. ’I’ve rarely seen an Innate holder older than fifty. I have theories that they usually die very young, which makes them scarce, despite them not being exactly scarce in the first place.’
Some knowledgeable, wise men said it was the natural consequence of holding a power worthy of a Myth.
One had to be worthy of that power.
Was Cassius worthy?
Mallory wasn’t quite sure.
"What is your Innate?" She asked.
"Snake of Adaptation."
"Hm?"
"I can adapt to anything, as long as I survive it long enough." He said, then smiled shyly. "Though sometimes it’s quite hard to do so. But..."
Cassius’s voice trailed off as he noticed Mallory’s shocked expression.
"Uh? Master?"
"Adapt... to anything?" She muttered. "Tell me, little bastard, can you... adapt to fire?"
"Yes?"
"Pressure?"
"I think so?"
"Multiple weapons? An environment? A specific kind of pain? A... Skill?"
"...most probably?"
Mallory paused, then her eyes began to glow with an intense inner fire that made Cassius shudder in dread.
"Oh my." She whispered, looking at Cassius as if only now noticing how beautiful he was. "My dear disciple, you are truly something."
"...master? What’s going—!"
"You must be the most perfect disciple to ever exist. Do you know that?" Her smile widened. "All I need to do is put you through anything, and... you’ll naturally adapt. How convenient. How perfect."
Cassius realised, with hidden horror, his master’s dreadful plan.
"Master—!"
"Is there anything else you wish to tell me about yourself?" She was shaking with excitement. "Speak fast, because I want to start your training immediately."
’Queen above...’
Cassius gulped, realising he’d just screwed himself over. But it was too late now.
He gathered himself and continued, speaking about his eyes that increased his Spirit affinity of the Fire Path. About his white flame, and his special arms able to transmute into ones of fire and lightning.
Not forgetting, of course, his ability to touch shadows and mould them into weapons.
By the time he was done, Mallory looked at Cassius blankly.
For the first time since she’d met him, she decided to look at the man himself for who he was, and not at the man who held within him a power he didn’t deserve.
And only then did Mallory realise that Cassius... had always been ridiculously talented and strong.
Back in the Test, he had succeeded in going against that boy rotten with divinities, with nothing but his sheer will and his goddess’s help.
Now she became aware of his Innate and his numerous unique powers.
Instinctively, Mallory compared Cassius to her very first disciple.
And she smiled sadly, arriving at an obvious conclusion.
And that conclusion ushered in another. One she never expected to think, or even feel, again.
’He’s... perfect for me. He can take everything. Everything.’ Mallory thought, gazing at Cassius. ’This little bastard...’
She smiled widely, the joy of being a master slowly returning to her life.
’...is worthy of my knowledge.’
"Little bastard," she said, leaning her face close to his, "I will be your master."
Her eyes shifted, taking the slit of a dragon.
"I will teach you..."
She grabbed his head, and instantly runes burst into existence, coating his whole body.
Cassius’s eyes widened as he fell to the ground, feeling all his power sealed away, leaving nothing but his sheer physical might.
"...to the best of my abilities."
"Huh?" He stuttered, his body so weak his thoughts grew sluggish.
Mallory Octavia grinned.
"Let’s begin."
—End of Chapter 231—