Chapter 203: A Grind With A Price

Noah’s arms were beginning to ache.

He lowered his wooden sword and rolled his shoulders while the practice arena reset itself. Across from him, Eric was arguing that their latest failure shouldn’t count because the training construct had moved unexpectedly.

"It changed direction halfway through the exercise," Eric insisted.

Sophia wiped her forehead. "That’s what an opponent does."

"An opponent is supposed to follow some kind of logic."

"It attacked the nearest target."

"Exactly. Poor decision-making."

Damien looked at him. "You’re describing yourself."

Luna burst out laughing.

Noah smiled, but his attention remained on the arena. Their formation had improved over the past few days, yet they still struggled whenever an opponent forced them to abandon their preferred positions.

They had become good at working together under familiar conditions.

That didn’t mean they were ready for unfamiliar ones.

"Let’s run it again," Noah said.

Eric groaned.

"You’re enjoying this."

"Not particularly."

"Your face says otherwise."

Noah raised his sword. "Positions."

The next exercise began.

Three training constructs emerged, each moving at a different speed. One advanced toward Eric, another circled around Damien, and the third moved directly toward Luna.

Squad Seven reacted.

Eric intercepted the first construct. Damien shifted to cover Luna, while Sophia moved around the flank. Laura prepared to support whoever needed her.

Noah remained near the center, watching for the moment their formation would become vulnerable.

It came sooner than expected.

The construct targeting Luna suddenly changed direction and attacked Laura instead.

Laura blocked, but the impact forced her backward.

Damien moved to help her.

That left Luna exposed.

Noah crossed the gap and intercepted the third construct before it could strike her. His wooden sword connected with its shoulder, but the machine turned and pushed him away.

He stumbled.

For a brief instant, he felt the familiar pressure inside his consciousness.

The Dead Zone.

You could end this faster.

Noah steadied himself.

That’s not the exercise.

An opponent won’t care about your exercise.

And I won’t learn anything if you solve every problem for me.

The presence fell silent.

Noah returned his attention to the arena.

He couldn’t rely on extraordinary power every time a situation became difficult. If he wanted to understand his abilities, he needed to learn what he could accomplish without reaching for them.

He adjusted his grip and called to his teammates.

"Switch targets! Don’t chase the constructs. Control their movement!"

Eric immediately changed direction, drawing his opponent toward the center. Sophia intercepted the opening, while Damien returned to cover Laura.

Luna released a controlled burst that forced the third construct away from the support line.

This time, their formation held.

The final construct fell moments later.

The arena powered down.

Noah breathed out and lowered his sword.

"Better."

Eric dropped onto the nearest bench.

"That word is starting to haunt me."

Laura approached Noah.

"Your reaction was quicker that time."

"So was yours."

"I still lost my footing."

"But you recovered."

She considered that, then nodded.

It wasn’t a perfect performance.

It didn’t need to be.

After the session, Noah remained behind to return the training equipment.

When he emerged from the equipment room, he found Elias waiting near the corridor.

"Long session?" Elias asked.

"Long enough."

"I saw part of it. You were trying to compensate for everyone at once."

Noah frowned slightly.

"Was I?"

"At the beginning. Whenever someone made a mistake, you moved to fix it yourself."

Noah leaned against the wall.

"And later?"

"You started trusting them to fix their own mistakes."

Elias smiled.

"That was the more interesting part."

Noah thought about the exercise.

He had spent so much time worrying about his own limitations that he hadn’t noticed how often he tried to control everything around him.

Perhaps that was another habit he needed to change.

"Thanks for the observation."

"Happy to help."

Elias adjusted his jacket.

"Don’t exhaust yourself before the freshman exercise. It would be a shame to arrive at your first match already worn out."

"I’ll keep that in mind."

Elias offered a casual wave and continued down the corridor.

Noah watched him leave, then headed toward the dormitories.

Two days ago, he had thought their formation needed better instructions.

Now he understood that instructions weren’t enough.

Squad Seven needed confidence in one another, especially when things went wrong.

They wouldn’t always have time to discuss every decision.

They wouldn’t always have the advantage.

And Noah wouldn’t always be able to save everyone by stepping forward.

The thought unsettled him.

But it was something he needed to learn.

Tomorrow, they would train again.

Not to become perfect.

To become a little more prepared for the moment perfection stopped being an option.

The day before the Freshman Squad Exercise began, Noah decided that Squad Seven needed a break.

Eric disagreed.

"We should train."

"We trained yesterday."

"And?"

"And we have another session tomorrow."

Eric stared at him as if Noah had just proposed abandoning the academy.

"You’re seriously suggesting we do nothing?"

"I’m suggesting we don’t exhaust ourselves before the exercise."

Damien nodded in agreement. "He’s right. We’ve already identified the weaknesses in our formation. Another exhausting session won’t fix everything overnight."

Eric looked around the group, searching for support.

Sophia shook her head.

"Don’t look at me. My legs are still sore."

Luna raised her hand. "I vote for a break."

Laura closed her book.

"That’s three votes."

Eric sighed dramatically.

"Fine. But if we lose tomorrow, I’m blaming all of you."

Noah smiled.

"Of course you are."

They decided to spend the morning away from the training grounds.

For the first time in several days, Squad Seven had no schedule to follow and no formation to improve. They wandered through the central courtyard, eventually stopping at a small outdoor café beside one of the academy’s older buildings.

The place was quiet, with wooden tables beneath broad trees and a clear view of the courtyard fountain.

Eric immediately claimed the largest table.

"I could get used to this."

"You’ve been here before," Sophia pointed out.

"That doesn’t make it less enjoyable."

Luna ordered a drink and leaned back in her chair.

"So, what happens if we win tomorrow?"

"Nothing particularly exciting," Damien replied. "We get priority access to the advanced training facilities for a week."

Eric looked at him.

"That’s exciting."

"You don’t even know what’s inside them."

"Exactly. It’s a mystery."

Noah laughed.

The conversation drifted from the upcoming exercise to their classes, their instructors, and the various inconveniences of academy life.

Damien complained about the amount of written work assigned alongside combat training. Sophia argued that some of the assignments were useful. Luna wanted to know why the academy served the same breakfast twice in one week.

Laura listened with an amused expression, occasionally adding a comment that made the discussion even less productive.

Noah found himself relaxing.

The past few weeks had been exhausting in ways he hadn’t fully acknowledged. Even after returning to Valhalla, part of his mind had remained alert, anticipating the next threat.

Sitting here, listening to his friends argue about breakfast, he finally felt that tension ease.

He didn’t need to watch the sky.

He didn’t need to inspect every shadow.

He could simply enjoy the morning.

After lunch, Noah wandered toward the academy’s outer courtyard alone.

He found Elias Rumo standing beside a stone railing, watching students cross the grounds.

"Skipping training?" Elias asked.

"Taking a break."

"A sensible decision. Those are becoming surprisingly rare around here."

Noah joined him at the railing.

"Are you participating in the freshman exercise?"

"No. My rank puts me in a different training group." Elias glanced toward the distant arenas. "Besides, I suspect you freshmen will provide enough entertainment without me getting involved."

Noah smiled.

"You’re making it sound like we’re going to embarrass ourselves."

"I’m saying that people learn more from difficult matches than easy victories."

For a moment, Elias’s expression became thoughtful.

"Don’t measure tomorrow by whether you win. Measure it by what you discover about yourselves."

Noah looked at him.

"That’s almost inspirational."

"I have my moments."

Elias laughed and pushed away from the railing.

"Enjoy your break, Blackwood. You’ll need a clear head tomorrow."

He left before Noah could respond.

Noah remained by the railing for another minute.

Elias had a habit of saying things that sounded simple but stayed in his mind afterward.

Perhaps it was experience.

Perhaps he simply enjoyed giving advice.

Either way, Noah had no reason to dwell on it.

He returned to the dormitories before evening, where Squad Seven gathered for a final discussion about the exercise.

They reviewed their basic plan, confirmed their meeting time, and agreed not to make unnecessary changes at the last minute.

When the discussion ended, Noah looked around the room.

"Whatever happens tomorrow, we handle it together."

Eric nodded.

Sophia smiled.

Damien gave a quiet agreement, while Luna looked genuinely excited. Laura met Noah’s eyes and nodded once.

That was enough.

Later, Noah lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling.

Tomorrow, they would return to the arena.

There would be opponents to study, mistakes to correct, and another opportunity to grow.

But tonight, there was nothing he needed to fight.

For once, Noah allowed himself to rest without wondering what might happen next.

The morning would arrive soon enough.