Chapter 9: I will not lose!

But heavy breathing could still be heard as glances kept landing on a young boy who's sweat had formed a boiling puddle around him. Virgo was still fighting desperately to attain even a fraction of his fellow trainee's success.

…

For Virgo, he never put much emphasis on training his body. He would much rather be reading a book or learning how something worked. Especially when he was crafting garments and armors. Although he could not yet Rune Sculpt, he loved creating something. His older brother Brutus had always told him to put all his effort into what he loves to do, not allowing even a little distraction to tear him away from it. That was how in his words, "we become the greatest we can be". Brutus personified this sentiment when he joined the flame Dancers and quickly rose through the ranks to become Captain Athena's second-in-command.

Now that he thinks about it, his older brother was the one who introduced him to this passion for creating. A smile found its way onto the young Virgo's face, making him forget about the pain his leges were going through for a moment.

This was interrupted as Instructor Charon had just arrived back from wherever she was, "So, I assume there you all had some luck. Based on those dumb prideful faces of yours at least. Well done!"

All the trainees stood up a little taller when those words were spoken. "All who succeeded return back to your dorms! We'll continue tomorrow!" The twins looked back at Virgo wishing to say something, but all they saw was a smile urging them to keep moving forward. With that said all the trainees left the training area, leaving only one.

Disappointment was visible on Instructor Charon's face as she questioned, "The talent of your body has never even been used, has it?"

The young prince shook his head in embarrassment. The grand genius finally met a challenge he couldn't get passed with his brilliant mind. The confidence he had cultivated since his younger years seemed to crumble in less than a full day.

Looking down on her student, Instructor Charon shook her head, "The other trainees have been training since they could walk. Waiting patiently as their families prepared them for the chance of joining the Flame Dancers. You mock their determination by being unprepared! You embarrass your family…young prince."

The boy was shaking in anger! It couldn't possibly be his fault after all. No one ever told him he would need to prepare before he arrived. Even his uncle told him about the school only a short while ago!

'No!' the prince screamed internally. 'It's no one's fault but my own. I have had plenty of opportunity to train my body, but I ignored them.' Gritting his teeth he spoke, a fierceness present in his eyes never seen before, "What must I do to catch up with them?"

A smile reached his teacher's face as she hid it exactly when Virgo met her eyes, "You can enter a Divine Fire Pit. This Divine Fire will greatly strengthen your body and help you catch up to the others. Normally, only actual Flame Dancers can survive this training. And even then, their growth will only be somewhat increased in comparison to the normal kind. But for a newbie like you, one blessed with the Bloodline of a Celestial holding Divinity over Flame…the results should be much more exaggerated, but it all depends on your will."

"I will not fall behind anyone!" was the only reply given.

The thoughts of Instructor Charon remembered the conversation with Captain Athena before the training began, 'He truly deserves the title…The Light that Burns Brightest…indeed. This shall be the foundation on which his spirit will be built on. Everything according to our Lord's plan!'

…

The prince was soon escorted to a Dark hole in the ground, seemingly out of place in the rocky terrain it was in. Before he could question about it, Instructor Charon did a short movement, followed directly by stomping her feet twice. The Earth shook before the Fire Pit lit with a red glow, increasing in brightness with each passing second.

Suddenly, two young trainees jumped out of nowhere surprising Virgo. The same couldn't be said for their teacher as her expression remained unchanged, merely examining the prince.

Roman pleaded, "You don't have to go so far Virgo! We can train together and help you." His sister added, "We can get through anything together. Rely on us!"

Virgo smiled. A genuine smile. He had almost forgotten about the friends he had, the relationships that were built in the short time he spent here. In the estate he lived in, there was no one his age he could really form true friendship with. He thanked them from the bottom of his heart, "I'm extremely lucky to have met you two..." Tears almost threatened to spill from his eyes.

Instructor Charon seemed to frown for a second, that is, before Virgo continued.

"…but, I will not allow you to be ahead of me! I want to be on equal ground with you. I can't ask for you to hold back your own progress so I can reach you. What type of friend would I be if I did that?" That genuine smile was still present on his face, "Believe in me, I will conquer this challenge!"

Roman was about to say something when Remus grabbed his shoulder stopping him, as she accepted his resolve, "We believe in you! I see your passion and it's burning strong. Although, I must say that I don't plan on letting you catch up with me anytime soon!"

The Prince and her brother stood speechless at her words for a few good seconds before they started laughing. Remus blushed slightly, "What's wrong with what I said?!"

Wiping the tears, this time of joy, away from his eyes, Virgo replied, "Thank you for the kind words. I will keep them with me." With that said the twins left, for real this time, as they said their goodbyes for what would be an unknown amount of time.

"Are you ready trainee?" asked Instructor Charon, "You must be prepared to have your body's weakness burned away. The others will be going through the same, although much less painful and more gradual. It should take about 2 months for them to reach the level of Endurance needed to begin the next class…the art of Grappling. If you don't strengthen your body in that time, you'll miss the window. Meaning you must stay in there for a whole 2 months. Any less and you won't stand next to geniuses like Roman and Remus."

"I understand, I'm ready Instructor!" a strong roar was heard.

"Take this. It's all the nutrition and nourishment you'll need, after all, the fuel for building your body needs to come from somewhere. It would probably overload your body if you don't start burning it off immediately, so no turning back once you drink it."

Without a hint of hesitation, Virgo drank the solution he came to know as Dragon Fire and jumped in the Fire Pit. For a child still unknown to the harshness of the world, the flames gave all the pain, multiplied by hundreds if not thousands of times, experienced in his life collectively. The boy's screams, no matter how loud, were covered by the roars of the Divine Flame. And much like his screams, the flames too were unyielding.

There was a glow brightening the instructor's face as she looked deep into the fire, speaking her thoughts to herself, "And so it begins…the Light has finally begun to Burn."