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"How are you feeling boy?" Hunter asked.

"Better than expected."

"I am here to convey some interesting pieces of information to you," he said.

"In two weeks time, you'll join our hunting party. We're bringing you in sooner as you need to get ready for something."

"Get ready for what?" I asked.

"There will be a strength competition amongst the children in a year. Anyone under eighteen is allowed to participate. Even though you'll be a decade younger than most participants, I don't doubt that you have a chance," he replied.

My eyes lit up upon hearing the news of the competition.

"It's seems like you've understood. This will be your chance to exact revenge on Henry as he'll be participating as well. The top ten fighters obtain great treasures, so everyone wants to take part in the competition."

A bunch of exchanges took place before Hunter left the cottage. Two days later, my body was in better shape, ready for training. The previous days however, were not spent idling around and sleeping; I was training the way of the wind through meditation and also attempting to decipher the first chapter. The latter proved to be unfruitful. Lucas also visited me on both days and shared news about Arthur; apparently, he was going around telling everyone that I was scared of him.

He was going to make amends one way or another. I came out of the wooden lodge at dawn, raindrops dripping from the roof onto my hair. The previous night saw a terrifying downpour; I listened to the rain drumming on the roof all night. My thick wool garment was soaked as I made my way through the forest, the pitter-patter of rain accompanying me. The water sliding off of my skin had become an afterthought as my nostrils were under the charm of the petrichor emanating from the greenery. The sun was barely visible through the thick dark clouds. Walking became a guessing game as fog covered most of the path.

Jasper was already in the clearing waiting for yours truly. He wore his lunatic smile as soon as I stood in front of him.

"What kind of torture do you have planned for me today? At least it will be better than tasting the food you make," I joked.

"Good one, not like you've said it a thousand times already," he replied.

"Today you'll train alone as I have a meeting to attend. I hope that you won't cheat yourself by not giving it your all."

"Do orcs hold meetings for losers? What do they talk about? Who's the weakest?" I asked while laughing.

"One day I'll suffocate you in your sleep," he replied.

I was left alone with my thoughts in the middle of the foggy clearing after Jasper had left. I still executed the training regimen for strength and endurance as instructed; I pushed myself further than before and saw noticeable improvement. The amount of repetitions that I could perform had increased and the distance that I could run had also seen growth.

I laid face first onto the cold and humid mud frantically gasping for air; my sweat blended seamlessly with the raindrops on my body. My leg musculature, especially my calves, were burning and cramping up. How could anyone in endure this everyday!

'Maybe I pushed myself too hard.'

Afterwards, I took out something which I hid in one of the bushes; it was the martial arts book. Each technique was dissected into several parts with detailed explanation about every possible variable. This ranged from feet position to shoulder alignment, no effort was spared to perfect the movement.

I began putting theory into practice. The first technique was a basic punch; truth be told, the first few attempts resulted in me eating dirt, but after a while, I slowly got the hang of it. The swooshing sound from my rotating fist was a clear sign that I was in the right direction. My hips swiveled along with my arm to strike with even greater force.

My punches became more fluid and more natural as my training progressed. The way of the wind also guided me through the trajectories to choose when striking so as not to go against the flow of air but instead be propelled by it. My punches would thus be faster and more powerful while consuming less energy.

Hitting air would do me no good in the long run as my knuckles were still too frail to hit someone at full force; therefore, I began punching a tree trunk nearby. My power increased ever so slightly with each punch. Wood pulp was being ejected from the target area and the heartwood was gradually being exposed. My hands were bruised and stained with my own blood; wood shards also embedded themselves into my skin as time passed.

My chest was expanding as I was desperately trying to catch my breath; my back was hunched forwards due to exhaustion and I was incapable of raising my arms. I had to gain some energy back before leaving for the academy as Arthur may have had plans to ambush me. Huffing and puffing, I sauntered towards the holy lake, my arms dangling by my side.

"Oh great," I exclaimed.

"Just what I needed."

Thirty seconds later, a loud roar echoed throughout the forest and shook me to my core. A canary yellow creature walked out of one of the bushes baring its fangs at me. I was lucky that this was not a full-grown lion! My hand gripped the hilt of the dagger and pulled it out. Even though even a young lion was still far stronger than me at this point, the way of the wind equalized the playing field.

I dropped into my stance as I sensed that a strike would be launched; its humongous body rushed towards me, its claws aiming straight for my head. I narrowly stepped out of the way; I could feel the lion brushing past me.

Even though I knew that the attack was coming, the beast was still above my league in terms of speed. When the lion's body was next to mine, I attempted to stab it using my dagger as I did against the boar but I did not put enough force behind the attack and the blade simply bounced off.