Chapter 176: Starting a New Training (1)

Jump out from here? Are you saying we should just die faster instead of stressing about it?

Alpoi asked, his voice trembling with fear.

"What? Why? Why are you jumping?"

The speed of their fall was increasing rapidly, making it hard to keep his eyes open.

He was clinging to the basket with both hands, terrified of being thrown out. Jumping voluntarily was unthinkable.

But Kaor, as if he had no time to waste explaining, quickly said:

"You can't see how far the ground is while you're in here! Even if you time the spell perfectly, you might get tangled with the airbag and make things worse! It's safer to cast it outside!"

It was a logical point. Getting tangled with the balloon could indeed be more dangerous.

"Fine, I get it! Should I jump alone, then?"

"Are you crazy? I'll hold on and jump with you. Just do as I say!"

As soon as Kaor finished speaking, he grabbed Alpoi by the waist and leapt out of the balloon.

Jumping from such a height without any safety measures brought an overwhelming sense of terror.

The fierce wind battering their bodies forced Alpoi to squeeze his eyes shut and scream again.

"Aaaaaah! Save me!"

"Shut up! Just shut up already! I'll gauge the distance—when I give the signal, cast the spell immediately! Stop flailing around! And don't grab me there!"

"Okay, okay!"

Kaor opened his eyes wide and focused.

There could be no mistakes. Falling from such a height with increasing speed was deadly, even for a Swordmaster.

He didn't need to hold out until the last possible moment. As long as they reached a survivable height, they'd be fine.

With his improved skills from recent training, Kaor was confident he could withstand most of the impact by reinforcing his body with mana.

At worst, he'd accept a broken arm or leg.

Whoooosh!

As they neared the ground, their descent accelerated. The distance between them and the earth shortened drastically with every blink.

Calculating the distance carefully, Kaor shouted as soon as they reached a tolerable height:

"Now!"

Alpoi, who had kept his eyes shut, extended his hands and released his mana at Kaor's signal.

He put everything he had into it. Since learning magic, he had never cast a spell with such desperation.

Magic often fails when focus is disrupted, but as the heir to the magic tower, Alpoi succeeded in casting the spell, driven by the fear of death.

Thunk!

The falling bodies of the two suddenly stopped midair.

"Ugh!"

"Ack!"

The abrupt shift in force left their bodies reeling, as though hit by a hammer. The pain was intense, and it felt as if their insides were being crushed.

But it was still better than smashing into the ground and being obliterated.

Sensing success, Kaor mustered all his remaining strength to draw up his mana.

Now he only needed to brace himself to absorb the impact as they hit the ground.

That was the plan, but…

Whoooosh!

The two began to rise rapidly again.

"What? What?! Stop! Stop it, you idiot!"

Alpoi, half-paralyzed with fear, had no idea how close they were to the ground. In his desperation to survive, he had cast the spell with too much force.

"I said stop, you fool!"

Kaor's shout snapped Alpoi back to his senses. But it was already too late—they were soaring high into the air again.

"S-sorry… I didn't mean to… I panicked and overdid it…"

"Fine! Stay alert! We almost had it—just try again! I'll give you the signal…"

"I'm sorry… but I'm out of mana now…"

"What?"

"I used up too much mana earlier during the demonstration… and now I've overexerted myself…"

Alpoi hung his head, tears streaming down his face. His tone suggested he had already given up on survival.

Kaor seethed with rage. Their one chance at survival had been wasted because of this fool.

"You idiot! You should've used just enough to slow the fall and stop!"

"I was too scared… but at least I won't die alone. We can die together…"

"Shut up! I'm not dying!"

Kaor clenched his teeth and tightened his grip on Alpoi.

'I've survived too much to die here!'

He had just begun mastering the improved mana cultivation method and swordsmanship—dying now would be an unbearable waste.

But they were too high. A collision at this altitude would shatter their bodies completely.

Kaor had to choose: let both of them die, or gamble on the chance that one of them might survive.

'Damn it!'

He briefly considered using Alpoi as a cushion but quickly abandoned the thought.

It wasn't out of compassion—Alpoi was simply too fragile to serve as a proper cushion. Trying would only result in both of them dying.

'What an idiot! Can't even use magic properly! He's dumber than Vanessa!'

After cursing Alpoi internally, Kaor adjusted his posture.

He could reinforce his body with mana. With his enhanced skills, he might survive if he took the brunt of the impact, giving Alpoi a chance to live.

'No need for both of us to die. You might be an idiot, but you're still more useful than me.'

Resolving himself, Kaor lifted his gaze and saw people running toward them in the distance.

Not that it would matter—they couldn't help in a situation like this.

Seeing Ghislain, Belinda, and Gillian at the forefront, Kaor silently said his goodbyes.

'Head Butler, sorry for always picking fights with you. Take care. There's some leftover booze in my quarters—consider it a farewell gift.'

'Old man, I wanted to spar with you, but I guess that won't happen. You know I would've won, right?'

'Lord, it was fun hanging out with you. I even got a bit stronger, but I guess I won't get to use it.'

'It's a shame, but I have no regrets. I had a good run.'

Now his body would collide with the ground and be utterly destroyed.

Kaor closed his eyes, a single tear escaping.

'Grandma, I'll see you soon.'

Just as he gave up on survival and drew every ounce of mana left in him to shield Alpoi, Ghislain's voice rang out loud and clear.

"Kaor! Let go of your strength! Lower your mana!"

'Why? What's the point? Just let me die already…'

Confused but instinctively obedient, Kaor followed Ghislain's command. His body had been conditioned through countless beatings from Ghislain.

Snap!

Ghislain stretched out his hand toward the two, unleashing threads of mana.

Given their accelerating fall, only a massive burst of power could arrest their descent. Ghislain unleashed his mana to its maximum, reaching his 3rd core stage instantly.

Crack!

The mana threads strained and snapped under the pressure, but they slowed the two down considerably.

"Kaor! Throw Alpoi!"

At Ghislain's shout, Kaor hurled Alpoi away without hesitation.

He had wanted to toss the fool off long ago—this was just the perfect excuse.

Ghislain, using both hands, continued pouring out mana, further slowing their descent.

"Gillian! Belinda!"

At Ghislain's command, Gillian and Belinda leaped into the air.

Gillian caught Kaor and immediately threw him to the ground to disperse the impact.

Thud!

"Ack! Damn you, old man!"

Kaor screamed in pain as the shock reverberated through his body. Gillian smirked, wrapping his legs in mana to land gracefully.

Belinda, on the other hand, struggled with the frail Alpoi.

Alpoi's constitution was so weak that a direct collision with the ground would undoubtedly kill him.

"Ugh!"

Clicking her tongue, Belinda grabbed Alpoi, spun several times in the air to disperse the momentum, and then landed gently.

Alpoi collapsed to the ground, shouting:

"I'm alive! I survived! Thank you, head maid! Hahaha! I'm alive!"

"Hahaha! The lord is truly incredible! Good work, old man! Ugh!"

Both Kaor and Alpoi lay sprawled on the ground, laughing uncontrollably. Having come so close to death, they couldn't help but feel ecstatic.

Ghislain exhaled in relief and approached the two, asking:

"Are you both okay? What happened up there?"

Kaor and Alpoi immediately pointed at each other, shouting:

"It's his fault! The idiot can't even use magic properly!"

"It's his fault! He insisted we go higher! That bastard's the real problem!"

After breaking up their argument and hearing their explanations, Ghislain shook his head.

It seemed the airbag couldn't handle the high altitude and tore apart.

Since the incident occurred above the intended safe altitude, it wasn't entirely the balloon's fault—it was largely due to the recklessness of the two idiots.

Still, accidents could happen anytime. Given the heights involved, a single mistake could be fatal. Strengthening the safety measures was clearly necessary.

A short while later, the dwarves examining the fallen balloon approached timidly.

They had been so confident, and now their creation had failed. It was only natural they looked dejected.

"What went wrong?"

"It seems… the high-altitude wind was too much, or perhaps the air got too hot. Either way, the airbag's seams tore, and the fabric ripped."

Galbarik answered humbly, his earlier bravado completely gone.

Ghislain nodded a few times before speaking.

"We confirmed it works at the intended altitude, but it's better to reinforce it. Make the airbag triple-layered and wrap it with a net for extra protection. Also, think of ways to strengthen the other components."

"Understood."

Assigning the dwarves to reinforce and produce additional balloons, Ghislain addressed the gathered crowd.

"Despite the minor accident, you all saw that the balloon works, right? These two got reckless—it's safe as long as it doesn't go too high. If anyone wants to try next time, just let me know."

The crowd laughed nervously and shook their heads. None of them wanted to go near the deathtrap.

In the awkward aftermath, the crowd dispersed. Everyone had work to do, and they had already wasted too much time on the balloon and its accident.

As Claude returned to his office, he casually chatted with Wendy.

"So even dwarves can't make everything perfect, huh? Don't you think this was a bit shoddy?"

"…Sir, please."

"Maybe the dwarves' reputation is all hype. Like, 'Sure, you're short, but at least you're good with your hands.' You know, just to hype up their race. Hey, why are you pushing me? Let me walk slowly—I'm tired!"

Wendy hurriedly pushed Claude along, trying to avoid further embarrassment. But the dwarves had already heard every word.

"Ugh… so humiliating."

Galbarik bit his lip repeatedly.

Their first creation in the estate had failed.

Sure, Kaor and Alpoi had recklessly pushed it beyond its limits, but they couldn't deny their failure to anticipate such risks during testing.

For dwarves, known for their craftsmanship, this was an unacceptable blunder.

"Alright, let's go. We'll stay up all night if we have to, but this time, it'll be perfect."

At Galbarik's determination, the other dwarves nodded resolutely.

This was no longer about work—it was about their pride.

Ghislain hadn't scolded them harshly because he understood their nature well.

As the dwarves returned to their workshop, Galbarik muttered complaints to himself, kicking the ground.

"Ugh, look at this dust. We need some water here. Doesn't it ever rain? The whole place is just dirt and dust."

The weather has been oddly dry lately. It hadn't rained in a while, but no one seemed to find it unusual.

When he asked around, people only noted it was slightly drier than usual.

"But why does it keep getting hotter?"

Sensitive to heat and fire, Galbarik noticed the rising temperature more keenly than others.

The north was supposed to be cool, yet it felt hot and dry—almost like a desert.

The harsh environment was one thing, but it seemed to be getting worse.

"Tsk, tsk. How do people live here? Oh right, I have to live here too. Damn it, I hate this place."

Having come from the warm and pleasant south, Galbarik couldn't adapt to the north.

"Ugh, terrible weather, terrible work, this whole place is terrible. And that lord is so damn annoying."

Galbarik's grumbling didn't stop until they reached the workshop.

The weather wasn't the real issue—it was the sting of failure that had upset him.

He just needed an outlet, and the weather was a convenient excuse.

While the dwarves grumbled and started rebuilding the balloon, Ghislain visited the resting knights and spoke:

"You've rested enough, right? Now we'll begin a new training regimen. We're running out of time."

The knights couldn't believe their ears. They had barely started resting, and now they were being called back to training?

They really didn't want to do it.

A few brave souls raised their hands and shouted:

"It's fine!"

"We have plenty of time!"

Ghislain smirked and shook his head.

"No, I don't. Time's running out. Everyone, gather up."

'I should've chosen any career but this…'

With tearful eyes, the knights reluctantly dragged themselves to their feet.

[T/L: Please support me and read 90 extra chapters: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]