Breaking Barriers

As the rowdy dining hall fell silent, a muscular man in his late 30s entered. He had short jet-black hair, wore a black eyepatch covering his left eye, and bore a long diagonal scar stretching from his right shoulder down to his left waist. His commanding presence was further accentuated by the flowing red cape that cascaded down to his heels.

After he entered, two guards followed him. Although the other two guards didn't exude the same intense pressure that the man emitted, they were on a completely different level. Both of them wore bronze light armor and helmets, along with red capes. They were equipped with shortswords called the "Xiphos" on their waists.

"At ease, I did not come to scold your ruckus. I have an important announcement for you all." The man with the eyepatch said in a serious tone.

Hearing his words, the children inside the dining hall breathed a sigh of relief. Damon and Theron whispered to each other as Kit overheard their conversation.

"I can't believe that Strategos Ariston is here." Theron whispered.

"What does he want with us? Could it be..." Damon whispered but was interrupted.

Before Damon could finish his thought, Ariston announced something that left all the children in the dining hall speechless and stunned.

"In a month's time, all of you will be entering the lowest ranked gate without any escorts as part of your training."

Upon hearing Ariston's words, Kit was in utter disbelief. Even in the modern world, white star hunters weren't allowed to enter alone in an F class gate, the weakest gate with the weakest Damned. But this guy was telling that children 7-12 years of age were to clear an F class gate alone.

After a few moments of silence, the whole dining hall erupted with deafening shouts and cheers. It was as if they were celebrating a victorious battle. This left Kit in a state of confusion. As they calmed down, Ariston had a smile on his face.

"Starting tomorrow, all of you will have to endure a month-long brutal training to prepare for the gate." Ariston said.

"YES SIR!" the children in the dining hall shouted in unison.

"Very good! Tonight, eat and drink till your stomachs are bursting and your mouths are drowning." Ariston said as he left the dining hall with the two guards.

After he left, the children in the dining hall engaged in loud conversations with one another, expressing their excitement about taking down the gate and the training they would undergo.

"Kit, we may have hit the jackpot!" Damon shouted in excitement as he shrugged Kit's shoulders.

"Jackpot? How can being sent to clear a gate alone be a jackpot?" Kit said in disbelief.

"Don't you get it, you numbskull? If the higher-ups sent us to take down a gate, it means we have great potential," Damon answered with a stern expression on his face.

"Not only that, if we do clear the gate, we'll be placed in the Crimson Vanguard." Theron said with excitement.

Hearing their words, Kit realized that the Spartans were born and bred for war and battle. They found joy, excitement, and their purpose in life through war and battles. Thinking of this, he believed that his purpose here could be to fight and live like a Spartan, to learn their culture, and understand how their society works.

Damon and Theron quickly grabbed Kit's arms, dragging him onto a table with a spirited determination that left no room for resistance. Despite his reluctance, the passing moments and the sight of Damon and Theron immersed in the joy of the dance pulled Kit into dancing as well.

Perhaps it was the fact that he was in the body of a child that led him to dance, or maybe it was because it was an experience he hadn't had in his life. He was uncertain, but he didn't care. He was having the time of his life, partying with the other children he had confronted earlier, oblivious to the hellish nightmare that was about to come.

***

After partying and celebrating all night, the children were now in a large and spacious room. They sat in silence on the wooden oak flooring. Even the usually noisy duo of Damon and Theron were silent.

Kit, while looking around, deduced that he was in some sort of classroom. The walls were made of adobe, and the interior had no designs or ornaments. It was completely plain and lacked any furniture.

The silence of the room shattered when a figure stepped in. Long strands of blonde hair framed his face, while piercing crystal blue eyes glistened. His robust physique was apparent even beneath his white tunic.

Accompanying him was four men wearing light armor and red capes carrying a huge and heavy boulder. It wasn't your usual rock that you would find here on Earth, its color was a combination of a deep black and blue. As soon as they gently dropped it, the four men heaved a sigh of relief. After resting for a few minutes, they left the room.

Seeing the stone, Kit felt a sense of familiarity.

The man with the blonde hair introduced himself as Agis. He informed the children that he would be their instructor for a month and would train them to easily take down the gates they were tasked with clearing.

"The boulder beside me is a boulder from the gates, from the Underworld. We call it an Understone. It's extremely precious and hard. For your first test, I would like you to punch this stone as hard as you can."

One child volunteered himself to be the first one to do so. He was teeming with confidence and the expression on his face says that he'll crack this stone. Taking a deep breath, he clenches his right fist and winds up for a punch. Striking the stone with all of his might, a cracking noise was heard.

Everyone's curiosity was piqued except for Agis. The stone was not damaged, the child however got his bones broken which left him falling down on his knees silently due to the pain. Since everyone was required to strike the stone, the children tried different methods to try to at least leave a dent on it.

Some tried to kick the stone which left their legs broken, some used their knees and elbows to crack the stone, but they all lay down on the ground in pain silently and some even teamed up to damage the stone, but they were all unsuccessful.

It was Damon's turn; he suddenly bashed his head against the stone and fell unconscious instantly onto the wooden floor. This daring action caught Agis's attention, earning a nod of respect for Damon's fearless approach.

Theron's turn came, and he tried something different. He walked a few feet away from the stone and then quickly ran toward it. With the momentum, he leapt into the air and delivered a vicious kick to the stone. Agis was surprised; Theron managed to scratch the stone, but he broke his foot in the process.

As Kit was about to stand up for his turn, a familiar face walked toward the stone first. It was the other guy he had encountered on the muddy fields. The guy had silver hair, deep black eyes, and an almond-colored complexion.

He was straightforward in his approach: he lowered both legs and wound up his right arm for a punch, but something was different. Kit and Agis sensed it. As soon as his fist touched the stone, a small dent appeared. He was the first to damage the stone without being injured. Agis had a curious look and a smirk on his lips.

After seeing the performance, Kit finally realized that this was the same method that Alexander introduced for training the Enhancers. Although this was usually done when the person had learned to control his mana to enhance his body or weapon.

As Kit was the last one, Agis called him forward. Kit had various thoughts on his mind about how he would damage the stone. Although he knew what to do, he didn't fully grasp how to enhance since he hadn't fully embraced the hunter world.

With nothing coming out of his mind, he just decided to focus all of his strength into his right fist. Whether the stone or hand be broken, he didn't mind. As he prepared to punch, a sense of absolute concentration overtook him. It was as if everything had turned dark, leaving only the stone. Agis felt goosebumps on his body as he observed this.

Copying the earlier guy's technique, Kit also lowered his legs and wound up his right arm. Pouring all his might into a single point, Kit's punch left huge cracks in the stone. Agis was shocked; his eyes widened as all the hairs on his body stood up. This was the first time he had seen someone crack the stone on their first try.

"You, I'll train you ten times harder than anyone. Be prepared." Agis said with hints of excitement and a wide smile painted on his face.