Training Pt. 1

Lent and Aria Arendale looked at their sulking son with a conflicted look. She was immeasurably sad that in just two months, her son would have to go out and pave his own way, yet also happy to see their son love them some much.

It is the parent's duty to protect their children as well as letting them grow. So they compromised and during the two months left, they would teach and train their son as much as possible. Since Lent is too busy managing the kingdom, this duty fell to Aria Arendale.

----

It was the day after and also the first day of the training, and the first thing on the list was to hike 5 km up and down a mountain to their training grounds. Aria looked at her son behind her, walking slowly but steadily. Ever since they had told him, he had a sulking look. Instead of his usually bright eyes and confident, and even arrogant, nature, he became rather silent and serious.

"So, have you thought of a name for your 7th Birthday?" Aria asked, breaking the silence.

A person's 7th birthday is an extremely important date for anyone in this world. Not only is it the beginning of one's cultivation journey, but it is also the tradition that the birthday person to decide upon a name for themselves, rather than the parents in their birth. This birthday would be their debut to the world and choose the name they shall be remembered by.

"Yes, I have decided on a name. One that would resound throughout the heavens," her son stated. It sounded neither arrogant nor dreamy, but rather as if it was already a fact in of itself.

Aria silently chuckled. This kind of arrogance wasn't the infuriating kind, but rather the reassuring kind.

"I hope to see that day," Aria patted his head as she pushed him on forward.

----

The air was getting thinner as they moved up through the mountain. The path they were walking on was steep, nearly that of a cliff, and one could still easily see how high they are up. Each step was uneven and filled with plant life and debris. The giant trees down there easily looked like nothing but dots. Yet, surprisingly, Aria didn't see any bit of fear or instability from her son, as he stared straight forward. Seeing that even after a while, her son hadn't even broken a sweat, she silently observed his footsteps. She was faintly surprised to find that each step was made in near utmost effectivity, making the least amount of movement for the greatest amount of distance. As such, Aria didn't tell him when to turn around and merely walked forward until he gave up.

They walked forward for a couple of hours before Aria noticed that Regalus started heaving. Though he hasn't complained yet, there was still the way down so she turned around there. They reached 25 km, greatly surprising Aria. A 7-year-old, able to walk up a mountain, handle walking 25 km is certainly surprising; even a grown, mortal man wouldn't be able to do it too easily.

The next day, they were supposed to hike up the same mountain for the same height, but this time, her son would have to carry a backpack weighing 10 kg, but seeing her son's unnatural effectivity and fitness, she doubled it. 20 kg and at least 20 km was the altered plan. Nonetheless, Aria became surprised when her son easily met the goals, plus some.

"Outstanding endurance and strength efficiency, he knows when and where to move his muscles to make the best out of every ounce of energy. A genius!" Aria exclaimed, talking about her experiences with Lent.

"Of course! Hehehe! Our blood runs through him! What else could he be but a genius!" Lent laughed proudly. He reminisced the past where he was able to stand on top of his sword and went wherever the wind pointed him. Slaying Gods and Killing Devils! Alas, after his father's death, the mantle has gone down to him to lead his kingdom. Nevertheless, even freedom doesn't give him as much joy and pride as his son.

They soon both agreed to radically increase the difficulty. Their care for their son did not quench their curiosity to see his limits. Actually, it more likely fueled it even more.

----

"Hmmmmmm..."

Regalus groaned heavily, as he sat down on a tub. Though it seemed clear, with only a couple flowers and lotuses floating on top, it felt very different. As Regalus's body went in, he could feel as if there were billions of tiny balls or needles digging and scrubbing into his body, somehow being both painful and pleasant at the same time. Regalus was starting to worry about his mental health.

It was some sort of alchemical formula that expelled 'impurities' from his body. After thirty minutes or so, thin strands of black lime would slowly excrete from his body onto the edges of the tub. Regalus found it both creepy and interesting. After taking a small look, the black lime seemed to be a sort of biological waste and other unnecessary things that had naturally built up in his body. After asking his mother, he was told that it had something to do with something called 'meridians' and it was something to be learned for a later date.

Amid this odd mix of pain and pleasure, Regalus ignored it all and began to clear off his mind. The most pressing matter in his mind right now is the fact that he's leaving in just two months. He has no idea what's waiting for him out there, what are the people like, what dangers lie beyond, and this 'Cultivation' thing they have. And most importantly, how long does he have to be in this academy thing.

Seeing that he is the crown prince of a military-focused nation, he was bound to face violence sooner or later. Plan A for him was becoming a scholar and earning his merits there. If he was forced into the military or something of the like, the Plan B was to go through the motions, have some achievements, maybe conquer a country or two, then off to retirement/kingship afterward. If some political drama tried to take him down, well... they'd need to have the qualifications first. If Plan B somehow goes down or something pisses Regalus off, Plan C goes up, all bets are off, and the world, whatever it might be, is his for the taking.

Regalus's tried hard to push for Plan A. He severely beat his tutors, asking questions that they don't even know, only for him to answer afterward. He 'left' some improvements in daily equipment, necessities, and other things that have even been implemented kingdom-wide. He even introduced running water, through the use of a water tower. Though it was only implemented in the castle. Of course, he stole this certain idea from a certain person from his past life, but that's a story for another day.

But nonetheless, this ultimately failed and Regalus has moved on to Plan B. As such, another question had popped, would it be peaceful in this 'Vyra Royal Academy?' The word 'Royal' greatly worries him as the word 'royal' more often than not equates to 'some rich chucklefuck.' If that is indeed the case, he needed some personal strength, of which his own parents gratefully provided him in form of training. Regalus bitterly smiled at the thoughtfulness of his parents. They planned out everything from the training to even his bath, if only the reason for training wasn't as it was.

----

As Regalus finished bathing and stood up, he could feel the energy within him growing and becoming permanent. It was the bathwater's doing. Usually, only 40% to 50% of the effects of exercising actually stay, the formula boosts this percentage. Not only this, though the mental fatigue was still present, his physical fatigue was gone and his muscles would become fresh and anew. Through this, Regalus could directly feel his muscles improving day by day.

A familiar looking red-haired girl came in soon after to take care of him and provide clothes and other things.

'It's her again. To think about it, it's been her these past few days,' Regalus thought, as he often had different attendants taking care of him from day to day. However, for the past three days, it had been her that had been attending to him continuously.