Physical strength trial

"I see. Thanks again for letting me hear your side of the story."

"Ah, it's nothing, really." Ordering a quick meal for himself, Cedric watched his points trickle down. From having earned 40 points in total, he was taken down to 20 points. 'No distractions after this. I must go earn proper gear and prepare for the trials. I've been lacking proper diligence lately. Father would be angry at my lack of work.'

After finishing his meal, he parted ways with Meifeng, promising to duel each other some time in the near future. He headed towards the training area to try to rack up some more points. His goal was to gather enough points to be able to afford challenging others in the arena.

"Hmm, about 1000 points should be enough." Passing the entrance to the arena, he was greeted yet again by the familiar visage of the agility training room. Deciding that he would rather try out the other rooms before coming back to train in the agility trials, he moved on ahead. About five minutes later, he stumbled upon the second-to-last training room.

Above it read 'Physical Strength'. Entering the room, he saw the exact same layout as in the agility trial room. The room looked more like a giant stadium, somehow way bigger than it appeared on the outside. With a bunch of smaller rooms lining the walls all around him. Chambers no bigger than his own room, with consoles in their middle.

Cedric sees that one of the nearby rooms is available, and its door is open. As he approaches the chamber, he is greeted by an information panel which reads:

- Physical Strength Trial: Test Your Might -

You will be transported to an ancient battlefield where you must prove your mettle against opponents of increasing difficulty. Endless enemy waves will come at you, with each wave being harder than the last.

Upon killing all enemies in a wave, you will be granted 10 points. After reaching wave 10, the reward increases to 20 points per wave. Subsequent waves after wave 20 will award you 100 points per wave. There is no limit to the amount of waves or enemies you may face. You may also find bonus points for going further than other trainees who came before you, As well as hidden rewards obtained upon achieving certain feats.

Prove your mettle, recruit. May the Archons guide your path.

Upon entering the small room, Cedric presses the familiar button and is teleported to an empty stretch of land. "It's a wasteland," he thinks, as there are no trees or grass around, only dry, cracked ground exposed to the sun's rays. Cedric sees a short sword appear in front of him, double-edged and reflecting the sun's rays onto his face. He picks it up and sees a portal not too far from him. The portal is violet in color and vibrates almost like a beating heart.

Not long after, a number appears above the portal, a floating "1," most likely indicating the first wave. The portal shudders, and out comes a green-colored child - no, a goblin. The small creature, not taller than Cedric's waist, takes a moment to scan its surroundings. Upon seeing Cedric, its facial expression turns into a feral scowl. Screeching loudly, it sprints towards Cedric.

Cedric takes a deep breath and thinks, "This is my first time seeing a goblin. It's funny how that is exactly how I pictured it looking from my father's teachings. My first fight with a monster." Deciding not to think of the ill-fated encounter he had with the sand lurker, Cedric moves a step forward, intercepting the goblin with a stab to its temple. The goblin's eyes darken as life leaves its mutilated vessel. Removing the surprisingly light creature from his sword, Cedric turns to the portal, now a purple-colored "2" shimmering atop it.

Almost hoping the next fight would be harder, Cedric is reminded of his mistake in underestimating his opponent. Siegward had already taught him this lesson. "Sigh. Whatever monster I'll face next, I'll take it seriously. I need to push away my arrogance."

A couple of seconds pass as his second opponent materializes from the portal. A wolf, covered with a grey pelt. Just like the goblin, the wolf sprints towards Cedric upon sight. As the wolf jumps in a bid to bite Cedric's neck, he disappears from its sight, suddenly feeling a burning pain coming from its side. Cedric, having slashed the wolf from its right side, quickly makes a small jump toward the whimpering wolf's head, piercing its right eye. The wolf stops its struggle, and its raised paws fall limply to the ground.

Standing back up, Cedric sees a squad of three goblins appear from the portal. They are holding jagged pieces of metal, covered by a brown-ish pelt. Unlike the previous goblin now lying on the ground, these appear to be more sentient.

Cedric decides to wait for the goblins to reach him. As the goblins run towards him, two of them start running ahead of the lead goblin. "They wish to surround me. Not happening." Straining his legs, Cedric bounds for the nearest goblin on his right, easily crossing the distance between them, and avoiding a well-telegraphed stab while slashing his opponent's throat. Needless to say, the other two goblins ended up encountering the same fate.

Cedric is now dyed red as a result of blood being sprayed in large quantities from slashed goblin arteries. "Damn it, why do these guys spray so much blood? No more aiming for their necks. I'll either avoid the following splash or just stab them in the temple." Borrowing one of the goblin's worn pelts, Cedric wipes most of the blood covering his face, not wanting it to leak into his eyes while fighting. He then wipes off the short-sword, handle and all.

The entire time he was wiping the blood off his weapon, Cedric made sure to observe the portal, or more correctly, the trio of wolves now rushing towards him from it. Looking ahead at the welcoming party, Cedric grips his weapon. "Hmm, good. It's not as slippery as it was before. I can manage fighting with this." Facing the oncoming wave of enemies, Cedric decides to stop holding back.