Harsh Training (Finale)

Loki looked at the sorcerer before him. "What's the meaning of this?"

"This is Sorcerer Badook, a master of hand-to-hand combat," Edward explained calmly. "He is your opponent."

"Do you think I'm so weak that a mortal sorcerer can defeat me?" Loki felt truly insulted. Yes, he was nowhere near Edward's level, but compared to the rest of Midgard, he was a true god.

"The rules are no magic or spell. You can choose a weapon over there," Edward continued calmly, pointing at the weapon rack.

"Is that supposed to make a difference?" The difference in the physiology between an Asgardian and a human was so vast that it did not matter what skill that sorcerer learned; it wouldn't make a difference.

"Begin."

Badook rushed toward his opponent with great speed, which surprised Loki. However, his battle instinct still kicked in, allowing him to evade the first punch. The fight officially started, but the Asgardian Prince fell on the floor less than three minutes later due to a sweeping kick.

"Damn it, that doesn't count. I was caught off guard."

"Is that so? Then, prepare yourself for a second round," Edward replied calmly. "Read, set, start."

Loki was super focused and noticed a white aura floating around his opponent's body. His senses also noticed an unknown energy that resembled the utilization of Life Force to strengthen the body for combat. He was determined not to be humiliated again, so Loki decided to take this sight seriously.

As such, he was prepared when his opponent rushed toward him. He responded, using all his skills and fighting experience. Sadly, he was defeated in about ten minutes.

"Impossible!" Loki was questioning his life. "Did you help him? Are you secretly helping him?"

"Don't use me as an excuse for your weakness," Edward responded calmly. Did he help? Yes, but only technically. A month was not enough for the most skilled sorcerers to catch up to an Asgardian, let alone someone from the royal family. So, during the three days Loki spent in the library, Edward found one of the most promising sorcerers in the Kamar Taj and put him in a Time Acceleration Room to train until he surpassed the Trickster God's skill level.

"Do you want a third round?"

"Yes," Loki replied with gritted teeth. "And this time, I'll use a weapon." He walked to the rack and picked up two daggers. Badook picked an akrafena, a blade-type weapon from West Africa. The result was the same; even worse, he lost in less than five minutes. Loki lay on the floor, feeling more humiliated than ever.

"Pride is not necessarily a bad thing, but only a fool will let it get in their way," Edward taught patiently. "Master Badook will be your daily sparring partner. Now, follow me."

 Loki slowly stood up and quietly followed through the portal. He found himself in what felt like a volcano; the intense heat in the room made someone of his physique sweat, indicating the heat level they were dealing with. He looked at the instruments with puzzlement. Everything looked at a smithery he once visited in Nidavellir.

"Come, follow my lead." Edward changed clothes, leaving only pants and boots with no shirt on. He started to play around with a few ores, teaching Loki a basic hammer technique. After an hour of nonstop hammering, the Asgardian had enough and was about to ask questions.

"You should have acclimated to the heat by now," Edward suddenly said. "Now, use this technique." A rune appeared before him, and Loki felt a vast amount of information interesting in his mind. He instinctively used the method, swallowing a swirl of red and yellow energy into his body.

He immediately winced in pain as he felt his soul burning and thousands of knives cutting every part of his body. Loki fell to the ground as the pain was too much.

"What…is…this?" he asked with a heavy breath.

"Mind, soul, and body are the three main elements to make a great sorcerer. Your mind is flawed, but that can be corrected with proper mental care. Your soul and body are inherently better than humans, but still not good enough. So, I gave you a special meditation technique to purify your soul with flame energy and temper your body with metal energy."

"Does… the process…need to be…this difficult?"

"As I said before, you have no respect for power despite your unquenchable thirst for it. So, I will ensure you work hard for every ounce of power you gain under my tutelage."

"Do you really think…that will teach me…respect?"

"It should."

"And if it doesn't?"

"I'll try a more extreme way."

"And if that doesn't…work?"

"I'll stop teaching you and return you home," Edward explained calmly. He needs people to stand with him, not people that will cause more trouble. So, if Loki disappoints him, he'll just choose another person. And if he turns on him and becomes a problem, he'll kill him, even if that means becoming Odin's foe.

"Alright, enough rest. Continue training."

Loki groaned," Couldn't you make the pain lesser? At least give me some time to adapt?"

"Hmm."

Loki was surprised he did not get an immediate no, so he was excited. He did not mind the harsh training as long as he could get power, but he did not want to start at such a high intensity.

"You have the highest affinity with the ice element, so that's why the flame technique has such a harsh effect on you. So, if you learn another Ice Meditation Technique, you should be able to reduce the pain."

"I'm fine," Loki immediately said with gritted teeth. He closed his eyes to inhale this room's fire and metal energy. He held on despite the pain, but after five minutes, he had to stop.

"Don't lay on the floor. Use the hammer technique along with the breathing method I taught you. It will accelerate your body's natural healing."

Loki followed the direction with great difficulty but was surprised after a few swings. He felt a cool feeling rushing from his toes to every part of his body; he felt invigorated and back to his prime in a very short period.

"Back to meditation."

Loki's mouth twitched as he repeated the process of torturing his body and soul, recuperating before starting again. The entire process lasted two hours before stopping. The good news is by the end of this training session, he could meditate for ten minutes straight without having to stop and recuperate.

"Try to condense your [Aura]?"

"Aura?"

"It's in the information I sent you."

Loki focused on his mind before a light blue aura condensed on his fist. He followed the knowledge to control this power before making a few punches, leaving air waves boom.

"How do you feel?"

"Strong."

"That's it?"

"I feel like I can better utilize my physical strength. It's now easier to condense and weaponize."

"That's one of the main aspects of [Aura]. However, you have barely tapped into the potential of this power," Edward explained.

"From now on, your schedule will be Meditation in the room for two hours in the morning, followed by a one-hour break. Then, two hours of sparring with Master Badook, another hour of break, and another two hours of meditation sessions. Then, three-hour therapy sessions in the afternoon, and you'll be free the rest of the day.

"I'll check on your progress every two weeks."

"Wait, what about sorcery training? You didn't say anything about that?"

"You can read the regular books in Kamar Taj, but you won't have access to my library until six months later. If you meet my expectations, you can start taking missions to earn reading time."

"And what are these expectations?"

"You don't need to know the exact details. However, know I will fail you if you don't put all your efforts for the next six months."