Training

'2750 Dollars...'

Luke still couldn't believe it.

Even just a couple of hours ago, he was cursing his Unique Skill and fate.

Now, he had beaten a [D] Rank monster and made a bunch of money at once.

Luke stopped in the middle of the road and started laughing out loud until tears started going down his face.

'This isn't how Initiation is supposed to go!!' He thought while wiping his tears.

Indeed, during Initiation, only the strongest New System Holders could fight monsters and it was mostly monsters from the lowest rank [G] such as Skeletons.

"I have a lot to plan..." Luke whispered.

Once he arrived at the building he lived at, he knocked on his neighbor's door.

A middle-aged man with white hair opened it.

"Oh, young Luke. How are you? Come in."

He got in and the two drank some tea together.

The middle-aged man's name was Calvin. He was the one renting Luke's studio to the latter.

Calvin knew a lot about Luke's circumstances, therefore he offered a low rent price and was even okay with him paying late a lot of the time.

Luke started talking to him about his Initiation, although he didn't say anything about the hole he had fallen into or the dragon he had fought.

'He probably wouldn't believe me anyways...'

"So... Ummm... I came to ask for a favor."

"Sure, Luke. What do you need?"

"Umm... Can I borrow your computer? I'll only need it for a couple of hours."

"I'm sorry that won't be possible. I just bought a new one after all. Oh, would you like to buy my old one?" Calvin answered.

He was extremely kind and considerate, but Calvin never gave things for free as he didn't want to be taken advantage of in the future.

"Sure! How much are you thinking?"

"Let's say... Ummm, 200 bucks?"

"200? That's a bit... Oh, two hundred, sure!" Luke handed two hundred dollar bills to the middle-aged man.

Calvin took it and looked at Luke suspiciously.

"This is unusual... Did you find a good job or something?"

"Oh. Yes, the best! Please take these too." Luke handed him an additional 600 dollars.

Calvin's suspicions became a reality to him.

"Are you involved in anything shady? You know I can help if you need anything."

"I'm fine, really. This is what I owe you for last month and this one, right?"

"Sure. Although if you're making good money, the rent might go up." Calvin said jokingly.

Luke laughed.

"Please give me some time before that!"

...

It was now 4 pm.

Luke walked towards his studio with his newly acquired laptop in his hands.

He got into his studio, took a shower, cooked some eggs, ate and sat on his bed.

It was the only furniture he had, excluding his small cupboard.

On the ground, two empty copybooks and a pen.

With his laptop he started looking for information about Hunters, the different floors of the Abyssal Dungeon and many other things.

After going on a forum for Hunters, he took various notes.

'So the best way to increase your Strength and Agility Stats is by working out... Weightlifting for the Strength Stat, sprinting and stretching for the Agility Stat... Vigor and Endurance go up with cardio workouts such as long-distance running... Looks like the way to increase one's Mana Stat is something people don't agree on...'

Luke searched what the best Dungeons to enter were for a beginner.

'Apparently, those with average Stats should train some before entering actual Dungeons alone... I would probably be fine. Maybe not as one strong hit might be enough to wipe me out...'

He decided that it would be better for him to train and build up his strength before entering Dungeons.

'Anyone can enter a Dungeon, but only after clearing one can you call yourself a Hunter. You also get a Hunter License which gives a bunch of benefits... Let's train for a couple of days first.'

Luke took a piece of paper and started writing his new weekly training regimen.

"For today, I'll test my strength." He said out loud.

Luke got down on the floor and started doing pushups.

'34... 35...36. Not bad, considering 12 used to be too much.'

The increase in his Strength Stat of course helped a lot.

As he sat down to rest, Luke took a look at his Stats.

[ Stats: Vigor: 27

Endurance: 17

Strength: 14

Agility: 17

Mana: 7

Unused Stat Points: 14.

]

'14 Stat Points to use however I want...'

It had only been 45 seconds since Luke had stopped to rest, but he felt he was already ready for another set.

'Let's shoot for 40 this time.'

As he got to 38,

[You have gained 1 Strength Point.]

He stopped right away.

"Nice. Let's do some of those ab crunches now." Luke said out loud

He spent the rest of the evening doing the same exercises over and over again.

Only once it was 11 pm did he stop, take a shower and go to sleep.

While Luke hadn't realized, it was thanks to his Ultimate Recovery that he could work out all evening.

...

Luke woke up at 4 am the next day.

As soon as he got up, Luke drank some water and put on the clothes he had been given the day before for the Initiation.

'Weirdly, they were pretty comfortable...'

Luke put shoes on and went outside to run.

He kept running and resting from 4:15 am to 7:15 am.

'About three hours of running. Alright.'

He came back home, took a shower and went out to a nearby fancy gym.

'It only opens at 9 am... Guess I have some time...'

He walked into a random store and bought sportswear.

At 9 am, he got into the gym and signed himself up.

'100 dollars a month? That's so expensive!!'

Luke went into the men's room and changed into the clothes he had just bought.

'The first class is at 9:15 am. It's a 45-minute class and the second one starts at 10:15...'

He followed the first class which was weightlifting.

At the end of it, he was soaking in sweat and breathing extremely heavily.

After the 15 minute break, the second class began. It was a yoga class.

Although he was about to leave, he stayed, as Agility was extremely important.

'Can't be picky. Training is training... I guess...'

At the end of the yoga class, all the people who had been at the gym at 9 am were gone. Except for Luke.

Once again, the class kicked his butt. Still, the 15-minute break between classes was all he needed to be in top shape again.

The coaches and trainers were surprised by his dedication and commitment.

Without meaning to, Luke ended up spending 10 hours inside the gym either following different classes or running on a treadmill at a pretty high speed.

...

It was now 7 pm.

"This was fun!" Luke said out loud while raising his arms up towards the sky.

He ended up running back home too.

'Am I becoming some kind of training or fitness addict?'