After speaking with her master, Alexa had returned to her training. We find her at the river near the hill, swinging from branch to branch over the current while Jayden watches, eating a peach. She's almost at the place where her master had been sleeping the last time. When she grabs the last branch she fails to hold on properly and falls into the water. Soaked, she hears Jayden say, "Mm, start again," to which she simply replies, "Yes, yes—I know."
For three hours Alexa keeps failing to reach the bank; after falling for the fifth time she lies on the shore, heaving great sighs. Jayden kicks her in the rear and says, "Get up—the training is to get here by swinging, not by swimming."
Alexa — angry, getting up: "At least take these things off me," pointing to the straps on her ankles and wrists.
Jayden: "No," he spits a peach pit at her forehead, which causes it to drop into the river.
Alexa: "Why?! Besides, what good is this? You know I have prior training."
Jayden: "Yes. And?"
Alexa: "It means I already have what's necessary to hold a sword and a fighting style. Just teach me new things, not this nonsense." She climbs out of the water.
Jayden: "It's true you have knowledge, but as far as I'm concerned you're new at this. Whatever you had before my lessons is yours; I don't care. With that clear—start again."
Two more hours passed. By seven in the evening, with the sunset reflected on the river, Alexa finally completes the practice and exhales a huge sigh. Her hands and legs tremble; veins stand out around her wrists and ankles.
Jayden: "Alright, finally. Give me those weights and go."
Alexa — tossing them: "Here—these pieces of junk. One question: tomorrow will we start lessons on the Fiu?"
Jayden — catching the weights: "Excuse me? You want to start with the Fiu?"
Alexa: "Yes! That's why you're my master!"
Jayden puffs his cheeks. "HAHAHAHA! You can't even handle this basic stuff and you want to practice that—hahaha." He cuts his laugh off. "Train. When you're ready for that, I'll tell you."
The girl, annoyed, walks off complaining about how slow the training is. The warrior only looks at the weights, thinking, She has strength—her prior training after all... His gaze shifts from the weights to the branches she'd been swinging from. Few would have passed that in a single day with twenty kilograms attached to their body. He closes his eyes to meditate for a moment; a faint expression like a smile crosses his face before he vanishes as if carried off by a gust of wind.
The previous day's training left a deep ache in her limbs. Riding in the car with her chauffeur, she cannot help but rub her wrists. After saying goodbye with her big smile to the man who drove her wherever she wanted, she is met by her friends, who take her hands and pull her toward the center of the school. She complains several times about being dragged along, while the others seem oddly expectant for some reason she doesn't yet understand—this is why they had been ignoring her. They arrive and stop in front of the largest hall in the place, hundreds of students coming and going.
Alexa: "Girls! What's happening?"
Tamara: "Shut up and look," pointing toward the entrance at the other end of the hall.
Alexa: "What's going on?"
Leslie: "It seems the city's hero is in a feud with some older kids for defending a redhead with glasses from their class."
Alexa: "Ah, that's why all the fuss. Well, now that I know, I'm going to our classroom," she says, turning away from her friends.
The girls follow her toward the classroom to say something.
Leslie: "Oh come on, Alex—doesn't it even make you a little curious?"
Alexa: "Why would it? After all, he should be able to defend himself, I suppose."
Tamara: "Rumor is they plan to ambush him and the brainiac today."
Alexa: "Don't call him that, Tam. Besides, what problem could that be for us?"
Leslie: "It just sounds so cool that people like that are around us."
Tamara: "And he might be that frog-man you had a crush on a while back."
Leslie: "I don't think it's him—there are many heroes in this city."
Both girls glance doubtfully at the redhead as they enter class.
Leslie: "Hmm, is something wrong?" she asks, looking around.
Tamara: "What do you mean—do you know something you haven't told us?"
Leslie, slightly blushing: "Oh right. Last week when I went to study with Emily I walked to meet my chauffeur and was mugged."
Alexa, surprised: "Why didn't you tell us?!"
Leslie: "It only left a small mark on my cheek, and someone saved me from being cut. That's why I didn't tell anyone."
Both girls check her all over to make sure it was true that only a small mark remained from that horrible experience. Hours later, back at the river, Alexa finds a small note tied to a branch over the water. Looking for the warrior, she fails to find him; there is only a rope lying there with a note. Approaching it, she reads: "Spoiled one—today will be simple. The note has the place where I'll be waiting. Tie one end of the rope to your waist and the other to the nearest tree on the bank. I probably marked it. Take the piece of rock under the note." She lifts the things and finds the tree with a mark. Prepared, she jumps toward the branch; just a few meters away she is yanked back and falls hard to the ground, sustaining a few blows. She recovers immediately and, angry, tries again, with the same result.
After several falls she lets out a loud scream of rage, splashes herself a little with the river water, and decides to inspect the rope, thinking it must be why she keeps crashing. Observing it carefully, she concludes its only noteworthy feature is its high tensile strength. Looking at the note again, she notices writing on the back: "P.S. I measured the rope so only an acrobatic maneuver can reach the branch; otherwise you'll just smash yourself on the ground. If in your infinite idiocy you tried without reading this, you're slower than I thought."
The girl simply sighs loudly and mutters, "Idiot," before walking away from the tree. She thinks for a second that if she unties the rope her master wouldn't notice, but after reconsidering she shakes her head in refusal and prepares to do her task properly.