Leaving the house through the main door, Maeyurai took a left and headed for the archery range—which was at the lawn, or the backyard.
Oh, there they are.
Shienne and Mhiya were holding their respective bows, listening as Huizen talked. Maeyurai continued walking until he reached the range.
Huh, what are they talking about?
"Hello," he said, walking towards them.
Huizen turned his head towards Maeyurai and said, "Oh, you're here. How is it? The clothes, I mean."
"It's good, fits perfectly. But... how did you know the measurements of my body? The clothes fit like they were made for me. Surely, you didn't manage to get this knit within a day, right?"
"Hm? You ask how? Simple, I merely gave you my old clothes," Huizen replied, a smirk tugging on the corner of his lips.
Huh? His old clothes? So he wore these before?
"You used these when you were younger?"
"Yes, when I was your age, I had the same body as you, which only changed when I got older."
"That's pretty cool," Maeyurai said. "What were you telling Shienne and Mhiya? I saw you talking about something."
"I was simply telling them how to guide you as their seniors; you will be training by their side from now on, after all."
"Ah, okay. So, what should I do now?"
Before telling him what to do, Huizen headed to the bow rack and took the same longbow that Maeyurai used yesterday.
"You're going to training all day today," Huizen said, handing the longbow to Maeyurai. "And the girls are going to be training alongside you."
Taking the longbow, Maeyurai nodded his head. "Got it, so I'll just shoot the targets. Is that it?"
"Not exactly," Huizen replied. "While you do indeed have to draw your bow a hundred times, you will do other physical activities as well."
"You lot can start now. Maeyurai, if you have any questions, just ask the two," he continued before heading off while waving his hand. "I'll be going out to handle some business. Train properly, you three."
His gaze following Huizen's back, Maeyurai asked, "He just goes like that?"
"Well, yeah," Shienne answered. "He's always got something to do every morning. He usually returns late in the afternoon, sometimes even in the evening."
Since Huizen was the captain of the archers, it should be common sense that he's always busy—always off somewhere doing something important.
Okay, time to get training. This should be simple; it's just repeated actions anyway. Maeyurai thought, holding his longbow with a firm grip.
"What now?" he asked, turning his eyes towards Shienne and Mhiya. "Do we start by drawing the bow a hundred times as Huizen said?"
Shienne was the one who answered, while Mhiya walked to the grassy lawn.
"No, we're going to do 30 laps of jogging around the range. That will come later."
While she was talking, Maeyurai was looking at Mhiya, who was stretching her legs.
"Oh, okay," he said, turning his attention back to Shienne.
Shienne then followed Mhiya to the lawn. She also gestured for Maeyurai to come along.
Walking towards the two, Maeyurai copied their motions of stretching. He doesn't know how to train, and so he merely imitates what his seniors are doing.
Am I doing this right? Eh, whatever. They'll just tell me if I'm doing something wrong.
"Maeyurai," Mhiya called. "Line up, we're going to jog. Be sure to keep an equal pace with us, m'kay?"
Upon hearing his name, Maeyurai turned his head towards Mhiya and stood upright. "Got it."
A few seconds after, the three of them started jogging while carrying their bows. The pace was slow and steady, which was no problem for Maeyurai. However, he doesn't know proper breathing techniques to conserve his stamina.
Do we really have to jog while carrying our bow? It seems like a hassle...
Maeyurai wasn't really that weak despite how his body looks. He doesn't have much muscle, but his strength is not lacking. He can keep the slow pace of the jog for around 20 minutes non-stop, but improper breathing techniques might reduce that time.
Nine laps in, Maeyurai was already feeling the burn. His legs wobbling with every step.
Agh... My stamina's almost running out. We gotta do 21 more of these? How straining!
Despite hurting, he kept a steady pace and managed to keep up with the two.
"Hah..."
He was breathing heavily; it was the only noise that they could hear aside from the sound of their boots hitting the grass.
Shienne looked over her shoulder while jogging. She slowed down little to keep pace with Maeyurai.
"Breathe deeply using your diaphragm. Inhale through your nose, and exhale through your mouth. Keep a steady rhythm, and keep your feet light; don't place all your weight on your legs, it'll reduce your stamina even more."
Maeyurai nodded his head as he listened, staying in line. He then implemented everything he was told one by one.
"Good, just like that! You can slow down if you want; you're only starting out, after all," Shienne said, patting Maeyurai at the back before increasing her pace to jog in front.
He took her advice and slowed his pace to regain some of his stamina. Keeping his feet light as he jogged, he felt his calves burning even more, but his right side no longer hurt like it did earlier.
It was the 11th lap; Maeyurai was doing well. Though he fell back drastically, as Shienne and Mhiya were already at the 13th lap, he could continue on without stopping.
This was until he felt a sharp pain in his temple. Not at the left side, but this time, on the right. It was the most painful it's ever been, like having insects grinding on your nerves.
"ARGH!" he yelled out, his jog coming to a halt as he knelt down, pressing his hand to the right side of his face.
His loud yelp was heard throughout the range; Mhiya and Shienne immediately stopped jogging and headed over to help him out.
"Maeyurai!" Shienne called out. "What happened?"
"Shienne, he probably got a sprain," Mhiya said. "Most likely due to straining himself too much. We should've allowed him to rest a little at the 10th lap."
Raising one of her eyebrows, Shienne was skeptical. "Huh? Sprain, you say? He wouldn't be holding his head if that were the case."
Mhiya paused for a moment. "Right, but we're unsure of what he's in pain for."
To the two, the reason for Maeyurai's current situation was mysterious.
But he himself knows the reason why this is happening, as he already figured it out yesterday.
My right eye... It's going to become normal like my left eye did!
But, fuck! This hurts like hell!
"My eye keeps hurting; it's been like this since two days ago—Ngrh!" he said, wincing in pain.
"Your eye?" Mhiya asked. "Why does it hurt? It's... odd why the eye suddenly hurts."
Maeyurai paused.
Should I tell her?
I don't want to. I'll tell them when the right time comes.
"I-I don't know... It just randomly happens. Agh!"
Shienne and Mhiya exchanged a look, silently communicating a possible solution. They nodded at each other once they reached a conclusion.
"Okay, Maeyurai, you should take a rest first," Mhiya said, while Shienne was helping Maeyurai stand up, placing his arm over her shoulder.
"Can you stand?" Shienne gently said.
"Yeah, I can."
Shienne nodded and brought him to the bench near the shooting line and asked, "Does it still hurt?"
"It still does, but I can endure it."
"Got it, stay there and rest. We'll check up on you later."
Maeyurai gave her a thumbs up, leaning forward as he sat, trying to lessen the pain.
Once she saw that Maeyurai would be fine in the meantime, Shienne returned to the lawn and talked to Mhiya.
"He should be fine... for now? Let's keep an eye on him while we do the remaining laps," Shienne said, watching Maeyurai from afar.
Mhiya hummed, slightly nodding. "Hm. Let's finish this quickly so we can tend to him."
The two girls would return to jogging around the range, though with increased pace.
Maeyurai observed them as they jogged.
How passionate. After putting me in a safe area to rest, they return back to training. Is that how much they want to grow stronger?
Or is it because they're scared of Huizen knowing that they didn't finish the 30 laps?
He sighed and decided to take a nap to ease the pain. Soon, he slowly fell asleep.
*
After 20 minutes, Maeyurai woke up from his nap. He opened his eyes and saw Shienne and Mhiya standing in front, talking about something. They were sweating, probably because they just finished jogging.
"Mr. Koja said last night that this guy has great potential in archery," Mhiya said, her arms crossed.
"Really? I can't see it. But if he's right, then we shouldn't fall back and continue training hard. We absolutely cannot be bested by someone who trained later than we did," Shienne replied.
"Right you are."
"Oh, by the way," Shienne said. It seemed she remembered something. "Have you found out what your Mana Attribute is?"
"My Mana Attribute? It's Infusion and Emanation. My Mana Affinity is only Wind," Mhiya replied. "What about you?"
"My Attribute is Conjuration only, while my Affinity is fire. You're quite lucky, aren't you?" Shienne smirked after her last sentence.
Mhiya scoffed. "Well, just because I have two Attributes doesn't mean I'm lucky. Wind isn't even that rare either."
Shienne furrowed her eyebrows. "Not lucky, you say? Even Mr. Koja's Affinity is only Fire. He's also a Conjurer like I am."
Maeyurai was awake, yet his eyes were closed. He was listening very intently to their words, trying to recall the terms they were saying.
The terms like Conjuration and Emanation, Maeyurai remembered quickly.
Mana Attribute... If I remember correctly, it should be the trait that a mana contains. And then the Mana Affinity should basically be the element.
The thing I'm confused about is, how do I find out what my Attribute and Affinity are?
I should ask them.
Rubbing his eyes, acting like he just woke up, Maeyurai would feign drowsiness and raise his head. "Hm...? Guys?"
The two girls' attentions turned to Maeyurai.
"Oh, you're awake!" Shienne said loudly, the undertone of worry still in her voice.
Leaning forward in curiosity, Mhiya brought her hand to the right side of Maeyurai's face—and flicked her finger.
Snick!
Mhiya's finger made contact with Maeyurai's temple and hit harder than it should. However, instead of crying out in pain like he did earlier, Maeyurai merely flinched, pulling his head back as he stared at Mhiya.
"Ow! What was that for?" he asked in confusion, his act of sleepiness immediately fading away.
"You've been awake since earlier? Quite the actor you are," Mhiya teasingly said, a grin forming on her face. "Did you rest well?"
Feeling himself up, Maeyurai could no longer feel the pain. In fact, looking at Mhiya and Shienne right now, his vision was perfect. What he assumed was correct: the pain was his body's way of recovering his eyesight.
"Oh, I was right," he mumbled.
Shienne's and Mhiya's brows furrowed, a puzzled look on their faces.
"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Shienne asked.
Mhiya brought her hand to Maeyurai's face and flicked his forehead. "I asked, 'Did you rest well?' dummy."
Maeyurai jerked his head back, surprised by the sudden flick of her finger. He had accidentally said his thoughts out loud, and now he's facing the embarrassment.
He shyly rubbed the back of his head and said, "Oh, sorry... I was thinking something and accidentally said it out loud. And yeah, I did rest well. I feel good right now."
"Except for the stinging pain in my forehead," he added.
"Hmph, is that so?" Mhiya said, her tone carrying sarcasm. "I can add more to that, and you don't even need to ask."
She motioned taking her hand to Maeyurai's face once more, to which he just avoided right away by standing up and moving back.
"Uh oh, please no," he said sarcastically, his arms raised up, feigning surrender.
Mhiya giggled upon hearing Maeyurai's reply. "Good boy," she said, her voice low.
Her voice hit a certain part of his brain, sending shivers that traveled through his spine.
Jeez... What the hell? That gives me the creeps.
"A-anyway, what's the next thing to do?" he asked, lowering his arms.
"You look flustered," Mhiya teased, smirking. She was enjoying this.
Maeyurai sighed. "Can we just move on?"
What a surprise. The sudden change-up was something Mhiya did not expect. With wide eyes, she nodded her head.
"Oh, sure," Mhiya said. "The next would be carrying heavy logs as we walk across the range. We will do 10 sets of that."
While the two were talking, Shienne had already gone back to the lawn, setting up the logs for them to carry.
"You two, hurry up!" she called out.
Maeyurai and Mhiya turned their gazes towards her voice. Before going, they set their weapon nearby Shienne's bow on the bench and then went to the lawn as well.
"Coming!" Mhiya shouted back.
Looking at the logs resting on the grass, it seemed like they weighted one to two tons. Maeyurai felt his legs weaken at the thought of carrying such massive logs.
I... I have to carry that across the range... 10 times?!
Absolutely not. Absolutely not!
I will die carrying that thing!
Maeyurai was panicking inside, disagreeing with a loud voice playing in his mind. Though his face looked stoic, which was a contrast to what he currently feels.
With a huff, the girls started carrying their respective logs.
His eyes observing the two, he noticed two things he should be doing: lift the edge of the log and rest it on your shoulder. Next, keep a lowered center of gravity so the heavy weight of the log doesn't crush you.
Wait, this might be simpler than I thought. I should just try it myself.
He approached the log that was waiting for him. Standing at the front edge, he lifted its top and hoisted it on his shoulder.
"Oof!" he uttered, already feeling the weight of the log on his shoulder.
Tilting his head to the side to accommodate the log's girth on his shoulder, he lowered his core and started moving forward.
Huff!
This is easier than it looks! I just have to drag this, and I'll be finished! Maeyurai thought, feeling confident as he flashed a smile.
Carrying the heavy log with great effort, Maeyurai kept in mind the proper breathing techniques and continued ahead.
However—his confidence soon ran out when he reached the other side and realized that he had to do it nine more times.
"This is bullcrap!" he exclaimed, dropping the heavy log on the grass.
Thud!
The impact of the log hitting the grass echoed across the lawn, easily catching Shienne and Mhiya's focus.
The two girls were already on their second rep, carrying the log back to the start.
Hearing the loud thud, Shienne stopped moving while keeping the heavy object on her shoulder. "Maeyurai! Don't drop the log so harshly!" she yelled.
Groaning in reply, Maeyurai pointed his hands to the logs. "I can't help it; this thing is so heavy!"
"It's part of training, idiot!" Shienne replied loudly.
"Uugh..." Maeyurai whined.
The annoyed Shienne shook her head and returned to carrying the log.
Afterwards, Maeyurai went to the butt of the log and carried it the same way he did before.
These same actions were repeated until he finally managed to finish 10 reps, which took quite a lot of time and definitely a lot of his stamina.
Lying on his back on the grass, he was exhausted. If he kept going for two more minutes, he would've passed out.
"Hah... holy crap..." he muttered in disbelief; he didn't think that he would be able to actually finish it.
On his left were Shienne and Mhiya, standing and sweating. They seemed to be worn out as well, breathing heavily from the lifting that they just did.
Shienne shifted her gaze towards him and said, "Maeyurai, five-minute break. After that, we move on to drawing our bow."
He doesn't reply and continues lying down.
Five minutes only? Dang... Whatever, I can do this.
The two girls went to the shooting line, and the nearby table had a barrel carrying water. They took three wooden cups and filled them up with water.
Shienne drank from her own cup, while Maeyurai held on to hers and Maeyurai's.
While Shienne stayed on the shooting line, Mhiya walked towards Maeyurai's direction to give him a cup of water.
"Maeyurai?" she asked, her hand reaching out to Maeyurai. "Here's your cup."
Slowly turning his face towards Shienne, Maeyurai would sit up, mouth slightly ajar so he could take in more oxygen.
"Yeah? Thank you," he said, taking the cup from her hands.
Taking a sip of the water, it was cool and refreshing to the throat. He felt his energy gradually returning just from hydrating.
Water's never tasted this good before. He thought, leisurely relishing the tasteless water in his mouth.
Before walking back to return to Mhiya, Shienne said, "Be sure to go to the shooting line and take your bow; we're going to finish this training early.
Five minutes later, the time was up. Maeyurai headed off to the shooting range and took the longbow on the bench.
Shienne and Mhiya went to their spots on the shooting line, looking at Maeyurai as if waiting.
"What are you doing standing there?" Shienne said. "Hurry up; we start at the same time."
"Huh? Oh, my bad," Maeyurai replied, walking towards the shooting line to take his spot as well.
When he reached the line, the two prepared their bows, checking if their string's tension was enough. Of course, Maeyurai observed them and imitated them.
Before the first shot, Mhiya tilted her head in Maeyurai's way and said, "100 reps of shooting, 5 sets. You got it, Maeyurai?"
Maeyurai looked at Mhiya and nodded. "Understood."
A few seconds later, they finally started. Shienne, Mhiya, and Maeyurai simultaneously nocked their arrows and drew, each of them with different forms due to having different bows.
Maeyurai held a longbow, Mhiya had a composite recurve bow, while Shienne used a shortbow.
Intensifying his focus, Maeyurai instinctively closed his eyes to feel his surroundings.
In the mental world, he vaguely felt something foreign within his body. If comparing, it was like he was isolated in a room with a hatch on the ceiling.
Watching it for a long time, the handle rusted, and something odd entered the isolated space.
In the physical world, they released the strings and shot their arrow.
But only two arrows flew across the range.
Huh...? Why is my bow...
Since Shienne was the closest to Maeyurai, she immediately noticed the bright object to her right.
Maeyurai's bow had caught up in flames, and due to the intense heat, his arrow burned almost immediately.
But what burned was not only his bow but also both of his arms. The source of the flames came from seemingly out of thin air.
It hurts.
My arms feels like it's being torn apart. Why is it always this unbearable sensation...?
The fire intensified and engulfed both of his arms.