— Hikari's mental journal —
[Eighth floor] Cold room. It was freezing in there. Then the wyvern head rooms. Had to use the cold to block the flames.
[Ninth floor] A hall with statues all around. Each of them offers teachings that have to be passed.
[Swordsman statue] Tough nut. My armor's too light to fight like him.
[Rogue statue] Got a pass right after I could throw shards straight. Still have more to learn.
[Rider statue] He just gave up on me. When can I get a horse or wyvern big enough for me?
Thirty-five push-ups. Thirty-five sit-ups. Thirty-five squats.
Hikari warms up for the next statue.
Munch. Munch. She takes out a stick and adds it to her makeshift calendar.
Ten sticks representing ten workouts.
Even though the rider statue gave her a free pass, she still had to cool her mind after the encounter.
She stretches after the workout.
She could have done more reps, but she didn't want to overexert herself.
That is for when she returns to the estate.
The next statue.
An obese statue in the heaviest armor of the whole lot.
It stands facing diagonally left, dragging along a cannon hanging below its hip.
The cannon was taller than the knight itself if standing upright.
A wyvern head with an open mouth.
It looked so heavy that the knight's arms could barely hold it in place.
"Here goes"
She stepped onto the tile.
…
Woosh.
Wyvern flame immediately engulfed her.
Hikari raised her sword to block.
She lowered her stance and raised an intense barrier to repel the wyvern flame.
She stabilizes. The flames were comfortably kept outside the barrier.
The swordsman's mana form was incredible.
Before too long, the flames around her dissipated.
She lowered her guard and saw a giant even more massive than she was standing before her.
The wyvern cannon by its side powered down.
The insides of its mouth were still red-hot from the blast.
Odd. Hikari felt the massive wyvern knight laughing at her.
It stood at attention, facing her with its shoulders parallel to hers.
It lowered its wyvern cannon and held it in one hand.
A rumbling sound.
A wyvern cannon emerged from the ground.
It looked massive even to Hikari.
Even she wasn't sure if she could wield it properly.
The wyvern knight laughed silently.
Hikari heard nothing.
She felt an odd sensation as she glanced at the wyvern knight's hollow helmet, staring at her predicament.
Her fingers slotted into the hands at the top of the wyvern cannon.
Despite its intimidating size, Hikari felt a tingle of excitement at wielding such a powerful weapon for once.
She knew what happened in the mind space wasn't real, but it didn't stop her from feeling good about it.
Heavy. She couldn't budge it at first.
The wyvern knight laughs at her.
She throws it an annoyed glance.
She tries again.
The wyvern cannon leaves the ground momentarily.
But Hikari drops it again.
Pushing harder will hurt her back.
She turns to the wyvern knight.
It moves, shifting back into a combat stance and holding the wyvern cannon with both arms.
Hikari studies its posture.
It has been a while since she ran into something heavy enough to require proper technique to move it safely.
Legs spread out for stability. Knees locked to withstand its weight.
The obese wyvern knight's legs were so thick that she couldn't learn anything more from studying them.
Hikari copies its stance.
Shoulders facing diagonally.
Legs spread out.
She bent her knees and pushed her bottom backward.
Her fingers slotted into the grips.
Heave. She squeezed her back muscles and her thighs.
The wyvern cannon left the ground.
Hikari straightened her back and locked her knees, holding the wyvern cannon by her side in a somewhat stable position.
The wyvern knight laughed.
Its wyvern cannon charged up.
Hikari braced.
A puff of wyvern fire missed her.
The wyvern knight laughed and taunted her.
Hikari ignored its taunts.
For now, her priority was getting used to the wyvern cannon's weight.
She channeled her telekinesis.
She learned from the ranger that her telekinesis works in the mind space, though the trial was meant to be cleared without it, and it wasn't actually very effective.
Slowly, she tries to adjust her mana.
She usually uses her telekinesis on herself to get a sudden burst of speed that catches her foes off guard or to launch herself onto her sword for a powerful swing.
There was never a need to passively channel her telekinesis, as that would have meant her gear was too heavy to begin with.
The wyvern knight laughed, as if it sensed what she was trying to do.
But it was working; she felt the strain on her back and legs ease as her mana took over.
What about her salamander skin?
She checked her outfit.
In this mind space, she wore her full wyvern skin and boots.
No matter, once she went back to the real world, her salamander skin would be a great help for carrying heavy weapons.
Thud. Thud. The obese wyvern knight moves.
The ground rumbles.
A brazier lights up in the distance.
The wyvern knight faces the brazier.
Hikari watches its movements.
Tiny steps at a time, maintaining the posture that could just about support the wyvern cannon's weight.
She copies, shuffling her feet a little at a time until she faces the brazier.
The wyvern knight laughs.
It made Hikari uneasy about what trial the laughing knight had in store.
Thud. Thud. The knight moves, marching with its handcannon.
Hikari felt her heart sink.
The brazier was within range of her shards.
But carrying a wyvern cannon she could barely keep steady would feel like a march through the desert.
Thud. She shuffled one boot.
The wyvern knight was already half a meter ahead of her.
…
Hikari stood in the chambers.
She glanced at the ground.
It was time for her workout.
Her muscles felt fresh, as the physical strain of carrying the wyvern cannon happened only in her mind.
But it felt as though she had just done her usual workout a hundred times over.
She munched a cannonball fruit.
The sweetness distracted her for just a second as she dropped into her plank position.
Thirty-five push-ups.
She switched to sit-ups.
Perhaps the trial with the fat wyvern knight would change her mind about wanting a heavy weapon such as a wyvern cannon.
Or it would motivate her to work out harder so she could bear the weight of such weapons.
Meditation. Telekinesis first, as usual.
Then she thought of something.
She got into her push-up position again as her mana coursed through her body.
Sixty push-ups. She could manage more reps by using telekinesis to share her body weight.
Sixty sit-ups. Sixty squats.
Since her body had grown larger, she may have to use her telekinesis passively for now so she could move fluidly in combat.
More meditation while her muscles rest.
She puts on her salamander skin.
Fifty push-ups. Fifty sit-ups. Fifty squats.
The salamander skin squeezes her muscles as she pushes, acting like extra muscles that generate extra force to move her body.
Meditation.
She gets into her push-up position again.
A hundred reps of each exercise with a combination of her salamander skin and telekinesis.
This will be how she would fight her next battle.
Munch. Munch. She looked at the fat wyvern statue.
It was downsized significantly to fit into the halls.
It reminded her of something.
She got up, standing diagonally, like she would when carrying the wyvern cannon.
Fifty diagonal squats. Going deep so her hand touched where the imaginary grips of the wyvern cannon would be.
That'll be all for this workout.
She adds a stick. Twenty-five workouts so far.
She goes to sleep.
…
The brazier was only steps away.
The wyvern knight has already reached his.
Step by step, Hikari shuffles towards the brazier.
Her back hurts after hauling the wyvern cannon a distance she could cover in one jump.
She resists the urge to rush.
A sudden movement with the wyvern cannon's weight could cause serious sprains.
Thud. She lowered the wyvern cannon onto the ground.
Hands on her hips, she leaned back and stretched.
It was sore as heck.
In the real world, it would be just as sore if she had carried a cannon that far.
The wyvern knight laughed.
A pair of braziers lit up in the distance.
Hikari stopped and looked at the wyvern knight.
It turned its hollow great helmet towards her.
She could hear its silent laugh.
"Ivory berries."
She cursed.
…
Munch. Munch.
Hikari gets faced diagonally.
Her feet are placed in a staggered formation.
She holds her sword with both hands.
Squat. Squat. It stands in for the wyvern cannon's weight.
In the real world, she could focus on where her sword's weight lands.
She shifted the strain until it spread evenly through her back and thighs.
Although the sword was only a fraction as heavy as the actual wyvern cannon, it still served as a good measuring tool for adjusting her stance.
Forty sticks. Forty workouts.
Hikari goes to sleep.
…
The wyvern knight laughs.
This time was different.
No more braziers in the distance for the long marches.
The ground rumbles.
A massive stone emerged.
The wyvern knight aims its wyvern cannon at the stone.
Hikari watches it charge up.
A constant stream of wyvern flame.
The stone's outer crust turned red hot.
Hikari assumes her stance and mounts her wyvern cannon.
Now it was time for the good stuff.
Wyvern flame mana courses through her.
She follows the wyvern knight.
The movements were no different from what she had been practicing since the start of the tower.
She pushes her mana into the wyvern cannon.
The wyvern's eyes glowed with fire.
She senses the ley lines within the cannon.
Despite its coarse outward appearance, it was actually quite a sophisticated contraption that stored and focused her wyvern flame at the mouth.
Push. The resistance was heavy.
She had been pumping mana into the wyvern cannon for several seconds, yet the mouth was nowhere near charging up.
The wyvern knight laughed, as if it had realized this would be another struggle for Hikari.
…
Fifty sticks. Hikari finished another workout.
It looked like she'd have to go back for more cannonball fruit.
Her workout had gotten pretty intense.
Basic physical exercises.
Then she did the same exercises assisted by telekinesis and her salamander skin.
Intensive mana training.
She imagined a real wyvern cannon; wherever she might find one, it would require loads of mana.
Back to sleep; hope she'll clear the fat wyvern knight by stick number sixty.
…
Woosh. Hikari's wyvern cannon unleashes a stream of wyvern fire.
The massive stone in front of her turns red-hot.
She sustains the wyvern fire.
Her hands felt numb from both the heat and the constant strain.
How long has she been holding the wyvern cannon?
She had no wiggle room to relax her fingers.
They must be extremely stiff from holding the cannon all this time.
The wyvern knight finally laughed.
Hikari had learned this wasn't necessarily a good sign.
Woosh! The flames from its wyvern cannon got stronger.
More than twice as strong.
The stone's outer crust began melting from the intense fire.
Hikari tried to match it, pushing more mana into the wyvern cannon.
Her hands burned from the excess mana.
She can't keep this up.
Slowly, she winds down her wyvern flame.
Wielding the wyvern cannon had taught her not to rush with such a heavy weapon.
Thud! The wyvern cannon drops onto the ground.
Her hands felt completely numb.
The wyvern knight laughs.
It winds down its flames too.
It laughs even harder as Hikari tries to move her numb body.
Hikari examines its work.
The massive stone had gotten smaller.
Its outer crust had melted into lava and gathered at its base.
"Whoa."
Hikari thought.
The wyvern knight laughed and charged up its wyvern cannon again.
Hikari braced. This charge was much stronger than anything she had felt so far.
But no flames were coming out of the cannon.
The wyvern knight bottled up the flames inside the cannon.
Finally, it released the flames in a short, concentrated burst that punched a hole straight through the stone.
Hikari was impressed.
The wyvern knight continued laughing.