I was in a state of extre concentration and was not aware of myself. Then, a sharp pain shot through my palm, as if an invisible dagger had been stabbed into my flesh.
"Aaargg..."
The scream escaped without warning. My fingers twitched involuntarily, and the sword slipped from my hand, falling to the ground with a thud. My body staggered, and blood splattered all around, the sweat that had begun to accumulate on my arms now running in thick drops, soaking the entire floor.
I looked at my hands, trembling. My right palm was marked, with a wound I did not fully understand, as if an invisible blade had made contact with my skin, as if the price of accessing that state of unconsciousness was imdiately claid. Blood began to slide down my fingers, but it was not just the physical pain that disturbed . There was sothing else, sothing in the air, a growing tension, as if the sa energy that had guided my movents before had now turned against .
I took a deep breath, trying to regain my composure, but the pain continued to pulse in my palm, radiating into my veins. Sothing stirred in my chest, a fire threatening to grow and consu .
Suddenly I spat out a mouthful of blood and my vision began to blur, I passed out.
***
When I woke up, I found myself lying on the training field, the wet, cold, hard ground beneath my body. Everything hurt, a stabbing pain running through every muscle, every bone. Disoriented, my mind clouded, I tried to understand what had happened. I struggled to get up, but every movent beca unbearable. My body creaked, as if everything was about to collapse. The effort of moving made gasp in pain, but I couldn’t give in. I knew I shouldn’t just lie there. I needed to get up. I needed to understand what was happening.
Finally, I managed to partially sit up, resting my hands on the ground as my legs shook. It took a couple of minutes, but at least I was standing now, although my vision was still blurry. It was then that, regaining so sense of what was happening around , I noticed a familiar presence. In front of , floating at eye level, was a translucent window. The notification was blinking, urging to look at it.
● [You have unread ssages]
Without thinking, I responded with a slight command in my mind.
"Confirm."
Instantly, a floating ssage appeared in front of my eyes, suspended in the air.
[Congratulations, you have slightly increased your stamina]
[Congratulations, you have slightly increased your strength]
[Congratulations, you have slightly increased your dexterity]
...
...
...
The notifications kept coming, appearing one after another with increasing speed. Each one marked a small increase in my capabilities, but I didn’t really feel anything, no significant change.
The notifications filled my vision, each one a reminder that my body, although exhausted, was beginning to adapt. Perhaps this was the key to surviving, to facing what was to co. If I wanted to move forward, if I wanted to beco stronger, I would have to take advantage of this strange opportunity.
Little by little, the feeling of pain began to fade, like a fog that dissipates when the sun’s rays co out. And, although I felt a deep exhaustion, sothing in was awakening. A burning, almost irrational desire to continue training. My body was screaming for rest but my mind still didn’t listen.
I looked at the sword, now covered in a thick layer of dried blood. I approached it, legs shaking, bending down to take it, at that mont a sharp pain ran through my abdon and I stopped instantly. The agony was more intense than I had imagined. I thought I was over it, but perhaps I had pushed myself harder than I could bear.
I stood there for a mont trying to ease the pain a little, breathing heavily. Beads of sweat began to fall down my forehead, mixing with the dirt and dried blood still on my palms. I couldn’t stay there much longer. I forced a deeper breath and stood up, walking with clumsy steps, as if each one of them weighed tons.
I headed towards the locker where I had left my backpack. I took it with shaking hands and, with considerable effort, pulled out my cell phone. The glare of the screen hit my eyes, and it took a few seconds to focus on the ti. It was late, much later than I had anticipated.
Exhaustion was all around , but there was still sothing inside that resisted the idea of giving up. I looked out at the empty training ground, the sword still on the ground, and a thought crossed my mind: Is it worth continuing? Is it worth this pain?
But before I could answer, the phone vibrated in my hand. Shocking news.
『«The most important trading house on the continent announces its first auction in five years»』 [hot●]
I kept scrolling down, and as I did the news only beca more and more sensational, yet they continued to trend on the main online forums.
『«The president of the Celta group himself declared that each of the auctioned items will bring a wind of change that will shake the world»』[hot●]
Seeing the large number of similar items that appeared, I realized that Aliana had decided to go all in from the beginning. Each news item was more intriguing than the last, as if she was preparing the ground for sothing monuntal. A big announcent that would shake the continent. And I, the cause of this change, was nervous, but I knew not to lose sight of the main focus.
I remained reflecting for a few minutes looking at the screen, trapped in my thoughts. Everything seed to be changing, perhaps the future I knew would be altered by this small event, that scared , and in a way, I felt like another spectator. Finally, I closed the cell phone with a slight pain in my chest, and headed to my room.
The only thing I can do is get stronger, for better or worse, the decision had already been made. From tomorrow I would continue training in this sa way, no matter how exhausting and painful it was. I knew that this thod gave imdiate results, and that was all that mattered now.
When I got to my room, I left my backpack aside and lay down, I closed my eyes, and although fatigue invaded , my mind was still awake, going around asking the sa questions, having the sa concerns. Will I be able to avoid the future that is to co? Will I be able to save my companions?
User Comments
0 comments from readers