The sunlight peeked through the castle's windows, casting a warm glow across the room. Septh woke to the sound of shouting outside. She stepped onto the balcony to investigate and saw Zephyr in the courtyard, vigorously swinging a wooden sword. His movements were swift and precise, but the exertion was evident on his face.
A knock on the door pulled Septh's attention away. It was Hannah. "Good morning, Ms. Septh. Did you have a good rest?" Hannah asked with a cheerful smile.
Septh nodded. "Yes, I did."
"Great! Now change into your dress and head to the library," Hannah instructed before leaving.
Septh quickly dressed in a ruby-colored gown and made her way to the library. Inside, Hannah waited with piles of books stacked on the table. "Today, you will learn about this world's history," Hannah announced.
Septh picked up a book titled **"The Art of War."** Hannah glanced at the book and nodded approvingly. "That's a good choice. It covers the tactics and strategies our ancestors used in war."
Septh then picked up another book, **"The Conflict Between the Four Kingdoms."** Hannah guided her to a seat. "If you have any questions, please ask me," she said before leaving Septh to her reading.
Meanwhile, in a dense forest, Ki was on high alert. Shadows flickered around him as he tried to anticipate Kenji's next move. The forest was dense, with tall trees casting long shadows and the rustling of leaves filling the air. Suddenly, an attack came from the shadows. Ki managed to block it and grabbed what he thought was Kenji's arm, but it was just a tree branch. Frustrated, he kept his guard up, knowing Kenji was testing his reactions.
The ground beneath him began to crack, and a shadow emerged, striking out with a punch. Ki barely dodged and retreated to a safer distance. "Your reaction is too slow," the voice came from the shadow. It was Kenji, stepping into the light.
Ki, drenched in sweat, lowered his guard. "Let's stop for now. I've determined your strengths and weaknesses. You have a fast body, but your reaction time needs improvement," Kenji observed. "We'll get there, but for now, I'll be giving you a different training routine."
Ki listened intently. "Let's focus on building your endurance. It's only been three hours, and you're already exhausted," Kenji said thoughtfully. "Oh, I've got it. Let's start with basic workouts."
"Basic workouts?" Ki asked, confused.
"Yeah, push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, jogging. Haven't you heard of those? These exercises come from the modern era," Kenji explained.
"I know what they are," Ki replied.
"Good. Let's see what you can do. Start with what you know," Kenji instructed.
Ki dropped to the ground and began his push-ups and sit-ups. "Fifty push-ups and eighty sit-ups. That's above average in the modern era, but it's not enough here. Your goal is 100 push-ups and 100 sit-ups without stopping," Kenji said, pushing Ki to his limits.
In the courtyard, Zephyr wiped sweat from his brow. He had been training with Clayman, who was relentless. "You need to be faster, stronger," Clayman barked. "No breaks during practice!"
Zephyr groaned, feeling every muscle ache. As the sun crossed the sky, it was already lunchtime. Zephyr fell to the ground exhausted, catching his breath. The maids watched from afar, giggling. Sophie saw this and commanded them to go back to work. She glanced at Zephyr with worried eyes.
Ki was also on the ground, gasping for breath. His top was drenched in sweat, and he wasn't wearing a shirt. Kenji, watching him, commanded him to stand up. Ki pushed himself up. "Good, now let's start with sprinting." Kenji put his hand on Ki's shoulder and pointed at a tall building peeking through the trees. "I want you to run as fast as you can to that building. You didn't eat this morning, right? If you don't reach that building within 30 minutes, you won't have breakfast."
With those words, Kenji disappeared. Ki was exhausted, thoughts filling his head. But he decided to run, not because he was hungry, but because he wanted improvement.
Back in the library, Septh was reading when she stumbled upon a book called **"The Lore of Summons."** She immediately picked up the book and started reading, hoping to find answers to their predicament.