Chapter 69: Training Room.
Ashley, who was the one who had said everything earlier, was the most surprised of all the students.
Her eyes trembled slightly as she stared at Aiden, her voice shaking as she muttered to herself, "H-He is a commoner… T-That's impossible… how can he be a commoner?" Her shock was so great that even her breathing felt uneven.
As she muttered this to herself, Sophia—who was standing close by—heard her clearly.
Sophia turned her head toward Ashley and said softly but firmly, "I know it's hard to believe, but he really is from the countryside. And he is definitely not from a noble family. He was saved by the principal, and after that, he has been living with him ever since. The principal was also the one who recommended him."
The entire class froze upon hearing this. When everyone realized that the principal himself was the one who had recommended Aiden, they finally began to believe that Aiden truly was a commoner.
This left them completely stunned. Their disbelief slowly turned into shock as they tried to accept this unbelievable fact.
Sophia saw everyone's shocked expressions, the confusion mixed with amazement, and she spoke to calm them. "All of you don't need to be so surprised. Julian is a child with great courage, and he has also trained diligently. He has confidence in his abilities. Besides, in this academy, there is no commoner or nobility. So why can't someone from the countryside be strong and brave?"
Her voice carried a calm authority that forced everyone to listen.
Then she took a deep breath and said, "Okay, now, Ashley, sit back. I will begin the class." Hearing her name, Ashley snapped out of her surprise. Her eyes widened slightly, and she quickly nodded before sitting back down.
The other students also stopped whispering and thinking about Aiden as their attention returned to the lesson.
Sophia began her class, teaching the students about the basics of Water Mana and how to use it in battle with proper strategies. She also taught them how to fight in groups, explaining the importance of teamwork and timing.
She demonstrated several simple spells, her movements smooth and controlled, as the students attempted to imitate her casting.
But during all this, Aiden's mind was somewhere else entirely.
Aiden was thinking about the excuse William had told Sophia earlier. He was thinking deeply about the answer he would give if someone asked him how William adopted him.
He replayed the story repeatedly, checking every small detail, filling every loophole in this situation. His thoughts were calm yet sharp, preparing himself for any situation that might come.
After an hour, the class finally ended. Aiden walked out of the classroom, his steps steady yet slow. His expression was calm, but his mind was focused. He was now going to visit William to ask if his personal training room was ready.
He walked through the wide corridor as students passed him, chatting with each other, laughing, and discussing their spells. The academy felt lively, but Aiden moved quietly through the crowd, his mind on his goal.
Aiden entered the professors' quarters. The hallway here was quieter, filled with a more serious atmosphere. He walked for a few minutes and soon arrived in front of William's office. He took a slow breath to calm himself, then knocked on the door.
After a few seconds, William's familiar voice came from inside. "Come in."
Aiden pushed open the door and stepped into the room. William looked up from his desk and said with a faint smile, "So it was you. Come, sit."
Aiden nodded and took a seat on the chair opposite William.
William looked at him for a moment, his expression relaxed. "Why did you come today?"
Aiden lifted his head and replied, "I wanted to ask if my personal training room is ready or not."
William smiled—an approving, satisfied smile. "Of course it's prepared. Do you want to go check it?"
Aiden nodded again.
William glanced toward the empty air beside Aiden and said, "Come out."
The moment he said this, a figure suddenly appeared right beside Aiden. He was wearing black battle trousers and a shirt like an assassin. His face was covered with a black mask.
Aiden's nerves tightened instantly; his eyes widened slightly as he hadn't sensed the figure approaching at all. The sudden presence made his muscles stiffen instinctively.
William noticed this reaction. "Don't be so tense. He is one of my guards."
Hearing this, Aiden relaxed a little, though his eyes still held a hint of caution.
William then spoke to the guard, "Take him to one of my personal training rooms in the professor's quarters."
The guard nodded, his voice rough and deep. "Yes, sir."
He turned and began walking. Aiden stood up and silently followed him. They walked through several turns and corridors, the air growing heavier with mana the deeper they went.
At last, they arrived in front of a large stone door. The guard placed his hand on the stone tablet attached to the wall and poured mana into it.
The mystical symbols carved into the door began to glow faintly. The light pulsed like a heartbeat, then the heavy stone door slowly shifted and opened with a deep rumbling sound.
Aiden watched this with interest, trying to understand how the mechanism worked.
The guard glanced at him and said, "You can go inside."
Aiden nodded and stepped into the training room. The guard did not follow him inside, as he had not been ordered to. Instead, he remained outside and said, "I will now close the door. If you want to leave, just knock on the door, and I will open it."
Aiden nodded once more.
The stone door closed behind him, the glowing symbols fading until the room fell into silence.
Aiden stood there for a moment and began to analyze his surroundings. The room was extremely large—nearly a kilometer long and wide. It was like a separate world hidden inside the academy.
There were different terrains for every element: rocky ground, soft earth, flowing streams, patches of sand, and even an area full of sharp stone pillars. There was a water well, and beside it was a garden where fresh fruits were growing.
Aiden was genuinely surprised. He had not expected such a high-quality training room.
He looked around and thought to himself, This isn't what I expected… this room is far beyond my expectations. He really is serious about helping me get strong.
After clearing his thoughts, Aiden sat down and began to absorb mana from the surroundings.
His limit for absorbing mana was two hours, and he had already reached that limit before the Basic Water Mana class began.
He had rested for quite some time since then, so now he was planning to resume his combination of Mana Breathing with spell training. He wanted to use mana breathing while actually fighting.
But this was not an easy task.
He needed immense practice and mental focus to pull this off. Even a single wrong breath would cause the breathing technique to stop. Aiden had already tried many times back in the cafeteria and during Kevin's class.
But he had failed every time—sometimes missing the breathing count, sometimes mixing up the breaths.
Still, Aiden did not give up. So he began again.
As soon as the mana entered his body, Aiden felt his body heat up from the inside. It was the same burning sensation he felt when he first absorbed mana in the academy, but now he was more accustomed to it.
This meant that the mana density in this training room was far higher than outside. This shocked Aiden, because William had clearly not held back when giving him this room.
He strengthened his resolve and whispered to himself, "If I train inside this room… I will become exponentially stronger than before."
Then he continued absorbing the dense mana from the surroundings.
After about 15 minutes, he stood up. He did not stop absorbing mana. He took a fighting stance, but he didn't perform any complex movements. He used simple spells and attacks so that he could slowly get used to fighting while using the breathing technique.
Aiden trained for another hour and 45 minutes. Finally, exhaustion hit him, and he sat down on the ground. But even though he was tired, he had succeeded a little—he was now able to launch a single spell while maintaining the breathing technique.
This tiny success made him feel even more determined. His desire to become strong… his desire for revenge… it grew even more inside him.
As he sat on the ground, he felt hungry. His eyes drifted toward the distant garden where the fruit trees were.
He stood up.
In the next moment, he vanished and reappeared in the garden. In front of him were all kinds of fruits—apples, bananas, mangoes, peaches, apricots, watermelon, and many more.
Aiden plucked a fully ripened red apple and took a bite.
It was the best apple he had ever eaten in both his lives. Sweet, juicy, refreshing.
He finished it in a few seconds. But he still wasn't full, so he reached out to pick a banana.
Just then, he felt something strange.
His mana was completely restored. As if he had never used any.
This was clearly abnormal. Aiden had not absorbed mana after training, yet his mana was back to full.
Aiden frowned, confused. Then a thought came to him.
The only thing he had done… was eat that apple.
Which meant that the apple had miraculously restored his mana and stamina.
He thought to himself, This apple isn't ordinary. It restored my mana and stamina instantly. I will have to ask William about it.
Aiden continued eating different fruits. After he was full, he didn't return to his room. Since he had fully recovered, he planned to train again.
He had discovered a new way to train continuously.
He would train until he was exhausted… then eat the fruits to restore his mana and stamina… and then train again.
So Aiden trained again and again, and each time he grew exhausted, he ate the fruit.
Hours passed, and night finally arrived.
Aiden was sitting on the ground, exhausted once more. He held an apple in his hand and ate it to restore his mana and stamina.
Then he walked toward the stone door and knocked on it.
The door opened.
And Aiden left the room.
Author's Note: Aiden gets stronger as every day passes by, and he also discovers the strange fruit. Stay tuned for more chapters.