As soon as he got home, Rito changed clothes and went with Zastin to the spaceship.
Unlike other times, he intended to train for less time, but with double, or even triple, the results.
All of this thanks to the purple orb.
As soon as he entered the training room with the gravity increasing, he felt immense pressure and immediately started using the red orb.
"Very well, first do a thousand reps of each exercise and run twenty kilometers," Zastin said. "Then we'll start training in combat arts."
"Yes!"
While using the red orbs, he drew a bit of energy from the passion fruit-sized purple orb. Although large, he didn't dare use too much, wanting to save most of it for training in the Deviluke Combat Art.
By using the fusion of the purple orb's energy with the red one, he noticed that his learning speed, as well as the absorption rate of the red orbs, increased significantly. In half an hour, he used 9 red orbs.
...
"Done!"
He exclaimed, a bit tired, after finishing the twenty-kilometer run.
The sweat on his face was a little gross, but it wasn't like it was in the beginning anymore.
After washing his face and drying off, it was time for combat training.
"You look in good shape," Zastin commented. "Alright, I won't go easy on you, kid. Do your best."
"I will!" Rito assumed a fighting stance with his fists clenched.
A white aura began to emanate from his body.
"Oh-ho…"
A smile curved on Zastin's lips, but he quickly turned serious.
"Thunder-Splitting Fist."
Concentrating all his power into his fist, Rito delivered a punch so fast that the air split into two layers, producing a sonic boom.
"Not bad, kid, but you still have a lot to learn." Zastin crossed his arms over his chest and used "Destructive Counter," which absorbs the impact of the strike and returns the accumulated force in a reverse motion.
When Rito's fist hit Zastin's defense, at extreme speed, an energy hand struck him in the pit of his stomach.
"Puahhh!"
Doubling over from the impact, he clutched his stomach with both hands in immense pain.
Clear liquid came out of his mouth.
"Always stay alert and think carefully before striking your opponent," Zastin warned. "You never know if they have a powerful counterattack ability that could decide the battle."
Wiping the drool from his mouth with the back of his hand, his face paler, he used a red orb and a bit of the purple orb's energy and recomposed himself.
"Yes, I'll take note of that!"
After that, he didn't dare attack with a powerful strike recklessly again.
Exchanging a few blows, with Zastin clearly going easy on him, Rito started to get the rhythm and tried again when Zastin showed an opening.
"Earth Impact," he murmured softly.
Unlike the first strike, this one generated a vibration that propagated in waves.
The vibrating sound was somewhat unsatisfactory, as it almost served as a warning to the opponent, but it couldn't be denied that it was powerful.
The moment he attacked the opening Zastin left, the vibration disoriented Zastin even more, and when he was about to land the hit, Rito's eyes gleamed slightly. However, with just a centimeter of distance, he dodged.
'Damn, he used Spiral Step…'
Even knowing this, it was too late. Zastin was already behind him and delivered a counterattack to his back.
But before being hit, Rito used the strength he managed to gather in his right foot and, like a rabbit, he leaped forward.
"Pow!"
He was still hit and spun in the air, but the impact was greatly reduced.
"Not bad, kid!" Zastin gave a sincere compliment.
*Thud!*
Rito fell and slid on the smooth floor.
After getting up, with one hand on his back, slightly hunched, he forced a smile: "Thanks for the compliment."
The purple orb was mainly accelerating his learning. Every detail he would have missed before now became obvious.
Assuming a fighting stance, they continued.
==
It was 8:11 p.m. when he returned home and took a shower.
His muscles were a bit tense, but he felt invigorated.
In just one day of training, he had improved a lot.
Although half of the purple orb had been used, it was worth it.
Until he could get another purple orb, he would conserve it, using the minimum to get the maximum benefit.
"If you're tired, you can leave everything to me, Rito," Mikan said when he offered to help prepare dinner.
"I'm fine, just a little tired," he replied. "Compared to the training I'm going through, helping you in the kitchen is paradise."
"Is it that intense?" she asked.
Rito could sense her concern in her tone and expression.
"Yeah, but no matter how tough it is, it's the path I chose to follow and… It's not that bad, just tiring," he answered with a bright smile.
"Oh, I see…" Seeing him smile didn't ease her concern much. However, she didn't pry further.
He kept her kind intentions in his heart.
If the hunting dimension proved anything, it was… He could also die.
But why was he thinking about the obvious?
Well, as someone who transmigrated into a protagonist, it's easy to get carried away and think you're invincible. That somehow the plot will help you survive. But no, he was wrong to think that way.
If that were the case, he wouldn't have experienced terrible deaths in the hunting dimension.
Especially the death from being hit by a fireball larger than him and burned to ashes.
Of course, it's easy to think that wasn't a real death—after all, he was still alive—but was it really correct to think that way and let himself get carried away?
At the very least, he didn't want to tempt fate and only regret it when he truly died a second time, permanently, with no chance to live again.
"Rito?"
"Oh, yeah, the secret ingredient, right?" he replied. "Let's add it at the end. Especially since it's beef curry, I think it'll enhance the flavor if added later."
"Well, if you say so," she shrugged.
==
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