The two arrived at the area Flora had prepared in advance, while Dumpling followed Coco to undergo Felyne special training.
Leon began observing the layout, trying to get a feel for Flora's training schedule for the day.
Before him lay an open field filled with obstacles and tall grass. A training dummy stood in the center, surrounded by various types of traps.
Just then, Vos walked over and called out cheerfully, "Flora! Are you guys doing a fitness test too?"
Without looking back, Flora asked flatly, "What's a five-star hunter like you doing at the training grounds?"
"Heh heh." Vos pushed Yuri forward. "Little Yuri is taking the rookie hunter exam soon. Master asked me to show him the ropes and get some pre-training in."
Yuri stared at Leon and Flora without saying a word.
Seeing this, Vos frowned and scolded him. "Hey! Where are your manners? Say hello."
Yuri reluctantly raised a hand and murmured, "Good morning, Flora..."
"Hmph." Flora ignored Yuri and looked at Vos. "Alright, get to the point."
Choked up by Flora's bluntness, Vos scratched his cheek awkwardly and grinned. "Don't be so cold. After all, we're... comrades who've faced death together..."
"Save the small talk," Flora's tone grew even colder. "If you're here to borrow traps, you can get lost. These are strictly for Leon's use."
"No, no." Vos waved his hands quickly and then nodded toward Yuri. "I just wanted Little Yuri and Leon to do a fitness test together."
Flora narrowed her eyes and shot a cold glance at Yuri. "You want them to test together? Are you sure?"
"Don't be like that," Vos said with a grin, spreading his hands. "Consider it a chance for me to see what Leon can do, and a way to keep Yuri from being so full of himself all the time."
He leaned in closer and whispered, "You know what I mean, right? If we don't take the wind out of Yuri's sails, he's going to get himself killed sooner or later..."
After a second of silence, Flora finally nodded. "Fine. Let's do it."
At those words, Vos let out a chuckle.
He turned and shouted, "Yuri, come over here! You're doing the fitness test with Leon. Don't go dropping the ball now!"
This announcement immediately caused a stir.
An outsider and the Sword Master's grandson—the unusual pairing drew a crowd of onlookers.
"Yuri's going to win, right? I mean... he is the Sword Master's grandson. What do you guys think?"
"Heh, didn't you hear? That outsider took on a High Rank Anjanath."
"Looks like that arrogant brat is finally going to meet his match. Hahaha!"
Leon rolled his shoulders casually, his expression calm.
"Hmph." A mocking smile played on Yuri's lips. "Good, very good. I want to see exactly what you're made of to earn such praise from my grandfather!"
Flora said nothing. She walked to the center of the area and announced loudly, "First test: five-kilometer weighted run. You'll wear training heavy armor. We'll time three rounds; the best time wins."
Vos handed the training armor to the two of them.
Leon geared up efficiently. Even under the weight of the heavy armor, his breathing remained steady.
Yuri, who had used the agility-focused Long Sword since childhood, was clearly unaccustomed to such bulky armor.
"Ready."
"Three, two, one..."
"Start!"
The two of them bolted forward simultaneously.
Flora and Vos stood at the starting line, stopwatches in hand to record the times.
Leon and Yuri were like two heavy arrows racing around the perimeter track of the training grounds.
At the start, Yuri was full of drive. Although the armor clearly hindered his stride, his leg strength was solid and he maintained a good rhythm.
Leon took a more measured approach, pushing forward with a breath rhythm designed for efficiency. Though his pace was steady, a thirty-meter gap slowly opened up between him and Yuri.
Four laps in, the distance hadn't closed.
Five laps. The test was over!
First round results:
Yuri: 11 minutes, 7 seconds.
Leon: 11 minutes, 29 seconds.
As the results were announced, the spectating hunters broke into a flurry of discussion.
"Damn! Yuri actually won! I guess the outsider isn't all that..."
"The gap isn't that big, though. I bet the outsider hasn't gone all out yet."
Leon walked silently back to the starting line. Sweat was already seeping through his armor, but his face remained calm.
Flora walked over and asked softly, "Are you holding back?"
"No," Leon replied. "I'm just not fast enough."
Flora clicked her tongue, then nodded to Vos to indicate the next round could begin.
"Prepare for round two..."
"Wait." Leon suddenly interrupted Flora. He closed his eyes, and a panel surfaced in his mind.
[STATUS: STRENGTH 20, AGILITY 21, CONSTITUTION 15, PERCEPTION 14. (UNASSIGNED POINTS: 1)]
Leon stared at the Agility stat. After a moment's hesitation, he chose to invest the point. He wanted to see just how much of a boost a single attribute point could provide.
[AGILITY +1. CURRENT AGILITY: 22]
A subtle warmth spread through his limbs. His legs, which had felt slightly heavy before, instantly felt lighter.
"I'm ready." Leon opened his eyes and stepped back onto the starting line with a calm expression.
Flora glanced at Leon and shouted once more, "Round two—three, two, one!"
"Start!"
This time, Leon's explosive power was noticeably greater. By the end of the first lap, he was running neck and neck with Yuri.
By the second lap, he was slightly ahead by half a body length.
Yuri's brow furrowed. He pushed himself harder, trying to close the gap, but no matter how much he pressed, Leon stayed ahead, maintaining his lead.
They reached the fifth lap.
During the final sprint, Leon was like a cheetah racing across the ground. Even under the weight, his speed didn't falter.
The whistle blew at the finish line.
Second round results:
Leon: 10 minutes, 51 seconds.
Yuri: 11 minutes, 3 seconds.
At that moment, the spectating hunters were struck speechless.
"That guy... got faster?" Yuri's face stiffened as he stared at Leon's back.
He had never been outpaced by any of his fellow hunters, let alone some outsider from nowhere.
Leon wiped the sweat from his forehead. 'The attribute points really do make a significant difference...'
He was thinking and analyzing, not gloating.
Vos said brightly, "Heh, I knew this kid had something in him. Keep it up, Yuri!"
Yuri gritted his teeth in frustration. "Again!"
Flora said calmly, "Prepare for round three. I'll give you five minutes to recover before the final round."
Yuri stretched his muscles, forcing his breathing to level out.
Leon closed his eyes and slowly adjusted his breathing, as if entering a state of meditation specifically for battle.
***
Meanwhile, on the other side of the training ground behind a wooden fence, there was a miniature arena.
Two furry figures were engaged in a fierce and chaotic feline battle.
"First part of the physical test!" Coco stood on the sidelines with her paws on her hips, flicking her tail as she said coldly, "Dodge the training pellets. You can't get hit by any of the fifty rounds. Otherwise—ten extra sets of training tonight!"
"Aaaah, meow! You're not an instructor, you're a demon, meow!" Dumpling rolled on the ground holding his head, his back covered in red marks.
"Start!"
"Wait, wait—meow-aaaaah!"
Accompanied by the 'bang-bang-bang' of rapid-fire soft pellets, Dumpling tumbled across the field like a top, screaming the whole way.
"Too slow, meow!" Coco critiqued mercilessly. "Your reaction speed is worse than a skinny-tailed tanuki from yesterday! Faster, meow!"
Dumpling retorted indignantly, "Comparing me to a wild rat... isn't that a bit cruel, meow?"
"I don't think you could even beat a wild rat." Coco snorted, crossing her arms. She glanced at the scoreboard and added, "Your evasion rate isn't even at thirty percent, meow."
"Huff... puff... One more time..." Dumpling panted. He suddenly lowered his head, his expression becoming intensely serious.
Coco paused for a moment.
Dumpling clenched his paws, his pads trembling slightly.
"I... I don't want to hold Master back... I want to get stronger too, meow! In the future... I want to be able to help in a fight, just like you..."
Coco fell silent for a few seconds. Then, her tone softened slightly as she said, "Then keep practicing."
"Yes—meow!!"
A moment later, the two cats slumped onto the ground.
Quite a few dark purple bruises had appeared on Dumpling's body. Although they used soft pellets, getting hit enough times still caused damage.
Just then, a commotion broke out over at the main training ground.
Dumpling immediately looked up, ears pricking as his eyes sparkled. "They're shouting Master's name, meow!"
Coco said calmly, "It seems he's performing quite well. Hopefully, he'll take that Yuri kid down a peg."
Dumpling jumped up, waving his tiny paws in celebration. "That's great, meow!! I have to make Master a special meal tonight! I'll make... Secret Recipe: Boneless Grilled Fish Rice Balls!"
Coco grumbled, "Just don't poison him..."
"I heard that, meow!!" Dumpling said confidently. "I might not be good at fighting yet, but I have absolute confidence in my cooking, meow!"