I noticed that, as we walked, I was given a bit more freedom in my pace. The guard didn’t seem worried about me keeping up like usual. As we approached the main door leading out of the arena, he unexpectedly turned down a different hallway, which threw me off—normally, we always went through this door. After a bit more walking, I heard a faint echo of metal clanging. It grew louder the closer we got to an archway with no door, where I saw Instructor Kushim waiting.

“Finally. Did you take the scenic route or what?” he said, directing the remark at the guard. The guard scratched the back of his head apologetically.

“Sorry, sir. I figured, since he passed his first test, I’d let him take it easy on the way…”

That explained my relaxed pace. I felt a bit of sympathy for the guard, who seemed in trouble on my account.

“Ah, so that’s how it is. Well, no worries—you did fine. I’ll blame Edric for the rest,” Kushim said, waving the guard off and motioning for me to follow. I jogged over and fell into step behind him as we entered a new chamber.

“Edric, because of your ‘number-one fan,’ I need to put you through some pretty intense body sculpting. I’ll show you where we’re starting and give a quick demonstration.”

He led me to a metal ball with a handle attached, hoisting it above his head.

“Since you’re so lean, the princess wants you to bulk up. That’s why your diet was upgraded, along with this new training regimen.”

He showed me a set of exercises with the weight, plus some that didn’t require it. At first, they didn’t seem too bad—just heavy. But the longer we continued, the more I felt my arms, chest, and shoulders swell with blood, my skin stretching uncomfortably tight.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“That’s enough of that,” he said eventually. “Now we’ll move on. I’ll show you the stretches you’ll be doing. No point in being big if you can’t move your muscles fast enough to do anything.”

He walked me through various movements that tugged on every muscle in my upper body. It was torturous—my muscles were already sore—and, after what felt like hours, sweat poured off me by the time he stopped.

“Okay, now you’re ready for drills. Since you’re terrible with a sword, I want to see if there’s something else we can train you in. But don’t get any ideas—you’ll still practice with the executioner’s blade, just for special events.”

I nodded.

“Instructor, could I ask if I’m allowed to use blunt-style weapons?”

I remembered how right they felt in my hands, plus how impressive that metal punch-shield looked when that other fighter was smashing my face in. He seemed to mull it over and then nodded.

“Fair enough—maybe you’ll actually be able to win a fight. Any idea what style of weapon, or is a club good enough?”

A dull ache pulsed in my jaw at the memory of that guard with the punch-shield. The way he slammed the metal into me—yeah, it hurt like hell, but in a strange way, it felt right, as if I understood the weight better than a blade. It reminded me of my first fight, recalling how natural a hammer felt in my hands—how I could unleash a raw force I couldn’t quite manage with other weapons.

“If possible, could I use some kind of hammer? And a smaller shield that sort of looked like…” I traced the shape with my hands in the air.

Kushim raised an eyebrow. “First off, what are you trying to show me? And second, are you sure? A warhammer is good against armored opponents, but with your training, maybe a maul would be better.”

Shaking my head, I said, “I want to try the hammer. I’ve got a bit of experience with it, and I liked using one before, so I should be fine now.”

“If you say so—just know you can always change, but the sooner you pick a main weapon, the better.”

He stepped away briefly and returned carrying a glossy metal shield, smaller than what I’d envisioned.

“Before you say anything, Edric, you need to learn proper shield use before we give you anything fancy,” he said. He also held a bronze warhammer, much like the one I’d used so long ago.