Nar was pushed and jostled around by the other confused apprentices as they were shouted into forming lines. Slowly and orderly, the apprentices in front of Nar retrieved something from a large box that had appeared by the door of the hall.

When it was finally Nar’s turn, he got handed four, black, plain looking strips of something.

“Snap them against your wrists and ankles, and they will attach to you and weigh you down.” the instructor explained to him. “These weights are made from aura infused materials, and will be powered by your own aura. They are programmed to always be just heavy enough to make you struggle, but not interfere with your movements. To release them, slide a finger across them, and when you’re done, store them in your own inventory. These are yours from now on, to use as you see fit.”

“Thank you, instructor!” Nar said.

“You’re welcome, apprentice. Next!” she shouted.

Nar walked away and into the mumbling circle of apprentices that had formed as they all attached their weights.

A little hesitant, Nar snapped one of the wrist-ankle weights against his left wrist. To his surprise, the black material formed into a tight-fitting bracelet that fit perfectly around his wrist. It also caused him to drop his arm in surprise at the sudden weight.

Crystal… How does this not interfere with my movements? He thought, aghast. The thing ought to be at least ten pounds!

How am I supposed to move in these?

The master and the instructors seemed to know what they were doing, and he doubted that they were purposely setting them up for failure.

Maybe… Is it with [Strength]?

He lifted his arm with intent now, wanting it to move swiftly and freely as it usually did. As expected, but in an effect that still surprised him after months of gaining his class, his arm responded exactly as he had intended, if with a slight delay and extra heaviness.

Damn… Okay, I see it. A little bit of a challenge, but it won’t stop me.

“Crystal… This is so heavy!” someone muttered nearby.

“Has to be a mistake! I can’t even lift my legs!”

Around him, similar mutterings were being voiced, though Nar caught plenty of people that, like him, had figured it out.

“NEVER COMPLAIN!”

Nar stumbled sideways, through a split-second of momentary blindness and deafness.

In that split-moment, an all-encompassing anger and pressure nearly crumbled him to his knees. And when he came to, he found that several apprentices had indeed fallen to their knees and were looking around in shocked daze.

What in the pile was that? Nar asked, his heart beating in fright and his ears ringing.

“Were you told to talk?” the master asked, and Nar realized he had been the one to shout. “No! So do not speak until granted permission to do so, or are asked a question! And do not ever, ever, complain. Like I said, you can bring your issues to us. You can address difficulties and the challenges you are encountering in training with us, for these are normal, and we are here to guide you in the ways of the blade. But you may never complain, for complaining is the rot that will crumble your discipline, your paths, and your lives! Now run!”

“RUN!” the instructors roared at them.

Nar stumbled to quickly attach the other weights and to get running after the others.

“So, can you or can you not move in those?” the master asked.

“ANSWER THE MASTER’S QUESTION!”

“Yes, master!” they all cried.

“Indeed, you can. So do not doubt us again when we tell you something, unless that something proves incorrect or it fails,” the master said. “We are sentient, and we make mistakes, but there shouldn’t be many of those. And when they do happen, we will apologize with truthfulness and humbleness, for there is no place for ego or arrogance in this hall, only learning and instruction.”

“IS THAT CLEAR?” the instructors shouted.

Nar jumped in fright from the man running at his side, and shouted with the others. “Yes, master!”

“Good. Now, I will start clapping, and every time I do so, you will double your speed,” the master continued. “If you stop, you will be punished. If you don’t run fast enough, you will be punished. Is that clear?”

“Yes, master!” Nar shouted, anticipation and nervousness gripping his stomach.

The master clapped.

“FASTER!”

Gritting his teeth, Nar ran faster to keep up the pace with the rest of the apprentices.

“Now, let’s finally get to what these two weeks are going to be about for us here in the Blades Hall,” the master explained as he joined them in running. “First and foremost, similarly to your aura classes, we are working to achieve a specific goal, and that is to unlock your gdgahdga.”

Unlock what? Nar asked, fearing that he had missed what the master had said.

“Don’t worry if all you heard was garbled nonsense,” the master said, his voice perfectly clear and level as he ran alongside them. “As your Master of Aura will have explained to you, during the Climb you were granted certain mercies. One of them is that any attribute that you, or one of your party members unlocks, will be shared amongst the whole party. This benefit stays with you even when you exit the B-Nex, but only if you remain with the original party you exited the gate with. This effect lasts forever, as long as you remain together. For all the other attributes that none of you know, you will only ever hear a string of meaningless noise. This is because the System does not grant that knowledge to any one, in an attempt to keep every class on an equal footing, as well as to ensure that the rule you are what you do cannot be bent to anyone’s benefit or allow for tailor made paths.”

“However,” he continued. “I say attempt. The rich and the noble have long ago figured out ways to go around it, but those are all extremely, extremely, extremely costly because of how incredibly and utterly inefficient and difficult they are to accomplish. Suffice it to say, if we were to do that with all of you aboard, we would quickly blow through the guild's entire reserves and run it to the ground. Now, what our instruction focuses on here, is on growing your paths organically, as the Crystal and the System intended it to be done. And for this attribute we are aiming to unlock, note that it is a core attribute for every single combat class, aside from party leaders and casters. At least usually. There are exceptions to everything in the Nexus…”

“But speaking of exceptions. As you might have noticed, you had no issues listening to the Master of Aura explaining about the 9 Aetheric Attributes yesterday. That is because aether governing attributes are considered open access to everyone, by virtue of being necessary to the very fabric of our society and the daily life of every non-combat class,” the master explained. “But returning back to your situation, you will all unlock kfsdlfhsd by the end of this week. Or else you will be very sorry at the measures we’ll be forced to take in order to make that happen. Never fear. One way or the other, you will all unlock it.”

Crystal… Nar thought, dread rising within him.

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“I see hands raised, and that’s good to see. But first…”

And he clapped.

“FASTER!”

“PICK UP THE PACE!”

“You can lower your hands. I know what you are going to ask. How can you unlock anything without going up a level through combat, correct? Well, again, fear not. You can unlock attributes, skills and in general, get gains from non-combat activities, however, you will do so in a much more ineffective way. Meaning, through a lot more pain, work and sacrifice,” he explained, and Nar could’ve sworn he detected some glee in the master’s voice as he said the last three. “Combat gains still remain much, much better and easier to achieve. Our goal now is only to unlock this one attribute during Into Weeks, as well as to get to the second point that I’m yet to discuss. Suffice to say, class, any classes, not just ours here, are done to teach, correct, fix and practice, not for gains. You’ll get those in combat and quests, just as you’ve done so far.”

Damn… I got some hope there, Nar thought, shaking his head to himself. Imagine. Getting gains just from training… I would never sleep!

“Onto the second point then. For these two weeks, our second objective is to get you all used to your attributes. You think that just because you unlocked them, have points in them and used them in your Climb that everything is good and done… But you couldn’t be more wrong! At best, you are using half of the potential of your attributes, because your body hasn’t been strengthened to fully use them. Your muscles, your nerves, your bones, organs and very flesh is not ready to fully use your attributes. And tomorrow, when you wake up to the screaming choir of agony in your bodies, you will know just how far you are to getting to 100% physical attribute utilization. If you want to know, none of you here are even consistently reaching 50% attribute utilization. And so, you will run. You will sweat. And you will bleed and suffer.”

What? Really? Nar thought, nearly tripping at the revelation. So even with 34 points of [Speed], I’m only using 17 at best?

That was almost impossible to believe!

The master clapped twice, forcing them all to quadruple the pace.

“If you don’t believe me, and by the way, if you thought that auramancy meant the end of the importance of your [Stamina], then think again,” the master continued, as the sound of gasps and labored breathing filled the hall. “Why don’t you go ahead and check your stamina bars?”

Nar did as he was told and his eyes went wide.

27 points down? How? He thought, stunned. Just because of the weights?

“That’s right. It’s not good, is it?” the master asked. “The attribute we are aiming to unlock will help you with [Stamina] recovery and management, and in an even heavier way than how [Mastery] does for your [Aura]. With us, you will learn to be efficient in everything you do, including in how you spend your [Stamina]. My warriors are intelligent, efficient, disciplined and hardworking. I care not for the differences in power or path amongst you, only in how hard you work and the determination you show me! And the more work you put in, the more work we’ll put in to match it. Yes! That is correct! Us, myself and the instructors, will give you back as much as you put into your training and practice, and there are definite advantages in that. Extended private 1-on-1 tutoring… More commentary and attention on your footage… More resources made available to you, and more in-depth instruction and guidance on your paths… If you want these, then work for it! Show us the seriousness in your pursuit of excellence, and we will happily push you further, harder and faster! Is that not good motivation, my apprentices?”

“Yes, master!” they gasped.

And by the Crystal it was!

Nar’s eyes shone even as his body begged to be let go, to stop and rest and breathe.

With more instruction and private teaching, he could become stronger, even better and faster!

If he gave it everything he had and more, they would repay him in kind, and with that, who knew how much stronger he would be by the end of that two year delve? Maybe he would be strong enough to Climb back down for his dad, well within the five years they had set between themselves!

I need to get him to teach me, Nar thought, stealing a glance at the Master of Blades as he ran past him.

He had no doubt that the instructors, with their seven years of mastery and tutelage under the master, would be fantastic teachers. But there was only one Master of Blades, and Nar needed everything in order to be stronger.

No… I need to be the strongest! To protect my party and my dad, I need to reach the top!

If the man had taught and could teach them to grow to become Named Few, Nar wanted his direct instruction, and he would do anything to get it.

And so, he ran, and the claps kept echoing across the hall.

Around him, apprentices dropped one by one, and were shouted at and forced to do other exercises, from push-ups, to sit-ups, squats, lunges, jumping jacks and many, many others. He instinctively understood the exercises as he spotted them, and also got the distinct knowledge that such understanding was being imparted to him through the System, but by means of the Scimitar, and Tsurmirel’s. It was not part of the general knowledge he was used to thus far.

Gasping for air, Nar used the other apprentices strained and even tear streaked faces to keep pushing and to keep going. It was obvious that giving up running would not grant him any form of respite.

However, as more and more apprentices dropped, the more his body screamed at him, and agony laced and lashed through him.

His muscles were the first to start protesting at him. But as he ran past the pain, his nerves threatened to snap and tear, his bones to crush and break and his joints to melt under the strain. His heart beat so fast he could barely believe that he was still alive, and his lungs burned and begged for him to stop.

Up ahead, an instructor suddenly leaped in and dragged an apprentice away from the running line. The apprentice in question fell to his knees and promptly hurled his breakfast across the floor of the hall.

That same instructor stood by the fallen apprentice, a rag and a bucket appearing in his hands.

By the time Nar came back around, the apprentice was weeping softly and cleaning up his own puke.

Crystal… They aren’t messing around! Nar thought, almost missing a step.

At least, from what he saw and heard, the instructor hadn’t shouted any abuse at the apprentice. He simply watched him clean up his puke with a neutral expression and hands clasped behind their back.

Respect, I guess… Nar thought. He ran until he really couldn’t anymore.

And from the churning in his stomach, Nar would probably find himself joining him soon enough.

“There is no shame in knowing your limits,” the master suddenly said. “Do not harm or break yourselves in the pursuit of strength. This will only entail lengthier recovery times and delay your growth. Always listen to your body. There is a difference between the perceived reality in your mind and the truth of your body, and it is something you must learn to differentiate if you truly want to push yourselves to the limits. As a little tip, if you feel like you are about to puke, stop. We will give you time to recover.”

Nar swallowed dryly, feeling the punishment for missing an inhale, and considered his own situation.

Was it time to stop? Could he keep going? Was it his mind failing him or his body speaking the truth to him?

The master and instructors could clearly tell when they were pushing themselves too far, so if he stopped too soon, they would know, and he wanted to impress the master. At the same time, if he did not stop in time, he would only embarrass himself by showing that he did not know his own body.

Shit… What should I do?

They were running so fast now, that things were starting to blur.

His sight began to darken at the edges, tunneling on the empty floor ahead of him. The impacts from his feet landing on the floor had long faded away, and Nar now ran on a half-delirious state, only aware of the master’s claps echoing from very far away.

Just a few more steps… Just a few more… He told himself, fighting against his own body and the darkness trying to claim him.

His breathing was nothing more than a sped-up wheezing by now, and he wasn’t even sure of how fast or slow he was going anymore.

“And stop!” the master’s voice suddenly shouted, piercing through the darkness. “Well done to Hej, Pad, Nar and Qap, for making it to the end. Everyone rest now!”

Nar felt someone approach him, and he flinched.

“Relax, apprentice,” a male voice said. “Come and walk with me. Let’s get that breathing back under control.”

“Y-y-y…”

“No need for that. Just breathe and walk.”

Nar swallowed hard and did as he was told.

Slowly, the two of them walked several laps around the hall, and Nar’s breath slowed and returned to normal, leaving his throat raw and shredded, and his lungs feeling bruised and spent.

The darkness slowly receded as his heartbeat returned to normal, and Nar was able to look at the instructor at his side.

Surprisingly, it was a trugger, the first he had ever seen other than Tuk, his skin a shade darker than the ring tosser’s.

“You did well, Nar,” the instructor complimented him, smiling. “That was a good effort. Though perhaps next time stop a bit earlier. You were close to passing out.”

Nar bowed his head. “Yes, instructor. I’m sorry.”

The trugger nodded.

“You will learn, but next time, when the darkness starts creeping in from the edges, it's time to stop. If you feel sick, you stop. If you feel extreme pain, you stop. We understand the desire to push hard, but all things require a clear mind and calm. Is that clear?”

“Yes, instructor.”

“Good, now go and join the others.”

The instructor left Nar to walk towards the circle of seated apprentices, nervously waiting under the gaze of the master and the other instructors, and sat at the back with a heavy grunt.

Oh, Crystal…

Everything screamed at him. And he would definitely feel worse in the morning.

“Today, you will be with us until dinner, and after that you will be free to do whatever you want,” the master explained, the inflection on the word free once again being very clear, just like it had been with the Master of Aura. “Tomorrow, you will share the first half of the day with your Nexus 101 teacher first and then, here with us. For the other half of the day, you will be in Aura Hall. On Fourth, your time will be entirely dedicated to the Aura Hall, and the schedule for Fifth is yet to be set. Check your schedule frequently, as it can change abruptly.”

Nar heard the sound of clanging metal and looked behind him to find a group of cooking staff wheeling in trays of food and water, and plates and cups.

“For now, rest. Lunch will be set by the doors of the hall. As always, eat as much as you want,” the master said. “However, know that if you make a mess of my floors, you will clean it up…”