Chapter Three - The Sweet Fruit of Labor

“Alright kid, starting today you will include weightlifting to your training. You will do running and weightlifting in the mornings, and archery in the afternoons and evenings,” Rich said.

“Master, when will we begin Stardust control training?” Sirius asked.

“It’s still too early. Stardust control requires one to hone their body and mind. Don’t be hasty, focus on your everyday training and trust the process,” Rich said.

Sirius blushed as his hasty thoughts were laid bare.

“Will I...,” Sirius paused, uncertain if he was being too greedy saying this. “Will I be able to catch up to those who have trained their whole life?” he said, stealing a quick glance at Luna who was swinging her sword as usual under the tree’s shadow.

Rich snickered. “Kid, a blank slate can be more valuable than a scholar’s book. It’s all what story you choose to tell.” He paused, letting the words settle before his smirk widened mischievously. “And, for the record... I’ve written some best sellers back in my days, I’ll have you know.”

Sirius’ lips twitched, his annoyance barely concealed. Normally, those words would have grated on him, but today they carried an odd sense of comfort.

Who is this old man anyways? I’ve never heard of any diver named Rich S. But his skills are no joke... How come I don’t know him?

“Alright Master, should I resume my training?” Sirius asked, pushing those thoughts aside for now.

“No, let’s have lunch first. A stro—” Rich was saying before Sirius interrupted:

“A strong body requires a strong appetite. Yes, yes. This is only the four-hundred-fifty-seventh time you say it!” Sirius said, snickering as he ran away from Rich’s angry grasp.

After ruminating over Rich’s words, Sirius felt the embers in his heart burn once again with intensity.

Maybe one day, I can turn this blank slate into something great...

But for now, there was a steak on the table, and his grumbling stomach wasn't about to let him ignore it.

Sirius put a slice of the ribeye steak into his mouth.

Aaaah... I could die happy right now.

Every bite made him flinch in ecstasy, the umami of the sizzling meat melting in his mouth as its juicy fat slid down his throat. Sirius grabbed another bite of the beef, this time putting some white rice in his mouth as well.

It wouldn’t be so bad, really. How could I live seventeen years without this?

The day he had first tasted this banquet worthy of the gods, as he called it, Sirius had spent two whole hours thanking Luna for this despite the awkward look on her face throughout the whole thing. Today, too, he thanked her.

“Thank you, Luna! Oh goddess, bringer of this divine food,” he said, performing a comical routine.

Luna snickered softly, quickly turning away.

Was she embarrassed?

“Oooh, the goddess has bestowed upon us her graceful laughter, how fortunate are we, truly...,” Sirius said in dramatic fashion.

Luna still didn’t look back towards him, but the faint tug on her lips felt like a victory to Sirius.

I will make you laugh out loud, oh so mysterious princess, just you wait.

Maria looked at Sirius and Sirius turned to look back at her. He smiled. Maria returned a beautiful smile that seemed to convey feelings of love and relief.

Once lunch was over, Sirius stretched his relaxed muscles.

“Until you tell me to stop?” Sirius asked with a grin on his face.

“Yup,” Rich replied.

“Alright, I’ll be off then,” Sirius said, sprinting towards the hill.

When he first began this training schedule, he often pondered why Rich made him run until his lungs gave out and beyond. Eventually, he understood though.

If I asked, he would probably say something like, ‘The abyss isn’t so kind as to give you time to recover, kid.’

Sirius snickered as he ran with a wide grin on his face.

***

And thus, four more months passed by in what felt to Sirius like the blink of an eye. Every day was tailored-made by Rich to fit his necessities.

He would wake up, eat breakfast, do a full-body workout in the mornings followed by running up the hill. Nowadays he only felt a slight pull at his lungs, the painful burns now a distant memory.

The first few weeks of weightlifting he would feel painfully sore the whole day though.

Running while sore was really unsightly haha...

In the afternoons and evenings, he would perform archery training. He could still remember how sad he felt when he went back to square one, unable to come even close to hitting the mark with his arrows because of the muscle soreness.

The day he saw Luna almost strike a blow at Rich, he caught himself performing his silly dance, prompting her to reveal a subtle smile once again, this time a little wider.

On the afternoon of his sixth month of training, as Sirius panted on the floor after his weightlifting session, Rich said:

“Alright kid, it’s time to switch gears. You’ve honed your body enough to be able to perform Stardust control. Now, it’s time to hone your mind. If you can acquire basic mastery of Stardust control, you will reach Stage One of your Starcore. You might be able to cut it close before the first dive, if you don’t slouch in your training, that is.”

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Yes! Finally, thought Sirius as he clenched his fists.

“You will still perform physical training, but we will reduce how much. You will do four hours of weightlifting and running combined, plus four hours of bow practice. The other four hours you spend awake, shall be spent mastering Stardust control, and—” Rich paused.

There’s more? What could it be?

“—Luna will no longer just spar against me. Instead, you two will spar for an entire day twice a week. Combat experience is just as important as a strong body and mind after all.”

Sirius felt his chest tighten and his blood race in excitement and fear.

I have to face Luna one-on-one?! There’s no way I can wi—No. I have to try, even if I can’t win. The Abyss won’t wait until I’m ready. I should train with that in mind.

Rich’s face was that of pleasant surprise.

“Hoh, so you finally developed some guts, kid. Good. Let’s begin with Stardust control since you’re done with today’s physical schedule. Luna, come over here, you will participate too.”

“Unders—” Luna began, but before she could finish her sentence, Rich continued:

“You said you wanted to wait until Sirius caught up to properly challenge him, didn’t you?” he said, snickering.

Luna blushed, not expecting the sudden treason from her Master. “...” She then turned to look at Sirius, her eyebrows frowning in determination.

Luna did that?! So, I’m not the only one who sees her as a rival? Sirius met Luna’s challenging eyes with an innocent grin, prompting her to avert her gaze in embarrassment. Sirius fixed his posture slightly, propping his chest forward and lifting his head up.

Luna has never received Stardust control training. This is something I can compete at!

“Alright, for instance, sit in lotus position,” Rich said.

Sirius and Luna focused and did as told.

“Focus on sensing your Starcore. Can you feel it?” Rich asked.

Sirius and Luna nodded in unison. It felt like a star was spinning in the place where his heart should’ve been, to Sirius.

Or is it inside of my heart instead? I’m not sure.

“Good. Can you feel the scattered Stardust across your body?” Rich said.

They once again nodded.

“Try to think of carrying it towards your Starcore. Repeat this process until you can no longer find Stardust every day. Whenever you train or become stronger, Stardust is created in your body,” Rich paused to take a breather. “Well, it would be more accurate to say that Stardust is what remains of your body’s change over time. The process of collecting those remnants and delivering them to your Starcore is what we call Stardust Meditation.”

Sirius could feel it. The dust-like particles spread around his veins, arteries, and organs. Every time he performed a cycle and delivered some to his Starcore, he felt refreshed. He felt as if he was cleansing his body from all the useless particles that had accumulated over time.

Time seemed to slow down as his thoughts concentrated solely on the act of polishing his body and mind. When Sirius opened his eyes again, the artificial sun had hidden, and a real-like moon was shining in the sky. His body was drenched in sweat, and a weird odor was emanating from it.

Is this my own smell?!

He rushed to the pool and washed away all his body secretions.

The warm water felt amazing on his body. On top of that, the pool seemed to clean itself as Sirius used it, leaving the water crystal clean.

Hah... really, this is the best. If I had to choose between this or a steak, I think I would just die from indecision...

He swam along the long pool in the ecstasy only those who have tempered their bodies and minds can experience.

“May I join?” Luna asked, the look on her face indecipherable.

Sirius flinched. He turned to look at her only to be stupefied with what he saw. Luna wore a black bikini that seemed to perfectly contrast with her white skin. Her black hair cascaded onto the top of her bikini in perfect harmony.

A goddess... thought Sirius as he frantically nodded. Luna seemed to have gotten used to his antics as she openly laughed.

They both swam and enjoyed the water for some time, but Sirius was no longer able to peacefully enjoy his resting time. He couldn’t stop thinking about why she was here.

Stop looking at her, you idiot! Who are you calling an idiot? We are the same person, dumbass. Okay, listen guys, we must stop. She will think we are weirder than she already thinks.

“I will not lose, no matter what,” Luna said while Sirius was deep in his delusions.

These words brought Sirius back to earth. He was about to say that he wouldn’t lose either when he stopped.

“Miss Luna,” he said.

“Just Luna is okay, please,” she said.

Sirius felt his heart race in excitement, but he shook his head to remind himself of what he wanted to ask. Luna seemed to find the boy’s straightforwardness appealing as she said, “You are so dramatic, it’s nice.”

This time, Sirius felt like he would not be able to recover if she said anything else, so he mustered every ounce of willpower on him to reign in his pacing heart.

“Luna, why is Master training you? I don’t mean to be rude, I’m just curious. I imagine you are from a powerful family, so I guessed you would have other people to train you,” he said.

Luna seemed to not have expected the question as she flinched in surprise. She then looked down in what Sirius could only assume to be reminiscence, before she said:

“I have someone I must prove wrong... Master offered me his help.”

“I see... But didn’t you think that maybe he was a scammer? With how he looks and all,” Sirius said.

“Eh?... No, there’s no way a scammer would roam the first ring’s streets,” she replied, seemingly confused by his question.

“That makes sense...” That’s right, I only thought he was a scammer because we live in the slums, him wearing worn-out clothes was just an added bonus.

“I will be getting out now, enjoy the rest of your night,” Luna said as she gracefully walked up the pool’s stairs.

Sirius stared in awe before he clenched his fists.

Alright, I’ll do my best not to fall behind!

***

And thus, five more months flew by. Sirius was now closer than ever to reaching Stage One.

I can feel it, just a little more... he thought, sitting down in lotus position underneath a waterfall that Rich had artificially created for him. The rhythmic crash of water and the river’s gentle flow gave him peace. The perfect environment for him to immerse himself in meditation.

By the time Sirius returned to the dining table under the tree, the sun was at its zenith. When he sat down, his mother served him the food. He would often tell her that he wasn’t a kid anymore and could serve himself, but she insisted this was the least she could do for her baby.

They ate a sumptuous meal, and Sirius devoured every dish with ravenous voracity. No matter how much he ate these types of meals, he couldn’t grow tired of the pleasure of eating them. Maria looked at her son with a gentle smile on her face.

“Good, eat lots,” she said as she served him another round.

Sirius would have been in heaven if not for the fact that, for the last five months he had been sparring against Luna twice a week, and he had yet to win once.

Today will be the day. I will show you, princess.

Once they were done eating, Sirius and Luna prepared to duel once again. Sirius pulled out an arrow from his quiver and placed it on the string, tensing it. Luna took her stance, preparing herself to deflect the first arrows Sirius threw upon her as she closed the ten meters distance.

Rich acted as the referee.

“Alright, in three, two, one, start!”

Sirius fired an arrow as soon as Rich gave the signal, but Luna anticipated the move. With a swift motion, she deflected the arrow. She started to close the gap fast, ten meters suddenly turning into five. Sirius remained calm as he fired one more arrow.

One to her eyes to block her eyesight for a moment.

Luna placed her sword in her face to block it.

As soon as she blocks it, fire another one to her feet to diverge her attention.

An arrow flew to Luna’s feet as soon as she diverted the first one, but she was easily able to dodge it. In that split second, however, she failed to see Sirius fire an arrow right above his own head. Sirius remained still as Luna charged forward, the five meters now down to one.

Sirius waited. Luna’s face seemed confused as she swung her sword in a cut.

Now.

The moment in which her strike was about to reach Sirius, he sprang backwards, just as the arrow he had previously fired fell right towards her head. Luna reacted with inhuman speed, parrying the arrow with a sharp, precise motion, the whistling of the arrow barely audible over her head.

I expected as much.

He slid across the grass, landing just beneath her, his bowstring taut and aimed. Luna, having shifted her weight to deal with the barrage of arrows, was thrown off balance. Sirius seized the opening to put an end to his elaborate ambush.

“I win,” he said, with a wide grin on his face, unable to hide his boiling euphoria.

“Congratulations,” she said with slight trembles in her eyes. However, the trembles soon subsided only to leave a beautiful smile in their place. “You’ve come a long way.”