Novels2Search

Chapter 6: Training (1)

Nova retrieved his spear from the goblin general’s head, slowly breathing in and out.

“Phew, I wonder when the next fight will be. Ah, let’s not forget about the stat points I gained. Let me see” he muttered to himself. With a thought, he called up his status to check on his progress.

‘Status’

[Status]

Rank: 0

Name: Nova Grey

Species: Human

Affiliation: None

Level: 0 (150/500)

Class: None

Titles: Goblin Exterminator

Stat Points: 0

Attributes:

Strength: 4

Vigor: 3

Dexterity: 11

Speed: 12

Intelligence: 6

Wisdom: 8

Will: 6

Luck: 10

Skills

Active: Spear Thrust (0) (69/500)

“5 points, huh? I think boosting Dexterity and Speed is the way to go for now” Nova muttered. He then allocated the points he had left, and the status window updated accordingly.

‘Status’

[Status]

Rank: 0

Name: Nova Grey

Species: Human

Affiliation: None

Level: 0 (150/500)

Class: None

Titles: Goblin Exterminator

Stat Points: 0

Attributes:

Strength: 4

Vigor: 3

Dexterity: 11

Speed: 12

Intelligence: 6

Wisdom: 8

Will: 6

Luck: 10

Skills

Active: Spear Thrust (0) (69/500)

“I can already feel the difference with just 2 points... I need to start training more seriously. Time to push Spear Thrust further.” Nova muttered, noticing the changes in his body. If he were to face the goblin general again now, he was confident he could defeat it without much effort. His maximum speed had likely increased to around 80 km/h, though he had no idea how fast his explosive burst speed had become.

With that, Nova didn’t even take a full minute to rest before resuming his spear thrusts. Luckily, food wasn’t a concern inside the portals. Somehow, his cells always felt fully energized, making training much more convenient.

With his improved dexterity, the 500 thrusts that should have taken 16 minutes now only took 10, and that was with him taking his time, performing each thrust with perfect form.

Soon, the 500th thrust was completed, and a notification appeared:

[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

[Skill Spear Thrust (0) (500/500) -> Spear Thrust (1) (0/1000)]

When he performed another thrust, he could immediately feel the difference. The power, the speed, the angle—everything felt stronger and more refined. A surge of excitement rushed through him, almost making him burst out laughing. He grinned and said aloud, “Man, once I’m done with this, I’m going to go beat Jack’s ass.” Just imagining Jack’s face after losing filled Nova with immense satisfaction.

After taking a brief moment to catch his breath, Nova resumed his position and began thrusting again.

[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

Sweat drenched his body, but he kept going without stopping. His focus never wavered—his sole objective was to become as strong as possible inside this portal. He had finally gained the chance to control his own life, and he wasn’t going to let anyone take that away from him now.

About 20 minutes later, the thousandth thrust was completed.

[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

[Skill Spear Thrust (1) (1000/1000) -> Spear Thrust (2) (0/2000)]

Without hesitation, he performed the first thrust of the new set.

[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

The thrust felt far more powerful this time. In his mind, it seemed like it could’ve taken the goblin general’s entire leg with it, though he knew it was just the rush of adrenaline. Still, he was certain it would’ve been enough to make the general kneel in a single blow, rather than two.

Forty minutes later:

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[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

[Skill Spear Thrust (2) (2000/2000) -> Spear Thrust (3) (0/4000)]

At the one-hour mark since he had killed the goblin general, a notification resonated in his mind.

[Fight starts in 05:00]

[Be at the arena by the end of the countdown. The penalty is death.]

"One hour" Nova thought to himself. "Do I really have to fight every hour for a day straight? This is insane. Who came up with this?"

He took a deep breath and settled into a calm state, knowing he had no choice but to prepare for the upcoming battle. He regretted not taking a break earlier, as exhaustion began to weigh on him.

[Fight starts in 00:01]

[Fight started]

Nova’s eyes locked onto the opposite side of the arena, his gaze sharp and focused. He braced himself for whatever would come next.

Then, two goblin generals appeared.

[Goblin General]

Rank: 0

Name: None

Species: Goblin

Affiliation: None

Level: 0

Class: None

Attributes:

Strength: 14

Vigor: 15

Dexterity: 6

Speed: 6

Intelligence: 5

Wisdom: 4

Will: 0

Luck: 0

Nova's lips twitched. "Really? I hope this isn't a trend, or I'm going to die out here. Ah, my poor dreams."

The two goblin generals strode toward him, their movements slow and deliberate as they readied themselves for battle.

Nova didn’t hesitate. He had fought these kinds of opponents before. He surged forward with full speed, spear in hand, heading straight for the right goblin general.

In less than a second, he was already thrusting his spear toward the goblin, his momentum carrying him forward.

The right goblin general was caught off guard. It hadn’t expected such speed and decisiveness. It tried to raise its sword, but by the time the sword was lifted, Nova had already driven his spear into its knee. A golf-ball-sized hole appeared in its left knee, and the goblin collapsed, kneeling on its right knee.

[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

The right goblin general roared in pain, pressing his hands to the ground to keep himself from collapsing.

Nova, having anticipated the movement, was already mid-motion to thrust at the goblin’s head. However, the left goblin general intervened. With a swift swing of his sword, he forced Nova to halt his attack. The sudden strain shot through Nova’s body, his blood rushing backward, his muscles tightening. He barely managed to dodge the blow.

"Jeez, you really had to make me injure myself. How about I kill you first, then?" Nova smirked at the left goblin general before charging at him.

The left goblin general seemed to understand Nova’s intent. For a moment, it almost looked like the goblin was sneering. Without waiting for Nova to get any closer, he swung his sword, knowing full well that he couldn’t react to Nova’s speed. Instead, he took the gamble, swinging pre-emptively.

Instead of retreating, Nova dove into the left goblin general’s swing. As the vertical slash came down, he sidestepped, quickly positioning himself on the goblin’s left flank. Without hesitation, he thrust his spear into the goblin’s left knee.

[Spear Thrust proficiency increased]

A howl of agony erupted from the goblin general. His left leg was severed just below the knee, and without the ability to kneel, he collapsed, flailing on the ground, his hands kicking up dust as he struggled to strike at anything.

Nova approached the goblin slowly, a thought forming in his mind. ‘Shouldn’t I try learning the other spear basics?’ He looked down at the goblin, now a perfect practice dummy. ‘Let’s see if I can work on the Jab skill.’

With that decision made, Nova took the jab stance, positioning his feet shoulder-width apart. His spear was held firmly in both hands, his left hand near the center of the shaft, and his right hand at the end. Relaxing his grip, he stepped forward with his front foot, extending his arms quickly as the tip of the spear was towards the vital areas of the goblin general.

[Spear proficiency increased]

Nova repeated the jab over and over, gradually becoming more comfortable with the motion. As he gained confidence, he started increasing the speed, turning the jab into a true weapon. Notifications rang constantly in his ears, but he ignored them, too focused on perfecting his technique.

The left goblin general’s body was riddled with holes, his lifeless form lying in a pool of blood that had spread beneath him. Nova didn’t stop until he heard the notification he had been waiting for.

[Spear proficiency increased]

[Skill: Spear Jab has been learned]

[Received 2500 Stat EXP]

"Finally" Nova muttered as he caught his breath. His eyes shifted to the kneeling right goblin general. "Which one should I learn next? Sweep seems like the best choice at this point. I can leave Lunge and Overhead Strike for later."

Having made his decision, Nova approached the right goblin general, getting into position. His knees were slightly bent, his body centered, and his grip firm on the spear with both hands. His right hand was near the middle of the shaft, while his left hand controlled the end of the weapon, ready to guide the sweep.

With a fluid motion, he rotated his body, swinging the spear horizontally in a wide arc. He used his entire body, from his legs to his hips and then to his arms. The tip of the spear struck the goblin general’s side, leaving a deep line of blood in its wake.

[Spear proficiency increased]

He repeated the motion, each sweep slicing through the goblin general's body, limbs falling to the ground as it was filled with lacerations. It resembled death by a thousand cuts.

Nova didn’t stop until he heard the notification he had been waiting for.

[Spear proficiency increased]

[Skill: Spear Sweep has been learned]

[Received 2500 Stat EXP]

With a smile, Nova stopped. “It feels good to improve so quickly. Now, I should have an hour to either rest or train more. I’ll rest for at least 15 minutes, then train for another 45 before fighting again. This should give me the best rest-to-training ratio without pushing me too hard.”

He checked his status, noticing he had points to allocate.

[Status]

Rank: 0

Name: Nova Grey

Species: Human

Affiliation: None

Level: 0 (150/500)

Class: None

Titles: Goblin Exterminator

Stat Points: 10

Attributes:

Strength: 4

Vigor: 3

Dexterity: 11

Speed: 12

Intelligence: 6

Wisdom: 8

Will: 6

Luck: 10

Skills

Active: Spear Thrust (3) (2/4000), Spear Jab (0) (0/500), Spear Sweep (0) (0/500)

‘I need to invest some points in Vigor; it will allow me to train more. I also better increase my Strength to 7 at least. Let’s do 10 Vigor and 7 Strength—they’re the stats I need most right now.’ Having made up his mind, he acted upon it.

[Status]

Rank: 0

Name: Nova Grey

Species: Human

Affiliation: None

Level: 0 (150/500)

Class: None

Titles: Goblin Exterminator

Stat Points: 0

Attributes:

Strength: 7

Vigor: 10

Dexterity: 11

Speed: 12

Intelligence: 6

Wisdom: 8

Will: 6

Luck: 10

Skills

Active: Spear Thrust (3) (3/4000), Spear Jab (0) (0/500), Spear Sweep (0) (0/500)

Nova felt the changes taking place in his body. His poor stamina was now gone, and he felt like 15 minutes of rest was too long. ‘Make it 5 minutes of rest and 55 minutes of training every hour before fights’ he thought to himself.

For the next 5 minutes, he sat down and started thinking about his friend. "I wonder how Jack is doing? Not even 2 hours have passed since we split up, but it feels like it's been days. Hopefully, he's doing well" Nova muttered while looking up at the sky from his sitting position.

He soon stood up—he had training to do.

For the next 55 minutes, Nova focused on Spear Jabs. He managed to perform 4,200 jabs without taking a single second of break.

[Skill: Spear Jab (0) (500/500) -> Spear Jab (1) (0/1000)]

[Skill: Spear Jab (1) (1000/1000) -> Spear Jab (2) (0/2000)]

[Skill: Spear Jab (2) (2000/2000) -> Spear Jab (3) (0/4000)]

[Skill: Spear Jab (3) (700/4000)]

Nova took a deep breath, his mind sharp as he glanced at the countdown timer.

‘Good enough for now. It should be time soon,’ he thought, mentally preparing for the challenge ahead.

As expected, the notification appeared.

[Fight starts in 05:00]

[Be at the arena by the end of the countdown. The penalty is death.]

Nova stood tall, his spear resting horizontally on his shoulders, his arms relaxed but ready. He closed his eyes for a brief moment, letting his mind settle into focus. The arena was about to become his battleground once again.

[Fight starts in 00:01]

[Fight started]

From the other side of the arena, six goblin generals emerged, walking with their swords raised and their eyes locked on Nova. They were identical to the ones he had faced before. A feeling of unease stirred within him as he realized the pattern was repeating. His stats were growing rapidly, but that only made him more apprehensive—was he facing the same challenges for a reason?

Shaking off the thought, Nova clenched his spear tightly and set his sights on the nearest goblin general. He rushed forward with speed and purpose, taking his jab stance.

‘Kill four quickly. Then I can use the last two to perfect the missing spear forms’ he decided, a smile on his face.