Before we began training I told them my concern about the pain caused by the increased stats, they already saw that through my memories, but they shocked me again. We returned in the "temple" room and one of the light pillar dimmed enough to show it's content. A male body was suspended, floating, inside of it.

- This is the your avatar that we are repairing, hoping the system will accept it back, your actual body is an extension of it. A dummy if you want to consider it like that. So while your matrix will, hopefully, absorb the skill we will teach you, in this body you will only feel a shadow of the pain transmitted to the original. 

In fact the real objective of the training is to teach your mind more than your body. Also your time perception will be vastly altered to give us time to cover all the fields you will decide to train in.

Llanfil's word reassured me a little, but the part about mental training was worrying.

The training began in the most standard way, they taught me a routine that was a balanced mix of cardio, strength and flexibility enhancement. They instructed me about it together, but while Ausas was more prominent about strength techniques, Llanfil took charge of the other schedule's parts.

Even with my enhanced memory completing all the exercises without mistake took months, and even than every morning we repeated a set to keep all the sequences clear and error-free.

To be honest at the beginning I thought the training was going to be a dull but necessary evil, but I was surprised when I discovered myself having fun talking with them during the easy part. And more the exercise become a second nature, more time we could chat about everything we wanted.

I talked about my world and the various nuances that weren't so easily transmitted by memories alone, and they told me about the beginning of this world and the more subtle differences to be wary about.

All this time together created a sort of bond, we weren't exactly friend but my starting mistrust started melting away. The fact that they understood, as fellow lonely spirit, my idea of personal space, was a deciding factor for acquiring my trust.

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But all of this shattered when the various skill training began, sure the routine session in the early morning were still fun, but they were equally merciless during the following lessons.

Llanfil instructed me about magic, spear and hand to hand combat. If at first I found her training-wear clad form beautiful, later on I was more busy trying to stay alive that the time to think about that was non-existent. Her magic's theory lessons were interesting, especially the one about barriers, but the practical ones with spear and unharmed were brutal.

She confirmed, later on, that a part of the training itself was to resist the temptation and don't being distracted in any case. Well my survival instinct sure received the lesson loud and clear. Llanfil magic mastery was monstrous, but her ability with close combat even more so.

Ausas was in charge of teaching me archery and a mix of two handed and one handed weapons. Well he almost always used a great-axe or two big kukri like knives. He took delight in pushing my buttons, just like a certain gunnery sergeant, but after he never told me if he did it to make me able to resist provocation and keep calm, or if it was only for his own fun.

Anyway, after three years of almost ceaseless, we took few "vacation" inbetween, training they told that my avatar was finally ready. The lack of connection to the system made impossible seeing my progress, and they were adamant in telling me only that I was doing very well. They also told me that outside of there only thirty days had passed, talk about time compression.

So, after a little party, we said our farewell. I never said to them I had an idea on how keeping in touch, better not raise their hopes in vain. 

Stepping out of the dome that was my home for the last years, and house of two extraordinary people, took me again in the depth of the ocean. And instantly I was assaulted by a series of system's windows.