"Are you sure you're not mad at me, Ailsa?" Kira grumbled to herself as she rolled her shoulders to ease tension building up in the muscles. Her arms were locked together with a heavy device that kept them pinned behind her back, preventing her from using her hands while navigating the most difficult of Ailsa's hellish obstacle courses that she'd seen so far.

After spending the previous day repeatedly clearing the first floor of the Dungeon, Ailsa decided the Team would make use of the largest training zone, as long as a sports stadium and almost as tall, filled almost entirely by various impossible obstacles and vicious traps.

Kira just sighed when she saw it, mumbling a soft "Here we go again" that caused her friends to nearly jump out of their skins. Brigit and Ribbon were both species that couldn't physically sweat, yet they both felt a strong urge to do just that when they saw the course Ailsa made Kira navigate.

"I ain't mad ye wee hen. Yer next, Miss Brigit!" Ailsa said, pulling another arm device from her inventory. Brigit balked for a moment, then heaved a sigh and allowed herself to be restrained.

"I'm r-ready" Ribbon whispered, holding out her arms, but Ailsa just laughed.

"Nae lass, but I be appreciatin' yer gumption! Yer trainin' be somethin' else. While these two be runnin' the gauntlet, like, ye'll be keepin' an eye on me." Ailsa opened her System, navigating various menus until she was ready to summon an enormous humanoid clump of rocks held together by flowing magma and determination. "This be Rocky, me first elemental spirit summon. Me and him, we'll be sparrin' in the corner. I want ye practicin' the timin' on yer 【 Barrier 】 spell, and keepin' an eye on yer mana regen. Aye?"

Ribbon looked up at the giant earth elemental, which gave her a little wave with a hand bigger than her entire body, and gulped. "I... I... I'll do m-my best?"

"Good lass."

"But..." Ribbon fidgeted, glancing toward the obstacle course with an oddly reluctant expression.

Ailsa couldn't help but chuckle, ruffling the soft fur between Ribbon's ears. "Don't ye worry, none. Once ye get the hang of it, I'll be throwin' ye at the gauntlet as well. I ain't lookin' down on ye, missy. Just wanna make sure yer prepared first."

"Okay!" Ribbon nodded, her tail wagging and expression mollified.

"You're gonna make Ribbon run this too?!" Brigit said, looking as close to horrified as she'd ever managed, and the Dwarf nodded.

"Aye. Healers who can't at least be avoidin' danger do more harm than good later on. If ye baby her too much, yer whole Team will be payin' the price.

"See, Miss Brigit be havin' more experience than both of ye combined when it comes ta combat, but it be low level combat with nae variation, like. Kira were trapped in that Gate fer an awful long time, but she avoided fightin' when possible. Miss Ribbon were a low level Acolyte, a healer, and didn't have anyone ta drag her around no Dungeons fer experience up 'til now." Ailsa pointed at each of them in turn, raising her eyebrows when their faces all fell. "I ain't blamin' ye, lassies, chins up, now! It just means ye need a different kind of trainin'.

"Miss Brigit were kind enough ta record yer Variant run, and sent me a copy. From what I saw, Miss Ribbon here ain't got a natural knack fer combat, but she do be havin' a great sense of timin'. That's excellent fer a healer, top notch! No healer in the world be worth anythin' if they ain't got a sense of timin' fer their skills."

Ribbon bowed her head, rubbing her fluffy cheeks with the pads of her paws. "R...Really?"

"Aye, lass. A healer with good timin' be preferred in Parties over healers of slightly higher levels or better gear, even! Since it means they be havin' a deep, fundamental understandin' of themselves and their Class, and important observational skills. Those things can be taught, true enough, but it's annoyin' and time consumin' ta do so. Much easier to nab a healer who shows promise, and train 'em up! So we'll start by havin' her get a grasp of combat timin', then we'll be trainin' her body and reflexes as well."

"And for me... I assume since I was essentially stuck at Level 5 for so long, I've developed some bad habits?" Brigit asked softly, frowning when Ailsa nodded.

"Aye, yer predictable. Ye've already got a good foundation and experience bein' in combat, now ye need ta be workin' on mental flexibility. I can tell ye practice every day, ye swing yer sword with precision and yer shield always blocks the right spots. But yer movements are almost textbook, ta the point that anyone with half a brain who watches ye fight fer a minute knows how ye'll react, and how to avoid or trap ye."

"I see..."

"That be fine enough fer low level Dungeons and Gates, but yer wantin' ta get stronger, aye? Unless ye wanna bully weak monsters all yer life, ye'll have ta learn ta adapt. First step fer that is be put in ta situations ye ain't accustomed."

"And I have to do it too because she's totally mad at me..." Kira grumbled, just before Ailsa snapped her fingers and caused a deluge of water to soak her head. "HEY!"

"Ye lack experience and rely overmuch on yer fists when yer fightin'," Ailsa said, leaning over to gently rap her knuckles on Kira's forehead. "Yer instincts are good and ye've got fine concentration, but ye don't know enough about how ta move yer own body or what yer actual limits might be."

"But I'm supposed to be holding back? How can I test my limits..." Kira grumbled again, looking sullen and sodden, and Ailsa couldn't help but laugh.

"Yer meant ta be holdin' back yer full strength, ye wet noodle, not absolutely everythin' yer capable of, and that be exactly what I'm talking about! Fer example, do ye even know yer maximum jumpin' height? Or how long yer jump is, if'n ye had a runnin' start? What about if'n ye didn't? How about yer top runnin' speed? And yer physical flexibility? Can ye do the splits, or cartwheel, or handstand? Fer how long? How small a gap can ye fit yerself between before ye get stuck? How long can ye maintain a sprint before ye collapse? How high of a rope can ye climb if it ain't against a wall? Or if it is?"

With each rapid-fire question, Kira's gaze drifted lower and lower. Finally, she nodded her head. "Okay, I think I see your point."

"Knowin' yer limits ain't just about knowin' what ye can't do, but knowin' what yer fully capable of as well. I've told ye this before, knowin' yer own limits and those of yer Teammates be important. Strengths AND weaknesses. Hidin' yer strength requires ye ta have a good grasp of yer own abilities as well as those of the people around ye, so ye can adjust as needed ta avoid gatherin' attention. Wouldn't it be embarrassin' if ye did somethin' ye thought be low-key and subtle, only ta have everyone in awe of yer strength cuz ye have a different perspective of people's limits?"

Kira nodded. She'd read more than enough novels to be aware of the exact trap Ailsa was talking about - the trap of privilege combined with a closed perspective. She didn't know enough about the world to know what was impressive to most people and what wasn't, so being able to judge her own limits against others would be an important thing for her to learn.

Especially since she didn't want to be drawing undue attention.

"Alright then, lassies! Let's get this started!" Ailsa grinned, clapping her hands. Brigit and Kira both took off running toward the obstacle course's entrance, while Ribbon braced herself and saluted the earth elemental, who returned the gesture.

"R-ready when you are!"

Since it was the weekend and none of the girls had elective classes scheduled for those days, Ailsa planned to use both days off to run them ragged.

The first day, she had Kira and Brigit run the obstacle course over and over with their arms bound, while she herself kept taking hits from Rocky the earth elemental in order to help Ribbon practice her timing.

Though it was called an obstacle course, it was no childish maze or fun carnival challenge. There were many traps that could cause status effects or outright damage if they weren't properly navigated! One section in particular was a nasty challenge for both girls - a suspended rope net dangled precariously over a pool of acid, one with gaps they discovered the painful way were much too wide for them to simply crawl across. Another section involved jumping on unstable rocky pillars jutting from a bubbling river of magma, as rocks and stalactites fell from the ceiling above.

Ailsa was at least kind enough to ensure the traps were set to not cause permanent physical damage. If they singed off Brigit's hair, the Drakke would be inconsolable. The Dwarf wanted to train the girls, not break their psyche.

Halfway through the day, Ailsa unbound Brigit and Kira, to let them attempt the course with their hands and see the difference in how they were moving. She patiently gave them pointers, even while withstanding the constant attacks from Rocky. While those three had a leisurely conversation, Ribbon kept throwing out her 【 Barrier 】 spells to keep Ailsa from getting knocked silly mid-sentence.

Both Brigit and Kira were fast learners who had good instincts. It didn't take them long to figure out what Ailsa wanted them to do, and how it related to their own bad habits and preconceptions of movement. For the rest of the day, all the way until dinnertime, they practiced running the course using their whole bodies to overcome obstacles in more efficient and creative ways.

While those two were busy accidentally learning to do front flips thanks to some very aggressive swinging logs in one portion of the course, Ailsa started having Ribbon run laps around the only open area of the training zone - the sparring ring - every time she ran out of mana. Ribbon wasn't allowed to stop until her MP regenerated all the way, with the Dwarf very kindly pretending not to notice when the little Kobold slowed her pace in an attempt to catch her breath.

By the time Ailsa left for the night, all three girls had collapsed on the training zone floor gasping for air. Their bodies ached and their limbs trembled, but somehow, when they met each other's gazes, all of them couldn't help sharing an excited grin.

If this didn't help them get stronger, what in the world could?

The next day, Ailsa didn't bind Brigit or Kira's arms again. Instead, she gave all three girls special weights for them to wear around their shoulders, wrists, and ankles. The weights were magnetic sets, with all the external pieces constantly trying to join with a belt that formed the core.

"From now on until I give ye the go-ahead, I want ye ta be workin' together," Ailsa said as they all fastened the belts around their waists. It was funny seeing their limbs jerk and dance as they resisted the firm pull of the magnets in an attempt to stay upright and dignified, but the Dwarf managed to keep her laughter on the inside to preserve their pride. "If'n one of ye falls, the belts will be pullin' the other two down as well, and ye'll start over from the beginnin'."

"What!?" Ribbon exclaimed, crestfallen. The little Kobold was clearly aware she was the weak link when it came to physical capability, and she looked both angry and afraid that Ailsa would make her be the Team's downfall on her very first day of physical training.

Ailsa wagged a finger and smiled. "Relax! Ye lot need ta learn not only how to work together and cover each other's weaknesses, but how ta learn from failure. Failure itself ain't a bad thing, if'n ye learn from yer mistakes. It shouldn't make ye scared ta think ye might fail at somethin', but that be a concept even the oldest adults be strugglin' with. The three of ye be young enough ta pick it up fast, like, so such negative thinkin' don't become a bad habit ye'll spend yer whole life unlearnin'."

"But... But..." Ribbon mumbled, her ears drooping.

Brigit and Kira both ruffled the fur between her ears, one after the other.

"I fall all the time already," Kira said matter-of-factly, shrugging her shoulders.

"We'll start at your pace," Brigit said with a smile. "We'll all be dealing with the magnets, so we can go slow together. Just make sure to tell us when you're having trouble, we can't help if you aren't honest with us."

Though Ribbon was still visibly upset, she nodded reluctantly. "Okay..."

"Just do yer best," Ailsa said, shrugging her broad shoulders. "It ain't a competition, yer tryin' ta improve yerselves, not win no prizes. I ain't expectin' ye ta finish the course today. Or fer the next two weeks, if'n I'm bein' right truthful, and that ain't me lookin' down on ye so don't be makin' that face Kiddo. When I first started trainin' as a Level 1, it took me a whole month ta even get ta the end by meself!"

Kira narrowed her eyes in disbelief, but the look on Ailsa's face was nothing short of honest. She wasn't trying to rile them up by putting them down or telling fake inspirational stories to seem relatable, so Kira relaxed the tension in her shoulders and gave a short nod.

"You used this course too, Mrs. Reid?" Brigit said, her eyes sparkling. The idea of using the same training course her idol once used made the hellish obstacle course suddenly seem a lot more endearing.

"Aye! It be me Pappy's design, passed down by his Pappy, and his Pappy's Pappy. It ain't meant ta be somethin' ye defeat, as such. It's meant ta challenge ye! Course, me bein' a right brat, and me Pappy bein' not much better, this be somethin' I didn't learn meself until years after... I'm tellin' ye bairns ahead of time since yer skulls ain't nowhere near as thick as mine were back then, thankfully!" Ailsa threw her head back and laughed, looking more proud about her childhood hardheadedness than embarrassed.

"Challenge, not defeat..." Kira muttered, furrowing her brows as though the very idea was incomprehensible. Then after a few moments her brows relaxed, and she gave another short nod and a sullen sigh. "Okay."

〖 Ailsa: I'll let you three go a little early tonight. 〗Ailsa sent a message privately to Kira while the girls were doing warm-up stretches. Catching the hint, Kira didn't respond herself, instead glancing over at the Dwarf with a quizzical expression and raising of her ever-expressive eyebrows.〖 Ailsa: Isn't your Grimoire ready tonight? I thought you'd be more excited to see it! 〗

Kira's eyebrows nearly shot off her face, her eyes sparkling as realization hit. Ailsa was letting her off early to go play with her new Skill! Naturally she was already excited, but she was putting off thinking about it too much until the day's training was over so she could focus on the course. The reminder of what waited for her once the day was over brought a figurative spring back into her step.

Seeing Kira's sudden and unexplainable expression of enthusiasm, Brigit mistook it for a sign of her readiness, and promptly hauled the other two girls toward the entrance to the obstacle course despite Ribbon's whimpered protests.