The elevator let out a pleasant chime and the doors slid open, inviting Luke to step out. As he made his way through the wide hallway, he couldn’t help but feel impressed, and a little out of place. Everything from the carpet to the statues that lined the hall gave the impression of luxury, just as they had in the lobby downstairs.

So, this is how he lives, huh? Luke thought. He pulled out his phone and looked at the last text he’d received.

Room 1095. Let yourself in.

His muscles continued to ache as he walked, though the pain had died down quite a bit after returning to the real world. But it would all be worth it. Seeing Alex go up against someone six levels higher and almost win filled him with great excitement. That was the kind of power he wanted for himself, and Alex was apparently willing to give up his secrets. Still, Luke wasn’t entirely convinced. The Spirit Fighter seemed genuine enough, but he was still a stranger. As a result, he’d decided to approach the training with a cautious optimism.

When Luke reached room 1095 he opened the door and his eyes immediately lit up. The sight before him was like something out of a movie. Giant windows overlooking the city encased a spacious room filled with trendy furniture. Sun beamed through the countless windows, lighting up the space with a radiant glow. Alex stood at the far end of the room with a can of soda in hand, gazing through the windows at the city below.

Luke let out an impressed whistle. “Hell of a place you got here, man. I had no idea you were living so large.”

Alex turned to face him. “Ah, thanks. But I don’t live here.”

That’s a shame. Luke thought. “Who does?”

“No one. I just bought it. From now on, this’ll be our meeting place outside the tower.”

“Hold on.” Luke said in disbelief. “You needed a meeting place and you decided to buy this penthouse? You’re either joking or you must be seriously loaded.”

Alex shook his head as he took a sip of his soda. “Neither. I used the payout from getting in second place to buy it. But forget that.” He waved Luke over. “Come check out this view.”

From the windows, Luke could see what felt like the entirety of Los Angeles below him. It looked like the picturesque view of a bustling city that you’d find in a high-end car commercial. But there was one anomaly that couldn’t be ignored: an unnatural tower which stood defiantly among all the human activity. Its presence filled Luke with a mixture of unease and excitement.

“It feels strange to look at it from this high up.” Luke said, as he kept his gaze on the pillar. “From the ground it looks imposing, and impossible to climb. But from here, it looks strangely manageable; as if we could actually get to the top.”

“We will get to the top.” Alex said without missing a beat. “We’ll be the first. I promise.”

It felt strange to hear him say that. The words sounded triumphant, but there was a hint of sadness in his voice. Maybe he lost someone special to him to the tower.

Luke turned around to face the room. “So, this is our base of operations, huh? It’s a little overkill, but I’m not gonna complain. I always wanted a secret base when I was a kid.”

Alex chuckled. “Enjoy the space while it lasts. It won’t be just us two for much longer. Our team will quickly grow as we recruit new members, and we can use this place to plan our ascents between havens. Plus, the tower is only a short distance from here so we can see and react to any strange events.”

“That reminds me.” Luke said. “I’ve been meaning to ask why we’re back in the real world. You didn’t call me out here just to show me the pad, did you?”

“Of course not. Your training will start here. Besides, you still need a few days to recover from using Berserk Mode. We can’t ascend the next three floors just yet.” He walked around Luke and sat on one of the black leather couches. “But before we begin the training, I need to explain the Warrior’s Principles to you. Have a seat.”

Luke shuffled around the coffee table at the center and sprawled himself out on the couch opposite of Alex. His tension released as his body sank into the comfortable embrace of the couch. The difference in quality from what he was used to sitting on was immediately apparent, and he wasn’t sure that he could ever go back.

I should really, really get rich. He thought.

Alex cleared his throat. “Pay attention because this is a difficult but important concept to understand. The Warrior’s Principles aren’t just a way to boost your stats. It’s much deeper than that.”

“Hold on.” Luke said. “Mastering them doesn’t affect your stats at all?”

Alex shook his head as he placed his soda on the coffee table between them. “The principles can’t be quantified the way that regular stats can. Think of them as a bonus to your overall skill as a fighter.”

“So, there’s no way to see if I’ve mastered them?”

“Not explicitly. You can get a gauge of it through your overall performance, but it isn’t plainly visible to you or anyone around you in the same way that your stats are.”

“If that’s the case,” Luke said. “, how will I know that these principles actually work?”

“You’ll feel the difference when you try it for yourself. Believe me.”

Luke turned his gaze toward the tower. That was the last thing he wanted to hear.

“Think about it like this.” Alex said. “Right now, your stats are likely higher than mine. But if we were to fight one on one or take on any combat challenge like the Battle Arena, I’d perform much better than you. No offense or anything.”

As much as Luke hated to admit it, Alex was right. There’s no way he could move the way Alex had moved in the final match.

“None taken. So, they allow you to perform better using the stats you currently have?”

“That’s a good way to think of it.” Alex said. “Mastering these principles lets you squeeze out every ounce of potential that you have in your current state. Gaining stats will increase that potential, but only through mastering the principles will you be able to reach your peak.”

“All right.” Luke said. “I think I get the gist of it. How many principles are there?”

Alex took the soda can and downed the remainder of the drink before tossing it back on the coffee table. “There are five in total, but you have to go through them in order. Once you master the first, you can move on to the second, and so on.”

“And can you teach me all of them?”

“I can. But we need to focus on one at a time.” Alex said. “Are you ready to learn about the first principle?”

Luke perked up, ready to listen with intent.

“The first principle,” Alex said as he raised his index finger, “is breath control.”

“Breath control?” Luke said in a disappointed tone. “That doesn’t sound very Warrior-like.”

Alex chuckled. “I have to admit, it’s not the most exciting thing ever, but we have to start with the basics. Once you master the three stages of breath control, you can move on to the second principle which is a lot more fun.”

Basics are never fun, Luke thought. “How do I go about learning breath control?”

Alex raised one finger. “The first stage is Awareness, where you learn to be conscious of your breathing at all times. It sounds easy, but trust me, it’s not.” He raised a second finger. “The second stage is Manual Control, where you’ll learn to override your natural breathing patterns and replace them with more efficient ones.” He raised a third finger. “And the third stage is Automatic Optimization of the Functions of the Respiratory System.”

Luke’s face dropped. “Huh?”

A hiss of laugh escaped from Alex’s mouth. “I’m just messing with you. The third stage is called Total Breathing, and it’s the process of implanting your new breathing patterns to replace the old ones.”

“But everyone breathes automatically. Why go through all this just to end up in the same spot?”

“Good question.” Alex said. “It has to do with efficiency. As Warriors, our entire gameplan revolves around the movement of our bodies, right?”

“Well, yeah.” Luke said. “We have to physically perform our strikes and we can’t hit our enemies if we can’t get close.”

“But there’s more to it than that. Some classes have a unique resource pool that they make use of to perform skills. Mages have mana and Spirit Fighters like me have spirit energy. Once we’re out of that resource, we can’t use our skills and our battle capabilities are severely limited. You saw the result of that in my fight with Max.”

Luke nodded along as Alex spoke.

“There’s one common resource that everyone uses, but is especially important to melee classes. Can you guess what that is?”

Luke thought about it for a moment, and an answer popped up in his mind. “Is it Stamina?”

Alex smiled. “Exactly. It has the potential to be a bottleneck for every melee class. A Mage without Stamina can still cast spells. But a warrior without Stamina is virtually useless. Do you see how breathing ties into all this?”

Luke nodded. “If you train your body to breathe more efficiently, you use less stamina.”

“Bingo. The first two stages are important, but the third stage is where you’ll see a huge spike in your overall ability. The idea is to train your body to become more efficient in its use of one of the key resources we have. To do that you have to become aware of your current breathing patterns, manually override them, then synthesize the new ones so that your body does them automatically. This will free up your mind to focus on the tasks at hand. In the heat of battle, that could be the difference between life and death.”

Luke leaned back into the couch. “That makes sense. Improve my breathing and I improve how much Stamina I use. The number won’t increase, but it’ll lead to an indirect improvement.” He inhaled deeply then let the air out slowly. “All right, I’m convinced. Is there a method or system for doing this?”

“I’m glad you asked.” Alex said. “I just so happen to have the perfect plan to get you started.”