THE NEXT MORNING

Drake woke up being jostled by Tohsin

“You don’t wanna be asleep when the Alarm goes off”

“Wha-”

Drake’s words were cut short as the grill in the middle of the ceiling let out a shrill whistle. It lasted for about two seconds.

Drake rubbed his ringing ears "Ow! What was that?! Why?!"

"I can hear you just fine, you don't need to shout. They play that sound every morning just a quarter to 6, It's to reign in the students who sleep in and use that as an excuse to skip classes"

Drake nodded

"Well then, let's get dressed. Class starts in 15 minutes"

Tohsin said as he pulled away from Drake's bedside heading toward his wardrobe

Drake plopped out of bed

"oh and make sure to make your bed… and keep your Wardrobe in order, Or else we'll walk in to find a tornado ripping through our belongings"

Drake stopped in his tracks and stared at Tohsin

"What the F-"

"Military Establishment"

Tohsin cut him off

Drake just shrugged and continued getting ready, Pulling a Dark Blue T-shirt over his head

"No Breakfast?"

Drake asked

"After Classes"

Drake sighed as he finished

"let's go"

The two boys made their way into the Grounds behind the Main academy buildings Where they saw a Rank and File formation of cadets in front of Angus and two other soldiers. They hurriedly joined the formation.

After spending a few minutes confirming everyone was present, Angus began his session.

"Attention please! We are now going to begin a course of physical training in preparation for receiving your Anthem powers. These sessions will be divided into three parts. Physical Fitness, Mana aptitude and Combat Prowess."

Angus paced back and forth in front of the formation as he spoke.

" You have been subjected to a Similar test during your Evaluation period, So I expect you Cadets to complete this course without struggle. I will now outline how we will proceed with today's training."

Drake was at the back of the second to last file of the formation, a cadet tapped on his shoulder

"Hey rich boy, when you're in formation you gotta be be on ceremony like everyone else"

Drake glanced at him, confused. He took a look around and saw that he was the only outlier standing in a pool of people with their hands behind their straightened backs.

Drake silently obliged as Angus continued his briefing, seemingly Oblivious to this exchange

"-I will be unable to instruct you throughout the Physical fitness and combat prowess exercises, in My place Instructors Victus and Aster will guide you. Gentlemen"

Angus stepped aside to let the two men by his side take front and centre

Both of them were of equal height and wore the same uniform, but the difference in how they carried themselves stood out.

One of them had a mop of dark coral hair and the striking features of an Aristocrat. A Rapier and Dagger were suspended from his Belt.

The Other soldier was more relaxed, He was slightly plump compared to the lean and Muscular dagger-wielding man. He had shorter, Wavy Hazel hair and a freckled face. He carried only a sheathed arming sword.

"Thank you, Instructor Angus."

The stern looking soldier said as he faced the formation

"I am Warrant Officer Victus Numeral, I am here as your Physical Fitness supervisor, as you have heard from the Lieutenant. Be aware that I can catch any form of slacking from any of you at any time, So do refrain from exerting no effort"

as soon as he finished, the other man began his introductions

"And I am Staff Sergeant Jonathan Aster, Don't let my physique fool you, I am a Bracer Mage and have participated in hundreds of Retakes against Mystic Abyss Forces, I am your Combat Prowess supervisor. I will be evaluating your style of combat and recommending you into a Cell Role"

He looked back at Angus and Nodded

"We shall begin with your Physical Fitness Training right now, Act on my command. Squad! Left Face!"

With Aster's command the everyone in formation of cadets sharply turned to face left, save for one.

"Cadet, was I not clear enough with my instruction? Left Face!"

Aster shouted

Drake quickly turned left

"We shall run 25 laps around the grounds. Begin!"

Aster shouted as he and Numeral began to jog

The formation of Cadets trailed just behind the two instructors, Jogging. Drake quickly found his footing and matched the pace of the group.

"Double Time!"

Numeral Shouted this time, and the entire formation sped up.

The entire group of Cadets the full 25 laps around the grounds, By the time they were brought to a halt, Half of them could barely keep on their feet

Aster and Numeral stood unfazed with blank expressions on their faces

“What are these guys made of?” Drake thought to himself as he struggled to catch his breath

“Steady. I do not want to see a single one of you slouch.”

Aster said as he scanned for signs of disobedience

“Good, let us continue. Large interval Dressings!”

“A What?”

Drake’s thoughts rallied in confusion

At his command the group of cadets lifted both arms and began to make larger spaces between each other

Drake unconsciously copied what he saw, he just flabbily raised both arms and followed along.

“Eyes front! We aren’t done yet, up next is High intensity exercises”

Everyone in the formation suddenly took a wide stance and lowered their bodies

“Repeat after me.”

Aster began going through a plethora of movements, some more straining than others.While some were completely out of the league of the Cadets.

Aster’s incredible physical fitness sharply contrasted with his rather plump exterior, He had incredible flexibility and core strength

Numeral stood off to one side, observing the body of cadets rather than focusing on exercises, he helped correct postures and prevented injuries

The next 45 minutes were a gruelling experience for the cadets as the exercises left their bodies aching but lit their spirits on fire

“Listen up! You can go eat breakfast and restore your energy after I give the command to fall out. Your next session is in 30 minutes, so I suggest you hurry. Did I make myself clear?”

Aster asked

“Yes sir” the entire formation responded

“Good. Squad, Fall out!”

Everyone in The formation sharply swung right and walked off

Drake was left to figure everything out on his own, so he just copied everyone else.

He began heading toward the mess to get breakfast, when a hand came up and latched onto his shoulder.

“You ought to watch yourself here Rich boy, not everyone will be as kind as they were to you. If you don’t learn how to act on command, the whole class will get punished.”

It was the boy who advised him earlier, speaking to drake out of breath

“I’ll keep that in mind, thanks”

Drake replayed that boy’s advice in his mind as he headed toward the mess. On the way he encountered Tohsin

He lightly jogged up to match his pace

“Well if it isn't Rich boy? How was your first training session?”

Drake was in less of an accommodating mood to Tohsin’s Banter

“It was fine, i’m just a bit sore”

“Well, you're holding up better than most of us were on day one, I remember we were driven to a point where some even hurled the contents of their stomach. That was no pretty sight to behold”

“Yuck, I'd rather not see that. Speaking of, some kid told me to learn to act on command. What was that about?”

Drake asked

“It means what it means, you need to learn to act on command, or etiquette classes will be hell for the rest of us”

Tohsin warned Drake as they entered the mess hall. It was teeming with significantly less people than the night before. They grabbed trays with food and sat down together

“What do you mean by that?”

Drake started eating

“Our classes use a ‘one body, hundred minds’ philosophy as the instructors like to call it, That means that if even one of us messes up, the rest of us will have to face the consequences alongside them as well”

“Mmhm”

Drake said as he gobbled down some scrambled eggs

“Can you teach me how to do them sometime later?”

Tohsin gave a nod in response, and they ate their breakfast quickly and silently.