CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED SIXTY-EIGHT

Practice Makes Perfect, Part 2

His next lesson was quite simple in its application. All Sam had to do was swing Gram in a downward motion from a high-guard stance five thousand times. If he did that, then Chiron guaranteed he would learn something truly amazing.

“I-I have to swing my sword”—Just like that, his focus broke—“f-five thousand times?!”

Sam had yelled so loudly that Thunder spared him a glance. She mouthed an, ‘Everything okay?’ while dodging the air blade projectile that fake Superion had thrown at her.

Remarkably, her virtual opponent hadn’t been destroyed by Skyfang’s power. It was a testament to the resilience of Marcus Flint’s hard-light technology.

Sam shook his head and mouthed back. ‘Chiron’s crazy!’

Thunder gave him a sympathetic smile along with, ‘I know, but you can do this,’ just before she disappeared in a shower of electrical sparks that trailed after her.

Sam watched Thunder zoom across her side of the training area to land a lightning-charged fist into fake Superion’s smug face while feeling a fire light up underneath him.

Don’t forget to maintain a regular cadence… and don’t slow down even once until all five thousand cuts are completed, Chiron instructed.

“Just five thousand?” Thunder’s encouragement instilled in Sam a surplus of confidence. “I can swing my sword all night.”

I should have Thunder cheerleading for you in all your future training sessions if she can get you this worked up all the time.

“You’re hilarious.” Sam rolled his eyes. “Anything else I should know?”

Make sure you follow through on each swing of the blade. Strike hard every time, Chiron explained. Don’t stop even if you’re tired. Fight through the fatigue and it’ll help to increase your endurance too.

It took him about an hour to complete a thousand swings, but at that point, Sam was sweating so profusely that even the sweat-absorbent suit he wore underneath the Armor of the Odyssey was soaked. This didn’t stop him from swinging, however. He kept at it. Even as his arms began to feel like they were made of lead.

“One thousand and”—Sam swung Gram down without losing the precision he’d started with—“ninety-eight.”

At two thousand swings, Sam took a quick moment to remove his armor as it had begun to weigh him down and he was hellbent on keeping his form throughout the training process.

It also helped that Triple-A provided Sam with a new notification to help lift his spirits somewhat.

CONGRATULATIONS! This training has increased your Strength [+1] and Willpower [+1].

Sam had received a similar notification earlier, but that one had given him a [+1] to Dexterity and Constitution instead.

I’m impressed, kid, Chiron whispered, you’re sticking to the training program better than I thought you would.

“Save the compliments”—It was swing two thousand and one now—“for after… I finish this.”

Remarkably, taking off the Armor of the Odyssey didn’t remove the bonus it gave Sam so he was able to maintain the strength in his arms without them cramping up for another thousand swings.

Within three and a half hours, Sam reached that prestigious three thousandth swing—and he continued swinging past it without so much as a pause. Surprisingly, Sam wasn’t breathing hard anymore either. As if the action of repeatedly swinging Gram in a downward arc had become much easier now. Almost like a reflex.

CONGRATULATIONS! Your Willpower has increased [+2].

It was also around this time that Thunder finally defeated fake Superion, and she was now taking a break underneath the shade of a giant tree that Marcus Flint fabricated on her side of the training area. Flint himself had come out of the control room to join her, and he’d even brought a box of pizza and a thermos of tea with him.

“Keep it up, Sam!” Thunder cheered just before she bit into a slice of pepperoni pizza. She took a swig of tea as well before adding, “You’ll hit five thousand lickety-split!”

“As long as he maintains his form in the last two thousand swings, he may just reach a level of competence with the sword that surpasses intermediate ability,” Marcus Flint added.

Strange—Sam didn’t know Marcus Flint was a martial arts enthusiast too. He even sounded like he’d done similar training himself, which, based on his autobiography that Sam read last year, wasn’t the case. There were, however, rumors floating in the forums that Crow-Man might have taught his rich friend some basic self-defense moves.

From the corner of his eye, Sam watched them eat and drink and joke around while he suffered in silence. He couldn’t have called out to them even if he wanted to though, because his mouth had become so dry and parched that no words could escape his lips now.

Just a little more, kid, Chiron promised. Keep going!

Sam was enduring pretty well, and that was because Triple-A was driving his body’s healing ability to function more efficiently, prompting Regeneration to work on areas where fatigue or pain was building up to ensure Sam didn’t feel the damage in his limbs for long.

CONGRATULATIONS! Your Dexterity has increased [+2].

At swing number four thousand, Sam began to feel a change in himself and in the way he wielded his sword. His swings were still heavy, but Gram felt lighter in his hands now. Each swing seemed sharper too—sharp enough that Sam imagined he’d just cut the air with swing four-thousand-and-one.

Chiron… did you see that?

You’ve achieved enlightenment with the sword. And, with just a little life force added to the blade, there won’t be anything you can’t cut, especially with Gram in your hands.

Let’s try it…

With Chiron’s prompting, Sam spread his life force down into the tips of his fingers and straight into Gram’s shiny blade so that a softly glowing teal aura began to coat his sword. Then, with Sword Aura empowering his next swing, Sam saw the air in front of him part like Moses splitting the Red Sea, and he couldn’t help feeling giddy.

From the corner of his eye, he watched Thunder’s jaw drop slightly. The sight of jealousy and admiration mixing in her expression made him feel even better so that Sam believed he could complete Chiron’s training with flying colors.

After that four thousandth swing, Triple-A began warning Sam that his fatigue had reached past critical limits, but it didn’t try to forcefully stop him from continuing. And, with one final notification of [Fatigue: [112%]], the pop-ups just stopped coming.

Weirdly enough, Sam didn’t feel the fatigue at all. His focus was sharper than it had been when he’d started the training regimen. His swings had gotten swifter too. As for his body, it felt extremely light as well.

That’s what we call being in the zone, kid, Chiron explained. I’m guessing this is the first time you’ve experienced it too.

This wasn’t entirely true as Sam recalled feeling this exact way during the final moments of his fight against the Cannibal Boar which had seen him create his first true skill—Mortal Fist. Perhaps this meant that Sam was on the verge of learning something new now too.

CONGRATULATIONS! Your Constitution and Strength have increased [+1]

It took nearly six hours, but Sam eventually swung his sword for the five thousandth time. The impact of his slash was so great that it cut through the illusion around him and created a rip within the hard light projection which revealed the shattered tiles on the floor he had just cut.

“Holy Zeus,” he whispered.

Sam didn’t expect a reply, but Thunder’s voice came from directly behind him. “Not bad.”

He had been so focused on his training that he didn’t even notice when Marcus Flint dropped the hard light barrier separating Thunder’s training area from his. She was standing behind him now, with a curious expression on her face.

“Your sword aura’s gotten much sharper than before, hasn’t it?” she guessed.

Sam wasn’t sure. Perhaps this was the case.

“Your hair’s wet,” he noticed. “Did you take a shower?”

“I completed my training an hour ago.” She shrugged. “So, I had some free time to get comfortable.”

Thunder didn’t just look rejuvenated, she smelled nice too. Also, there was no way Sam would complain about seeing Thunder in a training bra and pants that showed off her body in a way that made him feel all kinds of warm.

“You are so beautiful,” he whispered.

She grinned as she stepped over to him and leaned into his ear. “Caught you in my spell again, huh.”

“I’ve always been under your spell… Since the day we met,” he admitted suddenly.

Somehow, Sam didn’t feel embarrassed by his boldness. Besides, the fact that she had him wrapped around her finger was no secret as Farsight liked to point this truth to him often enough.

Thunder blushed slightly, but that didn’t keep her from teasing him some more. “So, have you suddenly become a sword master while I wasn’t looking?”

At her words, Sam glanced down at Gram and noticed that it was still glowing in an aura of his signature teal light. It hadn’t been long since he began to pump his life force into his sword, but now he noticed that this new Sword Aura wasn’t like anything he’d managed before. It was sharper than the previous version, with ripples appearing over its surface like waves were forming within the aura.

“I can cut the air now,” he said. It wasn’t boasting. Sam was simply stating a fact that he realized instinctively.

As if agreeing with his conclusion, Triple-A presented Sam with his reward for completing the training menu.

CONGRATULATIONS! You have acquired an advanced combat skill [Sword Aura: Ripple]. Your next skill [Sword Aura: Thorn] is now available for you to learn as well. This will require five thousand thrusts of your sword.

Sam grinned widely at Thunder. “You know… I think I’ve become just a little better.”