Atlas remained motionless, staring at the faint particles that had begun to appear around him, visible even without his vision.
Curiosity overtook him as he sat up, observing the floating particles intently. His hand reached out, and as he touched them, the particles shifted, their flow disturbed by his movents. Every ti he waved his hand, they swirled and altered their paths, so drifting aimlessly in the air while others rose steadily upward.
Elental particles!
Recognition dawned on him. These were the sa particles that every Awakener would eventually sense during the early stages of gaining affinity with Mana. However, those particles were usually pale white, representing pure Mana.
What Atlas was seeing now were different—these were elental particles, each one tied to a specific elent in nature, their colors distinct and vibrant.
He stood slowly, taking in the glowing lights around him. The reddish particles clustered near the lava he had stepped in earlier, while faint brownish particles hovered over the solid ground he stood upon.
I can use these!
Excitent surged through him. He could use these elental particles to guide him through this sensory void.
Yes! I've found the way!
Atlas pushed himself to run again, despite his body feeling numb and deadened from the relentless pain. He could no longer feel anything—only the faint embers of determination driving him forward.
Yes, I can do it. I can do it!
There! Ahead was a stream of lava. He slowed his pace, carefully feeling out the edge with his feet. The faint reddish particles floating above the molten river guided him as he gauged the distance.
He braced himself, bending his knees, and then leaped with all his strength.
His body soared through the air.
And—
He landed on solid ground. Rolling across the dirt, he stopped and lay there for a mont, stunned.
But he had done it. He had leaped over the stream of lava!
He did it! He fucking did it!
With renewed determination, Atlas got up and kept running. He could finish this training. He could overco it all.
The elite subordinates and troops watched from afar, their eyes fixed on their Lord. Many of the troops sat slumped on the ground, too exhausted to move. Not a single one had touched any food all day, even though the night had long since fallen.
Zara, sitting at the front, glanced at Milo, who was nervously shuffling his cards.
"Mr. Milo… tell …" Zara said softly.
Since Zara, the team leader of the Aether team, had been assigned Milo as their Supervisor, she'd grown surprisingly comfortable talking with him. Despite Milo's usual reluctance to give satisfying answers, she seed unfazed.
They all found it odd how Zara could approach Milo so casually, especially considering the man was infamous for hulking out if anyone touched him.
"Y-yess… Za-Zara…" Milo stamred.
"Isn't it true that soone can learn to detect elental particles through ditation?" Zara asked. "And that this thod also helps them build elental affinity?"
"U-uhm… uhm…" Milo fumbled, his face twitching as he tried to form a coherent response. "With training this hard… soone could… uhm…"
"Let explain." Before he could finish, a sharp, clear voice cut in.
Turning, they saw a figure in a sleek black suit with perfectly styled hair standing nearby. It was Edrik.
Edrik always had a way of explaining things clearly, which was why the troops imdiately perked up, listening intently to his words.
"Soone can indeed sense elental particles through ditation," Edrik began. "And through this thod, they can build or unlock their elental affinity. There's nothing wrong with that statent. It's also sothing all of you will be able to do soon to unlock your own elental affinities."
He paused, glancing at the group, who were wide-eyed and hanging on to his every word.
"However," he continued, "what Master Kurogasa is having the Lord undergo isn't about ditation. Master Kurogasa wants the Lord to experience elental particles through struggle, suffering, and extre pressure. Under these conditions, the Lord will develop an unconscious—or instinctive—ability to sense elental particles, especially in monts of danger."
He let the weight of his words sink in before continuing. "When done correctly—though the thod is undeniably harsh, extrely harsh—it can result in stronger elental affinity, deeper connections with multiple elents, and the potential to develop unique skills or talents. These will serve as the foundation for the Lord's future growth."
He finished his explanation with a piercing gaze. "The point is simple: the harder you suffer in training, the better the results."
Edrik's cold, unyielding eyes swept over the group, making everyone swallow hard.
Were they going to have to endure the sa training?!
Hell no! No way!
How long did it take Atlas to finish just one lap? It felt like forever.
By the ti the clock struck midnight, everyone was still there, still awake. Many were on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion, their heads bobbing as they fought against sleep, but they refused to leave.
They swallowed hard and shook their heads in disbelief as they watched their Lord train.
What was this man made of?
His ntal fortitude was unreal. He had endured this hellish training from morning until now, well past midnight.
There's no way he's human. He's a robot!
So troops couldn't take it anymore and fell asleep where they sat, while others kept pushing themselves to stay awake—especially the team leaders, who remained seated and waiting.
Zara, as usual, was trying to strike up conversation with Milo, her efforts gradually calming the nervous man. The pace of his card shuffling slowed down.
Morning finally arrived. And there he was—the Lord, still running. Still failing. From yesterday to now, a full 24 hours of relentless hell, unable to see, feel, or sense anything, with no idea when this tornt would finally end.
But that morning, just as doubts began to creep into the minds of the troops—wondering if their Lord could ever complete this training—sothing changed.
Atlas started running faster. His movents grew sharper, his strides more confident. He ran, jumped, and landed.
He finished the first lap.
Without stopping, he turned and began sprinting toward the next section.
The troops, who had been watching in tense silence, erupted into cheers. They stood, clapping and shouting.
Their Lord had done it! He had succeeded... the first lap!
Nineteen more to go.
The other troops continued refusing to eat until their Lord ate as well. Instead of resting, they demanded to begin their own training imdiately.
They should have been exhausted—starving from not eating and drained from lack of sleep. Yet, for so reason, a determination coursed through their bodies, fueling them with a resolve. Without hesitation, they threw themselves into their training once more.
By the ti evening rolled around, everyone gathered again, waiting with bated breath as Atlas neared the end of his grueling challenge.
Finally, Atlas completed his 20th lap. His steps faltered, and his body collapsed forward—straight into Edrik, who caught him before he could hit the ground.
"You made it, Atlas," Edrik said. "You made it, My Lord."
The troops couldn't hold back any longer. Tears stread down their faces as they watched their Lord, utterly spent but victorious.
So fell to their knees, bowing in deep respect to the man who had endured this hellish training. He was only level 46, born with an F-rank trash combat talent, and yet he had pushed himself beyond all limits.
Even though he was just an ordinary human, no different from the rest of them!
He had done it. Against all odds, he had done it!
[You've developed new Skill: Epic-grade Instinctive Elental Sense]
[Type: Passive Skill]
[Provides intuitive knowledge of elental particle movent, enabling seamless navigation and reaction to elental energy without conscious effort.]
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