Deeper into the forest, beyond the limits I used to explore. So close to the castle that I could feel its presence even without seeing it. The vegetation was denser, the silence heavier, and the energy around me... different.
I was stronger.
But still not strong enough.
The area here was different. Wilder. The trees stood like silent colossi, so tall that their branches were lost among the gray clouds. The roots snaked out of the earth, twisted like stone arms, forcing me to tread carefully. The ground was uneven and treacherous, and the cold seeped into my skin like a subtle, constant presence that made me shiver even after hours on the move.
Every step required concentration. Every breath was measured.
My eyes were open, fixed, but it wasn't with them that I could see.
After three months immersed in this training, I was finally able to walk, aim and shoot without having to become a stone statue. I no longer needed to close my eyes to find that point in the center of my forehead - it was always there, pulsing gently, like a second sight that vibrated behind my skin.
Sweat dripped from my forehead and pooled on my chin, dripping silently onto the wet leaves. My muscles were tense, my legs heavy, complaining about the long walk. Still, I carried on.
I was at war with myself - a silent battle, fought inside my mind.
Sorting, classifying, interpreting...
It was like reading a book without letters. A book made of vibrations and light.
The "light of life" was in everything: in the trees that breathed slowly, in the moss that grew damp on their trunks, in the frosty air that enveloped me, in the grass that brushed against my ankles. And I... I needed to understand all this without relying on sight, hearing or touch. Only with my sixth sense.
It took five months of digging deep into this invisible territory, excavating silhouettes and shapes hidden behind matter.
And over time... I began to hear. Not with my ears, but with something deeper.
I realized that every living being emitted a frequency. A kind of muted sound, a silent vibration.
The trees - gigantic and wise - vibrated in slow, powerful waves, like a drum that beats once every eternity. The grass, on the other hand, was almost imperceptible, subtle as a dying whisper in the wind. The small animals... they were frantic, their frequencies agitated but fragile. Medium-sized ones? Intense, pulsating. They had weight. Presence.
And then... it happened.
I stopped.
In the midst of the cold, the pain in my legs and the exhaustion, something clicked.
I took a deep breath.
I closed my eyes for a moment, but it wasn't an effort - it was natural. An instinctive gesture. And at that moment, I stopped trying to see.
I began to feel.
The waves. The pulsations. The flow.
The presence.
Like invisible heartbeats, the frequencies were everywhere. I no longer needed to interpret shapes or silhouettes. It wasn't about the whole, but about what vibrated. About what touched me without touching.
It was as if I were submerged in invisible water, feeling every movement, every disturbance, every change around me.
- I can hear it... - I whispered, slowly opening my eyes.
And I didn't need to see anything to know: I was no longer alone in the forest.
When inspiration struck me, it wasn't an idea. It was like a bolt of lightning crossing the inner sky of my mind - sudden, hot and unstoppable.
My bones, already warmed by the exertion of walking and training, went into a state that I can only describe as overload. It was as if an electric current ran through every joint, every tendon.
I didn't think.
I just reacted.
In an almost supernatural impulse, my fingers pulled on the bowstring. The familiar sound of tension ran through me like an old friend coming home.
I fired.
Once, twice, three times. Each arrow left my fingers as if it had a life of its own, as if it wasn't me who was guiding it, but something much older and instinctive.
With each shot, my feet moved without me asking. I ducked, I spun, I snuck through the trees as if the ground itself was leading me.
I felt the guards' gaze on me. I could feel their shock like heat. But I didn't stop. I couldn't stop.
CHI!
CHI!
CHI!
CHI!
The sound of arrows cutting through the air became a rhythm inside me. A tribal drum, guiding my muscles.
My eyes couldn't see, but my forehead pulsed. I could feel it. Every living being there vibrated with a unique frequency - and now, I could hear them.
That was it.
I didn't need to see anymore.
I could feel it.
The frequency.
The pulse.
The presence.
The whole forest seemed to sing to me. The trees, powerful and calm. The grass, whispering almost inaudibly. The small animals, frantic and shy. The larger ones... vibrating like restrained thunder.
The arrows kept coming out. My arms ached, but it was a good pain, a living pain.
A minute and a half.
A hundred arrows.
A hundred fates sealed.
And then... silence.
The last CHI echoed like a sigh.
My fingers, still trembling, released the bow. My shoulders slumped. Sweat dripped down my forehead, down my back. But it wasn't exhaustion I felt. It was something new. Something warm.
The "oil", as I had learned to call it, flowed inside me more freely than ever. A thick, dark, pulsating energy coursed through my veins, circulating from the soles of my feet to the top of my head.
When I focused it on my forehead, it felt as if a light bulb was switched on inside my mind.
I understood.
I finally understood.
- So... - I mumbled, taking a deep breath - that was it. It was just... getting rid of the distractions.
I don't need to see. If I can feel it.
But it requires trust. It requires a leap in the dark.
I smiled, even if no one was around to see.
I started walking back, and as I stepped over damp leaves and twisted roots, an image appeared in my mind: my father's face.
Serious, restrained... but with that sparkle in his eyes that he rarely let go of.
I wanted to see that sparkle again.
It took eleven months. Eleven months of blood, sweat and silence.
But I made it.
I'm a warrior commander now.
And for the first time in a long time... I allowed myself to think about what comes next.
What would the realm of the Combat Masters be like? Where do they live? How do they train? What kind of strength exists in this place?
I have no answers. No clues.
But now... I'm strong.
Stronger than the average adult male.
I'm faster - twice as fast, perhaps.
My muscles can withstand more, my senses are more acute.
I don't say that with arrogance.
I say it because it's true.
Few can hurt me now.
And that... that's just the beginning.