All the people present looked at the one who had shouted from the far corner. A man clad in armor glared at the two who were fighting. He wore an eyepatch over his left eye, had brown hair graying at the sides, and a bulky frame.
"General!" At once, all the soldiers and mages present saluted him. The four newcomers were flustered but followed suit. The general strode toward them.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he barked at the noble Simon had been fighting. Then, turning to Simon, he demanded, "And you! Did you really intend to kill him?"
"Kill? That John, who was stronger than us?" a soldier muttered. "No way, right?"
"No, sir. I only meant to leave a scratch on his neck," Simon retorted.
"Oh, really? You didn't even land a single hit on me!" the noble sneered.
"Shut your mouth!" the general roared. "Did you know these men have been ordered to train here by the king himself?"
The noble's face contorted with anger and confusion. "H-how can that be? These lowly peasants?"
"Oh, so you're doubting the king's decisions now? Is that what you're saying?" Josh interjected, his palm covering his smirking mouth.
"I never said that!" the noble exclaimed.
"Enough," the general stated firmly. "From today onward, these four will train in these grounds, whether you like it or not. They have been personally selected by the king, so don't do anything idiotic that would leave a bad taste in His Majesty's mouth." He then turned to the four. "And the same goes for you. Now, go familiarize yourselves with the area. I'll call you later for training."
"Yes, sir!" the four replied. The general left.
Once again, the noble approached them, his brows furrowed. "You got lucky this time. Next time, I'll make sure you regret crossing us."
The four ignored him and surveyed the training grounds, observing the soldiers and mages practicing. Sol's eyes gleamed as he watched a mage launch a blue fireball at a target.
"Hey!" The girl from earlier called out to them, though her attention was mostly on Simon. "You're more skilled in swordsmanship than I expected!" she said with a smile.
"It's nothing special," Simon replied.
Sol and Josh shot him identical looks of disgust, as if they'd just stepped on something foul.
They thought, Fucking traitor.
"Now, now, let's—" Simon began, but the two cut him off with another glare.
What did I do?
"Anyway," the girl continued, "I've been assigned to show you around the training grounds. Shall we go?"
"Alright."
She guided them through the area, pointing out where they could train and what equipment was available. Later, the general summoned the four, standing atop a stage as he issued instructions.
"Slow it down! That's how your muscles grow!"
The boys were doing push-ups, deliberately pacing themselves to induce micro-tears in their muscles—essential for growth.
Josh's face twisted in exertion, his arms trembling as he struggled to push himself up on his eleventh rep. Eventually, he collapsed, gasping before forcing himself to try again. Sol, too, was losing steam by his sixteenth attempt.
Simon and Felix, however, showed no signs of struggle, maintaining perfect form with ease. Their consistency marked them as the most promising of the group.
"Haaah… did they got a cheat with insane stats or something?" Josh wheezed, his arms shaking as he tried to steady himself on the ground.
Sol stared blankly into the distance—though in reality, he was checking his status. His strength had risen from 17 to 20.
"At least my strength improved," he muttered.
For months, the four trained relentlessly, focusing solely on physical conditioning—the foundation of all combat. All of their bodies are conditioned now, though there's not much protruding muscles, the four are now able to learn about combat skills of this world. And over time, they got some friends here and there and build reputations. The girl, Sasha, occasionally taught them new techniques, while Marco, the man from earlier, took a liking to them and often trained alongside them.
The nobles, however, remained bitter. They harassed the four at first, but as the newcomers grew stronger, the bullies became more cautious.
Then, one day, the general called them in.
"Now, it's time for you to learn about mana," he declared, his arms crossed and his aura radiating authority.
He raised his fist, which began to glow. Then, with a single punch, he struck a tree behind him. At first, nothing happened—but a second later, the tree snapped clean from its roots.
The four's jaws dropped.
Holy shit!
"What do you think?" the general asked.
"Now, let me explain," he continued. "Mana is the essence of this world. It's what the gods used to create everything that exists. It was also the power source of Arman, the ancestor of all species—the first being in this world. Arman created his children through magic and passed his knowledge to them, leading us to where we are today."
"How do we use mana, then?" Felix asked.
"Most of Arman's knowledge has been lost or kept secret," the general replied. "What remains are the teachings for mages and knights—though new techniques are still being discovered and some, even invented. Mages wield mana through advanced imagination, while those like me, who lack that talent, become knights. Though, in rare cases, some can master both."
He then divided the four into two groups.
"Simon and Felix, you're with me. As for you two—Josh and Sol—you'll train as mages. Report to the castle; the king has summoned you."
As they separated, Josh flashed a middle finger at the other two.
"Kehehe, I just know your training's gonna be way harder than ours. Keke!"
This fucker… Save us!