Kael groaned in pain.
He tried to dodge Arlan's kick which was too fast for him to counter; however, he had underestimated his body's injuries. Because of his sluggish movements, he couldn't react in time, and Arlan's kick connected.
The impact sent Kael flying.
He coughed, pain radiating through his ribs. His entire body screamed in protest. He tried to stand again, but his arms gave out, and he collapsed back onto the ground.
"Haaahh… Haahh… Haahh…"
His body had bruises and swelling all over the place. He couldn't lift his limbs anymore, and even breathing was a struggle. The cool air of the hall felt like knives against his battered skin.
His vision blurred with sweat, stinging his eyes. He didn't even have enough power to clear the sweat out of his eyes. He tried to move, even just a hand, but his body had given up.
"Still breathing down there?"
Arlan questioned with a wide grin on his face. To Kael, he felt like a beast looking at his fallen prey.
He wanted to respond, but even moving his mouth was a chore, so he just closed his eyes, not wanting to see the man's ugly face anymore.
Seeing his actions, Arlan laughed. He then crouched, inspecting Kael's body.
"No wonder you only fought little girls till now. Man, you are bad at this."
Kael just ignored this man, and seeing that he wasn't reacting at all, the commander lost interest.
"The guy's dead. Revive him."
Althea walked towards them, once again, her face devoid of emotions.
Without saying anything, the Almoner of Services healed her master, and feeling the familiar warm energy surging into his body, Kael finally sighed in relief and slowly opened his eyes.
Arlan exclaimed with a big grin.
Kael stared at him, and Arlan's grin widened even further.
"Would you like to continue?"
He questioned, his sadism flickering through his eyes.
However, the answer he received was not what he was expecting.
"Why not? I was actually wondering if that's the best you can do."
Kael grinned, not backing down.
Yup, he had lost his mind as well.
Arlan directly glanced at Althea and,
"He's not healed properly. His mental state is still the same."
"I told you before, my ability doesn't work on mental condition."
Althea's response was the same.
Kael, however, ignored both of them. After all, in the entire hall, only he could see the screen in front of him.
[Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat]
[A foundational skill encompassing basic techniques of unarmed fighting, including strikes, blocks, and grapples. Effective for self-defense and close-range encounters.]
Yes, he had finally learned Basic Hand-to-Hand Combat.
Sure, his mastery level was still low, but that didn't matter. The skill was now complete, and he did all that in one single day.
Of course, this wasn't the only thing Kael was so happy about. Rather, it was one of the minor joys. The main thing that attracted his attention was the second screen that had popped up in front of him.
[Talent: Dragon Genesis]
[Talent Rank: SSS Rank]
[Intelligence: 6 → 7]
Yes, he leveled up. Not just that, his stats were now at least bearable to look at. Even though he still wasn't as powerful as Igni, it was somewhat comparable now.
Not to mention it was only his first day.
This wasn't over. He still had room to grow!
"What? Are you not going to train me further?"
Kael turned towards Arlan, his eyes shining brightly.
"Or are you only good at training little girls?"
This was so wrong if taken out of context.
But it didn't matter since Kael's words worked, and Arlan's mouth twitched.
However, before the commander could complete his sentence, the doors of the Hall creaked open, and an extremely beautiful woman who seemed to be in her late 20s walked in.
Her long blonde hair fell down to her waist. Her emerald-green eyes sparkled with sharp intelligence, and her flawless skin radiated a healthy glow. She wore a long, elegant crimson robe, which didn't hide her hourglass figure.
The woman was beautiful, and she knew it.
"Ah, Arlan, I knew it was you."
The moment she walked in, her eyes fell on Commander Arlan, and she smirked.
"Still as brutish as ever, eh? I could hear you shouting across the hall."
"Huh? What's a bookworm like you doing here? Shouldn't you be in your little room conjuring some sparks or playing with your books instead of interrupting real training?"
"Oh? Did you forget? You ran across the garden shouting, 'My ass is on fire!' when those 'sparks' latched themselves on your pants."
"So you're going to conveniently ignore the fact that the one I was running after was you? I still remember your ugly face covered with tears and snot while you screamed for help."
Arlan laughed out loud.
"What else was a 10-year-old girl supposed to do when a giant monster who was screaming like a lunatic ran after her with a greatsword in his hand?"
Elira chuckled as she covered her mouth with her hand.
"At least I wasn't crying like a little bitch."
"You sure were shouting like one."
"Crying is still worse."
"Says the one who started crying when Mother punished him."
"Mother was playing favorites! You started it!"
Arlan pointed his finger at the woman in front of him.
"Couldn't you take a little heat for your cute little sister's sake?"
Elira tilted her head with a playful look on her face.
"As I would expect from a brute like you, saying such filthy words without thinking."
"At least I don't keep up a false gentle image while my heart inside is rotten."
Their banter continued, growing louder and more absurd with each exchange.
Kael, caught in the middle, stared at them with a dumbfounded look on his face.
That was when the ever-so-responsible Althea leaned in, ignoring the squabble entirely.
"That's Court Mage Elira Stormhold,"
She informed quietly.
"And, in case you hadn't pieced it together already, she's his sister."
Althea sighed. She looked tired for some reason.
The siblings were too much, even for her.