A New Challenge
Yuuto groaned as he pulled himself up, his muscles screaming in protest. His body was still aching from his battle with the entity, but he had no time to rest.
His first real fight had exposed all of his weaknesses.
His attacks were too slow. His stamina too low. He relied too much on Celia’s system guidance, and if she hadn’t forcefully teleported him away, he would’ve died.
That wasn’t acceptable.
If he wanted to survive in this world, he had to get stronger—on his own.
---
[System Announcement]
New Quest – Self-Improvement Arc
Train to increase your strength, stamina, and swordsmanship.
Complete system training exercises.
Survive in the wild for one week without outside help.
Reward: Basic Combat Skills Unlock + ???
---
Yuuto stared at the quest.
"A self-improvement arc? Seriously?" he muttered.
Celia’s voice sounded amused in his mind. "Well, considering how pathetic you looked in that st fight, I’d say you need it."
Yuuto sighed. "Thanks for the encouragement, Celia."
"Anytime, dumbass."
---
The Training Grounds
Yuuto found himself in a vast forest, located on the outskirts of a town Celia had marked as the nearest safe zone. It was a secluded area, perfect for training.
Celia hovered beside him, arms crossed. "Alright, listen up. You have three major weaknesses."
Yuuto raised an eyebrow. "Only three?"
"Shut up and let me finish," she said, rolling her eyes.
She held up a glowing finger. "First, your stamina sucks. You run out of energy too quickly in fights. If you fought someone stronger, they’d just dodge until you colpse."
She raised another finger. "Second, your swordsmanship is garbage. You swing like some isekai protagonist hoping the world will carry him. Spoiler: It won’t."
Yuuto sighed. "And the third?"
Celia smirked. "You hesitate. A lot. You’re always second-guessing yourself. In battle, thinking is fine, but overthinking will get you killed."
Yuuto frowned. She wasn’t wrong.
He had hesitated against the entity, waiting for a perfect moment that never came.
That hesitation could’ve cost him his life.
---
Basic Training Begins
Celia snapped her fingers, and a translucent interface appeared before him.
---
[Training Module Activated]
Physical Training (Endurance, Strength)
Swordsmanship Training (Speed, Accuracy)
Battle Awareness (Reaction Time, Combat Instincts)
---
"First lesson: Running," Celia said, grinning maliciously. "Get moving, rookie."
Yuuto felt a weight drop on his back. A sudden system-generated gravity effect pressed him into the ground.
"Wha—what the hell?! This is way heavier than before!" he gasped.
"Oh, did I forget to mention?" Celia said sweetly. "I increased the gravity by 50%. You need to get used to fighting in worse conditions."
Yuuto gred at her. "You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?"
"Immensely."
With a groan, Yuuto started running.
---
Hours of Hell
The forest became his training ground.
One hour turned into three.
Yuuto ran ps around the area, his body screaming in protest under the increased gravity.
Whenever he slowed down, Celia zapped him with an energy pulse.
"Move it, slowpoke!"
Whenever he tried to cheat and use the system’s auto-assist, Celia disabled it.
"No shortcuts. You train properly or not at all."
By the time he finished the first part of the training, he colpsed onto the grass, panting hard.
His clothes were drenched in sweat. His legs felt like lead.
Celia floated over him, unimpressed. "That was pathetic."
Yuuto gred at her. "You try running under gravity enhancement!"
"Oh, I did. And I was way better than you."
Yuuto groaned. "I hate you."
"Good. Now get up."
---
Sword Training – The Basics Matter
Once Yuuto could stand without falling over, Celia moved on to swordsmanship training.
A holographic target dummy appeared, moving in erratic patterns.
"Your job? Land ten clean hits without missing."
Yuuto raised his sword and took a stance.
The moment he swung—
The dummy dodged at the st second.
"Missed!" Celia announced. "Try again!"
Yuuto swung again.
The dummy twisted, avoiding the bde.
"Missed again! Wow, you suck."
Yuuto gritted his teeth, adjusting his stance.
The dummy kept moving unpredictably, dodging everything.
Minutes passed. Then an hour.
Every time he thought he had it, the dummy would sidestep, duck, or twist.
His frustration grew.
His grip tightened.
He needed to stop thinking too much.
Then, suddenly—
A spark of realization.
He closed his eyes for a second, focusing on the dummy’s movements. Instead of chasing it with his sword, he waited—predicting its next movement.
When the dummy lunged left—
Yuuto moved first.
Ssh!
A clean hit.
The dummy flickered, registering the damage.
Celia raised an eyebrow. "Oh? You finally learned something?"
Yuuto grinned, panting. "Yeah. Stop thinking, start feeling."
"Huh. Maybe you’re not completely hopeless."
---
[System Update – Skill Unlocked!]
Basic Swordsmanship (Level 1)
Accuracy +5%
Attack Speed +3%
---
Yuuto exhaled sharply, sweat dripping down his forehead.
One clean hit.
He just needed nine more.
---
A Step Forward
By the time night fell, Yuuto was utterly exhausted.
His body ached, his muscles burned, but he felt different.
Stronger.
He wasn’t a master swordsman yet, and his stamina was still cking.
But he had improved.
Celia hovered beside him, her usual smirk softer than before.
"Not bad, Yuuto."
Yuuto, barely able to keep his eyes open, muttered sleepily. "You’re not so bad yourself… Celia."
For a second, her expression changed—a flicker of surprise.
Then, she snorted. "Don’t get attached, idiot."
Yuuto chuckled tiredly, pulling his bnket over himself as he y under the open sky.
As sleep took over, Celia watched him silently.
She didn’t say it aloud…
But for the first time in a long time, she felt something strange in her chest.
Something she had long forgotten.
Warmth.
---
[End of Chapter 13]
