Dorian:"Alright so what are we training first? I think we should train my Sword and Axe skills first."

Thia:"Alright Maggot!!! Before we train with weapons, we are gonna train your body. You will do 100 push ups, squats, pull ups, and lunges." Oh well thats not that bad. Especially now that i got increased stats.

Thia:"After that you will run the entire training grounds for ten laps with repetions of the 100 sets in between." Okay thats problematic. This gym is about a mile in both length and width. Oh how im gonna dread this.

For the next 2 hours was nothing of me dying and Thia yelling at me for dying while Lilith just enjoyed the show. Should charge her for that.

Dorian:"Hah... hah... hah.. death, despair, dying. Ahh im dying here."

Your strength, agility, and endurance have all increased by 10.

Thia:"Nice job. If you were going for acting like a no legged cripple."

Dorian:"Hey.... *breathes in*.. if you can find a no legged cripple that can do what i did, ill do your laundry for a month. Plus thatd be pretty fucking impressive. What next, i can see your all jittery in anticipation for the next torture session."Knew she ran the sex dungeon. Wait.. this is her revenge for calling it a sex dungeon isnt it?

Thia:"Go to the weapons rack on the wall. We are gonna be sparring with swords. Then we are gonna work on both your footwork and your handaxe skills."

As i go to the rack and grab one of the dull iron blades i feel wind on my neck and a chill up my spine. I duck just in time to see Thia having swung at me with a sword that isnt dull whatsoever. If anything it looks like it was recently sharpened. Shit.

Due to your previous knowledge of the skill, you relearned the Dodge skill at Novice 62.

Dorian:"SHIT! WHAT THE FUCK! YOU TRYING TO SKULL FUCK ME WITH YOUR SWORD!?!?"I would very much like an explanation.

Thia:"What are you complaining about, you dodged didnt you? Besides, the threat of death will help with your training." She swings at me again with glee on her face as i bring my sword up and block at an angle, letting the sword slide off and decrease the impact on my hand and wrist. I may not be trained in sword combat, but ive read enough books and played enough videogames to know that blocking with the blade head on will fuck up your grip and make you more likely to hurt yourself with your blade.

Due to your knowledge from books and games, you have gained the Block and Swordsman skills at Novice 20.

Well thats a plus.

Shit shes coming at me again. She swings this time going for my left side. As i go to block on my left she instantly switches the swing to cut at my leg.

Fuck it was a feint.

I bring my left leg up and then stomp downward to catch the flat of the blade and pin it. I then bring my right leg up and perform a snapkick and hit her in the ribs. Take that, theres a reason my countering skill is so high.

She then looks me in the eye and that was the moment i realised, i fucked up.

She grabs my leg then pulls me in putting me off balance and then bringing up her blade from underneath my foot to then stab at my kidney.

In my panic i swing my sword to the side making her blade knick me on my left. I then bring my right leg in while jumping with my left leg and bringing up my left knee to her face. She blocks the knee by putting her left hand in front. She then pushes my leg down while bring her head up to headbut me.

In that exchange of skill, you got knicked with a sword and then headbutted, you lost 15hp.

Dorian:"Ah fuck my nose!! At least it didnt break."

Thia:"I thought you said you had no formal training."

Dorian:"I said only three months worth and that my hand to hand skills are self trained. Plus it doesnt take a genius to know that when blocking with a weapon, your supposed to disperse the shock by having your enemy's weapon slide off yours."Im not gonna let them know i only knew that because of books.

Thia:"Then we will move on to training with the axe."Fuck i dont know how to use an axe. Not many protagonists use axes. Ive no base knowledge on axe combat besides axes are better for blunt force and chops.

The next battle wound up with me getting my ass completely whooped. Thia doesnt seem happy that i did so well at the sword spar so now i have a bunch of cuts in my clothes and skin and im bleeding a bit. Better use my blood manipulation to staunch the blood flow. Now to use the ki-force healing to quickly coagulate the blood and skab over the cuts.

You got your ass whooped. Dont worry though your still learning. You lost 20 health in that exchange.

You learnt the Axeman skill at Novice 2.

Thia:"Now we will be practicing hand-to-hand combat, Lilith im going to need you to spar with him, this is your area of expertise." Well at least this is something in relatively good at. Bit unfair though, she is a snake woman, she can just wrap me up and beat the everliving shit out of me. Well not every fight is gonna be fair, better get used to being the underdog.

Lilith:"Aww dont be that way Dorian. If anything this will be a learning experience. Heres some advice, dont got for grapples or pinning." Well obviously.

I then get into my most comfortable stance. My right hand is clenched into a fist while my left is open in loose form. My right foot is behind me while my left is leading. I may be a righty but when i fight in a little ambidexterous, though not that much. I then bring my right fist up about 6 inches away from my face while my left hand is in front but at stomache height. My fighting style is focused more on countering with joint breaking along with face and body shots.

Lilith then takes a relaxed stance that lets her rest on her tail, while having her hands up and open by her stomache. It looks like a style that is used more for pouncing and quick jabs. Im not really an expert martial artist so i dont know if what she has as openings is real or a trap. Well this will be interesting.

Thia:"Take this seriously and get in a real stance Dorian. If you dont, youll wind up in the hospital."

As i go to reply while keeping my eyes on lilith, i lose sight of her, she then quickly re-appears on my right sending in a quick jab.

As i quickly turn to the right, i bring up my fist and open it, quickly grabbing her hand and bringing my left in to perform a one-inch punch towards her solar plexus. It connects but then i feel her tail wrap around my left leg due to it being closest to her. As she pulls my leg, i jump with my right and bring it towards her head in a roundhouse kick and hit her in the back of the head, she then tightens her tail and slams me into the floor with it. I fall on my back and see her coming in to quickly jab my throat. I twist my body so she cant hit my throat and then bring up my right hand to grab her wrist and then bring my left to place it on her elbow while bringing her closer and putting my elbow on her right shoulder, pinning her next to me. Wait, pinning? GODDAMMIT BRAIN!!!

She then wraps me more fully in her tail while breaking my pin. Welp, now im fully caught. She then punches towards my face. I close my eyes cause i dont wanna lose one from this punch.

I feel air brush the side of my face and open my eyes. Her face is right in front of my and shes looking into my eyes.

Lilith:"You know its not nice to hit a lady. Its been a while since someone made hand to hand combat that difficult for me. It was a great workout."

Dorian:"You wanna know what else is a great work out?" I say as i feel blood start to flow to my second head.

Lilith:"Its tempting Dorian, but i wont sleep with you till after your training."

Dorian:"Which training? Todays or till we go to the Academy?"

Lilith:"Well thats my little suprise for you."

Dorian:"Well i got a not so little suprise waiting for you when you decide." I usually never flirt this much. Maybe now i have no inhibitions due to this newfound power."

Lilith:"Well find out if you deliver or just talk a 'big' game."

Dorian:"Well it will be very 'hard' to disappoint you in that regard."

Thia:"Stop with the innuendo and lets continue the training. Now its on to mana."

Oh maybe she can answer a few of my questions about mana. I only have a general knowledge about mana.

Dorian:"I have a few questions about mana before we start the training." I say as me and Lilith dis-entangle ourselves from each other.

Dorian:"So first, what exactly am i looking for? What does mana feel like? The most i know about mana is that every living being absorbs and radiates mana, It isnt sentient, it can strengthen you, and you can make a mana core. Also that your body mutates due to mana and that depending on your elemental affinities, i determines how hard or easy it is to cast a spell as well with how much that spell costs."

Lilith:"Well to answer your first question, you are looking for an energy in the air that is partial to each element. Take earth mana for instance. Youll feel more of that type of mana underneath you intstead of in the air. Same with the other types of mana. Each one is dependent on surroundings and your natural mana affinities. To answer your second question, mana feels different depending on the type of mana. Take for instance the difference between air and earth. One feels free and fast while the other feels solid and hardy."

Oh ok, now i understand the difference between mana and ki.

Due to learning the basics of mana, you have gained the mana channeling, mana sense, mana reinforcement, mana infusing, and mana manipulation skills all at Novice 5.

You gain the ablility to understand how much mana is within you. Check your status to see how much mana you have. Mana is your intelligence multiplied my 5. Mana regen per second is wisdom halved.

Dorian:"Thanks, now i understand. I can meditate and focus my mana before i go to bed tonight. We should continue with weapons training."

Thia:"Alright then we will begin with the Scythe."

I take a moment to look around and find myself suprised. A crowd seemed to have gathered while me and Lilith fought. I even see money exchanging hands. Looks like they were betting on wether or not i got any hits in and how long id last. I look at the board that lists the bets and it seemed like ony five people though i would get a few hits in while the rest bet on Lilith wiping the floor with me with herself unscathed. Showed the other assholes.

Dorian:"I hope you guys plan on sharing the winnings with me." I say looking to the guys who won the bet of me putting up a good fight.

???ont worry bossman, youll get a cut."

Bossman? I can live with that.

Thia then proceeds to train me in both the Scythe and Spear. They dont have any chain weapons so ill have to adapt to the Crow later on when its finished.

Due to your training, you gained new skills, you gained the Scythemeister skill and the Spearman skills at Novice 1.

And from then on thats how my training went.