Lothar groaned as he lay unmoving on the bed, his entire body sore and aching from the intense workout Elora had given him. Sure, to some, it wasn't that much of a workout, but for a guy like him, who had little to no experience of working out, this was bordering on physical torture.
Nevertheless, Lothar pushed through the pain, if only to get out of training early.
Moving his hand, he winced as the pain intensified for a moment and lessened when he stopped moving his arm.
Sighing, he could do nothing but lay there and think about the workout he had done earlier.
Push-ups.
Sit-ups.
Pull-ups.
Jogging.
And even the occasional dodging while he was completely exhausted and drenched in his own sweat.
11/10, would never do again…
Lothar rolled his eyes up, down, left, and right, taking in the view of his room lit up like a Christmas tree on Christmas eve.
A method he and Millana discussed was to counteract his fear of the dark. Apparently, not only did he have trauma against anything that was void, but he was also traumatized by some things related to the void.
Such as darkness.
Rolling on his side, agonizingly so, he closed his eyes and tried to go to sleep, his fatigue giving way to his dreams.
'I wonder what will happen tomorrow…' Lothar yawned as his eyes closed shut and he was whisked away into the land of dreams…
Actually… Call them nightmares…
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Lothar woke up with a cold sweat. He gasped in the air as his breathing turned erratic, his hands clutching at the sheets as he tried to calm down.
He shut his eyes, desperately trying to forget his nightmare, only for it to come back in full force.
The inky darkness…
The everlasting silence…
The laughing pizza slices…
And Sergeant Elora hellbent on whipping him into shape with a demonic mask that was grinning from ear to ear, laughing all the while as she tortured him with her workout regimen.
He calmed down slightly, the last two nightmares seemingly comical in his eyes. Chuckling a bit, he realized that he had calmed down rapidly from his fright and got ready to start the day.
Getting out of bed, he tidied up the sheets, folding them and placing them wherever they were supposed to go, and immediately went to the bathroom.
A few minutes later, Lothar emerged from the bathroom with a towel hanging on his shoulders as he dried his hair with said towel.
His attention was caught, however, when a knock on his door was heard.
"Excuse me, sir. Your breakfast has arrived." Ashryn's voice came from behind. Letting out a tiny smile, Lothar approached the door and opened it without any hesitation.
He might distrust the elves in this village, but Ashryn was someone he could trust, albeit with some limitations.
Pushing a trolley with a tray of food, Ashryn gave off a radiant smile, which honestly made Lothar smile back in response.
Lothar looked at the food with a brief hesitation in his eyes, but accepted the bowl of soup with the occasional green, leafy vegetable and meat floating about.
His hand slightly shaking, he grabbed the spoon and brought the spoonful of liquid near to his mouth. Sipping slowly, the delectable soup flowed cleanly through his throat, garnering a soft smile from Lothar.
Ashryn, on the other hand, observed all of this with a smile, Lothar slowly shoveling food down his throat all the while.
It wasn't long until he had finished eating all of his food, faster than yesterday too.
"Excuse me, sir, but Lady Millana is waiting for you in the library." Once Lothar heard her words, he deflated slightly, but his resolve to try to conquer his trauma was steadfast. Nodding at the maid, the two of them headed out of the room, leaving the empty bowl and tray back inside while Ashryn called for another maid to clean up the leftovers.
Once again traversing through the corridors, Lothar began to familiarize himself with the passageways, his mind memorizing the routes taken to arrive at their destination.
Fortunately for him, he didn't have to come across any maids or guards that would look at him with various expressions, mostly on the negative side.
Arriving at the double doors leading to the library, Ashryn bowed before Lothar before bidding him a good day.
Now alone in front of the door that led to his possible future panic attack, Lothar could only sigh and place his hands on the door. Pushing it open, he was greeted by Millana and Elora once again in their same position as the last time he entered the library and they were waiting.
It slightly unnerved him and made him anxious, but he still carried on and walked right in front of Millana and Elora, who looked at him with tiny smiles.
"Are you ready for the next lesson?" Millana pointedly stared at Lothar as she shut the book in her hand.
"… I'm… I'm ready…" Lothar inhaled deeply, then exhaled, a serene mask covering his face.
"Then, let's start." Millana stood up, then approached Lothar, before hitting him lightly with a book on the head. "For starters, we're going to learn about how magic works in our world and the technicalities behind them."
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"Have you made any progress on your objective?"
"I have, m'lord."
"Wonderful. Return to your post within their inner circle, and keep a close eye on that human. He's not and ordinary one, that's for sure."
"Understood."
The elf maid bowed before her master before taking off with the speed common to that of magic users specializing in the wind attribute.
Meanwhile, her master, a male beastman with traits that would consider himself a tigerkin, sat on his throne like a ruler would, oozing out confidence and power hidden to the eyes of a common man.
"You there. Tell your men to be ready in a week." The tigerkin waved his hand towards one of the guards standing beside him. The guard saluted before hurrying off to do his master's bidding.
The tigerkin drank from his goblet, red wine sloshing down his throat as he reveled in its taste.
"Soon. Very soon…"