Previously
"Since you've graduated from the realm of the soul," Ivanka raised two fingers. "We'll be focusing on the mind and the body."
"That tells me nothing," I quipped.
She only narrowed her eyes at me. "The body can be trained easily enough. . .but I might have to re-adjust it for you."
I was offended. If this was a roast fest in my previous world, the crowd would go crazy but since there weren't any pimple-faced teenagers yelling 'Oooh', I decided to let it go and stay silent for now.
"What about the mind?" I asked.
"Not yet."
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"Not yet? What do you mean, not yet?"
"Not. .until you master the body first," Ivanka replied with a hum. "I've witnessed talented individuals lose control of their bodies because they tried training their mind first. Not again."
"I see," I looked around the empty training grounds. "So, what's the plan to train my body?"
Ivanka let out a smirk, this one big enough that even I could see it. "I'm so glad you asked." She tapped the metallic floor twice with her feet and it started humming, revving up like it was preparing for something.
"Endurance training," Ivanka said. When I felt my hair starting to rise and some form of pressure slowly pressing down on me, she gave a little smile. "Grit your teeth." And then, she disappeared.
"Did she jus-?!" A two-storey house dropped onto my back. I didn't really know how much two-storey houses weigh but if I had the chance to experience it, it would definitely feel as heavy as this.
"Urk!" I fell onto one knee and unconsciously gritted my teeth. The weight and pressure had grown strong enough that I couldn't even raise my head anymore, only looking at the methodical beaming of the metallic, black floor. Shit! As if it couldn't get any worse, the pressure only grew stronger and by the time it had reached it's peak, I was completely forced down, my stomach and head flat on the cool floor but I was still conscious, somewhat.
Was this Ivanka's way of training her body? This was absolutely brutal and barbaric! I had been expecting something like weight training where I'd start with low weight, let my body get accustomed before gradually getting stronger—not having a mountain shoved down my back.
Wait a minute, why wasn't my Dress activating?! Shit, I'm beginning to lose consciousness and wanted to cough out blood every time I feel a bone in my body creak in the wrong way. Was this how I die? Ivanka said this was only endurance training but maybe she found out along the way that I knew about their contract and was trying to kill me?
Oxygen getting low. I needed to do something, and I needed to do it fast. Under a x10 gravity enhanced field, you'd find it extremely hard to even think but a glance down at the mark on my right hand and I knew what to do.
Until, it didn't work. I channeled prana into my emblem, intoning silently to cast out [Heal] but something, some sort of muddy wall kept blocking and erasing any prana before they even reached my emblem.
It hurts. What else do I have that can help me in my current situation?
It hurts. How can I get myself out of here? Shit, I knew trying to use Ivanka was a mistake. Why did I even do that?
I don't want to die. Tears, if possible, trailed down my cheeks or maybe that was just the hysteria overcoming me as I saw the face of death again. I was scared, desperate and wanted to live. But unfortunately, those were only simple wishes as the pain in my body stopped when I felt my consciousness snap and the entire world turn black.
Something else took over me.
****
I found myself waking up a few minutes later, or was it hours? I couldn't tell. But one thing I knew was that everything hurt like a bitch. My arms, back, legs, spine and just about every bone in my body creaked if I so much as turned my head. I also felt extremely exhausted but it was no wonder it felt that way when I checked my prana reserves and found it nearly empty.
Jeezus, when on earth did I use that much prana? Wait, where am I? Slowly, memories started to flow into my head as I remembered that I was nearly killed by the enhanced gravity in the training grounds but I couldn't make heads or tails about my current situation since my head was transfixed on the sky, my back laying bare on the cool metallic ground. Huh, where did the throbbing sound of the futuristic floor go?
Was I even still at Ivanka's place? Well, first thing first I needed to somehow heal myself enough that I can at least move my head but that was a problem since I didn't have any prana. Guess I'll have to do this the old-fashioned way.
Clearing my head and closing my eyes, I felt for the world's myriad of energy around me, energies that would always be present anywhere in the world but I focused on the golden-colored energy, otherwise known as prana. The prana around me felt tainted and enraged for some reason but a quick use of my constitution as the Maiden and it slowly started to be purified before swooning into me, recharging my reserves.
A minute and a half later, I had enough prana reserve for my skill. "[Heal]" My voice sounded dry and coarse as a warm blanket of prana wrapped itself around me, healing my sore bones as they made little cracking noises in relief.
Around ten minutes later, I could finally move my upper body without any pain. It never failed to amuse me how people had to study 10+ years to become a doctor in my previous world and here I was, simply casting a skill that took me less than 10 minutes to half-heal.
A sigh left my lips as I got up on my elbows, sitting upright while my legs healed. Then, my jaws dropped to the floor when I saw the state of the training grounds around me.
Before, the training grounds of Ivanka were pristine and jet-black with the exception of a few lights somewhat like led lights, surrounding the hexagonal floor as they hummed in a low song whenever the four monoliths beamed per second.
Now? Now, it looked like World War 3 had taken place here. The hexagonal floors were openly cracked, sizzling with static like electrical cables that had been sliced off. One of the four monoliths had half of its body literally turned to ash, fine black powder that pooled around it's feet like blood flowing out of your stomach after you'd been stabbed. Some of the pristine, jet-black appearance had turned an ugly gray, as if it had decayed from a millenium's worth of weathering and erosion.
But the scariest part of them all was the usually stoic-looking and strong Ivanka, collapsed and sitting by a monolith, gasping for dear breath as ichor, blood the color of gold flowed from her missing left arm.