Afternoon. Lorian went to the kitchen. He had been asleep the entire morning skipping breakfast.
His stomach grumbled in hunger. He went to the table to check and found lunch left for him. The time was 1 pm, and they ate at exactly noon. They must had left this for him.
The lunch this time was fried fish. Lorian brewed his coffee as his beverage while eating. He was quietly munching on his food, wondering where the gym was located.
After he was done eating and cleaning the dishes, he headed back to his room to change his clothes. Lorian also wrapped some cloth in his towel as he went to the reception center to ask Ann.
Ann was as usual at her desk minding her business. Lorian went and inquired to her, "Ann, do you know where I can find the gym?"
"The door beside the living quarter's entrance. A stair will lead you down the gym." Ann nonchalantly replied.
"Thank you, Ann,"
Lorian hurriedly walked, excited to see their gym. He stepped down the stairs leading down. When he arrived, a door welcomed him. It had the same security measures as SDD's front door. Lorian let the machine scan his eyes, and a click was heard opening the door automatically.
When he arrived inside, he saw Rain and Sao doing their workout. Rain ran on the treadmill, while Sao was barefooted kicking the heavy bag.
Lorian's eyes glimmered. He only experienced making his makeshift dumbbells out of concrete and a rusty bar of iron when he was young. This time, he didn't need to make anything, he just needed to train himself.
Sao stopped kicking the heavy bag as he heard the door open. When he saw Lorian, he waved his hand.
"Lorian, come here. Let's have a spar," Sao invited Lorian.
"Su-Sure," Lorian was caught off guard and couldn't help but agree.
He was planning to try the dumbbells out but Sao was quick to invite him. "Nice, here catch," he threw a bag to Lorian.
The bag that Sao threw contained sparring gear inside. Lorian who hadn't seen this thing before asked, "What is this?"
"They are sparring gears. It is to prevent us from causing any injury to each other," Sao explained, as he started wearing his sparring gear.
"I see. This also have the same as the boxing head gear those a mature boxers wears in TV," Lorian commented as he saw the head gear under the body gear.
Lorian followed suit, he hadn't tried sparring before. He wanted to try it but it cost money which he couldn't afford. However, today was different, they have their equipment now.
"Do you know any martial arts?" Sao asked while he was adjusting the tightness of the gear.
Lorian blushed in shame. "Unfortunately, I don't," he replied.
"Huh? Anyway let's try your skills," replied Sao, standing straight as he waited for Lorian.
When Lorian finished wearing his gear, he faced Sao's direction. Sao stood straight and bowed to him. Lorian also copied Sao, bowing back.
They both did their battle stance. Without further ado, Sao dashed first. His movements were quick and without any wasted energy.
Lorian became nervous, he had never faced Sao before, and that's why Lorian didn't know that he was this fast. He reacted by sending a straight toward the dashing Sao.
However, Sao stopped right in time, bending his body backward. Sao grabbed Lorian's arm and clothes, followed by his legs sweep. With Lorian's arm on his shoulder, Sao slammed Lorian down to the mat.
"Wow, that was faster than Sancho," Lorian commented.
"Not really, it's just timing," Sao replied.
"You're too humble. Another round," Lorian challenged as he started to enjoy the spar.
Once again they stood facing each other and bowed. This time, Lorian was the one to initiate. He sent a barrage of punches to Sao, which Sao managed to dodge effortlessly.
When Lorian saw this, he lightly tapped Sao's body, pushing him back a little. Lorian then turned his body sideways, sending a side kick to Sao's stomach.
Sao spun to the side, right before the kick would hit him. He grabbed a hold of Lorian's leg, while he kicked the back of Lorian's knees on his supporting leg, knocking him down.
"That was a good one, Lorian." Sao complimented.
"Good but not enough," Lorian said as he challenged once again. "Another!"
Sao nodded, and once again the two sparred. Rain who finished running on the treadmill saw them battling each other. She just ignored the two and went inside the shower to rinse her body.
When she was done cleaning herself, the two were still on it. Kicking, punching, slamming, dodging, and blocking, tirelessly battling even from their excessive movement.
Especially Lorian, he never won a round with Sao, he kept on getting slammed or knocked down to his knees by Sao. Yet, he kept on standing up and challenging him again. Even Sao started sweating profusely, Lorian on the other hand looks like he could do it all day.
Rain sat on the corner, observing Sao and Lorian. Sao's attacks started getting harder, and Lorian could feel its force. However, he endured Sao's kicks and punches waiting for the right time to counter.
Sao spun his body and twisted his hips, as he raised his leg. He executed a roundhouse kick to Lorian. Lorian blocked his vision by raising his arms by trying to block Sao's previous attacks that he became unable to see the kick dropping over his head.
However, Lorian saw Sao's other leg twisting. Lorian ducked down and pushed himself forward, evading the roundhouse kick by hair's breadth. He slid under Sao and hit him with a low kick, knocking him out of balance.
Sao fell down the mat, landing on his butt. He was laughing from ear to ear. "Dammit, that was thrilling."
Lorian stood in front of Sao, his hand extended to him. "That was great, Sao. Can you teach me next time?" Lorian asked.
"What are you? You're still not tired?" Sao chided, grabbing Lorian's hand.
Lorian pulled Sao up, his face was full of smiles. "I've been working my overtime in construction. Didn't know it would improve my stamina," Lorian explained while scratching his head.
"Damn, I guess I need to increase my stamina too. Aight, you did well this time Lorian, you're a walking tank." Sao sighed as he removed the gears on his body.
"Tank? Why am I a tank?" Lorian asked, not knowing the meaning behind the word.
"Your endurance is crazy. You could receive more damage than a regular person and could still fight. I think that's what it means to be a tank," Sao explained.
"Huh? That's my first time hearing that. Thank you, Sao." Lorian thanked.
Sao smiled and waved his hand. "I'll go and clean myself."
Sao went inside the bathroom leaving behind Lorian. Rain who was on the corner stood up. She stood beside Lorian, checking his body.
"Uhuh, you got nice trained muscles. If you keep on training you could be a force to be reckoned with," Rain said as she nodded.
Lorian was surprised by Rain's sudden appearance. "Hi- Hi Rain."
"Hello, Lorian. You did a great job right there. Keep doing your best. Anyway, I'll be going now," Rain smiled, showing Lorian a thumbs-up before going out of the gym.
"Ye-ye-yes, I'll do my best." Lorian stuttered as he replied. He never felt this motivated before. So motivated in fact that his eyes were burning.
Miraculously, due to the region's mass possession, there was no tasked happening in the rest of October. Lorian and Sao would train everyday in the gym, working out, sparring or both.
Rain's encouragement did its wonders. Lorian was burning like fire, as he pushed himself further. Seeing his friend being fired up, Sao's competitiveness awakened. He wouldn't let himself be buried in dust.