The sword in Redd's hand was long and curved, akin to a katana in form albeit with no guard. The blade was an ashen grey color that somehow shone brightly, contradicting its own color.
"This is amazing!" Redd murmured with complete awe.
"It's certainly a beauty."
Redd lifted the sword up and clumsily tried to slash with it. Although he was good with the knife, the sword was a completely different matter. So, the result was predictably bad… Really bad.
"Ugh, it's kinda heavy." He cursed as he tried to slash again.
However, he didn't know how to do a proper attack.
'Should I try the aspect? Maybe that would help.'
As he was about to execute his idea, he was stopped by Lodra. "Don't even think about it. The aspects of that weapon are… Brutal as much as they're destructive. In the wrong hands, one would end up dying from using them."
"Hm, it does say that it drains blood from the user. That sounds painful…" Redd paled as he immediately discarded the idea from his head. He has already had enough pain in the last few days.
"Then how am I supposed to use this?"
"Like a normal weapon is used. You will have to learn how to use them."
"In 2 days?"
"Well, I'm not the one that insisted on going on this batch instead of the next one." Lodra shrugged with a sigh.
"I know that! I was just asking to make sure." Redd sulked as he tightened his grip on the sword. "You're underestimating me, Lodra. Two days are more than enough for me."
"But, before that. You're still completely clueless about how to throw a proper punch with the right amount of power. That is the first step before you actually learn how to coat your weapon with Aether."
"Ugh…"
"Give me the spear. I will give it back to you after you do 1,000 punches."
"1,000?"
"Yes! Now go. You have to learn how to fight with Aether."
"I understand!"
Redd then left the house again and took the position. After that, he took a deep breath before he channeled Aether to his fist. The chaotic, spiky energy coated his fist before he launched a fist forward.
"No." He murmured before he retracted his fist and tried again.
However, not much difference happened. He still didn't understand how to use a small amount of Aether instead of all that he could accumulate.
Punch after punch, Redd couldn't really find the link he wanted to achieve. There was a missing piece that he needed to find. Something to complete the full puzzle.
Hours passed slowly as the young boy continued to punch endlessly. Hundreds of attempts turned his right arm into a soar mess. His face was glistening with sweat and his breathing was ragged.
The light of day completely vanished and night dropped its veils around the world, submerging it in its nocturnal abyss. At some point, Redd forgot about time and exhaustion, his mind was completely focused on punching, retracting his fist, and then punching again.
For some reason, Aether still seemed to vividly channel through his body as if it was happily assisting in his endeavor.
'Punch…'
Redd thought as he launched forward.
'Punch…'
His eyes were completely submerged in the monotonous yet also vivid world of the loop he created.
'Punch…'
This level of focus was something that Redd had never reached before. It was as if every fiber of his being was working together toward one simple goal. At some point, without his notice, the Aether around his fist started to grow feinter, less sharp but more concentrated and focused.
His punches weakened yet also gained more precision, more technique, and more mastery. Punching was a skill just like many other skills, the more you train it, the better it becomes. The true essence of fighting with Aether wasn't the Aether itself but the way you make your body utilize it to utmost perfection. More power isn't always the best option.
Redd's mind didn't really reach such a conclusion, but his instinct did, so much so that it didn't even make him aware of that since his mind was in a completely different zone.
'I need to punch!' Gritting his teeth, Redd's eyes widened as he used his strength to punch.
"UGH!" He made a low groan that echoed in the emptiness of his own world.
***
By the time the morning came, Lodra came out of the house. After assigning Redd to do 1,000 punches, he felt tired so he went to sleep.
In actuality, Lodra never intended for Redd to actually do 1,000 punches. It was simply extremely hard if not outright impossible to pull off for someone like Redd. He was merely a kid, a talented one, but still a kid.
The reason he told him to do 1,000 was to let Redd reach his limit. If that limit was at 200, 300, or even 500, it didn't matter. What mattered was how much he could learn from that repetition.
Throwing punches without any thought behind it or any intention to improve was just a waste of time, energy, and Aether. He wanted Redd to learn to think about every attack he does, every move, every decision during a life-or-death situation. His mind needed to always be alerted and ready to analyze, deduct, and decide on the perfect action to do.
That skill can't be learned in a single day, but it was possible to lay the foundation for that in a few hours, given the right mentality.
Opening the door of the house, Lodra looked outside, only to freeze. His eyes stared ahead with a completely flabbergasted expression.
There, in the middle of the grassy plain laid a sleeping young boy covered in dirt and sweat. He was loudly snoring without a single care in the world. However, that wasn't what shocked Lodra, it was the sight straight ahead of the sleeping Redd.
On top of the grassy plain, a huge, terrifying deserted trail of ground that seemed to have been completely destroyed was apparent in full view.
The shape of the grassless trail was akin to a triangle with the pointy tip facing Redd.
"What the hell did that kid do?" Lodra quickly shook the daze away and approached Redd.
Looking at his condition, his arm was shaking involuntarily as if it was hit with electricity.
"Did he…"
The trail left behind was certainly from Redd as it was too perfect to be a coincidence. This meant that Redd kept punching the air through the entire night till the grass was pulled out of its roots, leaving behind a barren land.
"Zzzzz…"
While Lodra was having an existential crisis at how absurd this little monster he raised was, the latter was simply snoring louder with a grin on his face.
For a second, Lodra thought that this kid wasn't really in danger. If given the right time and opportunity, he might turn into a tidal wave that would crash on the Hunter's Dream and change its shape forever.
'He has a freakishly strong will and tenacity. Just like his father…' The old man could only smile as he thought to himself.
The first part of the training was successful.