Ezra had barely begun his morning training when the grimoire pulsed against his skin, its familiar weight suddenly feeling heavier. He froze mid-strike, his weapon dissipating into embers as his hand instinctively reached for the book strapped to his waist.
Without warning, the grimoire shot open, its pages turning rapidly on their own. Strange, glowing symbols appeared, lines of text etching themselves onto the ancient parchment as if the book were alive. A chilling sensation crept up Ezra's spine, and before he could react, a message appeared:
**Quest Unlocked: Surpass Your Limits**
- Objective: Complete a week of grueling physical and mental training without rest.
- Reward: +100 Strength, +200 Stamina, Special Ability Upgrade.
- Failure: Severe punishment—loss of an ability for one month.
Ezra's heart raced. He had heard rumors of strange and dangerous features hidden within the grimoires of the Unbound, but this was something new—something terrifying. He had no choice but to obey.
"Training without rest?" Ezra muttered, shaking his head in disbelief. "I won't survive that."
The grimoire's pages shimmered with an eerie light, as if mocking him. There was no escaping this, and Ezra knew it. He clenched his fists. If he didn't complete the quest, the punishment could cost him dearly.
---
### The First Week: Trial by Fire
Ezra pushed his body to the brink over the next several days. His mornings were spent sparring with soldiers like Leila and Kaito, but now with an added urgency. There was no time to rest, no moment to catch his breath. He was forced to push past his limits, even as his muscles screamed in protest.
Leila noticed his increased intensity. "You've been going non-stop. Are you trying to kill yourself?"
Ezra forced a smile. "Something like that."
The grimoire pulsed frequently, reminding him of the stakes. His nights were no better. After hours of relentless physical training, the grimoire demanded mental fortitude. Ezra spent his evenings meditating, focusing his Qi, and expanding his ability to control his elemental magic. The smallest slip in concentration earned him a painful jolt of energy from the grimoire, a reminder of what failure would bring.
By the fifth day, Ezra's body was on the verge of collapse. He hadn't slept in days, his vision blurred from exhaustion. Yet the grimoire pressed on, its glowing pages taunting him with the countdown to failure.
He was fighting not just to grow stronger, but to keep his abilities intact. He couldn't afford to lose one of them, not when he was just beginning to understand the scope of his powers.
---
### The Second Week: The Power of Punishment
Ezra managed to complete the first quest, collapsing in his room the moment the week ended. The grimoire hummed in approval, its pages glowing faintly as it rewarded him with a surge of strength and stamina. He felt the changes almost instantly—his muscles seemed to thrum with newfound power, his energy reserves deeper than before. But the victory was short-lived.
Before he could even celebrate his success, the grimoire opened again.
**New Quest: Face the Fear**
- Objective: Defeat three advanced ranked soldiers in a simultaneous battle.
- Reward: +50 Speed, +150 Combat Proficiency, New Skill Unlock.
- Failure: Temporary loss of Qi manipulation.
Ezra's stomach twisted at the thought. Losing his ability to manipulate Qi, even temporarily, would leave him vulnerable. He'd be reduced to nothing more than a common fighter, unable to use his most powerful abilities.
The soldiers he was tasked with defeating were no ordinary recruits. They were battle-hardened veterans, experienced in combat and armed with their own formidable powers. Ezra was skilled, but fighting three at once? He wasn't sure he could pull it off.
He met them in the arena the next day. Kaito was among them, his eyes cold and calculating. Leila, too, stood across from him, her smirk gone, replaced with a steely determination. The third was a man he didn't know—massive, towering, with a Qi aura so intense it made the air around him shimmer.
"Three at once," Ezra muttered under his breath. "No pressure."
The battle began, and Ezra quickly found himself overwhelmed. Leila's speed was blinding, her strikes coming from all angles. Kaito's precision was unmatched, every slash of his blade aimed to incapacitate. The third soldier was a brute, using raw strength to batter through Ezra's defenses.
But Ezra had the grimoire on his side.
As the fight wore on, he tapped deeper into his fire abilities, summoning weapons faster and more efficiently than ever before. His movements became a blur as he dodged Leila's strikes, parried Kaito's attacks, and countered the brute's overwhelming force. The grimoire pulsed with approval as Ezra adapted, his body moving instinctively, his mind sharp and focused.
After what felt like an eternity, Ezra managed to take down the brute with a well-placed blast of fire to the chest. Leila and Kaito fell soon after, their exhausted forms sprawled on the ground.
Ezra stood victorious, panting heavily. His body ached, but the grimoire rewarded him again—this time with a new skill: *Flame Step*, a technique that allowed him to move at incredible speed by turning his body into pure flame for a brief moment.
---
### The Punishments
Despite his victories, the grimoire was relentless. For every quest he completed, another appeared, each more difficult and demanding than the last. And when Ezra faltered, even for a moment, the grimoire wasted no time in issuing its punishments.
One night, after failing a particularly brutal quest involving complex Qi manipulation, Ezra felt his fire ability suddenly vanish. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't summon even the faintest spark. Panic set in. The punishment would last for a week, and without his fire abilities, he was vulnerable.
The days that followed were a harsh reminder of the grimoire's power over him. Training became infinitely harder without his fire abilities, and he was forced to rely solely on physical combat. Each day felt like a struggle for survival, and the grimoire's presence loomed over him like a dark shadow.
But with each punishment, Ezra grew stronger. The challenges pushed him to adapt, to find new ways to fight, to think creatively. He began to understand that the grimoire wasn't just trying to make him suffer—it was forcing him to evolve.
---
### The Final Test: Journey to the Dream World
Weeks passed, and Ezra's strength and abilities grew at a rapid pace. But the grimoire wasn't done with him yet. One night, as Ezra sat alone in his room, the grimoire pulsed with a strange, unfamiliar energy. The pages turned on their own once more, but this time, the symbols that appeared were darker, more ominous.
**Quest Rank S: Enter the Dream World**
- Objective: Journey to the Dream Realm and survive.
- Reward: ???
- Failure: Permanent loss of a major ability.
Ezra's heart skipped a beat. This quest was unlike anything he had seen before. The Dream World was a place of myth—a realm filled with bizarre creatures, twisted landscapes, and strange powers. It was said that time moved differently there, and that those who entered often never returned.
The grimoire's pages began to glow, and a strange portal formed in front of Ezra, swirling with ethereal light. He could feel the pull of the Dream World on the other side, beckoning him to step through.
Ezra hesitated, his hand hovering over the portal. The risk was immense, but so was the potential reward. He had no idea what awaited him in the Dream World, but one thing was certain: this journey would change him forever.
Taking a deep breath, Ezra steeled himself.
The gate to the Dream Realm opened, and he stepped through.
---
*End of Chapter 10*
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