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"Wake up, Eason," I heard a voice say before a full bowl of ice-cold water crashed into my face.
"Why are you waking me up at this time? It's just three in the morning, you stupid geezer!" I shouted at the top of my lungs as Denim dragged me out of bed without saying a word.
He continued dragging me until we reached outside the sanctuary, where a few sandbags lay on the ground.
"Wear those sandbags," he said, shoving them toward me.
"Is this the training I'm supposed to be receiving?" I asked, annoyed. "Wasn't I supposed to be using a sword?"
He glared at me, his expression sharp. "Do you think you can just waltz out here and start learning how to use a sword? You need strength and stamina first, or you won't even be able to wield one properly," he said, helping me buckle the sandbags to my wrists, ankles, and waist.
"Now that everything is set, you have to run around that mountain five times," he added, pointing to a towering peak near the sanctuary. "After that, you'll come back here for basic strength training. Be quick—you've got work later."
I gritted my teeth.
"This is going to be hard, but I have to do this for my sister and my mom," I said, steeling my resolve.
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### One Hour Later
A boy trudged slowly down the mountain with shaky legs, drenched clothes, disheveled hair, and uneven breathing. Ahead of him, a man stood waiting, arms crossed.
As the boy stumbled forward, he collapsed right at the man's feet.
"He held out longer than I expected," Denim muttered before crouching down. "Wake up, you idiot," he said, casting a mild healing spell.
"Ugh... Do I *really* have to do the strength training *right now*?" Eason groaned, his exhaustion clear.
"You must, if you want to go to the academy," Denim replied firmly.
The basic strength training was brutal: one hundred weighted squats, one hundred weighted push-ups, and one hundred sit-ups—all with the sandbags still strapped to his body.
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### After Training
"Hey, get up. I got you a job—a well-paid one too, at a restaurant. And don't forget, you've got meditation training when you come back. So, move," Denim said as he cast a Great Heal spell on me. He even added strength and stamina buffs.
"Why didn't you just do this earlier if you could?" I asked, a small hint of relief in my voice.
After freshening up and resting a bit, I left for work. On the way, I bumped into Leah. It seemed she was heading to the same restaurant I was.
We walked side by side in silence. She didn't recognize me until we got inside the restaurant and I was handed an apron.
"Are you the new kid here?" she asked, surprised as she finally saw my face.
"You *fucking pervert*! What are you doing here?" she yelled, her expression full of anger.
"The same thing you're doing," I replied with a smirk.
We both glanced at each other and realized, to our mutual horror, that we were both working as waiters.
"Why is an awakened person working as a waiter? You could be in the academy or a mercenary," I asked her, genuinely curious.
"It's none of your business," she snapped, turning away.
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### After Work
"Hey, pervert boy," she called out as I was about to leave. "What's your name?"
"Eason," I replied flatly. "Bye."
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"Hey, Denim! I'm home!" I shouted, slamming the door as I entered the sanctuary.
"Welcome back, idiot. Submit the cash," Denim said, looking up with a smirk.
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