EV Chapter 9:

Chapter 9:

The warm fire at my back welcomed me as I woke to Jonas gently shaking my shoulder. I blinked my eyes and rubbed them with my hands as I looked around. What? What happened? Where am I? I looked around and found the members of the Lesser Hall scattered around me. People had furs that appeared from nowhere that I had never questioned before, laid out in front of the many long hearths of embers.

Everyone was either still sleeping or slowly getting up. This was weird. I had never actually seen any other people in the mornings. When I woke up, they were all already out training. Was I just really that lazy, or was there some sort of difference? Perhaps it was because someone else was waking me up. But by the time the thoughts finished running through my head, everyone was up and getting ready.

They just stood up, stretched a little bit, and all of us walked out of the hall, leaving the furs behind as we walked. My stomach grumbled a little. I nearly stumbled in shock. What was that? I hadn't remembered what hunger felt like until now. Even when I was feasting, it was mostly for the enjoyment of it, but I felt strangely empty as if I wanted some breakfast. Something I hadn't had since I died. The memory of the smell of coffee in the morning made my eyes water slightly with how much I missed it.

When we approached the weapons rack, we all picked up halberds. I tried to find the absolute lightest I could, but it still felt extremely unwieldy in my hands. After watching Bjorn and Jonas spin theirs around their shoulders effortlessly, I had a sinking feeling that this was not going to go well.

Jonas took a few looks at how I was handling the weapon and showed me some basic drills to get accustomed to the simple moves of stabbing and slashing. I was grateful for the tips, and I knew I wasn't even close to ready to spar. The halberds felt off. The weight was much more than the spear I had gained some experience with.

My rather pitiful proficiency with that would likely help slightly, maybe. But I had very low hopes, and I could see it in Jonas's eyes that he didn't have much hope for me either. Hugo, Mark, and Rolo picked it up quickly. I could tell that they would have no problem making it to the Lesser Hall. They worked a few drills over and over again with a little help.

But despite how hopeless I felt, neither Jonas nor Bjorn gave up on me. They constantly rotated with each other, patiently coaching me through the basic steps. I promised myself that I would repay their kindness. 

After several hours of basics, I graduated to more complicated things. The others swapped between their own training and doing rounds of light sparring with me. We had been working for hours, but I didn't feel tired at all. My muscles still felt mostly fresh. Maybe it was some training magic or just good old-fashioned desperation. 

It became obvious after hours of trying to work the halberd that I just didn't have the strength to wield it properly. With that in mind, they started trying to get me acclimated to facing down someone with a halberd. Bjorn hoped that if I could get in close, I could use some of my grappling skills. Skills I knew I didn't have; I think he knew that, too. Despite my weaknesses, I wasn't as worried as I perhaps should have been. After all, I had a hidden ace. 

It was a close thing in the end. I could move it around and do the positions, but it just wasn't fast enough. Right before they were about to enter the challenge, maybe ten minutes before, I stepped aside and crouched down on the ground.

Taking the edge of the halberd, I carved the status rune into the stone. Cutting my hand, I waited for the results to show up.

Status: Tier 3: The Lesser Hall

Weapon proficiencies:

Sword: F-4. 

Spear: F-2. 

Striking: F-3. 

Halberd: F-1.

Stats:

Strength: 10. 

Speed: 8. 

Constitution: 5.

Blessing: Loki's Eye.

Class: N/A

Strength: +0. 

Speed: +0. 

Constitution: +0. 

Additional effects: ???

Wow. I'd actually gained two strengths from just this exercise. That seemed unusually fast, but I couldn't argue with the power boost. And the F1 proficiency was proof that I had learned at least the basics. Perhaps I had a chance. Using my foot, I smeared the blood into illegibility. I didn't want anyone to see the blessing I had. I walked back over to the rest of the group and rejoined the conversation. 

Each of my friends clapped me on my shoulder as we prepared for the start of the challenge. 

Luckily, I was the last one summoned, and I slipped my hand into my pocket to grab my hard candy and got ready to chug it down. I was grateful for all the training, but there was no way that one day would be enough. If I used the boost now, I could pretty much guarantee at least having enough strength to wield the weapon properly. Then, I could get into the Lesser Hall and have an extra day of training. Maybe I could bargain with Loki again. 

But my hopes came crashing down when I saw my opponent across the ring with a stricken expression. Jonas holding was his halberd low. 

"The gods are cruel, my friend. I am sorry." He murmured.

Letting go of the stat increase, I sighed in defeat. Even plus-five strength wouldn't be enough to overcome his skill. I wouldn't be surprised if he had high E or even D-ranked proficiency with this weapon. Watching him best, even the human monster Bjorn, made it crystal clear that there was no hope for me. 

I gave him a respectful nod. "Thank you for your efforts. And I'll see you soon."  

He returned the nod with a bow and smiled. "I'm sure you'll do fine, my friend."

***

I felt my spiritual shoulder shake gently again, repeating the experience from this morning. Groaning, I looked up to see Mary as she pulled me into her arms, into a spectral hug, lifting me up and out of my body. We didn't say anything for the first few moments as she flew through the inky vastness towards the solitary light of Valhalla in the distance. 

After a while, she spoke softly, "I'm so sorry. Sorry, Miles."

We went over to the Courtyard, and she landed in the Snowbank.

"It's just a temporary setback," she said, switching to forced cheer. "You'll get better. And you did it once. I'm sure you can do it again." 

I sagged in her arms and muttered, "Thank you," with my head pressed into her shoulder. And braced for the impact as I was let down gently into the cold snow. Well, there wasn't much I could do. I could get up and walk to the gates. From there, I could look in and watch the people shivering in the Courtyard as they feasted and drank.

That might help me try to stay awake through the entire night. But I knew from experience that it was impossible. I would only slowly freeze out in the even colder outside with no food to keep me warm. Or I could just lay here and look up at the stars.

Unfamiliar stars of motion, the green, blue, and even red stars, captured me with their mesmerizing patterns. As they all danced amongst the skies, a purple aurora flashed suddenly, snaking its way through the heavens in a beautiful exhibition of celestial grace. With my hand shoved into my pocket, I just watched it all as my vision slowly faded away. 

***

When I finally came to, I was standing in a sandy pit, the familiar inky black of the challenge all around me. I– gods, I hated coming here. It was even worse when I didn't have a chance to train. The first week I spent here was awful, but after I had gotten into the Courtyard, it got better. But the Snowbank made it tempting to just give up. To lay in the snow like so many others around me did.

Starting the challenge in such a position made it so hard to get out. And I had already clawed my way up once, only to get kicked back here again. It would not happen again. Not again.

I could feel the cold seeping from my bones and back into my flesh. The shivering made it hard for me to even hold on to the shaft of the halberd next to me, and I couldn't feel my face. My teeth were chattering so hard that my vision blurred from the vibrations, and even the shape of the person across from me was difficult to make out.

Seeing that I wasn't nearly dead already, this was likely to be my chance. Pulling out the candy, I crunched it between my chattering teeth. I didn't want to use this boost here, but I was never going to risk going back to the snow again. There was a difference right away. I could feel myself warm up. The heat melted the ice in my joints, and my shivering stopped. My vision stabilized, and I felt my muscles swell.

Swinging my arms around, they felt as if I had just gotten a solid warm-up in. I picked up the halberd from where my numb fingers had dropped it and spun it around. Trying a few of the more complicated moves I had been shown, I found they weren't impossible. They felt awkward and clumsy, but I was able to do it without having to compromise my stance in order to get the proper leverage. 

Not wasting any more time, I charged at the opponent. The man had as little skills as I did, but he stood his ground. Knocked away my halberd as I got in range. I just let it go and lowered my shoulder, now within his guard. 

I crashed into him with no technique at all. Just pure, brutal strength born from rage and fear. There was no way that I would ever let myself go back into the cold again. I would move mountains and slaughter anyone who stood in my way, but I was never going back out to the cold again. Not one more time would I suffer such humiliation. 

I roared as I bore the scrawny, blue-lipped opponent to the ground and smashed my fist right into his face. The blue of his nearly frostbit skin was covered up as the red of his blood splattered everywhere, spewing from the remains of his nose. My left fist then came down, cracking an orbital bone. Then my right and then the left... I let loose, just absolutely pounding him in the face until my knuckles ached and burned.

The scene slowly faded around me, and I rolled off to the side as the transition occurred, retching. Looking at my hands supporting my weight, I couldn't stop staring at the sight of my bloody knuckles. When did I get this strong? I wondered idly before my mind shifted to darker topics.

I'd killed countless times at this point. Oh, not countless, but close. But it had always been with a weapon, dispassionate or strangulation. Only when I knew they would come back to life moments later. I'd also been killed in many gruesome ways, too. 

But this was something else. Something sickening. I couldn't believe it. That I'd done this. I did my best to wipe my hands clean in the sand and hold back the bile in my throat. It wasn't going to stop me, and I didn't regret it, but damn, did I not want to have to do this. Spitting into the sand, I pushed my emotions to the side. I would deal with them later if I absolutely needed to.

As I appeared in the new arena, I pushed myself to my feet with the halberd lying on the sand next to me. My new opponent was someone I didn't recognize, as most were, but I could tell by his stance he had a lot more than what my previous opponent did. Lowering my halberd, I charged, and he met it.

I did my best to slip aside as our weapons impacted. The head of mine dug deep into his chest, crushing his rib cage. But my evasion only worked marginally. I felt a deep slash cut inches into my obliques, and I could only imagine my intestines spilling out on the sand. As I stumbled to my knees, panting, I looked back at where we had crossed paths and found the man already dead, a bloody froth on their lips. 

I did my best to push myself back up to my feet, but when I got onto one knee, I fell over sideways. The new arena appeared, but before I saw my next opponent, Mary lifted me up again.

Her smile was much warmer than the gentle professionalism I normally got. As if she really cared for me beyond her graceful nature. "I knew you could do it, honey. I knew you could do it. Two kills. You're back in the haul. And I'm sure eventually, in no time at all, you'll be moving on!"