Codex of Power

"Yeah. This should work."

A faint glow flickered in the corner of the room.

Hm? What's this?

As he rummaged through the scattered parts, he found a strange, box-like device.

What the hell? This looks like a speaker... Hmm, there's some kind of connection setup inside. Huh? A button. I wonder what it does.

He pressed it.

—Click.

"Hello, hello, this is Axel speaking."

"So, you're saying this box can record voices?"

"Mm, I think Rey will like it. Maybe I'll leave it in the storage room."

"Ohh, that's nic—"

Damian's eyes narrowed. That was Stephen and Axel… So it's a recorder. Nice—I can use this to learn a recording spell. It's limited to audio, but still... Maybe there are video recorders too. I'll have to ask around.

He continued disassembling spare devices when a knock echoed at the door.

"Come in."

"Excuse me... Re—Damian?"

"Hey, Axel. What's up?"

"You weren't at breakfast, so I came to check on you."

"...Seriously?"

A glance at the clock—11 AM.

"...Oh damn, I didn't even notice. Meh, I'll just eat more at lunch. What's up?"

"It's training time, and I thought you wanted to come, so I came to get you."

"Ohh, is it now?"

"Mm."

"Alright, give me a couple of minutes."

After tidying up his tools, they left the orphanage.

"...So, where are we heading?"

"The training ground near the forest. It's owned by Grandpa Carl—he used to be a knight."

"Ohh, I see. What's he like?"

"He's nice... except when it comes to training."

So, he's brutal.

"Well, I'll just have to see for myself."

Axel hesitated. "You... don't have to come just for my sake, you know?"

"I planned on training eventually. Just didn't know when."

"...If you say so."

Soon, they arrived at the training ground—a single-story house with brown walls and a white roof, enclosed by green gates.

Just as they reached for the bell—

"AHHH!"

Axel flinched at the sudden scream.

"What the f—!?"

Damian caught himself, glancing at Axel.

Calm down, there's a kid here. No cussing... That sounded like Stephen.

"You… don't seem surprised."

"...This is a daily routine."

Hmm.

Damian stroked his chin.

Do I really have to go through this? Maybe it's on par with my own training plan... or maybe...

After a brief pause, he sighed.

Screw it. Let's just wing it.

—TRIING!

"Hm, someone's at the gate. Go check it out, Mira."

"Yes, Grandfather."

The gate creaked open, revealing a young girl—black hair, green eyes, and a skeptical glare.

"Who might yo— Ah, Axel? Come in, we've been wai— ...Who are you?"

"Nice to meet you. I'm Damian. I came to ask if I can t—"

"No, thanks. I'm not interested. And stop taking advantage of him."

"Uh, what?"

She pointed at Axel. "Get inside, Axel."

"Excuse me, I didn't come here t—"

"Yeah, yeah, you all say the same thing. And one more thing—if I see you around Axel again, I will ki—"

"Big Sis!"

Axel grabbed her arm.

"Huh, Axel!? What's wrong?"

"Please, stop! He didn't come here to ask you out!"

"...Axel, you don't have to prote—"

"He came to train!"

"...Huh?"

Her sharp gaze flickered toward Damian, meeting an expression of pure disgust.

"...For the record, I'm not interested in little brats like you."

"Huh!? What did y—"

"Damian, please stop making her angry!"

"...She started it—with that ego of hers."

...Bruh, I swear I'm getting petty as hell.

Before Mira could explode—

"What's going on here? Why the commotion? Hm… who are you?"

An old man—broad-shouldered, white-haired, and green-eyed—stepped out.

"Damian. I'm here to train."

"Hm? As far as I know, the only friend these two share is a kid named Rey."

"That's me."

"But you called yourself Damian."

"I changed my name."

"Hmm... Got the payment?"

"...There's a payment?"

"Hah! What else, you little twerp? Of course, there's a fee."

Wait, then how's Axel paying?

He glanced at Axel.

"...They let me learn for free."

Bruh.

"Fwoo... How much?"

"Hm?"

"How much Kram do I pay?"

"...3500 Kram a month."

"Hmm... I'll get the money by the end of the month. Fair enough?"

"...What the? Are your parents that poor?"

"Huh?"

"I was just messing with the price. The actual fee is 1500 a month."

"...I don't have parents."

The air grew heavy. Axel stiffened, while Carl's expression faltered.

Damian, upon realising this, had a glint in his eyes.

Ahh, looks like they didn't tell him.

"...Wow. You really just asked an orphan that question?"

"Kggh!"

"But I can let this slide… if it's free."

"...Making it free is..."

"Ehh, you're an adult, aren't you? Imagine if word got out—"

Damian mockingly cupped his hands as if gossiping.

"See that old man? I heard he insulted a poor orphan for not having parents."

"Ehh! No way? Really?"

"Yeah. I heard he even demanded money from him. How could he?"

"Oh no, that poor child!"

Each word stabbed deeper into Carl's conscience.

"Fine, I'll make it free. Just don't spread this."

"Well, it should be free anyway, but..."

"Here, take 100 Kram... Please..."

"Oh, but what would my parents say at a time li—"

"OK! 500 Kram, so please!"

"Pleasure doing business, Sir Knight."

Heh, what a pushover.

As Carl sighed in relief, realization struck.

Wait a sec… "What would my parents say?" ...Oh, this brat.

Veins bulged on his forehead. A glint of vengeance flickered in his eyes.

Nah, it's fine. He wanted to train, right? I'll make sure he gets the best training possible.

"Mira, take them to the training grounds."

"Yes, Grandfather."

She took Axel by the hand and walked forward, while Damian followed along, smiling from ear to ear.

"So Axel, what's been up with you?"

"Mm, nothing much. When Damian fell sick, we went to visit him at the clinic. After he became fine, we played the whole day yesterday! We..."

Mira zoned out as Axel chattered away.

Why is he talking about this guy so much? He acts like they're best friends.

She glanced at Damian, who looked unbothered—lost in thought.

Where should I spend this money? Best get a combat knife for protection. That aside...

He looked at Mira.

Heh, now I know why she's so salty. It seems that she likes Axel, but other kids get in her way. However, Axel keeps talking about me, so she's getting pissed off, ehehehe...

As they reached the training grounds, a red-haired boy was seen sprawled on the ground.

"Damian?"

"Hm? Oh, what's up, Stephen?"

"Why are you here?"

"To train, what else?"

"...I thought you hated training."

"Meh, it was about time I started. Besides, I don't hate training—I just hate wasting time on anything other than technology."

"Heeh, really?"

"Yeah. Also, because you keep overdoing it, poor Axel here can't keep up. So, I'm here for that too."

"Ahh…"

Stephen glanced at Axel, who was nervously fidgeting with his fingers.

"I'm sorry, I didn't notice."

"Ehh, it's fine. You don't have to apologize. I should be the one saying sorry for not keeping up."

"No, no, it should be me since I'm already awakened."

As they continued exchanging apologies, Damian had a thought.

He's awakened, but I still don't know his class.

"Speaking of which, what's your class?"

"Ah, I'm a Warrior class. Mira here is a Swordsman class."

"Hmm, I see."

"Hmph."

Mira smugly flaunted herself in front of Damian.

From what I know, a class shows exactly where your talent lies. It doesn't grant specific skills or boosts, but it represents your innate ability.

"But what's the difference between a Warrior and a Swordsman?"

"Well, a Warrior is more of a fistfighter. Other weapon-based classes are named after their weapon—like Swordsman, Axeman, and so on. The common classes are Warrior, Mage, Tanker, and Archer. Everything else is a variation—sometimes better, sometimes worse."

"So, Swordsman is like an advanced version of the Warrior class?"

"Yep."

"Hmph."

This girl…

"So, when do we start?"

"We start now, you brat."

Turning around, they saw Carl standing with a weapon, smiling eerily.

"First things first… Every last one of you, 100 laps. Mira and Stephen, 200 since you're awakened."

Everyone froze in horror. Mira immediately glared at Damian, while Axel looked like he was about to cry.

Goddamn, this field is 100 meters long… That's 10 kilometers in a 4 year old body... Haha, I'm screwed.

*****

Three hours later...

Under the shade of a roof, four children lay panting.

"Haah… haawoohh… This is fu… freaking crazy."

"Oh, you think?" Stephen grumbled, chugging water.

"Calm down. This is good endurance and speed training."

Mira scowled at Damian. "Because of you, poor Axel passed out!"

"Well, he does need proper training."

"He shouldn't have to suffer for your actions."

"Haah, I'm not arguing about this now. Let's just rest."

Just as they tried to recover—

"Looks like you all still have the energy to whine, huh?"

They stiffened. Axel, still unconscious, was spared from Carl's words.

"After resting and having lunch, training continues. This time, we focus on physical strength. And of course, I'll be pushing you all to your limits."

Hearing this, the children cast dark looks at the ground.

Carl snickered and walked away.

Stephen sighed, then shot a glare at Damian.

"This is your fault, man."

"...No comment."

Since Stephen and Mira were awakened, they trained with weights. Axel, being physically weak, and Damian, being younger, trained without them.

Two hours later—

"Hagghh… This is… way too fuginh—haahhhh…!"

Stephen and Mira were too exhausted to hear Damian nearly cuss.

Axel, once again, lay passed out—his soul practically leaving his body.

"...Damn, Axel might actually die today… I wonder whose fault that is?"

The three turned their heads in unison, glaring at Carl.

Damian, covering his mouth, secretly plotted Carl's demise.

This bastard! I swear I'll haunt your dreams, motherfucker!

Stephen started looking at various different areas of the grounds.

I need to escape from this geezer.

Mira, looking down in quiet defiance, had another plan.

Why do I have to suffer because of him? …That aside, Grandpa's not getting any food today. No way I'm letting this slide.

Carl examined the exhausted children, stroking his chin.

Heh, that's what you get for messing with me, brat. But still… I didn't expect him to handle such rigorous training on the first day. More surprising is that Axel actually kept up. Mira doesn't like Damian, so she probably felt the need to finish. And since Stephen and Mira have a bit of a rivalry, he must've felt pressured too.

A grin stretched across Carl's face.

Looks like he's a good addition to the team.

Stephen and Mira shivered at his expression. Damian, however, was too busy plotting Carl's death a thousand times over.

"Training's over. You can go home now. Take Axel with you, Damian."

"Fwooh, okay. So, five days a week?"

"Yep. Weekends are off, so make sure to come back later."

Hoisting Axel over his shoulder, Damian waved.

"Alright, I'll be back."

"Sure thing, kiddo."

"See you later, Damian."

"...Don't come back… please…"

And with that, Damian left the training grounds—Axel slung over his shoulder, while the others watched him go, each filled with their own silent grudge.