The training went as usual, except that his teacher forbade him from taking part in the physical exercises. Instead, he was told to sit on the side, listen to the lessons, and go home afterward.
After carefully asking what had happened, and hearing Osirs explain everything in detail, the teacher called him an idiot and then let him leave.
Back at home, Osirs began training his footwork. The first thing he did was observe how he normally walked and then tried to change his walking behavior.
But even after thinking carefully about how to move, he didn't make much progress, other than making his steps a bit quieter, which wasn't what he intended.
Osirs considered other ways to improve his footwork, but he soon found himself at his wit's end.
"I know what I want to improve, but I don't know how to do it. It's like creating something out of nothing... and my imagination has a limit," he sighed, frustrated by his own shortcomings."To create unpredictable footwork, I'd probably need years… and maybe I'll never truly succeed."
His frustration boiled over. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tightly.
"This can't go on. I need to do something. Should I ask the teacher?"
The more he thought about it, the more his mind returned to his class teacher.
"They say Teacher Volved was once a great swordsman. But during a battle against a beast, he was injured… even so, he managed to save the entire village."
The more he thought about it, the more it seemed like a good idea to ask his teacher for help.
Osirs made up his mind. He picked up the small white fox, who no longer resisted, it seemed to have already accepted its fate as a pet.
With the fox in his arms, Osirs walked toward Teacher Volved's house, which wasn't far from the training grounds.
The house was made of wood, not very big, and looked like any other simple home in the village. Osirs glanced around, wondering if Teacher Volved was inside or nearby.
Looking through the window, he saw Teacher Volved sitting on a chair with his eyes closed, it seemed he was asleep.
Seeing him like that, Osirs smiled a little and quietly walked toward him. Each step was as silent as the wind.
Once he stood beside his teacher, he reached out to gently tap his shoulder to wake him up.
But before his hand could touch him, Teacher Volved's eyes flew open in a flash of panic and instinct.
Without warning, Volved's hand shot up and blocked Osirs's hand, faster than he could follow. And in the same instant, Volved's fist was already flying straight toward Osirs's face.
But Osirs's reflexes kicked in.
He tilted his head at the last second, dodging the punch by a single millimeter.
He felt the raw power in that strike, and a cold sweat broke out over his body. His limbs trembled slightly, not from fear, but from the sheer pressure that had come off that one blow.
At the same time, Teacher Volved's eyes widened in surprise.
"You… dodged that?" he asked, staring at Osirs in disbelief.
Still a little pale, Osirs nodded slowly.
"Haa…" Volved sighed deeply, then rubbed his face with his hand.
"Sorry about that. I didn't hear you come in… That was pure instinct. I apologize. But tell me, how did you dodge that? Have you been training with your injuries?"
Volved's voice was filled with concern now, despite the earlier aggression. He seemed genuinely worried.
Osirs gave a sheepish smile and nodded awkwardly.
"Yes, I trained a bit. During my fight with a white fox yesterday, I realized I needed to improve my footwork. But when I tried, I could only make small improvements, like moving more efficiently or making my steps quieter. Beyond that, I couldn't figure out how to improve further."
He looked directly at his teacher now, eyes filled with determination.
"So I came to ask for your help."
As Osirs finished his explanation, he noticed something strange.
Teacher Volved didn't look pleased or proud.
In fact… he looked angry.
"Tsk." Teacher Volved clicked his tongue at Osirs, making him go silent in confusion.
"Didn't I say you should rest and do nothing but eat?"
"Oh..." Osirs's eyes widened. He looked away, scratching his cheek in embarrassment.
"Sorry..."
Volved shook his head. "Don't apologize for something you don't truly mean. Anyway, you said you developed that footwork just today? Impressive. Truly impressive."
"Hehehe," Osirs chuckled, clearly proud of himself, then coughed a bit to hide it. "So, Teacher... do you know how I can improve more?"
Hearing Osirs's question made Teacher Volved sigh deeply. "You already managed to learn silent footwork, so I suppose you're ready to train properly again. Come in, I'll give you a book to read."
With that, they stepped into Teacher Volved's home.
The house was simple, with only a few rooms, all neatly maintained. No dust, no clutter, everything was in perfect order.
They entered a room filled with bookshelves, each one packed with old, well preserved books.
"This," Teacher Volved said, noticing Osirs's curious gaze, "is the Martial Library of our Averze race."
His voice carried a note of pride as he looked over the shelves.
"These books contain the martial techniques of countless warriors of our people. They're passed down through generations to be studied, improved upon, and remembered. Every Averze is allowed to access them if they're truly interested in the martial path, or in other fields as well. This library… is one of the most important places in our village."
Osirs was stunned.
He hadn't expected this. He had thought Volved might train him directly, maybe give a few personal pointers, but instead, he was being given access to an entire treasury of knowledge.
His eyes lit up, and a wide, amazed smile formed on his face.
Books filled with martial techniques… it was more valuable than having a single teacher.
This was a legacy.
And he couldn't wait to dive in.
"Search for what you want, read it here, and then leave," Teacher Volved said simply.
With those words, Osirs rushed toward the bookshelf and began skimming through the covers of the books.
There were many that amazed him and some that disappointed, but he read through them all with curiosity. The more he read, the more fascinated he became.
The martial arts books were filled with so much knowledge that he found himself wondering, "Why not just learn all of these techniques?"
Driven by that thought, he continued to search and read, devouring page after page, book after book. Time passed quickly, and before he realized it, night had fallen.
The small white fox lay on the ground nearby, letting out quiet growls of hunger. But Osirs was so engrossed in the books that he didn't even notice.
"Alright, time's up. Go home." The voice of Teacher Volved called from behind him, snapping Osirs out of his trance.
Startled, he quickly gathered the books and returned each one to its proper place on the shelves. Then, picking up the small white fox, he left the house.
Back home, Osirs cooked some meat over the fire and fed the hungry little fox before eating himself. But even as he chewed his food, his mind was elsewhere.
His thoughts were still stuck in the library, swirling with everything he had learned.
He had read about many techniques, but one thing had especially caught his attention.
There was something called Martial Spirit Stages.
It was said that these stages allowed normal beings to grow beyond what was considered human strength or as the books referred to them, "mortal beings."
The lowest of these stages is called the Mortal Stage, followed by the Spiritual Stage, and then the legendary Sage Stage, which, according to the books, only exists in theory.
These stages were nothing short of magical. Curious, Osirs looked at his own status again and noticed a category listed under his name Mortal stage.
That alone was enough to convince him that this path to strength was real.
And if he chose to believe everything written in the books… then maybe, just maybe, he could one day split lakes and mountains like the God of Light had once claimed.
The Mortal Stage was divided into three main realms the Body Stage, the Mind Stage and the Soul Stage
Each of these stages was then further divided into smaller steps.
For the Body Stage, there were three steps, The Body Tempering Stage, then the Blood Cleansing Stage and Body Transformation Stage
And from what Osirs understood… he wasn't even at the first one.
To even reach the Body Tempering Stage, one had to first be able to sense something called mana, a term that Osirs vaguely remembered seeing in his status before.
It had been listed as "Mana Detection (Sealed)", a skill he couldn't yet access.
But as he thought more and more about it, a sudden realization struck him like a bolt of lightning.
"Wait... could this be the reward for the challenge the God of Light gave me?"
His eyes widened in surprise, and suddenly the entire challenge took on a whole new level of importance.
This wasn't just about pride anymore. Or faith.
This was the key to real power. To rising beyond mortality.
He clenched his fists with renewed determination.
This wasn't a challenge he could lose anymore.
It was something he must win, no matter the cost.