It had been 215 days since I was beamed to the academy.

Every day was the same routine: class, training, bathhouse, domain, and back again. Sometimes I would spice things up by training before class, but for the most part, this is what I stuck to. Julia would also occasionally join me... well a bit more than occasionally. Of course, I enjoyed spending time with her, but after doing the same limited activities for over 200 days straight, there was not much for us to talk about.

A conversation starter was lost with every memory that was taken from us. And we had no memories left.

I'm talking about before we came here, obviously- we weren't hit with any more beams since the first day of class and our brains were probably in good condition. That being said, I was extremely bored. Like really bored.

It wasn't like I was slacking on my training or anything- it was far from it actually. With nothing better to do, I only devoted more time to working out and swinging swords leading to both my body and my physique improving considerably. My body was so toned that I looked like something out of fiction. At this point, I was almost certain that the homemade protein that I was eating was somehow working.

Still... I think a transformation this drastic is a bit unrealistic in just 215 days.

There was absolutely no way that my body would have gotten to this level of muscle on that powder alone. I could only really attribute it to my newly immortal body, although I had no clue how it worked.

It is worth noting that none of the other creatures achieved a body transformation even remotely comparable to mine. That isn't to say that they weren't working hard. Places like the training grounds were actually fairly crowded recently, yet for some reason I was the only one to undergo such a substantial physical change.

We were all hit with the same beam... so why is it just me who's turning out so differently?

In an attempt to pinpoint the cause, I tried to think of factors that were unique to me. To my surprise, there actually were a few; mainly that I was the only one who did not use mana, along with probably the only one eating that protein powder.

It wouldn't really make sense for the lack of mana to be the cause. From what we were learning, mana makes things stronger. Why would not using it give me massive muscles?

That only left me with the protein powder as the most likely cause, yet I struggled to believe that. There had to have been something else contributing to my growth that I was overlooking.

Speaking of protein powder, I did try to teach Julia how to make it, but I was unsuccessful. Teaching the concept of organic chemistry to someone from a world with no knowledge of science was close to impossible. Since I can't bring things made with domain creation into the academy, there was no way to give her the amino acids that I made.

She is such a cute and tiny girl. She'll never know the joys of having gains.

Working out had been my major source of entertainment for a while. Things had gone into a semi-stalement in my realm so there was not much to look over. As for Mr. Flippers... there were only so many times that I could lose to him in cards before I gave up.

This entire time, I never won a single match against him. In any game. Ever.

Even right now, I was heading to the training grounds to lift away the pain of losing over a thousand games straight. Mr. Flippers himself decided to stay behind to work on his ice palace.

Yes, an ice palace. Halfway through finishing his igloo, the tiny penguin decided it was not grand enough to house someone as noble as himself, so he started over from scratch with this new design in mind.

He might as well just build his own ice casino with his luck.

"A thousand freaking games in a row..." I muttered as I entered the training grounds.

Whether it was due to boredom or anticipation of the approaching competition, the training grounds have become a lot more crowded as of late and today was no different.

There was one creature that stood out to me from the herd. Through the entryway of the melee section, I spotted a recognizable light brown meatball of an ogre.

This wasn't the first time that I've seen Ferguson in the training grounds. He actually came to work out pretty frequently, but usually, it was at different times of the day than me. It was the occasions when I tried to spice up my schedule when we would run into one another.

I approached the melee area entrance and watched him swing a massive club at a training dummy.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The floor shook slightly every time his club connected with the dummy. Noticeable dents formed from the impacts that even I could see from afar.

His power is no joke. That guy hasn't been slaking.

Ever since I first met this ogre in the sauna, it was clear to me that he was the strongest Seedling in the academy- at least physically. His sheer size alone both horizontally and vertically made him a force to be reckoned with and he easily towered over the others with his 6'8 stature.

Although he was fairly chubby when we first met, his training showed and strong muscles could be seen forcing their way through the layer of fat.

That dude could be an entire offensive line by himself. Well... maybe not. No matter how strong he is, I doubt he could protect a quarterback from five people charging in all directions.

My thoughts were interrupted when the ogre glanced over to me, seemingly noticing my gaze.

"Do you need something?" he asked in a slightly annoyed tone.

"No not really. I was just watching you practice... You got a good swing." I spoke honestly.

Ferguson only nodded in response and went back to his training.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

If it weren't for the regeneration, that dummy would be a pile of scraps by now.

I grabbed a wooden sword from a nearby barrel and approached the free training dummy to his left.

With quick swings, the sword connected in rapid succession.

Slam! Slam! Slam! Slam!

You weren't the only one who got stronger, mister ogre.

Similar to Ferguson, small dents appeared on the dummy with every hit. They were a bit smaller than the ones he made; however, considering the different weapons and how my speed was a bit faster, things were pretty even between us.

It seemed that the ogre quickly noticed this, too.

"You are also strong. Can we spar?"

Spar? He wants to duel?

I glanced over to the massive wall of muscles to my right.

No thank you, I'd like to live... is what I would have said 200 days ago. Maybe it's the boredom talking, but honestly, it's not a bad idea. It would help me finally get some insight into how ogres fight and let me gauge my strength. Plus, I doubt he would go overboard with the academy watching us. 

"You know what... sure. Let's do it."

 I have a better chance of winning against this guy in a fight than I would against Mr. Flippers in a card game.

We made our way to the arena after putting our weapons away. Despite some creatures looking at the two of us curiously, I was surprised to see that no one followed us inside.

The arena was the one place where Seedlings were allowed to fight, although self-restraint was a requirement. If someone did anything that could be considered excessive or unnecessary to the training, there was a huge risk of punishment. For that reason, the arena usually stayed vacant as no one wanted to take that risk.

After turning right and exiting the corridor, we were greeted by the view of the massive arena. The arena itself was shaped as a giant oval with massive stone tiles making up its floor. Hundreds of seats lined the stadium for spectators to look down upon whatever match was going on. Of course, these seats were all vacant right now.

It is a bit weird how large-scale this arena is considering it's part of the training ground. Do the instructors also use this to fight against each other? I doubt they would have built this an arena this big if it was just for practice matches. Even if all of us Seedlings were to sit in those seats, we'd only fill roughly a fifth of them.

With a sigh, I picked out a wooden sword from a barrel placed against the arena wall. Ferguson followed my lead and picked out a club similar to the one he was practicing with earlier. The two of us slowly made our way to the center of the arena without speaking a word.

Upon reaching the center, we each took 10 steps back to give each other space.

"... Are you ready?" I asked.

"I am."

"Then let's-" 

Before I could finish speaking, the massive ogre rushed towards me. It only took a moment before his club was swinging towards my left side.

I quickly braced my knees and moved my sword to intercept it. With a thud, the two weapons met leaving my arms tingling from the impact.

"I came to fight. Enough talking," Ferguson spat.

Shoot... I may have made a mistake.

It was clear that we were not nearly as close in strength as I thought we were.

Even though I had gained a ton of muscle, I was still just barely able to block that hit. With our weapons connected, I gradually shifted my weight downwards until his club slipped past me. Not missing this chance, I quickly backed away to give myself time to think.

He's still stronger than me, but I definitely have the edge in speed. I need to find a way to use that to my advantage.

That was the extent of my thinking before Ferguson's club once again appeared in front of me.

Thud!

It was the same swing as before. The first rally made it clear that I would lose in any direct contest of strength, so instead of hitting the club head-on, I instead met it at an angle and deflected the club while shifting my body. Ferguson quickly transitioned to a backhanded swing toward my right which I was able to dodge by simply stepping backwards.

Now's my chance!

This was a perfect chance to retreat, yet instead of running away, I charged directly toward the ogre. 

Yes, I could've simply run away the whole match, but what kind of training would that be?

I made a quick swing of my own which Ferguson swatted away. There was no time to make a second attack before I needed to step back from his club.

A strong wind blew past me as his club skimmed the tip of my nose.

That was a bit too close for comfort.

Cold sweat dripped down my neck, but the ogre did not miss out on my hesitation and stepped forward with another swing this time from above. Reflexively, I threw myself to the side just before his club slammed into the floor where I was just standing.

Oi- is he actually trying to kill me!? If I didn't move, I'd be squashed right now!

My eyes met his, though it felt as though he was looking right through me. Bloodlust oozed from his expression as if he wanted nothing more than to leave me as a mangled corpse on the stone floor.

Hesitating will only lead to that outcome. If I want to survive this, my only chance is to face him head-on!

I swallowed my apprehension and dashed toward the ogre once again- dodging his attack and countering with one of my own. I continued to jab at him with my sword as I circled him, using my speed to step backward whenever he attempted to swing.

Although I was able to continue this strategy for a bit and connected with him several times, the damage I inflicted was minimal at best. Not only was Ferguson strong, but he was tanky as well.

Ferguson stepped toward me and let out another predictable swing, which I naturally moved to parry.

What? A faint-

Bang!

"Gah-"

A strong impact on my stomach sent me flying backward as my breath escaped my lungs. It took two bounces on the stone floor before I skidded to a stop.

My body flared in pain, but I forced myself to get to my feet.

I was able to twist my body a bit before the impact yet I still took this strong of a hit.

Despite being full of openings, Ferguson did not move towards me.

"I am getting bored, human. What is the point in sparing if you are not fighting with all you have?"

Oi- I am trying you know! Do you think I just let myself get kicked for no reason!?

I slowly got to my feet and looked down at the sword in my hand.

His words resonated in my head.

'Everything that I have'.

I am limiting myself to just the sword and the basics of using it at that. I still don't really know any proper technique, though. I could try to punch and kick like he just did but...

My eyes shifted over to the ogre.

What the heck would a kick from me even do to a guy 9 weight classes above me?

"I don't have the body of a jacked hippo, unlike someone here," I muttered, shaking off the last of the pain.

Ferguson smirked apparently hearing my remark.

"You have the body of a twig."

A forced smile was plastered on my face.

A twig!? A freaking twig!? Do you have any idea how much I worked out since I got here!? I'll show you what kind of 'twig' I am!

With fire in my eyes, I sprinted towards the meatball.

Ferguson matched my movements and took steps to close the distance between us. Once in range, he did a typical sideways swing which I easily ducked under. With my knees still bent, I pushed off of the ground, launching myself toward the ogre.

Sadly, Ferguson was able to throw a punch forcing me to abort my attack and block his fist with my sword.

The sheer weight behind the punch was enough to fling me back a few feet, yet this time I remained standing.

"I thought I had you there."

With a sigh, I removed my shirt that was drenched in sweat from our fighting and tossed it on the ground revealing my pronounced abs and toned muscles, which proved just how much effort I put into training during the past two hundred days.

It was Ferguson's turn to take the initiative and he rushed towards me, swinging directly down as if trying to squish me. Instead of dodging like before, I swung my sword in an arc above me with enough force to redirect the club to my side. This combined with turning my body was enough to cause the club to miss me and smash into the stone floor.

I quickly whacked the ogre's leg with my full strength to take advantage of this clear opening before backing off to not give him time to retaliate.

I continued to back up, locking eyes with Ferguson who matched my steps to keep the distance constant. After the fifth step, I changed my tune and rushed toward him once again.

Now on the defensive, Ferguson held his club sideways to block my blow, but just as I was about to connect with his club, I changed my stance and thrusted my sword in a stabbing motion right toward the ogre's chest.

Reflexively, the ogre stepped back, only for his feet to fly out from under him.

"Wha- ugh!"

Thud!

Before the ogre could figure out why he was on the ground my wooden sword was pointed at his neck.

"I did as you said- I used what I had on me."

Confused, Ferguson lifted his head and noticed my shirt right where he had been standing.

"... Well played, human. It is my loss."

I pulled my sword away from his neck with a smile on my face.

Thankfully he didn't want to continue or I actually would've been screwed.

After trying and failing to help the ogre up, I picked up my shirt and glanced over to the exit only to see an elf staring at me. I leisurely made my way over to her.

"Fancy seeing you here, Julia. It's like you magically appear whenever I take my shirt off," I teased.

"S-shut up! Do you know how worried I was when I heard you went in here to fight that guy!?" she complained.

"Aww, you were worried about me?"

"Of course I was!" Julia sighed placing her head in her palms, "Out of everyone here, you chose to fight that guy. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty much fine, but thanks for worrying."

I leaned in and spoke in a quiet voice.

"You saw me beat him, right?" I excitedly asked.

"... Yes I did. It was honestly pretty cool," Julia hesitated but eventually admitted with a genuine smile on her face.

"I freaking did it, Julia! I actually beat him!" I pulled the elf in for a quick hug before calling out to the ogre who was leaving the arena.

"Hey, Ferguson! Since I won, at least upgrade me to a stick."

"... You confuse me, human," He stated before vanishing into the corridor.

"What's with you and sticks?" Julia looked at me and muttered.

"It's nothing. Anyway, should we head to the bathhouse?"

"Sure!"

As we made our way out of the arena, only one thought was in my mind.

Beating an ogre is so much easier than winning against that penguin.

HypnoticNovels

Thank you guys as always for all of the support :D ! Your comments always make me so happy. I remember writing this chapter over the summer! I think this might be the first 3,000 word chapter of this novel so far? There's a lot more of them later on lol. At some point I raised my minimum words per chater to be 2,000 instead of the 1,500 I started with. Anyway, enjoy~