Great Helios Pass.
After a long cold night, the majestic sun rose into the horizon and brought with it glimmers of warmth.
Even though it was extremely early in the morning, Mikhail had long woken up and was currently training in the training ground of his mansion in the Great Helios Pass.
Mikhail might have been known for a man that had many vices back on Earth, however, he wasn't the least bit lazy and was extremely diligent when it came to his training.
He knew that without enough strength, he wouldn't able to do whatever he wanted. As such, he always pushed himself to conserve his way of life.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
With his muscular upper body bare naked and a wooden sword in his hand, he was practicing his swordsmanship.
He wasn't practicing any fancy or powerful skills. He was simply performing the most basics movement of any sword skills; chop, pierce, scrape, sweep, break, tap, cleave, support, intercept, twist, lift, and draw.
While chop, pierce, scrape, sweep, tap, and cleave were used to attack, support, break, intercept, twist, lift, and a draw was used to defend.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
Mikhail performed these basic movements over and over without taking a break. It was as if he wanted them to become engrained in his mind and bones.
Practicing these basic movements might look easy but it was tedious. Someone who had never done this kinda training before would never know just how exhausting it was, both mentally and physically.
Someone who wasn't sufficiently mentally resolved or who had insufficient desire wouldn't be able to persevere.
Fortunately, Mikhail had a Will of steel. He didn't show any weakness nor look disheartened.
On the contrary, he was so engrossed in it that he was unaware of an unexpected guest standing not too far from him, watching his every movement with interest.
The unexpected guest was a tall and muscular middle-aged man with long golden hair like a lion mane.
He was dressed in a blue Knight uniform and his body exuded a heroic and grand atmosphere
Despite just standing there, the middle-aged man had an awe-inspiring presence like a majestic mountain.
The more the middle-aged man looked at Mikhail practicing his basic movements, the more pleased and surprised he became.
Each one of Mikhail's attacks was very precise and sharp. He was in harmony with every attack. His body was like a fluid.
It was as if he had total control of every part of his body which in turn allowed the wooden sword in his hand acted as he wished like it was an extension of his body. It was truly marvelous.
[Advanced Swordsmanship has increased to Lv8]
[Stamina Stat Has Permanently Increased By 1]
[Strength Stat Has Permanently Increased By 1]
[Advanced Swordsmanship has increased to Lv9]
[Stamina Stat Has Permanently Increased By 1]
[Strength Stat Has Permanently Increased By 1]
[Advanced Swordsmanship has increased to Lv10]
[Stamina Stat Has Permanently Increased By 1]
[Strength Stat Has Permanently Increased By 1]
While Mikhail was engrossed in his training, the System's cold and mechanical voice was buzzing within his mind, informing him of his progress.
After training and repeating those same movements for another half an hour, Mikhail finally stopped. He was breathing heavily. One could tell that he was exhausted.
"It seems like that's my limit for today." He added while trying to catch his breath.
At this moment, Mikhail's body was drenched in sweat. He's been at it for at least four hours and didn't even use his Aura or Mana to strengthen his body.
He was performing those basic movements with his pure physical strength which made it even harder. However, the result was astounding.
Not only he was able to increase his stamina and physical strength in the process, but he had reached the peak of advanced swordsmanship from the intermediate rank.
Even though Vandal was considered a rare genius with dual talent in both Aura and Magic, he was very lousy when it comes to training.
He was mainly focused on opening his Aura Nodes and increasing his Aura and Mana while neglecting his basics.
Now that Mikhail had taken over his body, he didn't plan on walking on the same path and was trying to correct his mistakes before it was too late.
While Mikhail was still catching his breath after this long and arduous training as well as thinking about his next plan, a powerful and thunderous voice suddenly rang behind him
"Hahaha! That was truly marvelous. It seems like you have reached the advanced level of swordsmanship and have precise control over both your body and your sword, but your footwork is still a little sloppy."
"It's you, uncle Ivan!" Blurted out Mikhail after seeing the owner of that voice. He was truly surprised as he was caught off guard. He thought that he was all alone in the training ground.
He had already told Martin to not let anyone disturb him while he was training, even if it was his brother Handal. However, if it was this man, Martin wouldn't be able to stop him from coming in.
Not even the Emperor of the Helios Empire would be able to stop this man if he wanted to do something, let alone his butler Martin.
Ivan Andrei Alexi, also known as the Impenetrable Wall Of Helios, was the Supreme Commander of the Great Helios Pass.
He was one of the four Legendary Rank Knights of the Great Helios Empire and also the youngest one.
He had ruled and defended the Great Helios Pass against the Ether Beasts for over twenty years. His contribution was outstanding.
During his reign as the Supreme Commander, the Great Helios Pass has become stronger than it has ever been. In the eyes of countless soldiers in Great Helios pass, Ivan was akin to a deity.
Aside from that, he was also the childhood friend of the current Emperor of the Helios Empire and still had an exceedingly great relationship with him.
He held prestige and respect that could not be compared to anything. Every soldier and the military officer was willing to die for such a commander of the army.
"What brings you here, uncle."Mikhail coldly asked as he was looking at the bulky middle-aged man in front of him.
Even though the middle-aged man didn't release his aura, Mikhail could feel an overwhelming pressure from him.
He stood there like a god suppressing this world. Looking at the middle-aged man walking toward him, Mikhail could find any openings and flaws. He was like an impenetrable wall.
Furthermore, even with the System, he was unable to see through the middle-aged man.
[Name: Ivan Andrei Alexi. Rank: ????????]
"As soon as I came back from my meeting with the Emperor in the Imperial Capital, I heard you were gravely injured so I came to check on you."
"However, it seems that not only you have completely recovered, but your strength also seemed to have greatly increased as well." Said Ivan as his gaze was fixated upon Mikhail's body as if trying to unearth his secret.
The last time he saw the little brat, he was only a 5-Stars Aura Knight but now he was already a 7-Stars Aura Knight.
Not only that, his foundation seemed to be extremely stable and the amount of Aura energy within his body was at least two times what it was supposed to be. Even his Mana seemed to have greatly increased as well.
"I'm fine. It was nothing serious."Answered with his usual cold tone.
"Good, it seems like I was worried for nothing. Anyway, I'm glad that you are ok." Ivan said with a relieved look on his face.
From Vandal's memories, Mikhail already knew that Ivan wanted to groom Vandal as his replacement after he had relinquished his right to the throne.
However, Vandal was very stubborn and prideful and didn't care about that position either.
Whether it was the Emperor's throne or the Supreme Commander's position, each one of these positions came with enormous wealth and power.
Each of them was a seat above millions of people. But in the eyes of Vandal, It's not that attractive.
In that way, Mikhail was very similar to Vandal. He was a free spirit that didn't like responsibility and only lived for himself.
He was always true to his desire and emotions even if that may seem cruel to others. It was also the main reason that he was labeled as a demon by many on Earth.
"Anyway, your old man is celebrating his birthday next week. Don't miss it like the last time and immediately head to the imperial capital to attend the party. Also, your mother asked me to make sure that you come."Said Ivan in a serious tone.
"I will attend the party," Mikhail answered with an unwilling look on his face. He didn't want to go as would prefer to stay here to continue increasing his strength.
However, he couldn't refuse his uncle or stand up to him. He was too weak at the moment to do whatever he pleased.
"Good! Once you're done, you can come back. Also, take this, it might help you with your sloppy footwork." Said Ivan as he threw a small book to Mikhail as he turned around to leave.
"Don't forget to destroy it once you read it." He added as he was leaving.
"Phantom Steps," Mikhail murmured to himself as he looked at the title of the book before opening it.
