Chapter 8: Training
Azeth was pretty clueless about the upcoming Tribal Wars, but he didn’t hesitate to ask Dirt who was now his only source of information.
"So, is it gonna be like a one-on-one showdown?"
Dirt gave a confirming nod, throwing in, "Yes, exactly. Each tribe can send 10 folks into the ring, and they'll each take on someone from the opposing tribe. Then there's this mishmash brawl where goblins from all 25 groups are let loose in a tiny swamp. Their mission is to hunt down a hidden item, sparking a bunch of mini-fights in the swamp, though that's more of a sideshow."
“I see.”, Azeth nodded his head, understanding it a bit better.
“And you will be participating in one-on-one battle against which tribe again?”
There were a total of 25 factions or tribes that had different names.
Ranked in order:
- Mudshade
- Swampgale
- Leafwhisper [The tribe where Dirt’s sister is present.]
- Shadowlaws [The tribe under Lake.]
- Gloomtwig
- Mucktooth
- Siltfoot
- Quagfur
- Turdleaf
- Mossclaw
- Sludgefern
- Quicksand
- Snagroot
- Mudskip
- Swampstalker
- Leafsnarl
- Quagmire
- Slimefoot
- Muckblossom
- Thornmud
- Swampscourge
- Twigclaw
- Leafmire
- Mudspike
- Quagfur
Albeit a bit amusing, these were the actual names of all the tribes. They were the ones participating soon. Leafwhisper was the tribe holding Dirt’s sister captive. Despite the name sounding somewhat gentle, according to Dirt’s explanations, they were a bunch of brutes!
‘Tsk tsk, it's amusing that I, a mere level 2, am going to help a level 23 grow stronger,’ smirking, Azeth stared directly at Dirt as he said, “Alright, enough with the details. Let’s begin the training.”
Dirt was surprised when Azeth suddenly mentioned that. Standing up, he asked, “Now?”
“Yeah, what’s wrong with it being now?”
“Well, Lord savior, you just arrived, and I thought you would rest now and-”
“Enough. You barely have 15 days, so how can I simply lie down and rest?” Azeth said that in the flow of conversation, but to Dirt, it meant a great thing!
His eyes were filled with tears, and he could barely contain his excitement. His respect and trust in Azeth skyrocketed instantly!
“Lord savior, I-”
“I can’t thank you enough.”
“Tsk tsk, thank me after you have grown stronger. Quick, take me to the nearest training center or fighting area if you have at all.” Saying that, Azeth stood up.
Dirt did the same and then walked out of the hut. Azeth closely followed him.
Dirt mirrored the movement and exited the hut, Azeth trailing closely behind. The goblins, worn out from the recent festivities, were already in slumber. A handful remained on guard, bowing as Azeth passed. Unfazed, Azeth followed Dirt to the so-called training facility.
Azeth thought that the training facility of such a well-built tribe that had surpassed his expectations would be of high quality. He anticipated it to be spacious and wide...
Well… he couldn’t have been more wrong!
Dirt led him to a cave that was closely related to the boundaries of the village, and after walking for a while, although they arrived at a larger and spacious area, it was far more confined and way too small compared to what Azeth had imagined.
‘Uh, comparing it with human standards is a bit rude and wrong, but even after having my standards lowered, this is a bit…’
The cavern was dimly lit by sporadic torches made of twisted roots and fungi that cast eerie shadows across the uneven walls. The floor, covered in a thick layer of damp moss and mud, squelched underfoot as Dirt and Azeth moved.
Moreover, a large part of it had become swampy.
“This is your training facility?”
“Y-yes…,” Dirt was quite well aware of how dissatisfied Azeth looked, which was clearly visible from his expressions. A frowning face and lowered eyes… well, it was not that difficult to understand.
“Hmm…”
Azeth’s gaze shifted from left to right, scanning the area a bit more. Sighing constantly due to the lack of equipment, Azeth had decided to create a few items from the available materials.
Although he could simply increase the stats, actual experience of fighting was a must. For that, a better place was needed.
‘The swamp could actually train his stamina, but I need to clear out the space a little. Also, I have to make something out of those large stones and heavy rocks that are lying around… Maybe it could help in building muscles,’ having analyzed a few things, he stared at Dirt.
“Alright, do exactly what I say,” and with that, he started giving orders of what to do and what not to do. Dirt started following exactly, starting by clearing a few things and then bringing a few rocks from the outside, including a few wooden sticks and whatnot?
All of it took about two hours to be ready, and now, what Azeth had in the place were: Stone-weighted Clubs, which were somewhat uneven, Mud-filled Sacks to simulate punching bags and sandbags, and finally, a course, specifically: Rock-strewn Agility Course.
Everything was basic but the latest, the course was something that was a little advanced. It was a rough obstacle course with scattered rocks and uneven terrain. Azeth designed it to improve Dirt’s balance, leg strength, and overall agility.
The loads of rocks that Dirt brought were something he could lift, but not easily. Azeth was ready to give instructions soon.
‘Honestly, I’m not sure if these exercises for humans will work in a similar way to the goblins. Also, I want to check that can the stats increase by simple exercises and not just by mere leveling up? The biggest question, do we level up by simple training?’ he had a lot of things on his mind.
“So what do I start with, Lord savior?”
“Start by calling me master,” Azeth replied bluntly.
“Eh?” This came as a surprise to Dirt.
The term master is used only for their leader or ruler, so calling someone the same would be very wrong. But Azeth provided the explanation for that which Dirt couldn’t refute.
“I will be training you from now on, so indirectly, I am your master. At least, temporarily.”
This was sufficient for Dirt to start calling him master.
“Master…”
“Mhm, good enough! That’s a good start, now to the next…”
And with that, Dirt’s training and Azeth’s experiment began.
Azeth decided to check with agility first, and both of them went along with the course. Azeth had asked his system to check for the time, thanks to which he was spared from creating a clock for the goblins!
Either way, he checked the speed with which they were able to cross the course, and it was good enough. Following that, they went with lifting rocks and then punching the bags. Then running with the sacks…
Azeth, being way weaker, used lighter, way lighter ones, and even with that, something did happen that ended up destroying his motivation…
[You have gained 1 Exp.] - and this came after one hour of working out.
“…”
‘Yeah, this is not meant for me. I best go and hunt,’ he concluded as he saw neither any increase in strength or any other stat nor did he get any significant amount of exp.
The same seemed almost true for Dirt, who did get tired but had almost no effect on any of his stats.
‘Well, he wants to get stronger as soon as possible, and that would be possible by going on hunts…’
As both were panting non-stop while sitting on the floor, Azeth said, “This is meaningless.”
“Eh?”, Dirt’s eyes opened wider than his windpipe.
“Let’s go for hunting. Real battle and hunting experience will help you grow stronger much more easily,” hearing that, Dirt lowered his head.
Rather than being excited, he seemed troubled.
“Why, is something wrong?”, Azeth speculated that there was some deep meaning behind such frown.
“Master Lake also said the same, and even after going out and hunting, I found very little improvement. Although I did feel a bit stronger, it is still not enough.”, Dirt, with his head lowered and continuous pant, said this with a little amount of pain.
‘Ha… of course, most of your potential is stuck in the stat points section. So obviously you won’t feel your entire strength. But what am I there for?’, Azeth knew very well how to make use of this fact.
“Dirt…”
“Yes master?”
“Trust me this once. Follow me for just these 15 days, and I will make you strong, enough strong that those bastards from Leafwhisper Tribe will never eye you as a weakling.”
And once again, Dirt’s eyes opened as wide as possible. Hearing Azeth’s words, he felt goosebumps and with a gulp of a large chunk of dry saliva, he said, “I will follow you for eternity, master.”
“…”
“Huh?”
‘Where did that come from?’, while Dirt had nothing but Azeth in a respectable position, as if glowing with golden light, Azeth on the other hand made the weirdest expression possible while staring back at Dirt, as if wondering: What kind of creature is he?
“…”
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A/N: Do tell me about the pacing of the story. For now, it is focused on character building and relationships making, with minor plot movement. The major plots focused with eradication of humanity/revenge being the topmost will commence shortly, after the Tribe Wars Arc. Do let me know if you want to add anything/extend the plot or anything else at all!
Also, please check out my other book, which is a bit comedic: The Weapon Store Owner is Secretly Overpowered
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TFTC