One hour had passed.
Only six students managed to endure the full training time inside the Glacier Room: Edwin, Jin, Cecelia, Elysia, Thorian, and Eryndor.
The rest had given up, unable to handle the freezing cold.
Professor Sylvia stood at the entrance, holding a paper of name list. She calmly ticked off the names of those who passed—and those who didn't.
"There will be no punishment for this training," she announced. "
Unlike the running laps, this test is about pushing your limits. Just stay as long as you can."
A few students sighed in relief after hearing that.
"At least we won't get punished," someone whispered, rubbing their arms to chase away the lingering chill.
Even the top-ranking students had struggled in that room. Their bodies shivered, their breath fogged up the air, and their movements had slowed with the cold.
The Glacier Room wasn't just cold—it felt like it wanted to freeze you to the bones.
Professor Sylvia gave a slow nod as she looked over the list.
(This batch…).
So, her eyes briefly showed that she was impressed by the students, thinking seriously about them.
(They're different. Stronger than most first-years I've seen.)
(In the past years, the Glacier Room had crushed nearly every newcomer. Most couldn't last more than twenty minutes. And usually—only one student, if any, managed to endure the full hour during their first attempt.
But this year?
Six had passed the test on the first try.)
"This batch might bring real change to Arcadia's future," she thought, folding the attendance sheet slowly.
"Get some rest," she said.
It was finally lunchtime.
All were hungry.
Inside the academy's dining hall, there were delicious smells—like the scent of cooked meat, hot vegetables, and soup—floating in the air.
Kael grabbed a large tray and walked down the serving line, piling food onto his plate without hesitation—grilled chicken, rice, dumplings, spicy stew, boiled eggs, bread, and fruit.
He didn't care how others looked at him.
As usual, Kael ate a massive amount. Bite after bite, he ate everything quickly, like a man refueling a dying engine.
He finished his plate clean, then sat for a few more minutes, catching his breath and drinking plenty of water.
After lunch, all the first-year students gathered once again at the training ground.
The sun was directly overhead now, the air growing hotter.
Professor Sylvia appeared, standing at the front with her usual firm expression. The students straightened instinctively at the sight of her.
"You've completed cold endurance," she said, her voice strong and clear. "Now, it's time for the final part of today's training."
"For this whole year, my training consists of four types of training".
Everyone stood silently, listening.
"This one," she continued, "will test the opposite."
"Heat endurance," she announced.
Murmurs broke out among the students.
Sylvia gestured toward the southern part of the training complex.
"We have a specially designed room—the Inferno Hall. Inside, the temperature remains steady at sixty degrees Celsius."
Gasps rippled through the crowd.
"In there, you will train in combat sparring for two full hours," she said. "You are free to partner up. But I expect focus, not sloppiness. Endure the heat and improve your coordination under pressure."
Some students looked nervous. Others, determined.
Kael took a deep breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and prepared himself mentally.
First the cold… now the burning heat.
Another trial. Another wall to climb.
For days and days, weeks after weeks, a month later, they had been training the same quest.
Running endless laps. Enduring brutal temperatures in the Glacier Room and the Scorch Hall. Mana theory classes that left their minds numb.
Combat sparring that battered their bodies black and blue.
They went through the same hard and painful training every day, and even though it was exhausting and tough, that very struggle was what was making them stronger.
Kael, even among all the students, had built a different rhythm.
While others followed the academy's schedule, he pushed beyond it.
When training ended, he didn't return to his dorm to rest like the others. Instead, he dragged himself to the gym station or back to his room, where the echoes of Astral Severance still called to him.
His body hurt. His mana barely recovered each day. But he didn't stop.
Because he knew—he was behind.
Behind the story.
Behind the heroes. Behind those who were "meant" to be the protagonists.
He didn't have time to fall behind.
But Kael wasn't the only one training beyond limits.
Elysia, too, had not stopped. While she kept an eye on Kael from a distance—still wary, still burdened by the memory of her death at his hands in another timeline—she trained harder than anyone knew.
Each day, after lessons and drills, she returned home .
There, in the quiet of her personal training room, Edwin often awaited her. Their sparring matches had become a part of her routine.
Five times in one month, they clashed with everything they had.
Two of those, Elysia had managed to win—barely.
The other three belonged to Edwin.
Tonight, after another intense match, they collapsed onto the padded floor of her training hall.
Swords tossed aside. Sweat dripping. Breaths ragged.
"You're a monster," Elysia said with a tired laugh, brushing strands of silver hair from her eyes.
"You grow stronger every time."
Edwin grinned, leaning his head back against the wall.
"You're not one to talk. I have to give my all just to keep up."
They sat in silence, catching their breath.
"You've grown strong a lot," Edwin said softly. "More focused. Sharper. Like… like you're training for something personal."
Elysia didn't respond right away. She looked up at the ceiling.
"Because I am," she thought.
According to the novel, every time she spar with Edwin, he wins but now, she wins too. That means the story is gonna change.
Each night after training, when she lay in her bed, the same memory haunted her—the battlefield, Kael standing above her, sword drenched in blood.
He had killed her.
No one else knew. No one else could understand.
That scene hadn't happened yet but it will happen, but it had been real to her.
And though Kael now trained alone, wore a quiet expression, and seemed lost in his own world—she knew what he was capable of.
"I know Kael is strong," she whispered once while gazing out her window.
"Because he killed me. And that's why I can't face him yet."
She clenched her hands into fists.
"He's hiding his strength now… but I've seen the truth."
That truth drove her.
Each day, she came to the academy. She trained harder.
Fought smarter. And yet, something deep inside her kept whispering—"It's still not enough."
Back at Arcadia, the sun reached its peak.
The scent of roasted meats, hot broth, and fresh bread filled the academy cafeteria.
Kael entered late, he ate huge amount of food as usual.
He ate with purpose, not pleasure. Shoveling mouthfuls of food, washing it down with gulps of water.
He didn't speak to anyone.
After eating, the students once again gathered at the training ground. Sweat still clung to their bodies from the morning Glacier Room endurance.
Professor Sylvia stood waiting.
Her gaze swept across the tired faces.
Some students muttered under their breath. Even those who had passed the Glacier Room were beginning to feel the weight of the academy's relentless trials.
Kael just closed his eyes, feeling the heat on his skin already.
"Another test... another trial. It's fine. I'll endure it."
Over the past weeks, he had improved—not by a huge margin, but enough to notice.
His stamina had grown a little bit.
His mana control had sharpened slightly.
And Astral Severance? He had managed to make it flicker more than once—just a faint tear in the air, nothing more. But even that was progress.
It wasn't much.