Chapter 75: Status update

Another month passed, and Frost gradually became accustomed to life as a Zero Dawn recruit.

Between training, studying runes, and visiting Yasmine’s workshop, he rarely had enough time to sit around worrying about his circumstances.

His swordsmanship, in particular, had improved considerably. Since he couldn’t use runes like the others, he put even more effort into mastering his shortsword, while also working on his strength, speed, and agility.

After all, if his weapon failed him, he had nothing else to rely on. He certainly didn’t intend to lose another arm just because he couldn’t be bothered to practice his guard.

Orven seemed pleased with his dedication, though the man showed it by giving him increasingly difficult exercises.

Apparently, doing well only meant that whatever he was doing wasn’t hard enough anymore, which Frost found rather unfair.

Still, the results were difficult to complain about. His shoulders had broadened, his arms had grown firmer, and the awkwardness that once plagued his movements had gradually disappeared.

He had also started winning.

At first, it happened occasionally, usually after someone underestimated him. Then it became frequent enough that the others stopped holding back, only to discover that beating him was becoming increasingly difficult.

Without runes, none of the recruits he regularly trained with could match him anymore.

Soren was having a particularly difficult time accepting that.

"Again," he said, retrieving his wooden sword from the floor. Frost watched him rub his wrist before settling into another stance, his expression rather unpleasant.

"Are you sure? We could stop here."

"Why would we stop?"

Frost glanced towards Talia, who was watching from a nearby bench. "Well, there are people watching. I wouldn’t want to embarrass you any more than I already have."

Talia burst into laughter, while Soren’s brow twitched. "You have become very annoying lately."

"Really? Ava says I’ve always been annoying."

Before Soren could respond, Orven gestured for them to begin. Frost raised his shortsword, the smile fading from his face as his attention settled on his opponent.

Soren approached cautiously, keeping his blade between them. He feinted towards Frost’s shoulder before cutting at his side, but Frost stepped back, allowing the wooden sword to pass just short of his shirt.

He moved forward immediately, catching Soren’s blade before he could withdraw it. A sharp knock against the wrist loosened Soren’s grip, and Frost followed with a light tap against his ribs before stepping away.

Soren grimaced, adjusting his fingers around the hilt.

"You keep doing that."

"You keep letting me," Frost replied, earning another laugh from Talia.

This time, Soren pressed forward with a series of quick swings, forcing Frost to defend. Wooden blades cracked against each other as Frost turned aside the first strike, avoided the second, then caught the third firmly enough to bring them both to a stop.

Soren pushed against him, attempting to force his guard open.

Frost barely moved.

A strained expression appeared on Soren’s face, and Frost couldn’t help feeling a little pleased. Not too long ago, their positions would have been reversed.

He shifted his blade, allowing Soren’s sword to slide past, then stepped inside his reach. Before Soren could pull away, Frost caught his weapon arm and swept a foot behind his ankle.

A firm shove was all it took.

Soren landed on his ass with a heavy thud, his sword clattering beside him. By the time he looked up, Frost’s wooden blade was already pointed at his chest.

"Fuck," he muttered, staring at it.

Frost lowered the sword with a grin and offered him a hand. Soren accepted it reluctantly, allowing himself to be pulled upright before brushing the dust off his trousers.

"How the hell have you become this strong?" he complained. "I used to be able to throw you around whenever I wanted."

"I remember. You seemed to enjoy it quite a bit."

"That doesn’t explain anything," Soren grumbled, rolling his sore shoulder. "I train too, you know. It’s not like I’ve been sitting around waiting for you to catch up."

Frost could only shrug, though he understood his frustration. He had expected to improve, but even he hadn’t thought the difference would become this noticeable so quickly.

Orven gave an approving nod from the side. "Good control. You didn’t give him room to recover once you closed the distance."

Frost smiled at the praise before glancing towards Ava, who had been watching from beside one of the pillars. Her arms were crossed, her expression as blank as ever.

For a moment, he looked at her expectantly.

"Hmph."

She turned away, leaving Frost with a wry smile. Apparently, even a word of praise would have been asking too much.

Once the session ended, he returned his practice sword and washed before heading towards Yasmine’s lab.

Well, her master’s lab, technically, but the man had yet to show his face, so it was more or less hers by now.

’I should probably check how much I’ve progressed...’

He had been so occupied with training that he hadn’t properly checked his progress in a while, though he could certainly feel the difference.

Curious, Frost opened his system panel.

{[Status]}

[Name: Frost Carter]

[Race: Human]

[Age: 19]

[Bloodline: N/A]

[Soul Script Rank: Awakened]

[Affinity: Void]

{[Physical and Mental Attributes]}

[Strength: 8 → 22]

[Agility: 7 → 23]

[Speed: 7 → 21]

[Vitality: 9 → 20]

[Stamina: 8 → 24]

[Intelligence: 16 → 20]

[Perception: 12 → 16]

[Willpower: 14 → 17]

{[Rune-Based Attributes]}

N/A

{[Skills]}

[Shortsword Mastery: Intermediate]

Frost slowed his steps, his eyes widening as he read through the changes. He knew he had improved, but seeing that most of his physical attributes had nearly tripled was rather satisfying.

His stamina had increased the most, which wasn’t particularly surprising.

After everything Ava and Orven had put him through, it would have been insulting if his ability to endure suffering hadn’t improved.

Even his intelligence had risen, presumably because of his studies. Understanding rune inscriptions certainly required more thought than swinging a sword, though he had learned that swordsmanship wasn’t quite as mindless as he had once assumed either.

His gaze settled on the new entry beneath his skills, and a grin slowly appeared on his face.

"Intermediate, huh?"

Considering how many times Soren had beaten him before he finally learned to defend himself, he felt he had earned that much.

His gaze briefly returned to his void affinity. He still hadn’t managed to do anything with it, but at least the rest of his status showed that his efforts were paying off.

Dismissing the panel, he continued towards the workshop, rather eager to tell Yasmine about his progress.