Chapter 130 — Twelve Days

Chapter 130: Chapter 130 — Twelve Days

Chapter 130 — Twelve Days

It had been roughly a week since Victor began training with Monkaster.

And he hadn’t merely been training with the old monkey.

He had been practicing every day.

The fundamental movements Monkaster had taught him had become part of his daily routine, alongside his Soul Power control and the cultivation of his other techniques.

Everything was being trained simultaneously.

But the fundamentals received special attention.

Monkaster had made that very clear.

If Victor wanted to become a true fighter rather than someone who simply relied on powerful techniques and instincts, his foundation had to become strong enough to support everything else.

And over the past week, Victor had begun to understand why.

Monkaster had pointed out flaws Victor hadn’t even realized he had.

Small movements.

Poor positioning.

Unnecessary shifts in his weight.

Openings in his stance.

Moments when Victor relied too heavily on his instincts instead of properly controlling his body.

One mistake at a time, Monkaster corrected them.

And Victor learned quickly.

Very quickly.

Monkaster had told him more than once that he was an unusually fast learner.

There were times when the old monkey would demonstrate something only once, and Victor would already be attempting to reproduce it.

Whenever that happened, Monkaster would glance toward Monkasa.

And every time, there was a strange look in his eyes.

Victor couldn’t understand exactly what he was implying with the look in his eyes.

But his eyes certainly seemed to have an opinion.

The constant sparring helped even more.

Victor and Monkasa fought almost every day.

With each passing day, Victor’s fundamentals improved.

His movements became cleaner.

His footwork became more deliberate.

He stopped wasting motion.

He learned how to transition from defense to offense without relying on Flash Step.

He learned how to maintain his balance while attacking.

Most importantly, he began to understand how his body should move before his techniques were involved.

It was still far from perfect.

But compared to the Victor who had stepped onto the dueling platform a week earlier, the difference was enormous.

Now, however, Monkaster had apparently prepared something new.

A new training regimen.

Victor wanted to know what it was.

That morning, he made his way through the Lava Rock Monkey settlement toward the elevator leading to the training grounds.

The familiar sounds of the village surrounded him.

Monkeys shouted to one another.

Some were sparring.

Others carried food or materials between the treehouses.

It was the same chaotic environment he had grown accustomed to.

Victor stepped into the elevator.

The platform began descending.

As soon as he reached the bottom, Victor spotted Monkaster and Monkasa waiting in the distance.

He immediately increased his pace.

He didn’t want Monkaster waiting for him.

As he approached, Victor slowed to a trot before finally coming to a stop a few feet away.

Then, as he had done every day since beginning his training, he bowed.

"Teacher."

Monkaster smiled.

"Victor, you don’t have to bow every time you see me."

Victor straightened.

"I know."

Monkaster sighed.

Victor glanced toward Monkasa.

Monkasa grinned.

The old monkey sighed again.

But despite his words, Victor could tell he didn’t actually dislike it.

If anything, there was a faint pride in Monkaster’s expression whenever Victor showed him that kind of respect.

"Welcome, Victor," Monkaster said. "Go ahead and sit."

Victor nodded and sat beside Monkasa.

Monkaster remained standing in front of them.

"Well," he began, "I think you’ve reached the point where there’s not much more I can teach you about the fundamentals."

Victor listened carefully.

Monkaster continued.

"You understand the basic movements now. You still have plenty to improve, but continuing to practice them is something you’ll have to do for the rest of your life."

Victor nodded.

"Yes, Teacher."

"Your next step is simple."

Monkaster smiled.

"You need more fights."

Victor’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Fights?"

"Yes."

Monkaster folded his arms.

"You’re currently around Rank 200 in the Monkey ranking system."

Victor nodded.

"So I’m going to arrange a series of fights for you."

Monkasa’s ears twitched.

Victor looked toward him briefly before returning his attention to Monkaster.

"How many?"

Monkaster smiled.

"Two hundred opponents."

Victor froze.

"...Two hundred?"

"Over twelve days."

Victor stared at him.

Monkaster continued as though he had said nothing unusual.

"We’re going to divide those fights into several stages."

Victor took a breath and focused.

Monkaster raised one finger.

"You’ll fight 50 opponents for the first stage."

Victor nodded.

"And you won’t be allowed to use any techniques."

Victor’s eyes widened slightly.

"No techniques?"

"None."

Monkaster’s expression remained calm.

"You will defeat them using your fundamentals and martial arts alone."

Victor thought about it.

It wouldn’t be impossible.

But it certainly wouldn’t be easy.

The Lava Rock Monkeys didn’t lack martial arts ability.

Quite the opposite.

Their entire culture revolved around fighting.

Even the lower-ranked monkeys had spent years developing their physical combat skills.

Victor’s techniques had often compensated for the weaknesses in his martial arts.

Without them, he would have to rely entirely on the foundation Monkaster had spent the last week building.

It was exactly the kind of challenge he needed.

Victor nodded.

"Yes, Teacher."

Monkaster smiled.

"Good."

He raised another finger.

"Once you reach Rank 150, things will change."

Victor nodded slowly.

Two hundred fights.

Twelve days.

Each stage designed to force him to develop a different aspect of his combat ability.

It wasn’t merely a ranking challenge.

It was training.

A brutal training regimen disguised as a competition.

Monkaster looked at Victor.

"do you think you’ll be able to do it?"

Victor didn’t hesitate.

"Yes, Teacher."

Monkaster smiled.

"Good."

Monkaster continued.

"You’ll start today."

Victor’s eyes widened slightly.

"Today?"

Monkaster laughed.

"I’ve already signed you up for all of your fights over the next twelve days."

Victor stared at him.

"You have thirty minutes."

Victor’s mouth twitched.

Monkaster shrugged.

"That should be enough."

Victor couldn’t help but smile.

Then Monkaster added casually,

"And you should probably try to keep the injuries to a minimum."

Victor gave him a wry smile.

"I’ll try."

He knew perfectly well that would probably be easier said than done.

Monkaster then turned toward Monkasa.

"And don’t think you’re sitting this out, boy."

Monkasa, who had been quietly snickering at Victor’s predicament, froze.

Monkaster looked directly at him.

"You have your own training regimen."

Monkasa’s grin slowly disappeared.

His ears lowered.

"...I do?"

"You do."

Victor looked at Monkasa.

The monkey’s expression had transformed completely.

The smug amusement he’d had moments earlier was gone.

Replaced by the quiet realization that karma had found him almost immediately.

Monkasa had spent the last several minutes imagining Victor suffering through two hundred fights.

Now he was apparently going to suffer too.

Victor almost laughed.

Serves him right.

Monkasa glanced toward him.

Victor quickly looked away.

He gave Monkaster another bow.

"Thank you for the lesson, Teacher."

Victor headed toward the dueling arena.

His first fight would begin in roughly thirty minutes.

He found a quiet place near the arena and sat down.

Then he closed his eyes.

His breathing slowed.

He began cultivating.

Spiritual Energy flowed into his body.

Victor focused his mind.

Two hundred opponents.

Twelve days.

And for the first fifty fights, he wouldn’t be allowed to use a single technique.

He would have to rely on what Monkaster had taught him.

Victor slowly opened his eyes.

There was no fear in them.

Only anticipation.

His first fight was coming.

And for the first time, Victor was about to discover just how much stronger he had become without relying on his techniques.