The Return of the Iron-blood Sword Hound
chapter-178

Chapter 178 Hundred Shots, Ninety-Nine Hits (3)

There were numerous cutting-edge training devices inside the Academy’s indoor training facility. These included various pieces of exercise equipment, rooms that generated holograms of virtual dungeons and monsters, rooms for measuring the body’s magical power, and rooms for quantifying damage inflicted.

The “Gravity Chamber,” on the other hand, stood out. You could freely adjust the applied gravity in this room, and the duration you held up at a certain multiple was recorded.

Of course, too much strain would cause the gravity within the chamber to vanish and the records to be reset.

And right now…

Swish!

The door of the first-year-exclusive Gravity Chamber opened, and a young man emerged, drenched in sweat.

A well-trained, muscular, black-haired youth. He was Granola Reviadon, the third son of the Reviadon Clan.

“Huff. Using 7 times gravity without Aura is challenging, indeed. It’s like carrying the weight of destiny from birth, a burden only the noble can endure…”

Granola reveled in the respectful and envious gazes around him.

Ordinary students found it challenging to bear even six times gravity for an extended period. Surviving 30 minutes under 7 times gravity was undoubtedly an impressive feat.

Granola felt a bit queasy and had experienced disorientation under such gravity, and he even threw up.

But the reverence and envy in the eyes of those around him appeared slightly twisted.

“Is it not me?”

Granola questioned as the adoring and envious glances seemed somewhat off.

He turned his attention to where everyone was looking.

There, the display board of another gravity chamber adjacent to his chamber caught his attention.

F-2 Gravity Chamber

[Gravity Coefficient: 8 times Normal]

[Current Usage Time: 59 minutes 12 seconds]

[Use of Aura: None]

A staggering 8 times gravity.

What was even more astonishing was that the usage time had nearly reached 1 hour.

And even at this moment, the records were continuously being updated.

“This can’t be true!”

Granola’s mouth hung agape.

He was disoriented and vomited for 30 minutes under 7 times gravity. Who could withstand an incredible 8 times gravity for an hour?

“When the user’s condition becomes too serious, the gravity disappears by itself, and the record resets itself. This means… this person is genuinely enduring this gravity?”

A student who can withstand 8 times gravity without using Aura is not only uncommon among first-year students, but also among second, third year students.

Even lasting for more than an hour…

“Wait!”

Swish!

The gravity chamber came to a halt.

As it reached precisely one hour, the door opened, and thick vapor emerged from the chamber.

Granola pried the chamber’s door open with sweaty palms.

The person inside the chamber was utterly different from what he had expected.

It was Vikir.

The common-looking boy who always wore a neutral expression.

The look of bewilderment on Granola’s face contorted.

“Wait, how did this frail guy stand up to 8 times gravity?” Is this a technical error… Huh?”

However, Granola couldn’t finish his sentence.

As the residual moisture dissipated, Vikir’s lower face and body began to be visible. Vikir’s physique, always concealed by clothing, was entirely exposed.

His musculature, which was always well-trained and lacked even an ounce of fat, stood out even more.

The sharply defined lines of his cut muscles looked like they could cut paper.

Granola couldn’t help but swallow his dry saliva at the sight of Vikir, whose body was nothing like his peer’s.

“This, this kind of physique… I guess it’s possible to endure 8 times gravity if you squeeze this kind of body dry. Yes. But without using Aura, it’s impossible to go any further. That’s the inherent limit for someone with such a meager Aura capacity… What?”

Granola’s words were interrupted once again. Kiki! Vikir immediately adjusted the gravity coefficient on the control panel upon leaving the gravity chamber.

F-2 Gravity Chamber

[Gravity Coefficient: 9 times normal]

[Current Usage Time: 0]

[Use of Aura: None]

Without any hesitation, Vikir re-entered the chamber and began to endure 9 times gravity.

‘It’s impossible. At this level, I won’t last even a minute!’ Granola and others thought.

However, Vikir inside the chamber had no thoughts of giving up. ‘Aura is more active in a healthy body. So, you should train your pure physical strength without using Aura.’

Vikir was still a teenager, and his body had not yet reached its full growth in terms of muscles and skeletal development. Under normal circumstances, enduring this level of gravity would have been impossible for him. However, his harsh training in his early years and his survival instincts developed while growing up in the wilderness, along with the strong-willed experiences of slaying demons, had turned Vikir into a formidable individual.

Despite the cries of muscles and bones tearing and the pain, his extraordinary regenerative abilities immediately healed the damage.

With every attempt, his muscle mass increased, and he became more robust.

Vikir ultimately endured for another hour, and then he exited the gravity chamber.

Swoosh!

Every time he endured, he could feel the muscle mass increasing. Students who had been keeping an eye on Vikir’s increasing gravity chamber time from outside were now openly astonished.

“Wow, look at his body. We couldn’t tell when he was wearing clothes…”

“Seriously, without using Aura, if we only consider his physical records, he seems like the strongest among the first-year students.”

“What’s first-year? He could outclass even the third-year seniors. Or maybe even the fourth-year graduation class.”

“But in the end, what’s the point? He’s just a noob in Aura.”

“Right. Ultimately, to become a graduator, the amount and density of aura are more important.”

“It’s a pity. If he had been born into a prestigious family and received proper support, by now…”

While everyone was impressed by Vikir’s records, there was also an air of disdain, jealousy, and pity among the students.

However, their gazes shifted again due to Vikir’s next action.

Kiki!

F-2 Gravity Chamber

[Gravity Coefficient: 10 times]

[Current Usage Time: 0]

[Use of Aura: None]

Vikir once again increased the gravity.

.

.

.

When Vikir exited the gravity chamber, Tudor and Sancho waited inside the strength training room.

“Vikir, you just endured 12 times gravity? Is it possible to do that without training your aura?”

“Unbelievable. Despite being a Mid-Tier Expert, I can’t even do that. There was no northern warrior who could withstand 12 times gravity barehanded. What’s the trick? Doesn’t increasing gravity that much increase the risk of muscle loss?”

Vikir received the towel from Tudor and the protein supplement from Sancho, nodding quietly.

Tudor chuckled and said, “That Granola brat fled after watching you endure the 10 times gravity. It was delightful, that bastard, keke~”

Vikir didn’t pay much attention to the surrounding evaluations. He just nodded quietly once more.

Just then, the training room door swung open.

Someone had entered, and it was an unusual visitor, Bianca. She rarely came to this place.

Bianca turned her head and stared at Vikir among the startled male students. Then, she abruptly shouted, “A mosquito?!”

At Bianca’s exclamation, everyone in the strength training room turned their heads in confusion. Bianca shouted again, “Y-You, did you plan it?”

No one understood why she was suddenly making such comments, even Vikir himself was perplexed. He just raised an eyebrow and remained silent.

Bianca shouted once more in frustration, “And, was it you on the rooftop that night, That rum scent?!”

Tudor said “Hey, stop it and leave. This is the men’s section. Why don’t you go to the women’s section?”

“You’re out of your mind, I ain’t here for you!” Bianca retorted.

“You think I’m interested in you? I heard you just got a part-time job at a cafe. Go there and work you dumbass” He said with a smirk.

Bianca retorted, “Why do you even know I started working at the café? You lunatic!”

Tudor suddenly blushed “H-Hold back your arrogance. I just heard about it because Sinclaire works there too.”

Meanwhile, Sancho watched Vikir and said, “Vikir, you know what? They seem to suit each other, despite the bickering.”

Vikir responded with a puzzled expression, “I don’t know, they seem to be at odds.”

Sancho continued, “Maybe, but they always seem interested in each other when they quarrel.”

Vikir considered this for a moment and replied, “Maybe that’s because they dislike each other?”

Sancho smiled wryly and said, “Hm. Could be, but I have a different feeling about them.”

Vikir looked at the interaction between Tudor, Bianca, and Sancho. “It seems you have a keen sense for this.”

Vikir’s thoughts drifted back to his earlier life. As children, Tudor and Bianca had always fought with each other, but it was no secret that they would eventually fall in love. It had become a small, heartwarming story everyone knew and supported, except for the two involved.

However, now that he had returned, there was no sign of this, which left Vikir perplexed. It seemed that only Sancho, who was close to both Tudor and Bianca, sensed something.

“I’m not particularly attuned to this kind of thing,” Vikir thought to himself.

Vikir was about to get dressed when his left wrist began to tremble slightly. On his wrist, a young spider rested, gazing up at him with a pitiful expression.

[Heh-heh…]

The young spider had apparently digested all the poison Granola had sprayed earlier.

“Just endure a little longer. I’ll make sure you eat your fill during tomorrow’s midterm practical exam,” Vikir said, patting the spider’s head.

In just twelve hours, the midterm exams would begin. Vikir, disguised as a student, had started planning for tomorrow, fully aware of the importance of the exam.