A Will Sovereign Chapter 26: Chapter 26— The first glimpse.

Read chapter 26 of A Will Sovereign by Sloche on NovelPedia.

---- Morning arrived quietly. Soldret woke to the familiar scent of medicinal herbs. For several moments he simply lay there, staring at the sky, bracing for the pain. It came — ribs aching, muscles burning, bruises covering most of his body. Yet something felt different today. He slowly sat up and blinked. "..." He could move. Not well. Not comfortably. But he could move. His arms responded. His legs responded. Standing no longer felt like his body was about to collapse. Soldret climbed out of the medicinal bath. His joints cracked loudly and his muscles protested, but he remained on his feet. His skin was still flushed an angry red from days of brutal beatings followed by endless herbal soaks. The snake-eyed girl glanced at him and nodded. "You recovered faster than expected." Soldret looked down at himself. The pain was still there. The injuries were still there. Yet his body felt noticeably sturdier, as though it had already begun adapting. He remembered the past two days — being boiled, punched, kicked, thrown through rocks, smashed into the ground, then healed, only to repeat it all again. His expression turned strange. "…Surely not." Could someone really adapt to this kind of torture after only two days? The thought sounded ridiculous. Yet standing here, he couldn't deny it. His body genuinely felt different. Stronger. Not by much — but enough for him to notice. --- By the time Soldret reached the courtyard, Radahn was already waiting. The old man sat beneath a bamboo pavilion, casually feeding fish in a small pond. Seeing Soldret approach on his own feet, Radahn's remaining eye brightened slightly. "Oh?" Soldret stopped. Radahn stared at him, then nodded repeatedly. "Hm. Hm. Hm." The old man looked genuinely pleased. Soldret immediately had a bad feeling. Radahn stroked his beard. "You know… I still think your face is questionable." Soldret's eye twitched. "But." The old man pointed at him. "Your body." He nodded approvingly. "Not bad." Soldret blinked. Truthfully, even he was surprised. He never expected his body to adapt this quickly — whether from his own talent or the years of accumulated medicinal resources finally being forced into use, he didn't know. Radahn continued. "Your foundation is terrible. Your appearance is disappointing. Your cultivation is weak." Soldret's expression darkened. Then Radahn grinned. "But your body and grit are the real deal. You've only been beaten for two days. Most people would've run away after the first." He laughed. "Hahaha! Not like you could anyway. Looks like Martial Peak didn't choose wrong after all." For some reason, those words felt strangely satisfying. --- The good mood didn't last long. "Bam!" Radahn suddenly shouted. "I'm coming!" came the reply. Minutes later, Bam arrived carrying enough food to feed a small village. Again. Soldret stared at the mountain of trays, then at Bam, then back at the food. Bam grinned. "Don't look at me. Master said to prepare twice as much as yesterday." Soldret looked horrified. The horned boy shrugged. "You survived another day. Congratulations. Your reward is more food." Soldret wasn't sure if that was actually a reward, but the moment the scent hit him, his stomach growled violently — louder than yesterday. Radahn laughed. "Eat. If your body is being forged, it needs fuel. Otherwise your stomach will start eating itself." Soldret didn't need to be told twice. The food vanished at an alarming speed. Bam watched silently, then pulled out his notebook and crossed something out. Soldret narrowed his eyes. "What was that?" "I was keeping track," Bam sighed. "Of how much food Zephyr ate during his Body Forging." He pointed at Soldret. "You just broke the record." "Already?" "By quite a lot." Radahn burst out laughing. "Hahahaha! Good. At least one thing about you is impressive." Soldret chose not to respond. --- Eventually the last plate was empty. Soldret leaned back, satisfied for approximately three seconds. Then Radahn stood up, stretched