I wanted to show them something new during the next morning's training.
Sarah and Celeste arrived at the crack of dawn as usual. Sarah held two steaming mugs of coffee, while Celeste looked like she had dragged herself out of bed by sheer force of will, still half-asleep.
"Today is different," I said. "No more simple offense and defense. Today, I'm going to show you what real combat looks like."
"Real combat?" Sarah knit her brows. "What, was everything before this just a sham?"
"Everything before this was the foundation. But today..." I extended my hand, channeling the power from deep within. In an instant, two crescent-shaped blades materialized in the air.
They were a dark, bruised purple—not forged from steel. In Loop 120, when I knew my death was certain, I had fashioned them from the densest bones in my own body. I had thought: 'If I'm going to die anyway, I'll at least leave a fragment of my power behind.'
The blades were bound to my very soul. I could summon them at will.
"This..." Celeste's eyes widened. "This isn't a pure mana crystal. This is something else."
"It's from my own body," I said calmly. "I made them during the 120th loop when I knew I wouldn't make it. From my own bone, my own blood, my own soul. They are a part of me."
Sarah reached out to touch one of the blades, but I jerked it back.
"Don't. They only respond to me. If anyone else touches them..." I paused. "It won't be pleasant."
"How unpleasant?" Celeste asked.
"Your soul will collide with mine. The results vary—insanity, a permanent coma, or worse... you'll feel the weight of time. You'll experience every one of my 127 deaths in a single heartbeat."
"That's horrific."
"That's why I said 'don't touch.'" I spun the blades through the air. They were extensions of my own limbs—moving not by thought, but by pure instinct.
"Now, I will show you how to work with the four elements."
I raised the first blade. Moisture from the air gathered, swirling around the edge as liquid water before the temperature plummeted—ice crystals formed, freezing the flow solid.
"Water. The most flexible, and the most treacherous."
I raised the second blade—Fire. Crimson flames erupted from the steel, and the temperature rose so sharply that the girls had to take a step back.
"Fire. The most efficient, but the most dangerous. Lose control for a second, and it burns everyone."
With a heavy movement, I struck toward the ground—Earth. The ground trembled as stones rose into the air, orbiting me like a shield.
"Earth. The most durable, the most unyielding."
Finally, I exhaled—Wind. The air turned into a destructive gale, whipping dry leaves into a frenzy.
"Wind. The fastest, the most unpredictable."
I controlled all four elements simultaneously. Around the blades, water, fire, earth, and wind merged in a chaotic yet beautiful dance of power.
"How..." Sarah breathed, her voice barely a whisper. "How is this even possible?"
"127 lives," I said simply. "In every one of them, I learned something. Eventually, it all adds up."
I retracted the power. The blades vanished, and the elements fell silent.
"Your goal isn't to reach this level," I continued. "Your goal is to stay alive. But you need to know what true power actually looks like."
Celeste was trembling. I realized it wasn't from fear—it was excitement. Her eyes held that specific glint: a thirst for knowledge.
"Teach me," she said. "Everything. Every secret you have."
"I gathered this knowledge over 127 lifetimes. You expect to learn it in a few months?"
"Yes."
She had guts. I'll give her that.
"Fine," I said. "But I'm warning you—my methods are painful. Every lesson is written in blood, and every grade is calculated by how close you come to dying."
"I'm ready."
Sarah raised her hand as well. "Me too. No matter what."
I looked at them—two girls, two fools, two people who wanted to play hero. In 42 loops, Sarah had died. In 73 loops, Celeste had died. But this was Loop 128. And this time...
"Alright," I said. "Then the real training begins. Starting tomorrow, we don't train for two hours—we train for four. We don't start at five in the morning—we start at four. And there are no days off."
"Four hours?" Horror finally flickered across Celeste's face.
"A demon won't let you go just because you're tired. If you want to outrun death, you have to train harder than death itself."
They looked at each other. I saw their internal struggle—the choice between the easy path and the hell I was offering.
"Fine," Sarah said at last. "But you have to promise something, too."
"What?"
"If we do this, if we pass every one of your 'lessons'... you turn us into a real team. You stop trying to fight everything alone."
"I don't make teams—"
"Yes, you do," Celeste interrupted. "Luna said it. Raven said it. Even you know it deep down. You're trying to build something with us. You're just too afraid to admit it."
I studied them in silence. They were right. Of course, they were right.
"Fine," I conceded. "If you survive... if you actually become strong enough to be useful... then yes. A team."
Sarah smiled victoriously. "Make it official. We are your first official squad."
"A terrifying thought."
"Your whole life is a collection of terrifying thoughts."
Fair point.
That evening, I sat alone in my room, drafting tomorrow's training regimen. A knock came at the door.
"Enter," I said.
Luna stepped in. Today she looked clearer, more solid—almost like a normal person.
"Thank you," she said simply. "For Celeste."
"I didn't do anything."
"Liar. You gave her hope. You gave her a purpose. For five years, she has carried the guilt of my death. Now, for the first time, she has a reason to look forward."
"She could still die. In six months, that demon..."
"I know," she cut me off. "But at least now she has a fighting chance. Because of you."
I chose not to answer.
Luna approached and sat on the edge of my desk. "I need to tell you something. About Azkaros."
I looked up. "What?"
"I am an anomaly—I see the flows of time. I see probable futures." Her violet eyes were deadly serious. "The normal regeneration period for Azkaros is thirty years. But he was summoned nineteen years ago. He was defeated by the Loop 96 version of you... then he died and returned."
"I know all this."
"But what you don't know is that someone summoned him a month ago. Before he was fully regenerated, someone forcibly pulled him back into this realm."
I froze. "What?"
"Someone called Azkaros early. Someone wanted to kill the Loop 96 version of you. And they succeeded."
"Who? Who has that kind of power?"
"I don't know. But..." she paused. "They are here, in the Academy. I'm certain of it."
The room grew cold.
"In the Academy? Do you have proof?"
"Only a feeling. But my feelings are rarely wrong." Luna stood up. "Be careful, Marcus. Someone is watching you. And they are aware of your existence."
Before she vanished, I asked, "Why are you telling me this?"
"Because you are protecting my sister. And I won't let anyone stab you in the back."
She was gone.
I was left alone in the dark with a new set of questions:
If someone in the Academy is watching me...
If someone summoned Azkaros...
If someone killed my Loop 96 self...
What are they planning this time?
"Master," Mordain's voice echoed in my mind. "We felt it too. Someone is lurking."
"Who?"
"Unknown. But they are powerful. Very powerful."
Good.
Loop 128 was already complicated. Now, it had just become a war zone. But I had died 127 times. I wasn't afraid.
I was getting ready.