Chapter 11: Warm Up Training
"Interesting…"
Dominic's eyes remained fixed on the system panel floating before him.
"System, show me my current gains."
The system immediately responded.
[Ash Burnwood Physique (Dormant)]
[Description:]
[Current Available Abilities:]
[1. Host gains five times physical strength while under sunlight.]
[2. Host can store solar energy and release it to greatly amplify physical abilities.]
[3. Host possesses high resistance against flame-based attacks and can learn flame-related techniques ten times faster than the average person.]
[4. Host can harm spirits and spiritual entities directly and gains high affinity toward flame-based spiritual creatures.]
[5. ???]
[Note: Additional abilities will awaken once the Host's Wood Physique fully awakens.]
Dominic stared silently at the panel.
"Interesting… truly interesting."
"With this… the first phase of my plan can proceed."
"All I need now is enough strength to survive until my twelfth birthday and reach my awakening safely."
He paused slightly before narrowing his eyes.
"But before all that…"
"Let's begin training."
Dominic slowly closed his eyes and focused inward.
The system had only displayed the passive effects gained from the absorption. The actual knowledge of the technique itself still remained within his mind.
And now, he needed to understand it.
Bit by bit, Dominic began sorting through the flood of information inside his head.
Breathing techniques.
Methods of circulation.
Ways to absorb sunlight into the body.
Techniques for strengthening muscles, bones, veins, and internal organs.
The deeper he studied it, the more astonished he became.
This was not an ordinary physique technique.
Even among the techniques mentioned in the original novel, this one ranked extremely high.
After some time passed, Dominic slowly opened his eyes.
Without wasting another second, he stood up and headed back toward the training grounds.
The sounds of clashing swords and shouting soldiers once again filled the air.
Escanor immediately noticed him.
The massive man grinned broadly.
"Oh?"
"I thought you'd wait until tomorrow."
"It seems our young master is finally ready to demonstrate his genius to the world!"
Then his grin widened even further.
"Good!"
"Run."
"Ten laps around the training field."
Dominic's expression changed slightly.
The training grounds were enormous.
This place was designed to train hundreds of superhuman soldiers simultaneously. Even one lap around it would exhaust professional athletes from his previous life.
Ten laps?
For an eight-year-old body?
That was ridiculous.
Still, Dominic said nothing.
He simply started running.
First lap.
Second lap.
By the third lap, his breathing had already become heavier.
But he continued.
The scorching afternoon sun blazed above him.
Fourth lap.
Fifth lap.
Sixth lap.
By the seventh lap, Dominic's breathing had become rough, his chest rising and falling heavily.
Then—
A strange warmth spread through his body.
The Ash Burnwood Physique finally began showing its effects.
The sunlight pouring onto his skin no longer felt exhausting.
Instead, it felt nourishing.
The technique naturally absorbed solar energy and converted it into fuel for the body.
And because the sun was currently at its peak, the effect became overwhelming.
Dominic suddenly felt lighter.
His exhaustion rapidly faded.
Then—
He accelerated.
Eighth lap.
Ninth lap.
Tenth lap.
Easily.
The trainees watching from nearby slowly froze in disbelief.
Originally, many of them had expected entertainment.
They wanted to see the so-called useless young master humiliate himself.
The rumors surrounding Dominic were well known.
Weak.
Sluggish.
Talentless.
Some even mocked him by saying a girl could defeat him—a meaningless insult in a world where gender barely affected strength, yet still used to ridicule him nonetheless.
But now?
The Dominic before them completely contradicted those rumors.
Not only had he endured the training—
He had sped up halfway through it.
Even Escanor was stunned.
He knew better than anyone how hard Dominic had trained in the past.
He had personally witnessed the boy struggle again and again while achieving nothing.
But now?
The same nephew who once failed at the simplest exercises was running through ten laps with terrifying ease.
A slow smile spread across Escanor's face.
Then the smile became a grin.
Then laughter.
Pride filled his chest.
At first, he thought Dominic was merely trying again.
But this…
This was different.
Very different.
Dominic eventually finished the final lap and slowed down slightly.
Before he could even speak—
Escanor shouted loudly.
"That was the warm-up!"
"Now do fifty more!"
Dominic nearly stopped moving.
Even with the Ash Burnwood Physique, fifty laps was absurd.
By the time he finished, the intensity of the sun would weaken significantly.
Recovery would become harder.
Still…
He remained silent and continued running.
Ten laps.
Twenty laps.
By the thirtieth lap, his breathing became heavier again.
By the fortieth, sweat poured down his body.
His legs felt heavier with every step.
And by the fiftieth—
He was completely exhausted.
Yet despite that, faint sunlight still remained in the sky, allowing his physique to slowly restore his strength.
The entire training field had gone silent.
Even the soldiers themselves would sweat after running fifty laps.
Yet this was supposedly Dominic's first real training session.
The so-called useless young master had just performed something no noble child his age should have been capable of doing.
Many of them stared at him in shock.
Others looked confused.
Some even began questioning whether the rumors were false from the beginning.
Eventually, their gazes shifted toward Escanor.
The giant man still wore that massive grin on his face.
Then suddenly—
"What are you idiots staring at?!"
"Get back to training!"
"If I catch anyone slacking off, none of you are getting food today!"
The soldiers immediately snapped back into motion.
Nobody doubted him.
If Escanor said they wouldn't eat—
Then they truly wouldn't eat.
But while they hurried back to training, none of them realized something.
Escanor himself was equally shocked.
No—
Even more shocked than them.
He had believed Dominic possessed talent.
But talent still had limits.
What Dominic displayed today had already surpassed common sense.
As Escanor continued thinking deeply, Dominic suddenly appeared before him.
The boy had already completed all fifty laps.
One of the assistant trainers quickly handed Dominic a bottle of water before retreating.
Dominic drank quietly before looking at Escanor.
"Uncle."
"Is that all for today?"
"Or is there more?"
Escanor blinked for a moment as if snapping out of a trance.
Then—
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"
His booming laughter echoed throughout the training grounds.
"Whoever said I had a useless nephew should come see this!"
"KIDDO!"
"Go rest for today!"
"Tomorrow morning…"
"That's when the real training begins!"
Dominic immediately felt a chill run down his spine.
Still, he maintained his composure.
A faint smile appeared briefly on his face before disappearing once more beneath his usual indifferent expression.
"I understand."
With that, Dominic turned around and headed back toward the mansion.
By the time he returned to his room, Rachel was already standing there waiting for him.
The moment she saw him arrive, she bowed deeply.
"Greetings, Young Master."
"The items you requested have been delivered."
Dominic raised an eyebrow slightly.
"That was quite fast."