I came back the next day ready to fight.
''You came back.'' My master said ''You were having trouble landing a hit on me, yesterday. Because of that we will try to awaken your energy.''
''awaken my energy?''
''Yes, it's the most basic technique pretty much all adventurer's know. Right now all your energy is trapped inside your heart, so we will try to get it flowing through your whole body. Watch me.''
master stood in front of me and looked like he was focusing intansely. He took a big breath and began to strain every muscle in his body. He then yelled ''RAGH'' and waited for my response.
''What was that?'' I asked confused
''I awakened my energy. Try doing it too''
I imitated my master's actions and then asked:
''Did I do it?''
Master shook his head.
''Try doing it again, but do it with more heart.''
I tried again with no result.
''Imagine an explosion from your heart. Do it again.''
I imagined an explosion from my heart, but again it didn't work. I fell to the ground.
''I don't understand any of this.'' I said in frustration
My master sighed ''I guess I can't explain it to you well enough. It's very hard to describe.''
My master approached me and sat next to me before saying:
''Don't give up just yet, It takes most people years to awaken their energy, but I'm sure you'll be able to do it quicker."
I looked at my master and began to listen carefully, he continued:
''Do you remember the people at adventurer's stop. Do you remember how they looked?''
I thought back and said:
''They had scars and looked very rough.''
''It's because they were criminals. Most adventurers are criminals who escaped their sentences. They don't understand energy, and that makes them weak.''
he stood up and continued:
''The energy that gives us powers comes from who we are. It's a feeling. You can't put it into words. And since they are criminals you wouldn't expect them to be in touch with themselves and their feelings.''
He walked a few steps away from me
''We'll be fighting until you can grasp that feeling. So come at me again!''
After hearing these words I got back up and tried to land a punch on master, but I couldn't do it again.
This continued for a week, with me trying to land a hit on my master and him dodging my every attack. He gave me very little advice and said I should figure things out on my own. We would talk during breaks, but he would be the one who asked most of the questions, he didn't say much about his own life. I still didn't even know his name.
He would feed me weird food saying ''When you are adventuring, sometimes you have to eat anything to survive.'' The food was very gross, but edible.
During the 10th day of training I was finally able to land a punch on my master's hoodie, when he accidentally lost his balance.
My master immediately pushed me away.
''Good work, we will now move on to the next stage. You managed to land a hit on me, but your attack was very weak, it didn't cause me any harm. From now on, I'll be deflecting your attacks and If you can hurt me in any way, I will take you on seriously.''
I was happy I made progress, but I knew the biggest challange was still ahead of me, so I instantly got back in the fight.
The difficuly increase was immense. My master's movements became even quicker and my attacks became even harder to land, but I didn't give up.
It only took me two days. My master lost his footing again I was able to punch him in the face. I was overjoyed when it happened, but I didn't have time to be happy, because I instantly felt a sharp pain.
*BAM
I was punched in the face by my master. I fell to the ground and saw my nose was bleeding. It hurt so much I wanted to cry.
I looked up at my master as he was slowly walking in my direction. He put his hand on my shoulder and I saw a white aura around me again. The blood went back to my nose and all the pain had gone away.
I asked my master:
''Why did you do that? Didn't you promise you wouldn't hurt me? Also, what did you do just now?''
''I healed you.'' he replied ''Also, I didn't say I wouldn't hurt you, just that you would come home unharmed. I will now take you on seriously, so if you hit me, I will hit you back. You need to get used to feeling pain, if you want to be an adventurer.'' he said in his usual calm way ''Don't worry, I will heal you when you get hurt. Get a little rest and let's continue our training when you are ready.''
''Okay'' I said quietly
Two weeks passed since that conversation and I was unable to hit master even once. I was very surprised when on the last day when he caught my punch, in his usual serious tone he said:
''You are ready''
''What?'' I asked
''You are ready, We are going on an important mission tomorrow.''
''Really? I haven't made any progress for a while and I wasn't able to awaken my energy. I don't think I'm strong enough.'' I replied
''That doesn't matter, I will tell you all the details tomorrow. Meet me here during our usual time and tell your parents you might be gone for a while. We are done for the day.'' My master said while packing things into a backpack.
''I understand, Master'' I replied unsurely and went home for the day
On my way home, I thought about what master said. I was confused about his confidence in my abilities, since I didn't think I improved much since our training began. Despite this, I still felt excited for tomorrow.