章 8: Chapter 8: Training

'Frecking hell…' Aureolus barely dodged boulders twice the size of his entire body wheezing past him and grazing his waist just slightly.

"What is this supposed to train?!" Aureolus yelled annoyed while continuing to dodge for his life.

"Your reaction speed." Was the flat response that was given by Heracles as he continued to launch hundreds of large boulders at Aureolus.

"How am I doing?!" Aureolus asked while breathing heavy sweat on his brow.

"I've seen dogs react better." Hercules replied his voice dull and cold as he stopped with their little training session to which Aureolus breathed a sigh of relief.

Wanting to drink a glass of water Aureolus let his guard down, before he could even react Heracles was beside him sending a kick straight to his abdomen and ignoring the fact that he was beating a child.

Aureolus gasped for air getting knocked onto the grass below coughing for oxygen, he couldn't breathe.

"And also stop letting your guard down Kid We are always training not an ounce of our day goes by without training." Heracles scoffed in disdain as Aureolus rolled around on the ground gasping for breath, Seriously dude wtf

"Get up defect," Heracles said with contempt his nose tilted to the sky a huge stick up his rear end.

"Defect? What're you talking about?" Aureolus questioned getting up barely his legs shaking.

"You don't know?…you don't know?" He laughed as if finding it the funniest thing in the entire world, much to Aureolus's confusion, to which he laughed harder.

"I say defect… because…before we started training I checked every inch of your body for demonic energy but I didn't find not a single drop." He said seriously with revulsion, Aureolus cringed at that.

"Ew…you weirdo who checks out every inch of someone's body? I knew you were a creep but that's too far even for you." Aureolus replied creeped out he didn't comprehend what having no demonic energy meant.

"No…do you not know what having no demonic power means for a devil?" Heracles said surprised did a protege of Sirzech Lucifer not know of demonic power, Aureolus merely shook his head.

"You idiot…Having no demonic power means you are destined to be a failure, That pathetic little innate physical power you have means nothing when compared to true power, you're not even talented physically…truly I see no reason why Sirzechs even cares for you, I would not even bother looking at you If not for Sirzechs."

Aureoles paused as if taking it all in his lips formed into a frown his eyes filling with crystal-clear tears he was an immature pampered child after all.

"Take that back..." He muttered childishly his voice shaking trying to wipe his tears away, to which Hercules merely sneered rolling his eyes.

"Pathetic…Get up we aren't done." He was ruthless regardless of how Aureolus felt or how cruel he was.

Heracles only saw this as right, weaklings had no right to cry, they had no right to pity, even children because Aureolus showed no potential to be strong.

Aureolus steeled himself trying to stop those negative thoughts in the back of his mind, his already inferiority complex being more exaggerated with this new information.

'Maybe that's why Dad never gives me the time of day… that's why he kicked me out of the dining hall that day…that why sister Grayfia talks to me so coldly…Big brother Sirzechs probably hates me that's why he left me here, Mom must be disappointed'

"No…I Am Aureolus, Regardless of what I have or what I don't have I'll make something of myself, my mother and father love me my older brother holds me dear my sister loves me to death so why should I listen to you?!" He steeled himself pointing his index finger at Heracles's nose those childish eyes looking ever so heroic.

Heracles scoffed wanting to retort with something harsher, to tell this kid the truth about his world.

To grind down his spirit here and now but stopped himself, His spirit would be crushed regardless soon enough.

Love didn't exist between devils that he was sure of, that every race was sure of.

"Let's see if you can make something of yourself, run 100 miles in 1 hour and 20 minutes anything less and you're out defect." Aureolus nodded firmly a strong perseverance growing to prove him incorrect just like he'd one day prove his father wrong and win his approval.

A month into training

Nestled between the steep peaks of Mount Olympus, the impressive temple of Heracles stands tall and imposing, the temple itself was enormous with a triangular shape.

The surrounding landscape around the temple was mostly mountainous rock covered in tuffs of green grass and snow, Measuring at least a dozen miles.

A majestic statue of Heracles stands at the center of the temple, depicted in mid-combat with the nemenian lion one of his greatest foes he defeated during his many adventures.

The temple itself is made out of massive blocks of marble, intricately carved with scenes of Heracles' legendary tales and his heroic deeds.

Aureolus wiped the sweat off his brow he'd survived a month under Heracles's brutal training regime, running him to the ground every single day.

It had been painful, really painful having vomited several times in training passing out, and even coughing blood on one occurrence.

It was the most stressful part of his life dreading waking up the next day, He'd survived merely by relying on his family.

Believing that by surviving this training and becoming stronger, he'd win his father's and mother's approval and earn their acknowledgment.

A childish goal in a childish boy's mind but one understandable, which child born on this planet didn't at one point want their parent's approval?

"You're surprising Defect…Very surprising with no demonic power for your body to be able to recover each night for the day training consider me slightly impressed," Heracles said sitting atop an enormous tree stump.

Today's training was very basic cardio which was hundreds of laps around the landscape and weight training.

"Shut up you creep." He hummed rolling his eyes his skin covered in a thin sheen of sweat from the amount of cardio.

His legs and lungs ached like hell, out of everything he hated cardio the most, especially since Heracles was sadistic and didn't allow any walking.

Heracles appeared beside him holding Aureolus up by the scruff of his neck "Let's go pump some iron defect." Walking towards the weight room which was in the back of the temple.

The weight room itself was enormous though with only one bench, Large rusted metal plates, Dumbells that went up to tens of thousands of tons made from celestial bronze, and Barbells made from Imperial Gold, it seemed like a bodybuilder/weightlifter's paradise.

"It's a push day so get under the barbell defect." Heracles snorted loading up the barbell with five 45-pound plates around 495 pounds in total.

"…I'm not doing 495 my PR is like 375." Aureolus refused annoyed he didn't like weightlifting what was the point in it All?

Lifting heavy weights repeatedly with no change for years other than the increase in weight the same food the same motions where was the fun in that?

"You'll be fine besides if something happens I'll spot you," Heracles said stiffly rolling his eyes in response.

Aureolus did as he was told gripping the bar shoulder length and controlling the eccentric till it touched his chest pushing it up he gritted his teeth trying but ultimately the weight proved too heavy.

Aureolus grunted in pain the bar resting on his chest crushing his diaphragm as he pushed his hardest "Heracles spot me bastard…" he struggled out barely being able to breathe.

He tried to push it up but an excruciating pain hit him instantly on his front deltoid and upper chest, he couldn't push the bar at all and Heracles's eyes widened taking the bar off him.

"Fuck fuck…" Aureolus got up holding his left shoulder the muscle tissue had torn and he was sure of it, his joints ached in pain his body was too malleable for such heavy weights.

The pain was excruciating like someone had taken a burning hot knife and cut it into his shoulder, Like millions of fire ants were underneath his skin.

"Front Shoulder and upper pec muscle tear." Heracles's eyebrows creased in mild annoyance picking Aureolus up by the scruff of his neck and ignoring his groans of discomfort.

__________

"HERACLES WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Hestia shrieked her eyebrows creased in concern healing aureolus to the best of her abilities.

"I was training him." Was the curt and the uncaring response that met the caring goddess of the hearth.

Heracles had brought the injured Aureolus to Hestia's home to quickly heal him for tomorrow.

"You don't train a child so brutally are you crazy?!" Was the wrathful response that met him, her eyes which were normally a delicate light brown now an intense orange-firey red her divine power pressing down onto Heracles.

Heracles flinched he didn't want to get on his eldest aunt's bad side, he wasn't that full of himself to think he alone could bear her wrath.

"This is how Lord Sirzechs instructed me to train him." Heracles was bullshitting.

Hestia frowned at that if Lord Sirzechs ordered it then she couldn't interject much.

"This is insanity Heracles I don't care if Sirzechs ordered it, he is a baby!" She said setting the sleeping Aureolus down on the couch.

"Do you know how exhausted his body is?! I've found several micro tears in all of his muscles, bone fractures in his fingers and hands, and now his front deltoid is completely torn, You are insane the boy passed out as soon as he walked through those doors and I don't even see a trace of regret on your face!" The mother of the hearth said slapping Heracles across the face.

"It's not my fault if he wasn't such a weakling without demonic power we wouldnt have these problems." Heracles retorted aggravated but he didn't dare show much dissatisfaction towards Hestia unless he wanted to go to war with all of Olympus.

"He is a CHILD for chaos's sake Heracles!" She yelled disgusted at his lack of empathy.

"Oh please…so? The training regime I have him on some humans can complete If Lord Sirzechs ordered it I have no choice but to do it and you can't interject." Truly Heracles just wanted to run Aureolus into the ground.

6 months into training

Aureolus grunted his hands were wrapped around an imperial gold bar, on each side of the bar held ten 100-pound celestial bronze plates.

"Fuck…" Aureolus groaned a trickle of blood falling down his nose because of the immense pressure he was putting himself under, Finally, he pulled it up his calluses had been ripped off his hands bleeding on the bar.

He dropped the bar with a slam a thud that resounded throughout the temples of Heracles.

"Just a ton and yet you're half dying." Heracles sighed "I have no idea what Sirzechs sees in you truly."

Aureolus sat down his head dizzy and fatigued, it seemed as if Heracles's words hadn't affected him greatly though he'd be lying, They did affect him he wanted a trace of approval but yet saw none.

"This training session I had wished to make something out of nothing, Build a new thing give power to the powerless…you but I now know that is a fruitless endeavor." Heracles sighed helping Aureokus to his feet.

"Listen, kid…I mean this in no insulting way but…This whole nonsense of proving anyone wrong…give it up…I don't know who your family are but…If they're devils they can never truly love you run away and blend into the human world…that's the only way for you to find peace." Heracles sighed his eyes filled with pity he honestly grew bored of insulting the kid.

He was just so pathetic and annoying with his pitiful idealism and this whole bravado of proving those who doubted him wrong, And all Heracles could do was pity him.

What could a devil with no demonic energy truly prove to the world?

"No, you're wrong my parents even if they're devils, I know they can love and I won't bear with you talking down on them." Aureolus was stubborn still bent on the idea that devils can love unconditionally.

Heracles snorted fine by him, He will be proven right soon enough.