Chương 16: The Path to Ascension Starts With... Push-ups?

Chapter - 16

After spending some more time chatting with Eileithyia about, of all things, beavers and squirrels, I finally made my way back to my dorm. My mind was already wandering toward tomorrow's class: combat training. The thought made my stomach twist a little. Combat wasn't exactly my forte, especially with how weak I was compared to the others. But there was no avoiding it, especially since the first thing on my quest list was to defeat Tiberius in the Class Combat Duel. The very idea of facing Tiberius in a duel made me want to crawl under my bed and hide until graduation.

Yet, knowing how this world seemed to work, I had a feeling we'd end up paired together for a "friendly" sparring match. Because of course, the universe was out to get me.

I flopped down on my bed, staring up at the ceiling as I tried to think of some way to prepare myself. But what could I do? I had no real combat experience and no magical prowess to speak of. Still, doing 'something' had to be better than nothing, right?

With a groan, I sat up and decided to start with the basics. "Alright," I muttered to myself. "Let's do this. A little bit of exercise won't kill me." Probably.

I dropped to the floor, bracing myself for a set of push-ups. The cold, hard ground felt unforgiving beneath my palms, but I ignored it and started moving.

"One… two… three…"

At first, it wasn't so bad. My arms felt steady, and I managed to keep a decent pace. But by the time I hit twenty-five, my arms were already trembling.

"Twenty-six… twenty-seven…"

The muscles in my shoulders burned, and I could feel sweat beginning to bead on my forehead.

"Twenty-eight… twenty-nine…"

I gritted my teeth, willing myself to get through the last one.

"Thirty!"

I collapsed onto the floor. My arms felt like noodles, and I could barely catch my breath. Still, thirty wasn't 'that' bad, right? Maybe I wasn't in as terrible shape as I thought.

After lying there for a few minutes, staring at the ceiling and trying to summon the willpower to move, I rolled over and pushed myself to my feet. It was time for pull-ups. There was a sturdy bar conveniently mounted near the bathroom door, and it looked perfect for the task. I shuffled over to it, already dreading what was coming next.

Gripping the bar tightly, I pulled myself up once, my muscles protesting instantly. Still, I managed to do the first one without too much difficulty. Then came the second. It was harder, but I pushed through it.

By the eight pull-up, my arms were shaking again, and by the ninth, I felt like I was trying to pull myself up Mount Olympus.

"Come on, just one more," I muttered through clenched teeth as I managed a tenth pull-up. My biceps screamed in protest, but I forced myself to go for one last rep.

The moment I let go of the bar, I fell backward, landing hard on the floor with a thud. I lay there, breathless, my chest heaving as I gasped for air. My arms felt like they were going to fall off, and every muscle in my body ached.

And that's when I saw it.

A notification popped up in front of me.

Stats increased – Strength +1

Callum Brown

Age: 19

Level: 1

Stats:

- Strength: 10 (+1)

- Endurance: 12

- Speed: 7

- Iridium: 16

I stared at the glowing text in disbelief. I had just… increased my stats? My strength had actually improved just from a couple of push-ups and pull-ups?

I let out a whoop of excitement, my exhaustion momentarily forgotten. "Boom, boundless ascension, baby!" I shouted, pumping my fist in the air from my spot on the floor. This had to be the work of that skill, there was no other answer.

The thought of getting stronger, of actually improving little by little, sent a surge of motivation through me. Maybe this world wasn't so unforgiving after all. Maybe I wasn't doomed to be the weakest student here. If I could just keep pushing myself, if I could keep exercising and working on my skills, I could actually become someone worthy of surviving this academy.

Fueled by this newfound energy, I pushed myself off the floor, ready to keep going. "Let's do this," I muttered, determined to squeeze in one more round of push-ups before calling it a night. But the moment I tried to stand, my legs wobbled, and without any warning, I toppled over onto my bed.

I lay there for a moment, staring at the ceiling again, my limbs too heavy to move. Despite the rush of excitement, my body had clearly had enough for one night.

"Okay… maybe tomorrow," I mumbled as my eyelids began to droop. The soft embrace of the bed was far too tempting, and before I knew it, I had given up on my plans of further exercise. The room blurred around me as sleep overtook me, my body sinking into the mattress.

But at least I had made progress. I had gained a point in strength, and that was a start. Tomorrow, I would face whatever the academy threw at me with just a little bit more confidence.

As I drifted off, a small, satisfied smile played on my lips.