The day after the tournament Laura reports to the arena bright and early. She walks into the arena. The area is completely empty save for her and one other person, Eleonora.
"Mornin' sunshine. You're finally here."
Eleonora greets her with a smile.
With groggy steps Laura approaches Eleonora.
"Good morning."
"You look tired. I don't blame you though. Waking up at the crack of dawn is taxing at first but you'll get used to it. Now let's get to warmups shall we?"
Laura nods and follows Eleonora to the boundary of the arena.
"Alright in order to get our bodies nice and warmed up we're each going to do ten laps around the arena."
"Come again?"
"Hm? I said we're doing ten laps around the arena."
"That's a warmup?"
"Yep."
"Is that normal?"
"Yes."
With a conflicted expression Laura lines up next to Eleonora.
"Are you ready?"
"Ready."
At first Laura is able to keep pace with Eleonora but quickly falls behind due to her smaller body and lack of stamina. When Eleonora finishes her ten laps Laura is only on her fifth and completely exhausted.
"Hahaha! You're doing amazing. I didn't think you'd last this long. In fact I thought you wouldn't make it past three laps. You have some serious endurance, must be that demon blood."
Laura collapses to the ground before finishing her fifth lap.
"Hey Laura! You good?!"
Laura slowly raises a thumbs up to Eleonora who laughs.
"Ha ha! Already down for the count on the warmup? You have a long way to go."
After 10 minutes Laura stands up with wobbly legs and walks back to Eleonora. Eleonora gives Laura pat on the back.
"Hey, no need to rush yourself. It's the first day, you'll improve with time, so we're gonna take a break until your legs stop shaking. In the meantime I'll give you a crash course on magic."
"Magic huh? Sounds like a plan."
Laura plops back down on the ground.
"Alright, so what do you know about magic?"
"I know that living things filter the mana in the air whenever the breathe and they're able to manipulate said mana. I also know that demons can't filter mana so it stores inside them."
"Is that all you know? No knowledge on how to use spells?"
"No."
"Alright then. Let's start with that. Do you know what mana is?"
"Yes. Mana is the life force of everything."
"Ok, good. So, it's the energy that keeps us and the planet alive. Everything in the world relies on mana to survive. However it's a give and take relationship. The mana gives us life and we filter the impurities out of the mana. This brings us to spellcasting. Observe."
Eleonora pulls out her sword from her waist and holds it up.
"This is just a regular sword, right? But I can imbue it with mana. For example I can use lightning magic to boost my speed or hit someone with a lighting sword attack. Magic comes in many forms. Though I'm not really the best person to get a crash course in magic from. Though I can teach you how to manipulate the mana in the air."
"Wait a second."
"Hm?"
"If magic is mana being manipulated by people who filter mana then how can demons use magic?"
"That's a good question Laura, it's also a question I have no clue how to answer." Eleonora chuckles as she puts away her sword. "You're better off asking someone like Groel or Roderick about it. For right now we're going to work on building your muscles and stamina. We'll worry about the more complicated stuff once we get to it."
"Ok so what now?"
"One hundred pushups."
"Huh?"
"100 pushups."
"But-"
"Do it!"
Laura stares up at the dawn colored sky wondering just what she's gotten herself into. But there's no backing down now. If she's going to be a good fighter and not be kicked out she knows that she needs to be trained. Besides, it's not like she has anything else to do.
After collapsing after the 50th pushup Eleonora applauds.
"C'mon Laura! You can do it! You're halfway there!"
Laura face down in the dirt looks at the cheering Eleonora with a dead expression.
"You can do it, I believe in you!"
"Shut up." Laura mumbles as she plants her face back into the ground
"We're not done until you finish Laura." Eleonora continues to cheer on Laura.
"..."
Laura grits her teeth as she pushes herself up one more time. She manages to complete the 100th pushup over the next half and hour before collapsing in exhaustion.
"Hey Laura! How are you feeling?!"
"Tired."
"Yeah I bet you are!"
While playfully poking the exhausted Laura Eleonora smiles.
"That was just the warmup Laura."
Laura stiffens.
"Warmup?! What kind of warmup is that?! Are you some kind of demon?"
"But you're the demon Laura."
"Fair enough."
Eleonora takes a deep breath.
"It's not easy but if you want to become stronger then you have to be willing to put in the effort. I won't lie that it'll be more difficult from now on now that the tournament is over."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well your first match was against a scrub like Anton, a guy who was winless and on the verge of getting kicked out. But a lot of spectators saw you and heard what you are. Roderick's plan was to show you off so people would get invested in the hype of a half demon fighting in the colosseum."
"So what does that mean for me?"
"People will come to see you whenever a match is announced. It's rare for people to see a demon in the flesh so even people who aren't interested in fighting will want to come see you. Do you want to make a fool of yourself? Because next time you won't be fighting someone like Anton."
"I get it, but..."
"Oh come on, you can't be showing reluctance after you asked me yourself."
"It's not that I'm reluctant it's just..."
"Just what?"
"A few weeks ago I was just living with my mom in our small village in the forest, I've been trying to keep my mind off of it but... now that I think about it my situation is kind of screwed up isn't it?"
Laura sits back up and stares straight at Eleonora.
"All my friends and the rest of the villagers disowned and tried to kill me as soon as they found out I was a demon. No questions asked. My mom was the only one who wanted me to live and because of that she was killed by them. Then I ran into the forest and was captured by a team of adventurers. Now I'm here."
Tears start forming in Laura's eyes.
"I wanna go back to that life I had. That simple life with mom and everyone in the village. Why did it have to be taken away from me?
Why?!"
"Laura calm down. Don't cry." Eleonora puts one hand on Laura's shoulder. "You bottled up your frustrations all this time huh?"
"Yeah."
"Well Laura, despite only being twelve years old, you're a pretty strong girl. A lot stronger than I was at your age. You might be a demon but you're still human. So how bout we train our frustrations away for now?"
Laura nods slightly.
"Good. So let's begin your training!"
Eleonora tosses a wooden sword to Laura.
"I'm going to show you how I use magic. Pay close attention."
Eleonora takes out her real sword and takes a fighting posture. In mere moments who sword begins to emit a faint light. Laura can hear crackling coming from the blade.
"My fighting style centers around using lighting magic to boost my speed and attack power but I've been called a glass canon on multiple occasions because of it. I also tend to rely on my agility instead of pure strength."
Laura looks at the blade intently.
"Now I can tell that you're excited to learn."
Eleonora's entire body is emitting a faint light. The cracks and sparks that run across her blade become brighter as she swings it around.
"My affinity is best with lighting and I wouldn't have it any other way."
"So how do I figure out my affinity?" Laura asks.
"We'll figure that out later. For now let's work on basic forms"
"But I usually use my claws to fight."
"And what happens if you lose an arm?"
"It'll grow back probably."
"Wait what?"
"I said it'll probably grow back."
"How do you know that It'll grow back?"
"Well when I was living in the forest I got attacked by a wolf and it bit my arm but after I got it off the skin healed instantly. So I thought maybe my arm would grow back too."
Eleonora stands there dumbfounded by what Laura said.
"Are you serious?"
"I said maybe, so I'm not really eager to test it."
Eleonora sighs.
"Fine fine, but seriously, you need to know more about fighting than just swinging your claws around willy nilly. It's best to know how to use multiple weapons."
"Okay."
"Alright now I want you to try and hit me with that wooden sword, don't hold back."
Laura takes the sword and mimics the pose of Eleonora, she closes the distance and aims for Eleonora's side but the sword is gone from her hands in the next instant.
"That was ok Laura but your movement is too sluggish."
"Probably because I'm still tired from the warmups."
"No excuses Laura, do you think your opponent will hold back if you're tired?"
"No, probably not."
"That's correct, now go pick up that sword and try to hit me again."
After an hour of trying to hit Eleonora while getting the sword knocked out of her hands over and over again Laura falls flat on her back even more exhausted than before.
"You have some good moves but you're way too slow and amateurish."
"This is the first time I've held a sword in my life though."
"No excuses Laura, do you think your opponent will hold back if you're inexperienced? Anyway it's time to go eat breakfast. Get ready."
Laura gets up and follows Eleonora while her legs feel like jelly. Again she questions just what has she gotten herself into.
The day after the tournament Laura reports to the arena bright and early. She walks into the arena. The area is completely empty save for her and one other person, Eleonora.
"Mornin' sunshine. You're finally here."
Eleonora greets her with a smile.
With groggy steps Laura approaches Eleonora.
"Good morning."
"You look tired. I don't blame you though. Waking up at the crack of dawn is taxing at first but you'll get used to it. Now let's get to warmups shall we?"
Laura nods and follows Eleonora to the boundary of the arena.
"Alright in order to get our bodies nice and warmed up we're each going to do ten laps around the arena."
"Come again?"
"Hm? I said we're doing ten laps around the arena."
"That's a warmup?"
"Yep."
"Is that normal?"
"Yes."
With a conflicted expression Laura lines up next to Eleonora.
"Are you ready?"
"Ready."
At first Laura is able to keep pace with Eleonora but quickly falls behind due to her smaller body and lack of stamina. When Eleonora finishes her ten laps Laura is only on her fifth and completely exhausted.
"Hahaha! You're doing amazing. I didn't think you'd last this long. In fact I thought you wouldn't make it past three laps. You have some serious endurance, must be that demon blood."
Laura collapses to the ground before finishing her fifth lap.
"Hey Laura! You good?!"
Laura slowly raises a thumbs up to Eleonora who laughs.
"Ha ha! Already down for the count on the warmup? You have a long way to go."
After 10 minutes Laura stands up with wobbly legs and walks back to Eleonora. Eleonora gives Laura pat on the back.
"Hey, no need to rush yourself. It's the first day, you'll improve with time, so we're gonna take a break until your legs stop shaking. In the meantime I'll give you a crash course on magic."
"Magic huh? Sounds like a plan."
Laura plops back down on the ground.
"Alright, so what do you know about magic?"
"I know that living things filter the mana in the air whenever the breathe and they're able to manipulate said mana. I also know that demons can't filter mana so it stores inside them."
"Is that all you know? No knowledge on how to use spells?"
"No."
"Alright then. Let's start with that. Do you know what mana is?"
"Yes. Mana is the life force of everything."
"Ok, good. So, it's the energy that keeps us and the planet alive. Everything in the world relies on mana to survive. However it's a give and take relationship. The mana gives us life and we filter the impurities out of the mana. This brings us to spellcasting. Observe."
Eleonora pulls out her sword from her waist and holds it up.
"This is just a regular sword, right? But I can imbue it with mana. For example I can use lightning magic to boost my speed or hit someone with a lighting sword attack. Magic comes in many forms. Though I'm not really the best person to get a crash course in magic from. Though I can teach you how to manipulate the mana in the air."
"Wait a second."
"Hm?"
"If magic is mana being manipulated by people who filter mana then how can demons use magic?"
"That's a good question Laura, it's also a question I have no clue how to answer." Eleonora chuckles as she puts away her sword. "You're better off asking someone like Groel or Roderick about it. For right now we're going to work on building your muscles and stamina. We'll worry about the more complicated stuff once we get to it."
"Ok so what now?"
"One hundred pushups."
"Huh?"
"100 pushups."
"But-"
"Do it!"
Laura stares up at the dawn colored sky wondering just what she's gotten herself into. But there's no backing down now. If she's going to be a good fighter and not be kicked out she knows that she needs to be trained. Besides, it's not like she has anything else to do.
After collapsing after the 50th pushup Eleonora applauds.
"C'mon Laura! You can do it! You're halfway there!"
Laura face down in the dirt looks at the cheering Eleonora with a dead expression.
"You can do it, I believe in you!"
"Shut up." Laura mumbles as she plants her face back into the ground
"We're not done until you finish Laura." Eleonora continues to cheer on Laura.
"..."
Laura grits her teeth as she pushes herself up one more time. She manages to complete the 100th pushup over the next half and hour before collapsing in exhaustion.
"Hey Laura! How are you feeling?!"
"Tired."
"Yeah I bet you are!"
While playfully poking the exhausted Laura Eleonora smiles.
"That was just the warmup Laura."
Laura stiffens.
"Warmup?! What kind of warmup is that?! Are you some kind of demon?"
"But you're the demon Laura."
"Fair enough."
Eleonora takes a deep breath.
"It's not easy but if you want to become stronger then you have to be willing to put in the effort. I won't lie that it'll be more difficult from now on now that the tournament is over."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well your first match was against a scrub like Anton, a guy who was winless and on the verge of getting kicked out. But a lot of spectators saw you and heard what you are. Roderick's plan was to show you off so people would get invested in the hype of a half demon fighting in the colosseum."
"So what does that mean for me?"
"People will come to see you whenever a match is announced. It's rare for people to see a demon in the flesh so even people who aren't interested in fighting will want to come see you. Do you want to make a fool of yourself? Because next time you won't be fighting someone like Anton."
"I get it, but..."
"Oh come on, you can't be showing reluctance after you asked me yourself."
"It's not that I'm reluctant it's just..."
"Just what?"
"A few weeks ago I was just living with my mom in our small village in the forest, I've been trying to keep my mind off of it but... now that I think about it my situation is kind of screwed up isn't it?"
Laura sits back up and stares straight at Eleonora.
"All my friends and the rest of the villagers disowned and tried to kill me as soon as they found out I was a demon. No questions asked. My mom was the only one who wanted me to live and because of that she was killed by them. Then I ran into the forest and was captured by a team of adventurers. Now I'm here."
Tears start forming in Laura's eyes.
"I wanna go back to that life I had. That simple life with mom and everyone in the village. Why did it have to be taken away from me?
Why?!"
"Laura calm down. Don't cry." Eleonora puts one hand on Laura's shoulder. "You bottled up your frustrations all this time huh?"
"Yeah."
"Well Laura, despite only being twelve years old, you're a pretty strong girl. A lot stronger than I was at your age. You might be a demon but you're still human. So how bout we train our frustrations away for now?"
Laura nods slightly.
"Good. So let's begin your training!"
Eleonora tosses a wooden sword to Laura.
"I'm going to show you how I use magic. Pay close attention."
Eleonora takes out her real sword and takes a fighting posture. In mere moments who sword begins to emit a faint light. Laura can hear crackling coming from the blade.
"My fighting style centers around using lighting magic to boost my speed and attack power but I've been called a glass canon on multiple occasions because of it. I also tend to rely on my agility instead of pure strength."
Laura looks at the blade intently.
"Now I can tell that you're excited to learn."
Eleonora's entire body is emitting a faint light. The cracks and sparks that run across her blade become brighter as she swings it around.
"My affinity is best with lighting and I wouldn't have it any other way."
"So how do I figure out my affinity?" Laura asks.
"We'll figure that out later. For now let's work on basic forms"
"But I usually use my claws to fight."
"And what happens if you lose an arm?"
"It'll grow back probably."
"Wait what?"
"I said it'll probably grow back."
"How do you know that It'll grow back?"
"Well when I was living in the forest I got attacked by a wolf and it bit my arm but after I got it off the skin healed instantly. So I thought maybe my arm would grow back too."
Eleonora stands there dumbfounded by what Laura said.
"Are you serious?"
"I said maybe, so I'm not really eager to test it."
Eleonora sighs.
"Fine fine, but seriously, you need to know more about fighting than just swinging your claws around willy nilly. It's best to know how to use multiple weapons."
"Okay."
"Alright now I want you to try and hit me with that wooden sword, don't hold back."
Laura takes the sword and mimics the pose of Eleonora, she closes the distance and aims for Eleonora's side but the sword is gone from her hands in the next instant.
"That was ok Laura but your movement is too sluggish."
"Probably because I'm still tired from the warmups."
"No excuses Laura, do you think your opponent will hold back if you're tired?"
"No, probably not."
"That's correct, now go pick up that sword and try to hit me again."
After an hour of trying to hit Eleonora while getting the sword knocked out of her hands over and over again Laura falls flat on her back even more exhausted than before.
"You have some good moves but you're way too slow and amateurish."
"This is the first time I've held a sword in my life though."
"No excuses Laura, do you think your opponent will hold back if you're inexperienced? Anyway it's time to go eat breakfast. Get ready."
Laura gets up and follows Eleonora while her legs feel like jelly. Again she questions just what has she gotten herself into.
