Then…
the training began.
It was not ordinary.Not even "harsh" in the way most would understand.
It was…
hell.
A refined hell.A deliberate hell.A hell designed to break… and rebuild.
From the very first moment, the old man gave William no time to adjust.
"Run."
He said it simply.
But the ground beneath William's feet was anything but normal.
It was heavy.
As if gravity itself had been doubled.
Every step felt like his legs were being torn apart.Every breath was a battle.
He ran.
Or tried to.
He stumbled.
Fell.
His skin scraped harshly against the ground.
He stood again.
Ran—
and fell once more.
"Faster."
The old man's voice was steady.
Devoid of any sympathy.
That… was only the beginning.
After running—
he was ordered to carry stones.
But these were no ordinary rocks.
They were black, cold, and strangely textured…
as if they drained his energy the moment he touched them.
"Carry them. Don't drop them."
William clenched his teeth.
Veins bulged.
His arms trembled violently—
but he lifted them.
One step…
then another…
then—
they slipped.
And he fell with them.
"Again."
There was no pause.
No mercy.
Then came the training that slowly tore his body apart.
"Strike."
Before him…
a dry, hardened tree trunk.
"Until it breaks."
He raised his hand.
And struck.
Once.
Twice.
Then dozens of times.
His skin split.
His palms turned red—
then began to bleed.
With every strike…
the pain intensified.
But he did not stop.
The sun rose high into the sky…
then slowly descended…
and the training…
never stopped.
Under the waterfall—
he stood.
But the water was not normal.
It was heavy.
Violent.
Each drop struck him like a hammer.
"Don't move."
He stood.
Seconds—
then fell.
"Get up."
He stood again.
Only to fall again.
Then…
the circle.
Drawn onto the ground.
"Do not step out."
No explanation was given.
But moments later…
the cold came.
A biting cold that pierced through his bones.
Then—
sudden heat.
Then—
pain.
As if his body was being torn apart from the inside.
He screamed.
But his feet…
did not move.
He collapsed.
Countless times.
Fell—
then rose.
Fell—
then rose again.
He wanted to stop.
More than once.
But something inside him…
refuse.
By the end of the day—
he was no longer the same.
His body was exhausted.
His breathing heavy.
His limbs barely responding.
Yet…
he was still standing.
The old man looked at him.
And for the first time…
something faint appeared in his eyes.
Approval.
Unnoticeable…
but real.
"The physical training for today is over."
He said calmly.
Then added—
"And now…"
a brief pause,
"we begin the mental training."
William said nothing.
He simply sat down.
"Close your right eye."
The old man instructed.
"And focus… on the opposite side."
"The right side… using your left eye."
It was unnatural.
Almost impossible.
William closed his right eye.
Left the other open.
At first—
the world was distorted.
Half of it clear…
the other half swallowed by an unfamiliar void.
He tried to focus.
But the more he did…
the deeper the darkness became.
It wasn't just the absence of light.
It had weight.
Depth.
Presence.
As if that hidden side…
was not empty.
But concealed.
"Focus…"
he whispered to himself.
He fixed his gaze.
Trying to see—
not with his eye…
but with something else.
And slowly…
something changed.
Within that darkness…
a faint flicker appeared.
Not light—
but awareness.
Then—
pain exploded.
He grabbed his head.
His breathing became erratic.
It felt as though his mind was being forcefully reshaped.
"Stop…"
a voice inside him warned.
But he didn't.
Instead—
he pushed deeper.
Further…
into that endless darkness.
He fell.
But not physically.
His consciousness sank.
Then returned.
Slowly.
Like someone rising from a bottomless ocean.
And he continued.
Until time lost meaning.
Until—
the darkness swallowed him whole.
…
When he opened his eyes—
the sky was brighter.
Dawn…
had arrived.
Day two.
"Get up."
William stood.
His body heavier.
But something within him…
stronger.
"We will repeat yesterday's training."
The old man said.
"But…"
a brief pause,
"under different conditions."
The running resumed.
But the ground was heavier.
Each step felt like it was sinking into the earth.
"Don't rely on your body alone."
The old man said.
"Use your perception."
William didn't fully understand.
But he tried.
The stones returned.
Heavier.
He fell.
"Again."
He stood.
Lifted them.
Fell again.
Then stood once more.
Then the trunk.
The waterfall.
The circle.
Everything returned—
but harsher.
His body screamed.
His mind resisted.
But his will…
did not break.
By the end of the physical training—
he was barely standing.
"Now… the mental training."
He sat.
Closed his right eye.
This time…
the darkness was not entirely unfamiliar.
"Begin."
He returned to that place.
That depth.
"And now…"
the old man said calmly,
"once you reach that state…"
"try to feel my presence."
"Not by sound."
"Not by movement."
"But…"
a pause,
"by perception."
William focused.
He was no longer searching only for sight.
But…
for awareness.
Where was he?
Right…?
Left…?
Behind him…?
At first—
nothing.
Then—
he calmed.
His breathing slowed.
He let his mind…
extend.
And suddenly—
he felt it.
A presence.
Faint.
Vague.
But—
real.
His eyes snapped open.
He turned sharply.
The old man…
was standing on his right.
William's eyes widened.
"Good."
The old man said clearly.
He looked at him for a long moment.
"I didn't expect you… to reach this level so quickly."
A brief silence.
Then he stepped closer.
"Many break under pain."
"Others stop at the first barrier."
He looked directly into William's eyes.
"But what you have…"
A pause.
"is not strength."
Silence.
"It is will."
Everything seemed to grow still.
"And willpower…"
he said slowly,
"…is what determines how far this path will take you."
William lowered his gaze slightly.
His breathing still heavy.
His body exhausted.
But within him…
something else existed.
Something that had begun to awaken.
And for the first time—
the darkness was no longer just darkness.
It was…
a beginning.