Although I tried to sleep, my mind wouldn't stop thinking.
"Will I be able to endure tomorrow? Or will I collapse after Marcus' first punch?"
I searched for something to buy in the phone's store.
I found a pill that grants a boost of mana but disappears after use, and a deep sleep pill, but it would make me sleep for ten hours—and my appointment was in five.
There were also other pills, like one that would let you stay awake for a whole month without fatigue, but it was extremely expensive, nearly 120,000 points, even though I had 25 million.
I decided to try to sleep without buying anything. The room was dark, with only a faint light seeping through the window. Ellie sat on the wooden chair, trying to stay awake as ordered, but she kept nodding off and jerking her head up.
"It's fine... Even if I doze off a bit, I'll force myself awake."
I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and forced myself not to think.
Minutes passed heavily, then the hours dragged on painfully slow, until I finally started to feel drowsy, about to fall asleep.
I felt something touch my shoulder.
"Sir... the sun has risen!" Ellie said hesitantly, lightly shaking me, her face weary from lack of sleep.
Morning light slipped in through the window. I hadn't slept until the agreed time. It was 6:30.
I jumped out of bed like a soldier hearing the war trumpet.
Even though I was exhausted and hadn't slept, I thanked the maid for her efforts despite failing my goal.
"Good job, Ellie. You can sleep on my bed now."
She jumped onto the bed and fell asleep instantly.
I headed straight to the training hall Marcus had designated, skipping breakfast because I knew I would throw it up during training.
When I arrived, the air was cold, and the ground slightly damp with dew.
Marcus was there, standing with arms crossed, a stern look on his face.
"You didn't run away. Good."
Marcus said this with a tone devoid of emotion, then added:
"But I warn you, once we start... I won't treat you like a master, but like an enemy to crush. If you survive until nightfall, I'll start teaching you."
I smiled despite the fear flooding me.
"Do whatever you want... I won't run."
"Good."
Marcus gestured toward the center of the hall, where a red circle was drawn.
"Enter the circle. And start praying you don't die."
I stepped into the center, planted my feet firmly, and took a fighting stance I had seen online in my past life.
"Pathetic..."
Marcus scoffed, then disappeared from my sight for a moment. Before I realized what happened, I was already on the ground, blood pouring from my nose.
"That's just the morning greeting, Alex."
I coughed as I struggled to stand.
"Damn it... this is going to be the longest day of my life."
I knew Marcus was going easy on me; he wasn't attacking with his full strength to avoid killing me. He just wanted me to give up.
Despite my lack of sleep and breakfast, I had to endure—not just for my own life, but for my real brother's sacrifice and to save my real family.
After an hour and a half of what could hardly be called fighting and was more like getting punched repeatedly by Marcus,
he looked surprised by my endurance and said:
"I didn't think you'd last this long... Let's take a break."
I shouted with my swollen face and tearful eyes:
"Oh, finally, thank God! Is the training over?"
Marcus explained that all that time was just a light warm-up for what was to come during the day.
My mother arrived at the training ground, fully aware of what was happening. She brought along servants, breakfast, healing potions, and some mana elixirs.
She told Marcus:
"Thank you for agreeing to train my son. And don't worry if he dies."
This was the opposite of what I expected.
I couldn't tell what her intentions were from all these past days—was it out of love for her son, or was she trying to achieve success through me against my father's family?
But I didn't care, because she was rich, and I planned to use her wealth to achieve my own goal.
After my mother and the servants left, Marcus and I remained.
I sat down to eat my breakfast, wincing with every bite, while Marcus sipped his coffee calmly as if he had done nothing.
Marcus said:
"The next training will be about building your body's endurance against all hardships. After that, you'll learn combat techniques."
He then crushed the mana potions.
When I asked him why, he replied:
"Mana potions are like steroids—they give temporary strength but don't last. You must rely solely on your body."
After the rest—which turned out to be the last break of the day—we left the palace for the large garden.
There, I found my fiancée in this world, Emma, sitting in a park on a wooden bench, eating a chocolate cake with her small dog.
Alongside her were servants holding two terrifying black dogs.
I looked at her mockingly and asked:
"Did you come to cheer your fiancé? Or just walking your dogs, you bitch?"
She smiled brightly and answered:
"Ah, Alex, I was waiting for you. My servants brought these dogs as a gift for Marcus."
Marcus' servant explained to me while holding two pitbull-like but much bigger dogs:
"Today's training is about your ability to run for as long as possible."
I asked fearfully:
"I see... but why the dogs?"
Marcus smiled faintly and explained that humans run their fastest not when competing, but when running for their lives. He added:
"Don't worry, Alex. Even if you get bitten and torn apart, I'll heal your wounds with high-level healing potions your mother entrusted me with."
After he finished speaking, he released the dogs to chase me, including Emma's small dog.
I ran with all my might, screaming for someone to save me.
The dogs were trying to kill me because the previous owner of this body had abused them when they were young.
"Why... why am I getting punished for the body's previous owner?"
After four hours, during which I was bitten seventeen times—and after every bite, the servant would pull the dogs away and heal me with high-level potions that healed the wounds and slightly reduced my fatigue—
the time finally reached 12:00. Before receiving the eighteenth bite, Marcus grabbed the dogs and told me the first training session was over.
Gasping for breath, I asked him angrily:
"This isn't training, it's torture... I couldn't even sleep last night, unlike you!"
Marcus replied sarcastically:
"Why are you telling me this, Alex? You know I can't sleep."
I learned that Marcus had been suffering from insomnia for nine years but managed to function by consuming the mana within him.
He didn't care and only warned me that the next training would be harsher—even for strong soldiers—let alone a spoiled boy who had never trained in his life.
After pouring a healing potion over me, we headed to the second training session, with Marcus warning me it would be even more brutal than the first.
I muttered to myself:
"What training could be worse than this?"
"I wish I had chosen a different trainer."