Chapter 640: We’re Screwed
Laz had no idea who this person was, but they were strong, just not as strong as people thought. Laz wasn’t fighting for keeps as if he did, he could have killed everyone with a single blow. Ever since he had ’received’ so much energy from the goddesses in the palace including the queen herself, his body had been evolving, changing. So much so, in fact, that even he didn’t have a grasp on how strong he was.
Think of it like pushing a heavy shopping cart. You can limit your strength by how fast your pushing it. Just getting it to go requires only so much. Push harder and you can go faster, but still have control. But have you ever pushed a full shopping cart as fast as you could? Usually not unless you’re some kind of mad man. Doing so would eventually lead to you being unable to control it which could cause a huge problem.
Right now, Laz was pushing the full cart only as fast as he needed to. It just so happened to be that he ran into someone else’s cart who was pushing will all they had, hence why he had been blown back.
"Good. Some potential... Come!" Laz called out, walking forward. The frail body again charged at him with all their strength, but this time Laz didn’t move. The person grunted though as it felt like they hit a brick wall. They then swung their fist as though trying to punch Laz, but Laz just moved his head back a bit and avoided it. The person then tried to kick Laz’s knee, but a quick step to the side caused the blow to be avoided again.
Again and again this stick attacked him and again and again, Laz avoided the blow. He wasn’t scared of getting injured, Laz was just curious as to how skilled this person was.
The sad answer was they knew nothing but brawl style fighting.
"Coward," came the hoarse voice after five minutes of dancing around dodging.
"Oh? It can speak. That’s good. For a moment there I was thinking you might be deaf," Laz said with a chuckle.
"Bastard," it said before charging again. Seeing that they weren’t doing anything different, Laz side stepped the attack and brought his hand down, landing it on the back of the person and sending them into the ground with a massive thud that shook the area.
"Well. That’s that. Didn’t kill a single one of you either so I’ll call that a win. Now than, does anyone else want to try it or have I made my point?" Laz asked, looking around at those who had stood silent watching.
There was a lot of mumbling, but nothing was really said.
"I CAN’T FUCKING HEAR YOU!" Laz yelled.
"YES SIR," they yelled back finally, as though having found their voices.
"Good. Food is here. It ain’t great but least it’s something. Eat! And when those people wake up, have them eat as well. You’ve got one hour before we start practice," Laz ordered and they just shouted back,
"Yes Sir," and made their way to to oncoming transport wagon.
"Keep your eyes on them. They run, kill them," Laz said, without hesitation, which then gave him pause.
’Since when have I been so heartless?’
*You’re not exactly heartless, you’re just adapting to the situation,* Kat said in his ear.
’Oh? You’re awake again?’ Laz thought to himself.
*How do you think you made it through that maelstrom without a scratch? You didn’t just get lucky the whole time. Do you have any idea how many times you would have died had I not protected you?* Kat asked, sounded a bit upset.
’I can only guess quite a few?’
*Good guess. Anyway. The problem you face now is that you need to get back to that door and get out of here, right?*
’Kind of. The door on this side is locked by the Emperor or so I am told. Which means that unless he get’s taken down and I can get that key, I’m stuck here.’
*Well.... *
’According to the Empress, he’s already a level nine god and looking to break through to the next realm... whatever that is.’
*It’s the Ancient God Realm. Unlike the god realm, the Ancient God realm is only comprised of three levels, like the realms before a god. If he is able to do that... then yeah. Your stuck here until you die. But on the plus side, I highly doubt he can do it in this pocket dimension, no matter how many gods he kills.*
’Why do you think that?’
*Because while becoming a god requires you to understand yourself and your own nature, the Ancient god realm is about understanding the laws of the universe which can’t be perceived within a pocket dimension such as this. So basically, no matter how strong he gets as a god, he is trapped in this place. I wouldn’t be too happy though since at his level, killing you would be as easy as stepping on a bug. So for now, you just need to worry about surviving and breaking your own shell to ascend to godhood. That’s the only thing left for you right now,* Kat said before going quiet again. She had said all she needed to and anything else would only confuse Laz more. While Kat had advance communication and knowledge about higher realms, looking too far ahead might cause Laz to not focus on the here and now which is what he needed to do.
And besides which, no matter how advanced the AI... it was still AI.
Some one had dropped a plate of food near Laz’s door which he noticed when he walked out, but he didn’t touch it, walking down the stairs and out the door. An hour had passed and now it was time to go at it rough.
Later on, when dusk was settling down and the massive grounds were covered with shadow, Laz called an end to the days activities, meaning that everyone still on their feet passed out on to the floor. As for the gladiators who had been training with them and Laz who was heading the bunch the entire time, they felt tired, but not overly so. Having this type of training several times a day was the only thing that ensured their stamina to last for those long and bloody battles where if you fell, you died.
"General observations?" Laz asked the men as the people on the ground struggled to breath.
"We’re screwed First...." Number One said with almost a sad look on his face. Number two and the other numbers agreed.
"Don’t have much of a choice, do we. We’ve got one more day and then we are out on that battle field for who knows how long. Tomorrow morning is more stamina training while the afternoon will be battle tactics. At the very least I want to make sure they can hold their swords and shields properly..."
"Are we sure they are even getting weapons?" Number six asked.
"They will. Weapons are plenty but bodies are lacking at the moment. Why else would they call up these people to fight?" Laz answered back.
"You’ve got a point," Six agreed.
"Any of the others make it back?" Laz asked, changing the subject. Much to their surprise, one of the men who went off with a demon woman made his way back to camp during training, only to die shortly after. Still, knowing that one had found their way here was kind of a miracle that made the stoic men smile.
"No first. He was the only one."
"Alright. Well, build the fire. We will send him a proper going away since he made his way back from that battlefield," Laz said with a chuckle as the other men laughed a bit and went around gathering broken wood to burn.
Late at night, after the fire had died down, Laz had returned to his room and stripped, using the cold water to once again clean the dirt from his body the best he could.
"Still wish I could get some soap..." Laz said to no one in particular.
"Here..."
Laz had a knife in his hand and was crouched low, ready to strike. Whoever had gotten in here hadn’t made a sound and Laz had been tired from the day so he didn’t bother keeping his spiritual sense going to monitor the area, a stupid decision on his part.
When he saw who it was though, he straightened back up and relaxed, but only a little.
It was Nesha, holding out a bar of soap.
"Why are you here?" Laz asked, setting the knife down on the table beside the wash basin.
"I wanted to make sure your man came back safely. The others... didn’t make it that long," Nesha said, a little apologetic.
"That’s fine. They went out on their own terms and hopefully while enjoying some pleasure that didn’t involved being caged up. A fair way better than they could have wanted a week ago," Laz said, taking the offered soap and lathering it up in his hands before scrubbing his body. The streaks of dirt peeling away from his skin almost seemed like he was shedding.
As for being covered up, he couldn’t care less.
Nesha was still wearing her normal leather outfit but she had a leather bag as well, the same one in which she had pulled the soap.
"Thank you but did you need anything else?" Laz asked while rubbing himself down.
"I came to deliver a few things... as payment for letting us... while... you know."
"No problem, It was their choice in the end so I don’t need payment," Laz responded.
"I know... but these things can keep you alive on the battle field so take them," Nesha said with a grin as her face turned red.
"Alright..."
