Warrior Training System

"Bastards…" Robert growled, driving his sword into the neck of a razor-toothed hyena, its whimper fading as it died. Theon slid up beside him, thrusting his spear into another one leaping from the mountainside. They were in a narrow gap between mountains, a natural path, but the low cliffs on one side made it a hotspot for monsters, with a shallow ravine cutting through.

The tight space meant no one dared use their mana guns—a single misfire could take out their own. So, they stuck to swords and spears, except for the few trained in ranged weapons who could handle mana guns without screwing it up.

"Why'd they have to show up now?" a guy from Kalso's team grumbled. Cassian recognized him, reminded of Robert—both quick to get pissed and loud about it. "Ten more minutes, and I was off duty for the day, and these bastards…" he growled, jamming his ripper into a hyena's throat, "couldn't wait for the next shift. Die, you shits!" He stabbed again, making sure the thing stayed dead.

They had a right to be frustrated. They'd been battling monsters all day, finally about to get a break, when this pack of hungry, long-toothed hyenas showed up. Not strong enough to be real monsters, but their numbers and the narrow mountain gap made it tough for the group.

But there was also the threat of mutated hyenas, stronger and faster than the regular ones. Robert and the others could handle the normal beasts, but these true monsters were the job of circle warriors and mages. Cassian, being a circle warrior, made a long leap onto a nearby tree to get a better view. Spotting a couple of soldiers struggling with a bigger, quicker hyena, he flashed toward it, intercepting its claw before it could slash one of them. "I got this. Get back to your position," he said.

In the center of the group, mages stood with the horses. The lower-level ones shielded themselves and tried to keep the horses from bolting, while Carlo, the Pyraxis-ranked mage, prepared a big spell. Mana gathered above his staff, forming a red mana circle in the sky as he chanted and traced shapes with his staff.

"How much longer, Carlo?" Shera shouted, slamming her bone hammer into a hyena's head, nearly turning it to mush. Another one leaped at her from above, and she swung upward, sending it crashing into the canyon wall, leaving a bloody streak as it slid down.

"One minute! When I cast, everyone hit the dirt, or don't cry to me about a hole in your skull!" Carlo yelled back. The group flinched, uneasy about what spell he was cooking up. So far, they'd only seen him toss out the occasional oversized fireball—bigger and faster than usual—or a fire shield. Nothing major.

But nobody doubted his power, and they took his warning dead seriously. Cassian included, as he cleaved a one-star hyena cleanly in two, from head to tail, guts sliced evenly like it was nothing.

Before the hyena's corpse hit the ground, Cassian was already on another group of mutated ones, moving fast. Nearby, a circle warrior wielded a bow and arrow—a rare choice for warriors, since mages were typically the go-to for ranged combat. But those few warriors who broke through with ranged weapons could become legends if they climbed enough circles.

"Need a hand?" Cassian called out to a female warrior, catching her off guard. She hadn't sensed him closing in, nor seen him move to block a hyena lunging for her leg. He jammed his sword between its teeth, holding it in place. She fired an arrow straight through its open mouth, the shot tearing clean through to the other side. "Not anymore," she said, cool as ice.

She loosed three more arrows in quick succession, each flying in a different direction, nailing other mutated hyenas mid-attack with deadly precision. Tо rеpоrt еrrоrs, plеаsе visit thе оriginаl pоst оn М|VLЕМРYR.

Cassian grinned, eyeing the woman. She had the tall, athletic build common among circle warriors, matching his height, though he was still growing. Her light green hair, paired with matching freckles on her milky skin, gave her a vibe like a forest elf—if only her ears were long and pointed. Her beauty might even outshine one.

Glancing around, he saw dozens of hyenas scattered across the canyon's steps, their eyes locked on human flesh. There were too many, and they'd been fighting for nearly an hour. Cassian counted at least a dozen more mutated ones alone. "Think you might need that help after all," he said. The green-haired woman frowned, scanning the numbers, and muttered, "Where are these things coming from?"

Cassian, scanning the area, noticed Carlo's magic circle glowing bright and brimming with mana, now fully formed and massive. "No clue where they're coming from, but our mage over there's ready to light shit up. Better duck or we'll have holes in our heads like he warned," he said, diving behind a boulder. The green-haired woman hesitated, skeptical, but then Carlo bellowed, "Everyone, duck! Unless you want a hole burned through you!" She dropped beside Cassian, who shot her a smirk.

She ignored it, keeping an eye out for any hyenas sneaking up, but there were none close by. Others weren't so lucky, still fending off stragglers, but everyone trusted Carlo's warning and hit the dirt. Soon, they saw why—the massive red mana circle pulsed brighter, then unleashed a storm of fireballs raining down all around.

Fireballs erupted from it in a relentless torrent, streaking through the air with a searing hiss. They rained down across the narrow canyon, slamming into the mountainsides, scorching the rocky ground, and even sizzling into the shallow ravine where water hissed and steamed on impact. At first, it looked like a chaotic bombardment, as if the spell was just torching everything in sight. But Cassian, crouched behind the boulder, quickly noticed the precision—every fireball zeroed in on a hyena, sparing the ducked-down soldiers. The glowing orbs of flame punched clean through the beasts, burning holes into their bodies, fur igniting, and pained yelps echoing as they collapsed, dead before they hit the dirt.

The green-haired archer beside him peeked over the boulder, her sharp eyes tracking the spell's work. "Damn, he's not messing around," she muttered, gripping her bow tight. Cassian nodded, watching as a fireball caught a hyena mid-leap, its body bursting into flames.

The normal hyenas didn't stand a chance, their numbers dropping fast as the fiery barrage tore through them. Even the mutated ones, quicker and tougher, tried dodging, weaving through the chaos with unnatural speed, but there were too many fireballs. The mana circle spewed them out like a storm, relentless and overwhelming, each one finding a mark or at least forcing the beasts to scramble.

Below the glowing circle, Carlo stood firm, his bearded face split with a wide, almost manic grin.

The red circle pulsed brighter with every second, its edges crackling with raw power, feeding the onslaught. The air grew thick with the smell of charred fur and scorched earth, and the heat was intense enough to make Cassian's skin prickle even from behind the boulder. Soldiers nearby, still crouched, exchanged nervous glances, their trust in Carlo's warning keeping them low as fireballs zipped overhead, some close enough to singe hair.

The spell raged for nearly half a minute, an eternity in the heat of battle. Hyenas screeched, their numbers thinning as fireball after fireball found its target. A particularly large mutated hyena, its hide scarred and muscles bulging, managed to dodge two shots, leaping from rock to rock, but a third fireball caught it square in the chest, blasting it back into the ravine with a howl that cut off abruptly as it burned. Cassian caught sight of another beast trying to flank a soldier, only for a fireball to arc down and vaporize its head, leaving a smoking corpse. The precision was uncanny, like each fiery projectile had a mind of its own, hunting the hyenas with ruthless efficiency.

As the mana circle's glow began to fade, the barrage slowed, and the last few fireballs streaked out, catching stragglers. When the spell finally stopped, the canyon was eerily quiet, save for the crackle of small fires and the faint groans of dying hyenas. Carlo lowered his staff, still grinning, his chest heaving from the effort. The ground was littered with charred bodies—dozens of hyenas, normal and mutated alike, reduced to smoldering husks. The few that survived, maybe a handful, bolted into the shadows of the canyon, tails tucked, fleeing the slaughter.

Cassian stood, brushing dirt off his knees, and glanced at the archer, who was already nocking an arrow, eyes scanning for any stragglers. "Well, that's one way to clear a path," he said, half-impressed, half-relieved. She snorted, her freckled face catching the dim light. "Yeah, but now we've got a cleanup job."

Shera, wiping blood off her bone hammer, shouted from across the gap, "Everyone, back to positions! Check for wounded and let's move before more show up!" The soldiers scrambled, some still shaken by the display, while Carlo, still catching his breath, gave a satisfied nod, clearly pleased with his handiwork. The canyon, now reeking of burnt flesh and mana, felt like a graveyard, but the caravan's path was clear—for now.