Chapter 37

Hakon changed his strategy drastically. Once Teraq was enraged, it was time to use his Skills more extensively. First, Hakon activated [Teaching] before following up with [Evasion]. As soon as the latter triggered, escaping Teraq’s punches was as simple as walking through the tribehold. Superior speed and flexibility helped him, but neither was necessary.

Then, as soon as he found an opening with [Weakness Detection], Hakon used [Weapon Mastery]. He closed the distance to Teraq, weaving beneath his incoming fist, and punched him in the side. As soon as the punch landed, more weak points unraveled, and Hakon used them all.

He could have used [Bash], [Circulation], or even infused his hands with mana to end the fight quickly, but that had never been his intention. This was not a normal spar. It was a demonstration.

Hakon executed a series of three quick punches in the same area right beneath Teraq’s rib cage. He backed away, pushing the Barbarian’s fist to the side with his palm, and watched Teraq gasp for air.

“Take a breath. Then come at me again,” Hakon said without an ounce of emotion in his voice.

Teraq glared at him, but even when his lips parted, no words came out. He gasped and was forced to struggle for breath for a dozen heartbeats before he could speak once more. Still, he said nothing as Teraq met Hakon’s steely eyes.

“Come.”

Teraq did as ordered. He charged and threw a punch, only to miss the target. Hakon flowed around the incoming attack and punched him again, hitting another spot thrice in quick succession.

Teraq was given just enough time to regain his breath before the next order echoed across the training ground.

“Again.”

Once more, the young warrior attacked. This time, however, the anger in Teraq’s eyes had faded. A mixture of pain and confusion replaced the uncontrollable fury, and it only grew stronger when Hakon’s attacks became more and more violent.

He forced Teraq to charge him ten times. Ten times in which the young warrior failed to hit him even once. Ten times in which a few quick punches forced the towering Barbarian to the ground. And each time Teraq went to ground, Hakon made sure to crush him a little bit more.

While he focused on [Weapon Mastery], mixed with [Weakness Detection] at first, he did not shy away from showing the warriors on the training ground why he was the victor of the Battle of Generation. He used [Combat Awareness] after the fifth charge, when Teraq tried something new, and by the eighth charge, Hakon exerted [Circulation].

However, it was only by the eleventh and final charge that Teraq’s fist found purchase. It crashed right into Hakon’s fist, creating a clash befitting the traditional path of Barbarians. But when everyone expected the warrior with Herculean Strength to emerge victorious for the first time, the cracking of his knuckles suggested otherwise.

Hakon, creating this situation intentionally, realized quickly enough that he was not much weaker than Teraq as long as he used [Circulation], but being ‘nearly’ as strong as someone several Levels beneath him hadn’t been enough. That was why he infused his entire arm with an abundance of mana, with the most potent [Mana Infusion] surging into his fist right before the impact.

The clash was painful, but one of the two parties suffered a far worse fate.

Hakon had a hard time believing that his punch was enough to break Teraq’s hand, but the cracking cacophony echoing throughout the training ground proved it.

Teraq’s eyes widened, and the doubts he previously had were replaced by flickers of terror. A leg sweep later, the young warrior was lying on the ground, his knuckles broken, while [Natural Regeneration] was already tending to Hakon’s numb fist. By the time Astrid walked up to him, the numbness had already receded.

“Maybe we need the Healer,” he sighed. “Just make sure the Healer doesn’t heal him entirely. He really needs to improve [Pain Tolerance].”

Astrid nodded in agreement, not even trying to hide her disdain for Teraq’s pained grunts and groans before departing.

“Did you learn [Unarmed Weapon Mastery]?” Hakon squatted down beside the warrior as he scrambled to his feet.

“What?” Teraq shook his head, his mind clearly in as much turmoil as his emotions.

“[Unarmed Weapon Mastery]. Did the Ancestors recognize the Skill?” Hakon asked, suppressing a heavy sigh. “During the last charges, your stance was a little better and your movements were sharper.”

Pointing out your enemy’s greatest flaws was not easy. Punching them where it hurt the most to do so was probably not the best way to teach anyone either, yet it worked. Because they were Barbarians and endured more pain than others. There was a limit to everything, but by treading the very line, abusing a Barbarian’s swift recovery and pain tolerance to the fullest, it worked.

Teraq was the perfect example.

“The Ancestors did. That…you did that.” Teraq realized, his eyes growing wide. “The Ancestors favor you, Hakon.”

He had to put his entire mind into maintaining a neutral expression at the young warrior’s exclamation, yet he neither denied nor acknowledged Teraq’s words. Instead, he checked the most recent Scriptures.

[Teaching] went up by two Levels. [Weapon Mastery], [Weakness Detection], and [Evasion] improved by one. Neither [Circulation] nor [Mana Infusion] leveled up, but he felt like he was getting close. And that was a great win in its own right. [Circulation], being an upgraded Skill, was hard to improve. Even the prodding of Enhanced Comprehension could only help him so much.

Fortunately, his gaze drifting across the training ground, he found a great way to use his Skills in a way befitting a true Barbarian.

“I know my Ancient Power is not what everyone, or any Barbarian, would consider powerful, but it’s useful if you know how to use it.” Hakon’s voice hollered across the training ground, capturing everyone’s attention. “And I want to show everyone just how useful it can be. Not only for me, but for the entire tribe.”

Even as his words faded from existence, nobody said anything.

“That’s why I’m here today. To show you not only that I deserve to lead us into war in the future, but also your greatest weaknesses.” The corner of his lips curled into a blinding smile. “So…who’s next?”

***

As eager as the young warriors had been to challenge him, nobody approached Hakon now that he’d crushed Teraq. Teraq hadn’t been the strongest; however, he was one of the Barbarians who had reached the 1st Ascension in half a fortnight. Some of the warriors present were strong enough to fight him, but they could not be certain of their victory, nor could they defeat Teraq as easily.

“Nobody wants to spar with me?” Hakon clicked his tongue. “Then fight each other first.”

While he dismissed their hesitance as if it didn’t matter, pushing hot-headed, bloodthirsty Barbarians this far was not a light matter. Whether it was fear or their respect for his power, the warriors at the training ground no longer dared to challenge him. As far as Hakon was concerned, they did not want to be humiliated in front of their peers like Teraq, but that might as well be his imagination.

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Since it was still early in the morning, he did not have to rush anything. Instead, he waited and watched the young Barbarians spar with each other. Some stayed to the side and practiced alone, but those were few and sparse, and usually younger than the others.

After Tribe Taskur had to wait several cycles for the Shaman’s return, it was no surprise to see a wide range of warriors at the training ground. That included not only their Ancient Powers but also their age.

Barbarians were allowed to undergo the Rite and unlock the Ancient Scripture after no less than sixteen cycles. A long time ago, most Barbarians trained relentlessly to complete the Rite after eighteen cycles, but that tradition was abolished when the Ancestors rejected the tribe’s request for a Rite for the first time.

Now that Tribe Taskur completed their first Rite in several cycles, the oldest among the recently awakened were already twenty-two cycles old, while the youngest barely reached their sixteenth cycle.

Teraq and most warriors who had reached the 1st Ascension before the Battle of Generation were among the oldest of the recently awakened. They spent several cycles training with the Ancestors’ guidance and were only now given Skills and the means to imbue their Ancient Powers into their already existing fighting style.

But not all was well. Hakon had noticed that a fortnight ago already. Spending cycles waiting for the Rite, waiting to finally gain the strength needed to fight and become real warriors, did not only strengthen their foundation. It also imprinted flaws deep into their minds. Some were not directly noteworthy and would eventually be removed as the Ancestors guided the warriors to improve their Skills, but others stopped them from improving.