Chapter 1282: Aquarina's Arduous Training
It has been two exact weeks since Aquarina and her parents reached the Dry Steppes, where the Everstone Village was located. The people here were warm and nice, the weather was incredibly warm and dry, and... Well, yeah, both things didn't meld well together for someone like Aquarina, who liked her personal space. Unless it was Sylphy whom she was sharing it with.
The Everstone people was overly friendly, and by overly she meant truly overly friendly! They would constantly greet her; every single person would greet her whenever she went. They would also go out of their way to bring her food or gifts anywhere.
Children would come to her and gift her pretty flowers and pebbles, and several boys had already confessed they liked her, Aquarina had to reject seven boys in these two weeks, their ability to express their emotions was very open, if they ever had a crush, they would just confess immediately.
However, she had to admit that there was a certain harmony to everything, something she liked about the place, something that made it warmer and nicer... Even as she didn't want to admit it. She missed Sylphy and her friends, but her family was with her, making her not feel too uncomfortable, and perhaps, making her assimilation into the village a bit less... painful. Slowly, after a week, Aquarina started gaining more resolve. The training wasn't harsh at the beginning, but it involved a lot of exercise.
"Alright! Let's start with the basics okay? You're going to lift those two big rocks and give a hundred circles around the village every morning, got it? That's all, sweetie pie! Easy, right?" Svana smiled radiantly, her giant, muscular body towering even over Aquarina's mother.
"Um, I guess so..." Aquarina looked at the two "big rocks", although she had battled Rank 10 monsters already, she still felt slightly intimidated.
These two big rocks were roughly twenty meters of height head... shaped into large monoliths embedded with jewels and the faces of the desert spirits that the people prayed to.
And so, her training began, from the very first day of the first week, Aquarina woke every morning, mom and dad helping her with a tasty and filling breakfast, and with Pyuku and her spirits bringing her company, she lifted both rocks.
"Oof, this is not... too easy, oof... fuck, fuck, fuck...! Aah, this is fucking heavy!"
Aquarina was gritting her teeth, making a really weird face as she became red by just grabbing one stone, and she had to use only one for each!
The giant stone monoliths probably weighted several dozens of tons each, she saw other villagers carrying similar ones already, moving around the village.
She wasn't the only one in training, and they were doing it much easier than her!
"Hey new girl!"
"How are you doing?"
"Hurry up or you won't be ready for lunch time!"
"Hi Aquarina!"
She still remembers their mocking greetings, although they were just being nice to her. "It seems you'll have to use all your power to lift them," said Pyuku. "Can you handle it?" "Of course I can! Screw... Screw this shit!"
Aquarina quickly imbued her Mana into her muscles, activating her physique to its limits. Her muscles bulged tremendously, her Aura rising rapidly and shattering the ground beneath her barefoot, a requirement to make the soles of the feet tough and strong, according to Svana. "Alright... Heavy... Ho!"
She gave a single step.
BAAM!
The ground trembled, right beneath her, the weight of the stone monoliths was so high the stone shattered, generating cracks and creating imbalance.
"Ah shit!"
She had managed to carry both, but the moment she broke the ground beneath her, she ended losing balance and falling, both stone monoliths fell too.
RUMBLE!n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om
The ground trembled as they fell, but they were completely unscathed, not shattered at all, they were made of a especially tough stone.
"Hahh, you've gotta be kidding me..."
"You can do it!"
"Rooaarr!"
"Yeah, we believe in you!"
Pyuku and her two spirits were cheering for her.
"Hah... Thanks, but I really need my daily fix of Sylphy today... Not feeling like it today," she sighed. "Ugh, but... she's not here, my cute baby girlfriend... I miss her red hair and her cute green eyes so much... And her sweet smell, she was so nice to me... I miss... her..."
Aquarina sat down over the floor back then, glaring at the stone monoliths.
Svana was glancing from afar, and so did his mother.
The two looked at one another and nodded, and Svana stepped in.
"Hey girl, you're not feeling it today? You know, if you want to get stronger and get inside the inheritance, you'll have to get this done easy peasy by the end of the month," she said. "Sooo... you have to step in and do your thing."
"Hahhh... Do I really need to? Umm..." Aquarina had lost her motivation. "I just... I thought I would be strong... but... I can't..."
"Come on dear, I know you can. You're my disciple's daughter. I've heard a lot of good stuff about you! You even fought a god?! Not even I have done that!" laughed Svana.
"It was with the help of everyone..." Aquarina sighed. "And why do you care so much about me? I am not even a Hero of Stone, I am a Hero of Water and Ice. Shouldn't I be training that instead?"
"Well, you see, your mother really insisted about this," Svana said. "And... I can see it within you, Aquarina. There's potential, tremendous potential. But if you don't give the first step yourself, we will never be able to guide you through this tough path."
"..." Aquarina sighed, thinking more and more about Aquarina.
"Do your best, Aquarina! And get super strong!"
She could still remember her last words, her adorable smile, and her big hug.
God, she could still remember the sweet scent of her long, fluffy red hair.
"If you don't want to do it for yourself..." her mother stepped forwards. "Do it for her."
"...!" Aquarina's eyes widened, nodding.
She took something from her pocket, a few strands of red hair that Sylphy gifted to her.
They had her sweet smell, the smell of roses and fruit.
"Right... For her..." she nodded, standing up. "Heave... Ho!"
She grabbed both monoliths and continued her march.