Jahi PoV
Lifting myself off of the sandy ground, I brushed off my clothes before wiping the sweat from my brow, beginning to feel the onset of overwork from the burning of my muscles and tightening of my limbs.
I could also feel my body begging for a rest, wanting to recuperate from the tears and strains from such strenuous exercise - we had done three separate sets of exercises, consisting of around thirty minutes apiece.
Burpees for thirty minutes, with the addition of jogging in place before we dropped back to a push up, which worked a good portion of our body on its own.
Next were curls and twists with a heavy stone, which I noticed were denser depending on Lady Fenryas' perception of your strenght; Anput had a lighter stone than I did, since we both dropped them from the same distance, but mine sunk deep into the sand while hers was slightly submerged.
Those exercises were great for our core muscles and arms, since we needed to keep the stone at a certain spot the entire time; a few of the Knights added in some extra difficulty by peddling in the air while twisting, deciding to squeeze more out of an already strenuous workout.
Finally, Lady Fenryas created a large swathe of weighted stone bars for us to lift and swing, setting us up with a full body workout with that as we did rows, squats, and so much more...
By the time that we finished, the sun was beginning to peak from beneath the horizon, bathing the sky in a beautiful swathe of orange and violet, and it was at that time that Lady D'Arcon strode in, the white robed woman 'glaring' at Lady Fenryas as the Demon Wolf grabbed her and took her lips, initiating a deep kiss.
For a few moments, the entirety of the training grounds was dead silent - save for the sounds of Lady Fenryas and Lady D'Arcon sloppily kissing - as all the Knights looked away, not wanting to intrude on this moment, leaving us all feeling awkward as we tried our best to not earn either of the women's ire.
Eventually, Lady D'Arcon pushed the Demon Wolf off of herself and glared at her, huffing as she stomped her foot, saying "Didn't you learn your lesson last night?!"
"Hmm~? What lesson~? I only seem to recall-"
"NO! Quiet! Just... be quiet! Hmph!"
We all looked back to see Lady D'Arcon blushing as she stared up at Lady Fenryas, who smirked at her.
"A-Ahem... Well, I came to heal all of you, so... Come, gather round."
The 'pure' Priestess gestured for us to approach her, trying to switch her tone from an exasperated one to her normally calm, elegant tone.
Of course, we all conveniently forgot her momentary lapse in character, since we would rather be healed by one of the greatest healers in the Empire then by someone else...
Gathering around the other Light Magic user, everyone watched as she raised her arms and began to chant quietly to herself, her pearl bracelets and silver jewelry clinging together softly as a gold light enveloped her outstretched hands.
That light began to expand further outwards, bathing us all in its brilliance and washing over our bodies gently, healing and strengthening our injured muscles.
As the light faded, the white robed woman took a deep breath before smiling at us all, saying "Good luck, everyone. Try your hardest, alright?"
It was odd how her soft smile and gentle words made you forget the hour and a half of hell that you had just been through, each of us nodding and smiling back at her before watching as she turned and exited the training grounds, leaving us all alone once more.
"Fifteen minute break, then we begin our spars!"
We dispersed and returned to the spots that we had been occupying moments earlier, clustering together in groups and talking quietly together.
Our group consisted of Mom, Nirinia, Sker, and Belian, as well as Anput and Kat; a few of the other Knights nodded our way as we sat down, before they made their way to other groups.
"So, little Jahi~! I managed to catch a little of your spar yesterday. Not too shabby~! A bit better than your Mom here during her first meeting with Lady Fenryas, that's for sure!"
The red skinned Demon grinned at me, his brown eyes warm as he lounged besides Mom, who just rolled her eyes at him.
The difference between the two was... striking, really.
Belian was a lithe man, likely just under seven feet tall - so shorter than Mom and I - while his wiry frame was similar to the Sultana and Anput's with how it hid their power, whereas Mom and I showed the muscle we had built up.
He had an easy going smile and a warm aura around him, but considering his choice of weaponry - a serrated blade and a needle dagger - I very much doubt that he was as friendly as he made himself out to be.
As if sensing that, Belian chuckled as he leaned back, his smile widening as he said "Just like your Mom too; analyzing me first before speaking. Rather predictable bunch, you Asmodia's. How you managed to retain your position and prowess for so long baffles me."
"Sheer strength. You can understand what we will do, down to the smallest detail, but what good does understanding do if I can still knock down your door and slaughter you without breaking a sweat?"
Mom's tone was chilly, which made the red skinned man grin as he raised his hands, saying "Yes, yes, the big bad Marquess is strong, I know~! Believe me, Chordeva, I certainly understand. It's just... different, compared to us Beliali's, who trade in secrecy and plots. It's certainly different from the Cimeriesa's, who are rather reclusive and arcane-oriented. Your clan's simplicity is an enigma to the others, Marquess... though, it's not much of a clan anymore, is it?"
The red skinned Demon was treading a fine line of respect and disrespect, his words and tone entirely neutral as he spoke.
"No, it's not. The ambitions for a clan died with my father, Belian. I've no desire to resurrect the Asmodeucian's like he did, nor do I care that your clan and the Cimeriesa clan look down on me for that same reason. The Asmodia name is more than enough for me."
My interest was piqued, and Belian grinned as he looked towards me, asking "What about you, little Jahi? Have you learned of the Asmodeucian's yet, or has Chordeva left that portion of your history out?"
pandasnovel.com Mom just clicked her tongue as she glanced at me, her ruby eyes complicated.
"Later. We can talk of it later, if you want. Politics between Demon clans is all it is. The 'fall' of our ancestors due to their hubris, bringing us from 'Asmodeucian's' to just 'Asmodia's'."
I pursed my lips at that, alternating my gaze between the grinning red skinned Demon and the blue skinned Demoness beside me, unsure of what to say.
Sker and Nirinia were silent, observing the two Demons as well as me, their thoughts unknown.
"It was a shame, really, that you promised yourself so rapidly to the Princess and Begum; no offense, Begum Sera. There was always the option of marrying one of the remaining Demoness' of the Beliali's or Cimeriesa's clans; two from the Beliali's, four from the Cimeriesa's. It's been a long time since any unions between us and the Asmodia's happened."
Shaking her head, Mom sighed as she said "Belian, the reason has always been simple; one of the things even my father agreed with. Dealing with the constant manipulations of a Beliali woman or the haughtiness of a Cimeriesa woman would drive someone insane. That's why you married a Goatkin, wasn't it?"
The man's smile cracked slightly, before he just had to sigh as well, scratching his cheek as he replied "Yeah... Pure women of any Demon blood tend to... inherit the worst of everything, even if that's balanced out by an increased talent in martial combat, diplomacy and espionage, or arcane studies..."
Mom nodded, adding "I wasn't against trying to deal with either of the clan's - before Ria, of course - as a wife, but after just a few hours with each I... couldn't stand it. Imagining a life with one of them was... not pleasant. That's why they're all still single, even now."
"Yeah... think that was our race's giant flaw? Insufferable - yet immensely talented - womenfolk? Because the futa's and the men are... bearable."
"I wouldn't say that, you red skinned prick. I dislike your word games and half truths."
"Feelings mutual, muscle head. So boring to chat with..."
The two glared at one another, but I could sense a deeper connection between the two, something that was certainly forged through battle and hardships.
That just made me more curious about everything, but before I could ask Lady Fenryas shouted "Get off your asses! It's been fifteen minutes! Fucking slouches..."
I frowned, and Kat rolled her eyes as she showed me her stopwatch, which displayed the time - not even twelve minutes had passed by, but no one was going to argue with the Demon Wolf.
We all stood up with a sigh, preparing for the training to come.
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How in depth do you want me to go with the training?
I can do less chapters dealing with it and blitz through it - like a time skip - or I can go ahead and do more of this, where it's a mixture of training and other stuff.
I'm good with either, just curious what more people feel like having - either way, next ~6 chapters are this training at a minimum anyways, since I have to do Leone's magics and the others getting stronger.
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