The next morning, the youths are awakened by castle servants. The boys are met by a knight who escorts them to the training grounds, while a female knight does the same for the girls. When they arrive, the adults are already there waiting for them, including Gabriel, who still has a few bandages but is already able to move normally, despite some lingering pain.
"Gabriel!" the group exclaims, running towards him.
"Whoa, easy there, guys! Let's show some discipline. Remember where we are." Despite his words, Gabriel can't suppress a smile at their joy in seeing him.
"Good morning, all," says Captain Viktor, his voice crisp and authoritative. "In case you do not remember, I am Captain Viktor Shield, commander of the Knights of the Kingdom of Avakar. I am here to organize and train you according to your abilities. I will be training you personally, alongside Ms. Frost who will handle magic instruction, while I will oversee physical combat."
Everyone listens attentively as Ms. Frost approaches. She takes her place beside the captain, waiting in silence for him to conclude.
"I have received a document explaining your situation and your powers. However, I require you all to introduce yourselves so I can put a face to the data," Captain Viktor says, his eyes lifting from the document to scan the group.
"In that case, I'll start. My name is Gabriel Cun... I mean, Gabriel Hulk. Sorry, I'm still not used to these new names. I received the Blessing of Hercules's Strength. I used to be these young people's sensei in our world. From what I've heard, I'm basically just strong."
"Understood. Thank you, Mr. Hulk. Do not wait to be called upon. The next person can step forward and introduce themselves. I will wait for everyone to finish before I comment," Captain Viktor advises, his tone leaving no room for argument.
"Then I'm next. I'm Wagner Speed. I got the Blessing of the Speedster. Basically, I'm fast. I was the bus driver, and now, I guess I'm part of the team. I'd like to find out just how fast I can be."
"Regina Shine. I received the Blessing of the Protector. I create shields and barriers."
"Mara Drain. I received the Blessing of the Vampire. I can steal the energy of anyone I touch."
"Myriam Cook. Blessing of the Chef. I can add magical effects to the food I prepare."
"Kali Doppel. Blessing of the Doppelganger. I can change my physical form and transform into other people. And I should have enhanced physical abilities compared to a normal human."
"Roger Lance. Blessing of the Magic Lancer. Not sure what it does, but I guess it has to do with spear combat?"
Everyone waits a moment to see if the captain or the mage would comment, but they remain silent, waiting. So the youths continue:
"Lidia Cogsworth. Blessing of the Artisan. Apparently, I'm good at creating things, or something."
"Alice Puppeteer. Blessing of the Puppet Master. I can control inanimate objects."
"Aldo Elude. Blessing of the Illusionist. I can create illusions and confuse my enemies."
"Helena Warmlight. Blessing of the Saint. From what I understand, I can heal with holy magic."
"Dandara Storm. Blessing of the Lightning. I can control electricity."
"Renata Aqua. Blessing of the Water. I can control water."
"Regis Flameheart. Blessing of the Flame Hero. I can manipulate fire."
"Luis Carlos Slash, but you can call me Luca. Blessing of Shadows. As I understand it, my power has something to do with using shadows or something like that."
"Carlos Wall. Blessing of the Earth. I can manipulate the element of earth."
"Sarah Windy. Blessing of the Storm Hero. I can control the wind."
"Amanda Knight. Blessing of the Hero. Honestly, I have no idea what my blessing actually does."
When Amanda finishes her introduction, Viktor speaks again.
"Good. Now I have a face for each name on this roster. I know you have questions. Those will be answered through your training, not with words. What you need to understand now is this:" He let the words hang in the air for a moment before continuing. "Every single one of you is vital to overcoming the trials ahead. There are no useless abilities in this unit. Whatever brought you here clearly intended for each of you to have a part to play. There are no coincidences in matters of this gravity. Your purpose is to be ready."
"Very well. We shall divide you into groups to facilitate the process and commence your training," Adria announces, her voice formal and clear.
After this conversation, the youths begin their training, and three months pass before they can use their abilities at a decent level. At the end of one morning's training, Captain Viktor makes an announcement.
"Alright, listen up! That's it for today. Your first field combat exercise begins at sunrise. The mission will last several days. Pack only what is essential—you carry what you bring. Dismissed!"
"Where are we going, Captain?" Roger asks.
"The specific location is need-to-know information," Viktor states flatly. "Your orders are clear: be prepared for several days of combat in an unfamiliar wilderness. Focus on that."
"Yes, sir."
"Dismissed!"
With that, the class begins to organize, eventually splitting into small groups. Lidia, Helena, Sarah, and Amanda decide to go shopping together for what they still need. "I'll need materials to create useful items for combat. I can enhance your weapons with runes or enchantments. I promise it'll be useful," says Lidia.
"Great. We can go together, since I need gear too. Our clothes are all provided by the kingdom, so I don't think we need to worry about that, but it would be good to think about details like water and travel rations," Amanda says thoughtfully, trying to anticipate their most important needs.
"Yeah. But we can't get fancy food that will spoil, or that's too heavy to carry," Sarah adds.
"Good point. Can I come with you guys?" Helena asks.
"Of course you can. Let's all go together. It'll be more fun with friends," Amanda replies.
With that, the group gets some money and heads to the commercial district to shop. It doesn't take long before they are approached by a group of men.
"Hey, girls. What are you looking for? Maybe we can help," one of the men says, smirking at the others.
Helena hides behind Amanda, who takes her hand. Lidia just ignores them, but Sarah decides to confront them.
"You could help by leaving us alone," Sarah snaps, her voice serious.
"Ooh... the little kitty has claws!" one of the men says, laughing. "Relax, girls, we're just trying to have some fun. You'd like that too, wouldn't you?"
"It would be more fun not having to deal with you. We're busy. Now, excuse us," Sarah says, trying to pass and being blocked.
One of the five men grabs her by the arm. Sarah glances at his hand, then back at his face.
"I need you to let me go," Sarah says through gritted teeth, her voice cold as she tries to contain her anger.
"You think it's that simple? You're coming with us. We've got a really nice place, just around the corner."
At that moment, Amanda grabs the man's hand and forces him to release Sarah, showing her strength. He's stunned.
"Hey! How can you be so strong? You're just a girl!"
"Yes. And these girls will wreck you if you don't leave us alone," Amanda says with a menacing look.
"Okay. You can pass. Just a misunderstanding," the man says, noticing they were starting to attract attention.
With that, they continue on their way.
"What a creep," Lidia comments.
"Right?" says Sarah.
"Idiots exist everywhere, in any world," Amanda adds.
They visit several shops and finally head back to the castle. On the way, however, they are ambushed by the same men from earlier. "Hello again, girls!" says the one who seems to be the leader.
"Girls, be careful. There are at least twenty of them," Amanda says in a low voice to her friends, realizing a much larger group is hidden nearby.
"What do you want now?" Sarah demands.
"We just want to have some fun. What do you say?"
"I say I feel sorry for you! You need to resort to this just to talk to a woman?" Sarah retorts.
"Woman? I just see some little girls who think they're hot stuff," the man replies.
"Hey Jack, I think we can have a lot of fun with these ones," one of the thugs says.
"True. But don't forget we need them alive. And try not to damage the merchandise. It would cut into our profits."
The thugs advanced at his command. Amanda and Sarah met the charge head-on, shielding Helena and Lidia behind them. Their superior strength was obvious as they easily knocked men aside, but their opponents were relentless. The sheer weight of numbers began to press in, forcing the girls back step-by-step until they were cornered, surrounded.
"Damn it! We need to end this, but they're just people. It would be a problem if we ended up killing someone", Amanda says to herself.
Then a firm voice comes from a nearby alley.
"What are you saying? They are criminals. Worse, they are slave traffickers. Use your power!"
Looking towards the voice, the girls see Captain Viktor in plain clothes, carrying shopping bags. They hesitate for a moment and then decide to do as he said. Amanda activates her Heroic Aura, and feeling her power surge, Sarah creates a powerful wind, like a hurricane controlled in a small area. It sends the bandits flying, smashing them repeatedly against the nearby walls.
Seeing that they were all in no condition to fight, Sarah cancels the effect and then walks over to Captain Viktor. "Why didn't you help us, sir?"
"You didn't need my help," Viktor says, his tone shifting, losing its hard military edge. "You were just afraid of being punished for killing some thugs. The problem was that you were holding back, am I wrong?"
"Well..." Sarah begins, but is interrupted by Amanda.
"Thank you, Captain Viktor. Your words were a great help. We still don't understand the common sense of this world and ended up judging the situation by the customs of our old one."
"I get it. Don't worry about it, you'll have plenty of time to learn," Viktor says, his voice now much warmer.
"But what are you doing here, sir? And in civilian clothes?" Amanda asks.
"Hey, I don't work all the time, you know," he says with a chuckle. "I came to do some shopping. I'm planning on making a special dinner to celebrate my retirement with my family."
"What do you mean?! You're going to retire? When?" Amanda asks, surprised.
"Our field trip tomorrow will be my last one as an active officer. After that, I'm retired," the captain answers with a friendly smile.
"But who will guide us after that? Who'll take your post with the knights? What will we do without your experience?" Anxiety floods Amanda's mind at the thought that the figure of strength who has guided them since day one is about to retire.
"Easy there, kid," Viktor says gently. "I'm not so arrogant as to think I'm the only one who can guide you. Much less that I'm irreplaceable among the knights. There are a lot of promising young men and women in our ranks."
"I'm sorry, sir. I overstepped. I'm sure you've worked very hard for your kingdom and deserve to enjoy this time with your family," Amanda says, finally calming down.
"Thank you, Amanda. That's very kind of you. And don't worry, there'll be a time for goodbyes, though I'll still be living near the castle," he says with a gentle smile.
"What do you mean?" asks Helena.
"I decided to keep living in the city with my family, instead of getting lands somewhere far away and a title. All my friends are here, and so are my kids' and my wife's friends. It'd be a shame to get a big house far away from everyone I care about. I'd rather have a simple house close to our friends," Viktor replies with a contemplative look.
"Sir, with all due respect, it's a shame you're a married man. I think I'm in love," says Lidia. Everyone looks at each other and starts to laugh.
"I've got an idea. Why don't you all join us to celebrate tonight?" Viktor asks, a genuine excitement in his voice.
"Are you sure, sir? I mean, we'd love to, but isn't it supposed to be a family celebration?" Amanda asks, feeling flustered and embarrassed by the sudden invitation from the man who, until now, had seemed so intimidating.
"Don't worry about it. We love having guests. Let's celebrate together," Viktor insists, smiling.
With that, the group hands the bandits over to the city guards and finds Viktor's family coming out of a shop with more purchases.
"Daddy!" a little girl shouts, running towards Captain Viktor. His expression changes so much when he's not on duty. But when he looked at that little girl, they all noticed a stunning transformation. He didn't even seem like the same intimidating captain who was scary just to look at.
"Hi, my love. What did you buy for dinner?" Viktor asks.
"I don't know, but it's heavy," she replies.
"And how do you know it's heavy?" Viktor says, with a curious expression.
"My brother said so," she answers, pointing to a boy coming up behind her, carrying a sack almost as big as he was, but very proud to be carrying the weight on his own.
"Haha... Very good, Andrius! I see you get stronger every day," Viktor says. The boy's smile widens, and he looks at the woman beside him.
"Hello, my love. Don't tell me you were working," says a beautiful woman with long, silvery hair, also carrying a shopping bag.
"No. I just ran into some of the students I've been telling you about. They were working. They just arrested a group of slave traffickers."
"Wow. Impressive. Thank you for helping to keep our city safe," the woman says, and her smile is so genuinely warm and beautiful, it has an instantly disarming effect. Even the girls found themselves staring for a moment, completely captivated.
"I think I understand why you want to spend more time at home, Captain," Lidia says, staring intently at the woman.
The other girls scold her, but both the captain and his wife start to laugh. They just look at each other, and the woman understands what he had in mind. She then asks very cordially:
"Tell me, girls, would you accept an invitation to have dinner with us tonight?"
"But the captain said you were having a family dinner. We don't want to intrude," Amanda replies, afraid of spoiling the family's celebration.
"Nonsense, we love having visitors. Let's celebrate together," the woman insists.
"By the way, this is my wife, Amélia, and my children, Andrius and Valéria."
The group heads to Captain Viktor's house. Arriving, they find a large but simple house. Nothing like the mansion they were all expecting from the captain of the royal knights, but a very comfortable and beautiful home.
"Come in, my dears. I'll prepare dinner; you can make yourselves at home. Honey, serve the girls a drink."
"Great idea. Would you like something to drink?"
"Thank you, sir, but I don't usually drink. So how about something light?" Amanda replies.
"Of course! I have something here that should work. Personally, I must be related to the dwarves, because I am a man of beer. So, girls, how has life been in this world?"
"It's very different, but at the same time very familiar. The people aren't so different, but the culture is. The cuisine, technology, and what about the fact that there's no entertainment?" Lidia replies.
"She means she's having a hard time adapting," Amanda interrupts, laughing.
"So, Captain, how did you meet your wife?" Lidia asks, completely changing the subject.
"Well, that's an interesting story. I met Amélia when I was returning from a mission in the kingdom of Dakkar. We had gone there for a rescue mission and were ambushed on our way back. We lost many men that day and ended up taking shelter at a farm near the border after the battle. The farm belonged to Amélia's parents."
"So you met her in a not-so-great situation. Why did you say it's interesting?" Sarah questions.
"My situation, indeed, was not good. But it was a great opportunity to get to know her kind side, which later won me over. It may not seem like it today, but I was a young man obsessed with power. I lived for it. But meeting her changed me."
"It's true," Amélia says, arriving with a plate of bread and sitting next to her husband for a moment. "He was a brute. Thought he could solve everything with brute force."
"Hey, I was young!" Viktor protests, blushing heavily.
"But it's been a long time since you were young," she comments, before heading back to the kitchen, laughing.
"True... Anyway, I really was a muscle-brain. And her loving way ended up rubbing off on me, seeing how she strove to help everyone, even with so little. They were a simple family of farmers, but they always did their best to help anyone within their reach. I realized I could never beat her the day bandits attacked the farm, and she managed to make them leave without hurting anyone, just by welcoming them and sending them off with what they had, which was some vegetables and a little money. The bandits literally thanked her for her kindness before leaving."
"Seriously? You're not serious, are you?" Sarah says, incredulous.
"I am serious. She really is incredible. Without her, I certainly wouldn't be who I am today. I might even be dead somewhere, trying to prove my strength."
"Even if you're exaggerating the story a bit, she's still an incredible woman. It's strange to say, but it reminds me of my dad. He was also a man of peace and very kind. Sometimes I wonder how he put up with my mom," Sarah comments, a faint smile on her face.
"Today, I just want to retire soon to take care of my family. I want to watch my children grow up and start their own families. I'm old enough to be a grandfather, but I think it'll still be a while, considering Andrius is eight and Valéria is five," Viktor says, laughing and looking at his children.
A short while later, Amélia arrives with dinner, and everyone eats and talks about life. The girls praise Amélia's cooking, even though it's a bit bland for an Earthly palate, as there are no spices known to the people here. Afterward, the captain accompanies the girls back to the castle.
"I'll say my goodbyes here, girls," Viktor says softly. "Now get some rest, 'cause you're going to need it tomorrow. I'm counting on you all so everything goes smoothly, and I can focus on the most important mission of my life: taking care of my family."
"You can count on us. And thank you for tonight," Amanda replies.
Thus, the girls go to bed feeling that this intimidating man is far more human than most they had ever known.