Iris then said, "Since we are tired today from excessive practice, I've taken the liberty to decide our practice method, which will focus solely on improving our defense."
"Once you've chosen a puppet and installed the beast core, it will attack you with basic moves, gradually increasing in intensity."
"When you feel the intensity is sufficient, you can say 'stop' to set the puppet to that level, while the 'pause' command will stop the puppet entirely," Iris instructed both Max and Sophia.
Max and Sophia started searching for the right puppets, but it left them in a dilemma. They wanted to try every puppet, yet they knew it was impossible to train them all at once.
Iris, noticing their problem, laughed and said, "Brother, please select one first, as these puppets are designed specifically for the castle. You can practice with them all day starting tomorrow."
This made both Max and Sophia set their thoughts aside, realizing that the puppets wouldn't be assigned any duties outside of their practice.
Max chose a spear-wielding puppet, while Sophia selected a puppet with a dagger to practice their close combat techniques.
Iris, noticing their chosen training puppets, stepped forward and instructed them to register their life signatures, which would aid in controlling the puppets. Once they completed the registration, Iris placed the beast cores at the center of their chests and directed them to take their stances.
With a wave of her hand, she presented Max and Sophia with white battle suits and weapons adorned with glowing inscriptions, making them appreciate the value of these precious items.
Max took them into his hand felt the battle suit was smooth which looked like a thin cloth and various runes on them.
Noticing his hesitation, Iris explained, "These battle suits are made from the hides of water magic beasts, and our guild's alchemy master's, have worked hard to make them durable enough to endure a strike from a Tier 2 extraordinary person without taking any damage."
"The weapons are also made from monster bones and are capable of injuring Tier 2 extraordinary monsters. If you strike their weak spot, you can kill them instantly."
Both Max and Sophia were surprised by hearing the details. They headed to the changing room, put on their battle suits, picked up their weapons, and walked toward their selected puppet, issuing the start command.
Max chose the spear puppet and selected a spear as his weapon. In the ocean, it is always better to impale the monster rather than stab it with a sword.
The puppet began moving stiffly at first, but as the magic input increased, its movements became smooth. It started performing various techniques and quickly got into a battle-ready position.
As Max approached its attack range, the puppet immediately launched an attack with a simple thrust motion. Max intercepted it with a swift swipe to the side, and the clash of weapons echoed with a loud clang, clang sound.
Soon the puppet moved in rhythm, allowing Max to defend easily at first. However, as the weapons began colliding, the puppet increased its intensity, putting immense pressure on him.
Sweating, Max found it increasingly difficult to keep up. If he didn't focus, he risked being overwhelmed by the puppet's relentless attacks. He grimaced in pain as the battle suit shielded him from serious harm, but the impact of the weapons still left him hurting.
Soon, he was knocked down onto the floor of the training room by a sweep from the battle puppet, causing Max to lose. He quickly commanded it to pause, stopping the puppet from attacking any further. As he saw the puppet halt, he finally felt a sense of relief.
After resting for a few seconds, he leaned on the spear for support, stood up with difficulty, and noticed Sophia watching from the side.
He brushed the dust off himself, walked toward her with a smile, and asked why she was observing him instead of practicing. Embarrassed, she blushed and admitted that she had already been defeated by the puppet, felt extremely tired, and had stopped practicing after just one attempt today.
"Where is Iris?" Max asked, confused, as he noticed she wasn't beside Sophia and caught her giving him a teasing look.
Max immediately realized that she was still facing the battle puppet, which made his face burn with shame as he understood what it represented. The puppet's intensity increased depending on how long ago the practice had started.
Soon he went to next room and saw Iris was in heated duel in with the battle puppet.
The puppet launched a flurry of attacks with its longsword, forcing Iris into a frantic defense as sweat dripped from her face to the ground.
As the puppet increased its intensity once again, Iris struggled to hold her ground, eventually missing a block and getting knocked to the ground. With a quick pause command, she stopped the puppet's assault.
Iris sat up, catching her breath, then slowly stood and instructed the puppet to remain on standby and return to its previous position. She walked over to Max and Sophia with a smile on her face.
"Wow, Iris, you, who couldn't even beat a street dog before, can now last a whole minute longer than me. That's some nice progress," Max said sarcastically.
Iris blushed and playfully made a threatening motion to bite him, which sent Sophia into a fit of laughter.
Maybe the laughter was contagious, causing Iris and Max to laugh out loud until their stomachs hurt. They then went back to their rooms to freshen up, changed into regular clothes, and met in the dining room. There, a variety of dishes were served that whetted their appetite just by looking at them. They eagerly dug into the food and finished everything on their plates.
After taking a short rest, Max was informed by Iris that the alchemy guild would send a master at 6 a.m. the next morning to teach them alchemy. She reminded them to wake up early since most alchemists would be busy after 9 a.m. and unavailable to teach.
Max happily agreed to the assignment and noticed Sophia nodding in agreement as well. They then returned to their rooms and slept contentedly.