Morning at the resort came colder than the day before.
A thin layer of mist clung to the trees as Einar stepped into the training clearing, still half-asleep, hair messy, towel around his neck. The world felt quiet… too quiet.
Dean stood in the center, arms folded, eyes sharp as a blade.
Einar shivered.
"…Sensei. Why do you look like you're planning a murder?"
"Because I am." Dean pointed at the ground. "Get ready."
Einar groaned. "My bones still hurt from yesterday—"
"Good. Today will hurt more."
"I hate this place."
"You'll thank this place when you don't die later."
Einar muttered a string of curses under his breath as Dean smirked.
⸻
Warm-Up — The Mountain Sprint
Dean pointed to the forest path.
"Run up the mountain. Don't stop until you reach the stone torii gate."
Einar swallowed. "The one we passed by? That's far—"
"Then you'd better hurry."
"But—"
Dean raised a finger. "Go."
Einar bolted like a terrified squirrel.
⸻
Halfway Up the Path
Einar's heartbeat thundered in his chest. The incline grew steeper with every step. Roots snagged his feet, stones shifted under him, and his lungs threatened to mutiny.
"Why… do I… exist…"
By the time he reached the torii gate, he collapsed, gripping the wooden pillar for support.
Dean arrived moments later.
Walking.
Calmly sipping tea.
"Good time," he said. "Damon reached this point three minutes faster."
Einar jolted.
"What?! Damon ran this?!"
"Every day," Dean said. "For three months."
Einar stared, stunned. "He never told me…"
"Of course not. They don't talk about the pain—they talk about the victory."
Einar's breath hitched. He knew his eldest brothers were strong… but hearing this made it feel real.
"What about Rick?" Einar asked quietly.
Dean took another sip.
"Rick fainted the first week."
Einar blinked. "He WHAT?!"
"Face-first into a tree," Dean added emotionlessly. "He couldn't walk for two hours."
Einar snorted a laugh before he could stop himself.
Dean continued, voice steady.
"But he kept trying. After three weeks, he outran Damon. Pain didn't matter to him. Winning did."
Einar's smile faded slowly.
He straightened.
"…I want to be like them."
Dean looked at him for a long moment.
Not with pity.
Not with doubt.
But with a quiet, heavy seriousness.
"You will be," Dean said. "But only if you push harder than both of them combined."
Einar swallowed hard.
"I will."
"Good," Dean said. "Because we're not done."
Einar dropped to his knees.
"I regret everything."
⸻
Technique Training — Breaking Weakness
Dean drew a circle in the dirt using a bamboo stick.
"Stand in it."
Einar stepped inside.
"This," Dean said, "is your space.
If an opponent steps in… you fail."
Einar nodded.
Dean stepped in.
Einar was sent flying.
He rolled across the ground like a kicked bucket.
"YOU STEPPED IN TOO FAST!"
"You reacted too slow," Dean replied.
Einar stumbled back into the circle.
"Again."
Dean stepped in.
Einar threw a punch—
Dean redirected it and tapped his forehead with two knuckles.
"Dead."
Einar growled.
"AGAIN!"
Dean entered.
Einar pivoted—
Dean grabbed him by the shirt and dropped him to the ground gently.
"Dead again."
Einar grit his teeth.
AGAIN.
AGAIN.
AGAIN.
He lost fifteen times.
Twenty.
Twenty-seven.
The number didn't matter.
But something else did.
On the thirtieth attempt—
Einar moved first.
He didn't block.
He didn't strike wildly.
He slid, stance low, redirecting Dean's incoming arm with precision.
The force didn't hit him.
It passed by.
Dean stopped.
His eyebrow lifted.
"…Good," he murmured.
Einar gasped.
"I—I did it?"
"Barely. And you almost fell. But yes… you did."
Einar flopped onto the ground, exhausted, staring up at the sky.
"I want to be strong like Damon," he said softly. "Like Rick. Like… like you."
Dean didn't respond immediately.
Instead, he sat down beside him, staring at the trees swaying above.
"Damon was power," he said. "Rick was speed."
His voice softened.
"And Leo… was heart."
Einar turned his head slowly.
Dean's eyes distant—
Not sad.
Heavy.
"But you, Einar…" Dean continued.
"You're different from all of them."
Einar blinked.
"…Different how?"
Dean leaned back on his palms, exhaling a slow breath.
"You break… but you don't stay broken."
He tapped Einar's chest. "That's rare. That's dangerous. That's powerful."
Einar's heart thumped loudly.
Dean stood up.
"We're done for the morning."
Einar sat up, eyes wide. "Really?! We're finished—"
"For the morning."
Dean cracked his neck.
"Afternoon is even harder."
Einar collapsed again.
"I hate—"
"You love me. Now get in the bath."
"No I don't—"
"Yes you do."
⸻
Hot Springs — Afternoon Recovery
Steam drifted.
Birds chirped.
Einar soaked with his face half underwater, letting his soul leave his body.
"Sensei…" He mumbled through the water. "Tell me more… about how Damon and Rick trained."
Dean leaned back, arms crossed behind his head.
"Why?"
"Because…" Einar took a breath. "If they survived your torture… then maybe I can too."
Dean snorted.
"Damon cried on day five."
Einar jolted. "HE WHAT?!"
"Ugly crying," Dean added. "Snot everywhere."
Einar burst into hysterical laughter.
"What about Rick?"
"He tried to punch me."
Dean shrugged.
"I put him in the dirt for an hour."
Einar wiped tears from laughing.
"They never told me any of this…"
"Of course not," Dean said. "No one talks about the pain behind greatness."
Einar nodded slowly, voice softening.
"…I'm glad you're training me too."
Dean paused.
Something in his expression softened—just slightly.
"…Then don't die," he said.
Einar looked up.
"I won't."
"You better not," Dean muttered. "I'm not losing another one."
Silence hung for a moment.
Soft. Heavy.
But warm.
Einar closed his eyes and let the steam embrace him.
"Tomorrow…" Dean said, standing, "we begin real combat drills."
Einar's eyes snapped open.
"Real what now—?!"
"You want to be like your brothers?
Then prepare…"
Dean smirked.
"…because tomorrow, I'm not holding back."
Einar choked on the water.
And thus, the second day approached—
with deeper pain…
higher expectations…
and a bond growing stronger through every bruise and breath.