**TOMORROW MORNING**
Sunlight streams through the window, illuminating Mark's broken form on the floor.
The castle clock tower chimes – dawn has arrived...
The day of Hero training – and Mark's scheduled humiliation – has begun.
*MARK'S ROOM, TOMORROW MORNING*
Mark slowly regains consciousness, expecting agony...
But to his surprise, his body feels... restored.
He sits up, rubbing his eyes – the memories of last night's beating still vivid.
He looks down at his hands, then his face in a nearby mirror – no bruises, no swelling.
His Unique Passive skill flashes in his mind:
"Increase your max HP. Regain HP through sleep."
Mark breathes a sigh of relief – he's fully recovered.
But then he glances out the window – the sun is already high...
He jumps up, panic setting in:
"The Hero training... it started at dawn! How long have I slept?!"
The castle clock tower chimes again – Mark's heart sinks:
He's already an hour late.
*EAST CASTLE GATE, HERO TRAINING GROUNDS*
Mark rushes towards the group, out of breath:
He sees Kai, Ryan, Chris, Akira, Hana, Nao – all fully equipped with weapons and armor.
They're about to depart with Viktor, their instructor, leading the way.
The group notices Mark's arrival – their expressions range from annoyance to amusement.
Kai smirks openly, while Ryan hides a snicker behind his hand.
The castle guards stationed nearby exchange discreet glances, stifling grins:
One guard whispers to another, "Looks like the 'Commoner' slept through his wake-up call..."
The other guard chuckles silently, eyes fixed on Mark's flushed face:
"And still showed up thinking he belongs with them."
Viktor turns to Mark, expression neutral:
"Mark. You're... punctual. Sort of. We were about to head out to the Dragon's Spine training grounds. Catch up."
Mark hurries to fall in line, trying to ignore the snickers and smirks:
Viktor nods to one of the guards:
"Give him the training sword."
The guard hands Mark a longsword – its weight feels unfamiliar in his hands.
Mark tries to grip it correctly, but his stance and hold are awkward.
The guards burst into laughter – even Kai and Ryan are grinning openly.
Viktor clears his throat, attempting to hide his own smirk:
"That's enough. Silence."
The laughter ceases, but snickers still linger.
Viktor approaches Mark:
"It seems swordsmanship isn't your forte... yet. Let's try something simpler."
He takes the sword from Mark and nods to the guard again:
"Give him the training knife instead."
Mark receives the knife, feeling embarrassed – its smaller size barely boosts his confidence.
Viktor leans in, voice low:
"Mark, can you even tell me what kind of combat experience you have?"
Mark shakes his head, admitting:
"None... just what I read in that book yesterday."
Viktor nods thoughtfully:
"Given your lack of experience, it's best if you stay at the rear of our formation during training.
We'll focus on survival skills for you first."
Mark nods, feeling embarrassed, and falls back to the end of the line.
As the group begins moving out, Hana slips away from her position beside Nao and approaches Mark:
"Hey, Mark... are you okay?" Hana asks quietly, concern etched on her face.
"You looked really out of breath when you arrived, and... your eyes seem troubled."
Nao watches with interest, lingering close behind Hana.
Mark glances ahead, ensuring Kai and Ryan aren't listening, before responding:
Mark forces a smile, saying:
"Just nervous about training with all of you Heroes... and to be honest, I overslept."
He glances down, scratching the back of his head:
"I stayed up late reading that 'Hero's Guide' book Viktor gave me, and lost track of time."
Hana's expression furrows in puzzlement:
"But... that book only has like, 5 readable pages – just my status and skills list...
How did you stay up late reading something so short?"
Mark's mind races:
*(Oh no, she's onto me... Think of something, ANYTHING...)*
He tries to come up with a casual response:
"Uh, I... was just really analyzing every word, I guess?"
Hana raises an eyebrow:
"Analyzing status and skill lists for hours... You're weird, Mark"
But then her expression turns curious:
"Wait, I want to check something – can I see your copy of the 'Hero's Guide' book later?
Maybe ours just got printed differently or something."
Mark exhales internally, relieved at the delayed request:
"Uh, yeah... sure. I'll show it to you after training today."
Hana nods, seeming to accept this for now:
"Okay, let's catch up with the others before Viktor notices we're lagging behind."
Nao falls into step beside Hana, glancing back at Mark with curiosity.
Mark walks beside Hana and Nao at the back of the formation:
Ryan marches in the middle of the group, glancing back occasionally:
He catches sight of Mark chatting with Hana and his expression turns concerned:
Ryan leans sideways to get Viktor's attention, but then thinks better of it and leans forward instead to whisper to Chris, before turning back to glance at Mark again:
Then he whispers ahead to Kai, who's walking at the front of the formation:
"Kai... I think Mark might be telling Hana about last night."
Kai's head twists slightly, eyes locking onto the back of the formation – onto Mark – with intense anger.
He turns back to face forward, then subtly leans back slightly so Ryan can still hear him:
"He won't dare tell her," Kai whispers harshly.
Ryan leans forward again, voice barely audible:
"But what if he did? She looks really concerned."
Kai's face twists in fury:
"If he breathed a word about last night... he'll regret the first beating was just a warning."
Ryan glances back nervously at Mark, then back at Kai, seeming to share his sentiment.
Kai's voice drops to a menacing whisper,
But before he can finish, Viktor's firm voice cuts through the air:
"Maintain formation, trainees! No breaking rank!"
The group instantly falls silent and obediently closes any gaps between them.
Kai's angry gaze still lingers on the back of the formation, but he turns forward, expression neutral.
Ryan also faces ahead, eyes darting briefly towards Mark before focusing on Viktor.
The entire group marches onward in tense silence, formation intact.