The crew walked down the backstreets with Yeoui as the lead.
"Ahhh! I can't take it! That guy is just too scary!" Mephi complained dramatically."
"That's how it is, lass. Can't do nothin' about it but listen." Despite my initially loud impression of him, Barrel seemed like a reasonable enough guy.
"..." Shin was, as usual, completely silent. He didn't seem very interested in anyone or anything around him.
After around ten minutes of navigating the ends of the intricate residential area of District 12, we came upon a small manhole. It was located near an abandoned building with several construction sites in the distance.
Yeoui lifted the man-hole gentle and moved it to the side.
"The entrance to the training grounds is inside. Go in."
The smell that exuded from the manhole was enough to make everyone there gag. Mephi in particular nearly vomited from the repugnant odor.
"Please don't mind the smell...our location is a bit far off, but we need to take the sewers the rest of the way."
One by one, we descended into the sewers. Despite my previous expectations, the lower floor was surprisingly spacious, and there was nearly no water at the base of the corridor.
"We seem to be in an auspicious occasion." said Yin in a flat tone. "The underground network will mostly be dry during our training period, as we shouldn't be expect any rain all week. The walk will also be far less taxing."
"You seem to be fairly knowledgeable about all this, Yin. Have you done all of this before?"
"I have, and I appreciate your asking, Derrick. I am technically the oldest of the recruits to the Venizuma Job Office, aside from the our current trainer Yeoui, that is."
Yeoui interjected, "Yup! I've known the old bastard for since my early days in Fixer work."
THWACK
Yin punched the side of the underground corridor, creating a massive crater in the metal wall. His face was mostly the same, stilted and neutral, yet his veins were bulging out of him like he was going to pop at any moment.
"Hehe~ He gets super jealous of me whenever I say that."
"I...I apologize, Yeoui. The thought of anyone knowing Mr. Anderson more than me severely irritates me. Do not take this personally, please."
Ah, so he's a massive fanboy. He's definitely the weirdest here.
____
We reached the underground clearing. Large pressure control water tanks extended over 200 feet into the air, and were around 100 feet wide. The clearing was large; too large. Merely stepping into the facility made me feel like a dwarf among giants, and the darkness didn't make the place feel any more welcoming.
The lights installed in the ceiling were hardly enough to fully illuminate the surrounding area. I was disturbed, uneasy, and a bit miffed by the landscape.
"Now then, it's time to begin our training."
Yeoui lifted his hand, clenching it into a fist before emanating a wave of Mang. It flowed like water around his hand - gentle, yet rhythmic.
"This is Mang, everyone; an energy source that only a select number of people can wield. It's the basis of all Fixer combat and serves to enhance all aspects of your fighting ability. Each person has a set quantity and quality to their Mang based on it's frequency, but this can change depending on various factors. It's an energy derived from your strongest emotions."
"Given your status as 5th class Fixers, you are only in the awakening phase. It's slightly above the level of a world athlete, but it won't be enough to actually be a decent threat to a Monster. That's why I'm going to force all of you to progress to the second phase; the Control phase."
I raised my hand and asked, "Wait...what do you mean force?"
"Yeah! Is this gonna be one of those super dangerous experiment's I've heard about online?" Mephi added.
"Well, it's exactly as it sounds. Typically, the process of refining one's control of their Mang can take several months, if not years to achieve. However, we simply don't have that amount of time. Thankfully, my ability is the perfect training tool!"
With a single stomp, a wave of Mang flooded the impossibly large space, covering us in a massive barrier. It had a strange soothing effect, akin to soaking in a bath house. He removed his coat and dress shirt, revealing an incredibly lean, yet muscular physique. It was as though his body were expertly crafted from marble.
At that very instant, Yin replied in kind by reinforcing his entire by with Mang. It's ripples were stable, smooth, and enticing like Yeoui's, yet felt slightly lighter.
"Everyone, prepare for battle!"
Yin yelled with an unease that felt rather out of character for him. Until now, I had known him as a poker-faced, albeit extremely jealous and reverent man. This was the first time I've seen him express genuine fear.
"His ability i-"
With an invisible strike, Yin was sent flying dozens of feet away, convulsing and coughing up blood violently.
"Nuh-uh, Yin my boy~ its too early to expose me like that!"
"Say...do you know how to increase one's Mang proficiency, everybody? Normally, clearing one's mind is the safest way..."
Before we would let him finish, Mephi, Barrel, Shin, and I attacked him with an omni-directional assault. We all engaged our Mang to it's maximum capacity, increasing our speed to that of a speeding bullet.
Blue, green, purple, and black light surged into a single point of convergence. It was an inescapable attack without a single opening.
"We hit him! I can feel it!" Barrel declared.
As the dust rose up, however, we were met with a devastating reality. While it was true that we did land our hits against his body...he merely stood there without a single bruise or injury. With a finger, he swatted away our attacks and inflicted invisible attacks.
Yeoui let out a sinister smile before saying, "The quickest way was experience."
We were all blown away by his blindingly fast attacks. He struck my solar plexus with enough force to completely disrupt my senses. My head was spinning, my vision blurred, and my brain churned like slushie.
"G...Gu-Guah! Ack!"
My voice was rough like sandpaper as my brain failed to process any information, like lag hindering one's performance. Sight, smell, taste, touch, hearing - it all blended together into a contorted mess of sensation.
Yeoui, with the same undisturbed smirk, continued his speech. "You recall what I said, yes? Mang is based on your strongest emotions, thus, we must only recreate highly stimulating situations to refine your Mang to it's upmost limits. I will beat you, crush you, twist you, and rip you apart. Over and over, I will put you through hell until you can grasp the true essence of Mang."
He got into a proper fighting stance, exuding a malevolent wave of energy akin to a wild beast. It was nothing like what I fought at the hospital. This thing is leagues above anything I've faced before.
Yet again, my pride went completely to the gutter as I was met with an impossible objective. This man...he's in different dimension than me.
"Now come. Let's kick this week off with a bang, shall we?"