The Last Legendary Weapons Master: Rise of the strongest player

Chapter 145: Training to Survive

The Third Squad successfully gained the support of everyone present, and Ethan replaced Gustav with Moon Heart as the new overall leader after the latter lost the support of every Hunter aside from the two surviving members of his own squad.

By placing Moon Heart at the head of all the Hunters, Ethan had effectively gained influence over their future decisions.

He could now lead from the shadows.

Moon trusted him.

She listened to him.

Far better than Gustav ever would, considering Ethan had never shared any real connection with the former captain in the first place.

After the rest of the Hunters joined their side, even the First Squad eventually yielded as well, realizing they would never survive alone.

"You’re leading all of us toward destruction."

Gustav spoke with anger before turning around and leaving, still surrounded by members of the Third Squad.

Neither Ethan nor the others bothered responding.

They simply watched him leave in silence while the remnants of his squad followed behind him.

The First Squad would still accompany them.

But Ethan did not trust them.

Nor did he trust their stance.

Because of that, he quietly placed a hand on young Chai Heart’s shoulder.

The boy immediately understood the signal and connected to Ethan through telepathy.

The cursed Hunter spoke calmly through their mental link.

’Chai... I want you to keep watching the First Squad.’

’Especially Gustav.’

Young Chai narrowed his eyes slightly after hearing that.

’Do you think they’ll betray us?’

’I doubt they’ll go that far,’ Ethan replied.

’But after we turned against them like this... they may try something eventually.’

Chai nodded carefully.

’Then you can rely on me.’

’I’ll keep my eyes on them at all times.’

Ethan smiled faintly before gently patting the boy’s head.

’I know I can rely on you.’

And he truly meant it.

Ethan understood very well just how extraordinary the young boy standing before him actually was.

Chai was far greater than he appeared.

After all—

He was the youngest Hunter in recorded history.

The only Hunter ever permitted to become one at the age of fourteen, granted special exception to the rule requiring adulthood at eighteen.

Even Luna, the astonishing witch...

Moon, bearer of the Phoenix Blessing...

And Verso, the cursed prodigy of the Second Squad...

None of them had received such an exception despite their monstrous talent.

Yet Chai had.

By direct order of the Senate itself.

That alone proved he was no ordinary child.

And Ethan understood that clearly, which was why he had intentionally drawn close to him from the start.

When Ethan patted his head, a trace of embarrassment appeared on the young boy’s face.

He looked strangely happy, treating the gesture almost like praise.

Despite his talents and abilities—

He was still just a teenager in the end.

And there was no easier way to deal with someone his age than this.

Meanwhile, while Ethan secretly exchanged thoughts with Chai—

Moon had already finished giving her orders.

She announced they would move the moment Jackson recovered.

Their single greatest trump card.

The only reason their chances of success still existed.

The giant Hunter lay behind them on his back, fully conscious of everything happening around him.

Yet he remained silent the entire time without uttering a single word.

"You seem awfully quiet."

Raiden approached him after noticing he was awake.

"Don’t tell me you’re finally about to die."

Jackson shifted his eyes toward him without moving his head, his neck injured badly enough to make even that difficult.

Still wearing his usual grin, he narrowed his eyes slightly.

"The day I die hasn’t come yet."

His voice sounded weak and faint compared to normal, proving just how terrible his condition truly was.

Naturally, Raiden noticed that.

So he sat beside him, the two silently watching the remaining Hunters from afar before Raiden spoke again.

"You were conscious the entire time."

"So why didn’t you intervene?"

"I’m pretty sure your opinion would’ve changed a lot back there."

He asked in confusion, still surprised Jackson had remained silent while the Hunters split apart earlier.

The giant chuckled quietly in amusement.

"I’ve no interest in interfering with conflicts between your kind."

"I never truly belonged among you in the first place."

"I’m nothing more than an old ghost still wandering this city."

Jackson smiled faintly before continuing in the same weak tone.

"Besides..."

"I’m completely helpless right now."

"Any one of you could kill me."

"And the weak have no right to an opinion."

"That boy... Ethan understood that perfectly, which is why he never once tried asking for my help."

"He’s good at reading the situation around him."

Raiden smiled bitterly after hearing that.

"Sometimes..."

"I wonder who the real leader here actually is."

"Most of the important decisions come from him."

"And even when he says nothing, he still influences things one way or another."

"And that," Jackson replied,

"Is exactly what makes him special."

Seeing the giant Hunter praise Ethan so openly reminded Raiden of one important truth.

Jackson had only joined them because of Ethan in the first place.

Had Ethan not existed—

Jackson likely would have remained inside the arena forever.

None of the others had given him any reason to fight again.

And so...

The days slowly passed.

The Hunters sharpened their weapons in silence while hiding in the outskirts, waiting for Jackson to recover before returning to the battlefield once more.

The outskirts remained strangely peaceful.

No monsters had appeared there after the Hunters spent three entire months exterminating everything within the area.

Yet the tension never disappeared.

Everyone feared monsters from the depths might suddenly leave their territories abnormally, just like the Iron Demon of the Cathedral had done before.

Because of that, they remained constantly vigilant.

At least four Hunters stood guard at all times.

During the waiting period, the Hunters spent their days in different ways.

Some did absolutely nothing.

Others continued training relentlessly to grow stronger.

And Ethan was the perfect example of the latter.

Every morning after waking up, the cursed Hunter trained alongside Raiden under Jackson’s guidance for hours, tempering their physical abilities to the limit.

The training involved tying massive weights to their backs and carrying enormous loads in both hands while walking long distances without using Aura Armor.

There were no proper weights inside Old Ashvarn.

So they used rubble and giant stones instead.

Soon, the sight of Ethan and Raiden walking around the camp carrying massive boulders on their backs and huge rocks in their hands became completely normal.

Jackson’s training was not human.

It was utterly monstrous.

So brutal that Raiden collapsed unconscious at the end of every session.

Ethan, however, was different.

Although he suffered from intense pain and overwhelming exhaustion after the physical training as well...

He still endured enough to remain standing.

And it went beyond simply remaining conscious.

The moment Jackson’s training ended, Ethan would pull a longsword from his arsenal and repeatedly practice the fundamentals of the Asterion Sword Style without pause or boredom.

Sometimes, he even sparred against Moon Heart herself.

She practiced the same style and possessed far greater mastery over it, helping Ethan sharpen his understanding and improve rapidly...

Though battles like those usually left him with several fresh wounds at minimum.

"Your understanding of my grandfather’s sword style improves every time we spar."

Moon spoke after throwing Ethan onto the ground once again, returning her flaming sword to its sheath.

"Soon, you won’t just be a beginner anymore."

Then she added while extending a hand to help him up.

"But your progress is somewhat slow..."

"Because you never use it in real combat."

Ethan grabbed her hand without hesitation and pulled himself back to his feet, enduring both the pain from his new injuries and the exhaustion from Jackson’s training before answering after catching his breath.

"I know..."

"But unfortunately, the Asterion Sword Style doesn’t work well with my current main weapon."

That was yet another problem bothering Ethan deeply.

The Executioner’s Sword possessed a unique method of combat through telekinesis, and the weapon itself was far too heavy due to being an enormous greatsword.

Which made it fundamentally incompatible with the Asterion Style—

A sword art built entirely around overwhelming speed, fluid movement, and rapid strikes.

He needed another weapon alongside the Executioner’s Sword.

One equal to it in power—

Or perhaps even greater.

But the opportunity had not appeared yet.

"Then continue training until you obtain a suitable weapon," Moon said.

Ethan smiled faintly before turning away from her.

"That’s exactly what I intended to do from the beginning."

The moment he left Moon behind, Ethan headed toward the younger sister who always remained alone by herself.

Luna was quietly writing something across several empty scrolls she had brought with her.

The instant she noticed Ethan approaching, a faint trace of annoyance appeared on her face as she watched him stand before her and greet her as though the countless wounds covering his body were nothing more than decoration.

"You..."

"Are you even human?"

"I think so. Yes."

Ethan answered while sitting down in front of her.

And the reason for his visit was obvious.

"I want to continue learning magic today as well."

He repeated the same words he told her every single day.

Learning magic had become the final thing Ethan did each day after finishing his physical training and sword practice.

And so ...

From the beginning of the day until its very end...

The cursed Hunter spent every waking moment doing nothing except training.