After entering THE NIGHT THE DAWN, I finally realized that Ameno Yotsuba’s so-called “special training” was nothing like the satisfying process I had imagined—full of system notifications, skill unlocks, and skyrocketing numbers.
Instead, it was calm to the point of being almost cruel.
There was no sky, no horizon, and nothing that could even be called a “view.”
The ground beneath my feet was a flat gray-white plane stretching all the way to the edge of my vision, like a canvas that had been completely stripped of meaning.
“This is the basic simulation zone.”
Ameno Yotsuba stood not far away, his tone calm.
“All skills are locked by default, and numerical fluctuations are reduced to the minimum.”
I instinctively pulled up my status window.
The skill bar was completely grayed out, and even the usual system notification sounds that I had grown used to were gone.
“…So this is where I come to question my life?”
“Pretty much.”
I sighed.
Sure enough, getting stronger through shortcuts had never been part of his plan from the start.
“The training is divided into three parts.”
Ameno Yotsuba continued. “Strength, agility, magic power.”
“BHAO abandoned the visible level system and simply hid those values deeper.”
“We players in BHAO can’t see our levels. But if you use the correct training method, your body can feel those stats growing stronger.”
I frowned.
“So what do you want me to do right now?”
Ameno Yotsuba raised his hand and signaled for me to move to the designated spot.
“We’ll start with strength.”
He said, “Throw a punch.”
“Just… throwing a punch?”
“Yes.”
I looked at my own hand.
Honestly, this primitive, almost barbaric training method felt a little alien to me.
No skill effects, no numerical feedback, not even a hit confirmation.
But the moment I threw my first punch, I immediately realized something.
This punch truly belonged to me.
It wasn’t an action completed by a skill for me, nor was it the optimal solution corrected by the system.
It was simply—driven by my own body.
“Keep going.”
Ameno Yotsuba’s voice remained completely flat.
Second punch.
Third punch.
My arms started to heat up, and my shoulders began to ache faintly.
“…Hey, are you sure this method actually works?”
“It does.”
His answer was straightforward. “But only if, while you’re throwing the punch, you’re thinking about what you truly want.”
“What I truly want?”
My movement paused.
What surfaced in my mind wasn’t a specific person or some grand goal.
It was a feeling.
The feeling of being in THE NIGHT THE DAWN, unbound by my real-world identity, by expectations, or by “who you’re supposed to be.”
A place where I could fly, escape, fail, and start over.
A place that truly allowed me to exist however I wanted.
I threw another punch.
This time, as my fist flew forward, I clearly felt something deep inside my body being pulled taut.
It wasn’t just an increase in strength. It was a will that said, I want to stand here.
“Very good.”
Ameno Yotsuba nodded.
“Strength training isn’t about defeating anyone. It’s about making your body remember that you want to stay in this world.”
…Those words sounded surprisingly unlike something a KING would say.
The punching continued for a long time.
Only when my arms began to tremble uncontrollably did Ameno Yotsuba raise his hand to signal me to stop.
“Next, agility.”
The moment he spoke, the ground beneath my feet vibrated faintly.
A straight line with no visible end extended ahead.
“Start moving your legs. Run.”
He said.
“…Run?”
“Yes. No skills, no acceleration effects—just your body.”
I took a deep breath and began to move.
At first it was just a light jog, but it quickly turned into a full sprint.
My breathing grew ragged, and faint white light appeared at the edges of my vision.
“Don’t stare at the finish line.”
Ameno Yotsuba’s voice came from behind me. “Focus on where your next step will land.”
I gritted my teeth.
Running should have been the simplest thing.
Yet in THE NIGHT THE DAWN, once every aid was stripped away, it became a raw confrontation.
Confronting fatigue.
Confronting fear.
Confronting the temptation that whispered, It’s fine to stop.
But I didn’t want to stop.
Not because I had to finish the training.
But because I wanted to run freely in this world.
Even if it was just this meaningless straight line.
When I was on the verge of falling, my body somehow adjusted its center of gravity on its own.
My steps became lighter, and the rhythm stabilized.
“The essence of agility,”
Ameno Yotsuba said softly, “is not speed, but not being tripped by the world.”
I was panting, yet I couldn’t help smiling.
It really was… very much his style.
Finally, magic power.
There was no complicated chanting and no gorgeous magic circles.
He simply had me stand in place and raise my hand.
“Feel the flow of energy inside your body.”
He said. “Don’t release it yet. Just understand it.”
I closed my eyes.
Inside me were two kinds of power—black energy that was mysterious and solemn, and white energy that was gentle and delicate. They intertwined and flowed slowly through my body.
It was different from the cold, sharp magic power I had felt as the pure Night Witch.
Now the magic felt more like a fusion of light and darkness.
The midpoint between day and night—dawn.
Gentle, yet enduring.
“Magic power is not a weapon.”
Ameno Yotsuba’s voice was low. “It is the connection between you and this world.”
“Don’t treat it like ordinary energy.”
I finally understood.
The real purpose of this training wasn’t to make me stronger.
It was to carve the thought I want to live in this world into my body, bit by bit.
Punching was to stand firm.
Running was to move forward.
Magic power was to coexist with the world.
When I opened my eyes, the training space was still completely empty.
Yet for the first time, I felt that
this place was truly free.
“…To be honest.”
I looked up at Ameno Yotsuba.
“This kind of training is really exhausting.”
He glanced at me.
“But you don’t hate it.”
I didn’t deny it.