The training continued after that.

And strangely enough…

Condensing mana itself slowly became the easiest part.

His body already started adapting to it naturally.

Now his biggest challenge was timing.

Predicting the exact moment Lyra's fist would land.

Feeling the incoming force.

Reacting properly.

The process became almost instinctive after enough repetition.

Torren stared closely at every movement Lyra made.

The shift in her shoulder.

The movement of her hips.

The slight tightening of her arm before impact.

He unconsciously started predicting the strikes.

Trying to match his pulse timing better each round.

And the results improved steadily.

Not perfect yet… far from it.

But undeniably improving.

Even Lyra noticed how quickly he adapted.

Honestly, it surprised her a little.

"Good," she praised after another successful attempt. "You're learning faster now."

Torren exhaled heavily.

"That's because getting punched repeatedly is very convincing."

Lyra shook her head slightly as she smiled.

"You'll thank me later."

"Probably," Torren admitted while rolling his sore shoulder.

Then he lifted the shield again anyway.

"Again."

That response alone made Lyra smile faintly once more.

Meanwhile, Arthur continued guiding Mel through her own training nearby.

"Bite."

Mel lunged instantly.

"Retreat."

The cub jumped backward smoothly before circling another obstacle.

Arthur nodded approvingly.

But just as he prepared to give another instruction…

A familiar interface suddenly appeared before his eyes.

And the moment he saw it…

A smile slowly spread across his face again.

At this point, Arthur should have been used to it.

After all, this wasn't even the first skill awakened today.

Yet the excitement still remained.

That small feeling of anticipation always hit him whenever the system recognized someone's intent.

Especially now.

Because Torren's growth honestly felt satisfying to watch.

Arthur lifted his gaze from the interface and looked toward the training area again.

BOOM.

Lyra's fist slammed into the shield once more.

The sound echoed through the hall sharply.

Torren's boots dragged against the floor as his entire body shook from the impact, but unlike before, he didn't almost collapse from it anymore.

His shield stayed up.

Barely… but it stayed.

Sweat dripped from his jaw while his arm trembled heavily under the pressure.

Even from a distance, Arthur could tell how monstrous the commander's strikes actually were.

The scary part was how casual she looked while doing it.

No exaggerated movements. No loud shouting.

Just one clean punch.

Simple and direct.

Yet every single impact carried frightening force behind it.

Arthur knew that feeling too well.

He had been on the receiving end enough times already.

That woman hit like she had personal issues with your bones.

So seeing Torren survive this long already showed massive improvement.

Earlier in the training, those same punches nearly threw him off balance every single time.

Now?

He was actually enduring them.

Adjusting. Learning.

And the interface before Arthur only confirmed it further.

Torren's intent had reached the system.

Arthur smiled slightly.

The guy really earned this one.

Without hesitating anymore, he mentally selected YES.

The system responded instantly.

✦══════════════════════════════════════✦

❂ SOVEREIGN INTENT SYSTEM ❂

✦══════════════════════════════════════✦

⟦ Intent Points Deducted ⟧

✦ -10 IP ✦

⟦ Skill Engraving Initiated ⟧

Anchoring Shield Conduction…

Hardening Grip Pathway…

Synchronizing Footing Nodes…

Engraving Pulse Rhythm…

━━━ ALLY SKILL AWAKENED ━━━

Skill Name: Iron Pulse Guard

Rank: E

Type: Defensive / Reinforcement

⟦ Description ⟧

A defensive technique that condenses mana into the shield arm, grip, and stance muscles, then releases it in a controlled pulse at the moment of impact.

Instead of simply blocking, Torren's guard becomes a reinforced anchor point that disperses force into the ground.

⟦ Core Effects ⟧

• Shield Density Compression

Mana condenses into Torren's forearm, wrist, and shield surface, increasing durability and resistance to impact.

• Impact Pulse Layer

At the instant of contact, Torren releases a short pulse of mana that hardens his guard and reduces recoil.

Enemies feel as if they struck solid iron.

• Stance Lock (Anchor Mode)

For a brief moment after pulsing, Torren's footing becomes extremely stable.

Knockback resistance increases drastically.

• Force Dispersion Channel

A portion of incoming force is redirected downward through his legs, reducing internal injury and arm strain.

• Guard Weight Pressure

When the skill activates, the air pressure around Torren's shield thickens slightly, creating a heavy defensive presence that disrupts enemy momentum.

⟦ Passive Trait ⟧

Rhythm Memory

The more consecutive hits Torren blocks, the faster his pulse timing improves.

His body begins to predict impact through instinct.

⟦ Limitations ⟧

• Pulse timing must be accurate to reach full effect

• Continuous usage causes arm fatigue and mana strain

• Stronger enemies may still overpower the guard if Torren loses footing

✦══════════════════════════════════════✦

Arthur read through everything carefully.

And honestly?

The skill was ridiculous.

His smile widened slowly the more he understood it.

This wasn't just some simple reinforcement ability.

The whole thing perfectly matched Torren.

A true defensive monster.

Arthur could already picture future battles in his head.

Torren standing at the front while attacks crashed into him one after another…

Only for him to remain standing like a wall nobody could push through.

The "Force Dispersion" alone was already crazy.

Instead of taking impacts directly into his body, the skill redirected part of the force downward through his stance.

That meant less strain.

Less recoil.

Less openings.

And then there was the "Impact Pulse."

Arthur almost laughed imagining how annoying that would feel to fight against.

An enemy swings with full force… and suddenly it feels like they punched solid steel.

Even the passive trait "Rhythm Memory" was insane.

The more hits Torren blocked, the better his body adapted to the timing naturally.

The skill literally rewarded him for doing his job.

Arthur shook his head slightly in admiration.

"Damn," he muttered quietly. "She really turned him into a fortress."

Honestly, seeing the practical effects was what interested him most now.

Reading the skill was one thing.

Watching it happen live?

That was the fun part.

So Arthur lowered the interface slightly and stole another glance toward Lyra and Torren.

Neither of them realized the surprise waiting for them.

Torren raised his shield again while breathing heavily.

His arms looked exhausted already.

But his eyes stayed focused.

"Again," he said.