17.) Weak

"Don't like to admit it, but Trevor was right when he said you were lucky," said Lily.

"How was Dawn lucky? That thing nearly killed her!" said Kris with a scowl. Flashes of Dawn getting smashed and tossed around and coughing up blood appeared in his head.

"Hey, don't get angry! These are common for beginner Players, but you should sober up now as this will come and bite you in the ass later on." Lily raised her hands in defense, pointing Dawn with a serious look.

"Based on what you told me, this Flame Griffin only has two attack skills that it mainly uses and tends to leave itself open for attacks. Dawn's agility is what gave her the advantage of defeating it, but this won't be the same for other monsters... or people," Lily broke down the facts and explained, putting an emphasis on that last word.

"These are troubling times. Laws and government no longer exist. Meaning your opponents, are not just the man-eating monsters roaming outside, but the desperate and greedy humans, willing to do anything to get the upper hand," Lily lectured them.

"Now, I want you to activate the same skill I saw you use during your fight with Trevor, and come at me with everything you got!" Lily ordered and got into a fighting stance.

Dawn was a little unsure at first, confused why Lily was demanding for them to fight but did as the woman said.

"Alright, here I come!"

Dawn transformed and used her speed to appear before Lily, ready to attack the woman when a flare of intense pain in her abdomen made her drop to her knees. A hand clutched the spot Lily just kneed her.

"You're fast, but you tend to leave yourself wide open for attacks. Again! Get up and strike me!" Lily calmly analyzed and ordered.

Dawn gritted her teeth. The wounds she suffered from Trevor's brutal attack plus the ones she gained from the Flame Griffin still had not fully healed. Standing on her feet, she ignored the stabbing pain in her stomach.

This time she raced forward and aimed a kick at Lily. Only to become frustrated when the other reacted by grabbing her leg and flipped them on the mat before caging the smaller girl with her powerful bone-crushing thighs.

"Again! You keep rushing in blindly without thinking!" Lily lectured, watching Dawn struggle long enough before Lily released her. "Attack me again!" Lily got to her feet and ordered for the third time.

This match between the two continued until noon. A crowd had gathered around the ring. Trevor was making his way to his favorite punching bag when his eyebrow lifted in curiosity when he spotted the group and made his way through.

"Just how long has this one-sided beatdown been going on?"

"Since early this morning! Got to hand it to the girl for hanging in there that long!"

Trevor's ears took in what was said from the crowd. Making his way up front, Trevor was just in time to see Lily land a hard jab on Dawn's face that sent the girl sprawling to the ground.

Such a scene roused a bark of joyful laughter from Trevor. "So the old man ordered you to train the pipsqueak, huh? Tch, what good will it do? A weakling will forever remain at the bottom of the food chain! Hahaha!"

Trevor's boisterous laughter was like the hammer of reality that Dawn refused to believe.

'Yet... I can't even land a single blow on Lily, who is not using her full strength! I don't want to be like I was in the past, spending my days lonely and afraid. Wishfully believing that I too can live a life similar to those awe-inspiring female heroines!'

Dawn dwelled as a proud image of Ara flashed in her head.

"In the jungle, the strong prey upon the weak." Trevor's fist started to glow an ominous red color. When the crowd saw this, immediately their blood ran cold, some cursing Trevor's wild behavior as they dispersed and looked for cover. Lily did the same as her face paled before yelling in outrage.

"Trevor, don't you dare! You'll freaking kill her, you asshole!"

"And?" The energy that came from his fist was mana that he was building up. A crazed look of excitement entered his eyes as he swung his fist forward. A raw blast of mana ripped through the floor and headed directly at Dawn, who watched with fear-laced eyes.

Dawn quickly covered her eyes before the blast tore through the ring when ice glaciers sprouted from the ground. When she opened her eyes again, only a single pillar of ice endured as the attack had destroyed the others. Aware of the one who had come to her aide, she pointed her eyes at Rin and felt grateful for the other's interference.

Rin stood calmly before Dawn. A murderous aura spilled from his eyes, a tinge of red seeping into his crystal blue irises . Rin, whose desire to kill Trevor flared and covered the room, choking Kris with fear, wondering yet again why Dawn joined hands with a psychopathic blood-thirsty elf. But when he thought about the move Trevor just pulled, putting Dawn's life in jeopardy, a part of him felt the same.

Noticing someone wished death upon him did nothing but make Trevor excited. A feral grin stretched across his face, eyes clashing with those of Rin.

"An ice-user, eh? I guess that pipsqueak has some strong allies," Trevor muttered, before turning around and strolling towards his favorite punching bag.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Lily ran towards Dawn. "Dawn, are you okay?" Lily fretted when she got no response from the girl. Entering the ring, Kris and Rin raced towards the brunette, anxiously calling out her name, but she was stuck in a stupor.

"I'm so weak. Even after I was bestowed this powerful gift, I'm still the same scaredy-cat that cries for others to help her. I'm... pathetic!" Dawn's eyes glazed over as she cried. Unable to find the strength to move when a smack to the face shocked her awake.

"Stop crying over how helpless you are because of this one setback! You can't allow Trevor's words to get to you!" Lily cupped Dawn's brown cheeks and stared into the girl's brown eyes.

"So what, you were a coward in your past? Aren't we all afraid of something? Nobody is perfect, Dawn! The only way to defeat your fears is by conquering them. Starting first with Trevor!" Dawn shot Lily a confused look as the latter helped her to her feet.

"By the time I'm done training you, I swear you'll be able to land at hit upon Trevor's stupid smug face!" Lily said proudly with both hands on her hips.

"H-Huh?!!!" expressed a flabbergasted Dawn.