Torturous Training

The moment Luke's body hit the bed, exhaustion claimed him. His limbs felt like lead, his mind foggy from the rollercoaster of events. He slept like a log, barely shifting the entire night. The last thing he remembered was the strange purple orb—Talent Orb, as it called itself—and its mechanical voice echoing in his head.

When the first rays of sunlight peeked through his window, a sharp ding rang in his mind.

[Daily Quest Generated!]

Luke groaned, rolling over in bed. Not this again…

[Quest: Foundation Training – Day 1]

Objective: Complete the morning training routine.

Penalty for ignoring the quest: No progress toward goal

He squeezed his eyes shut, determined to ignore it.

[Reminder: Your goal is to become a great actor. Rejecting the quest means rejecting your dream.]

Luke's eyes snapped open. Damn it. The orb knew exactly how to get under his skin.

With a sigh, he threw off the covers and got up. "Fine, you win," he muttered, rubbing his stiff neck.

Luke stepped outside, stretching his arms. The crisp morning air did little to wake him up fully.

[Training Start!]

Warm-Up: Jump Rope – 3 minutes

At first, it was easy, but soon, his breath became heavy, and his arms started to ache.

Push-ups – 3 sets of 15

By the second set, his arms trembled. The last few push-ups felt impossible.

Squats – 3 sets of 20

His legs burned by the second set. By the third, he questioned every life choice that led him here.

Plank – 3 sets of 40 seconds

His entire body shook. He barely made it to the last second before collapsing.

Burpees – 3 sets of 10

Pure torture.

By the time he finished, Luke lay flat on the ground, chest heaving. His muscles screamed in protest.

"W-Was that really just day one?" he panted, wiping sweat off his face.

[Talent Orb Special Reward Unlocked!]

A cool sensation spread from his abdomen, traveling through his limbs like an icy wave. Relief flooded his body, easing the worst of the soreness.

Luke gasped, flexing his fingers. His muscles still ached, but the pain had dulled significantly.

"Whoa… this is insane!" he muttered.

[Recovery Boost: Slightly heals fatigue and muscle stress.]

Luke grinned. "Alright, Orb, I have to admit—you're kinda awesome."

[Acknowledged.]

He chuckled. "You could at least say 'thank you.'"

[Processing… Thank you.]

That made him laugh even harder.

Feeling refreshed, Luke took a shower and had his breakfast—scrambled eggs, whole wheat toast, and a banana.

As he scrolled through K-Tube, he saw countless creators getting millions of views. I need to start somewhere…

An idea struck him. Why not make a comedy skit?

Setting up his phone, he recorded a creative video about his "first day of training," exaggerating his workout stances and struggles. He pretended to collapse after one push-up, rolled on the floor dramatically, and even voiced the Talent Orb in an overly robotic tone.

After some quick edits, he uploaded it to K-Tube with the title: "When You Try to Work Out for the First Time,while an AI is guiding you… and Regret Everything."

Satisfied, he put his phone away. Not expectating anything from the video and uploaded it purely for fun.

Grandpa thinking that luke might be getting bored in the house after he leaves, he invites luke to the farm.

"Luke! Get ready, we're going to the farm," his grandfather called.

Luke groaned but obeyed. As he respects his grandfather and owed him for letting him stay here.

At the farm, his grandfather taught him about crops, soil quality, and irrigation techniques, initially he was not interested in the farm stuff but as time went by he got interested in farming.

"Farming is like life, Luke," his grandfather said. "You plant the seeds, nurture them, and wait patiently for results."

Luke nodded, reflecting on his own journey. Just like my dream…

By the time they finished, he was covered in dirt but felt strangely accomplished.

Then they both took a lunch break, they have packed a very large lunchbox as his grandfather was a glutton and he was also feeling very hungry after farming.

That night, after a refreshing shower, Luke lazily picked up his phone.

His eyes widened. The thing he never expected happened to him.

K-Tube Video: 5.2k Views

Likes: 1k

"What the—"

He clicked on the comments.

"Bro, this is too real 🤪🤪"

"The robotic voice killed me 🤣🤣"

"Dude, I feel your pain 🥺🥺"

"MORE PLZ!!"

Luke stared in shock.

His video was actually getting attention.

For the first time in a long time, hope flickered inside him.

Maybe… just maybe… this was the start of something big.

"I can become a superstar...ha ha ha." Luke cried tears of joy, as hope flickered after a long time.