Long needed break

Sol took a deep breath, rolling his shoulders as he prepared himself for the next stage of training. He had come this far, and while exhaustion had previously overwhelmed him, the rest and nourishment had done wonders. He was ready.

"System, initiate the next stage of training."

"Acknowledged. Beginning Stage Three: Temporal Manipulation. Warning: Unlike previous stages, this phase involves direct interaction with time flow. Failure to properly control temporal shifts may result in severe cognitive or physical repercussions. Proceed with caution."

Sol's heart pounded in anticipation. This was it—the moment he had been both dreading and waiting for. The passive benefits of his Time Affinity had already shown him how terrifyingly powerful it could be, but now he was about to step into true manipulation.

"Alright. What's the first exercise?"

"Stage Three: Initial Temporal Displacement. Objective: Influence a controlled object's relative time flow. Exercise One: Slow an object's movement while maintaining its natural momentum."

Sol furrowed his brow. "So, I have to make something slow down… but still move as if it's normal?"

"Correct. Attempt to apply influence on a moving object without disrupting its projected path. Excessive interference may result in unpredictable distortions."

He took a moment to steady himself before looking around for a test subject. Spotting a stray piece of rubble, he picked it up and tossed it into the air, focusing his intent. This was different from just perceiving time—now, he had to actively alter it.

As the rock reached the peak of its arc, Sol reached out with his mind, willing it to slow.

At first, nothing happened. The stone continued its descent at normal speed. He gritted his teeth, narrowing his focus, pushing more of his will into the action.

Then, something clicked.

The air around the rock wavered, as if reality itself was hesitating. The stone's descent slowed—not abruptly, but smoothly, as though it were moving through syrup. It continued its path, but at a fraction of its original speed, drifting almost lazily through the air.

Sol gasped. He had done it.

The system chimed. "Successful initial displacement detected. Continue practice to stabilize efficiency and reduce cognitive strain."

A grin spread across his face. He wasn't just seeing time anymore—he was controlling it.

But mastery would not come easily.

Sol practiced tirelessly for weeks. While he had managed to slow an object once, refining the technique proved exponentially harder. The initial success had been a flicker of understanding, but true control required precision. Each attempt demanded more concentration, and the moment he lost focus, the slowed objects would either snap back to normal speed or move unpredictably.

Worse still, prolonged use of his Time Affinity drained him in a way nothing else had. Unlike his Plant Affinity, which seemed to sustain itself off his life force, manipulating time felt like siphoning pure energy straight from his core. It left him exhausted, disoriented, and on more than one occasion, outright unconscious. Recovery took time, forcing him to space out his training sessions more than he wanted to.

Still, he persisted. Each failure taught him something new. He learned to pace himself, to regulate the amount of energy he expended. He experimented with different levels of influence, pushing objects into a near standstill before letting them resume their natural speed. Slowly but surely, his grasp over time deepened, though he knew he had only begun to scratch the surface of what was possible.

One night, after another grueling session, Sol sat against the base of his glowing tree, panting heavily. Sweat dripped from his brow as he stared at the ceiling, his mind reeling from the strain. Peach nuzzled against his side, letting out a soft chuff, sensing his exhaustion.

He ran a hand through his hair, exhaling slowly. "Damn... this is harder than I thought."

The system chimed in. "Host has made significant progress. Would you like to proceed to the next level of temporal manipulation?"

Sol chuckled weakly. "You really don't let up, do you? Give me a minute."

He plucked a fruit from his tree, taking a slow bite. The revitalizing energy seeped through his body almost instantly, but even that couldn't fully erase the deep fatigue in his bones. He was improving, but he still had a long way to go.

His eyes narrowed as he thought about what came next. He had only slowed time so far—what would happen when he tried to stop it?

He took a deep breath and stood up, rolling his shoulders to shake off the lingering fatigue. "Alright, System. I'm ready. What's the next step?"

"Stage Four: Temporal Stasis. Objective: Halt an object's movement in time while maintaining environmental consistency. Exercise One: Freeze an object in place without disrupting surrounding forces. Warning: Excessive force may cause temporal distortion."

Sol exhaled sharply. "So basically, I have to stop something without making a mess of reality? Great. No pressure."

Spotting another small rock on the ground, he picked it up and tossed it into the air, just as he had during his previous training. This time, instead of simply slowing it, he willed it to stop entirely.

The moment he reached out with his mind, a sharp resistance pushed back against him. Unlike before, where he could manipulate the object's speed, stopping it completely felt like forcing a moving river to freeze mid-flow. His head throbbed from the effort, and the rock barely hesitated before continuing its fall.

Gritting his teeth, he tried again. This time, he focused more intently, pressing against the very concept of motion itself. He could feel the object resisting, like it was trying to escape his grasp.

Then, for a brief moment, it happened.

The rock hovered, motionless in midair. The air around it shimmered unnaturally, as if space itself were holding its breath. But before Sol could even react, a searing pain shot through his skull, and the rock suddenly snapped back into normal motion, dropping to the ground with an unceremonious plop.

Sol stumbled, clutching his head. The searing pain made him stop immediately. He knew he needed a break—if he kept forcing it, he might end up frying his own brain. He exhaled heavily, running a hand through his messy hair. His whole body ached from the relentless training.

With a tired chuckle, he muttered, "Alright, that's enough for now."

He finally got to his feet, stretching his sore limbs. His stomach growled, and he realized that he was getting tired of only eating fruit. He needed real food—something with weight to it. 

Glancing down at himself, he let out another chuckle. His clothes were practically rags at this point, torn and filthy from weeks of nonstop training. "Yeah… I should probably clean up too."

Deciding it was time to take care of himself, he made his way up to the upper floors of the abandoned building. He found an old hotel suite, the room in complete disarray, but surprisingly, most of the amenities still seemed to work. Without a second thought, he stripped down and stepped into the shower, letting the warm water wash away the grime and exhaustion of his training.