19. – The Hidden House and the Longest Day

Chapter 19 – The Hidden House and the Longest Day

As James looked at Moon and Kai, he finally spoke up.

"Moon sir… actually, in this house, you'll find everything you need. You won't even have to go to the station. There's a private teleporter here," James said with a proud smile.

Both Moon and Kai turned to him in disbelief.

"Wait, what?" Moon blinked.

Kai narrowed his eyes. "There are people who have teleporters in their homes?"

James scratched the back of his head, suddenly turning red. "W-well… actually, it's inside my room. My grandfather got it installed when I was a kid."

Moon and Kai looked at each other, then at James' luxurious home again. For a moment, they were quiet.

"…This guy's on a different level," Moon muttered under his breath.

James smiled awkwardly and quickly changed the topic. "A-anyway, I wanted to ask… when are we starting training?"

Moon gave a small nod, stretching his arms.

"Yeah, let's begin training for the Shifting Expanse," Moon said, rolling his shoulders.

But James quickly interrupted, "No need for that. This house has a training basement. It's built to handle training up to Galactic-level beings. You can go all out and not even a shockwave will reach the upper floor."

Moon's eyes lit up. "No way… show me now!"

Without wasting another second, the three of them made their way downstairs.

As they descended the stairs, Moon suddenly paused halfway and stared down.

"Wait… why does this basement look… massive? This is ten times bigger than the house!"

James grinned. "Oh, yeah. It's space-warped. The interior is stretched using special spatial layering. It's one of the best places to train in."

Moon's jaw dropped. The space looked like an underground stadium. The floor was polished , almost glass-like, with energy-absorbing panels. The air had a strange pressure to it—perfect for combat training.

Moon kept walking, eyes wide, until something caught his attention.

He stopped in front of a massive wall—lined from edge to edge with every kind of weapon imaginable. Swords, spears, bows, axes, gauntlets, staffs—each looked new, powerful, and enchanted.

His hand slowly reached for a sleek black katana with red runes on the hilt. He pulled it out gently and admired its balance.

"You've never seen me use a sword, have you?" he said, glancing at Kai. "You've only seen Kai's skills…"

But then he paused, sighed, and placed it back.

"Never mind. I'm getting too excited."

While Moon and James were checking the weapons, Kai was off to the side, staring at the sparring ring quietly, lost in thought.

Moon looked at James and asked, "So, what do you want to start with first? Hand-to-hand combat? Weapon mastery? Or maybe… show me your kicks?"

As soon as he said that, James disappeared from in front of him.

Zoom!

In an instant, he appeared to Moon's left and threw a fast kick.

But Moon wasn't that easy to surprise.

He caught James' leg mid-air without blinking and slammed him onto the ground with a loud thud.

"Gah! My soul just left my body," James groaned dramatically, holding his chest.

But strangely, he wasn't injured.

Kai raised his hand. "Relax. I activated the training room's absorption mode. The entire wall and floor absorb all impact."

Moon nodded in approval. "Nice. That kick wasn't bad, James."

Then he asked, "By the way, how many essence points do you have?"

James stood up and dusted himself. "Just 23 rookie-level essence points."

Moon rubbed his chin and thought for a moment. "Hmm. You should definitely focus on your kicks—they're your strong point. But remember… The Expanse is unpredictable. So, you need to be flexible."

James tilted his head and then asked curiously, "But sir… didn't you and Kai enter the Expanse just a few weeks ago? And you weren't rich back then either… So how are you both already this skilled? And powerful?"

That question struck a chord.

Moon's eyes dimmed for a moment.

He thought of the Alhuwalia Clan—its brutal training routines, its philosophy of pain, survival, and perfection. He remembered continuing the same brutal training even after being kicked out.

"…Some things are better left unknown," Moon finally replied.

His tone was completely different. Calm. Cold. Mature.

James looked at him, surprised. He had never seen Moon this serious—not even during the fight against ObscureOctopus.

"…Alright," James nodded quietly. "Let's start with hand-to-hand."

"Boxing," Moon said, stepping onto the mat. "It's the foundation of all martial arts. Especially for people who rely on raw strength and speed."

Moon began demonstrating the basic stances, footwork, jab-cross combos, and defensive movements. He moved like water—effortlessly fast, balanced, sharp.

But he didn't teach James the Alhuwalia variations—those techniques were too deadly and secret. It could even get James killed if misused.

They began sparring lightly. No aura, no enhancements. Just skill.

Yet James could barely last more than two moves against Moon. Every time he tried to strike, Moon would slip past and tap a vital point on his body.

But James was determined. They trained nonstop for hours.

Twelve straight hours passed like that.

No breaks. No complaints. No distractions.

By the end, James' movements had become noticeably sharper. His punches had weight. His footwork was cleaner.

He still wasn't fast enough to be called "dangerous," but…

"At least now," Moon chuckled, "no one can call you a beginner anymore."

James collapsed on the mat, panting. "This… this was insane. My body's on fire."

Moon smiled, then raised his palm.

"Last drill. Try to land a punch on my palm while I move it."

James blinked. "Easy."

But it wasn't.

Moon began moving his hand in random directions—high, low, sideways—with almost unnatural speed. Yet every motion was smooth, clean, and fast.

James gave it his all… and after nearly five minutes of gasping and swinging…

He only managed to land 23 punches.

Out of at least 200 tries.

Finally, he flopped down and groaned, "That's it! I'm dead. No more. I need food. And sleep."

Moon glanced at the clock and raised a brow. "Huh. We've been training for almost twelve hours…"

"…Wait, where's Kai?"

James looked around. "He left four hours ago. Said he was hungry and went upstairs."

Moon laughed. "Typical."

They walked upstairs, both drenched in sweat and muscles sore.

As they reached the living room, James collapsed onto the couch.

"I've never trained this hard in my life," he said. "But that feeling… of getting stronger… it's amazing."

Moon nodded, grabbing a water bottle and chugging it.

He then turned toward James. "By the way, what's your elemental affinity?"

James sat up and smiled, "Fire."

Moon's eyes gleamed slightly. "Hmph. That explains your explosive kicks."

Soon after, they both went to their rooms.

James called his family, letting them know he'd be staying with his two new friends from now on. He didn't tell them about the training. Not yet.

Some things were best kept quiet—for now.

Moon entered his bathroom, letting the hot water wash away the exhaustion. The steam wrapped around him like a comforting blanket.

It had been twenty-five years since he last slept in a bed like this.

A real bed. A real home.

Not a shelter. Not a cold corner of a base. Not a hospital bed.

Just… soft sheets. Warm air. Peace.

He lay down and closed his eyes, letting sleep take him instantly.

He didn't say it out loud… but somewhere inside, he was thankful.

Thankful for this rare moment of comfort before the chaos of the next fight.

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To be continued…

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