Alluring Mask

CHAPTER 24

CHAPTER 24

"C-can I rest for a while?" I asked breathlessly when I passed by Atlas.

He stood there, arms crossed, with no emotion and shook his head. My shoulders slumped, and I passed him to continue jogging. He said I needed it to strengthen my stamina.

I couldn't even count how many laps I've done, or maybe I didn't even exceed the ten laps Atlas wanted me to do! Because whenever I got tired, my jogging would turn into walking, and when I caught Atlas looking at me, I would start jogging again.

"It's been a while since my last jogging."

I turned to Oceanus, panting. He smiled at me and matched my pace. It was still a bit dark a while ago, but now the sun was freely in the sky and we were already sweating from the heat. Atlas, on the other hand, was sitting under a beach lounge with a large umbrella, watching both Oceanus and me as we did our thing.

He lowered his sunglasses because of the bright sun, but I knew he was still looking at us. The other people passing by didn't seem to care, so we continued what we were doing.

"I'm thirsty," I said weakly.

I heard Oceanus chuckle softly and looked at his digital wristwatch. "We're almost done."

"Huh?—"

I couldn't finish my sentence because I suddenly fell on the sand. I saw some people looking at me, but I ignored them. The other tourists passing by were also looking at me, and I suddenly felt shy. My legs suddenly went weak as I gently patted them.

"I-I can't do this anymore," I said weakly. I raised my head and saw that Oceanus was also looking at me. "I feel like my thighs and calves are trembling."

"It's okay. Let me help you," Oceanus took my arm and quickly lifted me up. He just supported me, and we walked towards Atlas.

"That's enough jogging, and it's already 6:30 in the morning. I will give you a 10-minute break, and after that, Oceanus will teach you hand-to-hand combat," Atlas said suddenly when we approached him.

I nodded silently and looked at Oceanus. He just smiled thinly at me and gave me a thumbs up. Atlas didn't say anything else, and the three of us went back to his villa to rest for a while.

Oceanus was still supporting me because my legs were trembling. With every step I took, I felt like I was going to fall. It felt like I was going to lose consciousness, I think I was shocked.

I forgot to warm up.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

"Again," Atlas said sternly.

I raised my head to look at him. He was standing outside the boxing ring, which wasn't very high since it wasn't elevated. I tearfully got up from the interlocking mat we were standing on so that if I fell, it wouldn't hurt as much.

Oceanus and I had been here for a while, and I didn't know how long we had been here. My arm and my whole body ached from what we were doing. Before we could start the hand-to-hand combat training that Atlas mentioned, he had us warm up first.

"Sarah, stand up," Atlas said firmly.

I stood up and adjusted my posture while facing Oceanus. His face was now very serious as he looked at me. What do I think of him? He's a man! And he's way stronger than I am.

"Fix your foot position, Sarah. Your body position looks stiff," Atlas added. "And always be alert to your surroundings."

I looked down at my feet. My feet had been in that position for a while. It was literally like I was just standing there facing Oceanus. When I looked up, my eyes widened when I saw Oceanus' fist, which I knew was going to land on my face. My feet trembled as I stepped back and lowered my hand that I was supposed to use to block.