They Hated Me in My First Life, But Now I Have the Love System

Chapter 463: Thinking Of Anybody Else But Me

“Third. During training, don’t mention Carl. Or Somto. Or anyone else. This space is mine. Yours. Not theirs.”

Nnenna tilted her head slightly at that one. Strange. Was he that strict with everyone? She couldn’t imagine someone being this sensitive about her talking to Carl or Somto. Unless…

She shook the thought off. Not her business.noveldrama

“Fourth,” he went on, voice tight. “No personal questions. No small talk. If you want to learn, learn. Don’t waste time trying to understand me.”

O-kay, she thought, a bit awkward now. Definitely not a people person.

“Fifth,” he added, eyes flicking to her training clothes, “always wear gear suitable for training. Loose. Practical. No distractions. Just like you’re wearing now.”

Nnenna looked down at her outfit, plain, breathable, nothing flashy. Why was that even a rule? She didn’t ask, just nodded silently. Decency and modesty was always her style.

Arthur paused longer before the next rule.

“Sixth… don’t look at me for encouragement. I’m not here to make you feel good. If you’re tired, push through it. If you fail, do better next time. But don’t expect me to… cheerlead.”

That one actually made her frown slightly. She hadn’t expected cheerleading, just training. Was he projecting something onto her?

Still, she kept quiet.

“Seventh” Arthur added, his voice cooling to a controlled calm, “once training begins, you will treat this as the only priority. No distractions, no excuses, no…other interests.”

He didn’t elaborate, but his eyes flicked to her face and away so quickly she wondered if she had imagined it.

“Eighth” He went on “training ends strictly at 7 a.m. You are dismissed the moment the time is up. After that, we do not discuss what happened during practice. It stays here.”

Nnenna’s hands shook a bit as she absorbed every word. Something about the rules felt heavier than mere discipline, as though he needed them as a shield.

She nodded silently, holding his gaze just a moment longer out of curiosity.

“And last,” Arthur said, the words slower now, more measured. “No special treatment. Just because you’re close to Carl, or… Somto’s little sister. You earn everything here. I won’t go easy on you.”

Nnenna stood still for a moment. Then gave a small, respectful bow.

“Understood.”

Arthur nodded once, expression unreadable again. He turned without another word and walked toward the center of the training ground.

Behind him, Nnenna followed. Focused. Determined. And just a little confused.

Why did it feel like this training might be… more complicated than she expected?

At the center of the training ground.

Arthur exhaled slowly, trying to pull his thoughts back to the work. Focus, he told himself. She was just his student. A particularly promising, frustratingly… distracting student.

“Before anything else,” he said, voice low, “you need to loosen your muscles. A proper warm up is not optional.”

Nnenna nodded briskly, tightening her ponytail. She looked perfectly unbothered, which, he told himself, was exactly how it should be.

“Follow my lead.”

He stepped back a pace and demonstrated the first stretch: feet apart, hands reaching high overhead. His posture was strict, precise.

“Hold it. Breathe.”

She mirrored him without hesitation. He watched her arms extend, the simple motion making something tighten across his chest. Ridiculous. He corrected his gaze to her stance, not her face.

“Count to thirty,” he ordered evenly.

She began counting aloud in her calm, even voice.

When she finished, he switched to the next stretch, lowering to touch the ground between his feet.

“Again. Keep your knees straight.”

Nnenna folded forward with the same fluid focus. He found himself glancing, too often, just to see if she would struggle. She didn’t.

Instead, she looked determined, hair sliding over her shoulder. She most likely wasn’t thinking about him at all. Probably thinking about Somto, or Carl, or her goals, or anything but the person standing here like an idiot trying not to notice her scent.

They moved through the sequence: side lunges, shoulder rotations, slow neck rolls. Every time he corrected her posture, he kept his tone cool and impersonal.

“Relax your shoulders,” he said as she tilted her head sideways.

“Yes, Sensei.”

The respectful answer shouldn’t have bothered him. It did.

Halfway through, he couldn’t help a sideways look. She was breathing evenly, eyes closed in concentration, looking so focused it almost irritated him.

He suddenly remembered when she told Carl she wanted to skip years. Why does she look at Carl like that? Like she trusts him more than anyone?

He shook the thought away, jaw tightening.

“Switch,” he said curtly, demonstrating the last series of stretches. She followed without complaint.

When they finally stood upright again, the first thin wash of dawn was creeping over the walls. He glanced at the clock on the training ground wall. 5:10 a.m. Exactly thirty minutes.

“Good,” he said, voice low. “You’re flexible enough. Let’s move on.”

Nnenna simply nodded, brushing a stray hair from her cheek.

To her, it was just another day of training.

To him, it felt like he was losing his balance in a fight he hadn’t even admitted to himself yet.

Arthur checked the time again, 5:11am. The sky was still dark, a soft blue creeping along the horizon. He turned to face her, his voice steady, almost too calm.

“Next is endurance running,” he said, tightening the laces of his shoes. “We’ll run the perimeter trail for one hour. No breaks.”

Nnenna nodded, hiding the flutter of nerves in her stomach. She had done plenty of running drills with Lady Rose. But something about Arthur’s measured tone made this feel different. More serious.

Arthur started jogging at a brisk pace, and she fell in step beside him. Their shoes beat a quiet rhythm on the packed dirt, the cold air biting at their cheeks.

At first, it was almost easy. Nnenna focused on the steady pull of her breathing, the practiced lift of her knees. Lady Rose’s training had shaped her stamina, and she was grateful for it now.