Needless to say, Mike had SEVERELY underestimated just how much of an impact his actions would cause.
He was correct about people looking into him after what he did, but the implications of this were a lot worse than he had originally anticipated.
Once more, the seniors could not be bothered by what was happening to their juniors, and the teachers weren’t overly concerned as most of them knew about someone coming in with a scholarship anyway, even if they didn’t know it was Mike specifically.
"You mean to tell me that some no-name was acting so presumptuous in front of two people from peak families?!?!"
"This Academy is just accepting anyone. What do you mean someone without any backing was allowed to school here?"
"He was so bold each time. To think he truly doesn’t come from any family. Does he have a death wish?"
"If that’s the case, he screwed! Without an adequate background, no one will have any qualms in offending him since no one can stand up for him."
"You say offend like he is in any position to feel offended by anything we do. I’d say we’d merely be putting him in his place by allowing him to understand he can’t just stand next to us because we are in the same institution."
"Hey, maybe that’s why he hangs out with that Theresa girl. She’s also a reject. They seem to mix quite well."
As it turns out, Namor had dug into Mike’s background shortly after classes ended and came up with results pretty quickly. As soon as he learned everything, he didn’t hesitate to post it on the school forums. His status naturally caused his post to be read by a lot of students, and when they understood its contents, they were stunned and outraged.
The idea of schooling with someone who didn’t even come from a family was a notion they found insulting, and now, they were determined to raise hell.
As for the culprit in all this?
Well, once Mike returned to his dorm and–thankfully–didn’t need to interact with his roommate, he went straight into his room and took a shower as he had quite a bit of dirt on himself after the day. He also liked the shower.
He then wore something more casual and made himself his dinner, feeling a lot less restricted on what he made now that he knew the school would restock the fridge free of charge every week.
Once he was done eating, he entered his room and lay on his bed, and without hesitation, he opened his watch and entered his main profile.
From the moment he got the ’gift’ from Masha, there had been this faint itch at the back of his mind, urging him to check out what it was. However, he managed to put it off until classes were over.
He saw his student’s profile which was just a picture of him along with the courses he was doing, and under each was a checkbox that had a green arrow, indicating that he’d gone to each class successfully.
He then saw at the top corner of the profile was a notification icon with the number 2 on it, and when he selected that, he saw two notifications.
One was a friend request from Masha with an attachment under it, and another was from Alice. He knew this because they just used their names, so it wasn’t hard to differentiate.
Mike completely ignored the one from Alice and focused on what Masha sent. Opening the message, he first read the introductory paragraph.
"If you decided to open this, then good. The ’gift’ I sent is in the attachment below. Other than being unable to see you waste such a good physique, u
I genuinely think your body would be suited for this. So go ahead and open the file, it’s a little something I created." Mike blinked at the message before looking down.
The attachment simply said ’Crimson Ladder’. He lingered for a second before he decided to open it.
[Attachment: Crimson Ladder]
Crimson Ladder is not complicated. That’s what makes it dangerous.
At its core, it’s a combat style with a progressive rhythm that focuses on building momentum. Each form is a "step", and with each step taken, both speed and power increase exponentially. The catch? The strain rises just as quickly. If your body isn’t durable enough, it will collapse before the second step. Only someone with a physique tailored to withstand pressure can climb higher.
The Ladder is simple in principle. Keep moving. Keep building. The cleaner the motions, the more power compounds, and the more devastating the damage becomes.
Do note that hesitating or pausing will break the chain and set back all your progress. Flow sustained it.
• First Step – Awakening: The entry form. Light acceleration and movement to warm up your body and get it into the groove.
• Second Step – Surge: Speed and Power spikes, and hits become more potent, but the strain begins.
• Third Step – Crimson Peak: Speed and Power reach inhuman levels. Without good control or a durable body, the user risks ripping their muscles apart.
These are the three forms I’ve made. However, don’t think that means it is a limit. You can keep the momentum going forever in theory, but sustained usage comes at a cost.
Mike read through the introductory part of the attachment curiously, his eyes widening as he took in every word.
’A combat style...’ He thought with surprise and glee.
How much had he lamented over his lack of a proper combat style? Something his fellow classmates all seemed to possess but him?
He’d been saying that he would open the virtual library to check out something he could use, but this was pretty much a free meal on his lap.
’Wait, that’s not right. If what Masha said in this attachment is true, then while this style is simple, it doesn’t make it easy.’ He temporarily quelled his excitement as he tilted his head, thinking about the style a bit more logically.
Then again, there really wasn’t that much to think about. Masha had explained it all with that introductory part. It was a combat style built on momentum. The more momentum he had, the stronger and faster he became, but in return, the higher the strain on his body would be.
’Well, she did say my body seems strong enough, which is why she gave me the style in the first place. So I should be able to handle it a little, right?’ He thought as he got off his bed and walked to the door next to his bathroom door. The one that led to the small training room he had.
Mike entered, and the lights automatically came on. The room wasn’t too big. It was enough for maybe 6 people to stand inside without problems, with a rack by the side for weapons and a control panel near the door.
Mike didn’t know what it did, so he didn’t bother with it for now as he was more focused on the style.
Within the attachment, there were several instructions pertaining to each "step", and Mike decided to start simple by understanding and executing the first form
There is no predetermined set of motions one needs to follow when deploying the Crimson Ladder. Instead, one must follow a certain set of core concepts tailored to the style specifically, involving the flow of one’s energy and applying pressure on specific muscles at the beginning that aid in accumulating momentum...
It then went on to talk about how one should allow their energy to flow and use it to supplement certain muscles in the body, and, in theory, the rest should come naturally.
Mike read through it and few times, ensuring he read every step carefully until he had it committed to memory.
’Alright. Seems doable.’ He thought before deactivating his watch and closing his eyes.
He took a few deep breaths and ensured his mind was calm, then, according to the instructions, he focused inward as he began to move his energy.
He didn’t activate his aura, but he channeled his energy through specific parts of his Energy Pathways with a specific motion while focusing on the parts of his body where it said certain muscles were.
It took him a few tries, but he slowly got the hang of it, and it was... slow.
The beginning parts were quite slow, but Mike wasn’t discouraged as the instructions said it would be .
Multitasking, Mike kept moving his energy the same way as he slowly moved his body. When the energy flowed through one of the required muscles, he would move, and to his surprise, his movements were oddly... precise.
It was a bit hard to explain, but whenever he moved a part of his body according to the flow of energy, it was like the energy was guiding his movements, brushing out the inconsistencies and setting him straight.
However, it wasn’t rigid. Energy could flow through a specific part and Mike could choose not to move that part, and nothing would happen, the energy would just keep moving until he moved the next part.
Slowly, meticulously, Mike moved. Punches, kicks, stomps, it was like a slow, heavy dance that was rapidly picking up speed, and Mike had to stop himself from grinning.
’It’s working.’ He thought as he felt the flow of his energy start to pick up, and his movements started to get faster and stronger.
What Mike didn’t know was that a lot of people would get stuck on the first part which was making his energy move in a certain way, as controlling one’s inner energy to flow within specific Pathways at certain speeds was out of the ability of most ability users his age, but he’d started doing it unconsciously.
Sure, it was straightforward, but that didn’t make it easy.
It was a shame that Mike wasn’t aware of what he was capable of. But in time.
For now, he was gradually picking up speed and power, and when it started going, it would start going.
But that also meant he would soon understand the ’Crimson’ part of the name.