"Day 116 summary: Today, I encountered three magical assassins, two tech warriors, and a small squad of thirty Cyborgs."
"Judging by the insignias on their uniforms, they should have been members of the 66th Detachment of Father's Seventh Legion."
"They wanted to kill me, and they almost succeeded. That dagger soaked in poison nearly pierced my heart. But in the end, I still won. I had the last laugh. They all died."
"But now, I have a problem."
"The amount of Nutrient Fluid I prepared in advance is no longer enough. I have to find a way to get some from the heavily guarded Nutrient Pod. Otherwise, some of my wounds will heal more slowly, which would be very disadvantageous in the battles that may come next."
"Also, during today's battle, I discovered some more of my own shortcomings..."
Night fell over the Dark Citadel, Thanos's domain.
Sitting at the entrance to Sanctuary Base, Beckett chewed on the end of his pen and did his best to use the vocabulary in his mind to compose today's bedtime diary.
The year-long trial had been underway for 116 days since he fired that energy blast at Cull Obsidian.
Over those 116 days, the young Beckett had witnessed all sorts of extraordinary beings throughout the universe and been astonished by bizarre technological weapons. The body that had once been fair and unblemished before the trial was now covered in scars, and his entire temperament had changed beyond recognition.
Though his face was still youthful, the cold, murderous aura around him made it easy for others to overlook Beckett's age. It was a badge of honor belonging only to hardened, battle-tested warriors. The difference was that Beckett's hands were stained entirely with the blood of his own people.
Having made up his mind to forge his son's mindset into that of a strong man through the lives of his subordinates, Thanos had directly sent Ebony Maw some of the suicide squad warriors he had trained. There were 1,024 death warriors in total, along with a 3,000-man Cyborg battalion.
Now, after 116 days, 404 death warriors and 520 Cyborg soldiers had died at Beckett's hands.
"Someone as shrewd as Ebony Maw will definitely have calculated my daily Nutrient Fluid consumption. He should have noticed by now. So he'll definitely set an ambush near the Nutrient Pod. That big idiot Cull Obsidian might even be lying in wait there."
Spinning a specially made laser pen in his hand, Beckett rested his cheek on one palm and racked his brain over what to do next. Since this was a trial, he had time every night to rest, think, and reflect.
During that time, there was an eighty percent chance that Beckett would be safe, and a twenty percent chance that he would be attacked. In Ebony Maw's words, as a warrior, one had to cultivate the habit of remaining alert even while resting.
To develop that habit, Beckett had paid the price of a scar that nearly ran through his waist. Ebony Maw had personally left it on his body on the second day of the trial. Even with the help of Nutrient Fluid, it had taken Beckett a full ten days to recover.
Beckett remembered that day clearly. It was the first time he had experienced pain so intense it nearly tore him apart.
On the second page of the little notebook he carried with him, the black words on white paper were written with perfect clarity:
Second day of the trial, sunny. Ebony Maw stabbed me in the waist tonight. He said it was because I was too careless and gave him the chance to strike. He stabbed deep. I almost died.
It wasn't just Ebony Maw.
Cull Obsidian had given Beckett three axe wounds to his limbs on the twelfth, thirteenth, and sixty-second days of the trial; Proxima Midnight had left three slashes and six holes in Beckett's body on the sixth, thirty-seventh, and seventy-third days; and there was even Corvus Glaive, who had nearly killed Beckett several times by stabbing him with a spear.
Through the trials of life and death, Beckett gradually discarded all the unnecessary movements he might make in battle, doing his best to make his fighting style more efficient;
When facing the elusive death warriors and the Cyborg battalion, he learned how to deal with mysterious magic and even how to dismantle components from Cyborgs to arm himself with the technological weapons he needed. These were all the "rewards" Beckett had gained over those brief 116 days.
Of course, every name that had left a scar on his body had been written in the blue notebook in Beckett's hand.
After the specially made laser pen had intermittently recorded today's grudges, Beckett put away his notebook and decided to scout around the Nutrient Pod first. He wanted to see just how many troops that utterly devious Ebony Maw had stationed there.
"How much Nutrient Fluid does Beckett have left?"
Above the Dark Citadel, Thanos sat upon his floating throne. As he watched his son skillfully use every technique at his disposal to break through Ebony Maw's successive checkpoints, a proud fatherly smile appeared on his face.
His painstaking training had not been wasted. Beckett's performance already resembled that of a true warrior.
"According to my calculations, he should only have around half a month's supply left." Ebony Maw, who had spent most of his life plotting and scheming, was very accurate with this sort of calculation. Certain that Beckett would go steal Nutrient Fluid, he had already arranged for Cull Obsidian to lead all the remaining death warriors and Cyborg army into an ambush around the Nutrient Pod, waiting for Beckett to walk into the trap.
This time, he would put on a perfect display of his brilliance in front of Thanos. He would let Thanos see Beckett forced into a desperate situation, unleashing his potential between life and death, while also allowing Beckett to leave the Nutrient Pod safely with grievous injuries and recover.
Since Thanos had rarely found the time to return, Ebony Maw naturally needed to demonstrate his ability to control the battlefield properly in front of him, so Thanos would transfer him out sooner.
Although only 116 days had passed, Ebony Maw had long grown impatient after being cooped up in the Dark Citadel every day, wracking his brains to force Beckett to grow stronger. He simply did not dare show it.
As the person in charge of the Second Legion, his journey should have been toward the magnificent sea of stars, not spent here as a dutiful nanny playing house with a seven-year-old child.
"It seems you are very confident in your plan." Thanos withdrew his gaze from his son and glanced at Ebony Maw, his calm tone carrying a hint of something inscrutable.
"Do you know why I suddenly came back today?" As if recalling something interesting, Thanos raised his head and looked toward the full moon hanging high in the night sky above the Dark Citadel.
The cool moonlight was this planet's way of expressing its love for every living being in the universe, illuminating the road home for them.
"Tonight's moon looks very full."
4:48 a.m... Well, it was a little late, but the second update was finally here... By the time I got back from outside, it was already 2:30 in the morning. I figured I couldn't go back on my word, so after showering, I started hammering away at the keyboard orz.
Can't be helped. Who told everyone to call me the Honest Young Gentleman~
Hands on my hips, let me feel awesome for a moment. Time to sleep, time to sleep orz.
Before you continue