Fang Thornfield.
At first, he was deemed as a genius, whose talent was equal – maybe even superior – to that of Hannah, his mean sister. Congratulated on a daily basis for his dedication to training, praised for his quick wits and otherworldly comprehension of mana theories, his glorious times ended abruptly when he reached 9.
His grandfather, the respected and almighty Supreme Elder Water Dragon, had confirmed to presence of Ice Roots within his body, a rare malformation originating from an injury his mother received in her youth. Since this day, his privileges were stripped out of him, and he lost all hope and motivation to train anymore, instead spending his days in libraries, dreaming of some fantasy worlds, learning management, wondering about the world, its politics and everything. After all, since he couldn't become an adept, why would he continue to meditate.
Every night, he would suffer from a nightmare, in which he would witness the scene of his grandfather mumbling: "Unless you find an adept willing to spend time and sweat to heal you, there is absolutely no way for you to break through the beginner acolyte realm". This scene would repeat over and over again, troubling his sleeping cycles, as well as his sanity.
However, his cousin saved him from this maddening trial of hell. He gave him a purpose, a place where he fit in, friends…He gave him everything. Drodosis originally only wanted Fang to return to his arrogant previous self brimming with life and pride, and...talent. Yet…Drodosis' random act of kindness had led to a huge change in his fate, as well as that of everyone belonging to the Ironcloud Knight Order.
If not for Fang, Drodosis wouldn't have created this order. After all, he originally planned to return to the Ivory Tower, and silently grow stronger in a safe environment. Little did he know, as he was now the commander of a super force composed of dozens of knights, capable of sweeping through the battlefields, even winning against a faction possessing a pseudo-adept powerhouse!
Fang had once been changed from an arrogant youth to a depressed mess, in his childhood. And in the past few months, he had morphed from this depressed mess into a splendid Order's sub-commander!
If Drodosis was the pillar of the Ironcloud Knight Order, then Fang was the cement that allowed the pillar to stay firm and strong. Fang was a genius. He understood everything faster than others, and he absorbed knowledge with so much ease that he broke through realms of knighthood even faster than Drodosis himself. In less than a year, Fang had reached the elite knight realm, at the same time as Lara Coldwinter, probably the most fearsome rival he ever had in his life.
In the Eastern Wing of the Ironcloud Base, there were several training rooms. Be it Siegfried, Lara or Fang himself, they all worked days and nights to become stronger. Even when the routine was boring, they motivated their subordinated with such fervour that Drodosis didn't even need to stop by anymore.
Fang was surrounded by 8 novice knights.
Each one of them had over 8 points of strength, 4 points of agility, and 8 points of physique. Judging from their physical attribute, each one of them could be considered among the very best novice knights within the kingdom. They had reached a physical standard much superior to that of the Fallen Water Troop, not to mention other random Knight Orders founded and spread throughout the Phuinem Kingdom.
This was the result of balancing training with proper high-class nutrition from top-quality magical beast personally cooked by Master Chefs from the Thornfield family – mainly Master Hector, Master June and Master Paul, three individuals with incredible skills in cooking, who quitted their jobs at the Thornfield Fortress to work personally for Drodosis, after catching a glance at Drodosis' cooking facilities within the Central Area of the Ironcloud Base.
The facility was simple, but clean and organized with top-notch precision, and the supply of meat and ingredients seemed endless, especially since Drodosis had a close connection with the Grace Settlement he had conquered personally.
Training and nutrition had played a huge role in their physical development, leading to many breakthroughs in the past months, but Elder Blue Beard had also played his part, providing body refinement elixirs, some of which could be sold for several magic crystals in the Ivory Tower.
Knights and Body Refinement acolytes were similar in the way they both strived to reach body perfection, tempering it at all costs. While body refinement acolytes often used knight breathing techniques – or even Grand Knight Breathing Techniques, in order to become stronger, knights rarely had access to body refinement resources. Body refinement acolytes could use elemental particles with their spirit, and thus, their potential was much more profound than that of knights. Even though there were more Grand Knights than Body Refinement Adept, it was only because acolytes were too rare in the human population! Everyone could become a knight provided with the right mindset, perseverance and training. On the other hand, very few had spirit, not to mention the spirit talent to break through the adept realm!
From the vast warehouse filled with generations' worth of accumulated herbs harvested in the Magnolia forest Drodosis plundered, Elder Blue Beard had concocted more than a few thousand elixirs. After long negotiations, Elder Blue Beard and Drodosis settled on a 10% crafting fee. Even though it might sound extravagant, few people could concoct elixirs all day long like Elder Blue Beard, not to mention with such skills and experience!
The purity of each elixir was top-notch, making impurities easy to cleanse with intense workouts.
These 8 novice knights suddenly wielded their spear and an amazing way, and an average human would only see a glimpse of the thrust.
The attacks were coordinated, fast yet firm, and no hesitation could be seen in this move. Fang should have been hit by this formation attack, yet he disappeared from everyone's sight, only to reappear a few second later, displaying an elven swordplay Drodosis had given him. Elegance, grace and power were the essence of this swordsmanship, and it was more than enough to deal with the knights.
"Ah! Sub-commander Fang, why do you bully us?"
"Haha! I didn't, I actually restrained my strikes before the impacts. You won't even have a bruise! Listen, your formation was good, and honestly, my physical fitness isn't as good as you think", Fang explained in a wise tone.
The main factor behind the Ironcloud Knight Order's lightning speed of improvement is actually not Drodosis, or Fang, or the meditation technique's above-average quality. It was the fact that every single member of the order shared their enlightenment with others. Everyone was competing with each other, but they also helped each other. This environment was fit and almost utopic in the eyes of Drodosis.
Indeed, the Ironcloud Knight Order's main strength was actually not physical standard. Its main strength was its techniques and cohesion. Drodosis had created dozens of formations suited for most of situations the army would encounter. Each one of these formations were deeply engraved in each knight's memory. Attacks were synergised, and the teamwork was absolutely brilliant.
Furthermore, the cohesion and solidarity allowed the most of the knights to reach the Intermediate realm in the Water Spearmanship, a versatile spear art technique Drodosis picked up in the library, and improved slightly based on his comprehension and that of Lara Coldwinter, an absolute genius who reached advanced realm with this very art.
"How come you aren't strong physically, sub-commander?", a novice knight seemed shock.
Fang was the epitome of an elite knight. His techniques were unique, and everyone knew that his strength was unmatched within the Order.
"I didn't mean it like that", Fang coughed, "Unlike Lara, or Siegfried or Serius…I have only recently started to train my body. With the Drodosis' help and the resources, I managed to improve it by leaps and bounds, but eventually, I still need more time to reach Lara's standards. Based on what I saw, even Lara is quite lacking compared to Drodosis though."
"But…We definitely felt your strength in your strikes, sir!"
"Just because my body isn't as strong as that of normal elite knights, it doesn't mean that my fighting prowess is inferior. My control over internal energy is near perfect. I don't know why, but I can control it really easily. Each one of my strikes contain a thread of internal energy, giving me more power. Control is key. If your genetics aren't good enough, technique is the solution to your problems. Remember this lesson, guys. And continue your training! You are maybe knights, but in the Ironcloud Order, you are average, alright?"
"YES SIR!"
Next door, in the archery training room, Siegfried was training his men. Now a veteran knight, Siegfried was known as the Ghost Arrow. His might was unrivalled, and his accuracy was unmatched.
However, what really made him stand out from the rest, and even surpass his ancient rival Serius by a large margin, was the progress he was making on a daily basis. More perseverant than any other knight in the Eastern Wing, Siegfried studied and trained about 14 hours a day, only spending a few hours in his spare time to teach others.
With mechanical precision, drawing one or two arrows at the time, he could hit targets from up to 3 kilometres away and still shoot his target accurately. Of course, if the target had too much agility, then he would have to reduce the range, but it was still a huge feat. Wielding the enchanted bow that the pseudo-adept Diana Lockear once used, Siegfried could shoot arrows that dealt over 40 points of damage. If he used wyvern poison, then…one arrow would lead to one kill.
Siegfried was more lethal than most of intermediate acolytes out there, especially considering the nimbleness and stealth he studied, trained and eventually mastered in forest environment and mountain ranges.
With Special Elven Techniques reinforcing accuracy, dexterity and sight, along with nutrition, potions, elixirs, breathing techniques, magnolia trees and knights exchanging their insights…The Ironcloud Knight Order was bound to reach unimaginable heights.
No one knew the depth of the Ironcloud Knight Order besides its members.
120 novice knights, 6 acolytes, and 3 elite knights and 36 veteran knights.
All preparatory knights had broken through, either from talent and training, or from internal energy Elixirs.
Suddenly, an apocalyptic explosion reverberated throughout the Ironcloud base, coming from the laboratory. The walls trembled but the foundations were firm and solid. The sound was deafening, but everyone stayed calm. The water Fortress guards, feeling the impact, started panic.
Chaos descended in the Water Fortress.