~ Ding
Ralph got up as usual, brushed his teeth, ate and went to school.
It had been three days since his conversation with Aoi, and although they saw each other every day, they didn't speak.
Ralph was starting to get irritated by Aoi's lack of response.
He asked her to teach him everything about Aura and Aura masters, in exchange for not joining the occult history society.
Although he doesn't know the real reason why she doesn't want him to enter this society, he knows that he must have some use for her. If not, why would she agree to consider it?
After arriving at the classroom, he saw Aoi a few meters from him and smiled slightly at her.
After sitting down, he began to reflect on whether he should wait any longer and whether he should simply enter the occult history society.
While he was thinking, Aoi approached him with a reluctant expression and said:
"Good morning, err ... Karman-San."
Ralph looked at her and said with a slight smile:
"Good morning, Aoki-san. Do you need anything?"
Aoi laughed weakly and shook his head.
"No, I don't need anything ... Err, as for your request from before, I considered and decided to grant your wish."
Ralph was surprised for a brief moment and sighed in relief internally.
"Is that good, when did we start?" Ralph asked with bright eyes.
Aoi swallowed his own saliva and put a book on Ralph's table.
"Before, I want you to study everything in this manual." She spoke slowly.
Ralph looked at the book, which was entitled 'Aura Flow'.
Ralph looked at Aoi with narrowed eyes and smiled.
"I understand, but can I know what this "manual" is about?" He asked.
"If you read it, you will naturally understand. Anyway, after finishing the manual, come and talk to me. Only then will I decide if you are worth the effort." She said and went back to the place itself.
Ralph blinked a few times and looked at the book.
-Aura Flow ... Books are really man's best friends. This smells of utility.
Ralph thought with a slight smile.
At that point, he lost interest in the following classes and, while maintaining his illusion skill and taking breaks to rest at times, read the book.
The book was actually an Aura control manual. In the first few pages, Ralph began to understand better what Aura is.
Everything in the universe has Aura, not just living beings, but there are fundamental differences between the Aura of a living being and something without life.
Aura is born with being, and it also says everything about a being. Someone with sufficient Aura control can go so far as to read ordinary people's minds without much trouble, or be able to feel and see everything in a large area.
The aura of a living being does not change its essence, it is already born related to the destiny of the living being. But it can be fortified.
Apart from the essence of Aura, which is basically the unique signature of every living being, Aura itself can be used in infinite ways.
There are several methods to make the Aura stronger, some are safe and slow to progress, others are dangerous and fast to progress.
This manual teaches you how to circulate the Aura within the body efficiently, as well as how to control it more abstractly and how to fortify it.
The manual is divided into three levels:
The first is called the 'Original Aura', it teaches you how to circulate the Aura within the body efficiently, and to merge the Aura with the person's senses. Thus, by completely mastering this level, one can use the Aura to see within oneself, in addition to restricting the Aura within oneself.
The second level is called Aura Flow, it teaches you to control Aura in a much more abstract way, giving uses to it in several fields, such as combat. It teaches the person to direct the Aura out of himself, allowing the person to feel and see the world around him in a completely different way, this is called transcendent sense. If the person mastered that level, he or she would have supernatural powers worthy of movies.
This, of course, does not make the person invincible. In order to become a true transcendent being, it is necessary to fortify the Aura itself.
And that is the objective of the third level, 'Aura without limits'. This level teaches the person a unique and safe way to fortify their own Aura. The initial process is slow, but it accelerates over time. There is no limit to how much a person can fortify their own Aura, but when a person reaches a certain level, it is almost impossible to improve.
"If a person has an Aura strong enough, he is capable of deeds considered divine." Ralph muttered a line and frowned.
It seems that he underestimated this world ... which is probably much more dangerous than his original world.
-It reminds me of the Chinese novels that Torvi likes so much.
Ralph frowned and closed the book, he would expect to get home to practice.
He finally had a clear understanding of at least part of the mysteries of this world.
In fact, this world is perfect for developing one of his talents, Aura.
Ralph started tapping a finger on the table while thinking and stopped using illusion.
It was almost lunchtime, and Ralph suddenly had an idea.
-If this world is really so mystical, my illusion ability is not enough, I need to get stronger. For that, I need to not only build power in normal society, but also grow fast enough that no one can do me any harm! Perhaps only then will I have the opportunity to look for a way to return to my world!
He looked at the manual and frowned. The practice method at the beginning is slow, although it gets faster over time.
-I need to start as soon as possible! And nothing more, I need someone who can help me when I have any questions.
He then looked at Aoi and smiled at the thought of another idea.
-Despite Aura masters can probably detect me, there is probably no normal person in this world capable of that. My skill is not completely useless.
When lunchtime came, he went to the canteen and bought something to eat and then looked for Aoki Aoi.
She was sitting in a place near the stairs, he went to her, and, under the surprised sight of Aoi, who was eating, sat next to her.
"Itadakimasu!" Ralph put his hands together and thanked him, then started eating, without even looking at Aoi.
Aoi twisted the corners of his mouth and went back to eating.
After both were finished, Aoi was the first to speak:
"Do you need anything? Karman-san."
"It doesn't have to be that formal, you can call me Ralph." Ralph narrowed his eyes and spoke with a smile.
Aoi nodded and prepared to get up, but was stopped by Ralph.
"One moment, Aoki-san." Ralph put his hand behind his head and spoke with a fake smile.
"Hmm? What is it?" Aoi looked suspiciously at Ralph, he was acting differently than before.
"Cough Cough, I have a proposal, would you like to hear me out?" Ralph spoke with a bitter smile.
Aoi hesitated for a moment and sat down.
"If you want me to call you by your name, why do you keep calling me by my surname?" Aoi asked in a light tone.
"Cough Cough ..." Ralph looked away and said:
"Err ... Aoi-san, I have a very interesting proposal, would you like to hear me out?"
"..." Aoi silently looked at Ralph.
Ralph wiped the sweat off his forehead with his hand and said:
"I am not sure how they discovered me, but from what I learned, Aura masters can see through my special ability, right?"
Aoi narrowed his eyes and said:
"From what I heard, you weren't 'seen', but your Aura is. Ainz has a special method for discovering people's Aura more easily."
Ralph frowned, it seems that Thomas came to a conclusion with this Ainz guy even without having seen him.
"In that case, you certainly don't know what my real skill is." Ralph blew out a sigh of relief.
Aoi frowned.
Ralph held out his hand and a gun appeared in his hand.
Aoi opened his eyes wide when he saw the gun appear out of nowhere.
The weapon then became a hot flame, much more realistic than Ralph's had been a while ago. The heat could be felt clearly, and it was able to affect the real world by burning various types of things if necessary.
Then a small voice box emerged from the flame, which played soft music.
Finally, Ralph pointed to the other side of the table, where another Ralph sat, only with glasses and black hair.
Ralph then dispelled the illusions and looked triumphantly at Aoi.
"What do you think? Incredible, right?" Ralph's nose almost stretched with arrogance and pride.
Aoi was speechless. She knew that Ralph had a special ability, probably invisibility, even though he was not an Aura master, but she did not imagine that it would actually be such a versatile skill, much more than just invisibility.
For the first time, Aoi looked seriously at Ralph and considered him much more serious to deal with.
"Why are you showing this to me? Besides, you're not afraid that other people will see this ... !!" She was about to crack down on Ralph when she saw the damn smile on his face, as if he was waiting for her to say that.
Ralph no doubt knew that, that he couldn't let anyone see his skill that way. Then he covered the place where he and Aoi had another illusion, making it look like they were still eating.
"So ... why are you showing this to me? Are you not afraid that I am your enemy?" Aoi took a deep breath and asked.
"As far as I know, everyone is a potential enemy until proven otherwise. But you and I have a possible enemy in common, which makes our alliance possible." Ralph smiled and explained.
Aoi frowned and asked:
"Do you have a grudge against the occult history society?"
"No, I don't. But I probably will in the future ... I have to choose a side after all, and I certainly don't plan on becoming a puppet for them." Ralph looked deeply at Aoi, with a sincere tone.
"Hmm." Aoi put his hand on his chin and reflected.
Ralph waited patiently.
"So ... After all, is your proposal an alliance?" Aoi looked at Ralph and asked.
Honestly, Aoi was already considering a possible alliance with Ralph, since she was considering the possibility of inviting him to her club.
"A trade." Ralph smiled cryptically.
-A trade...?
Aoi was confused.
"I don't want to brag, but think about it ... When I am able to restrict my own Aura, I will be much more amazing than I am now." Ralph spoke in an arrogant tone.
Aoi twisted the corners of her mouth but understood Ralph's words. At the moment, the biggest flaw in his invisibility, is the fact that he is not able to restrict his Aura, being very easily detected.
A strange light passed through Aoi's eyes.
Ralph watched Aoi's expression and smiled at my triumph, he was almost absolutely sure that she would accept his proposal.
After a while, Aoi took a deep breath and with a serious look asked Ralph to explain his proposal.
Ralph had a simple plan, he would go on missions in exchange for useful things for his Aura training. And the missions would be given by Aoi or anyone she indicated. Of course, Ralph wouldn't be forced to accept any kind of mission, and he could bargain.
Ralph specified that his specialty is infiltration, sabotage and indirect warfare. With the latter being just in case Ralph found the target worthy of death.
Ralph doesn't have much power in direct combat, he doesn't have real destructive abilities, or that would make him a combat monster. His skill is perfect for indirect warfare.
Aoi contorted the corners of her mouth when he heard Ralph, it looked like he really was someone with experience in the field but she knew that was not the case.
"... Hmm, and who said I need someone with that kind of ... utility?" Aoi spoke with a strange expression.
"Before, you certainly had no need, but now that you know about me, I'm sure you will." Ralph laughed and stood up.
"My proposal is valid indefinitely, if you need something, this is my phone." Ralph spoke and left a paper on the table.
Aoi looked at Ralph's back as he climbed the stairs and sighed.
-He certainly doesn't look anything like what the investigation reported...
She thought and looked at the paper.
-Do I get it or not?
***
After arriving home, Ralph blew out a breath.
He received a call from Mr. Akira, who asked him to go to the workshop at night.
Ralph knew it must be something important, since Mr. Akira generally doesn't like to disturb Ralph's weekdays.
After taking a shower and eating something, he took the manual he had gotten from Aoi.
He would start practicing the first level for the rest of the afternoon.
The first and most important step is to feel Aura itself, something Ralph has never done before.
There are detailed tips in the manual, but each person has a different way to proceed.
He sat on the bed with his legs crossed and closed his eyes.
"Feeling the heart beating, the distractions disappearing and the breath itself." Ralph murmured.
There was not much difference with ordinary meditation, but there was another tip described in the book.
Ralph held out both hands, and there was a knife in one.
He cut his fingertip slightly, brought the injured finger to his mouth. Blood started dripping straight onto Ralph's tongue.
He should not swallow the blood, but savor it. Although strange, this is an auxiliary form described in the manual.
Blood has an extremely important connection with the Aura, as the Aura circulates slowly and naturally through the blood of any living being.
Ralph focused on the taste, the heartbeat, the breathing itself ...
Over time, the taste of blood faded and Ralph cut his finger again.
By nightfall, he had already completely memorized the taste of his own blood, and his mind was extremely peaceful.
However, he did not feel Aura itself. He actually came to the conclusion that he is one of the cases where there is no functional tip for this.
After sighing, he bandaged the finger he had cut several times with the knife.
Although it hurt, Ralph had already felt worse.
Suddenly, he thought of master Jin's art of thinking.
-If I want, if I decide, if I think it's true ... Then nothing can change my mind.
For one last time, he closed his eyes, and concentrated on his own heartbeat, and so he stayed for a few seconds, until he started to imagine ... the blood running between his veins.
He's not really feeling it, but he imagined the blood running all over his body, the sensation ...
At that moment, Ralph could no longer distinguish reality from imagination. He knew that this sensation was the result of his imagination, but he decided internally to consider it as reality.
As if that weren't enough, he imagined his lungs oxygenating the blood, carbon dioxide coming out of his mouth. He had gone into a trance.
His blood, he had already tasted it and memorized it, it's like there is blood in his mouth yet. And there was ...
The aura of a living being has its essence in everything that consists of life.
The soul, spirit, energy, matter. And that includes, the blood.
At the same moment that Ralph started to wonder if what he was feeling was imagination or not ... He felt a heat, coming from every inch of his body.
Sweat started running down his forehead, and he opened his eyes and started breathing heavily.
-That heat ... Was that my Aura?
Ralph thought.
He had doubts, Aura is not supposed to have a temperature, maybe he felt something else ...
-What is that?
When Ralph was starting to wonder, a window appeared in front of him.
[Because you have felt your latent energy, you have gained a new skill called 'Inner Vision'.]
[Inner Vision, lv0
You can feel your energy, and now you can explore your own body more understandably]
Ralph's eyes widened, this was the first time that he gained a skill with his own effort, without being a Beast Skill.
He suddenly heard the cell phone ring, and answered the call.
"Ralph? Where are you?" Mr. Akira's voice came from the other side.
Ralph looked at the time on his cell phone, he was late, it was already eight in the evening.
"I'm on my way!" Ralph got up and quickly put on something that could get dirty freely. It was a blue shirt and white shorts.
He left the apartment in a hurry and headed for the workshop, which is not far away.
After running for ten minutes without stopping, he finally arrived at the workshop, panting.
Wiping sweat from his forehead, he entered the workshop. Mr. Akira had some mechanics waiting for him.
"Brat! What's with all this delay?" Akira asked in an irritated tone.
Ralph took a deep breath and said:
"I'm sorry, Mr. Akira, there was an accident at my home and ..."
Akira interrupted Ralph and said:
"I don't care, come on, we have to go somewhere!"
Ralph was a little surprised and asked:
"Where are we going?"
"Don't ask too much question, when you arrive you will naturally understand!"