The night passed quietly.
Despite the pain that they have received from the examination, someone is laying down in bed and sleeping peacefully without trouble.
Aran is sleeping like a dork, snoring like there is no tomorrow. Nash Sterling went home pretty late only to find him lying in the bed in a jerky position. He slid off the blanket that was overlapping through Aran's leg and covered him with it. It slowly dissipated the cold air that was blowing across the whole room.
Nash gazed at him while smiling.
(It looks like he made it through the day. Congratulations, Aran.)
He closed the door on his way back quietly. As he passed through another room, he saw an object placed above the cabinet near Aran's bag. He slowly approached to have a closer look at what seemed to be a knife that glows in the dark.
He grabbed the knife and unsheathed it. His face immediately went in awe after seeing the bluish neon glow that is coming from the blade.
(Runes...?) He thought.
Displaying ancient letters that could not be deciphered. As the light-blue glow dissipated, the letters have vanished as well. What could have been the reason for this kind of phenomenon is something that couldn't be explained in simple words. An ancient text won't show up in other textbooks.
The glow had subdued into thin air. Nash sheathed back the blade and placed it on the table. He walked outside to get some fresh air while looking at the sky.
"A 'Phantom', huh..." He whispered.
He exhaled an ample amount of air from his mouth while looking at the glowing stars. He watched the night sky, enveloped by the star.
Morning came by.
Aran slowly dragged his body upwards with a twist on his chest. He squirmed in pain, realizing that he is still not that fully recovered even though he had a good night's sleep.
He stood up from his bed and started fixing it by folding the blankets and rubbing the pillows to get rid of the specks of dust. After positioning the futon, he grabbed the broom on the corner of his room and started sweeping the dust until it reached the main front door.
Nash was observing him while he cleans the other side of the room.
"Oh, Good morning, tough guy." He greeted him with a smile.
Aran placed down the broom to where it belongs. He dragged the chair in front of Nash and he sat down with a feeling of discomfort. He thought the pain would go away if he had a good night's sleep but he was wrong.
"What's wrong? You look like you're about to crash down." Nash jokingly asked while drinking coffee from a porcelain cup. He carefully placed it down on the saucer on the table.
"I'm in pain, I think I literally made my body go all out yesterday." Aran answered still while twitching his body and stretching his limbs.
"That's good, that means all the bones and muscles that you have been resting on for the rest of your life finally managed to get awakened. Strenuous exercise is a good stressor for waking the sleeping bones in your body." Nash educated him with some basic knowledge about fatigue and painfulness.
Despite the knowledge, Aran seems to be uninterested in what he is saying.
"So how did it go?"
"I am happy that I managed to pass. Though, I'm still lacking a lot of training and techniques. There are so many people out there who are good. Some of them even use magic like how does that even work?" Aran answered.
"A magic? Well, that certainly is not surprising. There are many magicians around here in the capital you know? Most of them are residing in the western part of our kingdom. Though, I think the opening remarks of the academy have been distinguished throughout the whole kingdom even outside." Nash explained, taking another sip.
"Would I be able to learn magic as well?"
"You will if you studied hard about equation and how does it work. I'm pretty confident that they will be teaching magic in the academy as well so you don't have to worry about it. But if I'm going to assess you right now, I don't think you have a high aptitude for magic at all."
"I know and because of that, I'm so jealous about it. Lisa and Huck had an astounding performance yesterday. I think I am the only one who barely passed because of this weird feeling that I always feel when I am in a state of a crisis." Aran replied.
Nash felt like there was something more beyond what happened during his fight with Huck so he prompted Aran as asked about it.
"How did you win?" He leaned his body closer to the table. His face towards Aran was not in a joking state but rather, he seems to be curious and serious at the same time.
"Well, I don't really know myself. It is like, the left portion of my body is unconscious and my senses are extra sharp. I didn't know how I pulled a quick reflex at the last minute of the fight."
"What else did you feel?" Nash asked him again. Aran looked at the window.
"Well, hmm, I also felt like my nerves are pulsating pretty hard. And the last time I checked the symptoms, I was drooling like a madman. Is that normal? I don't know if adrenaline has something to do with it. The books from the sanitorium don't really help with my condition though I feel like it is not an illness because it saved me a lot of times from danger." Aran said.
"I see, well if that's the case, then you are indeed normal. It is probably the traumatic experience that you have seen in your previous childhood. Many people suffer from that kind of anxiety and they are like a switch for an adrenaline rush. I think it is better if you don't let yourself get too much stress." Nash leaned back once again as he closed his eyes.
He reassured Aran with a lie.
It is not anxiety or a traumatic experience. Those are not catalysts that would awaken someone's reflex and unnatural strength.
Nash already knew about this condition since he had already experienced this back when he took Aran. Those were not the eyes of a normal human being but rather, it was something far beyond possibility. He kept quiet about it.
(So he is starting to realize it. The time is moving forward, I need to find a way to research and investigate if that is really possible. This kid is a double-edged sword. He might become the enemy that humanity won't be able to defeat, or an ally that we can trust to end this world's war.)
"Alright then, seems like I will be fine." Aran quickly drank the whole cup as he stood up.
"I have special training with someone today. I think I should go to the town now."
"A special training?"
"Yeah, well, I think I found a suitable fighting style. It is thanks to Mr. Veldrey. He said something about me being a Bladedancer or something like that, I'm not that sure about the details on what it means but I kinda like the sound of that." Aran said.
Nash gasped a little.
"A Bladedancer. Very interesting..."
"Do you know what kind of fighting style that is?" Aran asked him.
"Rather than categorizing it as a fighting style, it is more of a technique. A Bladedancer type warrior is someone who wields their weapon as swiftly as they can but without any practical steps. It is a kind of borrowing power from the original source of it. A form of a 'spiritual art' if you want to call it." Nash answered.
"What? I don't understand it." Aran couldn't comprehend the exact meaning of that particular style he is going to learn.
"Well, you're going to learn more about it if you go now. I will be scouting the east for today. Good luck, Aran." Nash smiled as he finishes his coffee.
Aran grabbed a couple of things and put them inside his bag. He dressed up in his casual clothing like how he went to the examination yesterday. He then placed his knife on his left side with the leather sheath connected to his belt.
"I'll see you again, Master Rin." He said as he goes out of the house.
"Yeah, later." Nash replied.
(There's no doubt. He is growing really quickly. It is a surprise that he managed to suppress his animal instincts to consume flesh. Maybe it is because he is a half-blood? And about the runes last night. A certain spiritual being chooses him.)
--
Aran went to the main road.
He took a little bit of a detour and bought himself an apple on his way. It cost three copper coins for a fruit. He bit it little by little until it was finally rested inside his stomach. He bought more food as part of his breakfast on his way.
As soon as he reached the 2nd avenue, he turned left to reach Veldrey's workshop. There he saw Huck and Lisa talking to each other while Veldrey seems to be talking with another man. Judging from his appearance, he is tall and he wears a casual suit. He has black hair with a slick white strand connected to his bangs.
Aran jogged to approach them. Seeing him, all of them have stopped talking.
"Oh, he is finally here." Veldrey happily said. Aran panted a couple of times.
"I'm sorry I was late."
"That's okay, anyway, Aran. I want you to meet him." Veldrey stepped back behind the middle-aged man's back. He bowed himself very seamlessly in a smooth motion portraying that much respect and formality.
"Nice to meet you. My name is William Smith. I'm a licensed professor from the Fosier Academy and I'm also a physicist." He introduced himself.
Aran was surprised about how formal he is. He thought he was some kind of a high-ranking noble so he twitched for a little.
"Ah! Nice to meet you too... My name is Aran Crossford, I'm a slayer candidate, though I'm not that really good at these kinds of stuff especially with fighting." Aran bowed with a slight twitch on his arms due to pain.
"Mmm? I suppose you're in pain as of now?" William asked. Surprising Aran, he quickly raised his head.
"Huh? Wait? How did you know I was in pain?" Aran asked.
"It is simple, the moment you twitched your arms is already evident." He answered.
"What? How can you tell that it is pain? We twitch a lot as well." Huck followed.
"It is not the movement that I'm talking about. It is the amount of negative energy that his movement has produced." He answered.
"Negative energy? What do you mean by that?" Aran asked, he seems to be curious about the meaning of the term.
"A negative energy is a cluster of dark matter that is released from your body. You know how you guys exert a movement right? I'm not sure if you have learned this already, but every person has what you call a 'magic core' inside their body. This magic core comprises all of the particles coming from light energy. Light energy is conveniently mixed in our blood and nature and that's where you get your ability to move. If something is in pain, say, in your muscle, the light energy that your body produces turns dark, and instead of going back to the magic core, they are strained as a particle and it flows outside your body." A complicated explanation from William.
For every human being, a magic core was installed when they are born. This phenomenon is called 'Magiculation'.
The origin of Magiculation sets way back to the first century. When humanity tried to ask God for powers, they were granted magic to create a disillusion of reality. A way to change how the formula of the world works. Those who were granted by powers immediately rise into rank and they ruled the world for hundreds of years.
However, a coup d'etat happened. Warriors have overthrown those who are granted magical abilities.
A sacrifice was given to those who wanted to overrule the current government.
Because of this, God confiscated their abilities and compressed them into a single magical cube. He declared that those who touch the magic cube will immediately die.
But that was not the end of it.
One day, a young maiden appeared and she consumed the whole magical cube in secret. No one knows who this young maiden is but she gave birth to her children.
She didn't die from consuming the magical cube and it was instead inherited by her children. Generations have passed and those who are able to use magic or see magic erupted in this world.
Up until now, no one knows the origin or story of the young maiden who made this possible. Magiculation was the phenomenon she gave birth to this world.
"This is definitely not something that you can learn just by fighting. But the real question is, how can you see this 'dark' energy or something?" Huck asked again.
"Well, I think Aran here might be able to answer that. But to save your time, it is a skill from the Shadow Bladedancer Master, Jzerein." William answered.
"Shadow Bladedancer... Jzerein." Aran mumbled.
"I think this place is not appropriate for a discussion like this, should we go to our training ground instead?" Veldrey asked everyone.
"Yeah! I'm pumped up. I have been itching to train for quite a while now." Huck responded. All of them have started walking.
Several minutes later, they finally reached the training ground above the hill.
"Who the hell said this was near the farmland? It was above the freaking mountain and we just spent a lot of time." Aran furiously complained as he looked at Huck.
Huck averted his gaze from the front and started whistling.
"I'm sure he said that so you guys won't turn him down. He really wants to go to the training ground and besides, walking uphill is actually a great exercise. Right, William– Are you still breathing?" Veldrey instantly moved back after seeing William struggling to climb the hill. His body was already on the ground and he can't move any further.
"It is been... so long... since I did an exercise... I am pretty tired right now..." He said while struggling to drag his body upwards. Aran is on the same page as well, his knees are on the grass and he cannot even stand anymore. Both Huck and Lisa grabbed William's shoulder in order to pull him up the steep hill.
Meanwhile, Aran is already out of his juice.
"Come on, stand up. We're here already." Huck grabbed Aran's right arm and helped him stand up. He was nauseous and he constantly wavered around the field while seeing the big wooden gate in front of him.
"Lady Alliere, are you okay? It must be tiring for you to walk all the way up here." Veldrey asked Lisa in concern.
"No, I'm fine thank you very much. Unlike this guy here, I spent the rest of my life jogging and training so I'm used to stuff like this." She answered while giving Aran a pitying look.
"No wonder you beat that punk from the examination yesterday. Your strength is something." Huck commented as he opened the wooden gate.
"Welcome to Revera's training grounds!" He welcomed them.
"Woah..." Aran was pleased in awe as soon as he stepped in on the grassy field.
"This is so vast..." Lisa followed.
"Yeah well, it has been here for quite a long time. But since the old man here didn't continue his legacy after that incident, he has forgotten about this big place in which he could've built a big factory for his works." Huck said. Veldrey chuckled as soon as he heard what Huck said.
"Well, things are pretty rough last time. So, I didn't get to work on this one, but hey. At least we now have a ground for training. You guys can use this as long as you want and I won't interfere. There's also a lodging over there so you guys can rest or eat." Veldrey replied while setting down the luggage.
"Alright then let's start!" Huck dashed through the field.
"Aran, I will be training myself on that place over there. If you ever need some help, just call me, alright?" Lisa slowly grasped Aran's left hand.
"Yeah..." Aran responded with a smile. Seeing this, Lisa returned the smile as well and started walking.
"They seem to be pretty lively. What about you?" William asked him.
"Oh, I'm pretty excited. I wanna be strong just like them, so umm... Can you teach me the art of blade dancing?" Aran asked with a confident smile on his face. William returned the smirk as he considered that Aran's willingness is pretty acceptable to his demands. He walked slowly in front of Aran and followed him.
"Follow me... We're going somewhere peaceful."
Since the field was so large, there has been a lot of places to stay in for the training. Huck is positioned in the center where a lot of rubbles and large stones can be seen. On the other hand, Lisa is training with her Helianthus near the back of the wooden house. Veldrey spends the rest of his time doing an expedition on the lake near the training ground.
"Jzerein's Shadow Blade Art has seven techniques. He calls it, 'The Seven Penumbral Swords'. This particular art has been used for a couple of years during the Rogue Era wherein a bunch of knights is going outside the kingdom to attack a particular nation of monsters. Jzerein was one of the warriors back then. He invented this style with his love for magic and spiritual form. The magic that I am talking about is not what you currently know in this age, but rather, magic that twists our perception and creates an illusion with our mind. From doing a sleight of hand to an ability to shroud yourself in shadow. Jzerein's art is one of the most difficult techniques to learn." William started explaining the background and nature of the Shadow Bladedancer.
"So, this Jzerein guy, what is he like?" Aran asked.
"Well, as you might have known, he is entitled as the 'Shadow Bladedancer'. This is because, he is great at fooling his enemies, blinding them, and killing them without noticing his presence and while dancing with his daggers. He uses two daggers back in the days to perform his art, but I think it can be also applicable for one. He surrounds himself in the shadows and creates an illusion wherein no one can see him even if he is in front of them. Truly a masterpiece. That is why most people hire him to do Assassination." He answered.
"What about the combat? Is there any particular martial arts he uses for fighting without his daggers?" Aran asked another question.
"Well, there's actually none in particular. Jzerein was not a man of brute, but a man of foolishness and he is full of surprises. He doesn't fight with his fists and legs, he fights with tricks and illusion. And that requires speed and quick reflexes. What you need to train right now, is your quick reflexes and strength. The reason why I felt not see your negative energy earlier was that I trained myself using Jzerein's method of illusion. By focusing on an individual's magic molecules, you create and induce an aura that you can feel and see but not visually perceive. That's one of the most important key factors when mastering his art." William answered.
"So how can I do that?" Aran unsheathed his dagger.
"Well, try this... Close your eyes, and try to feel the presence of your environment," William instructed him.
Much to his eagerness, Aran closed his eyes slowly as he stood straight.
"Good... Now, a magic molecule is not something you can easily detect just by closing your eyes feeling the environment. It also requires a deep calculation and concentration using your own magic molecule to connect with it. Try to inhale and exhale a couple of times, and once you notice that you cannot feel your body anymore, that means you are now under a deep calculation. Perceiving the light energy is easier so let's try that first. This place is full of trees and plants so feeling their presence is not that difficult." William continued.
Aran did what he was told. By standing straight without moving, he inhaled and exhaled slowly. Breathing in and out without any stoppage. The air that he continues to breathe slowly passed through his nostrils until he lets it out from his mouth, giving him a deep concentration while processing a calm nerve and stabilizing his system.
"Good, you should be noticing it as of now..." William whispered to him as he goes around Aran leaning his body towards him.
(My body feels lighter now, I can't move them while my mind is in a calm state.) Deeply focused in thoughts, Aran suddenly found himself contained in a void with millions of light energy particles surrounding all around him.
"Now, Aran, once you've reached 'that' particular plane. You can now perceive the light energy in which you can tell with their presence. Millions of light particles are going to be presented, and you can feel them as you stay focused." William continued again.
Aran opened his eyes inside the void whilst concentrating, his mind is intact and he finally saw the light energies swirling around the area. Even though his eyes are closed on the outside, his body and mind are awake on the inside. Perceiving any presence with his sharp senses, Aran easily identified where the light energy sources are coming from.
"Right, it looks to me that you have reached the plane. I want to test you about something. Right now, I'm currently walking around you at random steps at a time. I will stop in a particular spot and I want you to say where I am using my light energy particles. Am I clear?" William made a test in which Aran have agreed wholeheartedly.
"Yes!" He responded.
(William is currently walking around me right now, based on the light energy particles, he is moving from my left side. Now he walked through the front.)
Assessing the void is pretty difficult to master especially when you are a beginner at mastering someone's art. What Aran has been doing is trying to figure out a movement by analyzing the movement of the light energy particles. Aran's magic molecules are now connected to nature's source so it is now possible to perceive the whole area but with a limit.
(Hmm? There's a cluster of light energy there on the left side. Did it stop there? There's no doubt, that might be William's presence. These light energy particles are moving randomly while those clusters are staying in one position. Alright, let's try this one out.)
Aran finally raised his right arm still with his eyes closed. The moment he pointed out his finger on his left side, he succeeded at determining where William's position is. He smiled as soon as he knew what Aran did.
"Congratulations! That was magnificent, Aran! You can now open your eyes." As a celebratory for obtaining the first key factor. Aran jumped in joy as soon as he opened his eyes.
"I did it!" He screamed. His cheeks embedded reddish color, he couldn't contain his happiness because of his achievement.
"So what did you see there?" William suddenly asked a question.
"Well, it was pretty dark. It is like I am inside a large box. But the thing is, I have seen the light energy particles and they are moving pretty randomly without stopping. Except when you stopped. So that's how you felt my negative energy? By focusing and concentrating, that actually makes no sense to me, to be honest." Aran was confused as he approached William.
"What do you mean?" He asked.
"Like, you did it instantly and I just twitched my arm for like one second. How did you manage to concentrate that fast with so much noise in the background, not to mention there's a lot of people who passed by. There would be a lot of light energy particles on your own box." Aran explained what he didn't get. William shifted his gaze from him into the clouds.
"Well, it is not a permanent factor that you can master in a short amount of time. Not to mention on your first try. You need to hone your senses to a deeper level, to a state where noises don't bother you anymore. I spend the rest of my life coercing myself to hone my senses by relaxing and connecting my magic molecule all the time to every environment I get myself into. And you should do the same if you want to be able to analyze the light energy quickly. Simply speaking, Jzerein's art is not a matter of talent or having a special ability, they are centralized on concentration and mastering." He answered.
"How much time did you spend to perfect it?" Aran followed another question.
"Perfect? No, the state that I am in is not even near the last level of perception. But maybe you can reach that if you actually hone it. It took me at least a year or two to get into this level. And I hacked it because I kept doing it even as I sleep." He answered
"I see, so I just need to keep on doing it."
"Not just do, but you need to also understand how it works because it plays an important role in learning Jzerein's Penumbral Swords. When you are able to perceive the enemy's light energy, it will be easy for you to engage and have yourself swallowed by shadow or darkness. Most people don't know how to feel someone's presence. And that is the key for mastering this technique."
"I think I can somehow understand that but aren't we going to do other stuff as well?" Aran demanded.
"No, in one week, you will be going to that academy. If your ability to perceive light energy is not strong enough then even if you managed to master one sword skill, you can easily get defeated by the other people who are strong enough to shatter your illusion. What you need to do right now is keep on practicing perceptiveness until you become fast at analyzing." William countered him.
"Then how are we going to do that?" Aran asked again.
William walked and made a small distance away from Aran.
"It's simple..." As soon as he said that, he instantly dashed in front of Aran and punched him in the stomach.
"Urgh!" he spitted saliva as he flinched away from his position. Surprised by this, Aran stood up while panting.
"What was that for?" He asked while coughing
"I will be hitting you in a different random direction. And in order to stop me, you must use your perceptiveness. Take note, I will be quickly changing directions, and my hits are going to be fast. I want you to focus on my movements rather than guessing and avoiding my hits." He explained.
Aran's expression didn't seem to be fazed with hopelessness. He smirked as he glared at William with his reddish eye.
"Fine by me!" He responded.