With a new hour setting in, Tanjo had already discarded his original armor and confidently wore the new cloak. Although it was brand new, the boy simply perceived it as an oversized hoodie similar to the one he was wearing when he left Buraun.
It didn't take long for him and Asami to relocate back to the mountain tops. Tanjo was thankful that he wasn't required to lift a tree upward—but he knew that things would only get much worse.
'It's gonna take some time to get used to this cloak; I can actually feel it bouncing off my legs with how lengthy it is.' Tanjo thought, his mask strapped to his waist.
Tanjo wasn't sure how to handle the mask; he wasn't in favor of wearing one, but the prospect of possibly being exposed wasn't favorable either. Asami chose not to wear one, but she covered her head with a hood and kept her face hidden, especially in public.
"All right, Tanjo. Soon I'll be having you assist me in traveling around Adonai, and when I was growing up, I learned that being strong was a foolproof way of savin' your ass." Asami spoke, garnering Tanjo's attention. "Your magic is all wonky, but your strength seems more refined."
Tanjo craned his head to the side. "What do you have in mind, then?"
Asami folded her arms comfortably, eyeing the jet-black-haired boy. "Similar to carrying the tree, I want to find where your strength currently resides. Being both strong and durable can assist you in manipulating your Aura Sense; you, of all people, need it the most."
"Thanks for the notice…" Tanjo muttered, allowing Asami to continue.
Asami frowned. "Keep the dejected attitude to yourself, will ya?"
Tanjo silenced himself, retracting his arms underneath his cloak. With a huff, the boy steeled his eyes. "I wasn't dejected…"
Swaying her head back and forth, Asami mumbled something incoherent, turning around slowly.
With water ejecting from her hands, large mounds of water formed behind Asami, quickly solidifying into ice. Tanjo looked perplexed, his eyebrows knit in astonishment. He has yet to view Asami's mastery over water, only just learning that even ice was a part of her arsenal.
Tanjo stumbled for words, "A giant ice block? It looks to be the size of a house."
"Touch it," Asami ordered, smirking.
Hesitantly, Tanjo ambled up to the giant ice block, extending his hand outward. The moment the skin of his palm made contact with the ice, Tanjo reeled his arm back as fast as possible, balling his hand.
"Hahh! Why is it so cold!?" Tanjo shuttered, stuffing his potentially frost-bitten hand into his cloak.
Asami chuckled sadistically. "That's because it's negative five-hundred Fahrenheit!"
Tanjo halted, his eyes being drawn to the blue-haired woman. Tanjo's eyes darted between Asami and the ice in quick recessions. "Can things even get that cold!?"
Asami laughed heartily, making the boy scowl in response. "You see, there isn't a limit to what I can do with water. Its temperature is just another factor that I have control over! I could freeze an entire star if I got close enough!"
"Okay, then… Why did you create it?" Tanjo questioned, his anger dissipating.
Asami grinned. "I want you to lift it!"
The boy's mind broke. It wasn't the size that concerned him—it was the freezing temperature that terrified him. His hands would go numb after touching the block for a few seconds; lifting it wasn't even a conceptual thought to Tanjo.
"Are you crazy!? I'll lose my hands before I could even keep off the ground for a minute!" Tanjo retorted, grounding his teeth.
Asami's grin deepened. "Do you really believe that? With your Aura Sense, you're invulnerable to a lot of properties, especially the cold!"
Tanjo's face morphed into a reflective countenance, his mind drawing academic lesions at rapid rates. Tilting his head down, Tanjo contemplated the reasoning behind Asami's words.
'Invulnerability? To the cold? How could I be… Oh!'
Within moments, Tanjo brought his hands out from his cloak, gazing at them curiously. "My Aura Sense… The typical Aura Sense emits heat, varying from a simple forest fire to heats that exceed basic calculation."
"Uh huh," Asami concurred, nodding. "I doubt you'll control your Aura Sense to the degree needed, but this will certainly help you level out your magical prowess much faster. Hell, if you don't you'll have to amputate your hands from frostbite!"
Tanjo shivered.
"I don't know if I should be happy or sad that you're being so blunt…" The jet-black-haired boy mumbled, his shoulders sagging.
Asami chuckled. "Can't be naïve, right? Now come on! Lift this ice block!"
Tanjo shook his head and focused on the ice block with his hands rising outward gradually. He will need to draw out just enough magic to warm his hands since he couldn't grab it without his Aura Sense.
'Come on; a little ice won't kill me…'
Bending his knees, Tanjo tucked his hands under the giant block of ice. Immediately, the boy writhed in pain, a sharp pang shooting through his arms.
'I've got to use more magic… now!'
Tanjo smiled as he felt his arms fizz with his Aura Sense, the freezing temperature diminishing quickly. Although the bitter cold still resided, it wasn't to the point of unbearable pain.
"That's step one; step two is to lift it!" Asami ushered from the side, watching as the boy continued.
After his mental gymnastics, Tanjo applied more Aura Sense to his arms—and the rest of his body, heeding Asami's advice from earlier—prompting the ice block to shift slightly, parting from the ground with every passing second.
Tanjo's hands dug deep into the bottom of the ice block, his fingers no longer trapped between the mountain top and the block.
To Asami's surprise, the moment Tanjo found a proper hold of the block, the boy managed to instantly lift it above his head with zero effort. The blue-haired woman was aware of Tanjo's potential, and even Low-Class warriors could lift an object of that size, but to see him strengthening himself so quickly only amazed her. He claimed to have left his village, insinuating that he never finished training to become a warrior—especially due to his age—and the only experience the boy could have had was with much lighter weights and academic training.
"I can say I'm surprised. You quickly found a way to decrease the effects of the ice and your strength is stupendous compared to how young you still are." Asami congratulated, clapping cordially.
Tanjo smiled, albeit briefly. Then a thought hit his young mind: what if he tested his strength by throwing the giant ice block? In an instant, Tanjo shifted his upper body slightly, spreading his legs farther apart.
Asami eyed Tanjo questioningly. "What're you doing?"
Tanjo grinned, hoping to relieve his hands of the cold object. "This!"
Accidentally imprinting his feet into the mountain's stone, Tanjo launched the giant ice block into the air, sending it flying for several miles. Eventually, it flew so far that it was no longer visible to either Tanjo or Asami.
"Did you plan for it to go that far?" Asami asked, deadpanned.
Tanjo stared at the sky silently, chuckling nervously. "No… I didn't."
XXX
Weird ending to a weird chapter! Lifting a giant ice block colder than almost anything on the planet? Awesome! This is just the start of Tanjo's training. I hope I don't rush it, but I just want to exemplify Tanjo's strengths and abilities in the best way I can. This was only the beginning—him lifting the weight of the Earth should be enough clarification on how far this might go! Stay tuned for more!
Have a Great Day!
Peace - Cr1ticalz_