[29 days until The Trial]
The rest of the day was the same, with Cain dragging Abel around. Cain took Abel on his very own unofficial tour of the city.
Every place Cain dragged Abel to, money was lost. Much to Abel's dismay. Cain spent money like it was going out of style. He blew thousands on things he thought they might need. They went to the blacksmith, Tailor, apothecary, and library to purchase various items.
Two Steel swords. One for training and one for combat.
20 basic regenerative potions. In case of injury while training and for the trial.
A new stylish outfit that doubled as protective armor. Abel hoped that since he now had decent clothes, people would stop thinking he was homeless.
And last but not least, a shit ton of books about a wide variety of educational topics.
When the Shopping spree ended, Abel was left with a small percentage of the money he earned. At first, he was reluctant to spend the money, but he knew deep down that Cain was only buying it to help him. So, he relented.
Abel made it home right as the sun sunk into the horizon. He planned on doing some training when he returned, but after hours of endless shopping, he was exhausted. Abel felt that this was what shopping with a teenage girl was like.
Cain didn't seem to care about Abel's exhaustion. He was too busy formulating an in-depth training plan.
("I can't wait!")
Cain's excitement sent shivers down Abel's spine.
...
[28 days until the Trial]
The day after their trip to Smolden, Abel started training in earnest with the help of Cain. Abel moved away from his house and used one of the desolate plains surrounding the wasteland.
He ensured it was a remote spot far away from all the other scavengers.
"Alright, I found a big open spot, brought all the supplies, and even wore your fancy outfit. What now?"
("Now, We whip you into shape!")
"What?" Abel was a little taken aback.
("We'll start with a quick warm-up. Let's see how about you do,
500 Pushups
1000 sit-ups
and a 10km run.")
Abel stood there, waiting for Cain to stop messing around. Who in their right mind would think of that as a warmup? Abel waited patiently for Cain's jeering laugh, but it never came.
("Why are you staring into space? We're running out of sunlight!") Cain's tone was very commanding. It took him a second, but eventually, Abel realized that this psycho actually thought of that as a warmup.
"Are you serious?"
("As serious as I've ever been. Now, GO GO GO!")
Cain's powerful voice spurred Abel to action.
...
After a few hours of nonstop exercise and nonstop sweat, Abel completed Cain's "Warm-up." As soon as he was finished, he collapsed on the soft, malleable grass. He closed his eyes, desperate for even a second of rest. Alas, it wasn't meant to be.
("Off your ass! We're not done yet!")
When Abel heard that there was more pain coming, he let out an exhausted groan.
("Sit up straight and start meditating! If you don't hurry, all your work will be for nothing.")
Reluctantly Abel forced himself up. He adjusted his clothing and sat on the ground in a meditative posture. When he was in a comfortable enough position, Cain started talking.
("Alright, this may or may not work. I've never used mana before, so I'm not exactly an expert, but I do know how David absorbed mana in the novel, so I'm going to try and help you use his method.")
Abel was too tired to speak and could only let out a sigh. Cain ignored it and began.
("Close your eyes. Take a deep breath in, then take a deep breath out. Repeat this process a couple more times.")
Abel followed Cain's directions and started to become relaxed.
("Now that you're in sync with your breath, I want you to examine the interior of your body. Feel the energy in your body. Focus on the mana flowing through your body. Take notice as it flows from the bottom of your feet to the top of your head.")
Abel started to slowly notice the mana drifting throughout his body. He felt it flow through every inch of his body. He saw that his mana was working with his body to heal the torn muscle fibers from his training. He felt the mana start to nourish his body. The mana's nourishment strengthened his body in a way he had never noticed before.
("Once you've taken notice of your internal mana and you've started to understand the way it flows. I want you to move your focus from the mana inside your body to the mana outside of it.")
Abel moved and shifted his focus just as Cain instructed. When Abel noticed the mana outside his body, he was beyond shocked. The entire world was covered in an uncountable amount of colorful particles.
'Is that mana?'
("If you succeeded, then you should be able to observe the particles of mana that encompass the entire world. The next step is to try and absorb them into your own body. So use your steady breath to pull the mana toward you.")
Abel started taking slow, deep breaths to get the surrounding mana into his body. Abel kept trying to absorb more mana and wasn't having any luck. His rate of absorption stayed the same as it had always been. He was getting frustrated but refused to give up.
Every time he tried to pull more mana toward him, it would give resistance. He knew he must be doing something wrong, but he wasn't sure what. So, he started watching the mana as it roamed about.
After watching for a couple of minutes, he noticed something. The resistance he got when he tried to absorb the mana particles differed for each color. This observation opened a whole new door for Abel. Instead of trying to absorb all the different types of mana, he would only absorb the one that offered the least resistance. Abel started testing immediately.
A couple of minutes later and Abel was left with a winner. The red particles. They were less resistant by half than every other particle. Abel, not wanting to waste another moment, focused solely on absorbing only red particles. He instantly noticed the difference. His mana was increasing by the minute at a slow, methodical pace.
Slowly Abel was absorbing all the red particles in the air. He kept breathing in and breathing out. He focused solely on the meditation and didn't even notice the time passing him by. He only awoke when Cain pulled him out of it.
("Alright, that's enough. Any more than that, and you'll damage your mana core.")
Abel's eyelids slowly lifted. He flinched a little at the brightness but quickly adapted. Abel took a quick pause and then asked Cain his questions.
"Hey Cain, Do you know why the mana had different colors? And why were some easier to absorb than the others?"
Cain was happy to answer Abel's questions.
("The different colors are the different mana types. There are tons of different types of mana. You got the six core elements Wind, Water, Earth, Fire, Light, and Darkness. Most of the other elements, like lightning and ice, are just variations of the core 6.")
("As for your second question, it all comes down to affinity. Most people have an element or elements that they are more suited for. Let me ask you what color gravitated near you the most?")
"Red"
("The Red color represents fire. So, your affinity is fire.")
Cain laughed a little to himself.
("Makes sense Fire affinity for the guy with a fiery temper")
Abel scoffed at Cain's joke
"haha, So what's next?"
Hearing Abel so excited to train filled Cain with joy.
("I'm gonna grind you to dust") he declared with a smirk