Chapter 11: Side Story: Road to Beginnings I
*At Skye's apartment*
"Whew! Those missions sure took a lot outta me! Man! I could have died out there!...."
There was a short pause before Skye suddenly burst into laughter.
"Nah! Like that could ever happen! Though, I did learn quite some things from those missions yesterday. Plus, I earned about...120000 Coins. Great deal! I could probably get some more materials to make a sword, preferably a katana of sorts, though I already have one— it probably won't hurt to have another one, I could try a dual wielding style. That'd be cool.
Maybe I could make a shotgun too. Using a sniper can be too tiring sometimes. So many things have happened that I almost forgot about the dungeon run coming up soon. How soon— Fuck! Just three days from now?! What the hell have I being doing for the past two—no—three months?!" He said in slight shock.
"I gotta see if I can get some spell scrolls, techniques and/or circulation manuals. I have reached Basic mage now, so the circulation manuals that the academy gave we may not be realistic to keep on using. Speaking of spells, the Mana Burst spell is great, but I think its power isn't that much of a help in battles. Let's see—Ah! What if I try to gather the mana first and compress it, before releasing it in a huge burst. Like a Kamehameha or Cero from those old time anime I used to watch! Wow! This just might work! Where do I come up with such great ideas?" He continued with a chuckle before running out to a field to try out his idea.
"Let's see— sense the mana first. I've never tried this since I reached Basic level. People usually say that Apprentice and Basic level magic users percieve mana in totally different ways. Here goes nothing!"
As he sensed the mana in the air, his whole field of vision changed. The spacious field could barely be seen. All that he could see was a transparent white foglike substance flowing very gently, like a beautiful painting.
'Whoa! This must be the spirit energy the guidebook mentioned. And this flow like energies within it must be Spirit Mana and Spirit Qi. I'm guessing most people can't see this. The techniques the academy provide only try to sense the mana, not spirit energy as a whole. It must be because of my Spirit Affinity. Time to check out the mana then!'
As he suddenly tried to sense the mana waves in the surroundings, he soon saw what he could say, was one of the beautiful things he had ever saw in his life.
'Is that the elemental mana? It's so freaking beautiful. There are so many colours I can't really tell which is which until I actively communicate with them. Let's see— the bright fiery colored one is Fire, the oceanic coloured one is Water, the purplish blue one is Lightning, shit! There's no time to explain them all!'
'Ok then! Enough talk! Time for a Kamehameha–or is it a Cero? Ah! Details! Who cares about them? Time to do this!'
As he gathered the mana between his hands, a whitish speck—or orb was soon seen forming between them. As he gathered more mana towards his hands, the orb suddenly grew to the size of a football giving off a bright glow.
When Skye felt that he could no longer compressing more mana, he suddenly shot his hands forward and a white beam of light was released in the form of a massive ray that blasted the training target into ash, taking a part of the field with it.
Skye looked at the results of his attack and felt very pleased with himself.
'Nice! But that takes quite a while to prepare. Plus, that attack took out 70% of my mana reserves in one go! It's not suitable for constant use at my current level. Maybe I can try to reduce the intensity by releasing it with only one hand. I can also try to adjust the level of mana I put into the attack. Just like a Cero attack!'
A few minutes later...
BOOM!
"That totally worked! Awesome! At least I have a new means of attack now. All that is left is to adjust them to my fighting style. That may take awhile..."
Just then, a line of words suddenly filled his vision.
[You have displayed extraordinary combat skills and intelligence in battle]
[You killed a total of 80 people.]
[You have gained a new title— Cunning Killer.]
[You have earned 25000 points.]
[You have discovered two new spells— Spirit Beam and Spirit Pulse.]
[You have earned 5000 points.]
[You have gained a new title— Researcher.]
"Whoa! A substantial increase in points! Cool! I could totally get some cool new stuff now! Yeah! But why didn't I see this earlier? Was the book trying to scam me of my points? Hahaha! Look at me being delusional all of a sudden. So crazy." He said with joy written all over his face.
"Heaven. Status check." He said softly.
...
[Name]: Skye
[True Name]: ???
[Titles]: Cunning Killer, Researcher
[Talents]: Primordial Elemental Affinity, Extreme Intellect, Spirit Affinity, Primordial Chaos Spirit Body [Unawakened], Soul of the Ancients [Partially Awakened]
[Skills]: Basic Spirit Manipulation, Intermediate Assassination, Spirit Beam, Spirit Pulse, Mana Burst, Cloak, Basic Strategy, Advanced Combat Spirit Arts, Intermediate Shortsword Mastery, Advanced Dagger Mastery, Advanced Longsword Mastery, Advanced Bionics, Advanced Bio-engineering, Expert Nanotechnology, Master Sciences, Apprentice Refining, Apprentice Enchanting, Apprentice Runesmithing.....
[Stats]
Strength: 26
Agility: 30
Dexterity: 31
Constitution: 28
Spirit: 26
Will: 31
Intelligence: 57
[Points]: 30000
[Library]:
Basic Spirit Mana Gathering Technique (Inferior)—12000 points
Primordial Chaos Spirit Qi Scripture (Inferior)—13000 points
Dark Blade Art—1500 points
Flash Step—3000 points
Wind Blade— 400 points
...
After he saw his stats, Skye trembled before screaming in joy. "Fuck yeah! I'm freaking amazing! Looks like my stats increased. I sure would like a way for me to increase them using points though. Oh well, nothing to worry about I guess..."
"Plus, I'm seeing some pretty good stuff right here baby! Time to get all of them! I can finally use Qi!— I'm gonna be unstoppable! Hahaha!" He laughed while buying the Mana and Qi Gathering Techniques, the Blade and Movement Art; and the Wind spell.
After going through another bout of pain and resting for a while, Skye began reminiscing to himself.
"All this power, all this good stuff that I've got, reminds me of the time we spent together and the promise that we made— Layla. I know— I know that you want me to forget you— but I just can't! I can't! Those times we spent training, laughing, playing— I just can't forget them, not after everything that happened. This— this takes me back. I just wish— that things can go back— to the way they once were— to the good old days....
***Four Years Ago***
At the Imperial Academy...
"Today is the first day— the first day that you young ones can finally begin the start of your journey— a journey of magic, adventure, power and knowledge— a journey of a lifetime!" A slightly younger instructor Leo could be seen enthusiastically talking to a number of young teens standing in an orderly fashion.
"Ooh!" Some of them were intrigued by what he said, and answered curiously. Some were indifferent to what he said, and had a bored look in their eyes as they listened to him.
"You all are the future of the Imperial Federation. Some of you are descendants of the Royal and Noble Families, some of you are rich scions and some of you may be commoners—but— as long as you are all here, you all are equal! Only your strength can prove otherwise! So do your best!—become strong!— and make your families and country proud! Am I clear?"
"YES SIR!" All the students said in a loud and enthusiastic voice. It seemed that the instructor's words had riled them up and they were raring to go.
"Now for the attendance! When you hear your names, you are to respond adequately. Let us begin!" Instructor Leo said.
"Nova Precht!"
"Present!"
"Hela Precht!"
"Yes sir!"
"Lynn Scotia!"
"Present!"
"Javkon Dreylar!"
"Here."
"..."
...
"Now....the last person—Skye!"
"Skye! Are you present?—"
"It seems that he is absent—on his first day no less. We can begin without him then—" Instructor Leo said.
"Wait! Stop! Hold on!" A young voice could be heard.
A handsome boy with silver hair and captivating blue eyes soon ran into the class, panting with a goofy smile on his face.
"I'm sorry, my name is Skye— I hope that i am not too late sir! Forgive my lateness!" Young Skye said nervously with his head slightly bowed.
...
If you like this novel, please support with PS. Don't forget to drop a review and let me know your thoughts on my book. Remember to add to your library and recommend to your friends kay:-)