"Whoa! Is this really where you stay Grandpa?! What is that? Is it an artifact?"
Deo was amused at his grandson's enthusiasm. The boy had somehow managed to question everything he saw since entering the tower. However, upon entering Deo's chamber, which was adorned with ornaments of magical creatures, old artifacts and many such decorations from throughout the continents history , seemed to put the boy in a state of utter hysteria.
Truly the markings of a future scholar, in Deo's eyes.
"Calm yourself little lad." he chuckled. "I will explain whatever you wish for in due time. Firstly there are things I must ask you."
"Ah..o..okay" the boy sheepishly replied, likely thinking he was still in trouble from the past incident.
"Firstly what do you know of the worldly powers? I've been told you enjoy reading and especially of such topics. What have you learned so far?"
Duncan's excitement became visible once again. "Yes! well.... mother and father gave me some books but they weren't anything specific. I know father has divine power and he said you have really strong mana and that your powers are stronger than normal people."
"Well, not technically wrong" Deo chuckled once again. "In a way, your answer is correct, even if too simple. But there is something of a misconception to what you've just said, so consider this your first lesson, and listen closely."
"Okay!" Duncan expressed his enthusiasm right away. His consecration fully pointed towards his grandfather.
Deo sat down, adjusted his seat and poured himself some tea.
"Firstly, the vast majority of worldly powers do not belong to the individual using them. That means they are more akin to borrowed from wherever they originate. That is what differentiates humans from other beings, we are quite compatible with most forms of energy, but not that good at producing it."
"Secondly, think of a human as empty container and the worldly powers as ways to fill that container. Certain containers might be better in holding different powers or releasing them in different ways, creating things like affinities and variants."
"Now knowing that, tell me; How would someone train to become stronger using mana, for example?"
Duncan's ears shot up as Deo threw the question at him, but his concentration remained.
"By making the container bigger?" he answered.
"Very good!" Deo replied.
Duncan was visibly happy to have understood the subject enough to answer, meanwhile Deo stood up and began pacing his chambers while continuing to explain.
"One would slowly expand the amount of mana they could hold within them. However that's not all. The problem most people have after amassing mana is safely releasing it. The size of the lid and the hardness of the container for example. If I released an attack with more force than my body could handle, I might get injured, and if i attempted to release everything I could at once, I'd probably loose a limb while also injuring my body greatly, though again this depends on the individual.
"Your father and uncle use Divine power from the angels so the more they can release and control, the more they gain from them, making at least one aspect a bit easier."
Deo stopped speaking for a moment and looked back to see if his new student was still paying attention, after all ,from his experience it was around this time that most people would lose focus.
Yet his heart felt a southing warmth when he noticed that not only was the boy still as focused as when he started, he had even grabbed one of the empty parchments from his desk and took notes on everything he was hearing.
His familial pride was at it's peak, a smile formed and faded on his lips.
"There is however a major exception to nearly all that I've just told you. A power called source." he said, gazing at the boy for any change in demeanor.
Indeed, there was a flinch. Darius had likely, at the least mentioned source at some point after the shed incident.
"Regrettably understudied due to its sheer rarity and circumstance. A power to rival even that of the angels, and the only power humans can truly call their own. The last trace of it in the continent last seen over half a century ago....Until now it seems, little lad."
The boy wasn't slow. Deo gave a short pause before continuing. Short, but still long enough for Duncan to begin piecing together what he was insinuating. Or at least to give the impression that this part of his lesson was something more than objectively informative.
"I....Me?" he questioned. The thoughts that he had been in some way different now beginning to solidify into fact. Not only different but in possession of a power that could eclipse that of those he looked up to, left him in a state of befuddlement.
'I'm...special....i can be like them....i can help my family? I can be strong? With this power.....what could i learn.....what could i do?' the boy thought
"That is the conclusion your father came to . I would like to confirm it but i must have your complete cooperation for that to happen. Will you let me?"
Snapping out of his stupefied state, Duncan meekly nodded, waiting for what would happen next
Deo took a deep breath and knelt down to somewhat match the lad's small stature. His hand gently held at the center of his chest. " A sorcerer , or source user's power comes from a core that develops in their body. From what i know, it's still too soon for it to have developed. But i want to check for any inconsistencies. I will send a pulse throughout your body using my mana. I'll try to make it as noninvasive as i can so that your power doesn't react to it. But you must also focus in letting me, just in case."
Duncan, having vaguely understood what he had to do, closed his eyes and relaxed, trying to make his body as accepting as possible. His lack of control over his ability however made his efforts negligible. It would be up to Deo's control.
Focusing his mana and ejecting it as gracefully as possible. A set of pulses were released into the boys body.
An immediate difference was noticed by Deo. Duncan's body was slightly rougher for his mana to travel through than that of a normal person. A natural resistance perhaps, he thought.
But the ripples would only meet more resistance, the deeper they travelled and a moment later, he found what he was searching for. A small bead, right in the center of the boy's chest. The ripples could not pass through it and would instead bounce back when colliding with it. It felt dense and while small, uncharacteristically powerful. There was no doubt now.
'This is a source core! It should be too early, but this is definitely it. How!?' the questions going through his mind weren't baseless. From the little passed down, it was noted to be common for a core to develop when a natural sorcerer entered their teens. Regardless whether they could summon some form of strength beforehand.
"Wait here, youngin!" he shouted, running to an area on the other side of the room.
In truth, Deo was planning to use other methods to test his grandson's affinity, expecting the first test to be indecisive. But the order of things had now changed and more physical tools were in need of use.
Thankfully, in the week that had passed since the meeting with Darius, there was plenty of time for Deo to search through his collection for such tools. Preparing many in advance in case their use could prove useful
'No' he thought, 'I must calm myself. This is my grandson, not some subject for study. All must come in order, first comes control.'
Deo suppressed his instinct for discovery. After all, most of the apparatus he wanted to use required at least some form of control from Duncan over his power. The best course of action to engage was to do just that. Help the boy control his power.
Placing some artifacts inside a bag, he returned to his grandson. Holding out a small seedling.
"This is a grey palewood seed. Only grows in certain areas of the southern continent, so it's quite hard to acquire. Due to it's environment however it has developed quite the special feature. You see, the seed itself is long dead, but that's when it becomes most useful. When someone releases their aura into it, the seed revives and blooms, it's shape, color and features influenced by the essence it receives. Essentially giving a visualization of the container we talked about before. "
"Whoa.." Duncan's eyes widened at the small seed. While not technically an artifact, it was still a tool used in magic, once again heightening his emotions.
"This is our current goal, little lad." he said, putting a hand on Duncan's shoulder "To get you to the point where you can bloom this tiny seed. Are you up for it?"
The boy stood up stern in reply "Y-Yes, Grandfather, i will try my best!"
"Good...very good."
"You probably don't remember Old John but he is a good friend of our family and an expert in history. He has been a Master of the tower long before i could even read so he is more than qualified of taking you under his tutelage . Be sure to show him the utmost respect, I'm sure he'll take a liking to someone as attentive as you." he said as he patted Duncan's head.
From then on, a schedule was formed.
In the early hours, Duncan would be free to roam the tower under the tutelage of Master Johnathan Rize, to study the events of the continent and enrich his perception of the world. The old Master was eighty seven years old, yet his spirit always stayed stern when raising promising youths.
During midday, he would shadow Deo's students and in-term learn from them. After all from the student's perspective they could gain favor with their esteemed teacher or, in the best case, would gain merit from tutoring a possible future Master of the Blackwood line that was gaining much praise.
Lastly during the late night, they would train Duncan's control. Methods such as focusing on the state the boy was in when he first released his power or by injecting him with mana so that the source in his body would respond, were used, amongst others. A high purity chroma stone would be held by Duncan during these sessions. A crystalline stone that would change its color based on the input of energy. The higher the purity, the more sensitive, and the easier to gauge any progress.
This schedule would continue for the next few days and it's results would show surprisingly quickly
But Deo and Duncan were not the only Blackwood pair of note during this short period.
At the other side of the city, bordering the city walls, the main barracks of the recruits and young soldiers was situated.
Most of the recruits were young. Twelve at the youngest for those who knew their path in life, sons of nobles following their predecessors steeds and alike, or older if they made their choice later on and wanted to make a name for themselves as a soldier, as well as bask at the benefits of a military career once they managed to become proper soldiers and thereafter.
'Munch, 'Munch' "Aah i can't believe they're training us half to death, then give us shit food after." one of the recruits complained. Trying to garner some sympathy from his piers sitting beside him.
"Shut the fuck up and eat your gruel rookie!" One of the soldiers eating in the adjacent table shouted, clearly not fond of the recruit's method of passing time.
"Oi, looks like Lenny got bored, this should be good." A different soldier whispered to his group.
"You can expect to eat better when you're a soldier and not completely useless. If you expect a fine meal every day, fuck off to the capital or Duskt and see how that goes. Though now that i look at you a bit better, with a pretty face like that, the sand landers might want a piece of you as well " Lenny mocked, as the soldiers began laughing at the recruits expense.
"Besides, your training wasn't even that bad, Runestone doesn't need an army like the other kingdoms, we get off easy. Try going up to the North and you'll see how hard life can be."
Lenny's uncaring attempt at making his junior feel better didn't seem to have the desired effect, if anything, all the recruits felt ever so slightly worse, but the soldiers found it funny, so they didn't care. The recruits had to learn one way or another.
Before Lenny could continue with his entertainment, a soldier from the other groups burst through the doors of the dining area.
"Everyone, Captain Darius is sparing with Bray in the training area!"
Hearing the news, Lenny formed a smile akin to someone who'd just been told that they'd received a long lost inheritance.
"You hear that rookies! You're about to see our rising star get the shit beat out of him for once. Let's move!"
The yard outside was bustling.
Nearly all of the troops that didn't have an active duty had gathered to watch the ensuing spectacle.
When Lenny's group arrived, many were already cheering and passing drinks around. The more experienced spectators even formed a miniature gambling ring amongst themselves.
All in all, the troops were making the best of the face off.
At the center of the field, the Blackwoods faced each other. Bray already panting from the previous exchange, Darius on the other hand seemed unfazed.
Both were equipped with a standard longsword. Neither wore armor. Regular cotton clothing adorned their figures instead, with an exception made for a vambrace covering Brayden's left forearm, a custom piece he had trained vigilantly to utilize in his swordsmanship.
"You're being too careless little brother, stop blocking and prioritize dodging when against a stronger opponent. If it were anyone else or if i wasn't holding back, you would have lost a limb or two by now"
"If" Brayden replied, his eyes focused on his opponent.
"You little...." Darius took a deep breath. As if Brey's answer just now had kindled a flame, Darius's body began to glow a yellow hue, ready to pounce.
Recognizing the change in atmosphere, Brayden followed suit, prioritizing the spread of energy to his extremities and weapon.
Both brothers were now using Divine power, things were getting serious. The crowd around them roared with excitement.
Darius made his move, like a flash of light, closing the distance in an instance, slowing down right in front of Brayden, attacking with an overhead diagonal slash, aimed straight for Duncan's throat.
The attack was quick, and packed quite the power behind it.
Thankfully, Bray's reaction was keeping up. Lowering his body as the sword approached him, he swung towards the attack from below, guiding it at the right moment so that it barely pasted over him, successfully parrying.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Bray stabbed forward towards Darius's waist. An attack that was effortlessly dodged by the more powerful opponent.
Darius continued to attack. Perfectly maintaining his output of Divine power, he unleashed a flurry of attacks, each gradually getting stronger than the last in an attempt to force Bray to retreat, else he risk injury.
Blow after blow landed and one after the other was deflected. When the attack was too quick Brayden resorted to the vambrace to block, if the opportunity arose, he'd use the brace as an anchor for his sword and deflect instead, though there wouldn't be time for a counter.
Darius analyzed his sibling's movements at all times, after all, his purpose was to train over all else, and whilst hiding it quite well, he was overjoyed.
'He is less talented than me? What a fucking lie. His affinity for divine power is weaker but his application and judgment is flawless. I'm using nearly twice the output he is, yet his usage still allows him to keep up. Rather than infuse his entire body in divine power, he spreads it unevenly to make up for some for the disparity. If he used too much on his arms his shoulders would risk dislocating or his upper body would be damaged but he finds the right combination each time and he knows i wont risk getting serious for the risk of injuring him. He's a monster.
'Do you only know how to train you little bastard? Find yourself a girl for fuck sake!' Darius internally complained.
'If he fought me when i was the same age as him, i might have actually been in some trouble. Unfortunately for you little brother, not every opponent will show you restraint, seems we have to do this the hard way.'
Suddenly Darius ended his relentless attacking, putting some distance between the two of them.
"Make sure you actually dodge this one, I'd rather not lower the number of family members, today." Darius yelled, as he raised his sword high above.
Divine power exploded out of Darius as his sword began to glow like the sun itself. The amount of power in the sword alone now easily dwarfed anything Brey could muster, he wasn't giving him leeway anymore. Dodge or die.
Darius's vise captain who had accompanied him with a few guards, stared in disbelief for a second before his realization turned to panic "Fuck, the captains gone mad! Recruits, move out of the way of his sword! You three evacuate the area!" he shouted.
Brey stared with wide eyes at the scene, but they were but a mummer. To say that stubbornness was a noticeable characteristic that he and his brother shared would be an understatement. Both would rarely back down and Brayden knew this well. The larger his unwillingness to back down, the larger his brothers response. He just didn't expect that response to be so drastic.
Feeling that he had given ample time for the spectators, Darius unleashed his attack.
"Sundering Dawn!"