As Basil and I walked through the grand hallways of Golden Gates Academy, I couldn't help but marvel at the sheer grandeur of the school. It was like a castle straight out of a fairytale, with towering stone walls and ornate details at every turn. But as we searched for our classroom, I quickly realized that this grandeur also made it easy to get lost.
"Do you have any idea where we're going?" I asked Basil, feeling a bit frustrated as we took yet another wrong turn.
Basil shook his head. "They went over this in orientation, remember? You were there, right?"
I nodded, but I had to admit that I don't really know anything about the orientation considering I wasn't exactly myself during that time. This world's Yamiru probably went on it but I barely remember anything from it. Orientation had been a blur of information, and I was still trying to wrap my head around the fact that I was actually at this prestigious academy for magic and combat.
Basil consulted our schedule, and I glanced over his shoulder to see what we had next. "Combat Training," he read out loud.
My heart sank at the words. Combat training? I barely knew how to cast a basic spell, let alone fight in a battle. I could feel my anxiety rising as the sword in my pocket started to snicker.
"Oh, this should be good," it said. "You'll be lucky if you don't get your butt kicked on the first day."
I scowled at the sword, wishing I could toss it into the nearest trash bin. "Thanks for the vote of confidence," I muttered under my breath.
Basil looked up from the schedule, giving me a curious look. "Do you have any experience with combat?"
I shook my head, feeling embarrassed. "No, not really. I've only ever had to defend myself a few times, but nothing like what they'll probably throw at us in this class. What do you think they would teach us there? Do you think you can give me some pointers?"
"Pretty sure it's going to be some combative spells. I'm not particularly knowledgable in any of it honestly considering I focus more on my healing." Basil answered, shooting my chance of having him a tutor.
I was shaking and shivering in my boots, I didn't want to embarrass myself in the combat training so I decided to consult the sword to try to learn at least a spell to defend myself. Even if the sword is kind of a jerk, I'm able to learn from him but he has to at least help me.
I then came up with an excuse so I can go be alone with the sword, don't want to look weird in front of everyone when I talk to myself. "I need to go to the bathroom for a few minutes I'll just catch up with you!" I say to Basil who's confused about my sudden exit.
"Alright, the bathroom is over there so you can use it. The room is just over this hallway so I suppose you can go to the bathroom for a bit, don't take too long though class will start in 20 minutes." Basil points me to the nearest bathroom as he starts heading to class.
I take a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves. I'm standing in the bathroom, staring at my reflection in the mirror. I don't know what to do. I feel like I'm about to be thrown into a pit of fire without any protection. How am I supposed to defend myself in combat training when I can barely use magic?
"What do I do now?" I asked the sword, hoping for some guidance.
The sword just laughed, and I felt my frustration growing. "Why are you laughing?" I demanded.
"You're asking me what to do, yet you don't even know how to use magic. How pathetic," the sword replied, mocking me.
I feel even more anxious and frustrated with the sword's comments. "I don't need your negativity right now, I need your help!" he retorts.
I gritted my teeth, feeling a mix of anger and disappointment. I knew I wasn't the most skilled in magic, but I had to start somewhere. As my eyes started to wander I stared into myself in the mirror and I see it!
"A tab! My tab! It's right in front of me!" I shouted as I quickly looked at it. That's right! I had my own tab too! Maybe this can help me find out what I can do!
I stared at the screen in front of me, my heart racing as I tried to make sense of what I was seeing. The words "Upgrade Skill" caught my attention, and I found myself squinting at the tab, trying to get a better look. Most of the information was blurry, but I could see a skill tree similar to those I'd seen in video games.
The sword, which I had brought with me to the bathroom, looked just as surprised as I was. I could tell from the way it was staring at the screen that it had never seen anything like this before.
I scrolled through the tree, my eyes widening as I saw all the skills I could unlock. But as I looked closer, I realized that certain skills needed to be unlocked first, and that they required something called Skill Points. I had no idea how to get more Skill Points, and I could see that I only had two, to begin with.
I hesitated for a moment before clicking on the first skill, unsure of what would happen. Suddenly, I felt a burst of mana flowing through me, and I felt like the construct of my own body was changing. When I opened my eyes, I saw that I had unlocked "Firebolt," a skill that allowed me to shoot fire from my sword.
Excitement filled me as I read the description of the skill. I couldn't wait to try it out in combat training. But as I looked at my tab, I realized I only had one Skill Point left.
I tried to unlock the other skills, but there was only one that I could afford. I clicked on it, and it appeared on the screen as "Mana Shield." I read the description and learned that it generated a shield that could reflect enemy attacks, but it was very mana-consuming.
The sword spoke up, breaking me out of my reverie. "This is the first time I've seen anything like this," it said. "All these skills in front of you are usually off-limits to most origins. It's possible that you have a very special origin."
I looked at my origin on my tab, but it was still blurry. Frustration and curiosity bubbled up inside me. What kind of origin did I have? And how had I unlocked this skill tree?
I decided to try out my new skills, eager to see what I could do. I practiced shooting fire from my sword, feeling the heat radiating from the flames. It was an exhilarating feeling, and I couldn't wait to show off my new abilities in combat training.
But as I sheathed my sword and made my way back to the classroom, I couldn't shake the feeling of unease. What did this mean for my future? And what secrets was my origin hiding from me?