[Baruba POV]
it's spring. My research is progressing at a steady pace. I'll soon be able to depart and live my dream. Zala is advancing quite well. She is talented. I'm glad I took her as a student. I didn't see that brat for months, and I hope not to see him again too soon ! 'There should be another month before he comes back. The past few months were pure bliss.' I loved my peaceful life, but this boy would disturb it whenever he came. 'He is so annoying. He always asked questions. Act as if the house was his. Use my tools. And always criticize my mysterious acting. Algouth it's useful, it's so unnerving!' So not seeing him for a few months is very refreshing.
I was comfortably sleeping in my bed when a violent bright light illuminated my bedroom.
"AAH, LET ME SLEEP ! WHY IS THE SUN SO BRIGHT TODAY !"
'Can't it be a day like any other day!'
I got up quite angry and went to the window. What I saw shocked me so much that I believed I was still dreaming.
I recognized Yal, who was holding the stone I gave him in his hand.
'I'm hallucinating ! This is even starting to bother me in my dreams ! Let's ignore it and sleep again.' I put the duvet on my head and tried to fall asleep. But Nayum has decided otherwise.
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' Now he is knocking at the door. That's the proof it's a dream.' I ignored him again.
"Baruba ! I came here to show you my results !" said the boy.
Sigh
I should stop denying it. The boy is here. I stood and went opening the door.
" What do you want ?" I aggressively said. Still, I couldn't help but admire the stone in his hand.
He evilly smiled.
" You know why I'm here."
" Why did you come this early ?"
" And why not ?"
"Because I WAS SLEEPING"
"Well, it's a payback for making me pass out. And it's not too early. It's been two hours since hunting teams departed for the forest."
I looked at the sky. I could see thick clouds covering it. 'that's why it's so dark. I nearly punched the boy for something .... Have I become lazy ? No, impossible I must have worked too late yesterday.'
" Alright, come in before it starts raining!"
We sat in the living room. I stayed silent for a few seconds. 'How did he do it? It took me two years back then ! He is a genius,' I put a serious face without letting my thought appear on it.
"You did well, a bit better than average." Lying has become second nature for me. And as for why I wasn't praising him much, it's because I didn't want him to become arrogant. It will make him overestimate the others. It will motivate him to work harder. But I can't criticize him too much as well. He might get dispirited. Even if something told me, he wouldn't give up this easily. He wouldn't be my student otherwise!
" It took you long enough to achieve it."
" If you had given me one piece of advice or two, it would have been faster !"
'That's true. I didn't give him one.'
" Do you expect me to always remain behind your back ?"
"No, but.."
" Then you should learn how to think yourself !"
'Hehehe, I'm only repeating what my teacher told me to excuse his laziness.'
He sighed.
" I understand."
"Good, So how tattoos and intent are different ?"
The question silenced him for a good ten minutes.
" Well, now that I understand intent better, I have an idea. When I was first using intent, I would lose myself in the intent. Nothing else would count. But as I progressed, I observed that my will to make the stone shine became more profound. It was slowly anchoring itself in my very being, and as if it was merging with me, it's a bit difficult to explain. But as the intent become closer, it is easier to use and focus on other things. Of course, if I focus on other things, the light coming is weaker. It's very different from my tattoo. I don't need to concentrate much to activate it. I only need to control the ovzgûn flow with the intent of activating the right skill. The tattoos also seem more natural, as if it's already a part of me. The energy expenditure is also less important with tattoos. One of my guesses is that intent uses the soul as an intermediary and the tattoo the body."
" Not bad ! You are close, but it isn't entirely right. The intent is indeed linked to the soul. Your will comes from it. As you develop your intent, your soul becomes more familiar with it, and if your will is strong enough, you will mark your soul. Of course, you can't do it without ovzgûn. Each time you make the stone shine, a part of the ovzgûn will go to your soul and start to the corresponding symbol. The Stronger your will, the deeper it is carved and the easier it is for you to use it. You are right when you say tattoos are related to the body, but they are also linked to the soul. When a meitatù draws a tattoo on someone, it is not only drawn on your body but also on the deepest part of your soul. That's why it is painful when a meitatù draws a tattoo on you. That's why it's so easy to use, and that is also why it can be used as soon as it has been drawn. Another point is that a tattoo is the product of years of research, so it is usually powerful, and that is especially true for tribal tattoos. A tribal tattoo is the product of years of research. Several people had worked on it. They are very complex and can tap into the powers of concepts. Not that it's impossible with intent, but very difficult and usually less powerful."
Yalak looked at me with big eyes swallowing every word I said. 'It's quite pleasing to have someone listen to me.'
"But doesn't that make tattoos very dangerous? The meitatù can draw a harmful tattoo to the user."
"Indeed, there exist tattoos that enslave one to another, or other tattoos can seal your power. You should always choose a person you trust to tattoo you."
" I'll be careful. I have another question. When I used ovzgûn on different objects, they would break, but the stone didn't. Why is that ?"
" It's because I have drawn a symbol on it."
The boy frowned.
"Shouldn't tattoos be only drawn on living things ?"
" And who told you that ? Are your mask or the stone living beings ? You can draw tattoos on anything. The ovzgûn passing through the symbols makes the desired effect happen. I have drawn a simple symbol on the stone that lets ovzgûn flows through it without harming it. Unlike magic, ovzgûn needs an intermediary to work. You can't draw symbols out of the air and hope that something happens. It's impossible, at least for ovzgûn. Your tribal tattoo uses your body as an intermediary, and you used the stone as an intermediary for your intent."
I waited for some time to let him digest everything he just learned.
" And Why can't I see any symbols drawn on it ?"
"That's because I use an intent to make the ink take the same color as the stone. It is one of the many ways to hide a draw."
" Do you have any more questions?"
He shooked his head.
" Perfect, let's learn how to make a mask !"