Nold's Secret Skeleton Refinement Technique: Stage One and Nold's Secret Skeleton Refinement Technique: Introduction.
'Is this all?'
As he grabbed the bundle of paper, Ackster realized there were, in fact, two of them, each clearly labeled. He also realized that due to the pages' thickness, there weren't that many of them, despite the bundle's size.
Since the introduction was on top of stage one and was obviously meant to be read first, that's what Ackster did.
The introduction was pretty straightforward and explained Nold's thinking and inspiration for the development of the secret technique. It did use some complex terms that Ackster was pretty sure were from Millmeria since he didn't even recognize the words. But he understood the gist of it.
And he didn't know what to think of it.
At first, Ackster was a little satisfied to know that his own training, which built on the idea of his body regenerating stronger after being broken down, was also the basis for the secret technique. He had thought of the same thing as someone who Wilma described as an incredible genius. Nold was apparently pretty crazy, but Ackster chose to ignore that part.
Of course, while Ackster stayed on the part where the body heals and becomes stronger after trauma, Nold took it a little further.
Nold chose to target the skeleton since it was the strongest construct in the human body. It was stronger than the muscles and the skin. It didn't break, bruise, tear, or get cut as easily as the other parts of a human. It also remained the longest after death.
It varied depending on the strength of the individual, but a person's flesh and soft tissue could rot and deteriorate within a matter of weeks post-mortem. But the skeleton, in the same circumstances, could last years upon years.
In the introduction to the secret technique, Nold described that insight as the seed of his fascination with the human skeleton and how it differed from the rest of the human body. And so, he began trying to find out everything he could about the human skeleton.
But he quickly realized something.
While the human skeleton was a lot sturdier and more durable than the soft fleshy parts of a human, it was slow.
Nold conducted tons of experiments on willing and unwilling participants.
Old farmers who had worked hard for their entire lives would occasionally have sturdier and thicker bones than young warriors who could lift boulders, something the farmers couldn't do. But old warriors, who, despite their profession and way of life, had remained healthy and able-bodied even in their twilight, didn't necessarily have the same bone structure as old workers.
The warriors had a different kind of skeletal strength, which usually came from repeated breaks. The farmers and other hard workers, on the other hand, had a skeletal development that seemed to come from constant stress and strain, almost without rest, over long periods of time.
Fighters developed a skeletal formation more suited for explosive bursts in which their bones could handle their strength for shorter periods of time, and farmers passively cultivated a holistic strength that grew their skeletons to be more durable and have greater endurance.
The muscles, ligaments, and joints also interested Nold. But he quite quickly concluded that they were easily trained and improved to suit certain goals and professions, especially when compared to the skeleton, which could take a lifetime to strengthen properly.
The discovery grabbed hold of Nold's mind like a vice, and he was left with no choice but to dig deeper and explore the potential of the human skeleton even further. Along the way, he also set out to devise a method to bring out that potential.
Nold realized that what made the human skeleton so strong in the first place was the material and the internal structure. That was also why the skeleton was slower to develop and train. It didn't break as easily as muscles, and it wasn't as easily rebuilt and strengthened. It took time for the human body to supply the materials needed to heal the damage to the skeleton. And it took effort to make it stronger than before.
It was amazing that the human body was capable of something so incredible, but it wasn't enough for Nold. He wanted to help the body on the way and make the natural process faster and find a way to make the skeleton as strong as inhumanely possible.
Healing magic that focused on speeding up the body's natural recovery rather than removing any damage could handle the first part.
But healing magic alone wouldn't be enough to accomplish Nold's goal. It would only reduce the time needed to strengthen the skeleton. But even then, there would be a limit to how strong the skeleton could grow. It would also be difficult to make the skeleton's growth even and balanced throughout the entire body.
So, Nold sought inspiration from other materials. He closely inspected the structure and composition of materials with a sturdiness that could rival and surpass even the strongest human skeleton to see what was missing or how he could make up for what was lacking.
He looked at stones, ores, alloys, trees, compounds, and other being's skeletons and eventually came up with a method that he eventually refined into the Nold's Secret Skeleton Refinement Technique.
The secret technique was a lengthy and excruciating process that, while not as efficient as what Nold had first set out to do, theoretically achieved a result he was satisfied with.
There wasn't anything about the results or if anyone had ever gotten that far in the introduction, which was a little concerning, but Ackster put it aside as he confirmed that he had finished the introduction and there was nothing on the back.
He grabbed the Stage One part of the secret technique. It was the introductory part of the technique and what would set him up for the following stages. It was fitting that the introduction to the technique and the technique's introduction were together. But he couldn't help but wonder where the rest was.