"...During the Second Great War, a time where the Elves, Humans and Orcs felt threatened by the alarming power of the formidable Dragon Race, conflict was strife! The Dragons, who's affinity for mana was off the charts did not take too kindly when three of the Major Races decided they had had enough and desired to weaken their race."
"...In this War, known as the War of Broken Pacts, grief was strife! Old friendships between members of different races dissolved under the fires of War, the once adamantine bonds crushed to dust. Old Alliances fell and created anew. The Dragons, aided by the Dwarves after hiring the services of the greedy race, ravaged their opposition and backed up the claim that they were indeed the strongest race under the Heavens."
"...However, it was not as if the Humans, Elves, and Orcs were defenceless against the overwhelming power of their enemies. Humans, bipedal beings who were thought to be one of the weakest races, proved their mettle and made a statement that their insight into Magitech, and comprehension of the Elements was nothing to scoff at."
"The Elves, gifted with the insidious power to harm the Soul, earned a reputation for their harrowing proficiency in Soul attacks, and carved a reminder in the souls of their enemies not to earn the ire of their peace-loving race. Many of the future generations would tremble after hearing of the chilling tales of the Elven Guard passed down from the lucky survivors of the clash."
"...Finally, the Orcs, who possessed an infernal power to go berserk and laid waste to whatever and whoever barred their path. Resembling feral monsters out for blood, the Orcs crushed the heads of their enemies beneath their feet into pulps. Those who had lived through the ordeal vividly recalled the appalling sight of the bulky and burly creatures bathed in the blood of their foes. Their green skin covered in crimson stains."
"...In a particular battle, the fiercest one, and the one that led to the eventual culmination of the War, the Undying Duo was born. The battlefield was littered with corpses, strands of moonlight cascading down from the heavens. The stench of rusted iron proliferated through the area like a crimson typhoon, invading the senses of the exhausted warriors.
"All of this paled in comparison, however, to fear that the Undying Duo, composed of the Oracle and Crown Prince of the Dragons, had sent through the ranks of the Elves, Humans and Orcs. To make their accomplishments that more impressive, they had even taken down large portions of the Elven Guard, Royal Guard, and Orcen Guard single-handedly."
"...Unable to watch any longer, Augustus IV, the late father of the current monarch of the Augustus Empire, Emperor Augustus V, alongside the former Elven Queen and the then Orcen Queen, made a move to take down the Undying Duo. It was only then, after four long, bloody years of conflict and death, that the King of Dragons at the time finally made his first and only public appearance, easily dealing with the three Monarchs and bringing about the end of the Second Great War."
Nico blinked after being entranced with the information on display.
His heart raced in excitement after his imagination ran wild and conjured images of the conflict between the Undying Duo and the Monarchs.
'Amazing! Henry was right! Maybe I need to re-evaluate that thought in the future.'
The brown-haired boy turned to his friend with sparkling eyes. Henry chuckled for the third time witnessing the star-struck expression on Nico's face.
"See, you get what I mean now, huh? Henry said smugly. A permanent grin etched onto his face.
"Okay, you're right. I may have been wrong before." the maroon-eyed boy sheepishly scratched the back of his head.
"Of course, you were, you brute!" Henry giggled, before turning his head to look at the half-blood a few feet away sitting on a bed, currently cleaning his shield.
Leon, who had immediately lifted his head when he heard the word 'brute' being mentioned, blushed, the tips of his ears growing hot… which made the raven-haired and brown-haired trainee burst out in raucous laughter.
Leon cracked an embarrassed smile before joining his two companions in laughing.
For the first time in his short, trauma-filled life, the burly half-blood was glad to be alive.
***
'Ugh, dammit! Why isn't this working?'
Nico threw the spear in his hands to the ground in a fit of frustration. Beads of sweat slid down his face, some ending up stinging his eyes and some dripping down onto the grass below.
The weather today was much better than the day before, shown by the clear blue skies and radiant sun, up above.
Currently, it was the day after Nico had perused through Henry's book, which recounted a portion of the events of the Second Great War.
He was standing in the centre of the meadow, practicing with the spear, attempting to get the basic stances and strikes into his muscle memory.
Safe to say, however, it wasn't going too well. Every time he thrusted the spear performing one of the beginner strikes, Nico felt there was something missing. There was… a lack of fluidity in his movements.
Fluidity that differed from the type achieved after countless repetitions.
Not to mention, he felt his strikes held no power or substance to them.
Stretching some particularly sore parts of his body, Nico stood and silently recovered his breath. He shifted his gaze to the azure lake and let the rippling water calm his mind.
Occasionally, he would spot a vague shadow or two swimming beneath the surface.
This continued for a few minutes until the brown-haired boy felt his breath even out. Then, with a heavy sigh, Nico tiredly rubbed his face before going to retrieve his spear.
Clutching the spear in his hands tightly, he slowly made his way over to where Phantom was leisurely relaxing, a determined expression on his face.
Greeted by the usual sight of his instructor deftly holding a brush in his hands and causing the scene he had envisioned to come to life on the canvas, Nico grit his teeth and suppressed the hesitation that creeped into his voice.
"Sir, can you tell me what I'm doing wrong?" He asked with the sweetest voice he could muster. "I feel like my strikes have no substance to them."
Phantom slowly turned his head round and raised a curious eyebrow in his student's direction.
"Sure… but are you prepared to pay the price for interrupting me?" The Spear instructor's grin stretched. Nico swore he saw a gleeful glint in the man's eye.
Cold sweat trickled down the young man's back.
"Y-Yes."
"Very well, then." Phantom groaned as he slowly set aside his supplies, stood up and dusted his clothes out of habit.
He squinted his one good eye once he exited the shade provided by the branches of the archaic tree.
Rays of sunlight streamed into his icy pupil.
Once in the centre of the meadow, he made Nico carry out a succession of spear strikes to assess the source of the trainee's error. Immediately after, the man identified the problem and sighed.
"You're on the right track, but there's a crucial element you're missing. Watch closely."
Phantom summoned a spear from his ring and gripped it tightly. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, before exhaling.
Then suddenly, with a whoosh, the weapon in his hands rushed forward and travelled with extreme speed.
A rush of wind blew through the meadow, causing the countless blades of green grass to sway in a rhythmic manner.
"Any ideas?" Phantom scrutinised his student's profile. He saw the young man furrow his brows deep in thought. A contemplative look on his face.
"No… to me, it looks as if it was just a normal spear strike."
Phantom shook his head and sighed, before lecturing, "Pay close attention to my chest."
The instructor slowly repeated the same manoeuvre. Inhaling. Closing his eye. Exhaling.
Thrusting forward with the spear.
After completing the action, he turned toward his student and raised an eyebrow, awaiting an answer. "Taking… a breath before unleashing a strike?" Nico said slowly, a little puzzled.
"Close. The reason you feel your strikes have no substance to them, is because you're not synchronising your breath with your attacks. This synchronisation allows the strike to be more fluid and possess greater power, as it has all your body's weight behind it. Instead of receiving power only from your shoulder muscles or arm." Phantom explained patiently.
A small breeze ruffled his black hair, sending several tiny strands splaying over his eyepatch.
A look of understanding suddenly dawned on Nico's face. Looking back, he had rushed each strike, just trying to get the repetitions in. But now, he realised he had it all wrong.
Sure it was important to practice, but not when doing so blindly. There had to be a purpose to his actions.
Instead of just madly thrusting, what if… with every strike, he had to be methodical and precise, not only with the timing of his breaths, but the subtle movements of his body as well.
Maybe that would help him understand the deeper essence of the Spear?
Nico understood what he had to. He had to synchronise his breath and attacks together.
Recalling how Phantom had exhaled and then immediately struck, a seed of enlightenment bloomed in Nico's mind.
He eagerly thanked his instructor before rushing to put what he had just learned into practice.