Marcus's stat points had increased by thirty points in total, and his health had increased by twenty-five.
The growth in stats was so surprising to Marcus that he'd almost forgotten what his master had done to him prior.
Almost...
However, just before he could lash out, he recalled everything his master had said to him up to this point. Having control over one's emotions was the key to power. A power mind you, Marcus had every intention of making his own.
Nekros seemed to be pleased with Marcus's reaction to calmly analyze the situation as his disciple entered a meditative pose once again.
It seemed he'd realized just how important it was to manage his more rampant feelings, and as a result, he planned to meditate to clear his mind of all negative thoughts he currently had towards Nekros.
Although, Nekros wasn't the only individual whom he had felt such feelings toward. There were still the two slavers who'd tortured and killed him, Geralt and James.
There was also his 'friend' Gavin, who betrayed him and left him for dead.
And last but not least, there was the mysterious individual who attacked his family and was the cause of their separation. Marcus didn't know much regarding this particular person, but it didn't change the fact this man was responsible for all of the cascading events since then.
Marcus may have not thought about this man consciously, but subconsciously, he loathed this man the most.
As Marcus was recalling all the individuals he held such rancorous feelings towards, his emotional state constantly fluctuated, and the dark mana surrounding him was in a constant state of turmoil.
The mana surrounding him was materializing in and out of existence all around his body.
At times, Marcus would become so enveloped in the orbs of dark mana that his body would seem completely black and make him look eerily similar to a living, breathing, pitch-black mannequin.
The scene was both eerie and beautiful. The mysterious and frightening image of the black mannequin directly conflicted with the beautiful scene of black orbs that radiated around him.
With the stars and moon above casting a bit of light on the mysterious looking individual and the orbs of mana surrounding him, the scene also looked quite picturesque.
Throughout the duration of Marcus's meditation session, Nekros's presence had long since left Marcus behind. He'd given the boy plenty of help already and decided to the leave the rest up to him.
This was merely the first step of many he'd have to take, and Marcus was already far behind those he'd need to surpass in the near future.
Nekros merely gave him a little push forward.
Marcus would have to make up the remaining gap between himself and those ahead of him on his own.
***
Two weeks had passed with Marcus only either meditating, hunting for food, and sleeping. Outside of this, he didn't have much time for anything else.
For some reason the lone teenager didn't encounter any other bounty hunters as he entered his monotonous cycle of mental training.
At the beginning, Marcus had been extremely cautious of his surroundings. and as a result. this slowed his training considerably.
Nekros took notice of this, and immediately assured him that he was safe from any wandering bounty hunters. Marcus wasn't sure why his master sounded so sure of this, but he decided questioning it was useless.
By the time he settled back into his unvarying cycle of training, another two weeks passed and Nekros returned to instruct Marcus.
"That's enough," Nekros stated. "You're ready to move on to the next step now."
Marcus stood to his feet, waiting for Nekros's next instructions. It seemed his demeanor had changed slightly, and he'd gained a since of calm and tranquility he hadn't possessed before.
"Know that even with the training you now possess, you're still far from gaining complete control of your mental faculties.
"As your power continues to grow, so to will your emotions."
"Master I have a question," Marcus spoke in a slightly raspy voice from not conversing with anyone for two weeks.
"Speak."
"Why is it that ones emotions, and feelings possess such an intrinsic relationship with the mana people wield?"
"This is because mana is far more influential than you realize."
Nekros paused for a moment before he continued.
"You are already aware that mana effects one's emotions and biology correct?"
Marcus nodded his head to his master's inquiry.
"Then you must have also drawn the conclusion that one's personality can become...altered due to mana," Nekros spoke in a teacherly manner. "You see, mana wasn't originally meant for the inhabitants of Terra to wield.
"Had it not been for Terra, the actual goddess you all named the planet after, along with the intervention of other gods and goddesses, no denizen of this world would ever have the opportunity to wield mana."
"Mmm."
Marcus acknowledged this fact without batting an eye. If anyone else were to tell him that mana wasn't originally within Terra, he'd have ignored them completely. However, since it was his master, whom he trusted more or less, he took Nekros's words as if they were the gospel of truth.
"With that being said, mana isn't a tool meant to be only used as a weapon, to improve quality of life, or to do any of the other ideas the inhabitants of this world limit it to."
"Mana is essentially another form a life in a less tangible and concrete form. It dictates how beings act, how they reproduce, how they appear, and in some cases how they perceive others.
"Something as marvelous as this obviously can't be fully wielded by others without some form of repercussions."
Nekros paused to allow Marcus time to comprehend and think about everything he had just said, and after about two minutes had passed, Marcus spoke.
"Our thoughts and emotions, as well as our biology are all the 'repercussions' of wielding mana," Marcus spoke questioningly rather than as a statement.
"You are both correct and incorrect.
Surprisingly, Marcus wasn't annoyed by his master's indirect response and chose to wait for Nekros to elaborate.
"Heh...I will not give the answer so easily boy, but I will tell you this. If you learn to acknowledge mana as a separate life form and as a partner rather than a tool, you can become far stronger than almost anyone else.
"It is indeed true that mana effects you on a psychological level and can negatively impact you because of it; however....
"This only applies to the weak and ignorant."