The next day Cain settled into his new mansion and decided to rest for a few more days before starting his lectures. He dreamt that he was watching everyone he had ever known as a friend stab him, and soon he was dying in agony and alone. It was too realistic and terrifying to be a dream. He was particularly horrified by the words of a white dragon after he had plunged a sword into its chest.
'I am coming for you...'
Cain woke up suddenly and screamed, he wanted to cry out loud, not caring about his situation. His pajamas were soaked with sweat. He took deep, long breaths to calm himself. He looked around nervously until he realized that he was lying in a bed that could fit five people. The room was big enough to make him feel like he was alone in the middle of an ocean. It took him a while to get out of bed and try to calm himself.
At that moment, the door suddenly opened and the young knight entered anxiously.
"Young master, are you alright?"
Chris thought that the young master had encountered an incident based on the scream he heard, but as soon as he entered the room, he was met with eyes full of anger and hatred.
"Fuck off!"
Eyes full of blood lust were locked on Chris. Although Chris had seen dozens of different killers, it was the first time he had met someone who could look like that. But although this surprised him, it did not frighten him, he carefully approached Cain and spoke in a gentle voice.
"The morning class will begin, young master. Please get ready. You will start using Mana today..."
Cain glared angrily at Chris. He looked like he was going to kill him, but he finally looked away.
"Get out."
Chris sighed and left the room.
---
About forty students had gathered at the training ground early in the morning. From today onwards, they would learn the arts of Mana and Sword. Until now, they had trained to expand their knowledge of the world. Now they would devote eight hours of the ten-hour training to Mana and Sword training.
After waiting for a while, the students lined up in an orderly manner, they saluted when they saw the black-uniformed instructor entering the training ground.
"No need to be formal. My name is Brixton. I am the sword instructor of class D. You will receive training from me until you reach the Sword Expert level."
Brixton was a very muscular man. He had a scabbard hanging from a sword belt at his waist and another one-and-a-half-meter-long scabbard hanging from his back. He looked to be in his fifties. His hair was grey, not very tall, but his body was very imposing.
"Sit down and listen to me carefully. I will tell you about the mastery of Sword and Mana, and by now you have learned about the workings of the world. Our lessons will be practically orientated. Life is all about practice."
"Now I will tell you how to a Dark Knight. Our family's sword system is a little different from other families. Knights are usually swordsmen who specialize in protecting someone. They have two types of weapons. The shield is for protection and the sword for attack... The best Knights are the Imperial Knights in the hands of the imperial family and the Paladins in the hands of the church."
"Knights exist to protect their masters. That is the biggest difference between us and them. The Dark Knights do not exist to protect, but to destroy. We are called to as harbingers of destruction. The danger of a company of Dark Knights is compared to a brigade of Paladins."
"To be called a Dark Knight, you must graduate from Class A before the age of eighteen. Your strength must be at the Sword Expert level and you must be at least level four in the Dark Knight Sword Mastery."
The children listened mesmerized as Brixton spoke. The history of the Ashborne Family was illustrious. They were one of the founding families of the Holy Alliance.
"There are two basic martial arts you will learn here. The first is the Dark Knight Sword Mastery... This martial art, created by the founder of our family, has been developed for centuries. It is divided into eight different levels and includes various sword techniques. The other is the Dark Knight Defence Art, a swordsman must be used in all kinds of situations. So I will teach you how to survive when you are unarmed."
"Another thing you will learn here is Mana cultivation techniques. It is Mana techniques into two. The first one is Mana cultivation techniques, which gather the Mana in the atmosphere in your body and form the basis of your strength, while the other is the Art of Aura. After all, we are not Sorcerers. We cannot use Mana in its pure form. We need to convert it into Aura. Only then can we use our sword techniques."
"Are there any questions?"
Several of the students suddenly raised their hands.
Brixton chose one of them.
"Why do you have two swords?"
Brixton smiled and drew the sword from the scabbard on his back. It was a one-and-a-half-meter-long sword. But it looked different from a normal longsword. Its body was curved and tapering towards the tip. Brixton took his stance before swinging the sword.
Then he said 'Hah!' and swung the sword.
BOOM!
Even though it was a simple swing, the sword not only split the air but also created a blast of wind, lifting the sand on the training ground into the air. The wind was as strong as an ocean wave and although a few students sat down, they could not resist and were knocked backwards.
"Although you don't know it yet when you reach the fourth step of the Dark Knight Sword Mastery, your aura, and soul will metamorphose and form a sword seed. Throughout the fourth step, you will nourish this sword with aura and blood and move on to the fifth step. Finally, you will have a Spirit Sword created for you and you alone."
"This sword is called Brock. When I have contributed enough and die, it will be sent to the Sword Garden and named after one of the future generations. Therefore, it is an unwritten rule that you give your sword a human name."
"Are there any other questions?"
The students looked at Brock with admiration. Each of them wanted to be the master of such a weapon. But they were only at the way. They had a lot to learn if they wanted to reach Brixton's level.
While Brixton was motivating the children, two young knights dressed as trainers entered the training ground with chests in their hands. They bowed respectfully as they came in front of Brixton and set the chests down.
"Now that you are motivated, let's begin our lesson. First, you need to feel the Mana. We will use the meditation method for this. Normally the best time for meditation is quiet nights. Because if someone enters your area while you are meditating, you may face serious problems. That's why students in Class A have special rooms. Now everyone take a pill from the chest."
When the knights opened their chests, a refreshing mint-like odor filled the air. Inside the chest were round pills that looked like candy.
"These are our family's special product, Tranquillity Pills. It increases your Mana sensitivity several times for a few hours. Thus, you will be able to feel Mana much more easily. We will give them away for free this time, but from now on they will be distributed as exam prizes. Swallow the pills as you take them and listen to me."
The students took the pills one by one. Cain also took one pill. It was quite slippery, about the size of a marble. He couldn't stop thinking about how to swallow it. But the smell was very comforting. When he put it in his mouth, he swallowed it without even realizing it.
"Now close your eyes in a comfortable position. Try to feel the inside of your body by regulating your breathing as I tell you. It is difficult to explain, but you need to feel the Mana inside you. Now. Forget the world. Just meditate."
A few disciples were surprised, "But sir, didn't you tell me just now? What if we hurt each other?"
"What you said applies to Sword Experts. You are not strong enough to hurt each other right now. Just do as I say. Don't worry if you can't feel it, it's a process, it could take weeks or even months."
Cain closed his eyes and did as Brixton said. As his breath followed a certain rhythm, he became distant from the outside world. He focused on his breathing, his heartbeat, and his blood flow. He knew why meditation was dangerous.
Meditation was used to reflex the Mana flow of a newly learned technique or to collect Mana. Both required a great deal of attention. If this attention was disturbed, the Mana could get out of control and damage the blood vessels.
As Cain focussed on his body, he began to feel warmth from a finger above his bladder. As he focussed on it, images formed in his mind. It was like a little ball of gas held together. He focused his mind and tried to control it.
It was a strange feeling.
This little ball of gas was like a naughty child. Although he wanted to control it, it would not obey him and tried to escape his will.
But as Cain remembered what Brixton had said, he calmed down and took his time controlling this little ball of gas. He focused on the deeper parts of his body and realized something.
He didn't just have one gas cannon in his body, he had more than one.
There were a lot of them around the heart.
Cain tried to control the gas balls around his heart with his will. He focused and focussed, for several minutes the only thing he could think of was to draw these gas balls into a zone around his heart. He could not draw Mana from the atmosphere unless he could do this.
"Hm?'
Mana suddenly tried to listen to his words. There was a problem. Cain never expected this.
BOOM!
The Mana inside his body suddenly focused in one place and exploded, forming a star. Cain woke up from meditation before he had a chance to rejoice at this sudden development. But this was not a normal wake-up.
Blood began to flow from his mouth and nose.