Walking back to Sariah’s home, Alaric’s thoughts soared. He could barely contain himself. He kept his breath calm but he wanted to hit something. ‘The nerve on that girl.’

  [ What? You have something against being called ‘ordinary’? ] the boy’s guardian swooned, curious about her master’s emotions.

  Not wasting a second, Alaric started fuming, [ No! It’s not that. It’s that judging tone she took with me. What gave her the right to lump me in with everyone else she’s ever met? No wonder she has no friends. If someone can’t understand how unique everyone is, then what’s the point of even befriending her in the first place? ]

  [ Damn! She got to you. ] the knight responded, taken aback by his words, [ Not even the twins managed to make you this mad with their mischief. ]

  Alaric tried to breathe and relax but every time he got close to it, he remembered Lucy’s face. That look of disappointment. That condescending tone. That… that…

  ‘Argh. I need to hit something.’

  The walk back to Sariah’s was enough to only get him mildly tolerant to annoyance… which he needed considering Scarlett came rushing out with an angry look on her face, “Where have you been? Don’t tell me you went out with that girl.”

  “Ah! You remember her. That’s good!” Alaric responded scornfully, walking right past her.

  Scarlett followed him to the door, “Care to tell me what happened? Will she be joining us tomorrow?”

  “That’s all up to her. I told her we were leaving tomorrow. If she doesn’t show up at the Guild Hall then we’ll leave without her,” Alaric responded, still walking.

  LionHeart left the house at that point and blocked the door. The boy stopped, noticing who it was that barred his way.

  Alaric’s expression softened, his anger morphing into something else—something deeper and more difficult to control.

  With his voice soft and low, he said, “Let me through.”

  He looked up at the man’s eyes. Even though they were the wrong shade, hidden by the magic of the Face Mask, Alaric knew who stood before him.

  Yes, LionHeart was one of the few people allowed to see him shed a tear. Alaric didn’t even realise he could shed tears without people like him around… and right now was not the time for that. He needed a way to vent his anger. Crying was not that way.

  Scarlett was still behind him. And yet, his eyes stung. Alaric whispered again, “LionHeart, I need to hit something… Or at least, train.”

  Like a hot knife through butter, the man stood aside and let him through. He didn’t need to be told twice when it came to Alaric.

  Alaric walked straight through the living room and to the backyard. The people inside were only casually having some snacks. Bumi was nowhere to be seen but Alaric didn’t care about that. Sariah, who was seated at the table with Maple, turned to LionHeart, “What happened?”

  Leon scratched the back of his head and sighed, “Teenager goes off with a girl without supervision. Take a guess.”

  “They fought?” Maple tried.

  “That’s my best guess as well. I’ll ask him when he’s had the time to calm down. I have to say though, I never thought he was capable of such emotion. He strikes me as the kind of person that’s always calm,” Leon mused.

  “We all have emotions. That boy’s been true a lot… What with the destruction of Earl’s Hollow and whatnot,” Sariah responded, “Gandalow asked us to take good care of him… even though he’s said to be quite willful.”

  Maple nodded in understanding whilst Leon interpreted something else. Gandalow and Earl’s Hollow were both stories made up for Alaric’s safety. In truth, the boy had been through a whole different kind of ‘a lot.’ He could still remember the lightning flashes as the Barrier as the Tower of Seekers was bombarded with mountain-sized boulders, all just to get to him.

  Even now, he wasn’t safe. LionHeart sighed and went for the kitchen. He needed something to drink. The boy was becoming more work than he’d first anticipated.

  [ Going out with that girl was reckless… ]

  The man’s guardian sighed, [ Yes… it was. ]

  *BAM* went the sound of a large man walking into a wall.

  Sariah gasped, “Leon?”

  “I’m fine. I’m fine…” the large man massaged his forehead. Since when did Aslan see fault in any of Alaric’s decisions?

  [ You have the wrong idea of my devotion to Alaric, ] the guardian sighed.

  ……………………………

  Alaric approached the backyard with more zeal than he had in a while. He walked up to the weapon rack and picked up a wooden sword, testing its weight in his hands before returning to the centre of the backyard.

  [ Alaric… I think you should first… ]

  Alaric was already taking the stance of the Dance of the Bear, not listening to his guardian. With one motion, the sword went diagonally down in front of him, his footwork impeccable as he started flowing through the forms.

  Five seconds in, his body went still in the middle of a cartwheel.

  BA-DUM his heartbeat went, sending the boy into a wave of vertigo that distracted him from the messed up tumble he took.

  Pain shot through his entire body as several muscles screamed in response to his physical abuse. He couldn’t even writhe around as that only made the pain worse. Instead, he struggled to keep still, gritting his teeth and enduring the pain his body was in.

  [ WHAT IS THIS?! ] he mentally screamed.

  [ That is your body telling you to rest. You’ve not had enough time to recover. ]

  [ We have a mission tomorrow. I can’t afford to be like this. ] the boy returned.

  There was a deep sigh in his mind before the guardian spoke again, [ Fine then. I’ll teach you a more advanced Healing Spell than the one you normally use. ]

  Alaric waited out the pain before slowly sitting upright. It was only now that he realised how badly hurt he was. ‘How didn’t I notice this?’

  [ You’ve been used to this kind of pain for a while. You just underestimated it this time ] the guardian responded, [ Now Clear your mind. ]

  Alaric closed his eyes and tried to do as he was told. The guardian’s instructions kept coming in softly to keep him from getting distracted.

  [ Focus on your breath. Keep your emotions steady. Clear your mind and make room for that one thing you wish to accomplish ] Alia’s voice filtered into Alaric’s mind.

  The boy did as he was told, sitting in the middle of Sariah’s backyard with his eyes closed. There was just one problem. A clear mind was an open window for lingering thoughts.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  Five minutes went by and he was still struggling to get the girl’s audacious actions out of his mind.

  The guardian sighed when he managed to attain some semblance of control. It was perfect and frankly, he’d done much better in the past. Today, however, was not his usual day, [ I guess that will have to do. Repeat after me:

  ‘I invoke the Name of the Constellation of Water: Liquidum, Patron of Healing and Wellbeing. Yeaneth thy sklara forkin vleth, dune’r’ ]

  [ Heal thine ailments and return what is to what once was ] Alaric interpreted.

  [ Very good. Only by knowing the true meaning of the words can they resonate with your intentions and give you the best results. Now cast the spell. ]

  Alaric took a deep breath and focused his mind. It wasn’t the first time he had attempted a spell beyond the basics. It wasn’t the most advanced spell out there but it went past his casual invocations.

  Normally, invoking the name of the Constellation of Water, Liquidum was enough to give him authority over the element. But that’s all it could do. He was cut off from any derivative authorities that came from the Constellation of Water.

  Learning these derivatives was an equally difficult endeavour. With time, he would come to learn them all but so far, he was having trouble with basic derivatives. The spell he was learning today was a Healing spell… but not the usual one he was used to.

  Normally, casting a Healing Spell would not be hard given the basic one Sister Marla had taught him but right now, he was at a loss.

  His injuries were not the casual cut or broken bone that allowed him to focus on one place and imagine the repairs to be done. These were aching muscles—torn in a few places, and perhaps a few broken ribs. He was hurting in too many places to even imagine which ones needed more attention.

  He needed a more powerful Healing spell that could cater for all these imperfections his imagination just couldn’t capture.

  “I invoke the Name of the Constellation of Water: Liquidum, Patron of Healing and Wellbeing. Yeaneth thy sklara forkin vleth, dune’r,” all said in the Old Tongue, he kept his imagination of a restored body vivid in his mind. Well, as vivid as he could make it anyway.

  His aether reserves stirred and his body hummed as a vibration unlike any other gripped him. It wasn’t like the vibration he felt when the ground shook. Instead, it was a much more invisible kind. Violent but unseen. It took a while for him to realise it was his Spirit Vessel that was vibrating in reaction to the magic.

  His muscles burned and his mind quivered. He gritted his teeth and felt several burns fill his muscles and chest. The spell was taking effect.

  [ Hold that picture in your head. Do not let it waver. ] The boy gritted his teeth and powered through. For the first time in his life, he felt his aether get depleted so fast. He gasped at the rate at which it was all vanishing.

  [ My aether. ] The boy gritted his teeth. Torrents of his aether were draining from his body like oxygen being sucked right out of his lungs.

  [ Focus or you’ll lose more of it faster. The spell is only as efficient as its caster ] the guardian tensed, forcing him to focus on the magic. Surely enough, the rate of aether depletion reduced—but only by a little. It wasn’t much but he could tell his various distractions were keeping the spell from working efficiently.

  “Argh! Damn it!” he growled, powering through the gluttonous spell for a while longer before everything went quiet.

  He dropped to the ground, panting… spent. He could tell the spell worked… and yet, he could also feel the weakness of having depleted so much aether. This was the most advanced spell he’d ever tried and it had just taken most of his aether just to cast it.

  ‘Damned gluttonous spell…’

  [ What was that?! ] Alia yelled into his mind, [ You were trying at the start, then you lost it. Why? ]

  Alaric, who’d been rubbing a hand through his hair, stopped for a bit to take in the stern tone of his guardian, [ Are you mad at me? I performed the spell, didn’t I? ]

  [ With five times the aether it should have taken you. Do you know what happens when you cast a spell and lose focus? ]

  [ You lose more aether. ]

  [ No… The spell demands a price. That price, this time, was aether… but if you had no aether to give, it would draw from your very life source and if that wasn’t enough, it would kill you. ]

  Alaric’s heart dropped. Magic was dangerous… but to think it could end one’s life.

  [ I… will be more careful next time. ]

  [ Oh no. You’re not getting off that easy. Today, you’ll train until the Dance of the Falcon. ]

  [ But that will take forever… ]

  [ It will teach you to be more careful next time. Now get moving. Fortunately, you don’t need aether to train. ] the guardian ordered.

  Alaric wanted to stand… but his mind was still sceptical about whether the spell had worked. He took some time getting up. Effortless as the action was, he found himself jumping up a few times just to make sure he was alright.

  Nothing. The pain was gone.

  The boy sighed, then looked at the wooden sword at his side. Alaric picked up the wooden practice sword and marvelled at how painless the simple act of bending down to pick it was. Considering he’d been dealing with this kind of pain one got from exercise for more than four years, it didn’t bother him. Today, however, he was forced to recognize the staggering difference when healing magic was used to alleviate the pain.

  ‘I should perfect that spell. It would come in handy in a fight,’ he thought to himself as he started going through the Dance of the Bear, ‘I wonder if it cures fatigue.’

  [ If that’s part of your imagination on what you want it to cure… then yes. There is a more advanced spell that cures all ailments and can even regrow limbs. You’re far too weak for that one though. ]

  The boy nodded, getting more serious with the forms and katas his body was meant to go through. The Dance of the Bear was defensive, grounded and very intimidating in a way that made him feel taller, bigger and more powerful.

  Of course, it wasn’t true enough to say that it made him these things. Instead, it relied on techniques that shifted his centre of balance and leveraged every ounce of his weight to deliver devastating attacks whilst also focusing on grounded defence.

  When using the Dance of the Bear, it was more important for him to become an immovable mountain than an elegant sparrow which was light and unbound by the laws of the world. ‘If I was to have a weapon for this Dance, I would either go with a sword and shield, a shield alone or a good pair of steel knuckles.’

  An hour later, Alaric found himself lying on the stone-paved ground of Sariah’s backyard, panting. He wanted nothing more than to take a bath and sleep… but it was not yet time for that. The evening was creeping up on him and so was hunger… but there was one more thing he needed to do before going to sleep.

  The evening sun-rays painted the world in a beautiful orange hue as the cool evening breeze blew through Alaric’s hair, drying his sweat while he rested.

  According to Alia, he was to lay off Body Tempering that night. He didn’t know the details because he was too distracted by his other task… which was to explore his new abilities.

  Memories of the demon stampede were still ripe in his mind. That time, he’d been with Scarlett. She was a capable fighter—faster than him, in fact.

  Even then, he’d fallen short and relied on Scarlett to carry him to safety while the other adventurers came to combat the demons while they retreated to the Holy Barrier.

  Yes, his strategy had been good and they’d made good progress on their own. But too many things had contributed to his survival, so much so that he could say his survival was pure luck.

  Alaric didn’t like that feeling. He dragged himself to the steps at the back of the house and looked forward, reaching for something within him. This was a similar process to when he reached for his power to control vines and trees.

  This time, he reached for a power other than that. He needed more power if he was going to defend himself and protect those he held dear.

  [ Ugh! ] his guardian groaned. This was the reason Alaric didn’t like training new abilities, [ Can’t you just buy an Evo Sword and get stronger that way? I see no need to… to use that. ]

  Mist swirled in front of the boy, cutting off the guardian, [ …and he’s still using it. I’m starting to think you just don’t think I’m enough. ]

  [ I can’t always rely on you, Alia. You’re powerful and yet you can’t protect me outside of an S-grade Concealment Barrier. I need more ways to protect myself ] Alaric tried.

  He tugged more on the ability he was trying to access and frowned. In front of him, the mist coalesced into what looked like a floating mass of white blob.

  ‘Hmm… this doesn’t make sense. He thought to himself.’

  He tilted his head and watched as the top of the white blob twisted. Without meaning to, the bubbling mass morphed and twisted, forming a simple white head with blank eyes, mouth, and nose. They looked much like Alaric, though… and nothing like Alistair.

  [ That’s troubling. ] his guardian sighed.

  [ Are you going to help? ]

  [ Not in a million days. Why don’t you ask Sabre like you did with SwiftWind? ] the guardian huffed.

  Alaric let out a deep breath. It was at moments like these that he understood why the form of a young girl fit Alia way more than an adult woman.

  Shutting the guardian out, he started brainstorming. He stood up and watched the white mass of blob attempt an imitation.

  It bubbled and formed misshapen legs and a torso, mimicking the boy’s movements to some extent. Then, Alaric waved his hands and watched it form hands. There were still masses of deformation around the neck, waist and back but he was starting to understand what was happening.

  ‘When I move a body part, it triggers an unconscious understanding of what that part looks and works, then this blob mimics that and gains shape,’ he thought to himself.

  Now, was there some way of him unconsciously visualising all the vital parts of his body and how they worked… The answer was simple.

  The Dance of the Sword.

  LionHeart walked out of the door and froze at the sight in the backyard. ‘Two Alarics?’ he shuddered.

  But it was more than that. He was staring at two people going through Alaric’s arduous training routine. The only difference is that one looked like the casual unassuming Alistair while the other was a white imitation of the boy he’d come to know as Alaric.

  Even with his face being made entirely out of a strange white substance, it made his heart stop for a second. ‘I had almost forgotten what he looked like.’

  Handsome with an expression that suggested nothing was going on in his head… and yet, it hinted at the multitudes of things he could be doing and thinking of at the same time.

  ‘Why does that ability look familiar?’

  [ It’s the power of the Copy Viper’s Guardian, Vivid Clone. ] Aslan announced in an ominous tone, [ He’s trying to master it. ]