I did not see Meztili again that night, and Axel had left to handle a pile of duel requests he had received while he was away on his mission. Apparently, ever since I beat him, this sort of thing had become more common, as every glory-seeking fool became convinced that Axel’s original reputation was ill-earned.
Ironically, the same was true for me. But looking at the small pile of challenge requests addressed to me on the lounge room table did nothing to sway me.
I fed them all into the trash can and walked straight into the training room. But before I even opened the door, I could hear the swishing sounds of a practice sword being swung at high speeds. More accurately, it was two swords making the noise.
Zachariah Sol Proudmane, Prince of the Soleo kingdom, was once again practising his swordsmanship. I admired his movements for a while before moving to the opposite side of the room.
I was there to practice spellcraft after all. Staying near him would distract both of us. His focus was such that he did not acknowledge my entry, nor did he hesitate in any way as I walked past him.
We still couldn’t exactly call each other friends, but I felt he was a respectful person, and so I had doubts that he was just ignoring me. Rather, he was just the kind of person who would see his task to the end, no matter what distractions arose.
I unfurled the scroll Poggy had left for me and sat on the ground. Summoning spells tended to be on the more complex side of spellcraft, and from what I could tell, the runes used covered every element and school of magic. This naturally meant that Tiara’s assistance would still only cover about 10% of the runes here, and the rest would need to be manually learned.
Which, given my track record, was an impossible task.
At least, that would be the case if not for Poggy pointing out something I had overlooked. Spirit magic.
Fleur was talented in this field, and I had wanted to ask for her assistance, as I had done with Lily and Meztili. However, apparently, she had been given extended leave to stay with her family for an extra few days. Had I known that beforehand, I could have visited her commune in the Verdant Divide. It would have only added a few extra hours to our journey.
With no other options, I decided to try on my own.
The method Poggy had outlined was as follows:
- Meditate to commune with the spirits.
- Get a sense of the natural magic that shapes their bodies.
- Channel that magic through my body.
- Attempt to cast the spell.
- Note which runes function and which don’t.
Essentially, Poggy wanted me to use spirits as a medium for the monster method of spellcraft.
But the spell itself was meant to summon spirit. As in just one. Singular. Why bother communing with elements of every element and using their power, just summon one of them?
Poggy answered that too. Not only will the summon become tangible in the material world, it will become immediately bound to me, allowing my Primal Soul to interact with it.
My heart raced when I first understood the implications behind this. Mainly, I was excited to give it a go, but I was also a little nervous. Spirits were not as easy to understand as animals. Thus, the odds of something going horribly wrong were much higher.
I be able to summon a basic fire spirit, then turn myself into a fiery tornado. But I could also summon a malevolent, psychotic spirit that turns me inside out the moment I try to blend our souls.
Not that there was any point in worrying about such things before I actually learnt how to cast the spell.
So, without further ado, I linked with Tiara and then began to meditate.
As the usual sensation overtook me and I felt myself melting away into a sea of colours, one rather drastic difference caught my attention.
If the numerous minor spirits with vague shapes and a weak presence formed the kaleidoscope of rainbow patterns before me, then what was the cause of the immense light behind me?
There was no need to turn and look, as this relied on a sort of sixth sense, rather than literal eyesight. Still, redirecting my attention towards the source was tricky, as if the blinding presence didn’t to be seen.
Naturally, that just made me more interested.
I focused on that light, filtering out all the other spirits as if they were white noise. Finally, I could make out its form.
It resembled a lion made from golden flames, regal and proud. The fire felt both comforting and forbidding, like a true king; it held authority over life and death. The piercing, shining eyes bore down at me, a hint of caution lingering behind them.
“
The lion spoke, though I did not think it was directed towards me.
“
I tried to respond, but the spirit sent a wave of hot air my way in response. A warning not to approach.
It didn’t seem likely I would make any progress with this mysterious entity, so I turned back to the poorly defined forms of the lesser spirits. Unlike the unfriendly lion, these others had no problem with my presence.
An inquisitive earth spirit stood out from the crowd, so I took to focusing on them alone and following Poggy’s instructions. A spirit is entirely made from magic. With that information, the instruction, ‘Get a sense of the natural magic that shapes their bodies, ’ should be as simple as observing them as I would any other creature.
And so I just… listened. I listened to the way the ground softly trembled at the spirits’ movement, and I felt the air ever so slightly stagnate around the earth spirit. I came to understand how the presence of earth magic altered the material world in near imperceptible ways.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“Rex.”
A voice pulled me out of my meditation. This was a real, audible voice, not the indistinct, contradictory whispering roar of the burning lion.
“Zachariah. Can I help you with something? You kind of broke my concentration here.”
“Sorry about that. I just had a strange feeling all of a sudden, and felt like I had to check on it.”
The prince looked at me with an apologetic smile. He said ‘all of a sudden’, but his swords were back on the rack and his breathing had steadied. Even his sweat had begun to dry off. By the looks of it, he had been watching me for a while, probably from the moment I started meditating.
“Can you be more specific? I would like to know if something I’m doing is giving members of royalty ‘strange feelings.’”
As I responded to him, I could feel a presence within him, similar to how the Stag Lord existed within me. Perhaps it was due to a part of me still being subconsciously attuned to the spirit realm, but I could also discern the origin of the presence.
Like a shimmering golden thread wrapped around his heart and trailing out from his back, a link could be seen connecting the two of them. And although I could not see the being on the other end of this thread, it didn’t take a wizard to figure it out.
“Hmm. Sorry, to be honest, I don’t quite understand it myself. Please do not take offence, as none is meant by what I am about to say.”
Zachariah continued, oblivious to my wandering gaze.
“I felt for a moment that you carried danger along with you, almost like a curse waiting to be unleashed. As one who will one day be responsible for the welfare of the kingdom, I cannot simply ignore such warnings.”
He tilted his head, offering another comforting smile as if to apologise for his suspicions.
“Do these feelings come to you often?”
I took no offence, as I knew this was the work of that lion. Although it was a mystery why it would consider me a threat.
“Not often, no. But it certainly isn’t the first time. I will say they have never led me astray before, however.”
The eyes that looked down at me overlapped with my memory of the lion. Pride and caution drifted behind the young prince’s expression.
“In other words, you believe I’m dangerous.”
I said so with a joking smirk, eager to keep the mood light.
“Maybe not knowingly, but I do feel an eerie presence that has attached itself to you. Perhaps you should see a cleric? I happen to know a few people who specialise in exorcisms.”
Zachariah similarly remained cordial, but that lingering sense of distrust continued to stain his words.
“And are you aware of the being that imparts these warnings to you? I can see it, you know? That majestic golden lion.”
Zachariah’s eyes widened, and he seemed to completely forget that he was trying to investigate me.
“Truly? You can see Sol? Describe him for me, please.”
He stepped closer, invading my personal space in a manner nobody of his standing or upbringing would typically do. That alone was enough for me to appreciate the honest nature of his curiosity.
“Gold. Made from flames. And it looks like a lion. There’s really not much more I can say about his appearance.”
My words seemed to disappoint Zachariah, as his face dropped and he looked at his clenched fist with a hint of self-loathing.
“I don’t get it. Can’t you see them for yourself?”
I asked, my own interest now piqued.
“Not at all. Sol shows himself only—ah… apologies, I cannot speak on the subject.”
He seemed to have caught himself just before revealing something he shouldn’t. He stepped back again, and his usual poise returned.
“Ahem. Please, pay my ramblings no mind. Would you like to spar together again?”
Meditation could be practised anywhere and at any time. But training with someone of Zachariah’s calibre was a rare opportunity.
“Sure… but there’s something you should know first. This axe had a soul of its own, and I’m told it can be pretty hard to handle for others. Try to avoid grabbing it if you can.”
“Huh? But we will be using training weapons?”
“Oh, haha! Obviously! Sorry, I’m still a little scattered after recent events.”
Naturally, I didn’t really plan to spar with the Prince using a real weapon. That exchange was just a way of preventing Zachariah from scrutinising me again, and hopefully, that spirit would also be satisfied. 'Oh, that strange presence was because of an ego-armament.' That's what I wanted them to believe
I suspect it wasn’t the axe that initially caught Sol’s eye, but with this, the matter could be laid to rest.
***
“Let’s call it quits here.”
Zachariah suggested as he helped me to my feet after our latest match. Once again, I failed to score any hits on him, but I did feel like I got a good handle on some more conventional fighting techniques.
“You’re improving. Are you sure you won’t pick something for your off-hand? I still think you have the reflexes needed to make dual-wielding viable.”
“Yep, still sure.”
I hung up the training axe, but as I was about to leave, I recalled something.
“Oh, by the way, what can you tell me about this tournament coming up?”
“The Sword-Lord tournament? It’s an important event in the Soleo kingdom, naturally, I will be participating as well.”
“No, I mean more basic than that. What is it, and what purpose does it serve?”
He tilted his head, visibly surprised at my lack of knowledge.
“You really are a recluse… Ah, pardon me, I did not mean to be rude. Let me think…”
He tapped his index finger against his chin, then began to explain, careful to keep things simple for my benefit.
“Disregarding the history and tradition of the tournament, its primary purpose is to highlight the potential and skill of up-and-coming swordsmen. Do you know much about the complexities of swordsmanship and all the various styles contained under its umbrella?”
I shook my head.
“Mastery of even a single style is a lifetime endeavour that often goes unrealised for swordsmen. It often boils down to raw talent as to whether someone will ever be able to overcome the numerous walls that block our path. Thus, highly skilled tutors often end up wasting much of their time trying to foster the talents of those who will never progress beyond the intermediate level.”
“So the tournament is designed to filter out those people?”
“Correct. It’s not about beating your opponent, it’s about demonstrating the breadth and depth of your swordsmanship.”
“Sounds just like our entrance exams.”
Zachariah nodded with a smile.
“Yes, the fundamentals are practically identical. However, as swordsmanship specifically is a highly valued practice in Soleo, we narrowed our focus to that specifically. This is why a majority of the most renowned swordsman originate from Soleo.”
“I see. Thank you, that was very informative.”
I gave him a nod and left him to continue his training alone.
Now that I had heard a different view on the matter, I had to reassess my original thoughts on the tournament.
The participants may not be real fighters and may just be putting on a show instead of demonstrating practical combat skills. But in the end, only those who met a certain standard would be favoured, and they would go on to have their talents carefully fostered to blossom into something greater.
In that sense, it wasn’t a bad idea at all. Still, a middle ground would be preferable in my opinion, one where serious combat is used and the judges focus on a wider spectrum of talents than just swordsmanship.
The rest of the night was spent meditating with the spirits in my room. Interestingly, Oliver never showed up to our room.
***
Classes were back in session the following day, and I found myself feeling somewhat pleased to be back in the familiar homeroom, surrounded by my peers.
The seating arrangements had taken yet another shift. Axel, Lily, Meztili, and I remained together, and while the others were mostly separated, Oliver and Guy seemed to have formed a friendship.
“Did something happen between them?”
Lily asked Fleur.
“Mm. I don’t know.”
Fleur shrugged, clearly uninterested in the topic.
“After Gus got himself thrown in the clink, Olly dipped on the mission and stayed behind. They probably bonded in that time while the rest of us were busy working.”
Axel jumped in with an explanation. He used to respect Oliver for his intellect, but it seemed like their time together had changed his opinion somewhat, as he looked at both of them as if they were a nuisance.
“Welcome back. I know you all are eager to catch up, but it can wait.”
Professor Kuhn entered the room and called for our attention.
“First order of business. Rex, Bridgit, and Guy. The three of you have been requested to serve as an escort. I’m afraid you will need to have your bags packed by the end of the day.”
…Seriously? I got back.