"Good work guys!" Nephrite said, as his team had ended their sparring session.
'Status, skills'
[Name: Nephrite Antaeus]
[Current Job: š Huntsman Student LVL: 12/50]
[EXP: 2897/5918]
[Body: Healthy]
[Physique: 35]
[Vitality: 21.6]
[Aura Strength: 25]
[Aura Pool: 45]
[Status Points left: 0]
[Skill Points left: 17]
[Aura Manipulation LVL: 41/42]
[EXP: 158/168100]
[Vulcan's Pillar Mastery LVL: 16/100]
[EXP: 4862/640000]
Once he hit lvl 40 in his Aura Manipulation, the EXP counter turned into 0/0. At first, he had thought nothing much about it, but as days passed and they once again had Aura lessons, a feeling had gradually appeared until one day after an Aura lesson the skill gained another level.
Something clicked in his mind, and he had to confirm his theory. He neglected his training with the Pillar Mastery and continued the grind of his Aura mastery.
When he got to the 41st level, he went into the library and took a bunch of books. The basic ones provided no change, but the more advanced book had triggered something and the level cap once again went up by one.
Now, the level 41 proved to give many more benefits than the previous levels. It was no longer a guide on how to move around his aura and imbue it, but also on how to speed it up, slow it down, and maybe even more.
Perhaps this was a way to force Nephrite to forge his own way on the path of understanding Aura and his soul.
The Vulcan Pillar Mastery skill, though, had levelled up the most in fights where Nephrite thinks and adapts. Right now, repetition worked. But it was incredibly slow.
Although levelling up had slowed down as well, there was a good side to it. With his upgraded job, he gained 3 status points every 2 levels and 1 skill point every level.
His physique was quite overpowered, right now he was getting closer and closer to Nora's level whilst being as agile as Ren, or maybe even more.
Even Pyrrha struggled to take him down in a 1v1. She still out skilled him in terms of weapon mastery but he wasn't an easy opponent anymore.
They haven't stagnated either at all. Their strength was improving rapidly, in fact. With his true-sixth-sense, teaching skills and Vulcan's Pillar Mastery, a new door opened.
Nora's strength was incredible, but she didn't use her weapon as effectively as she could. Thanks to one of his weapons he had in his pillar that was related to Hammers, he had surpassed Nora in blunt weapon mastery.
When he did, he could see and feel minor mistakes she had committed during their spar. He even identified some bad habits she had and addressed them.
This very much improved her learning speed, and she wasn't far behind Nephrite.
If he was to describe himself, he would say that he was something like a train that had near infinite energy reserves in his wagons. He would eventually surpass cars that ran out of fuel, but he could bring them along.
Adam's operations in Vale have almost completely stopped as a part of 'his' White Fang had 'defected' and returned to Menagerie.
This brought to light many of his operations. More and more, Faunus gradually 'defected' until he used his charisma and a heavily armored dust train to once again prove his competency. It slowed down the defections, but it wasn't a viable strategy with organisations breathing on his neck.
He became more extreme and unpredictable, at least in the public's eye. In Nephrite's eyes, however, he was just a dancing clown. Slowly dancing in Salem's hands until he has no other purpose.
Cinder, too appeared in Vale and Nephrite crossed her path couple of times. And when Cinder appears, her minions do too... Emerald was an alright person at a first glance, but Mercury was just pure pain in the ass from their first meeting. He had even tried to pickpocket Nephrite.
All he got though was a decoy wallet that was empty and even had a note in it that mocked whatever thief had stolen the wallet.
Their appearance also forced Nephrite to help Tukson. He wasn't a bad person, and he quite liked him in the series. He gave him a heads up when he was buying some books for school.
When he left with his books, a note appeared in it and Tukson eventually heeded the warning. The next day, when Emerald and Mercury entered his store, all they were saw was an empty shop.
Not only had they failed to take care of Tukson that they weren't even supposed to confront, they had even failed and the enemy most likely knew what was going on.
If this continued, Cinder would probably be bald by the time she attended Beacon's dance.
But there was more important thing than Adam or even Cinder at this moment...
"Hey Neph, do you want to see the newest detective movie that just came out?"
The voice belonged to Pyrrha. Not long after they returned to Vale, they hung out with each other more and more. At first, it was the entire team, but with some persuasion, Nora took Ren to do Nora things.
It was also their first date, although it was unofficial. And soon after that, Pyrrha gave him a nickname Neph.
Nora, of course, called him Neph too when she heard Pyrrha. It eventually spread throughout the friend group, and almost everyone called him Neph except Onyx and Blake.
Even Weiss did, which surprised him.
"Sure, wanna hang out in the garden? I won't be doing anything today except some training." She agreed with a smile and soon they were on their way.
They sat down beneath a tree where students didn't go as much. It was a spot they frequented at least a few times a week.
There was something beautiful about just enjoying the sunlight on a beautiful day right next to a person who understands you.
It was just so relaxing. They just brought up whatever they wanted to talk about. No calculating or thinking about the sentences, just their pure thoughts.
Time slowly flew by. They didn't know when, but their hands had intertwined at some point. Nephrite just clutched her hand, and she smiled before she put her head on his shoulder and dozed off.
He thought about the times he fought students that slandered Pyrrha for the rumours that were going around.
Although these rumours had gradually disappeared when people noticed who she actually was. A student and a girl with emotions and feelings everyone else had.
There are exceptions to everything, and stubbornness appears for no reason in many. He still believes that sucker punching that one girl who dared to ridicule Pyrrha in front of her face for no reason was worth it.
Although she tried to escalate the situation, it resulted in Nephrite and Oobleck discussing history for a few hours for an entire week; it was also a sort of catalyst and Pyrrha became more assertive in their friendship, before she would at most mention things she wanted to do but now she had more confidence.
Nora eventually caught on and even teased them a bit, but neither of them officially clarified their relationship.
They didn't have a need to, and neither of them were the type to advertise their relationship status.
They just hung out with each other. It was Pyrrha's happiest memories that she had in a long time.
She was also the first person who he had explicitly confided in with his past. Although it wasn't the entire story, she could already draw a picture that was close in her head.
She was shocked, of course, a 6-year-old working as a dishwasher whilst fooling everyone wasn't something you can just hear every day.
The subsequent Nephrite's adventure was also quite the tale, from his first stall to a food empire that even she knew about in Mistral, coincidentally her parents had bought one of his paintings too and to this day they displayed it in their hallways, his gardening was the most tame, though he had contributed with the creation of the new park in Vale.
One of their now most favourite spots in Vale when they were out shopping. A place where they simply relaxed and talked about their day.
Pyrrha had also opened up a lot. Her parents were... not the most stellar parents. As long as Pyrrha was excelling and at the very peak in whatever she wanted to do, they would support her, but whenever she tried out a casual hobby, they would either stop her or urged her to once again chase the peak.
Nephrite couldn't judge them as they wanted the best for their child, but just didn't know how to do it the best way.
It made him reminiscence about his own parenting and teaching. Neo came a long way from what she once was, however he could have done better. So many things could have not happened if he just paid more attention.
Maybe he wasn't the best, but he tried as much as he could and he believed her parents did as well.
This time was something he wouldn't trade for anything, be it immortality or the power of gods. Mortality was a beautiful thing and the more he lived, the more he learned to appreciate it.
Her blissfully sleeping face gave him a purpose. Neo may have wormed her way into his heart, but Pyrrha warmed it up.
A fool in love he may be, but he was a goddamn happy one.
Clouds passed by as Nephrite just sat there with Pyrrha dozing off on his shoulder. Maybe an hour or even more passed and she eventually woke up.
Her head left his shoulder. She tilted her head and stretched her arms. After a bit, her body jerked a bit, and she looked at him before her shoulders, which were unknowingly tense, lowered and relaxed.
He stood up and gave her a hand, which she took. They then left the garden with the Sun nearly settling down.
Their next stop was the library. Sometimes they found their friends there and joined them, but when they did not and just studied.
Another perk of having an inventory, no stupid backpacks filled with textbooks and notebooks. They diligently studied and helped each other. Nephrite's weakness was in literature something he had no affinity with.
Pyrrha's weakness was in literature too, and they spent most of their time cracking the mysteries that their professor gave them.
Poems, citations and much more that had a thousand meanings, according to their professor. Even Ren defeated at the hands of some, and Nora just gave up on the subject.
Life was good, but for how long?