Samuel repeated Nick's declaration:
"It's done?"
Samuel walked over to George and nudged him, trying to wake him after he had passed out but was unable to.
"What exactly did you do? Why can't I wake him up?"
Nick wiped the sweat from his own forehead and replied:
"To dispel that foreign magic energy that was attacking George's soul, I had to remove the malignant parts of his soul. Technically speaking, his soul is heavily damaged and that is why he passed out and won't wake up."
Samuel opened his eyes wide as he asked:
"Is that what you call helping him?"
Nick responded to Samuel's question by quickly tapping on his space band and retrieving two Soul Healing scrolls. Nick went to George's bedside and activated each scroll, one after the other and George's condition became visibly better after each activation. Soon after Nick used the second scroll, George opened his eyes and asked:
"Why the fuck do you guys still have me chained up?"
Samuel's stern expression eased at seeing George's condition change for the better and he quickly moved to release him from the chains. While Samuel was doing that, Nick contemplated:
(That stunt that I pulled required me to use my soul path scholar attainment to reformulate a rank 2 soul path formation by integrating a rank 2 spell into it, basically creating a new formation; my attainment in formation path is practically nonexistent but my soul path attainment made up for that. Luckily, it worked out well since only rank 2 soul path methods were involved which are fairly simple from my perspective and it also helped that the magic that affected George came from a rank 2 or weaker magic beast; the problem with his soul was actually fairly easy to solve but I guess it seems that way to me because of my attainment.)
George was soon released from his chains and he got up from the makeshift bed, holding the right side of his head, saying:
"My head hurts a little but I think I've been cured."
George looked at Nick with a grateful expression and said:
"Thank you, student...Nick. You really saved me some trouble."
Nick nodded his head and turned to Samuel, saying:
"Now, about my reward..."
Samuel said plainly:
"Just say it, what do you want? I'm a rank 3 Apprentice Magician within the Ministry of Magic and I hold the title of Colonel so just make your request known, I'll try my best to have it granted so long as its reasonable."
Nick smiled and thought for a moment, then asked:
"Could I have an honorary title from the ministry?"
Samuel and George looked at each other in surprise, not expecting Nick to ask for this. Nick had read about honorary titles from the Ministry of Magic when he was younger and had always wanted one.
(I suppose this is a good chance to ask for one.)
Samuel responded plainly:
"Is that it?"
Samuel almost wanted to advise Nick to ask for something else since honorary titles weren't of much value to a Magician in training:
(They are practically useless. The ministry usually only gives those out to retirees or famous people and although an honorary title is a real military rank, it doesn't actually carry any authority with it and is basically a decoration; I guess you could use it to get free parking at some places and maybe an easier time if you applied for employment at the ministry, but not much else. Magicians are supposed to be practical, what is this kid thinking?)
Nick saw the confusion on the two soldiers' faces but he didn't care.
(I grew up in a shit show surrounded by people who hated me; I have basically no social standing or foundation to speak of and so these two don't know what an honorary title would mean to someone like me. Although I don't obsess over fancy labels, I think that having something like that would at least make me feel that all my struggles weren't in vain. It's a little silly when I think about it but I don't mind.)
Nick answered with an uncharacteristic smile:
"Yes, sir, I would like an honorary title."
******************************
Tracy and the rest of the unit sat in the meal tent, having supper. A man that seemed to be in his early thirties asked Tracy:
"What's that kid's story, Tracy? Do you think that he can actually heal George?"
Tracy shook her head and replied:
"I don't know Smith, I just met the young man today, same as the rest of you."
Smith responded:
"That's all that you have to say after spending over six hours with him, your such a boring woman. How are you going to get a husband being like that?"
Tracy slammed her right fist on the table in response to Smith's remark and everybody in the tent laughed despite how serious the circumstances were. Before Tracy could throw an insult at Smith, George, Samuel and Nick walked through the tent's entrance and stood in front of everyone. Everyone's attention immediately focused on George who scratched the back of his head in slight embarrassment, saying:
"It looks like I had you all worried."
Smith spat in the mug that he was holding and replied:
"Fuck off, George."
The mood in the tent became warm despite Smith's remark and most of the soldiers surrounded George, asking what happened. Samuel made an announcement in response to their questions:
"Our friend, Nick, is apparently more skilled than he seems. I saw it personally that he is a soul path expert. He cured George of his affliction with a flick of his wrist."
The soldiers laughed and Samuel discreetly winked at Nick, indicating: 'You did good'. Tracy left her seat and asked Nick:
"Soul magic, huh? Is that your specialty?"
Nick shrugged his shoulders and replied:
"I guess you could say that."
Tracy did not seem satisfied with Nick's half-hearted response but did not want to push the issue in front of everyone. Samuel then spoke to Nick:
"Oh, I almost forgot, where did you get those magic scrolls that you used to heal George's soul earlier, they would definitely come in handy in our line of work?"
It wasn't difficult for Samuel, with his years of experience, to figure out the effects of Nick's scrolls without Nick saying anything about them. Nick responded:
"I made them."
Samuel's expression became even friendlier:
"Really? Well, could we buy a few from you then; we often have to deal with soul path magic beasts and as you have already seen, attacks to the soul can be the most troublesome to heal?"
Nick thought for a moment and replied:
"I don't need the money, just consider them a gift."
Nick tapped his space band and four dozen Soul Healing scrolls appeared piled up on the ground. Samuel picked one up and read the logo on the back of the scroll out loud:
"The Magic Scroll Company."
Tracy heard that name and asked:
"Isn't that the name of a new company that has been rumored to be selling some very effective tools to heal damage to the soul? You're affiliated with them?"
Nick nodded his head:
"Not only am I affiliated with them, I am the owner of the company."
Tracy's eyes shone with a mysterious light when she heard that while Samuel shrugged his shoulders since he did not know the significance of what Tracy was talking about. Nick finally asked Samuel:
"Alright, I've done all that you asked, may I please return to minding my own business now."
Samuel assured Nick:
"No problem and don't worry, I'll apply to have your honorary title approved as soon as I get back to Shelter Town but the process will take a while."
Nick replied:
"I don't mind."
Tracy asked:
"Honorary title?"
Samuel informed her:
"Oh right, Nick asked for an honorary title as a reward for helping George. It's actually not a big deal to get him one with my status."
Nick felt that it was finally time to leave and he bid the soldiers farewell and walked out of the tent. Tracy followed behind him and said:
"I will lead you out of the camp."
Nick shrugged his shoulders and walked in tandem with Tracy through the line up of tents. Tracy stopped walking as soon as they went beyond the tents and spoke to Nick before he could walk away:
"Remember, Tracy Belmont will be contacting you to settle the score when we are both in Shelter Town."
Nick replied simply, not knowing what Tracy even wanted:
"Okay."
Nick didn't even bother walking more than ten meters before he tapped his space band and summoned his safe-house; he then went inside. Tracy looked on with a half smile and spoke to herself:
"Well, looks like I've met someone interesting."
*******************************
Nick went to the bathroom and took a shower as soon as he entered the safe-house. When he was done, he had a meal of butter bread, sausages and orange juice before deciding to get some sleep. Nick set the safe-house's motion sensors to alert him if anything that had an ounce of magic power approached the safe-house.
(I probably don't have too much to worry about with those soldiers since their affiliation with the Ministry of Magic should prevent them from going too far with a student like me.)
Nick jumped into his bed that was situated at the corner of the safe-house and fell into a deep sleep, his mind being fatigued from making use of his makeshift magic formation earlier.
Nick woke up a few hours later after the sun rose and quickly checked the safe-house's external surveillance cameras to observe the soldier's but their was no one in close proximity to the lake except him.
"So they finally left. That makes things easier. Slade, How long do you think that it would take me to comprehend the entirety of your inheritance?"
Slade answered after a few moments:
[With your attainment, maybe two hundred years.]
"That long?"
[Hmph! Kid, I was an archmage in my lifetime, do you think that you can get to that level quickly just because you have a few advantages? It will take a long time to digest my inheritance because of its completeness but that's not a bad thing. You have to grow into a more powerful Magician before you can use many of its methods anyway.]
Nick contemplated for a moment and said:
"You're right. For now, I'll just have to take my time."
Slade replied:
[It is as you say.]
Nick exited the safe-house and focused on the lake.
"Now, this lake is going to be my training resource."
Nick smiled while walking towards the lake's edge.
******************************
Four years later...
The middle of Nick's safe-house was an absolute mess as there was blood and guts as well as the carcasses of nearly a dozen magic beasts piled up on the floor. Nick who was standing at the metal table that was bolted into the floor, made one final cut into the carcass that was lying on the table and then breathed out in exasperation.
"Hmmm...this was an interesting one, this magic beast should have been a water path and soul path magic magic beast and was certainly formidable when I fought with it. Most of its organs had strange growths on it though..."
For the past few years, Nick had been hunting and dissecting magic beasts from the lake and he slowly became able to assess the magic beasts' physiology meaningfully although he was not able to determine what kind of magic beasts they were from dissection alone.
He breathed out a turbid breath and used his space band to rid the room of the rotting carcasses and put away all the bloody surgical knives that he had used on them. Nick spent close to two hours cleaning the inside of the safe-house because it did not have a self cleaning function.
"In times like this, I really miss Grand Earth because when I was living in my dorm room, most messes were cleaned up with the room's own magic power and when I lived at my commercial building, I could get my butler, Dewy, to do the cleaning."
After he was done with the cleaning, Nick went to the bathroom to take a shower and then got dressed in his usual style of a pair of dark blue jeans and a polo shirt. Nick sat at his desk and summoned a loaf of butter bread, a baked chicken thigh and a liter of orange juice and started to eat his meal.
(I've been at this lake for so long and this is basically the last of the food that I had stored in my space band before the exam. I need to go back to Shelter Town to get more. I wonder if anything has changed there.)
Nick smiled, thinking about how after so long, he was going to be among people again.
(After meeting those Ministry of Magic soldiers four years ago, I have not had any interaction with other people because hardly anyone actually came to this lake and when someone did come to the lake, the safe-house's sensors would notify me and I would store the safe-house and hide with my spell, Clear Space.)
Nick decided four years ago that he would not get involved with other people while he was trying to comprehend his inheritances so that he could focus.
(People bring too many distractions along with them. It was the right decision considering my growth this time around. I've comprehended a large portion of Slade's inheritance and already went through all of the others including my blade path, space path and formation path inheritances.)
Nick thought back on the process of going through his formation path inheritance and was filled with pride.
(It was tough but I learned the mystical language, Krepke, that Slade taught me and I was able to slowly use it to comprehend the language that the formation path inheritance was encoded in. The languages were very similar and it only required some analytical and problem solving skills to figure things out when there were discrepancies or differences in the words.)
Nick finished his meal and prepared himself mentally for the trip back to Shelter Town. On his way out of the safe-house, he caught sight of his reflection in the surveillance monitor's screen and muttered:
"Shit, I look like a homeless person."
Nick had been in the wilderness for so long that he never took consideration of his appearance and so the hair on his head was bushy like an Afro and he had a lot of facial hair that made him look older than he actually was.
(I brought so many thing to the Never Ending Battlefield but I actually forgot to buy an electric razor. That was stupid.)
Nick shook his head and left the safe-house at which point he stored it with his space band. Nick took one last look at Serene Lake.
"I lured magic beasts out of this lake in the day by launching attacks at it and at night by waving a flashlight around but I didn't dare to actually enter the lake. I'm definitely going to do that in the future though."
After the episode with the shadow goblins, Nick learned a painful lesson about wondering into the lair of magic beasts without being strong enough and he was not going to make the same mistake again.
"Four years ago, even a MOM soldier ended up in bad shape because of one of the magic beast's attacks, would I fair any better?"
Nick shook his head, saying.
"Even with all of my advantages, I probably wouldn't."
Nick felt that he had matured tremendously in these few years in terms of his own patience and self control. He no longer dived head first into circumstances without sufficient preparation.
"Although I've been meditating frequently and have been practising my spells for the past few years , I'm not sure that my magic power is at the level where I can take on a horde of magic beasts and live."
Nick chuckled at himself a little and and looked at the brightly shining sun that hovered in the sky above him. He readied himself before turning away from the lake, running in the direction of Shelter town which resulted in him entering the nearby woodlands. After traveling for over an hour, Nick suddenly came upon a large ape like magic beast that almost looked like a gorilla. It was covered in silver fur except for a section of its back that was covered in black fur; the gorilla sat at the base of a very large tree, chewing on the carcass of another magic beast.
Nick hid behind a tree situated more than eight meters from the gorilla while casting Clear Space and observed it for a while.
(I wonder what kind of magic beast this is. This section of the woodlands seem to be the home of many monkey and ape like magic beasts, I ran into a few of them four years ago.)
After watching the gorilla for five minutes, Nick decided to act. He moved quickly past his hiding place and ran towards the gorilla. The magic beast's two ears twitched and it then slammed its thick palm onto the ground in front of it, sending a wave of magic power in Nick's direction as well as the direction opposite to Nick with the gorilla at the center and the ground within a one meter radius of it unaffected by its magic power.
(This is the disadvantage of Clear Space. Although the spell conceals my appearance, it does not conceal my smell or the sounds that I make.)
The gorilla's magic power turned the hard ground within Nick's general vicinity into deep mud and so before the effects of its move could reach Nick's position, Nick radiated magic power which resulted in Clear Space being cancelled.
(Blink.)
Nick suddenly appeared one meter to the right side of the magic beast with his morning wyvern bone sword in his right hand and his other sword, Blind Crest, in his left hand.
"GGGGGRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWW!"
The magic beast roared furiously at seeing Nick so close to it and it got up from it sitting position and lunged at him. Nick did not panic and simply swung his morning wyvern bone sword.
(Cleave.)
A sharp, penetrating power crashed into the gorilla, cutting off its right arm from the shoulder. The magic beast was shocked but its vicious nature in addition to the fact that Nick was so close to it prevented it from retreating from the confrontation. The gorilla visibly gritted its teeth as it continued to lunge at Nick despite its heavily bleeding wound. It was also difficult for Nick to step down because the gorilla's earlier move had turned most of the ground near him into sheer deep mud so his movement was restricted. Nick quickly swung Blind Crest with his left hand at the gorilla's head.
(Sever.)
Feeling death approaching it as a sharp magic power, different from the one before came rushing towards it, the gorilla jumped to the side and rolled on the ground for over one meter to get away from Nick, falling into the mud that it had created. Nick's attack cut the thick tree behind the gorilla in half instead, felling it.
(Cleave works best with the sword in my right hand while the quality of Blind Crest is too poor so swinging it while casting Sever is more effective. I don't need a sword to cast Sever but after using the spell so much, I've determined that its more effective when cast with a cutting instrument; although Sever is rule path spell, I created it based on the inspiration I got from a sword path magic beast which probably explains why that is the case.)
Although Nick had read his blade path inheritance in its entirety, his attainment was still only ordinary but his most lethal and reliable method was still Cleave which was a blade path spell. Sever, however, was special to Nick because it was a rule path spell that he had created on his own.
(Soul Attraction.)
The color of Nick's eyes became an eerie pitch black as the gorilla was slightly raised out of the mud and pulled towards Nick with gravity defying quickness; the gorilla shrieked in panic and confusion while blood from its wound left a gruesome trail both in the mud and the hard ground. Nick indifferently swung the sword in his right hand at the gorilla.
(Cleave.)
It was too difficult for the magic beast to dodge while already being pulled along by the effects of Soul Attraction and so the power of Nick's Cleave bit into its left side, cutting the gorilla in half but because of its momentum, the two pieces of its carcass kept moving towards Nick even after he had cancelled Soul Attraction as soon as Cleave hit the magic beast. The magic beast's carcass fell to the ground soon after and the two pieces stopped moving when they reached Nick's feet, covering his black, leather boots in red blood.
"Damn it, my boots are ruined."
Nick sighed and stored the magic beast's carcass within his space band. He looked at the muddy terrain created by the magic beast's power and commented:
"That's earth magic for sure and fairly powerful magic too but this magic beast didn't seem all that strong. That's weird, right?"
Nick could sense Slade chuckling at his words ad asked:
"What's so funny?"
Slade replied:
[It's nothing, kid. Just keep heading to Shelter Town.]
Nick did just that as he continued to move in the direction of Shelter Town. A few hours later, as sun down approached, Nick heard loud shouts as he ran through the woods:
"We are claiming this area in the name of Richter Order Academy and I don't want to hear any buts about it. You people from Raylam Priest Academy should get lost!"
"Who the hell made you king shit? Come here and take this one move!"
...
At hearing the shouts of other students, Nick suddenly remembered the objective for the exam that he was in and knocked his head with his right hand's knuckles.
(That's right. I'm supposed to be killing other students to gather points but I haven't done that in four years. How much points do I have after killing magic beasts, I never checked?)
Nick willed and the number, 35923, appeared in his right palm. Nick raised both eyebrows in surprise.
(I have that many points? Hmmm...I guess I did kill a lot of magic beasts that I lured from that lake during the past four years and they were mostly rank 2; some days I even lured out large groups of magic beasts by casting Rumbling Pillar at the water's surface and I had to struggle to kill them all.)
Nick didn't want to think too much about those hair raising moments so he pushed those thoughts aside and went straight to the source of the voices. It didn't take long before Nick came upon a clearing where there were two groups of students, about a dozen students being in each group, having some kind of stand off. The tension between the groups was palpable as they spat curses at each other:
"Alright, listen David. If you and your people don't leave in the next ten minutes, things are going to get nasty."
"Hmph, fuck your sister! We are not going anywhere. This place is a prime spot for camping in these woods. Why would we leave?"
"Yeah, we were here first. You people from Raylam Priest Academy are so unreasonable."
"Sticks and stones, butt face. No matter what you say about us, we are going to get our way!"
...
Nick hid himself for over five minutes before he got bored of listening to the students talk nonsense and so he decided to walk out to face them. Nick left his hiding spot and walked a few steps in the direction of the students and they all quickly noticed him as he purposely exuded his magic energy.
One of the leaders of the two groups, who was dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt and had a head full of red hair, looked at the new student to arrive and spat on the ground, saying:
"Who is this? I know everyone of the second years from Raylam Priest Academy and this guy is definitely not one of us. Hey Marco, is he with you?"
Marco, who was the leader of the other group of students looked at Nick with an uncertain expression and rubbed his short black hair before replying:
"I don't know this disheveled guy, David."
David snorted, then responded:
"Then he needs to fuck off!"
David pointed his right index finger at Nick and cast a spell:
(Air Bullet)
A small, greenish pellet of air was shot at Nick with the quickness of a speeding bullet but Nick, who already summoned his morning wyvern bone sword from his space band and held it in his right hand, reacted by swinging his sword, as if on instinct that was inhuman.
(Instinctive Blade.)
This spell was from Nick's blade path inheritance and allowed him to react to an attack that he could not consciously follow by swinging his blade in a defensive manner. The air bullet was cut apart by Nick's sword and dissipated.
David looked on in surprise that someone was so able to easily defend against one of his signature spells.
(I've killed dozens of other students with that spell and this guy just blocked it so easily. He's definitely asking for a beating.)
David looked at Marco and suggested:
"Hey Marco, why don't we get rid of this guy first and then settle our beef, I don't want anyone interfering."
Marco was ambivalent since Nick might be a student from his own academy but he really did want his group to occupy this section of the woods so he agreed to go along with David:
"We'll do it your way, David."
David nodded his head at Marco and then shouted at Nick:
"You've got some skills but let me tell you right now, our two groups are already contesting for this spot and if you intend to butt in, you are going to pay a very painful price!"
Nick looked at David and said indifferently:
"You talk too much."
Marco opened both his eyes wide in rage and screamed:
"Attack this fucker!"
(Blink.)
Nick suddenly disappeared from his position and reappeared only a few feet in front of David; Nick swung down his sword with a practised viciousness.
(Cleave.)
David's eyes remained wide open as he was cut in half from his head to his crotch, becoming nothing more than specks of light and disappearing. Those events took place in a few seconds and everyone stood quietly in surprise at witnessing it. They all knew that David was one of Raylam Priest Academy's strongest second years and he was so easily killed by this mysterious person.
Nick didn't want to waste time talking with these people since he had decided to kill them all the moment that one of them attacked him. Starting at Nick's eerie irises that had two reddish rings in each of them, his eyes became a deep pitch black as he cast one of his spells:
(Soul Pulse.)
The surrounding students were suddenly thrown from their positions by the force of Nick's attack and some of them bled from their orifices profusely as a result while others spasmed after they hit ground. The students that could still stand up after Nick's attack, however, got up and regrouped, recognizing the danger that was in front of them. Marco gritted his teeth, thinking:
(There's no point in talking after all this.)
Marco screamed:
"Attack!"
Marco clapped his hands and two one meter long gray metal spikes emerged from the ground. David grabbed hold of both of them and pulled them out of the ground at which point he proceeded to throw them at Nick.
(Blink.)
The two metal spikes pierced the ground right at Nick's position with terrifying accuracy but Nick had already disappeared from there and reappeared in front of Marco, swinging down his sword.
(Cleave.)
Marco shouted in panic.
"Iron Wall!"
A half a meter wide metal wall rose up in front of Marco and blocked Nick's sword from getting to him but Nick's attacked was only slowed down and not stopped. The metal wall was cut through as Nick continued with his attack but Marco was able to jump out of the way in time before Nick's magic power could reach him, however, two students that had been standing a few feet behind Marco and were slower in their reactions were not so lucky. As the metal wall fell to the ground, they felt a forceful and sharp aura wash over them and then they suddenly found themselves cut in two halves, separated at their waists.
The two students screamed in shock as they turned into specks of light and disappeared. The other students that were not too badly affected by Soul Pulse watched the scene in terror, forgetting to cast their own spells. Someone from the group, who had fright in his tone, quickly yelled:
"Fuck you!"
That person pointed at Nick and three snowballs formed in midair above him and were launched at Nick. Nick flicked his left index finger three times at the snowballs, casting Sever thrice, and watched as the snowballs were cut apart, creating a thick, freezing mist. Nick squinted his pitch black eyes and cast:
(Soul Pressure.)
All the students' movements were slowed by varying degrees with the students that had been heavily hurt by Soul Pulse having their movements be restricted completely. Marco gritted his teeth and slammed both of his hands onto the ground.
(Iron Maiden)
Suddenly two halves of a metal chamber jutted out of the ground at Nick's two sides, nearly one meter apart from each other; the two metal constructs were visibly lined with long, sharp spikes within their interiors and with a spine tingling swiftness, they slammed together, seemingly trapping Nick inside a metal chamber that had the likeness of a woman.
Marco breathed a sigh of relief.
"I killed the bastard. No one can survive being trapped in the iron maiden."
The students around Marco let their guards down and cheered that their strange opponent had been defeated, some even pat David on the shoulder, saying:
"Good job."
However, amidst their cheering, someone at the very back of the group said:
"Are you guys idiots?"
Everyone's heart skipped a beat at hearing that familiar voice but before they could turn around to face their enemy that was still alive, they felt a large amount of magic power concentrate behind them which was then exuded outwards. Nick stood firmly as he swung his morning wyvern bone sword that was in his right hand.
(Blade Brilliance.)
The blade of Nick's sword shone with a harsh white light and an extremely sharp aura erupted from it as it was swung from Nick's right side to his left. Within a few moments, everything that was within a ten by twelve meter rectangular area in front of Nick was cut to pieces, which included students, trees and even the grass on the ground. All of the students were shocked as their limbs and various body parts went flying all over the place. Many died with indignance as many specks of white light appeared in the clearing and at their disappearance, only Nick was left standing.
Nick raised the morning wyvern bone sword in his right hand and watched as its blade slowly turned to gray powder that fell on the ground.
"Blade Brilliance uses up a blade's potential to deal a devastating blow within a certain area of effect. Looking at this now empty space, I can see that its power is no joke but using the spell cost me my good sword."
Nick sighed, that Iron Maiden spell that Marco cast took him by surprise as it was fairly powerful and if he did not use Blink in time, he would have certainly been heavily injured by it at the very least, if not killed.
"I really can't take it easy on the other students, it only takes one strong attack hitting the mark to send me to my grave. I used Blade Brilliance to end the fight before I was met with anymore surprises."
During the past four years, Nick learnt many spells while going through his inheritances but that did not mean that he could skillfully use them in battle yet so he had to make a sacrifice to ensure that he came out with the win this time over so many students. Within less than two minutes, the blade of Nick's morning wyvern bone sword turned to gray powder completely, only leaving the handle intact. Nick stored the sword's handle and willed for his score to appear in his right palm.
A glowing red '46221' appeared in his palm and Nick smiled in response.
"I'm going to keep getting stronger."