October 5, 3108
Compared to the other training areas used by the Knights and Scouts groups, the Tanks group trained in a building filled with rooms that had transparent walls. These rooms were already occupied by students, and in the center stood Mr. Ronald, who approached us.
"Greetings, everyone. As you can see, our training sessions are not extremely complicated," he began, walking toward one of the rooms. "This is a room that simulates different scenarios and battlefield conditions. There are five difficulty levels to choose from, each offering different types of attacks you'll need to defend against, as well as environmental hazards. These can include limited visibility due to obstacles, increased gravity that affects your movement, or drastic weather changes such as heavy rain or intense heat."
"What's required to take part in this training?" asked a student from the Scouts group.
"It's quite simple—you must endure level 3 difficulty for five minutes. Any other questions?..."
….
"No? Then, good luck to everyone."
With that, Mr. Ronald turned to observe the other students, leaving us to proceed on our own.
Liam and I headed to two adjacent rooms and stepped inside.
As soon as I reached the center of mine, a panel appeared before me:
| Level 5 – Start |
| Level 4 – Locked |
| Level 3 – Locked |
| Level 2 – Locked |
| Level 1 – Locked |
Since I had already entered, I pressed Start. Immediately, the entire room transformed—the once-transparent walls became a boundless desert landscape, stretching endlessly in all directions. The only visible object was myself, surrounded entirely by golden sand.
The temperature rose drastically, and the humidity dropped to nearly zero. The air was so hot and dry that every breath felt like it was drying me out from the inside.
Suddenly, an arrow fell from above, landing just a few centimeters from me. When I looked up, the sky was littered with hundreds of arrows—black dots scattered across the blue sky, all descending toward me with a clear message:
It might be wise to dodge.
I turned to retreat and escape the danger zone—only to be abruptly stopped by the wall, which hadn't vanished but merely created an optical illusion of openness.
With no other choice, I began dodging the falling arrows using my speed. But with each passing second, their numbers increased, and the size of the room gave me barely enough space to maneuver.
Mana Armis: Left Foot + Hand + Right Shoulder – 2nd Form: Condensation
I activated my armor, which allowed me not only to dodge arrows but also to deflect some of them. Still, my fencing skills weren't sharp enough to block them entirely.
6 minutes, 34 seconds.
That was my final result—disappointing. Even with the armor, I couldn't unlock level 4. My performance in a confined space under continuous assault over a wide area was simply poor.
Knok, Knok.
Someone knocked against one of the room's walls. I looked up and saw a student I didn't recognize standing at the door.
"Is there a problem?" I asked.
"Once you finish your session, you need to free the hall. They're not infinite time for a lesson—if people don't move out, no one gets a chance to train," he said.
He didn't sound condescending. In fact, every room in my line of sight was occupied, and most had students already waiting their turn.
"Of course."
I stepped aside, letting him enter. Then I made my way toward the auditorium. Liam still hadn't finished, and no one seemed to be waiting for that space.
It seems he is doing better than me.
Unlike mine, Liam's armor could withstand a barrage of arrows. He only had to dodge when projectiles came from all directions and blocking became impossible.
While searching for another open hall, I noticed that most students were facing the attacks head-on, relying on the durability of their armor. Both students from the Thanks group and the Scouts held their ground well, though the difference in their maneuverability and evasion was noticeable.
Defense will probably never be my strong point.
Throughout the lesson, I attempted level 5 two or three times, but couldn't surpass my initial performance, so I moved on to my next class for the day.
As I entered the breathing techniques classroom, Lia was the first person I saw. I headed straight toward her and sat in what had gradually become my usual spot.
"Hello. How are you?"
She looked surprised at my casual tone, then smiled—like a heavy burden had just been lifted off her.
"Better now… How about you?"
We continued our usual conversation—just one of many floating around the room—until the teacher walked in, silencing everything at once.
"Dear students, I will now announce the final assignment that will serve as your exam for this course. You may work individually, in pairs or in teams. The key is to create your own breathing technique. Of course, it's perfectly acceptable to draw inspiration from existing methods or adapt known ones, but in the end, your technique must successfully convert atmospheric aether into elemental aether."
After a short break the teacher continued
"Lessons will continue as usual. However, if you wish to complete the course earlier than scheduled, you may do so. At the end of each study session, if you will be ready you may present your progress."
After this announcement, class resumed as normal. But near the end, Lia leaned close to my ear and whispered,
"Do you want to work together?"
Surprised by her offer, I hesitated.
"You don't want to?" she asked, noticing my silence.
I leaned toward her ear this time and whispered back,
"Of course I want."
When the lesson ended, everyone began filing out. Lia and I followed, though she walked a little ahead of me and turned down a different path than usual.
"Kail, why did you stop?" she asked before we reached our destination—the girls' dormitory.
"Am I even allowed to go in?" I asked, unsure.
"Yes!" she answered with total certainty. "Come on, let's not waste time."
The interior of the building was similar to the male dormitory, though more elaborately decorated. Unlike the typical path to my own room, we headed for the elevator. Lia scanned her dormitory card, and the doors slid open.
I followed her inside. Without hesitation, she pressed the highest number on the panel. Once the doors closed, the elevator ascended swiftly to the topmost floor of the dormitory—the highest living space available.
"Welcome to my home. Make yourself comfortable," Lia said as the doors opened, revealing her private suite.
The panoramic view was breathtaking, offering a near-complete view of the academy grounds. A mini bar stood along one wall, even a single piece of furniture in the room looked like it alone could exceed the cost of my entire room.
"Sit down somewhere. I'll be right back," she said, disappearing behind one of the doors and leaving the living space to me.
The room was steeped in Lia's scent. Plush toys—clearly not part of the original furnishings—added a personal touch. The refrigerator was full of magnets with different mascots, generally throughout the space you could see decorative stars and as the star of the interest was the model that was attached to the bridge.The fact that Lia was loving literature is understood from her set of books, adding to an equal shelf after the largest wall, on the floor there were small towers of books. Shelf near was packed with books from a wide range of genres, from fantasy to drama. A few were even written in Elven language.
These books immediately sparked my interest. During standardized clan training, we were taught the basic alphabets and vocabulary of the Elves and Therianthropes, but nothing beyond that. Direct contact with their cultures was strictly forbidden, and most of their literature was considered subversive—borderline terrorist.
Yet, on my mother's shelves, these books were present.
She never explained how she acquired them, but she made one thing clear: I can't read them.
The first title that drew me in was "شجرة السلام."
Tree of Peace?
When I opened it, I was greeted by an illustration of a colossal tree rising into the heavens. It towered beyond comprehension, its massive canopy stretching over all things as if offering protection. The edges of the page, however, were torn—deliberately, perhaps.
I couldn't understand most of the book's content, but three words kept repeating, like anchors in an ocean of unfamiliar language: Yggdrasil, the Sly, and the Aggressor.
While skimming, a particular paragraph caught my eye. Something about it demanded attention.
„ إيغدراسيل معنا دائمًا، ويدعمنا دائمًا، ولن يتخلى عنا مهما كانت أفعالنا في الأيام المظلمة. لذا لا تيأسوا في ظلمة الليل، بل تحلوا بالصبر وآمنوا بأنه مع بزوغ الشمس، ستهب شجرة السلام لنجدتنا، ولكن إذا أراد العدو خداعنا أو كانت لديه نوايا سيئة تجاه شعبنا، فمن مسؤوليتنا أن نتحرك.
أيقظ شعب الجان العظيم قوى الطبيعة باسم إغدراسيل العظيم والعائلة المالكة التي لن ترضخ أبدًا للمكر أو المعتدي. أظهروا العناصر واطردوا الدخلاء من أراضينا.. "
I couldn't fully grasp the meaning, but I reread the lines over and over, hoping something would click. That's when I noticed the wind—until then, the room had been perfectly still.
Now, the air shifted.
It moved toward the book.
Curious, I focused my attention. The words on the page began to draw in the breeze, as if inhaling it.
That's strange…
Suddenly, the gathered wind surged directly into my eyes. I instinctively shut them, expecting darkness.
But instead, I saw war.
A vivid vision unfurled before me: two armies locked in brutal conflict. On one side stood the Elves—regal, radiant, and elemental. They were under siege by a massive human force, their enemies launching all manner of weapons. In response, the Elves called upon the elements themselves. Fire roared, water surged, earth rose, and wind howled—all in an effort to hold the line.
The Great People of the Elves…
A voice came from behind.
I turned.
An Elf stood before me, wearing a crown adorned with the four elemental sigils. His eyes blazed with a royal golden light, burning with divine authority. His long silver hair shimmered like molten threads of Silver, each strand alive with power.
Awaken the powers of nature in the name of the Great Yggdrasil and the Royal Family, he declared.
He raised one hand to the sky, and four spears emerged—each one embodying a primal element:
The Fire Spear, forged with four jagged teeth, burned so intensely that its heat could be felt even from the ground. It radiated like a miniature sun.
The Water Spear, with three sleek prongs, exuded calm, but hinted at terrifying depth—like an abyss that would consume anything upon contact.
The Earth Spear, bearing two massive blades, radiated density and strength. Its weight was oppressive, as if it could rival a mountain.
The Spear of Wind was a storm given form.
It generated hundreds of distinct currents, and within each of those, dozens—hundreds more—intertwined to shape the spear's body. These were not static winds, they were structured, flowing with purpose, each stream reinforcing the next like fibers woven into a singular force of nature.
This was not wind held still. It was wind compressed, coiled with tension, only to be released in motion again constantly renewing, never static. The spear breathed in rhythm with the world.
Its head, sharp and silent, symbolized both the beginning and the end of all wind. A singularity of flow.
And within it pulsed a power so refined, so absolute, it felt as though it could pierce the very fabric of space itself.
Each of the spears, in their own right, embodied a fragment of power raw, elemental, and absolute. They each held the potential to command and manifest their respective forces.
Yet just as I began to dwell on this captivated by their individual majesty a voice thundered once more:
Never bow in front of our enemy
The four spears began to move, slowly at first, then with solemn purpose. They converged on the Elven king, merging into a single, extraordinary weapon.
The result was unlike anything I had ever seen.
A central, elongated tip formed the core—sleek, precise, and impossibly sharp. Around it, nine smaller bladelets radiated outward like a crown of fangs, forming a divine trident adorned in symbolism and might. All the elements manifested through it at once fire, water, earth, wind yet the weapon's own body gleamed in a radiant silver-white, as if forged from light itself.
Manifest the Elements and drive the intruders from Our lands!
The king hurled the weapon toward the enemy forces.
It didn't just cut through the battlefield, it erased part of it.
"Kail?"
The sound of my name pierced through the vision.
I blinked, and the world changed.
Lia stood next to me, dressed in a black tank top and shorts, her expression caught somewhere between surprise and concern. The vivid vision—the battlefield, the Elven king, the elemental weapon lingered like an afterimage across my mind, refusing to fade.
"Unbelievable," I murmured aloud, still in disbelief over what I had just witnessed.
But my words drew attention.
Lia's eyes widened slightly before a flush spread across her face. Her expression shifted into one of flustered confusion, clearly interpreting my stunned reaction as something very different.
She turned away quickly, cheeks glowing red.