Lonely Hand

*whoop*

With both hands, he swung the long sword down from above, a bit diagonally, before stepping back into his previous stance. He repeated this movement for eight more times before he shifted.

"Hah!" the boy shouted while bringing the sword down and thrusted forward.

A few meters away, lounging while drinking coke out of a can, was Magnus. Upon hearing his friend's shout, he almost spat out the soda. "Dude, was the shouting necessary?" He couldn't recall ever seeing TJ shout like that while using his long sword in the original Universe.

The teenage boy tried to stabilize his breathing; sweats could be seen making his forehead glisten under the morning sun. "It gives it more power," he said while preparing to do another thrust.

At that reply, Magnus shrugged. "Aight, whatever."

It was Saturday morning, one week after TJ had been awakened. Last Sunday, after he succeeded in learning [Flamethrower], the boy trained for a few more hours before his parents came home. Magnus had to cancel [Unbreakable] after each hour, and then recovered his mana while waiting for the anti-god membrane's cooldown to end. All this fell under the excuse of 'taking a break'.

All in all, TJ had managed to level up [Ignite] and [Flamethrower] once. It was already a good enough progress for a single day.

This morning, Magnus and TJ had agreed to pause the spell training to switch to some physical training. Knowing TJ was a natural in the way of the sword in the other Universe, Magnus created a crude long sword out of earth. It was probably a bit heavier than a real sword, but that was good; it might help TJ build his Strength faster.

"Use this and be a good sword fighter," Magnus had said while handing the earth sword to his friend.

"The fuck? Why a sword?"

For a moment, Magnus didn't know how to answer such simple question. Should he start telling him the tale of one badass swordsman in [Nocturnal] amor carrying a black sword that—

"Was I maybe badass with a sword?" TJ suddenly asked, seemingly knowing what his friend was thinking.

"Uuh, yeah. You really were," replied Magnus, still half wondering how his friend guessed his train of thought.

"Alright, cool!"

And so, after watching some sword fighting tutorials on the internet, TJ started swinging his sword around, and had been at it for the past hour. Magnus had also purchased a square boxing pad and a pair of striking paddles to help TJ practice some kicks and punches. Though, he figured he wouldn't be needing any of that today, as his friend was already so absorbed practicing his swings.

Feeling bored, Magnus took a chance to add twenty points to TJ's Mana and forty points to his Health, because why not. He only had one Protagonist other than himself, after all. Which was why he could boost his best friend whenever he wanted while still having half of his AP left, which could always be recovered during the guy's training.

About half an hour later, TJ finally received a notification from the system.

[Congratulations! You have learned a skill!

Skill Name: Swordsmanship (Lv. 1)

Description: A skill that represents your journey toward mastering the art of sword fighting.

Mana Cost: None. (In the case of mixing the skill with magic, the mana cost is relative to the spell used)

Cooldown: None.]

"Sweet!" said Magnus, watching as his DP rose by 500 points. He then switched the screen and saw TJ gaining another 20 XP. "Not bad, bro!"

After taking a few seconds to read the skill description, TJ was puzzled. "I'm guessing I can apply mana into the sword?"

"Of course! But for it to work efficiently, you have to have the right sword. A REAL sword and not…that," said Magnus, pointing to the crude earth sword.

"Why not?"

"Well, an actual sword engraved with magic inscriptions will make it easier for you to channel mana into it. Magic inscriptions also allow the spell to remain longer on the weapon without you having to constantly expend mana. I mean, you can try using [Flamethrower] with that earth sword, but I guarantee you will only be able to either shoot out a weaker version of it or scorch the sword itself."

Pondering about it for a bit, TJ finally understood. "Sounds like I'm gonna have to find a good sword."

"And you will. After the Prolog, that is," assured Magnus.

TJ's eyes then landed on the cooldown part of the skill description. "Now that I think about it, none of the skills I learned have any cooldown. What kind of skill has a cooldown, then?"

At that question, Magnus chuckled lightly. "Let me tell you this: ANY skill can have a cooldown. That includes your [Ignite]."

"What do you mean?"

Magnus then gave his friend a mysterious smile. "Just remember to never overuse your mana."

Seeing his friend trying to act mischievous, TJ scowled at him. It was his way of saying, 'Tell me or you'll regret giving me this earth sword.'

Faced with his friend's oh-so-scary expression, Magnus's smile faded. "Fine! Let's just say that, once you deplete your mana, go ahead and open up the description of the last skill you used. You'll notice it now has a cooldown."

TJ's scowl finally disappeared, replaced by a look of understanding. "So it's like a penalty. But why?"

Magnus shrugged. "How should I know? It's probably the system telling you to chill out with the skill spamming."

"What happens if I got a cooldown on a skill and tried to use it anyway?"

"You'll find that you just aren't able to. It's like your mana encounters some kind of roadblock."

"Hmm," TJ pondered, swinging his sword absent-mindedly. "Have you got any skill with a cooldown?"

"I'm not telling you."

TJ suddenly paused his movement and stared at his friend, wearing an expression that said, 'Seriously, dude?'

Magnus could only sigh. The look on his face then turned a bit sad for a moment. "My healing skill's now got a cooldown," he finally answered. "As to how I got it, I'll leave that to your imagination." He then got up from the lounger, threw the coke can into a garbage bin before walking up to his friend. Making a gesture for TJ to give the sword to him, he said, "Alright, training's over for today."

"What? Have you got something else to do or something?" asked TJ, reluctant to hand the sword over.

"That's right. Now give it!"

TJ then handed over the sword with a heavy heart while giving his friend a questioning look. "What's so important that you have to end my training? Also, why can't I keep the sword?"

Magnus raised his eyebrows. "Who says you can't keep it? I'm just going to refine it a bit and make it look less like a lump of dirt and more like an actual sword. But don't go swinging it around in front of your mom. Also," a jovial grin bloomed on Magnus' face. "I've got a date today!"

---

"How do I look?" Summer asked, sitting down on a low stone platform, posing in front of a beautifully arranged assortment of colorful flowers and bushes. She was wearing a turquoise knee-length dress with a floral pattern, and a pair of white block heels. On her shoulder, slung a cream-colored handbag. She also had just had a haircut, now donning a chin-length curly bob that gave her face a cuter look.

A couple of meters in front of her, propping his body on one knee on the paved surface, Magnus had his phone positioned before his face. The screen showed the result of the photo he'd just taken of Summer. "Pretty," he said with a stupid grin on his lips.

Hearing his response, the girl looked down while hiding a shy smile. "Thanks," she said almost quietly. She then got up and awkwardly gestured for them to continue their walk. "Let's go, Magnus."

Seeing her acting adorably, Magnus had to use his utmost willpower to resist touching her cheek and kissing her. "Right, let's go," he said while standing up.

They walked side by side among the crowd of people. In the background, skyscrapers of downtown Chicago rose high and haughty. Contrasted with the gorgeous rows of reddening trees along the paved path, they all created such a picturesque landscape. It was a cool but not-so-windy Saturday afternoon, and Magnus was having a very peaceful date with Summer.

The pair finally approached a waist-height stone structure with the words 'Millennium Park' engraved on it. Passing by it, a wide area opened up to reveal a huge metallic-looking arched sculpture in the distance. 'The Bean', as many people called it. The sculpture resembled liquid mercury, its surface displaying distorted reflections of the surroundings.

"Want me to take a picture of you in front of it?" asked Magnus, pulling out his phone again.

Summer shook her head slightly and put her hand on his phone-holding hand. "I'd like a picture of both of us," she said softly.

Magnus was pleased by her hand-touching and became even happier when he could see on her face that she was reluctant to let go of his hand. But then she separated and turned around to avoid making it awkward.

Safe to say, Magnus was slightly disappointed. He wished he could keep holding her hand during their walk all the way to The Bean. "I'll ask someone to take a photo of us," he said in a cheerful tone, trying to mask the empty sensation he now had on his lonely hand.