Ch 47 : Overall Improvement

Days passed by in the usual rhythm at the Spell Training Ground. Auron and his friends focused on their training, but Auron had a new challenge—mastering his recently acquired Veiled Obsidian Heavenly Rune.

Sitting beneath the shade of a tree, anyone passing by would scarcely notice the subtle movements of the shadow around Auron's body, a sign of his progress.

"It's harder than I thought," he mused, his brow furrowed. "I can barely manipulate the shadows, and I haven't even begun to materialize them yet. This is going to take a long time to master. But at least I can now infuse my Void Nexus Combat Art with darkness celestial aura."

His excitement was palpable despite the difficulties. The infusion of darkness into his combat art was already showing promising results. His movements were becoming more concealed, each strike silent and cloaked in shadow. Although it currently only masked sound, the potential was immense—especially in darkness, where he could blend into his surroundings, strike, and retreat without a trace.

The thought of using this in a real battle sent a thrill through him. An opponent hit by his Void Shatter attack without warning, particularly in a vital area, would face instant death.

He had already begun experimenting with the darkness aura during an outdoor mission. Auron and his friends had faced off against orcs at the periphery of the Dead Water Hollow swamp. The battle was fierce—orc vitality and regeneration were terrifying, making them incredibly difficult to kill. Even the combined efforts of Alice, Thyra, and Walter had taken considerable time to bring one down.

For Auron, the battle was a test bed for his darkness-infused combat art. While the darkness provided concealment, it hadn't yet enhanced his offensive power. But Auron believed that once he understood the Obsidian aspect of the rune, his attacks would become far deadlier.

In addition to his exploration of the Veiled Obsidian Rune, Auron was working on integrating the Primordial Fire Heavenly Rune into his Genetic Ascension Art. The goal was to harmonize his body with fire, increasing his fire elemental affinity to new heights. Over the past few months, even with Xiao Yu's assistance, the Obsidian part of his rune remained elusive. However, the successful integration of the Primordial Fire Rune had marked a significant achievement. His genetic makeup now carried the mark of Primordial Fire, pushing his affinity for fire to its limit.

Ten months had passed since Auron and his friends began studying at the Swamp Enclave Academy. Despite his progress, Auron continued to suppress his breakthrough, focusing instead on refining his mastery over the Veiled Obsidian Rune and enhancing his Genetic Ascension Art.

The hard work was paying off. His body and soul cultivation had both reached the late stage, and thanks to the Genetic Ascension Art, Auron could now wield the Inferno Lance of Ruin without suffering burns. His control over both his body and elemental powers was growing, and he could feel that his path forward was opening wider with each passing day.

Alice, Thyra, Walter, and Eliot had all made steady progress in their cultivation. Alice, Thyra, and Walter had reached the 6th layer of Tier 1 Magus, while Eliot lagged slightly behind at the 5th layer. Despite the differences in their cultivation, each of them had begun developing their unique skills.

Thyra had created her unique spell, which she called Whispering Blades. Though still in its preliminary stage, the spell was meant to conjure erratic, invisible daggers that would slice through her enemies with incredible precision and power. Currently, she could only summon a single shard of wind, but she was determined to refine the shape of the daggers and increase their number.

Alice, meanwhile, had the vision for a spell she called Inferno Serpent Wrath. She intended to create a fiery serpent that would burn and explode upon contact. While she had mastered forming the shape of a small snake, she had yet to fully grasp the spell's structure or unlock its explosive potential. Her next step was refining the intention behind the spell, turning the harmless serpents into deadly projectiles capable of devastating power.

Eliot was still refining his unique spell, struggling with finalizing its structure. He envisioned large, tsunami-like hands made of water that could trap and crush enemies. However, he was torn between making the hands perform a clapping motion to trap opponents or a pushing motion to shove them away. He knew once he decided on the movement, the spell would take form, allowing him to develop its full potential.

Walter, having already mastered the foundational arts of both hammer and shield, found himself in a unique position. Lacking advanced manuals in the academy, he decided to create his own combat style, blending the brute force of his hammer with the defensive strength of his shield. He strove to balance raw power with defense, turning his fighting style into a combination of unstoppable force and immovable resilience.

Despite their individual progress, all of them knew there was much more to learn. But each step forward brought them closer to mastery and greater challenges.

That week, the teachers announced that an upcoming assessment would take place the following week. The test would evaluate their current magus tier and proficiency in spellcasting. Auron and Walter, being augmenters, would also face a combat and physical test with Sir Baldwin for their Body Harmonization class.

"What do you guys think about the test?" asked Alice.

"Not much to worry about," Eliot replied. "We just need to do what we've been doing. From what I heard, it's just attacking dummies—pretty easy after all the missions we've done these past few months."

"I agree," added Walter. "It should be a breeze for us. Auron and I spar with Sir Baldwin regularly in class. I'm confident we'll ace it."

"How about we unwind a little?" Eliot suggested. "I heard the fights at the Underground Fighting Stage are intense. We could see some Tier 2 magus battles! Maybe even pick up a few tricks."

Auron nodded in agreement. "It could be a good chance to gauge where we're at. Plus, the experience of watching higher-tier fighters could be invaluable."

Thyra chimed in. "Yeah, let's do it. We've been working so hard these past few months—it'll be good to relax a bit before the assessment. Let's meet at the cafeteria tomorrow evening and head there together."

Everyone agreed, eager for the change of pace and curious to see how they measured up. As they made plans for the outing, Auron silently reflected, thinking, "Seraphael said I could already match up to a top Tier 2 magus. It'll be interesting to see where I truly stand."

With the anticipation of both the upcoming assessment and their visit to the Underground Fighting Stage, Auron and his friends felt ready to test their limits and push themselves further in their cultivation journey.