Chapter 36: The village chief

The aroma of freshly cooked chicken soup wafted through the air, making Luca's mouth water as his mother told him about the delicious meal she had prepared.

He sat down to enjoy a hearty meal. After finishing his breakfast, Luca told his mother that he was going to visit Finn's home.

Luca walked to the northern side of the village and asked for directions to Finn's home. He soon found himself standing in front of a cosy little house.

When he entered, Finn's mother looked up, and Finn quickly made the introduction.

"Mom, this is Luca," Finn said, smiling.

Finn's mother, a kind-eyed woman with a warm smile, greeted Luca with a gentle nod. "Ah, nice to meet you, Luca. Finn has told me a lot about you."

"Thank you, ma'am," Luca replied, feeling a bit shy. "It's nice to meet you too."

Finn's mother warmly welcomed Luca and offered him breakfast, but he politely declined, saying he had already eaten. After chatting for a while, Finn and Luca said goodbye to his mother and decided to visit Finn's father, who was working in the fields.

As they walked, Finn and Luca discussed their training and how they could continue to improve during their vacation.

"I'm worried that we'll lose our edge without the proper equipment," Finn said, frowning.

"Don't worry, we'll figure something out," Luca replied. 

When they reached the fields, Finn introduced Luca to his father. Finn asked his father if he knew of any training equipment in the village.

"Actually, I think the village chief might be able to help you with that," Finn's father said, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Luca and Finn decided to visit the village chief, whose house was located in the centre of the village. The village chief was a grade 3 civilian, and the chief's house stood out as one of the nicer homes in the village.

As Luca and Finn entered the village chief's house, they were greeted with a warm smile. The chief, a man in his fifties, seemed to be hiding a mix of emotions behind his welcoming expression. He listened intently as the two boys explained their need for better training equipment.

The village chief's thoughts, however, were elsewhere. He couldn't help but think about the news of children from his village who had been recruited by the nobles of Silverdeep. What shocked him even more was that these children, who were considered to be hired as servants, were given the opportunity to practice Luminis and join the military. Five children from his village had already been selected, and the chief was still trying to wrap his head around it.

The village chief's mind was also filled with concerns about the impending war, which seemed increasingly likely given the nobles' recruitment of children from his village and other nearby villages. The recruitment of these children into the military could only mean one thing - Waldria was preparing for battle. But he pushed these thoughts aside, not wanting to speculate without any concrete evidence.

As Luca and Finn asked about training equipment, the village chief's attention returned to the present. He asked about their Luminis stage, and Finn replied, "Essence flow." The chief's eyes widened in surprise, and he sucked in a deep breath. Even though he had prior knowledge, he was still taken aback by the fact that these young boys had reached the essence flow stage. Even the strongest person in the village was only at the essence flow peak, and these children were already at the essence flow stage.

The village chief's smile grew warmer as he patted his chest, reassuring the boys not to worry. He disappeared into a room and returned with a key. "Follow me," he said, leading them to a small house on the outskirts of the village.

He unlocked the door. The room was filled with an assortment of weapons and weights, all neatly arranged and well-maintained. The village chief's warm smile seemed to say, "You're in luck, boys. You've got everything you need to take your training to the next level."

Finn and Luca's eyes widened as they scanned the room, which was filled with an impressive array of weapons and weights, each one meticulously maintained and polished to a high shine. Although the quality of the equipment was not as good as what they had used in the military, it was still impressive for a village to have such a collection. Luca's gaze fell upon the weights, but he knew they wouldn't be of much help to him. Having already reached the essence flow peak, he needed heavier weights to continue his training.

Finn, on the other hand, was excited to try out the new equipment. They selected a few weapons and signed a registry, promising to return them when they were done. The village chief told them that if they wanted to use the weights, they could come to him for the key anytime.

With their new weapons in hand, Finn and Luca thanked the village chief and headed back home. As they walked, Luca's mind began to wander. He thought about his weight training. He could search for a stone in the mountains to use as a weight. Also the mountains were known for their rugged terrain and heavy rocks, which would be perfect for his training.

As Luca thought about his new training plan, he also had to consider another important aspect- meditation. He had to be careful not to spend too much time meditating, as he was already close to breaking through to the harmonisation stage. If he wasn't careful, he might accidentally break through to harmonisation stage.

Finn promised to visit Luca's home next time. Luca and Finn bade each other goodbye and returned to their respective homes. 

After returning home with the weapons, Luca's mother asked him about the new equipment. He explained that the village chief had allowed them to use the weapons during the holidays. With his mother's curiosity satisfied, Luca decided to spend some time reading the books he had purchased from Elmwick.