Multitasking

*THUD*

Artus landed beside the corpse of the dead rabbit.

Seers walked slowly toward Artus while looking at him intensely.

"Incredible. I have never seen something like that. To use a simple low-level magic spell, object levitation, in that way is something I have never seen a mage do before."

"Aunt. You are overreacting. It is not that outstanding; I only gave myself a little boost."

Artus said while kneeling to collect the body of the rabbit.

"You were able to boost your physical abilities by applying an object levitation spell to different parts of your body. By casting the spell on your feet, you were able to jump higher and run faster. By casting it on your hand and the dagger, you were able to slash at high speed and accuracy, directing the slash toward the monster's body."

"Not only that, but you also cast a spell on the rabbit horn, causing it to tilt its head to the side, directing the horn away from your body."

"You did all that, and you got the nerve to say it was nothing outstanding."

Artus stood up after dealing with the body and putting it in the bag.

"Aunt. It is just the object levitation spell. It's a low-level spell. I merely cast it at myself and the monster. Any mage could do what I have done."

"Yeah…. you are right."

Seers crossed her hands in front of her body.

"Any mage could cast the object levitation; it will work on most objects as long as you have enough mana. It will even work on monsters and normal people who don't have and are unable to gather Aether."

"Any mage could do that."

"But to do that, a mage would need to focus all his attention and mental capacity on casting the spell, which requires concentrating all his attention. There is no room for disturbances or to pay attention to anything else."

"On the other hand, you did all that while fighting the one-horned rabbit head one; you used the dagger with your left hand to fight the rabbit while using your right hand to cast the object levitation spell mid-fight on you and the rabbit."

"That is definitely not something any mage could do, especially at your level."

"The time and concentration required during the casting process make mages vulnerable to attacks. It is the biggest drawback of being a mage."

"of course, that only applies to low-level mages. As for the high level, things are different, but still, to cast a spell and fight with a dagger simultaneously requires a strong mental ability, which will always put you at an advantage among mages, whether you are a low or high-level mage."

These words shocked Artus; he did not know his actions were a big deal. He already had a high mental ability, and with the help of NuroFusion, he was able to analyze and control his battle with the rabbit. Not only that but with training, he could achieve much more than that. 

"It seems like I should hide myself more."

To train himself and utilize his full power, Artus needed to roam the forest alone; he could not expose all of his cards in front of Seers.

"So that's it. Thank you for explaining, Aunt. I would appreciate any tips you can give me to get stronger."

"By the way, you said you would allow me to train alone in the forest. Don't get me wrong, Aunt. I am grateful you accompanied me on all the previous trips. I don't want always to bother you, but you have seemed very busy lately, and I feel like I am taking too much of your time."

"You always accompany me to protect and guide me. You have seen me fight those monsters today; I have become strong enough to protect myself or at least flee from danger."

"What do you think, Aunt?"

Seers thought for a while. Artus was undoubtedly strong enough to fight low-level monsters; he was also a brilliant and careful person, and he could at least get himself out of trouble if something happened.

"Ok, but I will give you one final test."

"Follow me."

Artus and Seers walked slowly inside the forest, getting deeper and deeper. Although they usually stayed at the edge when training and had never wondered deeply in the forest, this time was different.

The deeper they go, the taller and denser the trees become. At the forest's edge, where Artus usually trains, the trees are small and scattered. The sun shines brightly on the ground. Now, when they got somewhat deeper, there were many tall trees, their dense leaves and branches blocking part of the sunlight, so the forest became darker.

"Aunt, where are we going?"

"Be patient, Artus; I have a special test for you; if you are able to pass it, I will allow you to train alone at the edge of the forest."

Artus followed Seers silently, paying attention to the surroundings. He had never been this deep in the forest, and it was a chance to learn about it.

There were many kinds of small bushes on the ground. Some had strange fruit, some had flowers, and some had only strangely shaped leaves. He could also see insects everywhere.

He also noticed different kinds of trees, differing in color, branches, leaf shape, height, and so on.

Many of those could be used as ingredients for alchemy or materials for crafting tools and weapons; he had made a note about them, memorizing and analyzing them with NuroFusion.

He plans to return here later on to collect some of them if the need arises.

Artus was immersed in the forest, so he did not notice Seers stopping.

"Artus."

"Excuse me, Aunt. I had never seen something like this before, so I was a bit distracted."

Artus Regained composure and followed Seer's sight.

Among the bushes, there was a large monster. His body was covered with dark brown fur, and he had four long legs and huge antlers over his head. What really caught my attention was that both his hooves and antlers were light gray in color, reflecting light as if they were made of steel.

"This is the steel stag, a mid-level monster that lives in the middle of the forest layer. Rarely, It could be seen roaming at the forest's edge."

"If you were able to deal with it. I will be sure that you are able to protect yourself when training alone at the edge of the forest."