Late afternoon trainning

***

It was still afternoon when Zatu came back home.

Compared to other houses inside the Inner city, his courtyard was very small and his house very simple.

The house and the courtyard walls were built entirely out of wood, a type of wood you couldn't find anywhere in Unbreon.

All this because it was made as a replica of the house Arbo grew up in.

Well…

Almost a replica, since it did have access to the water and mana connections that ran underneath most of the city.

These connections allowed many comforts unheard during Arbo's childhood, like heated showers, self heating stoves and night lights.

Which had only become possible after the last few centuries of advancement in rune magic.

As Zatu walked back into the backyard one thing caught his attention.

Old man Arbo wasn't in his chair anymore, in his place a small note was left.

+—+

Hey Kid.

Viscount Darkglade called an emergency meeting. 

Meetings involving the high council vary a lot in length, so don't wait for me and go celebrate with your friend.

Don't worry though, I'll sneak out for a bit to congratulate you.

See ya later Zatu.

A man can rule a city, but only time rules us all. - Arbo Greensword.

+—+

As Zatu finished reading the letter, alarm bells went off on his head.

'A big decision is being made.'

Arbo was already a high councilor when he adopted Zatu. A title held only by the highest tier residents within Unbreon.

Normally Arbo participated only during regular meetings at the end of the month.

But this time Viscount Darkglade called not only him but apparently all three high councilors at once.

For a few moments Zatu wondered what could have happened, before concluding that no matter what, training was his priority right now.

On that note, his original intention was to grind Imbue Lightning as much as possible during this next week.

He believed that as his eyes could follow it and his sword was sharp enough, no beast would survive his blade.

However, the fact he would get a personally tuned mana meditation by tomorrow made him reconsider this momentary focus.

On one hand it is an accumulation type skill, so the more he used it on the same sword, the better its effects would be.

On the other hand, leveling imbue lightning today and tomorrow would offer completely different results.

While working on other things like his sword intent control would not suffer this problem.

Plus, sword intent had a special characteristic when compared with mana. 

While magical power and maximum mana had little to no correlation, how powerful your sword intent was depended directly on its maximum value.

So in the end he decided to go with Sword Intent Cultivation.

Zatu's breathing slows down as his hand hovers above his sword's pommel.

His focus shifts to the tether he felt between him and his sword.

And as his mind submerges itself in that connection he imagines the sword flying out of its scabbard.

The sword at his hip trembles in response.

The basic control skill kicks in, deepening even further the connection between sword and wielder.

The sword starts to move out of the scabbard.

And as it slowly unsheathes itself Zatu feels the leather slide against its body.

Moments later he feels the warm sun rays bounce off its surface heating its metallic body.

He keeps his hand hovering just a few centimeters away from the handle.

While his sword floats in front of his chest.

He imagines the sword rotating, raising its tip to the sky.

The sword follows his mind.

And as its edge cuts through the air, he feels a small breeze caress the sword's body.

In moments the sword floats just like his imagination, pointing triumphantly towards the sky.

Zatu stands there, completely mesmerized at the sight.

In silence a few moments pass, before the sensation of emptiness washes over him.

'My sword intent ran out.'

He thinks to himself, his hand catching the blade just as it started to fall to the ground. 

Staring at the sword in his hands Zatu feels a smile take over his lips.

In his ear he can hear his heartbeat brimming with excitement.

His mind still holds dearly the now weaker but still present connection he feels with his sword.

Closing his eyes, he relives the last few seconds for a bit.

His mind struggled to put the experience in words.

It felt weird, like a phantom limb that was both there and not there.

It felt magical, like the day dreams he had when he first heard Arbo explain sword intent.

It felt intimate, like a warm hug on a cold night.

After the bliss slowly passes by, he checks his panel.

And aside from the now empty sword intent there are no other changes in sight.

A detail that to his surprise doesn't seem to bother him as much as he thought it should.

'I should care more, I should be as strong as possible, if I'm not I'll see more caskets holding the names of people I love.'

Shifting gears Zatu sits down, his sword resting on his lap.

Closing his eyes he starts to meditate reviewing how it felt to manipulate sword intent.

Breath by breath his mind wanders, going from that feeling of connection with his sword into the motions he trained throughout his whole life.

Cuts, stabs, feints one by one passes by his mind.

Slowly ideas are born.

How to execute them better and faster with the assistance of sword intent.

In this way, breath by breath almost a full hour goes by.

Till the feeling of emptiness is completely substituted by fullness.

As afternoon shifts to evening, he is able to repeat this cycle twice more and even sneak in a use of Imbue lightning with the mana that recharged by itself.

Just like before the bastard sword glows purple for a second, before the mana bottoms out and the sparks disappear inside its metallic body.

Though he isn't quite sure, he has the impression his sword intent recovered slightly faster.

 Under the now darkened skies he sighs satisfied, staring at his class panel.

================

Name: [Zatu Rainfall]

Age: [18]

Class: [Magic Swordsman] -- (Tier 1 - Level 5/100)

Resources: 

(Tier 1)

[Mana] -- (0/1) / [Sword Intent] -- (4/5)

Skills:

(Tier 1)

 [Basic Mana control] -- (level 1/100)

 [Basic Sword intent control] -- (level 2/100)

 [Imbue Lightning] -- (level 1/100)

============

After a few hours of training Zatu gained one max sword intent and one level on sword intent control.

A bittersweet result when he compared with the gains from the truth state.

But one he could replicate daily nonetheless.

'I didn't even have a class this morning, plus when I start hunting in person I should grow faster anyway.'

He thought to himself, the idea of going to the outer south earlier started to float in the back of his mind.

But at the same time, he didn't know how strong he had to be to even fight the beasts.

Normally he'd ask such things to Arbo, but after looking around for a bit, Zatu confirms old man Arbo has not come home yet.

So Zatu leaves a note before walking out the house.

+—+

Hey Old man.

I'm going to Schalt's Inn, reserved a table this afternoon and hope you can get there as well.

By the way what level more or less would you recommend I be to go hunt in the outer south?

Your grandson - Zatu Rainfall

+—+

***

Trekking through the magically illuminated streets, Zatu soon reaches Blue Dream.

Seeing that the person at the reception wasn't someone he knew gets him confused.

Normally Maira, the young girl, was the one responsible for the reception during late afternoons and early evenings. 

So it was surprising to see her earlier, but not now.

Walking to the person in her place Zatu asks about the table he had reserved earlier.

Only to get a surprising answer from the receptionist.

"I'm sorry sir, but the restaurant area is closed for tonight."

"It was a last minute decision from the boss, so if you had a reservation please give me your name and I'll give you a gift from Blue Dream, as a token of our apology."

Zatu raised an eyebrow.

Schalt took his business very seriously and Blue Dream could operate easily without him.

So from the top of his head he couldn't imagine what had caused the restaurant to close.

"It's okay, I don't need any gifts, but do you know what happened? I swear I reserved my table just earlier today and it all seemed fine."

The receptionist nods his head.

"You're right, it closed down just an hour or so ago"

"Apparently someone really close to the Boss has awakened and he wants to have a more private celebration with them."