Chapter 8: Those who don't Smile at Winter, Will Never Laugh at Spring (3).
ــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ
The news spread quickly among the villagers.
"Have you heard about the so-called son of the leader? He's powerful!"
"You speak only of ignorance! I saw it with my own eyes then, the chief guard Timothy did not know whether the hand came to his right or his left!"
"It was also said that he will join the village academy, along with 4 young men, who are said to be like brothers of the leader's son, what do you think?"
"And what do we think? There's nothing to say. It's impossible for the leader to cheat on his wife. Maybe he adopted that young man? That's better than the foolish hypothesis that he's a bastard."
"Eey! I dare any of you to say that, I will rape him with a stick!"
"Hahaha, come on, we're talking about Captain Lucas, even thinking about it makes me feel guilty about its impossibility."
Those who wanted to impose that possibility immediately fell silent.
"We can only hope for the best."
"The problem isn't here, I mean… that, maybe, maybe the other guys are jealous of them? That's how problems will arise."
"Oh…"
Ladies in front of shops, old women in the shed, even overworked farmers talked among themselves.
The big issue was Leon's entry into the Black Sand Academy.
After a long discussion among the elders, they decided to make Leon a student, as the laws fined any young Ego warrior who did not attend school.
By exploiting that loophole, the words were easily accepted.
But the problem solved between the adults remained between them, and the disaster was hidden in the quarrels of the children.
Everyone has struggled to be famous among their people, and it's no different for this village.
When one is young, he will chase attention.
How others see him and how he communicates with them, such simple concepts in his youth become complex, and as his mindset clashes with the mindsets of others, he will become confused.
His own uniqueness will not be as desirable in society as it was in his childhood, and under the pretext of maturity, he is imbued with the mentality of other people.
This confusion becomes a disorder, and this is how social anxiety arises.
From this, one forgets one's own voice in childhood, and becomes isolated.
When one feels isolated, where does one's sense of the world go?
Towards others, and towards the familiar.
This is how one grows among people.
As he is raised in his environment to conform to its rules, his existence becomes a part of his homeland, and then a thirst for attention arises.
The desire for excellence is good food for society, because it motivates people to put in the effort and lead others.
Attention is not a desire, attention is a treasure.
Talk about Lyon has been on everyone's radar.
About his origin and past, about his personality and strength, everything that is told spreads and is added to, until the stories become of unknown origin.
Rumors of all kinds were circulating about him.
That precious treasure was taken from them, not by one of their own kind, but by an immigrant from a faraway land who was said to be the son of their leader.
How would young people feel about this?
Obviously, those emotions weren't "good."
The twenty-year-old, grandson of Law Hall's elder, Theodore, was no different.
"What's so special about him anyway? Just a bastard who uses his father's power to show off…"
As he sat alone in the courtyard of the village school building, his resentment grew as his emotions flared up.
As the eldest grandson of Carlos, he was responsible for the family business from a young age, and thus the hands of the cruelty of time reached him despite his young age.
The concepts of friendship and brotherhood are shattered by interests, enemies cooperate, allies betray, his younger sister died because of the grudge of one of the elders of the White Lake village against Theodore's grandfather.
The memory was blurry, yet clear.
In front of the dilapidated caravan, stood the grandfather and his grandson.
The body refuses to move like a stubborn child, the eyes are shedding tears, the mind is present but distant.
Their beloved's life ended there, and the heart was crying.
The concept of death was unfamiliar, yet it's always coming.
Theodore pulled the cold body from the rubble, but he was unconscious, as if the body was moving but the mind was asleep.
Eyes that remained afraid even in death, and expressions like a broken doll, expressionless, yet expressing everything.
And on that day, a part of his heart died.
How did he manage to endure that bitter time until now? The answer was the simplest.
He escaped his pain, by blaming his grandfather, by exerting himself, and by pursuing power.
This made him pay more attention to his surroundings, and so Theodore wanted to become special.
Leon stole that from him, the distinction, the fame, the rumors about him everywhere.
It can be tolerated and ignored, but it's still annoying.
"Just wait, when you enter the academy, when you come to my yard, I will take good care of you."
In the end, no matter how frustrating it was, it wasn't good to bully others, but as a senior colleague, he had to take care of Leon.
But since he was a foreigner, there was no need to mingle with his classmates much, right?
Sometimes, a person must be isolated to maintain order.
Troubled days are coming. If there is a conflict between the villagers, won't it lead to their destruction?
Monsters and madness, people who know nothing but struggle will not survive them, there must be cooperation and a foundation that holds them together.
Common enemy is one example, another example is role model.
As the grandson of the Law Hall Elder, this was his responsibility and his creed.
Theodore would never neglect his faith, never let himself feel bitter, not anymore.
Thus, it was better to suppress Leon's vanity so that he would not make the same mistakes as Theodore, and then include him as one of his followers.
For Leon's own development, he must first feel isolated, thus being drawn into the herd, and then embraced.
It produces others' fear of isolation, and makes them more comfortable with solidarity.
Leon, the common enemy, Theodore, the role model.
This method of manipulation was an education, albeit a harsh one.
This is for Lyon's "good" after all.
ــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــــ
A light breeze touched the skin of Michael, the elder and headmaster of the Black Sand Academy, as he contemplated the overall situation.
The strange young man, Leon, who had come to him a while ago, demanding that he enter the academy.
It was a really strange situation, why would a strong young man demand that?
Michael did not despise his homeland, but there is no doubt that this village is poor when compared to other places, such as the small and large communities.
With strength like that young man's, he could easily join them.
"Guardian Timothy is at the peak of the First Moon. He couldn't break through the last wall to reach a higher level, but he's far from weak. Even so, he was easily slapped to the point of losing consciousness."
Being on the second moon, Michael can do that, why?
The difference was in the density of the essence energy, the strength of the ego and even the special abilities.
The first moon warrior is like a child learning to walk.
He had to understand and get used to the three aspects of essence energy, choose the path he would walk as a warrior, choose an ego to help him along the way, and even cultivate his own talents.
All of this, not to mention engraving all of those concepts across his body to apply them in reality.
It takes time, effort, and resources.
Michael had lived so long and had his experiences, it only made sense that slapping Timothy to death was easy.
What about Leon?
He was a young man, probably not twenty years old, and didn't appear to be a noble given his complexion and ill-mannered demeanor.
But he won, with overwhelming ease.
What does this mean?
"This student is simply talented, extremely talented too."
A long sigh escaped Old Michael's mouth.
Faced with such overwhelming talent, the old man was worried that the children would feel hopeless.
There was a red-eyed young man behind him, but he didn't say a word.
His appearance was segregated, it was clear to the observer that he did not belong here at all.
His thoughts or inclinations, the old man did not know, but that did not matter.
Since he is a student, he should be treated like a student.
He walked across the yard toward the classroom, where the young man would introduce himself.
"Stand here until I call you."
Leon nodded quietly, his eyes flashing with an unnoticeable intensity.
Clack.
As he opened the door, the class and students appeared before his ink-black eyes.
The first to catch his eye were the group in front.
A young blonde girl with crimson eyes, her cold expression contrasting with her curious gaze.
"Nayeon Sago, do you know about the new student?"
Beside her, her friend spoke. Her hair was green and her eyes were blue, her smile bright in stark contrast to the one before it.
"No, I hope he knows sword art, though."
The girl known as Chae Nayeon answered her friend Luna in a calm voice.
On the far side was a young man with black hair, relatively handsome in appearance, his irises almost as black as Michael's were they not for the sharp blue pupil, like a cat's.
His fingers pricked the cheek of a black-haired, green-eyed girl as he teased her.
"Stella, I'm actually bored, please entertain me~"
"Leave me, I'm tired"
"Boooo~ I got rejected, after everything we did together at night- Aaah!"
Crack!
She reached towards his head and stroked his scalp in annoyance.
"Does this mouth need fixing? I have a knack for it, shall we try it, dear Kevin?"
"Maybe later, but for now…"
Kevin's eyes went to the table in front of the chairs.
Finally, a young man who looked like old Carlos but was even more handsome, stood up when he saw Master Michael.
His red hair was long, matching his height exactly, and his sharp eyes were burning with deep passion.
Timothy, the oldest and strongest young man in the village, was the class president.
"A humble student salutes his generous teacher, thank you for always teaching us!"
After he stood up and saluted, the others did the same.
"sit down"
Old Michael held a stack of papers in one arm and a monocle in the other.
When his left eye put on the glasses, white chalk flew in the air as a few words were written on the blackboard.
The old man didn't turn around and instead read the package in his hand.
"Before we start the lesson, I must inform you that there are new classmates. One of them has already arrived, while the others cannot come immediately due to specific circumstances."
The whispers among the students rose.
"Quiet." The old man raised his hand and continued, "You may come in."
"Yes"
The door was opened after the hadith was issued.
Leon walked across the place and then stood next to Teacher Michael.
" Introduce yourself "
" Yes "
His expression was as detached as before, but suddenly changed.
This time his eyes drooped slightly and he smiled lightly, putting his hands in his pockets.
"Today, a young man has come before you — a smile bright upon his face, his visage noble and fair, yet he always has a hope in the gaze.
Strong of arm, yet gentle in soul; fierce in battle, yet measured in thought.
My desires are humble, but my wrath is cruel.
My name is Leon… Leon Evenus.
O my people, O my pride newly born in this village."
With that said, he offered a simple greeting.
"…."
silence.
Nobody could speak at first.
'This idiot bastard… he's praising himself on his first meet?'
Teacher Michael couldn't help but sigh in regret.
Here, he thought the young man was curbing his strangeness when they first met a while ago,
but apparently he doesn't know the meaning of self-control.
The silence continued.
"Hahaha! What is this, he's a complete narcissist! Bahaha! Fun!"
That is until a loud laugh escaped Kevin's mouth.
"…noisy"
Stella covered her ears before slapping Kevin's overreacting side.
The rest were laughing nervously at the situation after the duo's usual behavior.
"I know you have a lot of questions, but save them for later."
After saying that, the teacher motioned for Leon to find a chair to sit on.
Red-eyed walked forward with a step.
Swoosh.
The sound of the wind caresses the ears.
Then he disappeared.
"Is it enough to sit here?"
His rough voice was heard at the end of the class.
… What …
What just happened?
A shiver ran down my spine.
Before my eyes, his body became like a mirage, and then his voice caressed my ears from afar.
This is the only understanding the old man has of the matter.
Disappeared and then appeared again.
No traces of ego activation, no remnants of essence energy were left behind.
"This means…"
The old man swallowed hard.
His energy is more powerful than I understand?
Despite his inner confusion, Teacher Michael's voice was calm.
"Yes, you can sit down."
No sound came after that.
The impact of the situation on others was higher.
They had only undergone the awakening ritual a while ago.
They have no ego or acquired experience, just a general understanding of how to use their essence energy.
Even discovered talent is still an unknown world.
A young man of their age moved at a speed their minds couldn't understand or their senses could comprehend.
That wasn't Amazing.
Amazing when seen from a distance, but when you compare yourself to it, it hurts.
Painful and scary, how different.
huge strength and strong body.
His words were not spoken in vain.
"Now that everyone is in their seats, let's begin our lesson today."
Today's lesson was an in-depth review of the most important information and knowledge.
The beginning of the trail.
"An ego warrior is someone who directs essence energy as they wish, controls ego, moves their body to influence their environment and then absorb it, that is the warrior."
"Now let's come to the question, what is the most important initial step for a warrior?"
Usually, everyone would answer, but there was a heavy silence that refused to disappear.
"I will answer"
And the source of silence itself spoke.
Leon Evenus.
The unknown son of Lucas Evenus, the young man rumored to have defeated the toughest guard in the village.
" … you have my ears "
"Most people think that a warrior's most important beginning depends on the ego he chooses, because the ego is the most powerful tool, the ultimate means of harnessing miraculous powers. This is a little true indeed, but also is a bullshit."
The young man raised his hand in the air, a red flash illuminating the environment around him appeared, a black tattoo resembling a broken moon, and other shapes scattered across his arm.
The figures began to move together in a slow rhythm, the crimson color crystallizing across them.
This sight captivated everyone, including Old Michael.
even for a different reason.
"At the beginning of their path, that is, their quest for dominance, the Gray Moons cannot easily use ego, because their energy is in the process of development and their understanding is scarce, not to mention the changes in their bodies, as they were simple people of body before that."
Old Michael didn't answer, his silence confirming that Leon was still talking.
Sure enough,in his youth, Michael didn't think like that, but after experiencing it himself, he realized that relying on ego wouldn't do much good.
unless one was rich, that is.
"Ego is essentially made up of essence energy, which is why one natural ego exists and another is generated within oneself. We, as warriors, absorb that energy and make it our own. It is a subversion of the laws of reality and a shaping of them."
Proving his words, the tattoo quickly moved across his arm and then took on a single shape.
That shape looks like sea waves.
As his hand extends, the space at the palm distorts, as if it were flexing.
That curved shape trapped the air, and as if playing with it, Leon threw the ball into the air.
Although the ball was essentially transparent, the distortion of space around it made it visible when viewed closely.
Deep within the young man's arm, the humidity rippled like water, disappearing and then gathering again, but it never covered his arm.
At a certain point, the tattoo changed shape, and with it, the humidity vanished, leaving only the rustle of the transparent ball's wind.
"After a certain level, the nature of the energy itself can be changed, but this is not something you are ready for yet. For now, let's focus on undermining the energy in our bodies."
Leon suddenly grabbed his arm.
Bam!
Then the ball exploded, causing a shockwave, and the hair of those present was scattered.
"The most important steps of a warrior?"
The red-eyed man smiled as he rested his face on his arm.
"It's the three aspects of energy and his talent, only after mastering sensing, absorbing and then extracting can he think about ego, only after realizing and utilizing his talent can he see a glimpse of the path that suits him."
When you think about it, people think that an ego warrior is someone who easily gains strength due to innate strength from birth or destiny.
It was an illusion that numbs the minds, and nothing more truthful to the hearts has ever existed.
People did not want to deny it even if solutions were available.
"Instant power? You aren't rich or spoiled, only effeminate people rely on easy passage!"
Cold words flooded the crowd, like a tiger's breath across a rabbit's neck.
"…the student Leon is right."
"As the student said, you will focus your efforts on understanding the three aspects of essence energy and developing your talent. After two weeks, a test will be conducted. Those who pass will receive their first ego."
"Since I have urgent business today, I will leave you with a simple homework.
As he spoke, the chalk that never stopped writing finished.
Essentials of Essence Energy, What Talent Means.
This is the research thesis they have to study and apply.
After gathering his things, Old Michael left, but not before giving Leon a deep look.
"He should be shocked now, for all he could do was panic after realizing that the one who was more powerful than him, are just a boy, younger than him. Well, the foundations have been laid, it's time to develop these cubs, so that some of them will follow the path of lions and lionesses, some of them will step towards extinction, and the weak among them will touch the gates of the grave."
People think that a talented person is someone who makes his way alone without being inspired by anyone, and this is stupidity in its glory.
No matter how brilliant a person is, progressing alone without guidance undermines his prospects.
A genius is not someone who goes it alone like a fool, but someone who finds the wisdom of others and absorbs it to create his own inspiration and uniqueness.
Everyone should find a mentor to simplify the path and teach them, that's how growth is.
These brats probably see Michael as that mentor, but reality is harsher than that mentor can bear.
Besides being only on the second moon, Michael's wisdom didn't extend beyond his own domain and some general understanding of the outside world.
More than anything, Michael's greatest concern was the welfare of the village as a whole, not the growth of the youth.
He cared about them as a group, not as individuals.
That wasn't necessarily a bad thing, because that's how society thrives.
but.
This fertilizer called Michael wasn't enough for the young minds and their hunger.
Here was Leon's turn.
Like the beauty of a plum blossom after suffering the ferocity of winter, it quenches one's thirst for tranquility with the arrival of spring.
Like a sword polished by a dedicated blacksmith, its light is blinding and its edge is hard and impregnable.
They were at the beginning of their paths, just beginners, so he had to spell out their powers for them as a teacher spells out his student, from him came inspiration to them.
There was no magic or facilitation in that, it was just a wonderful science.
This way they can smile, even in the worst storms, instead of doing something that wasn't more than nothing, that action is called crying.
In this world of ours, tears are of no use.
Their value to people is like that of a deaf person who hears hope.