The Master, clearly satisfied with our reaction, reset the dummy using a spell that built a pillar out of the earth. It knocked it back into place while he used a wind spell to reset the shield, leaving most of us in shock to see even a sliver of what could be possible with mana.
"Now, since you so kindly volunteered, I want you to do exactly what I just did," the Master said as he turned to face Ed. Edryd, obviously nervous as fuck, turned to look at us briefly as we offered what we could of encouragement through hand symbols and silent cheers. He smiled nervously in return and took a step forward at the Master's behest.
"First, you must clearly visualize the spell in your mind. Then, channel that movement into your limbs. Transfer the mana you've drawn into the movement, then release the spell. As soon as it's released, begin your strike before the dummy resets. Do you understand, or would you like me to explain it again?" the Master asked, receiving only a nervous nod in response.
The Master gestured for him to move forward, and we all held our breath to see if he could do it. Edryd swallowed dryly and nervously stepped forward, doing his best to imitate the exact stance the Master had just used.
You can do it, Ed! Come on! I mentally cheered.
We saw the sclera of his eyes be swallowed by the black spawning from his pupils as he drew mana from the Ethereal. I could physically see it begin to coat his entire body before immediately condensing to his hand and blasting out before his ill-timed swing, nearly knocking the sword out of his hand in the process.
The Master's expression didn't change, save a slightly disappointed frown tugging at the corner of his mouth. "It's alright, young Edryd. We will have much more time to practice this in the coming years. For now, I want everyone to try it at least once before we call an end to the training day," he said encouragingly.
He's being very supportive, a rare thing in and of itself, since he's normally nowhere near this warm-hearted. It could be because this is an entirely new skill we have to learn, so he must want to make sure we learn it well before discouraging us from trying again, I thought, realizing the intent behind his tone.
The small frown's transformation into a wry grin clearly indicated that either I accidentally said my thoughts aloud, or he had just read them; I didn't know which. A few of the others had gone before me, all of which failed in a similar manner to Edryd's attempt.
"And finally, Thoma. It's your turn," he said, gesturing for me to come to him. "Good luck!" Irun whispered, pumping his fist. In return, I gave him a thin-lipped smile and a curt nod of my head. I stepped forward, drawing my training sword from its scabbard, and got into position, feeling the flat of the blade resting gently on my collarbone.
"Do you remember the pattern for the attack?" the Master asked in a tone that beguiled the anxiousness I felt radiating from him. "I do, Master," I replied with a curt nod. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, allowing the air to fully fill my lungs and muscles before I began to draw from the Ethereal.
The sight of the swirling, multi-colored sphere in the sky was always a sight to behold. Since having taken the Gwynnleaf tincture and being fully exposed to the realm, I'd never quite gotten over its marvel. I outstretched my hand, and the tendrils of mana flowed from above, welcoming my command like an old friend.
I could feel the warmth from the Ethereal's mana enveloping me, which mirrored itself in the Between. However, unlike the others who'd come before me, I decided to try something different. Instead of immediately casting the spell, I decided to begin my physical attack before releasing the spell, thereby casting and attacking simultaneously. The small amount of muscle I had flexed, moving the sword upward to gather momentum for the actual strike. I used my left hand to cast the spell while still raising the sword with my right.
I could see the distortion of the air around the spell as it bent to my will, forcing the dummy's shield away from it. Before the spell had even finished, however, I moved my casting hand back up to the now-moving pommel and swung with all my might. The cut, while nowhere near as powerful as the Master's, was just enough to rock the training dummy back and forth.
Realizing what I just did, I began to chuckle softly to myself, more out of disbelief than actual pride. "Holy shit," I heard Irun, Batch, and Ed say simultaneously. I turned to them, scratching the back of my head and smiling nervously. "Well done, young Thoma," the Master said between the muffled claps of his gloved hands.
I turned to face him, putting my blade back in its scabbard, and bowed. "Thank you, Master," I said humbly. "What prompted you to cast and strike at the same time?" he asked in a curious tone. I could only shrug before I gave my response. "I'm not sure, but after Ed nearly knocked his own sword out of his hand by trying to do it sequentially, I figured that if I considered it all to be one, single attack, it might work better that way," I said.
Murmurs and whispers came from the group behind me, but their tones were contemplative rather than judgemental. "I see," the Master began. He was slightly wrinkling the scar on his face with the grin he tried to hide, but I had no idea why.
I got my answer within a few seconds of trying to figure it out.
"Well, well! I'm glad to see that leaving you behind hasn't meant you've gone stale with your training, little shit," I heard a familiar voice call out from behind the group. I turned to look for the voice's origin but didn't see the one I was looking for. "B-Bernar?" I asked, standing on my tiptoes to try and see over the crowd.
He appeared beside me as soon as the question left my mouth like a gust of wind on a hot summer day. I turned to look at him, his tar-black hair was much longer, and his build much stronger now than when he first left. "B-Bernar?" I asked again, almost incredulous to what I was seeing.
"Alive and in the flesh," he said cheerfully, spreading his arms widely. His eyes were shut since the grin on his face squished his features. He'd grown quite a bit since the last time I'd seen him, so when I went to hug him, I'd barely reached shoulder height. I embraced him so tightly that he let off a short oof as my shoulder slammed into his chest.
"It's good to see you again, brother!" I said, my voice muffled by his jerkin. There was something beneath his jerkin that felt like a pendant, but I couldn't be sure. "It's good to see you too, shitbird," he said, patting my back twice before pushing me back. I was finally able to look at his face and saw the same glowing eyes that the Master had. "B-Bernar, what… happened to you?" I asked, struggling to find the right words to ask.
"Ah, you mean my eyes?" he asked, almost as if he'd forgotten about them himself. For whatever reason, he looked at the Master momentarily, but I didn't see the response he got. "Well, to make things short and sweet, I trained my ass off every day that I was there and ended up breaking through to the fifth stage," he said.
"You did what?" I asked, completely dumbfounded by what he had just said. "Hehe, you heard me," he said smugly. The Master cleared his throat. "Well, that should be all for today, everyone. Except for you two, the rest of you should go get cleaned up and prepare for supper. Do not be late," he said forcefully. Not a soul was present within the next few seconds that passed, save Bernar and I.
I'd be lying if I said I wasn't nervous at that moment.
It was just the three of us standing there for a few breaths, waiting for the others to be out of earshot or something of the like. Irun and Edryd looked back at us with an odd mix of emotions written on their faces before heading into the fortress.
"It's good to have you back with us, Bernar," the Master began. "It's good to be back, though I will admit I already miss Caegweni food, Master," Bernar chuckled. "Now that you're back, I'd like you to start trying to teach your younger brother some of what you've learned over there. I'm sure that he'd find some of your techniques valuable to learn from," the Master said suggestively.
Bernar looked at me kindly and grabbed my arm inquisitively. "By the gods, have you been eating enough?" he asked me, patting my arm up and down to make sure he wasn't mistaken.
"I eat quite a bit, but no matter what, I have a hard time gaining weight or putting on muscle," I replied with a shrug. Bernar looked at the Master yet again, who shook his head ever so slightly.
"Well, if we can't get any more meat on those bones of yours, I might as well try to teach you some more advanced spells. Gods, I may even go so far as to teach you how to create your own," he said with a wolfish grin.
"I can create my own?" I asked incredulously. "Yes. Although, I should warn you that it's not going to be an easy time. You'll have to push through your current limits, both mental and physical," he said, placing both hands on my shoulders and looking at me intently.
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. My brother, who had been gone for years at that point, had just come home and wanted to help me improve my skills. However, the elation that came over me quickly dissipated as reality set back in.
"I-I'd love to learn from you, brother!" I said, feeling a mixture of excitement and disappointment. He must have sensed what I was going through because he bent down a little more to meet my eyes.
"Listen, I know things haven't been easy for you on the physical side, and believe me when I say that I understand. However, I promised you that we would figure things out together when I got back, right?" he asked, searching my eyes in the process. I nodded, remembering the promise he'd made before he left.
"I promised you I'd train as hard as I could in the meantime, but I admit, my progress has been rather slow," I said, feeling the dejection seep through my tone. "Slow? You're the only runt who was able to do what the Master did almost exactly as he did it, and you're telling me your progress has been slow?" Bernar asked, the incredulity in his voice made me amply aware of how stupid I sounded.
"Well, when you put it that way…" I trailed off with a shrug.
The Master looked at us warmly and nodded his head to my older brother. Somehow or another, they understood each other, even though it'd been a little over six years since Bernar went to Caegwen.
"Come on, little shit, let's get ready for supper. I'll start training you as much as I can now that I'm back," he said, wrapping his arm over my shoulder. "What's the first thing you're gonna teach me?" I asked with more excitement in my tone than before.
"How to create your own spell, of course," he said wryly.