Days went by.
For Azrael, they were a blur of studying, struggling, practicing and quietly praying to any god that would listen that nothing would happen.
He sat in class, his attention drifting. He had tried to pay attention for the first half of the lecture on advanced barrier theory, but his concentration was gone. His mind was now lost in its own dark, frustrating thoughts.
'Five days of non-stop practice,' he thought, a familiar frustration bubbling in his chest. 'Every muscle screaming, every bone aching, and for what? Not a single stat has increased. My rank is still the same. I need those damn Aether Stones. I need to get stronger.'
His mind drifted to the upcoming arcs, the moments where Kaelen was supposed to have his major power-ups. He thought of the legendary sword Kaelen would acquire from a hidden ruin, a weapon that could cut through demonic energy.
