“This is really crazy,” I mumbled to myself, looking at my hand. “Just as I thought, learning from her is the best choice I made.”
SWOOSH
Looking at the mana threads in my hand, I could easily say this. It was as if I could finally feel the mana around me without the intervention of my [Lunar Enigma] trait.
Of course, this was just the basics, but even this was a good improvement considering how Astron was before.
I came from a world without mana, and the previous Astron also never felt mana, even if he was an awakened person; thus, this prowess was good.
“Then, I should continue my training.”
With those thoughts, I grabbed my bow and started training once again.
“Activate Stage Two.”
<Understood.>
As the Artificial Intelligence of the academy training room replied, I raised my bow.
SWOOSH
And began.
*******
Emily sat in her small, dimly lit room, her chestnut hair cascading untamed over her shoulders.
Her tired, sapphire eyes were fixed on the laptop screen before her, its soft glow casting fleeting shadows in the otherwise simple and sparsely furnished space.
She was looking at the notice she put on the bulletin board.
“Still no replies, huh?”
She mumbled to herself. Of course, she also knew how bad their situation was and how unpromising it looked from the notice. But she didn’t have a choice.
RING
At that moment, a call came from her bracelet. Opening up, she saw it was a call from her father.
With a weary sigh, she accepted the call with her father, whose anxious voice echoed from the device. He was probably calling her after the message she left yesterday. She knew he was busy too, so she didn’t say anything.
<Emily. How is it? Could you find any suitable hunters?>
“Yes, father. I asked a friend from the Academy, and he accepted my request.”
<Is he any good?>
“His rank is not that high, but I saw his talent with my own eyes. I think if I fought with him right now, he would beat me.”
<He is this good?>
“Yes. He is a Hartley.”
<Hartley? That Hartley Family? Hey, Emily! Are you crazy?>
“Why?”
<Don’t you know that calling a member of the Hartley Family is risky for a small guild like us? What are you going to do if something happens to him there?>
“Father, of course, I know all of those. But do you think I can find someone like him when his reputation has yet to bloom once again? And he is a good person. I am certain that he won’t make a big issue out of it.”
<Emily. You know there isn’t any good person in this world.>
“I know. But we are desperate, and you know it as well. The dungeon we are challenging is impossible for us to clear right now since your-”
<…..>
“Since that time. So, we need every manpower we get, or we will lose the right to own this last dungeon. You know local guilds are already pressuring us; this is our last chance. You know, the money we got from selling our stocks is already spent on equipment for our guild members.”
<You are right….I really wonder who this person is. They suddenly bought half of our stocks and invested in us, a falling guild.>
“I don’t know who it is, but I am very grateful to them for giving us this last chance. Even if we can’t make it, I will quit the academy and repay them back.”
<Sigh….I am sorry that you need to shoulder this responsibility. I am a fai->
“Don’t say that, father. It wasn’t your fault. It is all because of that traitorous bastard.”
<…..>
“I swear, once I get a hold of him, I am going to kill him.”
<Okay, okay, calm down, dear.>
“…..I am calm…..Anyway, Father, take care of yourself.”
<You should rest a little.>
“I will after everything is finished.”
<Then, take care.>
<DING. DING. DING.>
As Emily ended the call, she closed her bracelet and threw herself onto her bed.
“This is our last chance. I need to make sure everything is okay.”
And with a determined expression, she opened her laptop and started working on the dungeon and planning.
It was her and her father’s guild’s last chance, and she was not going to miss it.
******
“Junior, you are doing a lot better than yesterday.”
I was inside the Elemental Chamber, looking at the senior who became my mentor on just a random day.
“I see,” I replied. Certainly, after training with my bow and dagger without using my traits, I can say that my mana control improved.
And yesterday, I also realized one more thing. The reason why Firearms were not that well-received inside the Hunter community.
While I was training with my bow, I also tried to use my gun for a second. Since my bracelet wasn’t detectable, I could carry my gun wherever I went, which is normally prohibited.
I tried to coat my gun and my bullets with mana in order to improve their efficiency like I did while using [Lunar Enigma].
And there, I realized it was impossible to do that.
Neither was I able to improve the efficiency of the gun by coating it with mana or the bullets. The moment the bullet was fired, the enhancement disappeared, and the gun worked as it normally would.
This was the difference between [Lunar Enigma] and using normal mana, and this also shows the importance of the [Traits].
“Your mana control had already reached a certain threshold. At this point, I can easily say that you finally met the requirements of being a hunter.”
Those words were slightly cruel, but they are simply true. I was now on the same track with other people.
But I could see a faint smile on Maya’s face as if she rather enjoyed me being on a low level. But it might also be a misunderstanding, though I doubt it.
“Anyway, the important thing is you’re on the right track now, Junior. But remember, raw mana control is not the only thing important for us hunters.”
With that, she guided me to the next phase of my ‘training.’ “We can now start one of the most important things for us—manipulation of elemental attributes.” She stopped for a second and looked into my eyes.
“As you know, not everyone can use every element. It depends on one’s aptitude and affinity. It is like a talent. For instance, some people are bad at mathematics, some people are bad at memorizing, etc. Elemental mana is the same; some people may be good at manipulating and feeling the fire, while others may not be able to do that.”
She explained.
That was also how it was explained in the game. Even though no one has limitations on what element they can use, in the game, unless you increase your affinity with certain elements, the skills you would be able to use would be limited.
For instance, at that time, Senior Elara was using a bow while training, and she fired a wind arrow. This is a basic skill for archers, but without being good at using wind mana, you can’t be fast enough to coat your arrow, and this will render the skill useless.
“For me, as a nature mage, I can work with all elements, but you might have a natural affinity for one or two.” She paused for a moment before continuing, “Let’s start with the basics. Watch closely.”
CREAK
Maya extended her hand, her palm glowing with a warm, earthy light. Slowly, the ambient mana in the chamber seemed to respond, coalescing around her hand. The man took on an earthy texture, like clumps of rich soil.
THUD
The time she spent using earthen mana was low, as if it was natural for her. This was the idea behind the affinity.
“See this? This is earth mana,” she explained as she gently tossed a small clump of it into the air. It hovered for a moment before dissipating.
Maya continued her demonstration, showcasing her mastery over each elemental attribute one by one. With a fluid grace, she manipulated the mana around her to take on the characteristics of different elements.
SWOOSH SWIRL 𝞸𝒱xt.𝗰𝚘𝑚
“This is fire, mana,” she said as flames danced around her fingertips, casting a warm, fiery glow. The flames flickered and crackled, giving off heat that could be felt even from a distance.
SWISH
Next was wind mana, as she conjured a gentle breeze that ruffled her hair and caused the surrounding mana to sway like tall grass in a meadow.
SPLASH
Then came water mana, and she formed a delicate sphere of liquid mana that glistened and sparkled, resembling a perfectly rounded droplet of water.
After each display, Maya encouraged me to give it a try. However, as hard as I tried to mimic her techniques, nothing happened.
My mana remained formless and undifferentiated. It was clear that I lacked any natural affinity for these elements.
“I see….” I could see her nodding her head. “Junior, we are going to repeat the same thing as yesterday.”
With those words, she came to me and grabbed me by my arm once again.
FLINCH
Resulting in me flinching. Her speed was fast even for a mage; this alone showed how strong she was compared to me.
‘Sigh….It is still uncomfortable.’
Certainly, it was uncomfortable for other people to touch me, but since Senior Maya was not bothered by it and it was for my own good, I also didn’t mind and endured the feeling.
“Now, try to feel it.”
Maya’s touch brought an immediate change. As she infused her elemental mana into my body, I could feel a distinct shift in the ambient mana within me. It was like a subtle, internal transformation that I hadn’t experienced before.
When she did this for the first time yesterday, it made me feel the mana firsthand, and certainly, that helped me. Mana was not something that could be controlled by simply observing how others did it. I first needed to know how to feel it.
It was like watching the people playing football but without knowing how to move your legs. To learn it, you need first to feel your legs, and your brain needs to register those nerves, and then you can replicate how footballers moved.
This was the same.
“I will start with Earthen Mana.”
First came the earth mana, and I felt a grounding sensation as if I were connected to the solid foundation of the world.
“Can you feel the difference between yesterday and now?”
“Yes.”
“Good.”
Next was the fire mana, and I sensed an inner warmth and energy, like a flickering flame deep within me.
Then came the water mana, and I experienced a slight fluidity, but at the same time, a sense of balance was there.
After that was the wind mana, and my mana became ethereal and light. It felt as if I could move it effortlessly, mirroring the element of air. It was swift, light but uncontainable, just like wind.
And lastly, it was a weird type of feeling.
“This must be your special mana, Senior,” I spoke, feeling the soothing but destructive, calm but explosive mana inside.
“Indeed. But how did you know?” She asked, looking a bit surprised.
“Senior, everyone knows about you inside this academy. The Genius of Nature.” Considering Maya’s reputation and her special affinity, I knew from the game, guessing this wasn’t that hard.
“T-this is a bit embarrassing.”
“I see. I won’t say it again then.”
“N-no, it is not like that.”
“Then?”
“J-just don’t say too frequently.”
“Okay.”
“Anyway, Junior! Don’t get distracted.” Maya released her hold on me and increased the distance.
“Now, try to replicate the sensations of your mana just like yesterday.” She said, looking at me with clear anticipation.
“Understood.”
Closing my eyes, I focused on the sensation I just got. First, I tried to replicate the sensation of fire inside me, and I could feel my mana changing.
‘Hmm? This?’
And it felt familiar.
Opening my eyes, I could see a faint color of red mana tendrils released from my fingers.
“This?”
“Wait, Senior Maya.”
And then, changing the sensation from fire mana to water mana, I repeated the same thing.
‘This?’
And this time, the color changed, from red to green….
‘So, this is how I can change the color of my mana…..’
It was at that moment I finally managed to comprehend how to use different colors….
——————-Author’s Words——————
The last six chapters may be a bit boring, but they should now give you a clear understanding of how mana and traits work.
Normally, I was not going to give this much detail, but when I read the previous chapters, I noticed that those parts were not covered enough.
————————————
You can check my discord if you want. You can see the illustrations of characters there.
The link to the discord server is in the description of the book.