EPISODE 13: Body Tempering
-Edryan Queendom. Year 7288, Season: Central
The study of magic in the Edryan Queendom has always been by affinity and that is how the various mage schools for those affinities were established. Schools such as the Spatial Convocation, Radiant Tower, and more. Of course, the royal institutions were some of the most popular, setting a standard that was emulated in other mage schools throughout the country. Then Crown Prince Lawruthian Imperius Koltius Edryani first of his name changed everything.
He came like a storm uprooting our education system and creating a unified syllabus for the youth. From ages 7-13, you would be in a schooling system where an Edryan child in the northern territory of Marquis Cahoon could converse about homework with a southern child in the territory of Count Kain. It is simply… remarkable and in order to keep this education a standard as well as make sure all teachers follow a curriculum, the Holy Child's first step was establishing a school that all these teachers must attend.
The Holy Child even went as far as to make a graduating medallion with various enchantments placed upon it unique to an individual and turn the institution into something with weight and reputation. It became an honor to attend Teaching Imperius Teachers Institution. Competition to become a [Teacher] exploded and now several vetting processes are utilized in order to dissuade the rising numbers. Allowing TITI to produce only the greatest quality of teachers for our youth. The graduating teachers are then assigned randomly and report to the territory lord before being assigned to fill in any area lacking teachers in that territory. The process has only hit the major cities of Edryan, but it is slowly branching out to the rural areas. At first, we at the Kantar Mage School didn’t see much problem with this as I’m sure other schools have also seen no problem. In fact, it sounds wonderful… almost too good to be true. With all mentioned above, we’ve yet to get to this letter's main topic of discussion.
Imperius Academy and Imperius College and their threat to our way of life…
-The beginning of a protest letter from Wizard Kalvin Kain to the various magic schools of the Edryan Queendom
----------------------------------------
Queen Titiana gazed at her son with loving affection. The child, no, the young teenager could not have done any more or any less in his youth to make her prouder. From developing his Hero Golems by utilizing the right mages and resources. Even creating a new spell to imbue them with power. To his purchase of a district in Edrya and remodeling it. A task he basically did alone without funds from her. Her child had gone far, and she knew he would continue to do so. She paused and chanted a quick prayer to her Goddess. Once again thanking her for fulfilling her wish by granting her a son that no other in the queendom matched. Not to say the high nobles and their progeny weren’t doing their best to be amongst his level.
Since the birth of her son, various Houses finally spent some of their deep reserves to nurture the future scions of their house. Even before Lawruthian was born these houses were already designing and crafting perfect children. Hiring out the Gamal Life Affinity Mages to make sure their child could rival The Child without Rival. Or at least be able to keep up. A task that seemed to grow daunting for them day by day. Even a young Titiana would have trouble matching her son.
All this came about in thirteen years. Thirteen years, her son had reached into Edryan and molded it into a stronger and more cohesive whole. Setting free slaves and introducing a new workforce. Edrya hadn’t stopped expanding since skilled [Workers] and [Craftsmen] could now focus themselves elsewhere.
Since the war for the throne, the Edryan people had withdrawn into their territory. They did not completely become isolationist but the infighting from supporting different successors and the various older generations of the Edryani with their schemes caused the country to fracture from within. They needed to be purged. The Iron-Blooded Queen was the hand to cut off the cancerous flesh of Edryan and remove those who were a detriment to the growth of their country. Her son had gone a step further. Introducing a unified system of education, stronger military might, and various other things. Titiana knew not where this knowledge the boy possessed came from. Nor did she care as he used it for the benefit of Edryani and Edryan. Her son had not asked for a hint of reward, perhaps understanding that all under the Prime Sun would be his within due time.
Queen Titiana chuckled to herself as she remembered her most fond memories of Lawruthian. The moment he began crawling and headed directly for her open arms. Or when he took his first steps his gradient-ebony hair reflected her own as small curls grew from the top of his head. Her child stumbling into her arms once again. She would not forget the look in his eyes as he came back from his Hunt and Gather. Something new was present. A new determination to live but not just live. Living to live was one thing. The constant work and occupation of the mind on different matters clouding the thoughts from events of the past. That was how her child lived previously.
She’d seen the signs all too often in soldiers torn in the heat of war. Her son held those eyes no longer. Now, he held the eyes of someone who lived to live. To experience the joys of life and the pleasures that came with it. He had entered that dark place and instead of being defeated, he rose to the challenge. Her detailed training from the moment he asked to begin his studies to now had gone exactly to plan. The interactions and the learning…, everything was carefully measured. Although all genuine, Queen Titiana would not take her child’s future to chance. Now she was slowly letting her grasp go. A butterfly must shed its cocoon in order to fly into the sky. Her protective embrace had dwindled once when she allowed him to take that step and achieve his Hunt and Gather. Now, she must take another step back and allow her child into danger once more. At least this time she could be present for what was to come. A spark of divinity washed over her.
Madris had answered her prayer.
----------------------------------------
Deep in the bowels of the royal palace, I stood next to my mother staring wide-eyed at a large cavern. From above, stalactites stabbed downwards like an endless gaping maw. Sharp to the touch, they hung above our heads like an executioner's blade ready to drop. Bubbling lava erupted from a deep pool glowing in a bright red-orange color. It almost seemed cartoonish the way the lava popped and hissed, yet the heat from it was very… very real.
“You want me to do WHAT?” I asked for the umptieth time. There was no way I would do what my mother was asking me.
She looked at me with a reassuring gaze and gently placed a hand on my shoulder. “Men of Edryani do not fear!
This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
All you must do is submerge yourself in the Lake of Revitalization. It will cleanse all impurities in your body. Know deeper you go, the darker your skin becomes as it alters your very being. Yet this will make your body a prime target for Mythical classes. If you can make it to the end your body will be the strongest it’s ever been without being Level 1. Your Power will double, and the negative effects will disperse such as the deep darkening of your skin, returning you to your coloration. If you make it to the end,” my mother said. Pointedly looking at her darker skin. Although the Edryans came in all shades most of the people appeared to be a brown or tannish complexation. This is a result of the human bloodline Adaptation.
“This will fulfill the second step, right? Qualifying me for learning two different professions?”
My mom sighed and rolled her eyes. “Yes my son, and it will prepare you for the final step to come. Remove all your clothing and enter when you are ready. Whatever you believe the pain to be it will be worse. Know that only a few Edryani’s received this opportunity as the pool decreases in potency with each use.”
‘Holy shit,’ I muttered internally. It looks like lava; the heat feels like lava. So it must be lava, right? Nope according to my mother, it was a primordial drop of blood from an [Elden Inferno Beast – ★★★★★]. A monster that escaped the Underneath and entered the above world. It was slightly terrifying to know that beasts of massive proportions lived and battled underneath my feet. Beast living in a complex labyrinth underneath all of the Mortal Realm. The beast was slayed and harvested by Madris Edryani herself according to legends in the royal archives. Its heart and a single drop of blood were left here as a reminder to always be wary of the Underneath. A gift to her descendants.
Slowly I removed my clothing until I was butt naked and the heat came as a constant pulse against my bare skin. The pool spit and bubbled as time passed. Never increasing or decreasing in crescendo. My mother stood silently in the back. Not speaking but her presence alone added pressure onto me. I thought over what would happen if I turned and said I couldn’t do it. Yet my thoughts halted before I could even delve deeper. Just over a week ago, I fought for my life as a slightly above-average human in the woods of the royal hunting grounds. I died once already. My mother said the pain would only be excruciating. Not that it would kill me. I spent my time studying the Lake of Revitalization. I recalled the legend I recently learned of.
Blood.
The boiling liquid was blood. This was the blood of a monster and that’s all it’d ever be. Hesitating no longer, I stepped forward. Only a warm sensation hit my body. Like I was stepping into a warm jacuzzi or bath.
“Make sure you submerge your body completely. The liquid will allow you to breathe so don’t hesitate,” my mom called encouragingly from behind. Listening to her was my first mistake.
I gently stepped deeper, the liquid growing warmer as I moved in deeper. Soon it was past my waist and was at a decently hot temperature to soak my body in. Feeling confident I lowered the rest of myself until only my head was outside. I hesitated to dip my head in but after looking back at my mom and receiving an encouraging nod and smile, I hesitated no longer.
Shutting my eyes tight, I dove deep into the fake boiling liquid. This was my second mistake. The intensity of the heat picked up, but it was nothing I couldn’t handle. As I opened my eyes, I allowed myself to fall into a content paddle. Making sure my feet could still touch the ground in case I needed to stand, I took in a breath. Surprised but elated as the liquid acted like oxygen as it enters my body. I grew even more relaxed and this time I let all inhibitions lose. Swimming deep into the lake as I followed my mother's instructions. My third mistake came quickly and painfully as I surfaced to check my location. This was because the only thing I could see when opening my eyes was the red-orange blood surrounding me.
Whilst I swim deeper, I neglected to notice that the feeling of heat from the lake had all but faded. It was only as I surfaced did I realized the lake was not a blessing but a trap.
A raw primal pain shot through my body the moment my skin contacted the air. Now I understood why the liquid was boiling. It was the blood's chemical reaction to the air itself. My flesh tore as my unfiltered scream of pain rends itself from my lips. The inside of my throat ripped, and blood spewed from my mouth. Goblets of flesh began to harden and darken as I contacted the air. My mother’s voice reached my ears encouraging me forward in a moment of clarity as my mind pieced itself together. My pain-addled mind thought quickly, and I dived into the Lake of Revitalization. Hoping the pain would disperse or lessen as I returned to the liquid. That was not the case. The moment my body contacted the air was the moment I entered a world of pain.
----------------------------------------
Queen Titiana listened to her son's screams of anguish with a frown on her face. Her left hand tightly clenched into a fist while her right crushed one of the stalagmites near her. Lawruthian was only close to the halfway point, and she could not assist him in any way for him to unlock the unique class. He must make it to the end and back alone.
Her son surfaced, and she quickly called to him trying to encourage him to finish quickly. The longer he stayed the more painful it would become over time. “Lawruthian you MUST reach the end and come back. Fight through the pain. Fight through the frustration. It is only temporary. Your Power in the future will be forever!”
Queen Titiana didn’t know whether he heard her words of encouragement or not. Yet the next time Lawruthian surfaced. There were no screams, no struggling like he previously did. No, there was nothing. If Queen Titiana could see her son's eyes there would only be one emotion displayed.
Fury.
***
Fury
That was the only feeling I held as I surfaced for the second time. Fury, not directed at my mother or the situation I was in.
Fury directed at me…
…For I had experienced pain much worse. I’d experience pain Soul Deep. However, I allowed this Lake of Revitalization to affect me and my mind in such a manner. My soul was played with by Gods and Goddesses. Broken and rebuilt like a mechanic with his favorite project. This temporary pain left me hollering bloody murder. I couldn’t stand it; I couldn’t stand this weakness. My years of training with Liana and various others prepared me for more.
I’ve experienced my very soul breaking and shattering until my semblance of self became a jabbering mess. What were a few moments of bodily pain to that? It was not that I no longer felt the pain. It was just a new sense and emotion that overtook that pain dulling my pain receptors. Reminding me that I’d experience much worse. It allowed me to dull that sense of pain so I could focus on the objective.
My hand touches the farthest end of that lake. The boiling liquid surrounded me as I did so. Large globs flung themselves into the air and splashed against my body.
“Almost, huff, huff, almost there-.” A single heartbeat-like pulse came from the wall my hand was on. At that moment new energy filled my body. Healing the open wounds on my face and revitalizing my entire body. My skin tightened as my muscles expanded. Bones creaked as they grew longer. My hair, which was kept just past my shoulders, fell out before new strands grew to my waist. It let out off brilliant shine. A roar of exhilaration was let out my mouth as the vitality and power filled my body. Even my mana pool was reinforced and deepened. My body tempering was complete.
System Unlock:
1,008 Days
6 Hours
9 Minutes
0 Seconds