Fzzz…

My barrier quivered delicately before it bulged like a flexed muscle.

Thud!

It swelled up so suddenly and violently that it was enough to throw the troll in the air. To my shock, I saw the ugly beast get slammed into a nearby tree.

Both Ryder and I stood still in awe, looking at each other and then at the monster. My skin felt prickly and instead of feeling drained since I used so much of my energy, I felt invigorated.

“What the fuck…?” I whispered. I had no idea I could do something like this. I didn’t know what happened, but I had no time to process the situation.

The troll wasn’t dead, which made sense. Although it was a bad “bump”, trolls were a sturdy bunch of monsters. Like a zombie being reawakened, it slowly rose a few feet away from us. It looked more confused than hurt, which brought me a wave of annoyance.

Just how much longer will I have to keep that monster off us until Ryder says I’m ready?

I turned to glare at him, and it was then that I saw him smiling at me. He seemed impressed.

“That was perfect. A true Support at work. Now, let’s begin your offense lessons.”

The troll was up and standing. It shook its head a few times before facing us, and the stupid but stocky monster began galloping toward us.

I raised my hand as a habit, my body now so used to building barriers at the sight of a charging troll, but Ryder ordered, “No, not that. Kill it, Nowey. It’s all yours now.”

Without a thought, I silently called out to my weapon.

‘Gomi!’

-Ready!

Fwoosh!

I saw her baby form glowing and disappearing. But I didn’t even wait until I felt the sword in my hand. I had zero doubt that she would be there the moment I need her. Raising my right arm without hesitation, I ran forward to meet the troll head-on. By the time I swung down…

Slash!

Gomi the sword materialized in my hand without fail and beheaded the troll in one slice.

Thud. Roll….

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***

“Do you now understand why I got you to concentrate only on the barriers?” Ryder looked so smug, but I had to admit that his teaching method was definitely working for me.

I had been complaining that he was not teaching me how to attack. There were many moments when focusing on the defense techniques was a waste of my time. Yes, as a Support, this was going to be my bread and butter, but I needed to pass the 5th and the 10th-floor test first before I could specialize in the support role.

And being a better fighter was going to increase my chance of surviving these two hurdles.

But it turned out that learning to strengthen my barrier allowed me to control my mana better. It also made me physically stronger, hence the clean decapitation of the troll earlier.

“Whatever,” I grunted. Just as he gloated, I now understood why he did what he did, but couldn’t he have at least explained it to me beforehand? I would have easily understood his point and followed his lesson plan more enthusiastically rather than grumbling the entire time.

“Why didn’t you just tell me?” I glanced at him sideways and added, “That way, I wouldn’t have hated you. Well, not as much, anyway.”

“And miss torturing you and make you feel like shit after? Never.”

“You know, I did this to help you with your ban, so you could be nicer and more grateful.”

When I retorted, it only made him snigger.

“It’s going to be you who becomes the grateful one, Nowey. You’ll be bowing down and thanking me when it’s all over.”

I was reminded once again what a cocky jerk he was, but I also couldn’t wait to see the kind of improvement I will end up with. He was right. I hadn’t realized it, but I was definitely getting stronger. I planned on checking my Display at the end of the day when I was alone, but I realized that it didn’t even matter what my number might look like.

After my first kill, Ryder let me lead the way all morning. We faced over a dozen trolls since then, and I killed them with the kind of ease I had never felt before.

And the way Ryder taught me changed a little too. When I struggled at forming decent barriers, Ryder used to be harsh and almost dictatorial. But now, he offered much calmer and fewer tips while I fought.

I liked to think that it was because I was doing well. It probably also helped that Gomi gave me a few tips of her own in my head while her sword guided me just the right way.

My backpack was delightfully heavy with red and orange gems. I loved hearing the little jiggling sound with each step. I felt so much richer now.

We were walking in companionable silence when Ryder asked me, “Where did you get that sword anyway? It’s pretty cool.”

-He’s talking about me! He got it totally wrong though. I’m more than just “pretty cool”! Insolent boy.

Gomi whined in my head, and I gave her a soothing but silent “Mm hmm”.

“I guess it’s pretty special.” I evaded his question on purpose. I wasn’t going to tell him the truth about how I got Gomi and what she was. I didn’t think I would ever tell anyone about her. It would require someone I trusted with my life to get this information out of me, and Ryder Reece wasn’t one.

He had to know I deliberately chose not to answer him. Ryder didn’t seem to mind, because we continued to walk in another agreeable silence. I gotta say that although I didn’t trust him, I felt comfortable with him now at least. He could be an absolute punk and he seemed to enjoy mocking me a little too much, but he was a good teacher.

Rattle.

The sounds of the gems in my bag were making me smile again when Ryder peeked at me. After watching me and thinking for a moment, he announced,

“I think you’re ready to take the 5th-floor test, Nowey.”