Alright, here we go, “Teacher, I wish to learn the ‘Loli Transformation Technique’.”

“No way,” Teacher responded as dryly as humanly possible.

That was unexpected, to say the least. I was anticipating some resistance but not a point-blank refusal. If it really comes down I have a backup plan. However, I would really prefer using an unranked martial art in place of a divine or devil-ranked one. Well, I’ll just ask again. What was that? Doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result is the definition of insanity? Nonsense if a little thing like sanity stopped me I wouldn’t have gotten to this point.

I ask once more, “What if I really want to learn it.”

“Then I really won’t teach it to you,” Teach shot down once more.

This isn’t going well. She hasn’t denied that she can teach it to me at least. That means she really does know the descriptive method. I wonder if Teacher practiced the technique herself. I can’t really see anything different about her. No this isn’t a time to figure out what a Loli is. I’ll know when I become one.

“Teacher, I really need to learn this skill,” I reluctantly asked a third time.

Instead of an instant reply like the last time, Teacher seemed a bit lost in thought. This is good, then she is really considering it. I still have hope I can learn this. Imagine if I make a Sage method using two unranked practices. I’d have the unstoppable powers of a Dragon and the strength of a Loli. I’d be invincible. I’d like to see the look on that monstrous freaks face when I pummeled it into the ground.

Teacher seems to have come to a decision, asked me, “Surely you must know that you don’t have the constitution to practice this technique.”

YOS, I have an in. I didn’t think there would be constitution requirements but, it makes sense. However, I can be certain there is a workaround. The “Loli Transformation Technique'' is actually one of the most common techniques out there. If you look for it you can find a copy of it somewhere. No one has the ability to decipher it so it's treated as filler text for the most part. It's the lorem ipsum of the martial arts world.

If the technique required a specific constitution then it wouldn’t be so widespread. It would be regarded as the secret technique of a temple or sect. Instead, it is a piece of encrypted text you could find anywhere typically under the name of the “Great Transformation”. As such that means two things: a) the technique has no physical requirements besides knowing how to break the cipher or b) the technique does require a specific body type but there is a way to overcome it.

Reaching that point in my thoughts I counter, “Yes, of course, I’m aware of that. However, I want to learn it anyway using that method.”

Shock passes through her eyes. Although subtle, the way she looked at me was different. It seemed kinda somber. Maybe it was regret? Did this remind me of something from her mysterious past? Actually, if I didn’t know any better I would think she was, giving me pity? No wait, is she crying!?

“Shane. . . I’m so sorry. I. . I didn’t know you felt that way. No, in retrospect it was obvious. This must be why you were acting so strange yesterday,” her heartfelt words. . . directed at me?

I don’t really know what's happening. This is kind of a complete 180. Teacher has never shed tears in as long as I’ve known her. Even on her “death bed”, she was as cheerful and scary as she always was. Granted she is immortal so her death was by her own choice. Still spent hundreds of years with her and this really is the first time I’ve seen her like this.

Teacher slowly returns to her usual demeanor and continues, “That's right this is Teacher's fault. I should have noticed this sooner. Don’t worry Teacher supports you, even if you aren’t normal.”

A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

I feel wronged and stigmatized at the same time. Something about this seems off. If it gets me to learn the technique I should just roll with it. That being said I still feel offended at the normal part even though I’m not quite sure what she is referring to. Oh, well. Mission accomplished? Before she makes any other weird assumption I should make sure this goes in the right direction for me.

Readying the “Dragon Heart Rebirth” I copied last night, I interrupted her delusions, “I would like to use the ‘Loli Transformation’ as the basis of my sage art.”

“Oh a sage art, what magic technique do you want to use with it,” Teacher, who seemingly went back to normal, answered.

Here we go now or never, “I want to combine it with the ‘Dragon Heart Rebirth’.”

Teacher, once again shocked, replies, “There’s no way I can get my hands on that. Even if I could find a dragon willing to teach it to me, the negotiations would take longer than your lifespan.”

CHANCE! Handing over the mana technique I pull the negotiation to a close, “I found it inscribed on the walls of the ruins. I wrote it down here for you.”

Taking it she reads over it carefully before accepting, “Alright, I’ll make the needed edits to both of the practices. I see you're currently a Neophyte, how soon do you think you can condense a source and construct your circle.”

That's Teacher for you. I wasn’t really hiding but, I also wasn’t letting my energy leak out. Most people at the 5th level, the Grandmaster and 5th Circle realm, wouldn’t be able to notice. At any rate, I can form my source whenever I want. As I’ve said before, I can control a ton of energy so absorbing a bunch of it then forming a source is easy for me. If only it was that easy last time. It’s probably best I don’t tell her that though, after all, I was supposed to be a regular person yesterday. I don’t want to arouse too much suspicion.

I simply say, “I’m confident I can form my source two days from now, 1 day if I use medicine.”

“Alright, are you sure you can combine these two high-level practices? And are you sure this is what you want? If it’s what you have to do to be happy then I’ll do it but, only if this is really wanted,” Teacher takes a moment before continuing, “Very well, let's see. Today is Thursday, is it? I’ll call you tomorrow after class. It should take a moment to gather the materials and make the changes, so we should be able to get started on Sunday at the latest.”

Alright. That process is done. It seems like I have to push my timetables back a bit but, no problem. I’m still ahead of my previous self. Not only that but, Teacher will be making the modifications herself. That is a major boon even to me. While I don’t know much about Teacher I do know that she was pretty famous around the Maeia Realm. Enough so that most legends and folk tales surrounding vagabonds have to do with Teacher.

If I was to put everything I know about her into words it would be that: she popped up out of nowhere, bummed around the Maeia Realm for a couple of thousand years, randomly adopted and taught 8 kids, then willingly passed away a couple of hundred years later. While that's not much I do know her knowledge is formidable. After all, she knows how to unlock the secrets of the “Loli Transformation Technique” and help 8 different people find their path to the peak. That's well beyond what I could ever accomplish.

Nonetheless, it's a big load off my shoulders that I won’t have to make them compatible. The Sage Path is a combination of the Martial and Magic Paths. As such there's no real Sage Art practice one could go out and learn. Even for those who do learn a Sage Art, it's almost impossible to teach it to someone else. I can’t even practice my old Sage Art, the “The Divine Mana Force” if I wanted to. I’d have to relearn it from scratch. That's how Sage Arts are.

Considering both of the ones I want to use to form my new Sage Art are unranked techniques. It would be several times harder to mix them. Most think mana techniques only focus on mana and qi techniques use qi. The truth of the matter is that there is no such thing as mana or qi. All energy is either acquired energy or innate energy. Most refer to the innate energy as mana and the acquired as qi. Which in most practices is true. . .With that in mind, there are “mana” skills that use acquired energy and “Qi” skills that use innate energy.

Combining two energy arts when you don’t know what energy is is risky business. One that is liable to make sure you end up dead. I don’t have to worry about that. Teacher is more than capable of making the needed edits to make sure they don’t conflict too much during the forming process. I’m curious what materials she needs to gather but I'll worry about that some other time.

Just then on my way back to my dorm, I noticed someone sneaking around. I guess I’ll follow Vane around and see what he’s up to.