With training and a whole new concept to keep Alaric busy, three days went by in a blink. The concept of utilizing just a part of his Spirit Vessel and in turn utilising Spirit Essence was alien to a master of Aether Manipulation such as him.

He spent every moment he could get practising and when he was tired, he mulled over the concept in his head and sometimes included his guardian in his thought process. Spirit Essence provided an entirely new premise for what he could do.

Not only was it good for finding out other people’s Temper Rank but it was also the indication of his stronger body. How much stronger depended a lot on Alaric’s perception and adaptability. But first, he had to grasp the basics.

He had to resist old habits and slowly master the arduous use of Spirit Essence. A few demonstrations from Gunther and LionHeart had gotten him motivated though. First, Gunther demonstrated the significant boosts Spirit Essence had to the body.

At first, Alaric had assumed it would be the same as or at least somewhat similar to using Aether… but the difference became more inherent as he learned more and more. A Spirit Vessel was a shell covering one’s body which was why it was a lot harder to manipulate.

Changing the shape of one’s Spiritual Vessel was a lot like changing the very structure of their own body… which was an analogy that made Alaric dizzy despite being the same person with a knack for fusing with trees.

This also meant that by changing one’s Spirit Vessel, one was inherently changing its nature, making it stronger in some places and weaker in others. Without manipulating one’s Spirit vessel, their entire body was augmented equally and had an even boost of strength, endurance and durability.

The benefit to this was that by changing the concentration of one’s Spirit Vessel from one region to another, they increased the boons gained from having more Spirit Essence in one place but lost some boons of it being in the other.

This was the same technique Gunther had used to absorb the shock of Alaric’s first attack. It was also why Alaric failed to grasp his power's limits. At times, the man had flown across the clearing when Alaric wasn’t using his full power, yet at others, he barely budged.

The Spirit Vessel provided added protection, and layering it made that protection even more potent, adding new tactics to Alaric's well of battle strategies. This was something he would have to ponder for days to come.

Another thing that came to his attention was Spirit Essence. The terms Spirit Essence and Spirit Vessel had been used interchangeably, and Alaric was starting to think they were the same thing. Alas, they were not.

Spirit Essence was the substance that flowed within the Spirit Vessel. Rather than change the form of One’s Spirit Vessel, one could try to increase the flow or amount of Spirit Essence to one place.

Unfortunately, this was a lot harder than Aether Manipulation for a very bizarre reason. The Spirit Vessel had more control over the Spirit Essence than the person. In that respect, Spirit Essence was very restricted in how much it could be manipulated. Its volume in one place could be increased… but not by a lot.

Not to mention there was no such thing as Spirit Essence Reserves. The amount of Spirit Essence in someone’s body was not something that would diminish or increase over time. It was stagnant with only one form of improvement: Body Tempering.

The higher one’s Temper Rank, the more potent their Spirit Essence.

Of course, manipulating Spirit Essence wasn’t utterly impossible. It was just a fight between the Spirit Vessel and the person. Alaric learnt just how difficult this was the hard way… but he wasn’t about to give up.

Sadly, this was not Alaric’s only worry. In these three days, he came to learn that his strength had increased tremendously and that he was going to need time to get used to it. He also learnt that he was no longer facing a bottleneck in terms of improving his strength.

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Before, he felt his progress had slowed… but now, he could feel as though he was once more at the bottom of the sea of potential that was the Wood Rank Level Two. It was a good feeling to know that there was progress to be made.

“Here I come, Alaric,” Cody yelled at the top of his voice, snapping Alaric out of his thoughts. The boy shot off, moving way too fast for a thirteen-year-old.

He struck with a wooden sword, which Alaric blocked with a similar one of his own. Cody wasn’t done though… He attacked again, parried and delivered a more complicated thrust. His feet danced with the rhythm of his swordsmanship, giving away the intention of his attacks.

Alaric read through the boy’s movements and reacted accordingly only to get shocked when the boy transitioned into another attack, then a feint and then an unnecessary pivot.

The wooden sword went swinging uncontrollably… “AAAAAHHHH…”

Alaric laughed at the boy who was now striking at nothing… with his eyes closed, his back turned to Alaric, “What are you doing?”

“I’ve seen you do it plenty of times. You spin with your sword and cut everything in front of you… I’ve been practising,” Cody’s hair flared up with excitement.

“W-What?” Alaric was laughing even harder now, “Is that what I look like?”

Cody scratched his head in confusion, “A bit.”

Shaking his head, Alaric approached the boy and started going through the mistakes he’d made in his attacks.

“Your footwork gives your actions away. It’s good to have good footwork, but if your hands are not in sync with your feet, then your enemy will be able to block all your attacks before you get the chance to make them. Try to use the momentum of your footwork to give your attacks more force. That way, as your legs move, your sword will strike in sync and with more power.

And the spin you were trying to make is part of the Dance of the Serpent which I haven’t taught you yet,” Alaric explained.

“Then teach me…”

The older boy rubbed his temples, “You can’t build a house from the roof, Cody.”

The boy rolled his eyes, “Fine… tell me how to build the walls.”

“First, never close your eyes when fighting,” Alaric chuckled, “And Master the Dance of the Bear. It’s better for a more solid defense which you’ll need if you're trying to protect someone.”

“What does the Dance of the Serpent help with?” Cody asked.

“It’s a very offensive part of the Sword Dance with almost no defence at all. Those who can use it must trust their speed and agility which brings me to the stretching exercises you’ll have to go through to improve your flexibility,” Alaric explained.

“Why does it have to be so hard?” Cody cried.

Alaric laughed, “Don’t give me that. Start practising.”

Cody sighed, walked away and started practising the Dance of the Sword, specifically the variation of the Dance of the Bear.

As Alaric watched the boy train, a large man approached them, “You look like you’re having fun. How is your training?”

“It’s slow… but I think I’m getting the hang of my limits now,” Alaric responded, holding up the wooden sword he’d been training with, “I haven’t broken this one since morning.”

LionHeart’s eyes went wide as he nodded in acknowledgement, “Oh, good progress. I thought it would take you a week to get this good.”

Alaric chuckled, “When can we go to the Academy?”

“Soon. We’re still working out the details of your journey with the Tower. Once the Academy gives us a good reply, we’ll be all set,” the man responded.

“Good reply? Was my delayed Awakening that bad? I’m sorry for causing you trouble,” Alaric responded.

“No, it’s okay. The Academy has the necessary facilities for Body Tempering, so it wouldn’t have been good to tell them you’d decided to do it from here. When the news of the emergence of an S-class guardian got around, several things went out of hand. Even the Emperor said he’s interested in meeting you,” the man responded.

“Oh… I see… So you have been having trouble with all this,” Alaric sighed.

“You don’t have to worry about what others have to say about this. As your patron, the Tower will take the full brunt of that force. Anyone who wants to approach you goes through the Tower itself,” LionHeart explained, “That Aether Crystal above the tower isn’t just for show, you know. It was no problem covering for your Tempering Ritual.”

“Thank you, LionHeart.”

“Hey Alaric, get over here,” Gunther yelled over from the other side of the field, shirtless and sweaty. Alaric shuddered internally, feeling the pain of his training to come… however, that all vanished when he noticed a familiar man standing in the shadow of the trees. A vicious-looking raptor stood among the branches as well, awaiting the boy’s presence in tense silence.

“What exactly did you do to Garrick?” LionHeart asked as Alaric was about to leave.

“I’ll tell you when I know more. Watch Cody for me. He sticks to the defensive style of the Dance of the Bear I showed you… No funny flashy variations,” Alaric said before jogging off.

“Right…” LionHeart mumbled, turning to the training boy. He’d also asked Alaric to show him this ‘Dance of the Sword’ and frankly, he was impressed by the depth of the art, “Let’s get those legs moving, Cody! Give me more energy.”

Cody’s hair flared as he heard the man bark orders and when he saw the man’s eyes go wide, his heart jumped with joy, ‘Yeah, I’m no normal kid.’

This triumph… was short-lived.

“Stop wasting aether, boy! If you can use magic, then you can perform the Dance of the Bear,” LionHeart yelled.