Panting with each breath that he took, as he completed the last of his stabs, Alnea had to use his sword to stop himself from falling over to the ground. Although he had not completely mastered the use of his Aspects, after over a thousand repetitions, he was starting to get the hang of it. As a consequence, other than a completely sore body, he also had to deal with a pounding headache that threatened to consume all his thoughts. But he could not let that happen. He could not let his thoughts be drowned. He could not let his body down… He could not rest… He could not sleep… Because he had his Oath to fulfil.

Alnea Oathkeeper took in a deep, deep breath, trying to control his breathing as much as he could, while pushing himself to walk back to his usual place of training… the accursed bed of Blood Sucking Grass. Every time he was tired, and drifted to sleep while training, the accursed grasses would all bite into him, sucking his blood. They were not even a plant type of Oren Beast. They were just a rare mutation of precious herbs… And somehow, they had become his natural enemies.

If they were grasses, then they should just behave as grasses, Alnea thought, as he stamped his foot on them as hard as he could. Of course, that did not do anything to them. On the contrary, if not for the sandals that his master had made for him, it would have been him who would have gotten hurt from that stomp. But that did not stop him from stomping on them once again.

Or dragging his sword along the ground. That ought to hurt them. Even if he had already sheathed his sword, the sheath was not something that these grasses could hurt. To his disappointment though, the weight reducing Glyph Arrays on the sheath also made it so that the sword did not hurt the grasses much. But he would not forget this account. His revenge must be had. If not at the moment, then later… when…

“How long are you going to glare at the grasses?”

Alnea was shocked back to his senses by his master’s words, barely escaping from being dragged into the land of dreams by his fatigue. Biting his tongue to make himself feel more sober, he shifted his gaze from the bed of grass to his master, who was looking at him with an amused smile. One, that said that she had seen through everything. And maybe she truly had. But even if she had seen through him, he still could not admit his faults penly.

“…I was just thinking of something.”

“Thinking, or sleeping?”

“…Thinking,” Alnea said, bowing his head down a little to hide the flush on his face.

“…Fine. Let us just assume that you were thinking about something. Are you done now?”

“…I am.”

“Then shall we get back to your training?”

“…Yes.”

“Before we begin with your training though, we have a problem that we must address.”

“What problem, master?”

“As expected, you still have not realised,” his master said, shaking her head with a sigh. “What training did you just complete?”

Alnea felt a little confused at his master’s question. He could not understand what she was trying to get at. But that was not a new thing for him. At times, his master often tried to teach him things in an implicit manner, forcing him learn from his faults after suffering through their consequences. Like how he had fell face first in mud just a while ago. And for obvious reasons, he did not like such lessons. But he could not ignore them either. This was his master trying to teach him something important. So, even though he grumbled a little, he still answered her question.

“I was training with my sword.”

“Training with your sword… Alright, let us call it as that. Now then, tell me, Alnea. In a logical, and normal course of events, what should the next topic of your training should be?”

Hearing such an easy question, Alnea smiled, and said, “That’s easy. Next, I just…” He finally recalled what he was to do next, and immediately froze, looking at his master with a hint of panic creeping onto his face. “I have to Forge my Spirit… through the Art of Spirit Rebirth.”

“…And are you ready to do that?” his master said, finally withdrawing the wry smile from her face, looking at him with a stern, and reproaching gaze.

“No…”

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Why is that?”

“Because my Spirit is exhausted…”

“Is this not the usual time when your Spirit Power is restored to its peak?”

“…It is.”

“Then why has your Spirit Power not restored yet?”

“…Because I was using it to practise the Star Piercing Style.”

“Your training would not affect your other training… that’s what you took the Oath for.”

“I did…”

“And look where you are,” his master said. “Once again on the verge of failing to keep your Oath…”

“I… miscalculated a little.”

“This not just a simple miscalculation,” his master said. “You took a reckless Oath… once again...”

“I…”

“Do you know why I did not stop you from taking your Oath despite knowing that it was reckless?”

“I don’t know…”

“It is because you have been too free with your Oaths recently. Just like Cecilia, and Yuri, you too have grown complacent. It is just that the area you have grown complacent in is different from theirs. And while their complacency is dangerous, your is even more so. Or do I need to remind you about the dangers of your Roots?”

“I am sorry, master…”

“I am not asking for your apology, Alnea. I am trying to teach you something. Though you can use your Oaths, you must never forget how dangerous they can be. And you must never lose your fear of them. Of the price that you have to pay for your breaking your Oaths.”

“I…”

“I understand that your Heart is a little unstable right now, but that does not give you the right to play with your life.”

“I… That was never my intention, master,” Alnea said, biting his lips, with his eyes directed towards his feet. They were starting to get a little blurry… He was a grown man. He was a Wanderer. He should not have cried… And yet. “I just wanted to prove myself to you… To prove to you that I am not weak… That I can wield my sword…”

“Silly child,” his master said, sighing once again, before pulling him into light a hug, hesitantly patting him on the back of his head. “Why are you crying? You are a Warrior now… and will soon become an Arcanist. Come on, be a good boy, and stop crying.”

“I… I am sorry, master…”

“Forget it. It was partly my fault too. I should not have stimulated you so.”

“No!” Alnea said, wrapping his hand tightly around his master, while burying his face in her chest. “You were not at fault… I was… I should have been more careful… Even when you have told me to be careful so many time… I am sorry, master…”

“It is alright, Alnea,” his master said, no longer insisting on taking the blame. Because she knew that it was of no use. But she did not stop comforting him, choosing to absolve him of his blames instead. “Making mistakes is not a bad thing. Everyone makes them. That is how we learn… It is only when you do not learn from your mistakes that your mistakes can become disastrous. Do you understand what I am saying?”

“Yes, master,” Alnea said, nodding his head while it was still buried in her chest, inadvertently wiping some snot on her dress. “I will be more careful in the future… And consider all the controllable, and uncontrollable variables before taking my Oaths.”

“Good, that is all that I am asking for,” his master said, gently caressing his back. “Now, can we go back to your training? We still need to help you complete your Oath.”

Although reluctant to do so, Alnea still pulled away from the hug, wiping his eyes on the cuff of his sleeves, before facing his master once again. “How are we going to do that, master?”

“…Things are not as bad as you think they are,” his master said. “I might have exaggerated a few things to teach you a lesson.”

“…I don’t understand, master.”

“…What if you had used the wooden sword instead of your own sword to practise the Star Piercing Sword?”

“…I would not have been so tired.”

“Physically, yes. But what about your Spirit Power? You still would have had to use your Aspect to practise the Star Piercing Style, and in turn, use up your Spirit Power. So…”

“Whether I used the wooden sword, or my sword, the end result would still be the same. I would not be able to practise the Art of Spirit Rebirth…”

“And so, technically speaking, practising with your sword has not affected your other training…”

“You tricked me, master!”

“I did no such thing,” his master said, looking at him with amusement. “All I did was state some facts, from which, you drew your own conclusions.”

“That’s the same thing,” Alnea grumbled, looking at his master with a pout. “You tricked me.”

“…You might not have broken your Oath yet, but if you do not get back to your training, and keep wasting time staring at me, then I soon might have to step in to save you from your Roots.”

“…Just wait for me to learn Martial Styles that can let me use my other Aspect. Then I will trick you as well.”

“Alright, alright, you can trick me as much as you want,” his master said, ruffling his hair while laughing lightly as his outburst. However, that did not feel too bad. He would still have his revenge on her. But if it could let him see her smiling face, then it was alight to be tricked by her from time. “Now, can we get back to your training?”

“Yes,” Alnea said, trying sound as if he was still brooding over being tricked. He could not let his master know that he was happy that she had tricked him. Or she might think he was a pervert. “But if it is not related to my Spirit Power… then what am I going to train in, master?”

“Is it not obvious?” his master said. “You are going to learn how to create your Arcana.”