Leo’s knowledge of the soul had been fragmented and strange due to his very brief but intensive teaching, and the Soul Basics class was his opportunity to remedy this.
Professor Stein- he had emphasized very strongly at the start of the class that he was to be called Professor Stein- was significantly better at communicating than Erich, though, and was not nearly as eccentric in his beliefs as Maxwell. His explanation of the basics of the soul covered things they had never even thought to touch upon, and an hour later, Leo came out of it with an understanding of the soul that was far greater than what he had entered with.
Leo had been keeping notes with his awatch, and it had eventually graduated into an entire document on his understanding of the soul.
The professor began by explaining the soul’s fundamentals to the class. Every living thing, even plants and bugs, had souls. They existed on a separate realm that was akin to an entire other universe that was laid over their own, called the spirit realm. When a soul became strong enough, it would form a connection with the body it was connected to, which manifested in the form of one’s soul sphere. The soul could then be brought into their universe, and could, to a very limited extent, bend reality to their will.
This seemed like it might be extremely powerful or dangerous at first glance, but their control over reality was limited in so many ways that, until an awakened got past the tenth tier, they were only a bit more dangerous than the average, decently-armed Ander citizen.
Leo had encountered some of these limitations, like the extreme exhaustion that suffused his soul upon doing things, and others he had only heard comparatively poor explanations, like that one needed a very strong, unwavering will in order to do anything very impressive.
The second thing that the professor had addressed was its cultivation. Leo had actually not engaged in this whatsoever, and had rather been learning how to use it at all.
Cultivating the soul was a very independent journey, but most people did best by adopting the methods of others. What the professor taught was the most commonly accepted one, and it involved cultivating the soul being heavily tied to one’s affinity. If one had an affinity for fire, the way that they would advance their soul was by tying greater and greater concepts to their understanding of fire.
He made sure to emphasize that this one was so commonly accepted because it did not preclude almost any other method of cultivation, meaning that they could very safely do this in combination with whatever else they did.
He also emphasized that, once one tied their understanding of their affinity to something, it could not be done. It was a permanent, although minor, alternation to their affinity, and thus should be treated very seriously.
Leo suspected that this method of cultivating the soul, called Affinity Cultivation, was likely one of the many keys to his planned method of fighting- which was to transform his armor and weapons mid-fight. Leo had thought on it for a while, and he simply couldn’t think of any other path towards fighting that he’d want.
It was very cool to envision lunging forward with a piercing stab that, to his opponent, seemed like it would be a foot short of hitting them- only for the sword to grow a few feet in length.
Or for his opponent to think that they had blocked one of his blows, only for the sword to bend like it was a liquid around the opponent’s blade and hit them anyway.
Leo was definitely going to consult other, much more developed, people before making any concrete decisions, but it didn’t prevent him from thinking on it. In fact, that was what Leo did for a good majority of the third part of the class, as it was going over a few things that Leo already knew a moderate amount about, and he ended up with a few possible options that he liked.
Creation was a very, very vague affinity, and so he had lots of options, mostly dependant on what it was to him. At first, Leo decided on the very simple definition of ‘making things,’ but quickly went back on that. It would preclude his plans on how to fight, although that didn’t influence what he thought of creation as, but that his current definition would preclude his plans was enough for him to challenge it and develop it.
Creation encompassed more than making things; modifying things was also a form of creation. At least, that was what Leo decided to believe, because, at its most fundamental level, everything that was made, was made of things that had already been made.
It was difficult to determine the limits of creation, though. Making a sword from scratch, using steel that he had no part in creating, was certainly creation, but was painting a bought car a different color?
‘It’s an example of very minor creation,’ Leo decided, and, having gotten what he wanted, Leo decided to stop thinking about what creation meant to him, mostly because the class was nearing its end.
The important thing was that his understanding of creation didn’t preclude his plan anymore, meaning that he should be able to tie the concepts that he had thought up to his affinity.
“Well, it’s a minute or two early, but I think we can call it here today,” Stein said, “I expect a short presentation from each of you on your basic understanding of the soul in a week. I’ll be staying around for ten or so minutes, answering questions and doing paperwork, but you’re free to leave.”
The majority of the very small class, including Leo, stood up and started filing out of the room. That they’d been released a bit early was great, since it meant that Leo would have more time to find where the Melee Combat class was being held. Of course, maps of the campus were very easily accessible, but it was still nice.
The lesson was being held inside an enormous gym-esque room- the maps called it the ‘coliseum’- on the other end of the campus, and even with the bonus time, Leo eventually had to start running in order to arrive on time. He had taken a few wrong turns in the confusing labyrinth that was Cernery, but a few questions and a high-quality map was enough to get him there on time, paired with running and a couple extra minutes.
The method of training here would be no different from how he’d done it on the ship; they would wear suits that would harden in response to physical trauma, dispersing the force into the specially-made floor so as to avoid injuries- it still transferred the pain, though, at least for the first few seconds after the wound.
Thus, when Leo entered, he wasn’t surprised to see several signs on the wall making sure that people went and put the suits on. He didn’t know where the changing area was located, though.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
“Go change.” The professor told him before Leo could even ask, pointing him to a pair of rooms in the far right corner of the room. Leo dashed over to the one meant for males and entered one of the changing stalls, quickly shed his watches, shirt and pants, and threw the suit on. It covered up to his chin, and was even capable of blocking blows to the head, although Leo didn’t see how. Leo then left the stall and placed his clothes and watches in one of the lockers, before finally grabbing the smallest-sized longsword they had off the wall and returning to the ‘coliseum’.
Somehow, even with two minutes extra, Leo had managed to arrive back a minute late. Almost everyone else was there already, standing on red squares that were painted onto the floor, with even twenty-foot distances between each one.
“Find a square and stand there,” The professor told him, and Leo complied. As he did, Leo was struck by how large and intimidating the man was.
He had to be seven or so feet tall, and yet he didn’t look lanky in the slightest; rather, he looked like an ogre or something. Most notably, he was entirely bald, which likely meant that he was an awakened at or above tier ten, since awakened at or beyond that point were capable of a greater control over their body, allowing them to not look like Bigfoot.
Once he was where he was supposed to be, the professor cleared his throat loudly.
“For the sake of a transfer student, I will reintroduce myself. I am Howard Berd, but that name better never leave your mouths. I am to be called Instructor Berd only. The new student is Leon Horner.”
Leo didn’t feel annoyed at the usage of his full name. Even his childish ‘side’ had matured enough for it not to matter to him anymore.
What he was annoyed by was the fact that this announcement caused everybody in the room to turn their heads his direction, because Instructor Berd had pointed directly at him.
It wasn’t enjoyable to have the eyes of two hundred and fifty-seven people on him.
It wouldn’t be so bad if not for the fact that a disturbing number of people recognized his name. After all, the youngest human to ever awaken in the Ander Empire hadn’t gone unnoticed, and his name had apparently managed to hog the largest headlines for a few entire hours- which meant that, for a few hours, he was one of the most talked-about people in the entire Ander Empire.
Nobody said a word, though, and it was likely due to Instructor Berd. He was scary-looking, and judging by how silent the class had been so far- not a single peep had left most people- he was strict.
Leo wondered how long that would last, though. Several of the people he saw looking at him didn’t look particularly friendly.
“PAY ATTENTION!” Instructor Berd bellowed, his voice like a clap of thunder. Everyone in the room jumped at it, quickly returning to facing the man, as they had been before.
“This class is a bit strange in how it operates. It’s the only one that has incentives, for example, but is also the only one that has punishments as direct as mine. Be at the bottom of the rankings, and I’ll make sure that you run until you physically can’t anymore. Be at the top, and you receive personal tutoring.” Instructor Berd told the class, although everyone but Leo was already aware. “As for rules, there are only a few. Firstly, there is to be no soul magic; only the physical body and skill. Secondly, don’t try to drag out the battles unnecessarily. Lastly, don’t piss me off.”
The moment that he was done speaking, a screen was projected in the air a few feet away from him, containing the rankings.
They were in order of best to worst, and Leo’s name was roughly in the middle.
Zachary Warden: 23 wins, 3 losses. Set for rewards.
Hurjay: 22 wins, 5 losses. Set for rewards.
Liam White: 17 wins, 4 losses.
…
Owen Lobber: 7 wins, 7 losses.
Leon Horner: 0 wins, 0 losses.
Tilly Wisher: 8 wins, 9 losses.
…
Jill Brown: 3 wins, 10 losses. Set for punishment.
Robby Jet: 2 wins, 10 losses. Set for punishment.
A few seconds of silence passed before the screen disappeared, and a flood of glowing white rectangles descended on them all, each one engulfing two of the red squares exactly. It meant that Leo had ten feet from where he was currently standing to the walls of the glowing, holographic walls.
Leo was a bit shocked at how flashy this class was turning out to be, but it was still very apparent what would be happening next. Leo looked over at the person standing on the other square in the rectangle.
On the opposing red square was a girl with short brown hair, vibrant blue eyes and wielding a shield and axe. They were probably only eleven or twelve, meaning that while they were significantly larger than himself, it wasn’t insurmountably so. He had seen a few teenagers amongst the first-year students taking the class, and he was just glad that he hadn’t been pitted against them.
“I’m sure you all can figure out where to go from here, right!?” Berd shouted over the sudden clamor, and received a wave of agreement.
“Then, when all four of the walls around you turn green, fight!”
Two of the walls around him turned green, but Leo couldn’t see if the one behind him was without turning around, which he was unwilling to do. He wasn’t allowed to spread his soul out in order to check, either, causing a bit of confusion.
It made sense when the wall behind his opponent turned green and, apparently, his own did, too, because ‘Go!’ suddenly flashed across the floor.
Leo’s reaction to the strange beginning was a bit delayed, but the girl’s wasn’t. She charged forward instantly, and Leo only had time to shake his head and barely regain his bearings before she was upon him.
The girl was fast, and strong, and she didn’t hold back. While Instructor Berd had said that they weren’t allowed to use soul magic, cultivating the soul lead to a stronger body… which meant that Leo was pretty far behind, physically, in size and strength.
Leo had never fought an opponent that wasn’t the training robot, and so he had never fought against anything that wasn’t using a sword… which meant that Leo’s muscle memory failed to block the axe. It had been descending upon him at an angle from above, and Leo had tried to block, but had only stopped the handle. The axe head struck his shoulder, and pain erupted from the area.
The way his training with the robot had worked was different in another way, too; when a blow was landed, it meant the match was over. Here, though, it worked differently; the suit would calculate the damage that the blow to him had dealt, and mimic it to the best of its abilities. The fight would go until the suit determined one of them dead, or one of them surrendered.
…Which meant that Leo had simply stopped the moment that he had been struck, even though the match wasn’t over. Leo realized the mistake he had made only an instant before the girl slammed the rim of her shield into his stomach.
Leo’s eyes watered, but he still tried to recover. The suit around his left arm had hardened, making it impossible to move, due to the girl’s axe blow, and so Leo removed the arm from the sword’s handle.
Holding the weapon, which was a bit longer than he was used to, one-handed came with benefits and cons. His reach was a bit better now, and he could strike a bit faster, but the lack of leverage over the weapon meant that he had less control over the weapon and that his blows would lack power.
Leo was a bit surprised to find the girl hesitating as Leo stumbled backwards. She probably didn’t want to beat up the eight-year-old and was waiting for him to surrender, and Leo took advantage of the wait to properly prepare himself.
After a few seconds, it had become more than clear to the girl that Leo didn’t intend to give up, and so she lunged forward once more. This time, Leo was ready.
He had used most of the reprieve to think of ways to fight the axe, and had decided that blocking didn’t seem particularly viable. That she had a shield meant that Leo couldn’t stop her attacks by threatening mutual destruction, though, and so he was only left with the option of parrying.
Leo wasn’t particularly good at that, though. Most of his training had been in the four basic strikes of the Kolnir Fachtbuch. He tried regardless.
As her axe descended towards him, Leo flicked his sword to the left, knocking it away. She had never stopped her charge, though, and charged straight into him with her shield. Leo was thrown to the floor, and his entire body ached. Before he could do anything, the girl chopped at his right arm, and the suit decided that he had lost. The rectangle flashed red, and a holographic screen very briefly popped up in the middle.
Trisha Heider: 11 wins, 4 losses.
Leon Horner: 0 wins, 1 losses. Set for punishment.