Aiden scratched his head as he looked at his interface. In a way, history was repeating itself.
Beside him Ted was peering at his details.
[Name - Aiden Lacheart]
[Species- Human]
[Age - 19]
[Class- None Lvl 0]
[Affiliation]
None.
[Title]
None.
[Skill]
[Tongue of the Visitor (Mastery 100%)], [Kick (Mastery 94.88%)], [Palm attack (Mastery 98.03%)], [Evade (Mastery 98.98%)], [Shoulder Thrust (Mastery 90.00%)], [Dash (Mastery 89.50%)], [Resilience (Mastery 30.18%)] [Sword Strike (Mastery 99.19%)], [Parry (Mastery 82.00%)], [Engraving (Mastery 80.00%)], [Geometry (Mastery 92.90%)].
Stats
None.
“Can I just say a few things?” Ted said.
Aiden didn’t see why not. After all, he had more annoying things on his mind. Like why did he still not have an affinity for magic?
“First, and most important,” Ted said. “How the hell do you have so many skills?”
“Because I’ve been doing so many things,” Aiden replied.
“So have I. And when did you pick up geometry. The magic instructor said it’s the basic foundation for spells and enchantments. I took one look at those things and had a brain fart. But you’re already at 92%.”
They were in Aiden’s room today, and he laid down on his bed, tired. “Anything else?”
“Yea, one more. This place stinks. Even the mighty Sam of isekai has started getting annoyed. It’s been a week and we’re yet to see the first level one.”
Aiden didn’t blame their impatience. If the king wanted them to be level one in this instant, it would actually be easy. All they had to do was find some creature or monster—Nastild was filled with them—or a person at level one, maybe two, and have them kill it or them.
Instant level up.
But the difference between video games and this world was in the way levels translated. All levels did was increase a person’s raw power, it did not translate to experience or skill.
This style of training, while slow, guaranteed that by the time they left the palace, they had a higher chance of winning in a fight against an opponent of their level.
“I was talking to Sam earlier today,” Ted said, to Aiden’s dismay. “And he said he had an idea of how to get to level one.”
Aiden knew the idea. And the truth was that the idea had gone on without a hitch in his past life. In his former life, everyone that had followed Sam’s idea had ended up leveling up. It had also been the motivation that had allowed them leave the palace from time to time just to level up.
“He says, he’s been speaking with some of the soldiers,” Ted went on. “Not the knights or the squires, and he knows how to get all of us to level one.”
“I take it he wants to do it using game mechanics,” Aiden said. “Sneak everyone out of the palace and hunt down maybe a goblin or something.”
Aiden hadn’t attended the initial plan in his past life because he’d been too busy studying enchantment books in the library at the time. This was after learning that it was most likely the only form of magic he would ever be good at.
“That’s how it works in games, and the soldier he said he spoke to confirmed it,” Ted said. “We’re heading out in three days.”
“Why three days?” Aiden asked. “Why not tonight?”
“The soldier needs to find a place with enough creatures for all of us to level up with, and they have to be low levels.”
That made sense. As to why the soldier was helping them, Aiden could guess that the soldier wanted to be seen in good favor with them. As far as the soldiers were concerned, these were the saviors of their world, destined to rise to the highest levels.
He was probably sure that any help he offered would grant him their favor. It was just quite unfortunate that it would not. The soldier had ended up being so unimportant after a while that Aiden almost pitied him. At least that was how it had played out.
“So you coming?” Ted asked.
Aiden was surprised to find himself thinking about it. The truth was that he was already on his way to level one. If he could learn mana manipulation, then he could scale all his masteries to a hundred percent. There were two known ways a person could reach level one. The first was by slaying a strong enough opponent, and the second was by getting at least one basic skill. The latter was the more difficult.
“And you guys don’t mind that it will be dangerous?” he asked Ted.
Ted rolled all the way to the edge of the bed and stopped. “It’s going to be a level one monster, Aida. They’ll be weak and insignificant. Besides, the soldier is a level nineteen with the class literally called [Soldier].”
[Soldier] was a basic class at the bottom of the combat classes upgradable to the [Warrior] class. But at level nineteen, anyone with the class was suitable to babysit all of them in hunting down level one monsters. The problem was if the soldier was going to be responsible about it.
“Have you guys accounted for gear?” Aiden asked. “Armors and weapons?”
Ted nodded. “Same guy’s bringing us the things we need. And since I already have mana manipulation and basic thunderbolt, that gives us an edge.”
Aiden had almost forgotten that at some point Ted had been the prospect for the Hero title. He’d had a talent for both magic and the martial arts, developing a talent for spell-crafting and alchemy later on as well. Everyone believed that the only reason he hadn’t ended up with the title was because he didn’t give himself over enough to a sense of justice.
“I’ll be more than happy to tag along,” Aiden told Ted. “I just hope I can get this mana manipulation skill before the time comes.”
Ted shook his head in confusion.
“For someone with so many skills I’m surprised you don’t have that yet,” he said. “I think mana manipulation isn’t that hard. You just have to listen to the mana, feel it. It’s even easier when instructor Nilhma places all of us in the mana field. In fact, when she does it, it’s hard to even ignore it. You feel it on your skin, listen to it, then direct it. It’s like playing with water in a bowl.”
Aiden looked at his brother, dumbfounded. Talented people always gave the blandest explanation of things.
“So in summary,” he said. “You’re asking me to just… do it.”
Ted chuckled, staring at the ceiling. “Pretty much.”
“You know people can’t just feel mana and direct it, right? It’s really not like water in a bowl. It’s far more complicated than that.”
Ted shrugged. “Sounds like a skill issue to me.”
…………
Aiden sat with a gentle frown on his face in Nilhma’s mana field. He sat eyes closed with two others; Anita, who liked to be called Ani, and Letto.
Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
They were the last three of the group who were yet to get their mana manipulation skill. And by instructor Nilhma’s instruction, she would be unable to teach them anything else in the way of magic without it.
Valdan had told Aiden that [Mana manipulation] wasn’t so necessary. Seeing Aiden begin to skip training with him for the sake of reading books in the palace library had led him to sharing that particular piece of information.
“Knights don’t have mana manipulation,” Valdan had told Aiden one day. “Every living being can sense mana, and that is enough. However, we Knights possess aura, an innate manipulation of our own mana. It may not work the same way mana manipulation works, but it is plenty strong in its own right.”
Aiden knew of aura, and while it was a powerful tool, he didn’t care much for it. In this life, if he still didn’t have an affinity for magic, then he would at least get the [Enchant] skill even if he wasn’t going to get the class.
He had given it much thought and had decided on it. He had a fighting style he was already accustomed to, and whatever class he ended up getting this time would not change it. The least he could do was gain the skills he was familiar with and work with that.
Aiden sat, paying attention to nothing but the air around him with closed eyes, when it finally clicked. He knew the methods to get the mana manipulation skill, but his patience had been the thing slowly dwindling away.
Now, however, he had it. He opened his eyes as he felt the warm lick of mana against his skin. It was like standing in the midst of a lot of smoke. Small, gentle and weightless, but very present.
A notification flashed in front of him.
You have learnt skill [Mana manipulation (Mastery 02.00%)].
The beauty of skills like [Mana manipulation] was that they were foundational skills that didn’t need complete mastery. They were independent foundational skills, never being absorbed into any basic skill.
“Congratulations, Lord Lacheart,” Nilhma said in her gentle voice. “I will be more than happy to have you in our lessons now.”
“Dude, you’re so lucky,” Letto pouted as Aiden got up in the circle of mana field they were seated in.
Aiden stepped out of the field of deep blue.
'Lucky' wasn’t the word Aiden would’ve gone with. In his past life it had taken him up until level 8 before he’d learned mana manipulation. Then it had taken him the remaining years to raise it up to 50%.
As much as he didn’t think he was special, there was a part of him that had expected more of himself. He was, after all, a freaking time traveler. He’d trained intakes from the Order. There was a part of him that had expected himself, despite logic, to be special.
An entire week to gain mana manipulation as opposed to a month is impressive, he reminded himself. What were you expecting? You’d sit down and just get it?
Nilhma’s lessons, while interesting, were of no real interest to Aiden. She was teaching basic level spells, the kinds of things that were used to light candles and levitate pieces of paper. They were all things Aiden knew, even if they were not things he could do.
[Mana manipulation], after all, was not [Mana mastery] that allowed arcane classes cast spells. And he’d never gotten mana mastery in his past life. He doubted he would get it in this one.
So while she taught them to sense the magic of fire around them, Aiden practiced a little bit of mental magic, crafting as many enchantments as he could in his mind. With his current body, he knew the enchantments, but his mind couldn’t recreate many of them.
With no level, what he could create images of in his mind were the barest of enchantments. Enchantments so low they practically had no use.
Progress not perfect, he told himself, struggling to envision the lowest level locking enchantment he knew. Progress not perfect.
……………
Valdan parried an easy blow from Aiden.
“What is happening, my lord?” he asked as he stepped to the side, readying an attack. “Your movements have been all over the place this evening.”
Aiden had an answer to that, but it wasn’t one he was willing to give. He’d checked on his skills before showing up, and had plans. Plans he didn’t want to explain to the Knight.
So, rather than give a response, he charged Valdan with an over-head slash. He brought his sword down, swinging with both hands.
The Knight deflected the blow again, sending it aside with power instead of skill. Aiden, unwilling to release his sword, went spinning away from the Knight.
Congratulations!
You have gained perfect mastery!
[Sword strike (Mastery 100.00%)].
Aiden ignored the notification, dispelled it as he pulled himself to a halt and charged Valdan. They met with clashing blades, and once again, the Knight met his gaze. Or at least Aiden felt that that was the case.
Valdan never took off his helmet so it was impossible to tell. But judging by how the man’s helmeted face was in Aiden’s, he assumed that was the case.
“What are you doing, my Lord?” Valdan asked, curious confusion in his voice. He pressed against their clashed blade, overpowering Aiden by each passing moment.
Aiden was no fool. Overpowering a Knight was impossible in his current situation and at his current level. But this wasn’t a battle of strength, it was one of technique.
He tilted his body to the side and shoulder-checked the knight. Pain filled his entire shoulder when he did it, and he let out a pained grunt.
Congratulations!
You have gained perfect mastery!
[Shoulder Thrust (Mastery 100.00%)]
“Lord Lacheart.”
This time Aiden could hear the frown in the man’s voice. In their time spent sparring, Aiden had come to learn that while he couldn’t say that the knight liked him, he could confidently say that Valdan had high hopes for him. Expectations.
On more than one occasion, the Knight had complimented his adaptability in a sword fight. According to Valdan, he had the makings of a knight.
So having him do unreasonable things that helped him in no way during a fight, must’ve left the man confused.
“Perhaps we should stop here, My—”
Aiden swung his sword from the side, interrupting Valdan’s words. The knight reacted with a back step and Aiden followed him almost immediately. Everything was coming together, his plan taking action.
Faster! he thought, closing the distance as he dispelled another notification. He was running out of time. With the first perfect mastery he had to hurry up.
Congratulations!
You have gained perfect mastery!
[Dash (Mastery 100.00%)]
“Lord Lacheart!” Valdan hissed as he blocked another sword slash.
Aiden wasn’t looking for a block, and Valdan was losing motivation to continue this fight. Aiden could not have that, his plans banked on the man fighting back.
Valdan ducked under another slash and weaved his way around Aiden.
Aiden spun in place, the blade of his sword cutting through the air to strike the knight. The aim was true, accurate. By all possibilities, it was primed to take the knights head, split it horizontally in half. But Valdan was not Aiden’s equal. And while this battle pushed Aiden to the limit, it was nowhere near a Knight’s combat requirement.
Valdan stepped out of reach in the blink of an eye, the action ghost-like in Aiden’s eyes.
“Aiden!” Valdan snapped.
But Aiden wasn’t listening. At perfect mastery, foundational skills reacted differently. While their benefits continued to show in their users, they also became active skills, useable until they were assimilated into a basic skill.
You have activated skill [Dash (Mastery 100.00%)].
The skill propelled Aiden forward, cutting him through the distance faster than his mind could follow. One moment he was standing over six feet away from Valdan and the next he was in front of the man, sword raised high in both hands.
“Fight, Knight!” he commanded, and brought the sword down.
Valdan obeyed.
He defended himself, allowed Aiden’s sword glide down the length of his. The moment his sword was free, Valdan brought his sword high and let it come down in emulation of Aiden’s attack.
It was an attack Aiden had been waiting for, and he reacted as well. Reaching for everything he had, he turned his sword and swung it upwards, straight into Valdan’s attack. Both swords clashed, the edge of Aiden’s crashing into the flat of Valdan’s blade.
Congratulations!
You have gained perfect mastery!
[Parry (Mastery 100.00%)].
Valdan’s sword skewed to the side and hit the ground, but the Knight was not done. His sword was already moving once more, and Aiden refused to be outdone right now.
He had a goal, but even as he leaned away and avoided the new attack, he knew his plan had failed.
Congratulations!
You have gained perfect mastery!
[Evade (Mastery 100.00%)].
Aiden wanted to keep going, but his body had other intentions. He created a distance between himself and Valdan in three steps, panting heavily. The air filling him through his mouth proved nowhere near enough.
Progress not perfect, he told himself in disappointment as he fell to his knees, tired. Without looking up, he raised his hand, palm held out, and let his sword drop.
He raised his eyes up, and while there was a smile on his lips, dread filled his entire being at the sight he was met with.
Valdan stood in front of him, a striking figure. His knightly armor glimmered with tiny sparks of energy that were almost nonexistent. He had his sword held high again, sparks of mana like lightning running through it so that it glowed very slightly. This time, he held it in both hands.
The dust gathered around him had yet to settle.
From the tiny slit in the Knight’s helmet too little to see the man’s eyes through, blue wisp leaked out from where the left eye should be. Aiden knew aura when he saw it.
He stared up at the sight, a man almost executed.
“I believe that’s enough, Sir Valdan,” he said, barely keeping his fear from his voice. “Don’t you?”
There was a slight tremor in his voice and he hoped the Knight had not noticed it.
Valdan just stood there, sword raised high, chest heaving so hard it was visible in the way the armor responded with each breath. The sparks going through it did not cease. The knight’s sword did not falter.
Aiden’s interface flashed in front of him.
Foundational skills with perfect mastery detected.
Multiple foundational skills with perfect mastery detected.
Congratulations!
You have achieved perfect mastery in the necessary foundational skills.
You have gained skill [Basic Swordsmanship (Mastery 02.10%)].
Aiden would’ve smiled if his life wasn’t currently about to flash before his eyes.
Then he saw Valdan move a split moment before it happened. In this single moment, Aiden’s mind ran through a myriad of options. His sword had fallen from his hold, released by him, so that wouldn’t help him. He had no magic to his name or enchantment with which to protect himself. And he could barely even move.
He watched Valdan’s grip tighten around the hilt of his sword crackling with growing energy and swore. He'd pushed his luck a little too far.
Oh shit.
Congratulations! Prisoner #234502385739.
You have Leveled Up!
Valdan’s sword came down, cutting through the notification.