Val wanted to do the second adventuring course this semester, so I went along with it. She wanted to push to Bronze, and I figured it was a good opportunity. Arabelle Remore strongly suggested I do Rulers of Pallimustus, which sounded boring, but she was right that I needed to know how the different rulers and nobles operated in the different regions.

With my Reaping Magic giving me access to crafted objects, I wanted to get a lot more knowledge about making things. I was definitely doing Medicinal Alchemy, and I picked up Weapon Crafting - Cutting Weapons, as well as Shields and Armour. I was going to be on the lookout for more skill books as well.

That left one more slot. I decided to repeat the Melee Fighting course, but this time with the spear and knives. It helped a huge amount with my axe, shield and claws. It also mixed mirage fighting with excursions into the astral space.

My leg was back a week after returning to the academy as I paid for their healers to boost Lyari’s growth. My Hunters Feast also went to nine. It grew much more rapidly when it had something to heal. My dreams were worse when the leg was healing. I only had nightmares of killing my father and sister once a week, normally, but it was almost every night when I was healing. I wanted to speed up. Something was triggering the memories. Was it the deformity or something in the potions? I don’t know but I almost went back for another burst to get it done.

Professor Venter wanted me to take a course helping her with the data she collected, but I put her off until Semester six. She could understand the need to get to bronze.

During the first week of the Semester, I spent a lot of time in Deaths Temple, meditating on the holiday Astral Spaces and my progress. The first week, there was a lot of orientation stuff that I just skipped out on. I needed time out and peace, so I worked on my garden and helped the temple gardener.

I needed the space, and it helped settle a lot of things. My Aura was the first to go to bronze. My aura currently boosts the Spirit attribute in allies, and now it also weakens the Spirit Attribute in enemies. This reduces their perception and judgement. I had to spend a lot of time learning to control my new aura, but I enjoyed it.

I updated my list.

* Reapers Aura Bronze 1

* * Iron Rank: Increases allies' Spirit attribute in aura range, Increasing perception and judgment. Helps keep a calm mind.

* Bronze Rank: Reduces the Spirit attribute of enemies in aura range, reducing perception and judgment of enemies.

The best thing, though, was my Tranquil Garden moving to Bronze. I was in my Garden at the time, meditating, and the space shuddered and grew to about three times the space. It had been growing at each level, but this was now a large jump.

The ceiling was a dark dome before, and now it has the appearance of a sky with a sun. There seemed to be a day-night phase now, and I wondered if I would have the two moons at night. I guess I will find out.

With the expanded space, I got two new areas. One was a freshwater pond, which I was very pleased about. I already had some water lilies and a rice paddy planned. The second area was a cave. It was only a few meters deep and then ended at a rock wall. This would be great for growing subterranean plants.

I had been worried about Ardisia and Kai when the garden went bronze, but I needn’t have. Just like it can still grow normal or iron-rank plants, it can accommodate iron-rank familiars. I had some bronze-rank plants ready for planting.

* Tranquil Garden {Divine Stone of Peace} Bronze 1

* * Iron Rank: A small garden in a dimensional pocket. Increased growth rate. Summons can enter and heal.

* Bronze Rank: Larger garden with faster growth, pond for water plants, and a cave for subterranean plants. Day-night cycle.

I am still in the market for a general fighting style. I had a talk to the Melee instructor.

“Most fighting styles focus on a speciality, which usually comes from an essence—for example, Arcane Swordmage or Blade Dancing. You are a hunter with blade skills. You should probably look into options like the Sentinal Hunter or the Bladebound Ranger. Both of those combined ranged with melee. You don’t really do ranged weapons, do you?”

“Not really. I throw javelins or set traps to bring my prey to me,” I replied.

“Hmm. Javelins are limited in range and quite bulky. You don’t have a poison essence, do you? The Venomous Blade Hunter is a good style.”

“I don’t have an essence, but I do create my poisons through alchemy.”

“That would limit the style too much, I think. Traps, you say? There is a Fangblade Trapper style, specialising in deadly traps and vicious melee.”

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“Again, I don’t have the Trap essence. I make my own traps.”

‘OK, so you need to regard the traps and poison as an add-on to your main style. Most good styles will be able to incorporate those things. Go and check out these ones. Blade-Spear Strider is a versatile style which incorporates spear throwing as a ranged weapon. The Feral Marauder is a fast and varied style with any weapon that can be picked up or just your claws. The Savage Stalker is a stealth-based ambush-style. Go and give them a read and see what you think.”

I eliminated the Feral Marauder quickly. It was a fast hit-and-run style, but it seemed a bit too berserker-like for me. Yes, it would use all or no weapons, but I didn’t feel the fit. The Blade-Spear Strider included spears with almost any type of blade. It was a solid technique, but the Savage Stalker was what I was interested in as soon as he said stealth and ambush.

I read up on the Savage Stalker. There were a lot of movement techniques for fast, quiet movement. I had Hunter’s Step, but with my new senses, I knew I needed more. It was a set of skill books at both Iron rank and Bronze rank. There were three books in each set, and according to the saleswoman, the iron set the foundation for the Bronze. I wasn’t convinced that she wasn’t just wanting to sell two sets instead of one.

I bought both sets because I could afford them and resell them if I needed to. They were expensive, but not the most expensive. The first book was all about moment skills and camouflage. There were a lot of things I could do to move unseen, but more than that, unsensed. It built on the foundation I learned in the Hiding Techniques and Hunting courses, but it also picked up on the Wilderness Awareness course I took back in Semester Two. The Techniques changed depending on the environment I was in. There were also skills for the urban environment and an aura technique I immediately started practising.

The aura technique was easier than I expected, but that was probably because my aura was now bronze-level. I could see where I could improve it, but I stuck to the basics for now. That was probably the difference between the iron-rank books and the bronze. Making use of the higher attributes of the bronze-rank body.

The other two books in the set were different fighting techniques. They didn’t negate what I learned last Semester in Melee Fighting with the axe, shield, and claws or what I was learning this semester with Spear and knives. What it did was bring all these separate things together into a comprehensive whole.

I had another realisation. This was another area in which I was years behind other students. The rich students who had their Essences and Skill Stones planned for them were probably given a fighting technique as soon as the last awakening stone was absorbed, and they have been practising and using it ever since.

“Absolutely,” said Val when I asked her. “My main technique is quite common as it is the Blade Dancer, but I chose the Mok Gar variation, which is not so well known.”

I am always playing catchup with rich people.

The instructors in the Melee fighting course were very helpful. They switched me from the Melee Fighting course to the Advanced Melee course, which was all about making the most of your Melee techniques. Once I let them know which technique I had, they researched it and set out a comprehensive training schedule to make me practise all the techniques, including movement and stealth. It was so hard keeping it all in mind at once and putting it together. This is the benefit of proper trainers.

The Advanced Melee students were in groups of three, and we were expected to practice together and go into the astral Space weekly with just the three of us to fight and survive. We were given specific things to put into practice every time. In the other sessions, we had mirage chamber exercises and were then critiqued on how well we used our techniques.

I was partnered with a human female, Sibila Naituku and a Human male, Harold Frych. Sibs had a really good combination of Magic, Might, and Swift, resulting in the Empower confluence. Harry had Ice, Earth, and Wind, which gave him the Desolate confluence. They could all fulfil multiple roles in a team. Sib's main role was dealing with damage and support. She was used to using a variety of weapons. Harry's skills were really varied. He could buff himself in heavy ice armour, deal ranged attacks and move fast. His speciality was in area control and damage, but he was in this course to hone his melee skills, and for that, he conjured this huge two-handed Ice Sword.

This versatility is a hallmark of Vitesse-trained adventurers, but Harry has gone to the extreme. Both Sibs and Harry were in their final semester, and they were still getting used to their bronze-level power.

“I’m doing the leadership track,” Sibs said. “Are you guys going to get upset if I take charge a bit? I need to practice leading in combat.”

Harry shrugged, “Fine with me.”

“I guess so,” I said. “I have a lot of things to practice, though.”

“I figured we all do,” She replied. “If we meet beforehand and discuss it and vary our formations to put each of us where we need to practice, I figure that should work.”

“Sounds fine,” I replied. “Hey, if you are on the leadership track, does that mean you are going to lead some first-semester students into the astral space for the first time near the end of the semester?”

She grimaced, “Yeah, it is our final assessment for the course. I am not looking forward to it.”

“I guess the staff are there to bail them out,” I said.

“Yeah, but we have a list of leadership skills we have to show. The staff aren’t just there for the noobs.”

“I would be interested in your thoughts about the course,” I said. “It has been recommended that I take it myself next semester.”

“I will keep you updated,” she said.

“Hey, can I ask what fighting technique you have?” I asked.

Sibs looked at me funny, “Why?”

“I want to expand my knowledge, and we are going to be fighting alongside each other anyway,”

“I practise the Knight’s Arsenal,” she said.

“Arctic Warrior,” Harry said.

“Thanks. Also, I can sharpen your weapons, Sibs, but I can’t do anything for that ice sword, Harry.”

“The Ice Sword is just perfect the way it is.”