The sunlight shone and barely pierced through the trees of Yavan, casting a pure green light over the place. On the ground, the flowers smiled and the mushrooms stood tall. It was a pure area like any other in Yavan, except for its rotting and blackened depths. Amid this lively morning atmosphere, Laos stood wearing light white clothes. In front of him was a small pond, and it looked like he was meditating.
Controlling comfort? It seems like one of the ways to develop the spirit. A few days ago, Rose told me she had methods to help me improve my power as a spirit user, and apparently she wasn't lying. Meditation is one of those methods. I don't know why it has to be done in front of a pond, but they say you should sit near something that represents your spirit—no further explanation. I don't like that.
The place is quiet. You can barely hear the sound of leaves falling, which highlights the eerie calm. I wasn't thinking about anything except my level if I synced with Thalesa. "Harmony with the spirit," huh? Why didn't she tell me about this before? That fucking woman is hiding so many things from me. It's really strange.
"Well, Rose said your meditation time is up," a masculine voice said from behind me—Nhor.
"So, how do you feel?"
"There's some comfort... I don't think it worked, but it was close," I mumbled, reflecting on how I felt after that session.
"Well, all this training is stuff Rose read from some books, so it's hard to say all of it will work... but the next training is gonna be amazing!" Nhor said excitedly, holding his spear.
Suddenly, Rose appeared from between the trees along with Feefy. The little girl was holding a basket of apples and munching on one, while Rose approached us empty-handed. What's this next training? Nhor was still holding his spear—does he want to fight me? I'll crush him easily with Astral Sword.
"All right, your next training, Laos, is fighting with the Astral Sword," Rose said.
"But that's what I always do," I muttered.
"No, this time you'll fight without any abilities. Just your blade and physical strength."
Just your blade and physical strength!!!
No, no!! I'll be fucked easily! Impossible! I'm terrible at fighting without using abilities. It'll be super embarrassing if I lose—especially since I got the title 'Wyvern Slayer' and became this village's savior. Damn it, damn it! This is gonna be so embarrassing!!! I need to tell her before I suffer a humiliating defeat.
"But I suck at fighting without abilities," I said. Sometimes honesty is a relief.
"That's exactly why you haven't achieved any harmony with Thalesa. Listen, Laos, just because you're a spirit user doesn't mean you should rely on your spirit so much that you erase yourself. A spirit user is both spirit and body—Laos and Thalesa. But when you only use abilities, it means Thalesa is the only one fighting," Rose explained.
"Harmony with the spirit is hard to achieve for most users, I know that. But you have to struggle to reach it. Once you do, you'll find yourself with the same power as Thalesa—spirit and body. That's why it's called harmony... Right now, Laos, you're just a puppet that Thalesa uses to fight. Do you understand what harmony is now?"
Damn, she crushed all the aura I was farming. My power and my presence vanished after that talk. She's right—I'm just a fucked puppet and a spammer, throwing out super strong abilities and killing enemies easily. That's not real power... Yeah, I think I've found the right path to true strength—the kind of strength that will let me fulfill all my dreams.
"I get you, but I still don't understand the point of harmony," I replied. I think I've got brainrot—I can't even focus and understand her simple explanation.
"All right, imagine this, Laos: there's a flying squirrel that uses its wings to glide. But it's fat, so it always fails or has a hard time flying with its friends. One day, it becomes skinny. Then, it surpasses everyone, and its flying ability becomes unmatched. That's exactly what happens with a spirit user. Before harmony, the user relies too much on the spirit. That's annoying for the spirit, which keeps feeling lonely and delays her development."
"But after achieving harmony, the spirit feels more at ease and develops faster because it and the user have become one being. Also, it makes them a bit kinder when speaking... Tell me, haven't you noticed how quickly Thalesa gets angry?"
"Oh, yeah!" I said. That... that actually makes a lot of sense.
"That's because you haven't achieved harmony with her. And didn't you notice she still likes Gaziel even after leaving him?"
"Yes, yes, that's exactly what's happening," I replied.
"That's because he achieved harmony. Also, Gaziel fought with his own strength and rarely used abilities. So he reached harmony easily—and in the best way possible," Rose said.
"That's amazing. I understand everything now. Thank you, Rose. But why didn't Thalesa tell me this?" I asked, confused.
"According to the records of spirit users and some books, it seems even spirits don't know about this... and the reason is an old story from the Age of Beginnings—or the Age of Gods. When the gods started shaping the world and its laws, when it was Nevma's turn, she decided to create seven spirits. That's when the Spirit Power System was born."
"Okay, that all sounds normal. But some gods opposed the system, like the Moon Goddess, Lunariss. They asked her to weaken it by placing limits on the spirits' knowledge. So spirits don't know about harmony, and it seems it's up to the user to discover it. That's what happened with past spirit users like Violess, the desert spirit user. He wrote about this in his records in the year 524."
"So the gods did this to weaken the power system?" I asked.
"Exactly. It was already powerful enough. No need to make it stronger by giving spirits full knowledge," Rose answered.
All right, I think I understand everything now. This is great. The amount of useful information is incredible. I never expected to find this kind of knowledge in a place like Bloomy—especially about a power system that's unknown in this world. Now, all that's left is to train for harmony.
"Harmony has three stages. Each stage represents a heart of the spirit, and you have to unlock these hearts. The first heart of harmony is marked by your eyes turning blue when using the Astral Sword. The second heart forms an aura around you that blocks any nemesis attack. The third heart is still unknown—no one knows what it does."
"Speaking of the second heart… In an old battle against Shamon, I used to hit its spells and they'd disappear. What was that?"
"Oh, that's another bit of information the spirits don't know. I thought you knew it, Laos... The nemesis power—whether it's an attack, barrier, aura, or anything else—doesn't affect spirit weapons. And if you open the second heart, it won't affect you at all, not just the sword."
"Wow…" I muttered.
I can't believe it. What kind of insane system have I gotten my hands on?! How could this be a forgotten system?! With how powerful it is, I feel like I've got cheat abilities. This is so strange, I'm really excited, excited to try all of it. I won't tell Thalesa anything—I'll surprise her when I achieve harmony. It'll be amazing to hear Thalesa speak kindly.
"Alright, now we'll begin your second training: combat without any abilities," Rose said.
"It would be my pleasure, Wyvern Slayer," muttered Nhor as he grabbed his spear.
Yeah, I'm about to lose all the aura I've built up, but I don't care. What matters to me now more than aura or looking tuff is strength. I want to achieve this harmony no matter what. It's the only path to power. I grabbed the Astral Sword and saw my hair turn white. I stood in front of Nhor, staring at his intimidating muscles.
The spear-wielding dryad suddenly leapt toward me, but he wasn't pointing his spear, so there was nothing to block. I quickly moved back to avoid any sudden attack. I was sure that leap was a feint for another strike. I waited for him to clash with me, but he didn't attack with his spear. Should I go on the offensive? That's a hard question.
I've never taken the initiative with the Astral Sword before, so I wasn't sure I could do it. Still, this is training—I need to try new things. I ran at him with my sword. I was fast—so fast I felt confident and thought I'd land a hit. But in that moment, I felt something hit my legs and I fell to the ground. Yeah, I just lost all the aura I'd built...
◆ ◆ ◆
The sun kept shining, and between the trees, two people kept moving fast while the sound of clashing weapons echoed. Laos was still fighting Nhor, panting and sweating. But he didn't expect it—Nhor kept blocking all of his attacks. That's when frustration showed on Laos' face. He seemed tired of using the regular form of the sword. At that moment, he switched his sword to the fourth form and prepared for another clash.
This time, the sword's length was nearly the same as Nhor's spear. Nhor stepped back and changed the way he held his spear. He stared seriously and waited for Laos' attack, which didn't take long. Laos ran forward, lifting his sword—the Super Azure. In a flash, Nhor dropped to the ground to kick Laos' legs like he had done before, but this time the NPC had jumped high, dodging the kick.
When Laos landed, his sword was at Nhor's neck. Any small movement could've taken his head off. Laos gave a cold look while Nhor gave an awkward smile. Even though this form was larger, it was light, and that seemed to help Laos win. But... would this victory make up for four straight losses?
"Sorry, but I don't fall for the same trick twice," Laos said, dismissing the Astral Sword as his hair turned black again.
"Amazing! You're evolving during combat. So these are the abilities of the Wyvern Slayer!" Nhor said as he shook hands with Laos.
"Wow!" Feefy exclaimed.
"Incredible! That was perfect training. How do you feel now?" Rose asked as she handed both of them an apple.
"I feel like… I'm not a spirit user. Like I'm just a regular swordsman," Laos replied as he sat on the grass, exhausted.
"That's it! You learn fast. This is the first feeling a user gets when training for harmony—or as Violess calls it in his records, 'forgetting the spirit.' It's a crucial step toward harmony, and it seems it can be achieved after a series of sword fights. But you managed it in a single session!" Rose said with a smile.
"Thank you," Laos muttered before taking a bite of the apple.
What a great feeling. As if I've been reborn. Day by day, I'm more certain I'm not just some useless NPC. I can achieve impossible things and raise my power so quickly. This progress fits me and my goals perfectly. This luck, this life—they suddenly smiled at me. Even my past sadness seems to be fading now... or maybe it's already gone. All I can think about is the power I'll gain.
The next morning was a little cloudy, so I didn't see the usual green shine of Bloomy's light, giving the place a gloomy feel. I closed the window and headed to the room where Rose was making breakfast while Feefy banged on the table, yelling: "I'm hungry! I'm hungry!"
That's when I remembered what Rose had said about her past. It seems that dragon named Slytha was the one who killed her father, which is why she got so angry when I mentioned it. She clearly has a major trauma associated with its name. I sat with them, and Rose finally served breakfast, then said as she sat down: "Did you hear the latest news?"
"No…"
"Seems like Etomi and Ralce went to check out Slytha's nest," Rose muttered.
"They're planning to kill it?" I asked.
"Of course."
"I have to do it. That's actually my goal. It'll be the turning point I've been looking for. I won't let them do it," I said as I took a bite of pie.
"Are you sure about that decision?" Rose asked.
"Yeah. I've got a strong desire to do it. And it seems I'm not even thinking about the consequences as much as I'm thinking about what will happen if I do manage to kill him."
"That'll be incredibly difficult, especially since you're a lone free adventurer."
"I know…"
I know full well this is a stupid, reckless decision, but… I have a crazy desire to fight that dragon. A desire that, if fulfilled, will reveal incredible treasures. There's an entire paradise hidden behind that dragon. I'll get an unimaginable reward from the kingdom, buy a house, and become famous throughout the kingdom. Those fucking people busy with demons will finally see me—and they'll be stunned. That'll be the happiest moment of my life!
But… they'll know I'm the one who escaped the palace, and that Gaziel vanished while chasing me. Don't you think that could turn into a trial that ends with execution instead of a celebration and a reward? Honestly, I haven't let that question bother me. Because my ultimate decision right now… is to kill Slytha.