Valtherion stood armoured on the grass fields of his yard, clad in armour, with a spear in hand, a shield on his back and a shortsword strapped on his thigh. Opposite him stood Luther, with a metal stick and a shield...and behind them, Alexstraza.
The Imperial Guardian was a person of high esteem, and she had to show her respect. Upon learning that it would be Valtherion's energy awakening, she decided to be present as a witness.
Sitting on the now cleared-up table, Alexstraza seemed impatient as she wanted the fight to already begin.
"Are they beginning soon? When does it start?"
"Soon, my lady. The young master is strapping his boots on." Thankfully, the butler was there to converse with her and soothe her.
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"Ready when you are, Godson...Time to show me what you've been taught back at home!"
Pulling his hair back, Valtherion smiled and put his helmet on. Grabbing his spear, he closed the distance between Luther and himself. The spear was nothing special; it had its shaft, its spear tip, as well as a curved crescent blade as an extension. It was around 1.9 meters long, and the shaft was 3 centimetres wide. A weapon that was perfect for stabbing, slicing and slamming.
Finally, within distance, Valtherion stabbed towards Luther, only to be blocked; however, that was not the end of the attack. After the block, he rotated the shaft in his hand, making the spear tip come towards him, while the bottom of the shaft headed straight for Luther's face from below.
Stepping backwards, Luther smiled as the shaft passed next to him. By that time, Valtherion had already rotated the spear in his hands twice, using its momentum - he stabbed again.
"Like a true serpent you are! Weaving the spear like that! Good, good! Now let's see how you fare when I fight back." Luther, all smiles by now, decided to stop just blocking and go on the offensive.
He took a step forward, using his stick like a sword to slash at Valtherion, who blocked.
Sparks flew as metal collided, but no one was hurt. It was just a good show. Luther could not lose this fight, as the moment he used his energy, Valtherion would lose. Even now, Luther was just gauging his abilities and landing a few hits on him, but he did not look to be under pressure even a bit.
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"Woaah! Look at them, sparks are flying all over! Is my cousin good or is Duke Palan's son better?" Alexstraza asked as she pointed a finger towards the sparks from time to time and spoke with her personal butler.
"My lady, it is just a training; however, I do not think Duke Palan's son has held a sword yet."
"Heyy! They stopped; he's taking his chestplate off!" pointing towards the two who had just stopped fighting, Alexstraza began blushing.
"It seems that the ignition will begin now, my lady!" the butler butted in, as she looked forward with great anticipation.
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"Fast, Valtherion, take off your armour while your blood is still boiling!"
With a click, Valtherion took off his chestplate and then his helm, after which he sat on the ground, crossing his legs. A hand landed on his back, as Luther's eyes began to glow in a white light that soon radiated all over his body.
Feeling something cool and refreshing seeping through his back, Valtherion relaxed. He could hear his heart thumping; blood, cold blood filled with energy. Everywhere it passed, it would unclog his channels as it made its way towards his belly. With a loud 'crack' sound, he opened his eyes and spat out a black blood bile.
"Haha! Congratulations! Now you're a novice! Godson, your body is healthy; you have the potential to reach the Master stage, as long as you keep training!" Laughing loudly as if it was his happiest day ever, Luther told him the condition of his body and whether it would be enough to reach the most important stage.
Truth was, most people had the potential to do so unless their body was sick; however, becoming a Master was not just up to training or potential. For each Master, it is different, but all that is known is that the final Stage of the Expert is the hardest to break through.
"Thank you, uncle...I feel so light!" Getting up and wiping the blood off his lips, Valtherion felt so light. His energy was all over his body, uncontrollable. As he was right now, he could hurt someone or himself, so he closed his eyes, and under the guidance of Luther, he channelled that energy back into his core.
"Good boy...that was fast! Hold your weapon and channel your energy again!"
Grabbing the spear, Valtherion closed his eyes, calmed his breath and tried to guide his energy towards his arm, all the way to the spear. Soon, he opened his eyes and could feel that the spear was imbued with his energy.
"Splendid... let us fight now, slowly. I attack, you block with your whole body being imbued, as well as your spear."
The fight began again, however, at a much slower pace as Luther was teaching him how to shift the energy and control it. At around eleven, Valtherion was tired, and Luther led him towards a table that now hosted only Albert. On top of the table, there was a big cold box.
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"It's okay, Uncle. I can walk. Thank you for today. Please, let me treat you to lunch. I have something special prepared for you..."
Walking forward, Valtherion opened the cold box and the smell of spiced fresh meat spread in the air. Albert then brought a metal net and a clean metal bucket that Valtherion had done something to yesterday.
"Oo, Godson...what is this? Meat I know; buckets, I don't..." Luther seemed surprised, as he had no clue what his nephew was going to do with the bucket. It had a hole in it and a platform in the middle, and now the brat was putting in some small capsules that looked like smashed wood. He even lit them up?
"Trust me, just watch this..." Taking another cup, he oiled up the net he had placed yesterday, and soon, the barbecue was ready to begin. He put the first rounds of meat, and soon a heavenly smell began.
"Val, do you like grilling? You seem to be good at this, and the meat looks cooked evenly on both sides... What is this?" Cutting his steak, Luther was taken aback by its taste. It was the best steak he had in his life.
"Well...I call it barbecue. It is really good for grilling, and yes, I do enjoy it. Albert, hop on in; don't just watch. Let's all eat." Beckoning Albert to join them, Valtherion soon sat as well. There was plenty of meat; he was going to even let Luther take some and eat at work.
Startled, Albert did not think much about what Valtherion had told him and just sat down. To his own dismay, he was eating with two nobles, neither of whom seemed to mind; they were, in fact, offering more. Thankfully, the butler had provided salads and sauces made from tomatoes and other vegetables such as carrots.
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Finally, around one, Valtherion had taken a shower and was waiting by the shed for Albert and the imperial scholar. It was time to get a patent for the pellets and, hopefully, after that, get a loan from a bank. Any bank would be fine for Valtherion, as long as they would agree to finance him.
Not long after, a man with blue robes led by Albert came to the shed. He seemed to be annoyed and in a hurry, apparently not a fan of the weather.
"So, you are the young heir that has come up with a new invention? Albert has told me about it. My name is Orus; shall we get to the display procedure?" He did not look very convinced about whatever Valtherion had invented. Most likely in his mind, it was a waste of time, but he was getting paid nevertheless.
"Greetings, let us proceed towards the display then. Albert, care to bring us a few cold beverages?" Nodding, the butler headed off, while Valtherion led the scholar off to the shed and produced around two kilograms of pellets.
"I call this a pellet. It is smaller than wood, burns longer and produces more heat. Let us head outside; I have made preparations. We can measure the temperature while also seeing which burns longer." Grabbing two sacks, one with wood and another with pellets, Valtherion led the shocked Orus outside. There were two metal buckets, with a container of water on top.
"Please take a seat over there. I will light the fire at the same time. I will use 1 kilogram of wood and 1 kilogram of my pellets. We will see which one produces more heat and burns longer." Lighting up the fires below both buckets, Valtherion sat down next to Orus, who was taking notes eagerly.
"How did you come up with this, young lord Mograine? If it is true, then it would truly be a groundbreaking discovery! It is far easier to transport than wood...and it does seem to ignite faster!" Orus, sipping on cold juice, took notes as he seemed to interview Valtherion, his irritation from before gone as he observed both fires.
Thankfully, Orus was not up to funny business as he took his job seriously and, after confirming that what Valtherion had said, took out two documents, making Valtherion sign with his family seal. The patent was done; the scholar seemed all done and even offered him various ways to profit, such as selling the patent to the royal family.
"Albert. Let us go to the city, take me to the Royal Bank." Holding his patent in hand and watching Orus leave with his own carriage, Valtherion had other ideas. The academy starts tomorrow, and if he wanted to start a business, it had to be done soon.