Chapter 4: Start of a New Journey
Glenn watched Guts start to walk away. He then followed after and said, "I hope your will is stronger than I originally presumed. Loss is painful, isn't it? But if he didn't leave to pursue his own dream, could you really call him a friend? See ya around, Griffith. I hope you don't do anything rash."
"Oh yeah, I forgot! I left you guys some going-away presents in your barracks. I hope you like them!" Glenn shouted as chased after Guts.
"Guts!" Casca called out, making the stoic swordsman pause for a moment.
Tears filled her eyes as she watched him march through the snow beside Glenn.
"Whoa, no shout for me? Casca seems to have gotten quite attached to you, Guts," Glenn said as he marched through the snowy terrain.
"Shut up," Guts said as he made sure to hide his expression with his hood.
Later that night, Corkus, Judeau, Pippin, Casca, Rickert, and even Griffith received a present from Glenn's time as an Onion Knight.
In Final Fantasy World Online, if you chose the FF1 Character Template, for the first 25 levels, the Player's Avatar is stuck as an Onion Knight. Since they could equip any weapon or armor, it allowed the player to experiment before choosing what class to rank up into.
Glenn started as an Onion Knight, ranked up into a Magic Swordsman at level 25, then to a Red Mage at 50, and lastly as Crimson Warlock at 75.
The items he collected as an Onion Knight were all level 25 and made of decent materials.
For Casca, he gave her a Mithril Chain Shirt, Mithril Half-Plate, and a Mithril Long Sword. The set is extremely durable and made up of near-weightless materials. They also protected against and dealt bonus damage against Unholy Creatures such as Undead and Demons.
He gave Rickert a Mithril Chain Mail with partial plated sections, a Mithril Helmet, and a Mithril Short Sword.
Glenn gave Judeau a Mithril Dagger, Mithril Light-Plate, and a Mithril Katana.
Pippin received a Giant Mithril Hammer as big as his own body, Mithril Full Plate, a Mithril Tower Shield, and Mithril Chain Mail.
For Corkus, he gave a set of Mithril Half Plate and Mithril Cross Bow with 30 Mithril Arrows. He also got a scroll. On the parchment was a well-drawn picture of a hand flipping him off and the written words, "Quit being such a jackass, you jackass,"
And lastly, for Griffith, Glenn gave him a bottle of white rum imbued with ice magic. It was a drink named the Shiva. A limited-edition item that came from a special event that passed by years ago. Now, Glenn only had two bottles remaining.
Griffith read the note that contained the words, "It's said that those who drink it can feel the alcohol chilling the blood in their veins. It's especially useful in the summer."
Guts and Glenn were long gone by the time they all received their presents.
Griffith did take a drink of the Shiva Rum and thought about what happened. However, Guts and Glenn's words of encouragement didn't stop him from visiting the Princess's room that night.
And so, the timeline continued along its destined path.
Griffith was arrested the next morning, the members of the Band of the Hawk were lured out to an empty field before they were attacked, and Griffith was thrown into a dungeon to be tortured by the King of Wyndham.
Hours before Griffith's arrest, both Guts and Glenn had managed to march all the way to the closest forest trail.
Before they traversed inside the canopy of trees, Glenn pulled out his Level 70 Long Sword, Ragnarock, and cut down at Gut's back.
Sensing his impending doom, Guts drew his sword and swung back at his attacker, colliding with Glenn's sword while kicking up the snow around them.
"Something you wanna tell me, Glenn?" Guts said as he struggled to hold his own against Glenn's strength.
"You're weak," Glenn said as he drew his sword back and knocked Guts off his feet with a sweep-kick.
Caught off guard by Glenn's crazy fast movements, Guts didn't have time to react before the black longsword stopped next to his neck.
"You're no Map-Maker," Guts commented without fear in his voice.
"You're awfully calm for someone who is about to die," Glenn replied with a smirk on his face while his sword pressed against the hundred man slayer's throat.
"If you wanted to off me, I would already be dead. Besides, there was no killing intent in your attacks," Guts shot back with a blank expression.
Glenn laughed before he stood back up and helped Guts up, "So, I'm guessing you have questions,"
Guts nodded his head and said, "Start with where you pulled out that sword from,"
"From my bag, of course," Glenn explained as he waved around the 6 foot greatsword and stored it before pulling out a potion.
Then a tower shield, full suit of armor, and another long sword.
"How the hell?" Guts' eyes widened.
"It's magic," Glenn said as he stored the items back inside his inventory.
Guts almost choked on his own saliva before he gulped and said, "Magic, I don't believe in it."
"You believe Demons like Nosferatu Zodd exist, yet not the magic that transformed into such a monstrosity?" Glenn countered.
"Zodd…is a demon? Like a real demon, and not some kind of monster?" Guts looked like he was having some kind of revelation.
Guts paused as he watched Glenn cast a fire spell and launch it into the ground, melting the snow around the fireball in an instant.
Glenn then pulled out a level 60 sword-cane called the Elder Toonbery's Sword-Cane and stamped it into the ground before the strength of his blow cracked the stone ground beneath his feet.
"I like you, Guts. That's why I want to teach you how to control Internal Mana. If your plan is to face monsters, then you need to become stronger," Glenn followed up as reached into his bag and threw Guts a longsword that had a diamond-shaped pommel with a gem slotted inside it.
"I got that just before I became a Magic Swordsman. It's a tuning sword. It will allow you to sense the Mana flowing in your body to help you master Mana Manipulation. A skill you'll need if you want to do something like this," Glenn announced as he walked over to a tree.
A white aura appeared around his body as Glenn placed his hand on the trunk of the tree.
With an overly powerful push, Glenn toppled the tree over with a single hand.
Guts eyes widened as he stared at Glenn in awe.
Guts then looked at the Tuning Sword on the ground and then back to Glenn before saying, "How, how, did you do that?"
"I told you, training…lots and lots of training," Glenn said as he raised the Cane Sword.
Guts picked up the Tuning Sword and felt the Mana from the stone on the end of the hilt channel into his body.
Glenn was a level 75 character when he transferred to the Berserk World, so he was confident in his pure physical strength. So even without Mana he could easily topple trees with his bare hands.
However, ever since he had arrived in this world, Glenn has been experimenting with his Mana in secret. Every day since he joined the Band of the Hawk, the Crimson Warlock spent those 4 months figuring out how to control his powers.
One thing he learned was that he didn't have to rely on leveling up to increase his Mana. He discovered after draining his body of Mana and refilling it by sleeping and letting his mana naturally regenerate, he could grow his maximum MP.
When he woke up, Glenn realized that he had at least 5 more units of MP than he did previously. The only downside was it knocked him out when he did this.
For the hundred and twenty days or so, every night before Glenn went to bed, he drained his Mana by playing with it and casting several dozen spells. In total, he gained an additional 605 Mana Points, making his overall Mana Capacity reach 2,005.
The second thing he learned was what he was trying to teach Guts. After countless experimentations and messing with the flow of his Mana, Glenn learned that he was able to redistribute his Mana into his other stats. He decided to call it Reinforcement Magic.
He didn't lie about the Tuning Sword. It was used to help Glenn memorize how a steady flow of Mana moves in the body by giving him the ability to sense his own internal Mana supply.
At this very moment, Guts was feeling that exact sensation.
In the game, it took Glenn a week to mimic the sword's effects on his body and weeks more to replicate it into something useful.
While he felt the flow of Mana inside his body, Guts did indeed felt stronger by pushing it into his muscles. But it was only by a little bit. However, the hundred man slayer didn't think that it would suddenly be easy to knock over a tree with one hand.
"Alright, your first job is to get used to that feeling and adapt it to your body. Once you form your internal Mana Source, you won't need the Tuning Sword anymore. From then on, you'll be casting spells every night until you pass out from exhaustion. The only way I know how to improve one's mana-pool is to constantly draining and refilling it, kind of like how we flex our muscles," Glenn explained as he turned his back and started walking through the forest.
"We're not going to fight?" Guts asked, looking confused.
"We need to find your Black Smith first. That sword doesn't suit you. Even my Tuning Sword looks like a toothpick in your hands," Glenn stated as he walked through the forest.
Guts sheathed his sword and held the Tuning Sword in his hands as he caught up to Glenn.
"You're not putting up much of a fuss about being my student," Glenn said as he looked at Guts.
"What, did you think I would be against learning magic?" Guts lifted a brow.
"No, I just thought you'd have more questions?" Glenn replied.
"Why hide this from us for so long?" Guts asked.
"I don't know, maybe it has something to do with the fact that Mages and Witches are hung for heresy. It's not that I didn't trust you guys. It's just safer with fewer people knowing."
"Why tell me now?" Guts asked again.
"I told you already, Guts. I don't want to see you die. I also don't want to watch you lose any more than you already have,"
"Why?" Guts tilted his head with a confused expression.
"I like you, no homo. Just as a friend," Glenn answered.
"That's it?" Guts lifted a brow.
"That's it. Where I come from real friends look out for each other, we don't need something fancy, just be who you are and that's good enough," Glenn replied.
"How did you know I wanted to fight a creature like Zodd?" Guts questioned.
In response, Glenn lifted a brow and said, "A guy like you, letting Zodd run away after beating you down. I know a thing or two about swordsmen, Guts. You remind me of some good ones I know. They constantly strive to perfect their art. Swords aren't just weapons, but an extension of their bodies. A defeat while you're still alive, you must view it as the greatest shame,"
"A Swordsmen, you think I'm a swordsman?" Guts shot back.
"Isn't that your dream? To be the most renowned Swordsman in all of Mid-Land?" Glenn asked with honest curiosity.
Guts placed his hand to his chin and thought hard, "Is that what I want? Sure, I felt that my sword might provide a clue for the dream I desired. But, to be the best...what does that even mean?"
"Why does it have to mean something profound? Every kid has thought of it at one time in their life. I want to be the best, the strongest, and or greatest."
Glenn smiled and watched as Guts shook off his thoughts and focused on his training.
"If you can't figure it out, might as well focus on gaining Internal Mana." Glenn thought as they marched through the forest trail.
When night came, they set up camp and ate before Glenn started to try and teach Guts magic.
After several hours of explaining how the Fire Spell worked, Guts realized that he hadn't made any headway into casting, and it didn't look he was going to understand it anytime soon. It required memorizing weird symbols and runes, advance mathematics for where you want to aim and to calculate how much mana to use on each spell.
"I think you should use this," Glenn said as he pulled out a Water Materia from his inventory.
He got this from his visit to the FF7 World Crystal, alongside several other Materia such as Restore, Heal, Barrier, Time, Lightning, Ice, Fire, Earth, Contain, Gravity, and Revive Materia.
He also had Support, Command, Independent, and Summon Materia, but he hadn't the time to experiment with them.
The Reviving Magic and Phoenix Downs didn't resurrect the dead in this world, but rather, they healed mortal wounds instantly, stabilized the body, and removed the unconscious state if they were knocked out. Glenn killed quite a few fishes before he managed to learn all that.
Guts held the Materia in his hand before Glenn instructed him to pour the Mana running through his body into the Materia while picturing a ball of water.
After a few dozen attempts to guide the Mana into the thumb-sized Water Materia, Guts finally succeeded in creating a 1-foot sphere of water.
Guts also felt drowsy from using his Mana, and since he had so little, that single cast nearly put him to sleep.
Before they could celebrate, all the hairs on their bodies stood up as a dark and ominous aura engulfed them.
Glenn's hands shook as he felt the murderous sensation wash over him. He had never felt anything like this before. Glenn's stomach was twisting in knots, his body was drenched in a cold sweat, and his heart was beating like a freight train. He's stared down crooks and murderous psychopaths before, so he wasn't unfamiliar with the sensation, yet this was on a completely different level. The only thing he could compare it to was staring down a bloodthirsty bear in the wilderness.
Gut's condition wasn't any better than Glenn's. Before he felt like he was going to die, Guts suddenly raised his sword and swung around.
However, there was nothing there to attack.
"Guts, where are you aiming?" Glenn said as he stared at the pale rider standing mere feet away from them.
Guts flipped around before seeing the same man in skeleton-like armor riding on a warhorse covered in black cloth and white bone-like armor.
"The prophesied time draws near, and the gears have begun to turn once more," The hoarse voice of the Skull Knight called out through his Full Plate Armor.
"Gears? What's he talking about?" Guts internally questioned as he held his sword up towards the armored horse.
"Take heed, Struggler, Outsider," The Skull Knight warned.
"Struggler? Is he talking about me?" Guts pondered.
"Outsider, is that the name Skull Knight decided to give me?" Glenn thought to himself.
"One year hence shall be the time of the eclipse!! You and your friends. Those yet unseen of the fleshless flesh, and that unkingly half of yours shall all be gathered in that place. A Torrent of Madness, a Tempest of Death for which the human body could never atone, shall sweep over you. But take heed, Struggler!! You were born from a corpse and began your life from death in the mud, therefore you are closer to it than any being, and you excel at escaping its grasp."
"Who is this guy?" Guts couldn't help but think.
"Struggle, contend, wriggle! That alone is the sword of one who confronts death. Never forget this!" The Skull Knight shouted before he turned to Glenn.
"Outsider so far from home, I do not envy your predicament! Right now, you are outside causality, like a fog floating above the waters, but the moment you interact with them, all will be made aware of your existence! If you act, you will die. If you don't, the ones you've grown close to will surely perish in that place. If you ever wish to meet your goals, the chance lies with sharing the burden with the Struggler," The Skull Knight prophesized before turning around and fading away into the mist.
Guts couldn't believe what he saw and turned to Glenn before asking, "Did you see that?"
"Yes, to think I would meet the Skull Knight so soon," Glenn replied.
"You know that guy?" Guts questioned.
"Know of him, yes. Knowing him personally, no," Glenn responded.
"Who is he?" Guts couldn't help but ask.
"Truthfully, I don't know. All I can say is, The Skull Knight is very, very, old. Old enough to leave legends of his presence all across Mid-Land," Glenn answered.
"I've never heard of any Skull Knight," Guts replied.
"That's because you were traveling with the wrong company. Many from the magic societies know of the Skull Knight," Glenn explained.
Truthfully, it was hard for the two of them to get back to sleep after that meeting with old Skully. They spent most of the night chatting about magic.
Glenn was using the Materia as a sort of Training-Wheels for Guts to understand the mechanics of spell-casting. The information was basically downloaded into his brain, and as long as Guts could keep up with his Spartan Training methods, he could make it second hand too.
Unfortunately, Guts didn't recover all his Mana after sleeping like Glenn.
Guts did eventually lose consciousness and if Glenn did nothing, the Berserker wouldn't be able to wake up for a couple of days. Even when he regained consciousness, he felt worse than when had fought against Zodd.
Glenn used his Libra Spell to learn that Guts' Mana Source was cracked and slowly repairing itself.
"Mana potion it is," Glenn mumbled as he pulled an Ether out of his bag.
While Guts was forced to drink the Ether, Glenn discovered why the Mana Pool expanded after draining it past 0 MP.
When casting that last spell that puts them under 0 MP, the negative amount is added to the total amount when fully recovered. It was like the cracks expanded their Mana Source, so when it healed, it would gain MP equal how much it was damaged.
So, if he had negative 5 MP and used a Turbo-Ether to recover, Glenn would gain +5 MP once it refilled.
"It's a bug!" Glenn thought to himself as he realized why this was happening.
"In the game, it's impossible to go into the negative, but this is reality. With no system restrictions on us, it carves out more space inside the Mana Source." Glenn thought as he pulled out a Tent.
Glenn slapped Guts a couple times as he opened his eyes, stood back up, and said, "Ugh, it feels like I have a hangover."
"Yeah, that feeling goes away after a while," Glenn informed as he set up the tent.
"What's that for?"
"This tent is enchanted. If you sleep in it for a full day's rest, you'll recover your Health, Stamina, and Mana. Also, if you continuously use the Materia, it will evolve and grant you higher level spells."
"Is there any difference between casting spells without the Materia?" Guts asked as watched Glenn unzipped the tent.
"The first rank spells cost about half when using Materia, but Watera and Waterga cost less if you use them with the Internal Mana System. Higher Level Spells cost more when you use Materia, but are more powerful," Glenn explained as he stepped inside his tent and zipped it shut.
Guts did the same. When he stepped inside, he was surprised by how comfortable the inside of the tent was. Guts noticed that the futon, warm air, and the strange relaxing ambiance inside the tent blocked off the world outside.
For the first time in his life, it made the veteran ex-knight feel safe.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone