บท 20: Chapter 20: Training

Standing in the furniture-filled bedroom, Zaos shook his head.

[I can't train here. Experimenting with new moves might damage the furniture.] He thought, his arms crossed.

[Should I teleport to the hideout? It shouldn't be as draining as the last time, right?] Zaos contemplated for a moment before deciding to give it a try.

He closed his eyes and visualized the forest basement with the entrance to the hideout. After forming a clear mental image, he directed the void mana in his surroundings to flood his Edict Rune.

After a few seconds of standing stationary, his figure vanished like it had been erased.

Five seconds later, Zaos opened his eyes and found himself in the empty basement, with two passageways to his left and right.

Zaos smiled, though his expression soon shifted as an intense bout of headache struck him.

[It's better than before; at least I don't feel like passing out… ] Zaos mused as he entered the hideout's hallway through the secret entrance.

He hadn't directly teleported into the hideout for fear of bumping into someone immediately upon arrival.

Enduring the throbbing headache, Zaos navigated his way to the bedroom where he had slept during his previous stays.

The bedroom door wasn't locked, as it was a public facility provided by the Qildor clan.

After entering the room, Zaos went straight to the bed.

[I'll rest for a bit before training…] The headache made it almost impossible for him to gather his thoughts, so he decided to lie on the bed peacefully.

Approximately thirty minutes later, Zaos' headache had finally subsided, giving him the energy to get up from the bed.

[It seems I'll have to use teleportation sparingly, and I can only teleport to safe locations so I can rest right after…] Zaos made a mental note.

Stepping out of the room, Zaos headed for the empty room he had used before. As he moved through the dark hallway, Zaos began to ponder.

[So far, all my elemental weaves are focused on support or attack. I lack one dedicated to defense…] Zaos stroked his chin in thought as he edged closer to the room.

[Using the absence property, I should be able to create a shield that negates damage aimed at me.] Zaos stopped in front of the medium-sized wooden door. He opened the door and entered the room.

Similar to his last visit, the room was still empty. A quick glance around the room revealed slight damage on the wall.

[I should probably bring a test dummy next time, maybe a log?] Zaos thought in passing.

He cleared his thoughts and concentrated on the elemental weave he was about to create.

Zaos visualized a classic medieval shield. With his construct in mind, he activated his Edict Rune.

Immediately, a heater shield materialized before him. The shield wasn't enormous, measuring around 70 cm in length and approximately 50 cm in width. While it would provide adequate protection for an adult-sized elf, for Zaos, who stood at about 162 cm, the shield covered the majority of his body.

Zaos's face twitched slightly when he noticed this detail, but he quickly regained his composure and shifted his focus to more pressing matters…

[Let's test its resilience.] He made the shield float before him, its front facing him.

Balling his fist, Zaos took a small step back before unleashing the strongest blow he could muster.

*Bang!*

His fist and the shield collided, producing a sharp metallic sound.

Zaos immediately felt the mana consumption of the shield increase ever so slightly before returning to normal.

[Hmm...] He scrutinized the shield, finding no visible damage to it.

[Amazing!] he thought. The physique of an elf was much stronger than that of a human from his former world. Before he had undergone his vampiric gene awakening, Zaos was confident that his punches could hit like a speeding car. Now, he felt they hit as hard as a truck!

[Although my basic strength cannot compare to the bulking figures of an earth elf, the shield is still impressive enough to not take any damage at all! It should be almost as resilient as an earth elf's defense!] Zaos was delighted as he felt the smooth texture of the shield.

[Its performance against high-level elves and multiple attacks at once is left to be seen… ] Zaos cut the supply of mana to the shield, and it crumbled into nothing.

[Let's try something else… ] Zaos shut his eyes, trying to focus on the creation of yet another elemental weave.

Ten minutes later, Zaos opened his eyes. There were no visible changes to his surroundings, but he had begun sweating.

Zaos unstrapped a dagger from his waist and jabbed at his wrist.

*Clang!*

The dagger struck his wrist, but instead of going right through it, it was stopped a few millimeters away.

[Success! A shield with the same strength as the other but more inconspicuous.] Zaos flashed a happy grin. However, a second later, his expression grew paler and his smile dropped.

[Sustaining it is a problem… ] He quickly canceled the elemental weave and began to speculate.

[Using an elemental weave that creates a massive shield will draw too much attention. This 'body suit', on the other hand, is more discreet. The only problem is its consumption, which is double the amount of the other one.] Zaos frowned as he thought.

[It seems I will have to save it as a trump card like my teleportation. Ugh, I should rest for now.] He sat with crossed legs, trying to induce a meditative state to combat the dizziness and slight headache he felt.

This time, he took an hour-long break before standing up.

[I have to work on my mana control to be able to minimize the burden of utilizing these elemental weaves.] Mana control was the second most important aspect of creating an elemental weave.

Elves were blessed with the ability to utilize the mana of their surroundings, and an elf's race greatly affected the type of mana they could wield.

Smooth control over mana made the creation of elemental weaves much more efficient and less straining.

Although Zaos had improved his mana control since he arrived on Krulon, he still experienced symptoms of mana overuse earlier than a normal elf would.

[More training then…]