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You can find Links to my other works and Discord on the Novels synopsis.

Thank you all for the support so far, the Novel is only going to get better from here.

Dale will start to grow strong not through stats but from techniques.

We\'ll soon see some action and also, we\'ll be having a time skip soon.

Also, someone asked me why Dale didn\'t get any pocket space items from the members of the Corps, which makes sense considering who they were.

And I\'ll explain it now, he did get it then, he just didn\'t fully explore everything he got yet.

The normal elite warriors wouldn\'t have such items on them, but the Commander would, or at least, he should\'ve.

People can always leave their items behind in other places too, which would make sense for the overall plot of the Corps where everything went down, people could\'ve just spread their resources around for their successors to find them periodically instead of putting it all in one place and risk losing it all to time or to someone unworthy finding them.

It\'s also due to my laziness in showing it and for plot convenience I guess.

If Dale doesn\'t open the item, then I can always invent whatever was inside to fit something I ended up missing from my own plot.

Leaving such openings and giving space for you to be able to make arbitrary assumptions and changes is one of the ways I write, it makes things simpler in the long run, albeit I can always come back and edit a chapter if that\'s necessary.

Enough said, let\'s go.

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/Creak.../

"Excuse me..." Dale said as he got inside Testros\' house

\'I\'m here.\'

Finally, it was time to start training for real.

Dale had been waiting for this moment, the time to meet with his teacher after his most recent... Change.

Reading on and on would lead him somewhere, but he needed the support of a master.

And who else than the very person that trained in the techniques he would learn for several decades?

Was there any better teacher?

Unless the Commander himself came back to life, there probably wasn\'t...

So he got inside Testro\'s house without a single shred of hesitation, his steps were light just like his mood.

...

Inside, he saw a simple and humble room, it was rather wide and it likely took over half of the first floor.

Most of this first floor was a large open area, decorated with old furniture, including even what seemed to be an old armor set on the corner, it was riddled with old gashes but it was shinning, as if taken care of recently.

It was likely Testros\' old armor from when he was a recruit, and also the one he used when he fled to Resko all those years ago.

Aside from that, it was possible to see the kitchen, as it was connected to the living room through a balcony, like the average North American house.

It was relatively small, containing what seemed to be a simple oven and several drawers…

It was what you would expect from a late 19th-century Kitchen.

/Flip.../

In the middle of the room, Testros could be seen reading a book on top of the main table, next to him was a small pile of books, the ones he grabbed from Dale when they organized all of their findings from their \'little\' adventure.

It was a rather peaceful scene.

This entire house gave Dale the same vibes as his Grandma\'s house, even the woody smell it had was somehow making him remember her...

"..."

/Thud/

Testros closed his book, marking the page he was reading with a flat, metallic book marker before leaving it atop the table.

His gaze upon Dale, he said:

"You took longer to come than I expected."

"Although personally, I would\'ve liked you to not come in the first place."

"W-Wow... But why?..." Dale asked awkwardly

\'What a way to start...\'

\'He doesn\'t look angry… Neither does he look upset, so what\'s the problem?\'

"Why you ask?... Indeed, why?"

He then looked at Dale with a frustrated gaze and said:

"Are you okay boy? 2 days ago you got hurt pretty badly in the Catacombs, yesterday you got severely hurt in the Forest, and today you were fatally wounded by your own training... It\'s a miracle nothing bad happened to your body yet…"

"And still after all of that, instead of resting for a few days, you go all around the village, knocking on everyone\'s door like an errand boy?"

"Do you even know the definition of rest? Or do I have to teach it to you?"

"Ah..."

Dale understood what he meant, but there was nothing he could do apart from smiling and looking at the ground like a kid that did something bad.

\'When he puts it that way it does make me concerned about my own well-being...\'

\'But still, I\'m completely fine.\'

\'If I could, I would take a few days off to rest, enjoy the environment, study some of the books perhaps, do some light training...\'

\'But time waits for no one!\'

\'If I rest too much, I\'m afraid I\'ll end up worse then before...\'

Seeing his smile, Testros shook his head.

"Sigh… It doesn\'t matter, as long as you\'re okay."

"Just remember to not push yourself too hard, it may be harsh, but you\'ll do us no good if you were to incapacitate yourself." Testros said as he got up from his chair

Still, he looked straight into Dale\'s eyes and asked:

"On that note... You are okay, right? Don\'t tell me you disobeyed Yumi\'s orders and is now impairing your own recovery?"

Dale\'s eyes opened wide, and he quickly retorted, shaking his head:

"No no! I\'m fine, as long as I don\'t do any heavy exercise I\'ll be okay."

\'Even that I think would be okay... But to cleanse their conscience, taking a slight breather should be fine.\'

\'As long as I\'m not losing time and doing something just as productive as grinding, then I\'m okay with anything.\'

\'Yumi might\'ve told me to remain in bed, and albeit it\'s rude to ignore her warnings a bit, I know my condition well enough to know I can at least walk around the place...\'

\'Or at least, I put a lot of faith in the System interface, which begs to differ...\'

\'At which point should I really trust it? When do I raise the bar?\'

"..."

Testros let out another sigh.

"That\'s good enough, we won\'t be doing physical training today anyway."

He turned around and pointed at one of the chairs next to the table.

"Pick one and sit, be sure to be comfortable as you\'ll be sitting in them for a while."

"Any?..." Dale asked with a nod as he went after Testros, sitting opposite him at the table.

"Yes, you\'ll be reading them all, they cover all of the basics."

"There is no need to go through them in any particular order, some of their contents do clash, but it\'s more of mentions and the common ground they work at..."

"Or so I would like to say... I don\'t think this will work."

"Give me some time to think."

…

/A few minutes later.../

"..."

\'This is getting awkward…\'

The minutes passed, yet Testros remained silent, thinking…

"Uh…"

"No, don\'t talk, let me think."

But Dale couldn\'t hold himself anymore...

"Well, I… What are you even thinking about?"

"... I\'m trying to figure out where to start, but your unique conditions surely don\'t help my case." Testros replied with a complex expression

"Start what?"

"Your dammed training! It\'s getting on my old nerves!"

"I want to teach you the basics, but you already did something many would only accomplish after years of training!"

"However, we can\'t just gloss over them..."

"..."

\'Albeit he looks angry, he is mostly frustrated... Perhaps even a bit pleased?\'

Testros scratched his nose as he had an idea, saying:

"Alright, let\'s start with this."

"I asked this before, but you can feel Mana, right?"

"Yes, I can."

\'I would say quite well, but I don\'t want to sound arrogant only to be humbled down...\'

\'And knowing Mana through Lore mentions isn\'t the same as reading through a theory book on the subject.\'

"Good... Alright, I know it\'s a bit redundant, but we\'ll get there eventually."

"And also, over time, we\'ll have to properly figure out how precise your control over it is, and also how sensitive you are, such details will be imperative later on."

"But knowing you can feel Mana in the first place will do for now."

"With this in mind, tell me in detail, how did you come to learn Mana Control?"

Dale\'s expression turned awkward...

"How did I learn it?... Funny thing is… I learned it from you, it was my first time seeing it also."

\'If we don\'t count past games... Would that be the same as saying it was a past life?\'

"I said it before, but as I watched you train, I got… Inspiration. So I tried it on my own and… It happened..." Dale replied as he tried really hard to explain himself

Testros raised his hand, prompting Dale to stop.

"Alright, that\'s enough."

"You saw me employ Mana, tried it out for yourself without understanding what it was or its dangers, and that ended up in you opening your Heart Gate miraculously, I know that story."

\'This is truly a lot for someone that never felt Mana in his life... Although I guess that\'s how unpredictable enlightenment can be, sometimes, decades or years\' worth of training can pass by in the blink of an eye...\'

\'Or perhaps he is simply talented...\'

\'Or both.\'

"I\'ll ask just to be sure, but you never controlled, nor felt Mana in your life. Is this correct?"

Dale nodded, there was no need to lie here.

As he said before, the most he knew came from past iterations of games, but he has no idea how his experiences back then would affect this world.

And in any case, while playing those games, he never felt any sort of sensation as close to what he felt a few hours ago…

Because... He was a normal player at the time, and also someone that played within the confines of lowered pain receptors.

"The only thing I know about Mana came from a book I read not long ago while I was recovering from my injuries… This one." Dale said as he took out the book about Mana Circuits

\'I have yet to finish it though...\'

"Hm... Okay…"

\'As always, this young man is jumping stages… This isn\'t a book he should be setting his eyes on.\'

\'I expected this already, he seeking out things on his own is exactly what he\'s been doing ever since he arrived at the Village.\'

\'In that case... If that was his first time dealing with this… Yes... This won\'t do.\'

\'Taking this slowly as I wanted may result in undesirable effects… Or a depreciation of his Talents and Efforts.\'

\'The question is how fast I should take this, and what sort of things should I leave to practice rather than to theory.\'

After thinking for a little while, Testros knew how he would train the young man in front of him.

"For starters, let us do some basic exercises, I want to test the limits of your control and sensitivity so we can have a base to work with tomorrow."

"After this, I\'ll teach you the basics of Mana and how we... Or should I say, the warriors of the Southern Corps, employ it."

\'This is the basis of the Southern Corps doctrines and teachings, all books follow from here.\'

\'Even if there are advanced forms not taught to simpler soldiers, it\'ll do Dale no harm to learn something simpler from the get-go instead of withholding this stage for the sake of seeking better forms.\'

"Focus Dale, because after me, it\'ll be you trying it out."

/Lift... Shine.../

He lifted his left hand, and after a second, the tip of his finger started to glow slightly, even under the faint sunlight, it shone in faint red light...

"..."

Dale soon realized that the red glow wasn\'t from the Mana itself, but because the source of the light was coming from within his body and passing through his skin, just like when you stick a flashlight to your fingers.

"First, try to move a portion of your Mana to your finger just like I did." He said seriously as his finger stopped shinning, going back to its normal colors

"Oh? Is this a test?" Dale asked, amused

"Yes, I want to see how good you are at it... But let me be clear, this isn\'t a competition."

"Don\'t try to be fast, nor try to move large amounts, just try to be smooth, stick with the pace you are most comfortable with... Else you may risk blowing up your finger."

"Blowing up my... Finger?..." Dale asked as his eyelids twitched

"What? Handling Mana was never supposed to be a safe thing to do... Although mostly harmless, if you don\'t take precautions, you may get yourself injured."

"Just like holding a sword can be dangerous, it would take a lot of effort for an adult to fatally wound themselves with it on their own..."

"But even a small candle can start a forest fire."

\'Normally, I would have you go through a few sessions of reading and simple mental training before this, but for him, I\'ve decided to jump these stages and have him feel it rather than studying it.\'

\'If he fails, no problem, we can start from the basis, he would need to read those eventually anyway, it\'s just that he may feel a bit bored...\'

\'But its up to me to set him back on course if he starts to deviate from it due to unwillingness.\'

\'Now that we set course, we can\'t stop it, I won\'t allow it.\'

/Gulp.../

Dale gulped dry, but he shook his head, regaining his confidence.

"The pace I\'m most comfortable with… Okay." Dale mumbled with a nod

\'That\'s simple enough, I just need to remember that feeling…\'

\'But... It won\'t take too much to be slightly cautious...\'

Just like Testros did, Dale lifted his left hand and focused…

1 second turned into 5, and 5 turned into 20…

/Shine…/

But eventually, his entire hand started to faintly glow.

And if you were to pay more attention, the veins in his arm were also shinning, but not as concisely as his finger tip.

This went all the way to his chest, although that couldn\'t be seen due to his shirt.

"I did it."

Dale opened his eyes and stared at his hand, smiling proudly.

\'Much simpler than I thought, there was no need to be that cautious... Still, I\'m happy that I took my time.\'

\'Better be too cautious rather than overshoot and lose a limb.\'

"Uhum…"

But despite Dale\'s proud look, Testros didn\'t seem impressed in the least, instead, he looked at Dale with an inquisitive look, analyzing his performance.

\'That was a fast response, his Mana sense and control are rather high for a beginner… Much higher than I expected.\'

\'I told him to choose a comfortable range to work with, but this was much more than I expected…\'

\'And I see no discomfort, meaning, his Circuits must be rather robust to allow circulation despite how long they\'ve been neglected, and his body\'s affinity for Mana must be high as well... Perhaps high enough for him to become a Mage...\'

\'Or he\'s just not showing it, but given the warnings I gave him, he would\'ve told me about it by now.\'

\'A shame... I have no idea how to lead him onto that path.\'

From Testros\' perspective, such a magic-focused profession was Noble in a sense, and having the talent to partake in it meant that Dale\'s future was boundless...

And for him, it was certainly a shame he couldn\'t help him seek that path out.

\'Well, such control over Mana was to be expected, he did open his Heart Gate, and his original Vessel was extremely rather large for someone that never trained it…\'

\'Just to be sure...\'

Testros looked at Dale and asked:

"Did you feel any discomfort?"

Dale shook his head.

"On the contrary, it felt quite smooth and it even felt somewhat pleasant, like drinking cold water and feeling it go down your belly on a hot day."

"And just like you asked, I believe I have enough space to push myself harder…"

If he were to compare this feeling with something he felt in real life, Dale felt as if he had grabbed a 1 kg weight when in fact, he was used to lifting 20 kg.

Barely negligible.

"That\'s good, but there\'s no need for us to aim too far ahead."

"If we try to run before we even learn how to walk, we may risk tripping down."

\'Much less in my living room, I don\'t want my house to blow up.\'

"This is enough for a first try, but let\'s see if this was beginner\'s luck shall we?" Testros said with a small smile after he finished going through Dale\'s first attempt at handling Mana

Testros lifted his right hand and pointed it toward the middle of his chest.

"I want you to perform a full Cycle."

…

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Notes

I hope things haven\'t changed too much in tone.

When I first wrote this chapter, it had been 2 weeks since I last wrote another, so there might be some things that may feel a bit off, but hopefully, I fixed most of it with the edit.

I\'m here in case of anything.

Peace!