The next day, Kael wake up at 5 AM. The sky was still cloaked in the soft hues of early morning as he stepped outside, the crisp air brushing against his skin.
Without wasting a moment, he made his way to his usual training spot. Before starting his workout, he took a deep breath, stretching his limbs as he mulled over his next steps. He thought about which exercises he could add to his routine to push himself further, increasing both the difficulty and intensity.
After deciding, he started his session, increasing the repetitions of his previous exercises and incorporating new ones alongside them.
When he finally finished, he gasped heavily, sweat dripping down his cheeks. "Huff… Huff… This workout plan is way harder than my previous one. It'll take some time to get comfortable with it. Once I figure out whether pressure seals have any negative effects… if they don't, I should ask Helena to make one for me. Or better yet, I could create one myself after learning the necessary runes."
With his thoughts concluded, Kael returned home. After breakfast, he told Helena he might be about half an hour late for lunch and that they shouldn't wait for him to eat.
Later, he stood before a large oak tree with a humanoid dent embedded in its bark. Extending his right hand, he focused. After about half a minute, faint lightning sparks flickered around his arm. A few seconds later, they converged near his palm.
Kael looked at his palm. "Let's see how much power I can exert in a single attack." With that, he launched a lightning bolt, formed as the sparks merged together.
Observing the spot where the lightning bolt hit, Kael shook his head "It's pitiful… This barely even counts as an attack. All it did was lightly char a small patch of the tree. If I use this attack on someone, Forgot about injuring them, They might feel tickles instead of feeling any pain."
With a deep breath, Kael muttered, "I need to focus on increasing the power behind this attack. Instead of generating multiple sparks and combining them, I should try to create a single lightning bolt with the same amount of power."
With that thought in mind, he gathered more mana in his hand and attempted to form a single, concentrated bolt. After a few seconds, a weak lightning strike shot towards the same tree—but it missed its intended target and was even weaker than his previous attempt.
"Hm… Creating a single bolt isn't as difficult as I expected. I just need better control over it during formation. Even though I managed it on my first try, it's much weaker than before, and my aim is terrible. Also, not all the mana I focused converted into the attack."
Kael made a decision. "Alright. I'll work on increasing the lightning bolt's power while simultaneously reducing the mana cost. At the same time, I need to learn how to generate multiple bolts and control them at once—it'll bring a qualitative change to my attacks."
He paused, thinking. "I remember a few low-level lightning spells from the novel. They're simple enough to implement without putting myself at risk. I'll start practicing them once I can generate multiple lightning bolts in quick succession."
With his plan set, Kael continued training, focusing on refining his lightning attacks.
After five hours, he ran out of mana, but a small smile tugged at his lips "It's been nearly a year since I exhausted my mana entirely on practicing just my lightning element. Even though I ran out, I managed to slightly increase the power behind my attack. If I keep training like this for a few months, I'll be able to create multiple lightning bolts and control them efficiently."
Satisfied, he headed home for lunch.
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After lunch, Kael asked Helena about pressure seals. "Mom, what do these seals on this page do?"
Helena glanced at the page he was pointing to and replied, "Hmm… They're pressure seals. It's written at the top of the page, don't you see?"
"I saw that," Kael said. "I'm asking what their purpose is."
"As the name implies, they apply pressure on the body," Helena answered.
Kael followed up, "How do they do that exactly?"
"As you can see, there are a total of ten types of seals, each varying in the amount of pressure they can apply. These seals contain a total of forty different rune symbols, which are responsible for manipulating the gravity an individual experiences.
When someone uses these seals, they feel increased gravitational pressure on themselves, making their movements sluggish and heavy. They're also incredibly useful for physical training," Helena explained.
Listening to her explanation, Kael asked "They help with body training? But isn't that what weights are for?"
Helena shook her head saying "You're half-correct, Kael. Augmenters do use weights in their early training, but as they grow stronger, they need heavier weights. However, as the weight increases, so does the size of the objects they're using, which can become uncomfortable and restrictive during training.
Instead of enhancing their growth, the added bulk ends up stunting their progress."
She continued, "That's why augmenters use runecrafted seals instead. These seals apply pressure without forcing them to wear bulky equipment."
Nodding, Kael replied, "That makes sense. Why didn't I think of that? Mom, how much pressure can these seals put on someone?"
Helena replied, "With the seals available at the intermediate level, one can put up to 250 kg of pressure on themselves."
Kael then asked the question he had been meaning to. "Are there any harmful side effects to using these seals?"
Helena raised an eyebrow. "Side effects? Like what?"
Kael replied, "If someone uses them, would they stunt their growth?"
Guessing her son's intentions, Helena asked, "Are you thinking of using these seals while training?"
Since he saw no harm in telling her, Kael nodded.
"But why? Do you just want to try them because you find them interesting?" Helena asked.
Kael shook his head. "No. I want to increase the difficulty of my training by using them."
After a few minutes of thought, Helena said, "Alright. I'll make a seal for you that distributes pressure evenly across your body."
listening to her, Kael's eyes sparkled. "Thanks, Mom! You're the best!"
Helena put on a sad expression and sighed dramatically. "Hah… That's all I get for helping you?" She wiped away imaginary tears. "I'm hurt! You wounded my heart, sweetheart!"
Kael looked at her, dumbfounded. 'What the heck happened to her suddenly. She is fine till now. Hmm.. What's she playing at?'
To his question Helena immediately replied with a beaming face "If you give me a kiss on my cheeks! I'll consider this a fair trade."
Kael immediately refused. "No way!"
"Why not? You used to give me plenty of kisses before you turned eight," Helena pouted.
Kael frowned. "That was when I was a kid."
Helena raised an eyebrow. "And what are you now? An old man? If you want the seal, then you have to do what I ask."
Kael scoffed. "Fine! I don't need it. I'll learn the seal myself."
Helena covered her mouth with a teasing smirk. "Oh my! Is my son already going through puberty? If you don't give me a kiss, I won't let you play with Emily."
Hearing this Kael protested "Hey! that's not fair!"
'If she had threatened to stop my runecrafting lessons, I wouldn't have minded. But not letting me play with Emily? That's way too cruel.'
Helena smirked. "If you think it's unfair, then do what you have to do." She turned her cheek toward him.
Rolling his eyes, Kael relented and gave her a quick peck.
Satisfied, Helena smiled and began crafting the seal on a square-shaped paper.
After studying Runecrafting for a while, Kael took Emily outside to show her around the village. They played together until it was time for dinner.
After finishing his meal, Kael returned to his room, sat cross-legged, and began meditating.
After a few minutes of deep concentration, he sensed the ambient mana around him. However, when he attempted to absorb it, he failed once again. Still, he persisted for two hours before finally falling onto his bed and drifting into sleep.
The next couple of months passed in a similar routine.
One night, as Kael sat cross-legged on the floor, his breathing steady, he once again focused on meditation. It had become a familiar routine, yet no matter how much he tried, he had never succeeded in absorbing ambient mana.
But tonight was different.
All of a sudden, his eyes snapped open, a flicker of excitement flashing across them.
'Finally!'
A strange yet exhilarating sensation spread through his body. For the first time, he could feel the ambient mana around him responding to his will, seeping into his body instead of slipping away like before.
A small smile formed on his lips. 'So this is what it feels like to absorb mana directly…'
His body trembled slightly as the mana integrated with his reserves. The sensation was refreshing, almost invigorating.
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Author's Note:
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