Chapter 19 Outspoken Determination

{A/N} It's longer than the last one enjoy.

-----

Standing up, Jaylen went to open the door, revealing the familiar face of Mell. Her expression was filled with concern, her eyes scanning him for any signs of distress.

"Young Master," Mell's voice was tinged with worry as she stared at Jaylen, her brow furrowed slightly.

"I'm alright, Aunt Mell," Jaylen reassured her, sensing her anxiety. "It's just that I finally found out why I can't use mana. So, I tried to communicate with the energy I can use but had no results."

A reassuring smile softened Mell's visage as she responded, "It's alright, Jaylen. It takes time to make progress. You may not have made any progress this time, but you definitely will next time. After all, I know how talented you are and how much hard work you're willing to put in."

"You're right, Aunt Mell. I guess I was just in a rush because everyone else will soon surpass me in realm," Jaylen admitted, his shoulders relaxing slightly. "I know better than anyone that getting into the third stage for Elemental Attunement was just pure luck."

"It's fine, Jaylen, but don't be in such a rush. You have plenty of time. Take it slow, enjoy life—you're still young," Mell advised, her smile warm and comforting.

Jaylen nodded, appreciating her heartfelt advice. He stepped out of the meditation room, now standing in the hall with Mell. The ambient light of the hallway illuminated their faces, casting a soft glow that made Mell's smile even more radiant.

Mell's smile brightened further, seeing that Jaylen had taken her words to heart. "Good, now let's go eat," she said, her voice filled with warmth and encouragement.

In the following days, Jaylen diligently attempted to communicate with Chaos Energy, but at the crucial moment, it always eluded him, remaining just out of reach. Despite his relentless efforts, he had no results to show for his hard work, and with each passing day, Jaylen's frustration and anger grew.

Throughout the weekend, Jaylen's mounting emotions weren't very evident as he poured all his energy into training. However, today marked his return for the third week of school. Seated in class, Jaylen was unusually silent. An almost palpable aura of frustration seemed to radiate from him, keeping everyone at a distance.

This tense atmosphere persisted until class officially began. Miss Xirenia, who had just started teaching, immediately sensed the strange mood in the room. Her keen eyes quickly identified the source, landing on Jaylen. Observing his demeanor, she had a small inkling of why he was acting this way. Letting out a sigh, she called out to him, "Orpheus, go take a walk to cool off."

Jaylen, though unsure why Miss Xirenia had told him to leave, didn't ask any questions. Obediently, he stood and made his way to the door. Just as he was stepping out, he heard Miss Xirenia's next words, "Go take your anger and frustration out on a training doll or something."

The door closed behind him with a soft thud, and Jaylen found himself alone in the quiet hallway. He didn't have the chance to respond, nor did he want to. He paused, looking both ways down the hall—one direction led out of the Libra complex, the other towards the training rooms. He hesitated for a moment, considering his options.

After a brief contemplation, Jaylen decided. He turned and walked purposefully towards the training rooms, his footsteps echoing in the sleek, polished corridor.

Upon arriving at the training room, Jaylen grabbed a practice sword from the stand, the cool metal hilt a stark contrast to the heat of his simmering anger. He walked to a random training doll, its synthetic surface gleaming under the bright lights. Lifting the sword, Jaylen swung it diagonally across the doll, the blade slicing through the air with a precise whoosh before striking its target. He fixed his stance, focusing on the fundamentals, and repeated the motion several more times.

At first, his form was perfect, each swing a textbook example of technique and control. But as he continued, the disciplined rhythm began to falter. His swings grew erratic, his control slipping away as the emotions he had been holding back surged to the surface.

With each swing, the dam inside him cracked further. His frustration and anger poured out, raw and unfiltered. He began to shout, each word a cathartic release of the grievances that had been festering within him. "Oh, he's not good enough to be the heir," he mimicked, his voice dripping with sarcasm and bitterness.

"Oh yeah? Well, go to hell!" he yelled, his voice echoing in the empty room as he slashed the doll again, the force of his blow causing the practice sword to vibrate in his grip.

"Look at this white hair; it proves even more that you're a disgrace to the family." Jaylen mimicked this line with a mocking tone, then let out a bitter chuckle. His next words were cold, laced with venom. "If anyone is a disgrace, it's that sorry excuse for a son you have, chasing skirts all day." He slashed the doll with such ferocity that the impact reverberated up his arm.

"Everyone else can do it. Why can't you?" he shouted, his voice breaking with the weight of his pent-up emotions. "Uhh, I don't know, maybe because you're comparing me to actual gods!" Jaylen slashed forth with even greater strength, his muscles straining, leaving a deep dent in the doll.

"Haa, Haa," Jaylen panted, his breaths coming in deep, labored gasps. He fixed his stance, his muscles trembling from both exhaustion and pent-up rage. Preparing for a stronger strike, he screamed out the two things that haunted him the most. "What are you depressed about? Just deal with it. Well, I don't know, Father, maybe if everyone in this family wasn't so goddamn strong, I could!"

His voice echoed through the empty training room, each word dripping with bitterness and pain. Jaylen's grip tightened on the practice sword, his knuckles turning white. His eyes burned with unshed tears as he relived the conversations that had cut him deeper than any blade.

"Sorry, Jaylen, I'd love to help you, but I'm busy right now. Maybe next time." His mother's dismissive words rang in his ears. "I guess, Mother, you really like saying 'maybe next time,' knowing that there won't be a next time because you're always busy being someone else's role model instead of a mother!" The anger in his voice was so palpable it seemed to take physical form, surrounding him in a dark, oppressive cloud.

"And you know what? I will deal with it all, and I'll show you I won't need a next time!" With a final, primal cry, Jaylen swung the sword with all his might. The blade cut through the air with a high-pitched whistle before striking the training doll. For a moment, it seemed as though the sword had passed clean through without any effect. Then, the top half of the doll slid off, hitting the ground with a heavy thud, revealing a perfectly clean cut.

Breathing heavily, Jaylen stood there, staring at the bisected doll. His chest heaved with the effort, his heart pounding in his ears. The room was silent, save for the faint hum of the training equipment. As he admired his handiwork, a voice broke the silence from behind him.

"You know, those dolls aren't exactly cheap," the voice remarked, a hint of amusement and reprimand woven into the words.

Turning towards the voice, Jaylen greeted, "Miss Jevelyn."

There stood the elusive Headmaster Jevelyn Schwickrath, dressed in a black formal dress that hugged her curves just enough to be appropriate for school. The dress was adorned with the emblem of the school staff, a green snake, coiling around her waist with its head resting on her left breast. This complemented her striking green hair and eyes. A smile played on her lips as she looked at Jaylen. "You're supposed to call me headmaster during school hours."

"Sorry, Headmaster," Jaylen apologized, bowing his head briefly.

She sighed softly. "It's fine, don't worry about it. Now, why are you here and not in class?"

"Miss Xirenia told me to leave class and cool my head," Jaylen replied, his voice still tinged with residual anger.

"Why is that?" she inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Because I was frustrated and angry about my lack of progress in training," he admitted, his frustration evident.

"Really, that's it?" Headmaster Jevelyn asked, her tone curious. When Jaylen nodded, she continued, "Well, what were you training that got you this frustrated? I'm sure you know better than anyone that it takes time to see results."

"I was training to utilize Chaos energy after discovering I have the capability to use it instead of mana. But after having no results these past few days, it's been weighing on my mind," Jaylen explained, his voice heavy with the weight of his struggles.

"I see, to think you would be able to use Chaos energy," she mused, a thoughtful look crossing her face.

"Do you know something about Chaos energy, Headmaster?" Jaylen asked, a hint of hope in his voice.

"Hmm, not much. What I do know is that Chaos energy takes time to master. I could try to find more information for you if you'd like?"

"Really? That would be great. Thank you, Headmaster," Jaylen said, a glimmer of relief in his eyes.

"No problem. Now, don't you think you should be returning to class?"

"Yes, you're right. I'll return right away," Jaylen agreed. With that, he returned the practice sword to its stand and began heading back to class, hoping he wasn't late for the first period since homeroom had ended a few minutes ago.

When Jaylen finally made it back to class, he found that the first period had already begun, but the teacher was nowhere in sight. Instead, the students were gathered in groups of three, chatting animatedly, with one group having four members. Unsure of what to do, Jaylen scanned the room and his eyes landed on Sarah and Brandon, who were signaling for him to join them.

Making his way over, Sarah greeted him with a teasing smile. "Hey, grumpy."

Jaylen rolled his eyes and took a seat next to the pair, responding nonchalantly, "Yeah, yeah, whatever. So, what are we doing?"

Brandon, who had been scribbling on a piece of paper, set his pencil down and looked up at Jaylen. "We're supposed to write down a list of magical phenomena that have occurred in the last hundred years."

"Oh, what about the one during The Bloody Campaign?" Jaylen suggested, his tone becoming more serious.

"The one the year before you were born?" Sarah asked for confirmation, her eyes widening slightly.

"Of course, it's the only one with such a notorious name because of how devastating it was," Jaylen replied, his expression darkening at the memory. Though he was born a year later, his father had recounted the event in vivid detail. Some of the strongest people on the planet had gone to the epicenter where the remnants appeared. There were no survivors.

"That works. That was when the manifestation of death appeared for a few seconds," Brandon added, jotting down notes on the paper. On Yonus, the manifestation of death usually signaled that Death's physical form would be born during that century.

Brandon continued writing on the paper, meticulously noting down the reasons behind the phenomena and other relevant details. Without looking up, he spoke, "Hey Jaylen, we're sorry about earlier."

Sarah nodded in agreement, her expression softening. "Yeah, we weren't sure how to help you deal with your emotions. That's never really been our strong suit. Yuki and Sil were always better at this."

Jaylen sighed, running a hand through his hair. "It's alright, guys. No need to push yourselves out of your comfort zones. We all know they were better at this than us. But Sil isn't here with us anymore, and me 

and Yuki..." Jaylen trailed off, scoffing at the mention of him and Yuki.

The atmosphere around the group grew somber. Their once tight-knit group of five friends had fractured, leaving behind only painful memories of dreams they once shared. Those dreams now felt like heavy chains, binding them to a past they couldn't escape.

Jaylen's eyes clouded with unresolved emotions as he stared at the desk. The weight of loss and betrayal lingered in the air, palpable and suffocating. He glanced at Sarah and Brandon, appreciating their presence even if they couldn't fully understand his turmoil. It wasn't their fault; they were just as lost as he was.

Breaking the heavy atmosphere, Brandon changed the topic, locking eyes with Jaylen. "What were you so frustrated about?"

Jaylen sighed, leaning back in his chair. "Remember that book you told me about? Well, I found the answers I was looking for, but I haven't had any results while training to utilize it."

Brandon nodded thoughtfully. "I see."

Before the conversation could get too deep, Sarah interjected, her eyes lighting up with sudden excitement. "Hey guys, how about that phenomenon that happened a few years ago?"

Brandon looked puzzled for a moment. "Which one?"

"You know, the one when the moon of Aliat disappeared from its usual orbit," Sarah explained, waving her arms for emphasis.

"Oh yeah, I remember that," Jaylen said, his interest piqued. "It ended up hovering above the Shadowfell Domain."

"Exactly! I was in the City of Shadows when it happened, with my mom, picking up something for my dad," Sarah confirmed.

"What? You were in the city and didn't visit me?" Jaylen asked, pretending to be hurt.

Sarah rolled her eyes, a playful smile on her lips. "I was only there for three hours, Jaylen. Clearly not enough time to climb that big ass mountain just to visit you for ten minutes."

Jaylen chuckled, shaking his head. "Excuses, excuses."

The mood lightened as they reminisced about the strange event, their shared memories bringing a sense of normalcy back to the conversation. The tension from earlier began to dissipate, replaced by the comfort of friendship and familiar banter.

"Alright, I'll write that down," Brandon said, beginning to jot down notes. While writing, he glanced up at Jaylen. "Speaking of which, Jaylen, if the training method you're using isn't working, how about looking at the problem from a different angle?"

Jaylen pondered this for a moment before nodding. "Hmm... I'll try it. It's better than continuously trying to form a connection just by meditating all the time." He realized that the way he had been trying to communicate with Chaos energy was based on the most optimal method for Mana. But Chaos energy was something far stronger, requiring a different approach for success.

"Then I'd recommend trying to understand the next realm," Brandon suggested. "During Elemental Attunement, your crystal sapling would be synchronizing with your elemental affinities. But since you can't use mana, whatever takes its place would synchronize instead. Using that, you could gain a better understanding of what you're working with." Brandon set his pencil down, having finished writing.

"Alright, I'll take your advice and focus on my realm," Jaylen agreed, nodding thoughtfully.

"Good, now that you have that figured out, let's focus on finishing this assignment," Sarah chimed in, her tone brisk but encouraging.

Agreeing with a nod, the group returned their attention to the assignment. As they worked, the classroom buzzed with quiet conversation and the scratch of pencils on paper. Time slipped by, and before they knew it, the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day. Jaylen felt a mix of relief and determination, ready to tackle his training from a new perspective.

—--

Chapter End