Apprenticeship

Arno explained

"The first problem is the change in your aura.

Do you know what changed?"

Leus shook his head

"No, I feel no change."

Arno took note of that, and continued in a neutral voice

"It's your regard for life"

"What about it?"

"It has lowered"

" ... What do you mean?"

"You might not feel it, But your regard for life, As in valuing life itself, has reduced.

Without self-control, you may keep hurting people until taking lives feels ordinary.

Set boundaries and create rules, Create a Moral Code and follow it. 

Leus, Honestly, I do not have the moral high ground to tell you how to use your powers, But as your Mentor, I suggest you control yourself and think before you act—for your own good."

Leus nodded and said in a solemn voice

"I understand, I'll definitely do it, Thanks, Master"

Arno nodded

"Now with that out the way, Let's talk about your affinity.

It's extremely peculiar, It's not possible to get spells for it without the help of a Royal Mage, Like the Duke, So that will have to be delayed, For a long time."

Leus felt disappointed to hear that, His face became sullen, So Arno said

"Don't feel too bad, This isn't necessarily a bad thing. 

Having a rare affinity means your abilities can't be easily predicted or countered. Here's some advice: Keep your affinity a secret, and eliminate anyone who knows it. That way, no one can come up with a direct counter since those who know are no longer around."

Leus didn't expect to hear that

'What happened to rules and boundaries?'

But obviously, He didn't say it loudly

" ... I understand"

Arno nodded and said

"Very well, Your apprenticeship has officially started.

You already proved your worth, But that doesn't mean you can become lazy or take it easy, Do you understand that?"

"Of course, Master"

"Now Let's get to the important things.

I don't understand the reason for your anomalies, Is it because of your age? Are you just unique? Is there more to your affinity that I'm unaware of? I don't know, I will research it, However, Until then, we should take advantage of it.

Arno put his note aside and spoke

"First, Let's start with the basics, I need you to understand the foundation of spells and magic first, So you can understand why you can control some elements and you can't control some, There's also the possibility that we might make you able to control these elements which you're currently unable to control, Like Darkness."

Leus nodded while thinking to himself

'So Sal was right, It's a secret ...' 

'No one knows that children don't get bottlenecks ...' 

'I think I should keep it that way'

Arno interrupted Leus' thoughts by saying

"Let's talk about spells

"Spells aren't all the same, There are different Tiers.

First Tier spells are used by controlling the Mana inside you

An example of these spells is Mana Vision. 

This is also how Knights add Mana to their swords, Anyone can use these spells, They're incredibly easy.

Second Tier spells encompass a range of strengths and values.

Take the Water spell, for instance—it's simple, and even untrained soldiers with Water affinity can use it. It's also quite common.

On the flip side, the Fireball spell is more challenging. It requires greater control to maintain the fireball's shape, more Mana, and is harder to acquire since it's an attack spell.

Despite their differences, both spells belong to the Second Tier because they share the same fundamental principle: transforming neutral World Mana to Mana of a specific element, irrespective of the element and the spell's difficulty.

Lastly, there are Third Tier spells. These spells merge the power of Mana from two distinct elements into one. Casting them demands not only more Mana and enhanced control but also the ability to master the Mana of two different elements.

The more capable you are in using higher-tier spells, The higher your understanding of mana becomes, And the more you are able to control it, allowing you to become stronger."

Arno took a pause and asked Leus

"Do you understand?"

Leus nodded

"Yeah, Easy, Three Tiers of Spells, Harder as we go up"

Arno nodded and continued

"There are also Life Force spells that utilize your Life Force to heal either yourself or others.

Additionally, there are methods to use Life Force for Mana generation, but let's set that aside for now.

Surpassing the Life Force threshold is what enables evolution, transforming you into a higher-level being, and enhancing vitality, strength, and longevity.

It's important to note that while Life Force can heal, Light Magic also possesses this ability, albeit with more limitations."

After Leus heard everything from Arno he had a rough idea about why he could control some elements and couldn't control some, But he had a question first

"What about skills? How to gain it?"

"Skills are what allow you to evolve from the Third Realm to the Fourth one.

To unlock a Skill, You need a strong mastery over Mana.

The better you are in controlling Mana the easier it is to acquire a Skill, But that doesn't mean that acquiring a Skill depends Solely on controlling Mana, No, It also depends on your willpower, Because you must force the Mana to take the shape and characteristics that you desire.

Kinda like silent casting but in a more complicated way."

After Arno said that, he asked

"Now, Do you understand why you can control some elements and you can't control some?"

Leus nodded

"Yes, It's because I don't know of a Second Tier spell of these elements"

Arno took note of Leus' answer

'Unnatural intelligence.'

He didn't comment on it and maintained his blank expression

"Correct.

Having spells eases the process, instead of having to entirely construct the concept of the Mana of the element you want, You simply have to replicate it.

While that's not easy, It's vastly easier than doing it without the spells."

"I understand now ... But then, What will we do about my affinity? We don't have spells for it?"

"Leave that for now, First, you must learn to control the elements that you're unable to control.

You need Light and Darkness spells of the second tier"

" ... Fine, But I want to be able to evaluate my opponent.

I'm unable to differentiate between Mortals and Knights, I can guess if someone is an Elite Knight because they look a bit stronger, But nothing else"

Arno nodded

"There's a Light Spell for that, You'll be able to learn it easily"

"Thanks, Master"

'That's two of the most important things out of the way, Good'

Arno waved his hands and said

"Consider this room your training ground.

Activate as many spells as you want inside the barrier in the middle; it will contain the spells, preventing any damage to the room.

And since your own mana doesn't harm you, no matter how strong the spell, it won't pose any risk to you."

Leus looked around with excitement

'Huh, A personal training grounds for me, Amazing, At least I don't have to shoot at the sky anymore'

After Leus was done looking around, Arno spoke in a solemn tone

"Now Let's talk about the details of your training and what you will start with"