18/Apprenticeship

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The morning after the dinner, everyone was preparing with apprehension. They had received outfits specially designed for the intense training sessions that awaited them. Today marked the beginning of their theoretical training, where they would learn about the history of this mysterious world, the secrets of the dungeons, the dangers of monsters, the mastery of elements, and many other essential knowledge.

Maïli, always dedicated and proactive, was already up in the courtyard at dawn. Her movements were precise and fluid, a testament to her discipline and commitment. Beside her, Eva was also training, determined to follow her friend's example.

"Thank you again for last night." said Eva, gratitude in her voice.

"No problem." replied Maïli with a reassuring smile.

"Do you think he was going to kill me?" asked Eva, her serious tone betraying her worry.

"No, I think he just wanted to give you a warning. You disrespected him and his family, and he wanted to remind you of the potential consequences." Maïli replied.

"How did you want me to react?" asked Eva, slightly vexed.

"I'm not blaming you, don't worry. Moreover, it would be counterproductive to kill you. He would be eliminating one of his heroes and risking alienating the others." Maïli responded gently.

"I suppose there's a but." added Eva, raising an eyebrow.

"But if any of us were to leave the castle, he would probably kill them." Maïli replied gravely.

"And Logan?" asked Eva, worried.

"Logan had no powers, so he didn't pose a threat. But we, as heroes, if we left the castle, we could turn against him or join another country. In that case, he would eliminate us without hesitation. But that's just my hypothesis, based on my understanding of the events." said Maïli.

"So, what should we do?" asked Eva, determined.

"We need to become stronger! So strong that he would think twice before trying anything against us!" replied Maïli with conviction.

"Very well, I'll pass the message to the others," concluded Eva before walking away. There were still a few hours before lunch and the start of their training.

Meanwhile, the king was discussing with his son and daughter in an adjacent room.

"This Maïli is a very clever girl. She managed to expose some of my contradictions to the others. What do you think of her, my son?" asked the king.

"I like her more and more." replied Raphael with a sly smile.

"Ha ha, you already want to make her yours." laughed the king. "And you, my daughter?"

"She is talented and intelligent." she replied, her tone neutral.

"Yes, intelligent, maybe a little too much for my taste." added the king, pensive.

A silence fell before Raphael spoke again.

"By the way, father, were you going to kill that girl called Eva?" asked Raphael, curious.

"Kill her? Of course not. The heroes are people we need, and we can't summon them at will." replied the king, shaking his head.

After breakfast, they were all taken to a room resembling a classroom. The walls were lined with ancient maps and charts illustrating various monsters and mythical creatures. Shelves filled with dusty books and scrolls completed the decor, adding a studious and mysterious atmosphere to the room. In the center of the room, a bearded man stood tall, his piercing gaze sweeping the room with natural authority.

"Good morning, I will be your teacher. Please take your seats." he said with authority.

Everyone quietly settled into their chairs.

"We leave high school to become heroes only to end up taking classes. Isn't that ironic?" whispered Shawn, laughing with Maverick.

"Alright, I am Mr. Marcou and I will be teaching you many things. We will talk about history, professions, elements, the Church, the guild, monsters, and dungeons. But first, a question: don't you find it strange that we all speak the same language?" asked Marcou, intriguing his students.

"It's true that since we arrived here, we haven't raised the question." admitted Maël.

"Well, let me answer it for you. When heroes are summoned, they receive what is called the blessing of worlds. This blessing allows those who are summoned to understand and speak immediately the language of the world they are summoned to." explained Marcou.

"And who grants this blessing?" asked Maverick, curious.

"It is granted by the world itself through mana, which stores information. When you are summoned, this information is transmitted to you in small bits. This blessing does not appear on your status." specified Marcou.

"Well, now we know why we speak and understand your language." said Maïli, satisfied with the explanation.

"I will now teach you everything you need to know about our world." announced Marcou, beginning his long monologue.

The teacher started by talking about professions.

"There are a multitude of diverse professions. Some are rarer and therefore more powerful. Each year, new professions appear or are discovered. Among the most common are: archers, lancers, knights, fighters, swordsmen, monks, and mages. As I said, there are a multitude of professions, listing them all would take too long. Moreover, there are class variations. For example, there are specialized mages." explained Marcou.

"What is a specialized mage?" asked Dan, intrigued.

"Specialized mages have a great affinity with a specific element, like fire. They are then called red mages." Marcou specified.

"So each color is associated with an element." added Eva.

"Exactly. Blue for water, red for fire, white for light, black for darkness, yellow for lightning, green for wood, gray for wind, azure for ice, and so on. The problem is that these mages have little affinity with other elements." explained Marcou.

"So very strong in one element, but weak in others." concluded Karine.

"Exactly, although there are exceptions." admitted Marcou.

"There are also variations like magical swordsmen, red monks, dragon riders, black knights. In short, there are a multitude of professions and variations, not to mention the emergence of new professions." added Marcou.

"Each profession therefore has skills and techniques affiliated with it." observed Maïli.

"Exactly, but the most important thing is not the profession, but what you do with it. The more you master your profession, the stronger you will be. A well-trained swordsman can very well defeat a magical swordsman, for example." explained Marcou.

"Is it possible to have multiple professions at the same time?" asked Emma, curious.

"Yes, you can even have three at the same time. So far, that's the maximum number of classes observed." replied Marcou.

"How can we obtain them?" asked Maïli, interested.

"I see some are eager to become stronger." (Marcou)

Marcou smiled as he saw the enthusiasm and impatience of some of his students at the idea of becoming stronger.

"Well, to obtain new professions, you need to acquire what are called Nexus. These are crystals of concentrated mana, very rare and difficult to obtain. However, your professions can also evolve if you become powerful enough."

"Stronger, meaning?" asked Shawn, intrigued.

"This doesn't concern you yet, because you are very far from it. But to be more precise, we are talking about reaching levels between 300 and 500." said Marcou, laughing softly.

"Oh, to be far, we are really far." Shawn said ironically, provoking some laughter in the room.

A boy then raised his hand, and Marcou gave him the floor.

"If there are items to obtain new classes, there must be many other useful items. Are there items to increase our stats and especially to obtain skills?" asked the boy, named Jay.

"Jay, is it? That's a good logical deduction." replied Marcou approvingly. "Indeed, there are items to increase your stats, as well as skill crystals to acquire new skills."

"I suppose these crystals are very rare too, but where can we get them?" continued Jay, visibly curious.

"As you can guess, Nexus crystals and skill crystals can generally be found in dungeons or by killing very high-level monsters. There is also the possibility of creating them through alchemists and their alchemy, but that takes a lot of time." explained Marcou.

"Well, I think I'm done for today. Your first training session will soon begin and you will meet your instructors. As for us, we will meet again tomorrow at the same time." concluded Marcou.

The students began to pack their things; the day promised to be intense and full of surprises.

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Special thanks to Rebecca/Amari/Zezima/Crowny_66/Bored dragon/ Sky_Shay/A_F_D/Fidelissama/Morgan/Arjunn/TheGreatSucc/Jared/ Grimjaw/Damion/ for her power stones.

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