New sword.

Edwin showered and switched into a fresh set of clothing. He made his way to the local cafe, where Allan, Spencer and Edwin would usually meet before lessons to drink a cup of tea or milk. They mostly conversed about their progress in training, or sometimes about beasts the trio learned about on a daily basis.

Although the index provided a basic understanding of the beast at a moments notice, it is still better to know the details. The early preparations program provided basic tutoring in armed combat, essence mastery, rune literacy, and in general knowledge of beasts and their habitats.

After having finished their morning meet-up, and with the lesson drawing near, they made their way towards the training grounds. Edwin never really grow tired of these lessons. They prepared him for his future endeavors in the army, while also providing a relatively straight path towards power.

Arriving at the sunny training field they saw that plenty of children had arrived earlier than them. It was obvious that many were excited about the new weapons, which was understandable considering that it would also mark the time at which they began their first expeditions.

Time went on, and Christopher inevitably arrived. This time with a small pouch hanging from his belt.

''Alright dear students! I'll cut the nonsense, we talked about this yesterday. Allan come over.'' Christopher said. While fishing a small crystal out of his pocket. The crystal was of brown colour and had a single rune engraved onto it's surface. ''I didn't manage to get two rapiers for you, but it's contents shouldn't disappoint.''

Allan nodded and cast a little of his essence into his crystal. The crystal burst, and revealed it's contents. There was one rapier inside, together with it's scabbard. The rapier was of a simple unadorned design, not displaying any runes. The hilt had a small none-reflective spot, making rune-placement easy.

What made Allan smile was the scabbard. It was of a pointed design, the tip being reinforced with metal and the belt attachment being partially being made of metal, acting as a hand guard. Although it couldn't slash in any way, it was still capable of guarding Allan to a certain degree without increasing the weight too much.

''The scabbard I had custom-made, making it quite expensive. Put it to good use.'' Christopher said before moving on to the next student. He cared about his students, and in Allan's case it would have been too much of a waste to not modify the standard design a bit. Christopher could easily afford it, he was a master after all. His handsome salary could easily pay this small cost, but if the same thing were to be with all of his students...

---

Christopher addressed the students by the crystals he pulled out of his pouch. Spencer, who came up before Edwin, received an adjustable bow together with a quiver and some arrow tips. He would have to create his own arrows since he was still growing, and the army had no idea how tall he would end up being.

The bow's core was made of a beautiful piece of wood, though not hand-carved, it was still made with quality machining. The bow's limbs were made of metal, and came in two different sizes. The string was made of fiber coming from a weed growing in the mountainous northwest of the empire. The region was known for it's craftsmanship and metal production, making it the perfect region for weapon production.

---

''Edwin, your turn.'' Christopher said. Edwin did as he was told, and walked up to him. He received his crystal, activated it, and scrutinized his weapon. He received a sleek long-sword. It was just 30cm shorter than Edwin, the blade being 110cm long, and the grip being roughly 20cm long. For now it was unwieldy, but he would soon have to get used to it. Luckily he trained with the rod, otherwise he not have been able to wield it at all.

The blade was of reflective and sharp, with a small patch at the hilt being filed to a rough state. This was done to all of the weapons in order to provide a chance of learning rune craft to a basic level.

Edwin moved to a free spot, and swung his blade a few times. A one-handed grip was ineffective and almost impossible, only a two handed grip would yield good results.

Christopher told the students to sheathe their weapons, and follow him. Arriving at the church, he told the students to wait. He went inside and came out shortly. Following him was a middle-aged woman.

''Hello, my name is Olivia and I'm your new teacher. I'm taking a break from the battlefield, and decided to take on some students. Together with Christopher I will guarantee your safety in the coming expeditions.'' She said in a stern tone. She seemed to be in her early fifties, which didn't say a lot in this world.

People's life-spans grow along-side their soul-ranks. Meaning that Edwin, who has a soul-rank of II, would've had a longer life than Spencer, as an example. Training and fighting changed things up, however. If Spencer were to use a weapon capable of absorbing his foes' souls, his soul rank along-side his weapons rank would grow until meeting the human ceiling of rank V.

The students nodded and individually give their greetings as well. They then went out to the fields, where they were assigned by the villagers to do some pest-control. Although they were still weaker than the adults more hands were always welcomed.