Matthew awoke at the same time as usual, still feeling like he had been kicked by a horse. It was a feeling like having gravel in your bones. He could swear that he could hear his bones changing. He continued his routine any way with his perception training. He had reached the wall that was the twenty foot mark and now all he had to do was to continue to solidify that position. Try as he might he couldn't solidify it during this session. He had reached a secondary block at the eighteen feet mark. Not knowing how to fix this, he instead began to work on the enhanced memory technique for a bit then head off to school. "Alright class, I have important matters to attend to today so we will be doing another day of self study. Are there any questions before I leave?" Mr. Falls asked "Sir, my perception skill has reached a block of sorts at the eighteen feet mark and I'm uncertain how to over come it. Is there a method that you recommend?" Matthew asked before his
Since the school week was finished, Matthew dedicated himself to completing as much training as possible. The next skill that he needed to work on was enhanced reading. Like the other techniques, it was basically refining his eyes this time. The technique required him to gather mana into his eyes and refine them to basically become jewels. They would be come more durable and would be resistant to damage. This was just an added bonus to what the technique really did. In simple terms, his eyes would become like a camera, recording everything he sees and transmitting it to his mind where it would be stored. Now that he understood how the technique works, he got started. It would be fairly simple to complete this technique as the area that he had to refine was small. Gathering mana to his eyes and gradually increasing the concentration, he started out like he had with his brain since the technique suited him. The same needle point sized mana sphere took shape and
Matthew wanted to start with the second book he had received in class. The Anatomy of Mana was far more important to his situation since his body was changing in ways that were outside the norm. The first chapter read as an introduction of mana to the body. The changes that it brought to the body as the levels increased. The body would gradually improve as more mana was introduced and would even slow the effect of aging. This part of the book wasn't particularly interesting since this was knowledge he already knew in a sense. He was actively reshaping his body instead of the passive change that would happen when gathering mana into a mana core. The second chapter dealt entirely with the mana core. It detailed how the core could change, grow, and be damaged. There was even a section on cracked cores that detail how to heal one provided that it was already filled with mana and of a larger size. If I core be came damaged, a person could use a technique to condense th
With his reading finished, Matthew wanted to get back to his training. Starting with the perception training again, he now had to push and solidify his range to the fifty foot mark. This was a tall task as currently he was still sitting at the twenty-three foot mark. Getting to work, he began to push outwards with his mana sense. Little by little he was making progress and would eventually complete the greater grade and be able to elevate his perception to a true mana sense. Upgrading his skill to mana sense would be as far as he would be able to reach since he didn't have mana in his core to continue to refine it, but that was fine. The book left by his granddad only stated that he had to reach that level. After that, there was another skill that he needed to learn, but he hadn't reached that point yet so there wasn't much point in worrying about it yet. He was able to reach the thirty foot mark without much hinderance, but once he reached that point he couldn't
Morning came and it was time to get back to work. His bones didn't hurt today so he knew that the first step of refining his bones was now complete. This meant that his bones were now separated into two layers, the inner layer being refined to be harder than granite and the outer layer still being just regular bone. The refining process was still on going, but he would still have to actively work to continue his current progress. Today he decided to change it up a bit and did physical exercises first. He knew that he wouldn't be able to move around much once he finished the second round. With the exercises finished, he went out for a jog. This time around, he was able to make two full laps around the property before being too tired to run anymore. Making his way back inside and eating breakfast, he rested a bit before heading back to his room to start. Mentally preparing himself, he got to work. Gathering additional mana to the now thread sized stream of mana th
Since the arrival of mana, the majority of human cities had been destroyed and it had taken almost a hundred years to rebuild to the current point. Cities were more simple now compared to humanities peak. The current building style was similar to the Middle Ages since most modern technology didn't work anymore. Some things had been adapted through time, but over all most things like vehicles and the internet were a thing of the past. The mana net had only just recently become a thing, which had allowed the production of communication and storage devices. These devices remained fairly expensive though due to materials still being hard to come across due to mutated fauna around city areas. The town had a many different kinds of shops with everything from weapons to the newly emerged tech devices. While walking down the street, Matthew finally came across the store that he was searching for. The sign simply read solutions since it wasn't a mainstream shop owned by a unio
Matthew proceeded up the stairs and knocked on the doors which was followed by a simple "Come in." The office was simple in design, but that didn't mean that the items were of low quality. The man behind the desk was a bit stocky with a head full of blonde hair with a touch of grey in his similarly blonde beard. He had an intense stare as Matthew came to stand at his desk. "How is your father doing?" the man asked after a long awkward silence "He is doing well, and he is off on business in another city currently." Matthew said a bit confused. Another long pause ensued as the man reviewed some paperwork that he eventually passed over to Matthew. "These forms are for your enrollment into the union. They also detail the communication device that you will be given in the event of an emergency. Your hunter grade will start out at will be copper. Complete
Returning home with the sword on his back, Matthew felt tired due to the fact that the sword, of unknown make, was actually fairly heavy despite its size. Placing the sword down he got out the old book and began to skim through it. He had remembered seeing a training method for getting use to a sword and some training forms that would help with this. The forms he came across mentioned that a sword's weight should match its use. A slashing sword should be slightly on the heavy side while a piercing sword should be light and even gave some brief depictions of said swords. The sword that Matthew had received was in fact designed like a piercing sword in the fact that it had a nice narrow point, but its weight and dual edges clearly were meant for slashing. The weight was another confusing factor since it was too heavy to be either. That was until he turned to the next page and found a section on what was called a ruler sword.&nbs