Not long after Jody began her training—
"Alright... you can control your aura now. Let's move to the next step. Do this."
Syd summoned his red aura.
"Focus your aura and concentrate it in your hand... like this, okay?"
"Uh-huh."
Red and blue aura filled Jody Johansson's room. But it wasn't just the two of them there.
Mickey was also present, casually sketching nearby.
Toshi, another practitioner of martial arts, sat to the side, assisting with the training.
You could say Jody had two pros backing her up.
"Okay, let's step things up a notch," Syd said, sipping some water to soothe his throat before continuing.
"The martial art of Property Swap functions like an electric wire. You know how wires work, right?"
"...Yeah, they carry electricity from one place to another, right?"
"Exactly. This is the same. Your body becomes the wire. Not to carry electricity, though—this time it carries properties."
"Oh... so it's more like a water pipe?"
"Yeah, except it's a pipe that transfers object properties. And it can flow both ways at once."
"...I see. Because object properties aren't physical quantities, they don't clog the pipe or collide mid-flow, right?"
"Right. Your body is the conduit... the pipe that links one object to another and lets their properties flow through you to each target."
"...So that means...my body is like a machine, isn't it?"
"Exactly. That's why I told you to train your aura control first. Because aura is energy. And that energy is drawn from you—your body uses it to activate the martial technique."
"...Ahh... I think I get it now..."
Like how a microwave needs to be plugged into a power source to heat up your noodles—the microwave is the machine, the outlet provides the power, and the outcome is your hot cup of noodles.
Same principle.
To perform martial arts, Jody uses her body as the machine. The energy source is her internal power. The process is the transfer of properties between objects.
"Now there's another law of nature you need to know."
"What law?"
"The laws of thermodynamics."
That answer came from Toshi.
"No machine in the world can convert energy from one source to another with 100% efficiency. That means, the energy from your body will never be fully converted into the energy needed to swap properties."
He gave an example:
"If you pull 100 joules of energy from your body… your body can only use around 40 joules for the swap. The other 60 is lost to the environment."
"Wait—40 to 60? Seriously?"
"Just an example."
Toshi raised his hand to calm her down.
"Realistically, for beginners, it's even worse—more like 2 to 98."
That made Jody start to sweat.
"And what was it like when you started?"
"About the same. It was brutal. Improving is about narrowing the gap between used energy and wasted energy. At first, you'll be around 2:98, then 30:70, 31:69, 35:65, and if you master it... 99:1."
Toshi nodded. "That means almost no waste. That's why this stuff is no joke."
"And how much can you do now, Syd?"
"What's the point in knowing? Gonna compete for a trophy?"
"I'm just curious~. So I can catch up to you."
"Be careful, Jody," Toshi warned.
"You should always train under a mentor's supervision. If you push too hard, you might black out. Take it slow. No need to rush."
"Jody's not the reckless type."
Mickey chimed in while sketching.
"She knows her limits."
"Ugh, you two lizards with your mutual admiration."
Jody: "Huh? Lizards?"
Toshi: "Probably means you and Mickey are stone-faced types."
"Yeah, sure. But remind me, who was it that thought I was a girl the first time we met?"
Mickey glanced up and gave Syd a playful wink.
"You little sh—!"
Syd kicked at Mickey, who rolled away just in time and continued drawing quietly in the corner.
Syd then placed a pencil and sheet of paper in front of Jody.
"Alright. Go for it."
"...Just like that?"
"It's not complicated. Focus your mind and command your aura to draw out the 'substance' within the pencil and paper. You'll feel it if it works. Once you do, guide it through your body and transfer it to the other side. Sounds easy, but it's tough. So if you wanna walk again—get to it."
"...O-okay..."
.
.
40 minutes later...
Sweat dripped all over Jody Johansson's body. She expected this, which was why she'd already taken off her blue wool sweater within the first five minutes.
"Haaah... pant... pant..."
Syd, sitting beside her reading manga, closed his phone.
"How's it going?"
"pant... Nothing's... happening..."
"Of course not. This is just the start. Long road ahead. Can't handle a few stumbles?"
"No, sir... weak smile... Sensei..."
"If you can still smile, you can still go. Keep going."
"Yessir~..."
Jody gathered her focus again, placing her hands on the two objects in front of her.
She recalled Syd's instructions.
"Draw out the substance."
"...Fuuu..."
Blue aura flared up from both palms.
She focused harder than she ever had before.
She imagined it—an image of swirling blobs of energy, two different colors, residing in each object. And she pictured herself pulling them out.
"....."
"!!!!"
And at last—after more than half an hour—
Jody felt it.
A strange "substance" rising up, brushing against her fingertips—and it wasn't her imagination.
But the second she opened her eyes in excitement... the feeling of "connection" was snapped in an instant.
Her body, pushed far past its limit, radiated heat through her skin. Her shirt clung to her, soaked in sweat, dripping onto the floor.
"HAAAHHHH!!!!"
She gasped for air, her skin flushed red. Even Toshi felt exhausted just looking at her.
"You okay or—?"
"Syd! Syd! I did it! pant..."
Jody crawled over and clutched his shoulders with both sweaty hands, trembling with excitement.
"Hey hey hey! Sweat! Sweaaat! Get your hands off me, you lunatic!"
"I could feel it! It was... it was all slimy and weird at my fingertips but... pant... it touched me! I swear!"
"Huh... what? Are you sure it wasn't just in your head?"
Syd and Toshi both looked surprised.
"No! pant I swear I felt it! pant..."
"...She's not lying... that's how it feels. Like you're touching slimy tentacles with your fingers..."
Syd nodded.
"...No way. That was only 40 minutes."
Toshi stared at her in disbelief.
"pant...What? Why?"
"That's super fast. No—insanely fast. You actually managed to feel it within 40 minutes."
He added, "On average, for most martial disciplines, just starting to feel it takes two full days."
"Really?"
Syd: "...But you just felt it, right? Like slimy for a second and then gone?"
"...Yeah... that's it..."
"Still, it's a solid start. Yeah... this girl's got potential. With the right shaping, she could go far."
Syd turned to her again.
"Now get your sweaty hands off me. My shoulders are drenched."
"...Oops—haha... Sorry..."