['Serafina (★★★★)' has obtained the skill, 'Basic Wind Magic'!]
['Serafina (★★★★)'s Basic Wind Magic has levelled up thrice to level 4!]
I finally did it.
I learned wind magic.
Back home it would take at least a few months for me to take up another elemental magic, even if I had the affinity for the element.
But I gathered from how quick Jonah and Shanny became strong combatants despite never received proper formal training before, it would be different in this forged land.
Now that I had confirmed the possibility, I would like to learn the other elements as soon as I could.
However, I first needed to make sure I had mastered the wind element just as well as I did with fire.
After all, the reason I wanted to learn wind magic was so it could serve as an adequate alternative to fire magic when the fire element proved ineffective in the situation presented.
Maha Vayu.
The spell just now was a Second Circle magic.
It took me thirty seconds to cast it.
Pathetic timing. It sure was when I could cast a Second Circle fire magic in an instant.
I turned to the pendulum clock placed by the training hall's entrance.
Barely past two o'clock in the afternoon.
I returned my gaze to the training hall and raised my hands.
Green magic circle manifested around me, followed by gust of swirling wind.
"Let's see if I can cut the time down by half before dinner. After all, I have to begin learning to cast Third Circle spell in the evening."
Whooshh…
The entire vast chamber was swirling with huge draft, emanated from beneath my palms.
The next day.
As soon as master arrived in the morning, Party 1 gathered in the second floor training ground equipped with our gears and armors.
We were anticipating to be called into the rift of space-time.
For the past week, when we were levelling up Darius, it was at this hour that master would send us to battle.
"Will it be the sixth floor today?"
Darius asked.
"It will be the sixth floor the next time we enter the rift."
I replied.
Shanny clicked her tongue. She looked anxious.
"I don't like guessing like this. I hope master would give us a sign that we would start climbing again. So we could know for sure, you know?"
Ask and you shall receive.
That day master did not summon us to the rift, no matter how long we waited till master left.
The only thing master did was sending Party 2 to the fourth floor as well as the makeshift parties into the first till the third.
We waited again the next day, but master did not send for us. Party 2 was sent to retry the fourth floor again that day.
Despite not being summoned, we in Party 1 kept training and anticipating.
I spent most of my time practicing wind magic. Aiming to make the spells implementable in battle.
Meanwhile, Jonah and the others kept honing their combat skills with members of Party 2 as well as the combatant escorts in gatherer parties that were invited to live on the second floor of the lodging.
The escorts were now willing to train on the second floor since Luan and Tarran, their former partners, had started training there. And the fact that Jyrgil was running rampage on the first floor training ground.
We persisted with our training till evening of the third day.
Party 1 was gathered in the second floor lodging, eating our dinner.
"This feels odd. Not going to the trials."
Shanny said.
"Well, you asked for a sign, didn't you? This is it."
I told her.
Master stopped sending us to the trials had happened before.
The most prominent example was right before we went to the fifth floor trial.
Around then master frequently sent us to try the third and fourth floor. And then master stopped sending us for a good while.
The next time master called for our party, it was to enter the fifth floor.
This period of inactivity signified a change in our mission.
Master broke our routine so we would know master would be making us do something else later.
In this case, it would be to climb the sixth floor.
At least that was how I interpreted the phenomenon.
"I know this has been brought up already, but will the sixth floor be as hard as the fifth?"
Trudy asked.
"We can only know it once we enter the trial."
I replied.
"What if it is? What if the rest of the floors are just as hard, if not harder?"
Darius now asked.
His words made me laid my silverwares down. Food was the least in my mind at that moment.
"Then we'll fight through it and the rest of the floors. Or do you plan to give up once you figured out the sixth is just as difficult as the fifth? If not the rest as well?"
I said coldly.
I stared at the rest of my teammates sharply and sternly spoke to them.
"If you don't plan to give your all till the end, no matter how hard the climb is, then speak now. I'll tell the warden to find your replacement."
I continued.
"Better surrender now rather than surrendering during the trial and jeopardize your comrades who are actually willing to fight to get us to the top of the tower."
The others in Party 1 sat by the table silently. They did not dare to interrupt me.
"Our goal is to reach the 100th floor and I have my own personal reason to get this achieved. I won't let anyone fail this great mission."
The silverwares began to tremble. Shaking due to my telekinesis skill.
The knives and forks suddenly flew up and faced the necks of my comrades.
"If I find any of you deserting in the middle of the trial and endanger the rest of us, I'll end you myself."
My comrades stared at me stiffly. I even noticed Trudy's slight trembling.
Despite their wary expressions, I stood by my stern ultimatum.
I came to the forged land to save Damai.
That was what the voice promised me if I succeeded in clearing every trial master set me upon.
The way to achieve that goal was by reaching the top of the tower. The 100th floor.
I would do anything to get it accomplished.