The day passed by like any other day.
My training was physically tiring and Fatiguing.
Right before I was about to take the first bite of my food, Sir Chiron discovered I had not run yet, so he sent me out. Despite all my pleading, he wouldn't permit any less. In fact, because of the violation of my training, he added 20 more laps to my quota.
After my laps and now with a full belly, I continued with my Will manipulation training.
Even after over a month here, my training has stayed much the same. All my time was spent to progress the strength of my Will, and body, with only basic self defence lessons from Asher.
Well, basic for the Grimwalds, that is.
To progress my Will, they had me spend an hour absorbing atmospheric essence to increase my capacity, followed by the same forms Lavinia was doing earlier today.
Despite becoming Fatigued, I didn't feel much colder than when I still had essence. It was like a seal was placed over my Will, limiting my capabilities and potency of it.
Sir Chiron just appointed it to be due to straining my Will yesterday, and over-training it in preparation for the fateful event.
After sucking me dry of essence to the point that even performing Disperse was burdensome, they switched me over to physical training.
Or at least tried to. Asher came down to the Training Floor early afternoon, clutching his head with a hangover.
He tried to compensate by directing Sir Chiron on how to train me, but with Sir Chiron also overseeing Kuno's training, it became very straining for both of them.
Luckily, Leo and Lavinia were both training out of the estate for the day. Supervised by a secondary instructor. So, it was somewhat manageable.
Everyone was on edge the entire day. Waiting for Lord Elgin to, hopefully, return to the estate soon.
There weren't any reports of overly-suspicious activity in the area. But then again, Lord Elgin knows how to cover his tracks.
By the time the sun had long passed the horizon, settling the kingdom in darkness, my training for the day was done. Leaving my muscles in numbing exhaustion, with my essence only half recovered since the morning.
Considering I didn't get the time to absorb more essence throughout the day, I wasn't surprised. Though, once I'm asleep, my body's natural impulse absorption should take care of the rest.
At least, it would have, if I actually planned on sleeping.
Sitting down on the edge of my bed, I recounted how it looked watching Lavinia perform the movements.
Everything about it was graceful. Unleashing her Will alongside the forms were taxing and intense, but it's meant to help precision and cap speed.
The way her body flowed on its own, each movement seamlessly transitioning into the next one. No movement was wasted, or rigid.
She purposefully made the movement of the flow of her essence visible, making it easier to track. The time it took from the moment the essence left her core, to the moment it unleashed through her hands or feet was nearly perfect. The flow was punctual. There weren't any sudden halts in the advance of the essence, nor did it pass through her body differently every time.
From the moment it left her core, to the moment it left her body, the movement of the form and the movement of her essence never stopped. They worked together in tandem for the best result. The movement made her essence more powerful, and the essence made her movement easier.
The best result I could get were scattered reactions from the time the form ended to when my essence was unleashed. The off-timed instability of my essence to the part of my body it passed threw me off balance.
The movements of my body added no power to my essence. Instead, only hindering it. And the flow of my essence threw my body off balance from passing at the wrong time.
I wanted more practice. I need more practice.
I still couldn't sleep, and my body was warmer than ever.
Why was I so warm? It's throwing me off.
No matter how much I unleash my Will, I can't get cold. I don't know why, but it's pissing me off.
Making up my mind, I stand up off my bed. Groaning as I do.
Positioning myself in the little space I have, between the foot of my bed and the fireplace, I stand ready.
With my right hand in a fist, placed at the bottom of my sternum, I bring my other arm and bend it behind my back. Lowering myself in a shallow bow.
Upon rising, I quickly slide my left foot forward, widening my stance in a squat, looking left. Stabbing my right arm up and behind my head, fingers erect, elbow still bent. My left arm remains behind my back.
My arms and legs were already shaking from the strain.
Holding my balance, my body flowed into the next form. Rotating my right arm down, I spin my right leg in front of my left, looking right. Shooting my right arm forward in a stab while simultaneously shooting my left arm back. My fingers now in a fist.
At the same time, essence flowed from my core, up my chest, before branching off down both my arms. However, I was a bit late. As my arms were already straightened, the essence had only reached my forearm.
A moment later, the essence came pouring out of my fists in a faint spray of mist. Building pressure into my chest as the two forces pressed.
If I had done the movement properly, the momentum of my arms shooting out, and the force of my essence shooting in would have counteracted. Creating the feeling of my arms lightly suspending in the air for a moment.
Moving into the next form, I brought my hand together in a soft clap, facing forward. Before bringing my arms down to my left side together. Balancing my body with my hands on the floor, I raise my right leg high into the air. My head facing the foot.
Essence spurred down my leg, too fast this time. Before my foot fully extended, essence was already unleashing out. Throwing me off balance, I catered to the side, falling over my hands, landing on my face.
My body, contorted in a way it shouldn't be, cracking in a few places along my spine and legs. My tired arms failed to carry my weight, dragging my face across the floor. My back stretched in a downwards arch, straining the muscles I worked tirelessly today.
The essence unleashed from my foot shot my body forward at a speed greater than normal, adding to the pressure along my bent neck and dragging my face across the floor faster, until I was laid out flat.
Left laying there, with a scratched face, aching neck and back, and arms that refused to work, all I could do was groan miserably at my failure.
Too sore to get up, I stayed in my position of collapse. My eyes closed in thought.
Just like this afternoon, and just like Lavinia said, I need to refine it.
She said I need to work both my body and Will in order for each to grow strong. But that shouldn't mean I need to do both at the same time. I've already done both body and Will today. More so body, so why not focus on my Will now?
The problem is that I can't time the movements of my body and the flow of my essence properly. Made harder trying to focus on the movements and balance, which are all being thrown out of order because of my essence.
If I just focused on my essence, controlling when and where it unleashes from my body, would I not get the same effect whether I were moving or not?
The point of the forms is to track and adjust the slightest mistakes.
But if I didn't have to stop for the smallest mistake, instead, moving past it, I could potentially improve faster.
With this in mind, I can let experimentation truly take over. I can let my essence run free, without restraint.
The only downside at the moment is that I'm not on the Training Floor, so I can't use my Will to its full strength.
I'd destroy the room, gathering the attention of others and servants, leading to many unwanted questions.
Starting now, I need to take it slow. Instead of focusing my Will on precision or speed, I should start with building up my acuteness with it.
If I take the time to unleash my essence and Aura in small bursts, creating a wave, it would build the strength of my Will over time, along with my body's acclimation to it. Bringing me closer to going up in Ranks.
At least, it should. That's how Lord Elgin and Sir Chiron described it. The only reason they've been taking it slow with me is because my body still had to be strengthened from my life in the Lower District.
But… I have to do this now.
Still laying on the ground, my body sweating more and more the longer I thought about this, I decided to just give it a try. Whether it ends up working or not.
I've never been so warm before since I got my Will. The warmth seemed to be holding back my Will's strength, but also worked similarly to a form of stress training. The more it suppressed my Will, the harder it had to work to achieve similar results as before.
With my mind made up, I slowly unleashed my Will in short bursts. Enough to break through Lord Von Leer's warm barrier. The bursts were weak. However, my Will worked extra hard just to produce these results.
The longer I pulsed my Will, the harder it became. My essence was still fighting over the essence of a full fledged Lord after all.
My core began to ache from the strain. As if a pressure was pushing up against the rest of the organs in my body. Squishing them to make room.
It became warmer in my room. My body was in a constant state of sweating in an attempt to cool down.
No matter how much essence I unleashed, it only seemed to feed the heat.
Why couldn't I fully break through the barrier?
It seemed like all I could do was make holes in it big enough for essence to pass through, only for those holes to be patched a moment later.
I couldn't force Lord Von Leer's ambient essence in my core out.
It fought to stay. Clinging to my core and essence. Which was unusual. Usually, the essence used to Imbue is unstable without an anchor. If not in a contact state of control from the Holder, it would either explode or destroy the object it's Imbued in. Just like when Lavinia disintegrated the Tasvayne Python.
So, what's keeping it together?
Is it simply because it's stronger than mine?
Do I just need to give it time?
"Will you quit that crap!"
Lavinia storms through the door. Shouting as loud as her voice could go.
Peeking one eye open, I raise my head to look towards the door.
Standing just at the doorframe propping the door fully open, covered in a thick sheet, shivering underneath. Her teeth chattering. My vision was no longer in spotted red dots. Instead, the dark was washed away by her white light, shining from underneath the sheet.
"It's freezing… in my r-room!"
My eyes quickly adjusted to the light. I could see her lips blue from the cold.
Retracting my Aura, I could feel the heat she was giving off. So why wasn't I cold?
Standing up. "Sorry, I didn't know."
She looked at me with pure confusion. Her heavy breaths released mist into the air. She looked tired. About ready to collapse. "Didn't know?! How could you not know?"
Her eyes widened. "You're… sweating?"
She swayed slightly, exhausted from Fatigue. Most likely in an attempt to keep herself warm.
Rushing towards the fire pit in my room, I swiftly turn the knob to turn it on.
"Here. Come by the fire to warm up!"
This one doesn't run on wood, rather, it's purely a Fire artifact. So, its flames aren't very big, but still warm.
"Idiot!" She tossed her sheet at me with weakened force.
Hitting me right in the face, it unfolded to cover my whole body.
With my head under the cover of her sheets, she continued to speak. "What do you think I've been doing in my room? I was just hoping you'd stop soon, so I didn't have to bother you!"
It was a very warm blanket.
She shivered. Her breathing got heavier. "It's been a very long day… with… training. I need… t-to… sleep…"
Her words trailed off, followed by a quiet thud.
"Lavinia? Lavinia…?"
Prying her sheet off my body in a hurry, it took a few seconds due to its sheer size.
The beds we have in our rooms truly are massive.
When I got the sheet off my body, my skin rose. Bumps formed on the back of my neck.
Laying right at the doorway, in a slump, Lavinia was unconscious. Her breaths were slow and shallow.
All she was wearing was her thin nightgown.
Her Aura of light had completely disappeared.
Running over to her, I pressed my hand over hers. It was freezing cold. And shivering wildly.
Back home in the Lower District, my family suffered from hypothermia constantly. So I've come well versed in the signs.
If she's this bad, why didn't she say anything sooner?!
Did she think her Fatigued Will would do all the work for her?
Not only that, how did my exponentially weaker Will do this?
Shaking my head, I refocused on just getting her better.
Hopefully, since I could feel her icy hands, that means I'm not cold to the touch, but in fact warm.
Back home, the method we were all taught to best treat hypothermia was to wrap ourselves in a blanket, along with the body heat of another… if possible.
A fire could be dangerous as it would heat the patient too quickly. It could lead to heart palpitations.
Picking up Lavinia by supporting her legs and back, I bring her over to her room.
Now that I'm no longer unleashing my Will, I could feel how cold my room had become.
Once placed in her bed, her breath weaker, I ran back to my room to turn off the fire, grabbing her sheet and mine on the way out.
Back in her room, I lay next to her, wrapping both sheets around us to keep the heat as contained as possible. Bringing my arm around her to keep us pressed together.
Crap! Why did I have to make us face each other?!
I panicked!
It's fine! I only need to stay like this for a couple of hours. Once she's warmed up, I can take my sheet, and head back to my room like nothing ever happened.
I'll just tell her that she fainted from the cold, so I brought her back to her room to heat up.
Nothing else!
It was sort of funny, though.
She's the same age as Rose.
And now, here I am, wrapped in a blanket with her to keep warm. Just like the many times I've done with Rose.
It was the same case that last night I spent with my family before I came here. The three of us all bundled together as a way to calm Rose down.
And again, when I returned to help them move into the Middle District. She refused to let me leave the room during the night. Falling asleep clinging onto my waist.
This… felt a lot like that.
Comfortable from the warmth, added together with my exhaustion. And the pleasant memories of the nights spent with my family.
Without even realising it. I softly drifted off to sleep in comfort.