I estimated the grass to be in line with my knees.

There were several trees on the outer side and shaded ourselves underneath one of those trees.

“Okay. Prepare your gauntlet, Reiji.”

“Uh. It’s already equipped, Mayer.”

The Guild Master did point out that it was somewhat unusual on the design. But it still looked like a decent gauntlet and Mayer saw this yesterday.

“No. Try to imagine yourself engaged in a fight.”

That’s weird but if Mayer said so.

If I would imagine something, it would be the Mudboars. They’re the only monsters I’ve met so far. But if I’m using my fists as a way to attack it. Is it plausible to begin with? Aren’t I at a major disadvantage if I fought it head-on?

Instantly, a light blue magic circle manifested above the logo of the gauntlet.

Same in diameter. It’s hovering like it had an invisible magnet attracting it. It wasn’t budging out even though I shook my hand strenuously.

Wow! This is so cool! I’d never thought it had this kind of effect. Must be the S-Class fulfilling its rarity.

“That’s a Mana Shield.”

“Mana Shield? What does it do?”

“A Mana Shield can only be acquired by luck from Weapon Invokers. It has the same concept as fermentation. The longer the Weapon Invoker is exposed to mana, the higher chances of having it. As for its use, it'll protect your fists from any fatal damage. On top of that, it also boosts up your physical strength."

A cool effect with a much cooler application.

“Now try and hunt some Hornball in the grasslands. They have a horn in the head and a heavy ball for a tail. It’s the only monster there so you’ll be able to find them easily. But be careful, okay?”

“Got it.”

… Who the hell named that monster? It sounded pretty cliché and flavorless.

There were few vibrations as I searched the grasslands. I found one.

A literal Hornball.

It was a small beaver-like monster that had what Mayer described.

Even though I found one, regarding the area of the grasslands, there aren’t many Hornballs.

Probably it is near the capital that they’re scarce in numbers.

It’s digging the soil as I slunk to close the distance. It’s still unmindful that I was behind it.

[Three lines appeared] – [Green] – [Green] – [Green]

My special ability activated. And all are pointing directly to the Hornball.

BAM!

I got one.

It rolled on the ground. Its stomach was too spongy like a balloon but had water inside it instead.

If I would rate its reaction time, it’s below average. I could just grab it if I’d want to.

Moreover, as for my special ability, not only was Visual Perception for dodging but for attacking as well.

I’m getting more and more thrilled upon learning it.

Huh? The Hornball never moved again.

I carefully approached it, poked hastily, and took a step back.

It’s dead…?

I dematerialized the Hornball using my Monster Karda.

Confirmed. It died with that hit.

I got outside the grasslands and spoke to Mayer.

“Have you gotten your first hunt?”

“Yeah, but I never expected them to be that weak.”

“Well, they are practically the starting monster for every adventurer. But now that you’ve ascertained your own physical strength, I’ll teach you how to use your skill this time. So, can I have your Ability Karda to know what skills you got, Reiji?”

I’ve materialized the Ability Karda and handed it to him.

There are abilities that had shown up when I wore my gauntlets. Although I don’t think that it was correlated with the abilities themselves.

“A standard number for a beginner and a special ability.”

Mayer pondered and thoughtfully looked at me.

Is he analyzing my stats? I guess aside from the ability, my own physique should also be included.

“With the Mana Shield, I assure you that you’re capable of fighting any monsters within the border of Thehill. But still, it’s best to do that in a slowly but surely manner.”

Just from that, Mayer had determined my capabilities. It might be of experience as well but if he said that then I won’t have to bother by any of the quests as long as it’s in Thehill.

“I’ll also give you a tip. Mastering a single ability is better than having five abilities. In layman’s terms, one "V" is better than five "I's". I’m not suggesting you to not learn another but as of your circumstances, it’s best to keep it to a minimum. On magic spells at least.”

Mayer with a flat smile said that.

I know he meant that as a positive implication but knowing that it was that word, I just nodded meekly.

I might as well not use magic for now.

“That’s a breather then. But are you sure I’m going to be okay with these gauntlets, Mayer?”

I’m still not complacent if this would really work. It should be fine based on his judgment, I just wanted to make sure.

“Of course. It must be that you felt your gauntlets don’t bore any weight, right? That’s because weapons created from Weapon Invokers are the owner’s choice. Your thoughts were granted.”

I see. I subconsciously did want my weapon not to be heavy.

“Now, let me show you the first skill—Swift Strike. A fast-paced attack and a slightly stronger punch. The main function of this ability is to use it as a continuous combo. Check the difference for yourself.”

Mayer made two punches in the air.

The first one was a regular punch, the speed of it was moderately fast.

The second one was the Swift Strike. The initial motion was the same but when he released it, the fist blurred that I hadn’t seen it distinctly.

“Reiji, try to imagine your entire arm being enveloped by mana and after that, it’ll cast naturally.”

I know Ava explained yesterday what mana is but today's my first time using it, I think.

Therefore, in order to fully comprehend it, I asked Mayer what is the outright definition of mana.

There are two forms of mana, the external and the internal.

The external mana is the mana at the surrounding. The exact use of external mana is not that coherent in details but when magic is involved then external mana is also involved. You could say that it is the fuel for any form of magic while the internal mana is the ignitor.

I won’t need that due to my own complication. Though Ava and Mayer said that I could still use magic on the lowest level that is, but Ava doesn’t recommend it. Perhaps there are some drawbacks to it.

The internal mana is the mana of one’s body. The foundation to use any ability. Execution of it depletes internal mana. Just think of it as running and respiration. The harder they run, the more air is needed to compensate for it.

I did make some comparisons to it like energy where both had similar expositions. It is limited and functional to a certain degree.

It’s also the reason that I can use a Karda. Although the mana consumption to materialize through the Karda is insignificant.

The mastery is kind of vague to me even though Mayer had explained it.

It’s like memorization from what I understood but still, it goes up to five levels, yet the power of ability is dependent on the amount of mana used.

… Maybe, later on, I’ll know what that was. From Mayer’s word itself, you’ll know when you attained it.

I performed the same way Mayer did.

Just think of it, have my arm filled with mana, from one end to another.

I then felt a surge being concentrated on the part that I thought of.

And… Swoosh!

A tiny whip-like sound.

I did it. It was simple. In just one go, I did it.

But there’s a little sting to it. It’s negligible but I asked Mayer anyway.

“Is it normal to have the stinging sensation?”

“Ah… nope. It might be that you’ve overextended the release of your mana or you just lack exercise, Reiji.”

It’s either I’m underperforming or I lack control huh. I wish it could be the latter otherwise I got a bad feeling about the quest later.

What did I even do before I lost my memory? At least work out a bit, Reiji.

“Okay. Let’s move on to your second skill—Armor-Piercing Strike. This ability is in contrast to the first one. Slow but packs a lot of power.”

Mayer made another two punches to showcase the difference.

The first one was normal.

The second one, Mayer’s punch was delayed. A second or two he released it and the wind got dragged along with it.

“Try to focus your mana solely on your knuckle. For starters, clutching it harder will definitely aid the process.”

All of the stamina goes to the knuckle. And when I thought of that, I understood why Mayer had to take a second or two.

It’s like water flowing and needs to be settled in one point. That's how it felt for me.

And now… Fwip!

Again, another sting that’s a little stronger on the knuckle part but still negligible.

There's also a catch to the delay. The longer the charging is, the stronger it gets.

“Just a warning, Reiji. As you can tell, the power not only depends on the mana you’ve consumed but your own strength as well. Exceeding can possibly lead to harm.”

I nodded. Mayer warned me seriously. It might be that there’s a case of someone overdoing it and paid the price.

However, I do get some hints on what mastery is but I still stood by my point. It’s not about control but has relevance to it.

Mayer made a pleasant expression once again and continued.

“Okay, now for your last skill—Quick Leap I. It’s actually the easiest ability to get a hang of. Just have the mana flow on any part of your lower body, depending on what part will be the outcome. For example, if you apply it on the knees below…”

The instant Mayer spoke that, he leaped for a few meters away.

“Just like that. It can be for vertical or horizontal movements.”

Well, it is stated in the name that it would be fast.

Let’s try it.

I just need to do a running stance and distribute the mana evenly on those parts.

Swoosh!

Before I knew it, I was in the air. The ground was expanding. It continues…

It continues! It’s too high! I'm five or six meters off the ground.

Suddenly,

[One white line] – [Waiting] – [Green]

That appeared in my vision. It didn’t turn green like the others and waited the right time to tell me to do a barrel roll.

I’ve inclined forward and steady… steady… now!

It wasn’t a perfect landing but it was a successful one.

I got down safely by just rolling severally and got a few specks of dirt here and there.

“That was some superb reflexes you got.”

Even though he was originally perplexed by that action, Mayer praised me. He would’ve caught me if I didn’t have my Visual Perception.

Speaking of Visual Perception, it saved me once again. This ability, I would marry it if it was a person—if it’s a lady. Let me correct that.

“It was my special ability that made me do that.”

I have to give credits to where credit is due.

“You’ve got a great special ability then.”

It was different from the past two activations.

It was just a single line and the curve was different, it's looped as if to navigate my subsequent reaction.

Huh? I also noticed my legs haven’t felt any of the sting even though I unintentionally used a lot of mana.

It seemed that my lower body is stronger than my upper one.

“Now you can try your abilities on the Hornballs. Be careful, okay?”

I nodded. Mayer really worries a lot. This was the second time he warned me.

Nothing wrong with it though.

Even if the field was wide, finding a Hornball took quite a time.

So far, the activation of my special ability—Visual Perception is categorized into three: attack, evade, and respond.

But as I hunt on, it developed further than what I presumed.

The Hornball noticed me and bent backward. It’s preparing for an attack using its tail ball.

The snarl did indicate that it will proceed.

[Visual Perception] – [Green] – [Green] – [Green]

The middle one was different. It was pointed at the Hornball’s chest, telling me to strike it on that part.

A Swift Strike and it fainted.

My second kill.

I want it to be more challenging but on a positive note, I can try it later in the quest.

As I thought of that, the grasses behind me rustled.

I turned around to see that a Hornball had already jumped in the air and is bound to strike me using its tail ball.

[Visual Perception] – [Green] – [Green] – [Green]

There was no need to panic. All of them can be intercepted but there's another one different.

The left line indicated me to block its tail ball.

I deflected it with the Mana Shield. It made an impactful sound like two metals pounding each other.

Due to its slow reaction time, an easy counterattack.

So now, it increased from three to four: attack, evade, respond, and defend.

But I got to be careful though. I was too unguarded. Sorry, Mayer, I’m an idiot.

After hunting for more than enough, I used my second ability—Armor-Piercing Strike.

I regretted it after I did that.

Splat!

They were too mushy that the scene was too gruesome, it made a lasting snarl before it died.

Sorry, little one.

I genuinely felt really bad about it. This is bad. I feel sick looking at it.

“It’s okay, you’ll get used to it. Just dematerialize it, Reiji.”

Mayer tapped me on the shoulders and I turned to him.

How can you say that when you, yourself is about to vomit?

The Monster Karda can also function as a cleanup tool.

Not a blot of blood remained on the surrounding.

Survival of the fittest. I’ve learned today what it really meant.

Would I get used to this? The short answer was I need to.

… … …

We rested underneath the trees.

Mayer continued to explain to me what mana is.

Essentially, the law of mana that Ava taught me. I know a little but she talked about it like half an hour that I lost interest in it.

And now, Mayer was doing the same. Although, his way of speaking was much more informal and transparent.

I hope you didn’t get offended by that Ava. My bad.

This is how it goes. Mana is everywhere. Okay got that.

Mana is an essence that binds one being to another. If I would put it in my own words.

If I kill… No, that’s a revolting term. If I defeated a creature just like the Hornball, the mana stored in its body will outspread in the environment and will go into my own body, not overall but only a percentage of it and it’ll increase my own capacity.

And if I gained enough of that, then I can rank up. There are other factors too and the growth differs from one another.

For example, I might need a thousand Hornball to rank up while Mayer who’s also training every day might only need ten.

That was inaccurate but that was the simplest one I could give.

Apparently, that was the only topic Mayer spoke of, then he stood up.

“The Hornballs can be sold at a butcher shop but you can do it later. I think Mira will also go to the butcher shop after the quest. You can join with her.”

I recalled yesterday. I was gazing at the sky when I regained my consciousness and now I'm doing the same today.

“Reiji, would you like to come and eat lunch at my house? My wife and daughter would love to meet you.”

Saying that Mayer glanced toward me.

“I’m okay with it but everyone in the mansion had no idea that I won’t be attending lunch.”

“Don’t worry about it. The maids will surely know it.”

Hmm, they do have the cotton ball device thingy so I guess the maids will be informed of my absence.

“Shall we go?”

“Okay.”