The air energy inside me has a similar effect to [Feather fall] yet different. Unlike [Feather fall] where the energy is only there without doing anything, in this form the energy is being fed into my body. This was the [Elemental body] buff spell that gives the elements properties to the user. Thus, the air energy makes my body lighter, however, not to the extent of [Feather fall] but what it gives me the most is speed.

I shaped the energy in my hands into claws which released high pressured wind along the edges, making the claws sharper than a blade. Then, I activated the [Flash movement] inscription to lunge me forward to my target and I swiped the pillar with the claws, releasing as many [Severing slashes] as the number of my claws that travelled through the pillar and severed others in the back.

'Even though I made them tough… Let's just keep going'

The energy that I used, though not much, was almost instantly restored and the [Flash Movement] inscription was ready to be used at will which I was happy to oblige as I dashed to another.

Once I got close to it, I used the [Soul hold] inscription to change my momentum into a spinning one. I used it to do a spinning kick with my leg clad in [Wind edge] that teared through the pillar and send it high. I did not stop there, instead, I used my energy to create a [Ascending gale] that pulled me and the pillar to the sky and then I changed the spell into a [Wind blade Whirlwind] that torn apart the pillar.

Some debris went in my direction, but my body was surrounded by the [Elemental protection] made from the air energy thus they were either diverted or if lucky and managed to hit me, they would be destroyed by razor sharp winds or just crushed by air pressure. If I was using fire, they would be bounce off by the heat on the surface or if too deep, melted. Earth, they would just bounce off or crushed. Water, either frozen or destroyed by the pressure.

If that failed, I would have [Soul shield] protecting me and even the shield failed I would have my armor. Thus, I could safely state that I did not have to worry about attacks up until a certain limit. That is if the attacks hit me…

I used [Air burst] to send me over to other targets while having wind keeping me in the air. Once I was on top of them, I turned off the air "roots" and turned on the earth ones, switching elements. My "aura" turned a dusty brown color and my claws were replaced by stone fists that were a mix between shields on the forearms and hammers in front of my knuckles.

The earth element made my body going from light to heavy thus I started to drop with an ever-increasing speed. I fed energy into the fist to grow it into a gigantic piece of rock shaped as a hammer which amplified my drop speed. Thus, when the giant fist touched the ground, the earth roared and a small crater was created, surrounding the fist.

'Maybe I should not have done that… Hopefully, I did not cause any commotion in town… Let's hold back on these kinds of moves.'

I disconnected my earth fist from the rock slab, then I switched to water. The energy turned a deep blue and my stone fists became fluid water gloves with ice fingers.

I used the dust created from the drop as cover as I dashed to another target. I noticed that there were multiple pillars through [Domain] thus I created [Ice dust wings] and dashed through the middle of the pillars, covering the ones where the wings passed through in ice.

I killed my momentum by using [Soul hold], then I dashed back to the ice-covered pillars and I used [Ice weapons creation] to create two long blades, one for each hand, buffed with [Water edge] on them.

Once I was nearby the targets, I swung the blades in a rotating momentum while feeding them water energy to grow them and allow them to reach even further and slashed through them. At the end of my motion, I put the blades in parallel and used the water from [Water edges] to create two [Water blades] as I swung them that cleaved pillars in half and then the [Water blades] exploded as the high pressure of the water was released.

The blades broke and the shards joined to create a javelin that I threw with the help of the force of an explosion created from unstable ice shard that was on the its end. The javelin was able to penetrate several pillars before becoming stuck halfway through one and not long after ice was forming around the javelin.

Fire. My aura turned a hot red and my gloves became fiery gauntlets. I sprinted to a target and punched it with the gauntlets and watched as it exploded in melting debris. I went to another and this time, once I punched, I released a [Jet flame] from the gauntlet that destroyed not only the pillar that I targeted, but also the others behind it.

The flame burst was strong enough to draw back my fist with its force, thus I created an explosion behind my elbow to push it forward once more and while I was doing that I was punching with my other gauntlet and releasing another. I repeated the same, hence I was consecutively releasing [Flame jets] nonstop and destroying all targets in a radius around me.

No more targets around me, I scanned the surroundings and found several grouped together a couple ways from me.

I switched back to earth then I made a boulder jump out of the earth and I kicked it with [Earth's force] which created a sound of rock colliding with rock. Once my foot touched the boulder, I infused it with volatile energy, the boulder went flying and crushed every pillar in its path before exploding into shrapnel that destroyed those surrounding it completing the [Shattering strike] spell.

Next… There is no next. All the pillars were in mangled pieces, except the one with the javelin stuck in it. No sooner I thought about it, it broke in half 'Never mind then.'

'Perhaps my whirlwind name is still valid as I am like the wind, adapting to all obstacles and tearing them apart as I move past them.'

My pools were barely used in this demonstration. In this form, the only energy used was the surrounding me which was quickly replenished by the regeneration.

I switched to air and quickly got back to Nova. Once there, I deactivated the spells except for the shield and destroyed the pathways, releasing a psychological weight off my shoulders. Having a spell or pathways constantly on makes me feel as if I am telling my body "get ready to fight" all the time and the sensation increases with the number of spells or complex pathways. It's not like I cannot tolerate it when it is just a spell, but when there are more, after a while it is just tiring and obnoxious which is no good for someone who hates tiring stuff.

'However, I really love the feeling of shutting down spells.' I stretched my body with happiness as the stress was released.

"So, what did you learn?" I addressed Nova as I took off my mask

"That I should not mess with you…"

I chuckled and was about to pat her head when I noticed that she cowered as my hand approached 'she's scared of me…'. I took out a rug out of the inventory, quickly picked Nova up, making her release a sound of surprise, then sat crossed leg with Nova on my lap on it and I started petting her head while saying "It's okay." repeatedly as I hugged close to my body from behind.

I felt her body lose its tension. "Are you okay now or do you need a kiss?"

"… I'm okay… and I don't need your kisses."

"Are you sure?"

"… Yes."

"Really sure?"

"I'm sure."

"So, you don't want my kisses?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" she started getting worked up

"Do you want my kisses?"

"Yes! Wait, no!"

"Too late~." I pulled her head close and gave her a big kiss on her cheek and I made sure to make the shield tough on my chest 'just in case of retaliation' while I was doing it before finally letting her go.

Nova then started rubbing her sleeve on her cheek.

"Even if you try to quote on quote clean your cheek, I'll just kiss you again, you know?"

She made a face as if she had eaten something quite bitter as she looked at me whereas I just smiled.

"Do you still feel scared of me?"

"… Was I scared of you?"

"You did not notice?"

"No… I mean, maybe… My mind knew that you would not hurt me, however…" her voice became quieter and quieter as she spoke

"That is a normal response when you something like that for the first time. You should not be ashamed. I too have some things I have afraid of."

"Like what?"

"For example: I am afraid of you becoming afraid of me."

"What are you-" she started but when she looked at my expression her words trailed off

I raised her a little, then I flopped down on my back with Nova on top of me.

"By the way." I started "I am also afraid of healers." 'doctors'

"What?"

"Do you know what healers are?"

"Yes. They're the ones that heal people when they are hurt or sick, right?"

"In a way, yes."

"Why are you afraid of them?"

"I don't really like the way they have to mess with my body to heal me." 'also, syringes'

"But they heal you, don't they? I don't get it."

"Its irrational fear, there is no reason. What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yes. Are you still afraid of me?"

"No…".

"Then, it is all good~." I said as I pet her head. I felt her snuggle against me as I did it.

"Well then, what should we do? Do you want to stay in this position a while longer? Or, do you want to keep going?"

"Keep going?"

"My teachings for today are not over yet. Therefore, what do you want to do?"

"Let's keep going then."

"Are you sure? You seem to have been enjoying this."

"I am sure." She said defiantly

"Then up you go." I said as I patted her

She got up then it was my turn.

"You can still be seated since we'll mostly talk."

"Talk?" confusion flashed in her eyes

"Yes. We'll talk about what you saw and what you learned. Thus, let's hear it."

"I have to describe what happened?"

"Yes."

"But I did not see much… It all just happened so fast…" she said awkwardly

"That is fine. Begin."

"Okay…" she took a deep breath "I remember you going over there." She pointed at location of my demonstration "Then pillars started coming out of the ground and I think you used them as targets?" she looked at me for confirmation to which I nodded "Afterwards, you started… what's the word? You know, you turned a grey color?"

"Perhaps aura is the word you are looking for?" I interjected

"Aura? Is that what it is?"

I shrugged "It is the best way to describe it. Anyways, you saw me turn grey as you said it, why did I turn that color?"

"Heh. I don't know…"

"If you don't know, then we'll just move on. What happened next?"

"Well… At that point it all just happened too fast."

"Go on."

"Well… After, you turned grey you… disappeared." She did an exaggerated gesture as she talked "And then, there was a loud noise and the earth shook intensely…" her expression warped as she probably remembered it "… Then I think you came out of the dust cloud with… like white bird's wings, I think?"

"And why were they white?"

"I don't know…" her face clouded

I chuckled and reached her head with my hand and patted her head "I'm not upset that you cannot answer my question. Actually, you've already exceeded my expectations."

"I did?" the cloud on her face dispersed

"Yes. I expected you to not register anything that happened."

"What? Why? Didn't you tell me to watch you fighting?"

"It was more of a demonstration than fighting and the reason for why my expectations were so low is because there were none to begin with."

"What?" confusion appeared

"What I am about to say is more for me than for you." I looked straight in her eyes which made her avert hers for a moment before locking into mine "I'll see you for what you are. I will have no expectations for you."

"Wait! You said that you'll have no expectations for me!?" she said with a distressed expression

"That is correct."

Mixed emotions seemed to flow in her eyes.

I chuckled at her anguish "Do you remember when you collapsed?"

"Heh? I don't remember ever collapsing." She confusedly answered

"You kind of did. It was the time when you could not get up. Do you remember it?"

She thought about it for a moment then she nodded.

"The main reason for why that happened is because I put expectations in you and forced you to push yourself when I shouldn't."

"I don't think that is correct. It was-"

I raised my hand to stop her there which she obliged "I don't want to start a discussion for who was right or who was wrong. However, it is undeniable that I helped causing that event thus I decided to change my mindset about you."

Confusion remained in her.

"In other words: I will not make you choose a path for yourself. You can choose the path you wish to take, and I will do my best to help you. Did you understand?"

"I think I did..." She said hesitatingly

"Oh right. Let me say this before I forget: If your path is something that I absolutely disapprove." I raised my fist and clenched it with a smiling face "Prepare yourself for the consequences~."

It seems my coercion was well received as Nova nodded many times.

I clapped "Ok. We've derailed for a moment there. Where were we…? Oh, that's right! We were talking about the time when I had, as you've said, the white bird wings. What happened after that?"

Nova cleared her throat "You turned red? And then started spewing fire everywhere."

"Again, why was I red?"

"… Because you were using fire, perhaps?"

"That is correct, in a way. What you saw was fire energy, which is red in color." Her expression brightened once I informed her of her correct answer

A big weakness of my combat style is that I am basically informing everybody of the nature of my spells. However, it is perfect for teaching Nova about the elements.

"What happened next?"

"You turned brown and then shot a rock at pillars."

[Mind sharpening] increases brain processing speed which makes time flow slower to me than for someone who wasn't using at all. Therefore, my actions were a bit too fast for her to perceive.

"How did I shoot the rock?" I continued questioning

"How…? I don’t' know…"

"Then, why was I brown?"

She pondered on the answer.

"If when I was red, I was using fire energy then…"

"Rock energy…?"

"Earth. Can you guess what the grey color represented? By the way, it was a more a mix between light grey and blue."

"Blue is water, right?"

"That is correct."

"Then, is it wind?"

"Air. Now that I think about it, you might not have a good view from here, so I'll just tell you the answer. The way I shot the rock was by kicking it."

"You kicked… the rock?"

"Yes."

"With your feet?"

"Yes."

"Did that not hurt?"

"Not at all." I clapped my hands "Let's change the subject. The elements you cited: air, water, earth and fire. Do you know what they are called?"

She shook her head.

"They are called the basic elements, all derived from soul energy. They are what makes the world: the air we breathe, the water we drink, the earth we walk and the fire that heat us and lights our path. Or, so it is told. I don't really care about that. Then, there are, as I once told you, the elements which are a result of combining two basic elements. Do you have a question regarding what I said?"

"Yes. Are there only combinations of two elements? Couldn't there be three or more?"

"If there are, then I have never heard of them. Other questions?"

"No."

"Okay. Don't hesitate to raise your hand when you have one." I created a ball of water energy on my palm "This is water energy. It has a deep blue color whereas its glow changes between light and deep colors of blue. It was by using this energy that I created the [Ice dust wings]. You know, the white bird wings that you saw."

"Ice? But you used water? How is it ice? Furthermore, they were white not blue."

"Ah, that. Hang on a second." I got up from the rug, walked a few sets away from it, remade the pathways to enter my elemental form and choose water and created [Ice dust wings] "This is what you saw." I cancelled the [Ice dust wings] "Water, as a physical material, has three states: the solid one, ice" I created an [Ice shard] in front of me "The liquid one, water" I change the [Ice shard] into a [Water ball] "And lastly, the gas one which is basically water vapor, although you cannot make it out of water energy, however " I created [Fog] "[Fog] is almost the same. Yes?"

Nova had her hand raised "Okay… There are a couple things I don't get it."

"Ask them away."

"First, you are, like, covered in water energy, right?"

"Indeed."

"Then, why aren't you shining as much?"

"Hmm? Ah!" I dispelled the spells and came closer to Nova "It is this." I said as I presented a ball of water energy in front of her, then I controlled the energy so it did not disperse as much and as a result the energy lost its shine "When you have your energy outside your body, it will disperse if you do not hold on to it, releasing the glow you saw before. Thus, the reason, why I am not glowing as much is because I am manipulating the energy, so it does not get lost. Furthermore, not going to lie, it may be useful sometimes, but I don't want to be a lantern signaling my location. Next question?"

"… You said something about states…?" she asked uncertainly

"Yes. All physical mater has three states. Well, there is be a fourth one, but you'll see the other three most of the time. Anyway, it all depends on the temperature. This should help you understand, cold is solid, mild is liquid while hot is gas." I dispelled my elemental form "Look." I made a [Ice shard] "Solid." Then I made into a [Water ball] "Liquid." And then into [Fog] "Gas. Did you get it?"

"… Maybe…" she uncertainly answered "But I feel that this is too much for me to remember."

"Neither did I expect to tell you this much information. But it is much better to answer your questions than to leave them hanging, also you can always ask later if you forget something. Do you have more questions?"

"Hmm~. There was something I wanted to know… What was it…?" she agonized trying to remember her question and just waited "Do you know it?"

"Don't ask me." I sighed "It should have something to do with the water element." I decided to throw a lifeboat

She apparently gave up as she shook her head.

"Should I cont-"

"Oh wait! I remember! It's something about that!" she interjected and pointed at the [Fog] that I still had in my hand

I looked at my spell pensively then the answer hit me "Is it perhaps about when said that I could not create water vapor?"

"Yes! That!" she exclaimed happily

"That is indeed quite important to know. Every element has its rules and the water element rules are water and cold."

"I don't understand the cold part."

"What about this? I will make a [Breeze] and add cold to it to make it make it a [Cool breeze]." I did as I did as I said, a cool breeze was created.

"Brr!" Nova jerked

"Too cold?" I cancelled the spell

"No, it is fine. It was just too sudden. However, didn't you use an air spell? How is it water?" she asked confused

"No, like I said, I did a [Breeze] spell, which is an air spell, then added the cold from the water element to make it a combined spell [Cool breeze]."

"Let me get this straight." She declared as she gestured "If you add cold from the water element to something, then that something becomes cold." She looked at me for confirmation

"Pretty much."

"Okay. Now I'm getting it."

"That's good." I nodded in satisfaction

"By the way, what's a combined spell?"

I sighed.

"I'm sorry if I am asking too many questions." Nova apologized

"No, it's alright. You can ask as many questions as you want. A combined is like this." I made a small [Whirlwind] on top of my hand and a [Fireball] in the other. Then I combined the two and they became a [Blazing whirlwind] "It is when two spells are combined to create a new one. Any more questions?"

"This seems all too complicated. Just one more question: Does that not hurt you?" she asked as she pointed and the spell

"Not really. The best way to explain to why it does not hurt me is because it is my energy, a part of me. Thus, spells that are harmful will not hurt the user. Did you get it?"

She nodded.

"Alright. Then let's move on." I cancelled the spell and created a ball or air energy "This is air energy. It has a blue-grey color and its glow is the same, but it is constantly changing transparency. Its' rules are air and swiftness."

"So, it makes things fast with its swiftness?"

"Yes, and the opposite. Furthermore, air does not mean that I can only control wind with it. I can also do-" I created a small air bubble and a twin of that same bubble although visually simple 'except that they are almost invisible', their spell structure was incredible complex. I sent one behind Nova's ear and "-this."

"Hyaa!" the result of [Wind whisper] was perfect as Nova released quite a cute sound.

"I'm sorry, Nova. I did not expect for that to happen." I sincerely apologized

She glared at me while having her hand on her ear "Then why don't you wipe off that smirk you've got on your face."

"Oops." I put my hand in front of my mouth "Well, as you've noticed air energy can also manipulate sound." I decided to change the subject. Nova just sighed and let it go too as I restarted my lecture. "Before you ask, let me end this lecture and I'll tell you why the mayor used kinetic element."

I dispelled the air energy ball and created a ball of fire energy this time "Fire energy has a hot red color while its glow has red colors shifts as if it is burning. The rules are fire and heat." I switched to ball of earth energy "Earth energy is brown in color while its glow is a stiff brown. Rules are earth and weight."

"Weight?"

"In the sense of being heavy."

"That element seems to be the enemy of women."

I chuckled "Oh, my. Nova, was that a joke?"

"What is it?" a blush appeared on her face

"I think that is the first time I heard a joke from you. Not a great one, but a joke nonetheless."

"Shut up!" Her blush increased its presence

"Okay. Let's leave Nova's terrible jokes on the side-"

"It wasn't terrible!" she refuted

"Keep telling yourself that, dear. Anyways, these were the basic elements. Let's get to the combined elements which are more straightforward than the basic." I made a ball of kinetic energy "This is a combination of Air and Earth. The kinetic element energy. Mostly a transparent color with a bright glow. The rule is force in the sense of creating a force or add it to your physical attacks. Mostly used by those that wield blunt weapons."

"Blunt weapons?"

"Basically, weapons that strike. Here's the different types of damage." I used [Ice weapons creation] to create a sword and sliced at the air "This is slash damage. It is when you cut."

Nova nodded.

I broke the sword and from its shards I made a spear and thrusted it "This is thrust damage. It is when you stab."

"Ok."

I made the spear head into a hammer and swung it at the ground "And lastly, this is blunt damage. It is when you deal blows at enemies." I dispelled the spell and dig some punches in the air "Your fists are also a kind of blunt damage when you use them like this. Did you understand?"

"Yes."

"You did?" I came closer and patted her head "You're so smart! Who's a good girl~? Who is~?" I praised her as I patted

Nova accepted my praise then "Wait! You're treating me like a pet again!" and swatted away my hand

"I did no such thing. I was praising my daughter."

"I don't want your praise."

"Tch."

"Did you just click your tongue?" she glared at me

I ignored her "Anyways, with the kinetic element you can create spells like these." I raised my palm and released a [Shockwave] that distorted the air and raised a small cloud of dust "As you can see, it is not really impressive when you are creating a force. I mean, it has its uses but it's not that good for an attack. However, when you add it to a physical attack, depending on the quantity of energy, it can transform that attack into a devastating force which could easily do what I did when the mountain shook."

"Seriously!?" 'sort of'

"Yes. Although there is one string attached to it and that is: you must release the spell the moment you hit your target or else, it will fail. If too early, the entire momentum of your strike will die. If too late, it will just create a [Shockwave] after your weapon hit."

"Okay… So that is what the mayor did that time? He made is voice stronger."

"Precisely."

"This is starting to feel like a class in school…" she grumbled

"Speaking of which. Have you heard when they are opening school again?"

"I've heard that they are delaying because of something to do with the material they are teaching…?" she answered with uncertainty

"Do you know more details?"

She thought about it for a moment "I think Uncle Zane mentioned that the people making the materials said there some things missing... 'Are they adding knowledge from earth? If so, that is good' But, I'm not sure."

"Then, do you know when they are opening it?"

"Nope."

"Perhaps it will be after the festival or something… Anyways, let's move on." I dispelled the kinetic energy ball and made a storm one "This is storm energy which is indigo with a sky-blue glow. The rule is weather."

"Weather?"

"Yes. From torrential storms that bring floods to raging tornados, take your pick. Good for support, not that good for direct combat. Next is the combination between air and fire." I created a ball of inferno energy "Inferno. A pulsating yellow color with red flashes and blue-purplish glow. Mind you, this energy is, in my opinion, the most dangerous of all."

"The most dangerous?"

"Yes. The rule is chaos. You more likely to fall into either extreme, flames that can melt metal with ease or lighting than turn enemies into a crisp, but when you get closer to the middle of those two extremes it becomes plasma."

"Plasma?"

"Remember the three states of physical matter that I informed you earlier?"

"Yes."

"This is the fourth one I mentioned. It is a super-hot one."

"Then that must mean that inferno is the strongest?"

"Astute, aren't you. It is the most destructive of all. However-"

"-there is a string attached to it?"

"Correct. Inferno is the only energy that may turn against the user if you are not careful enough."

"It can turn against the you!?"

"Indeed. The energy itself is chaotic and it may decide it does not want to be your energy anymore. Thus, you lose the protection for being the owner. Contrary to what people may think, Inferno users are the most cautious of all 'or just plain mad'." I erased the energy "Next on the list is the mirage element." I made a ball of said energy "Water plus fire. Pink with a dark pink glow. The most mysterious of all as it governs illusions."

"So, the rule is illusion."

"Close, but not quite. The rule is reality."

"How are illusions reality?"

"Let's just say that the boundary between reality and illusion is thin as paper. It is thanks to this energy that teleportation is possible."

"Cool..." 'Not sure if she understood it or not'

I made the energy disappear and made a poison energy ball "Water and earth combined make poison energy which is a deep purple with a brownish glow. Then there are all kinds of poison, from paralysis to deadly ones. It is a "pick your poison" kind of energy, literary."

"… Poison energy, got it."

"I don't think you actually did. There are all kinds of poisons, there are even healing poisons, except those have some kind of downside to them so be careful when using them. Moving on." I changed the energy into a volcanic energy "Volcanic energy. Red autumn color with a grey stone glow. Pretty straightforward energy. The rule is volcano."

"What's a volcano?"

"Do you know what magma is?"

"Nope." She shook her head

"Lava?"

"No idea."

"Well, basically, it is the liquid state of the earth which is pretty hot."

"The earth has a liquid state?"

"Yes, and it is pretty hot."

"I see..."

"Next on the list-"

"Wait, there's more?"

"Indeed, there are. The life energy ones."

"Life energy?" she cocked her head

"Indeed. If you mix life energy with water energy, you get plant energy." I made a ball of plant energy "Green color with a golden-greenish glow. The rule, as you might have guessed, is plant."

"Doesn't life energy already grow plants?"

"With plant energy, however, you can manipulate plants to an even greater extent."

"Is that so?" Nova tilted her head

"Yep." I got rid of the energy and made another ball of a different energy "Life and fire makes essence energy. This energy is also called divine energy in some places, but I prefer the other one because divine is a word that associated with gods. However, it is just a type of energy that anyone can use that has nothing to do with gods. It has a shimmering white color with a gold glow. The rule is healing. Before you ask, yes, life energy already heals you, but up to a limit. Life force, what it actually does, is increasing your natural healing rate which comes with repercussions depending on the wound. Essence energy on the other hand directly becomes the fuel for healing, therefore, does not bring as much stress as life energy to the body. However, that does not mean that any wound can be healed with just energy. You'll also need proper knowledge. That is why, when wounded, check with the professionals."

"So, go see a healer if I get hurt."

"Pretty much. There are wounds that require experts to fully heal. Mind you, I'm not saying that you should not use healing. For example, let's say you got your arm severed-"

"Ew! Please don't make me imagine that!"

"I was not. I was just stating a hypothesis. Anyways, healers would have to reconnect your arm and nerves-"

"Like I said, please don't!" she put her hands on her ears

I took her hands off "Please listen to what I am about to say as it is important. As I was saying, they even have to reconnect your soul."

She regained her composure from the shock of my words "My what?"

"Your soul. If a limb is severed from your body, so is your soul. They would have to use [Soul connection] to reconnect your soul, otherwise it would take more time for you to regain your senses over it from natural healing."

Dismemberment was something that could happen in the game. It was extremely difficult to achieve as the victim needed to receive enormous damage to a limb and, thankfully, it was censored back then. During wars, many players would aim for dismembering an opponent because it would make them unable to fight for longer than the respawn time. That is, if there is no capable healer nearby.

"What's [Soul connection]?"

"[Soul connection] is a spell that allows you to connect souls. Healers use it to sew back together souls that have been severed. Fun fact: [Soul connection] was not created by healers, it was developed by thieves so that they can steal from Inventories."

"Steal from someone's inventory? Is that possible?"

"Yep. If you have thought that your inventory is the safest place in the world, well, think again. Anyways, let's go back to our lecture. Life energy plus earth energy makes sanctitude energy." I made a ball of said energy "It is a vibrant blue mixed with a golden glow." Nova put her raised her hand "Yes?"

"Why is it called sanctitude energy?"

"Because this energy is able to create barriers which are like shields but much stronger and are able to cover large areas. In very dangerous locations, safe spots are created by people using this energy, like sanctuaries, hence the name… and people wanted a more interesting name other than barrier energy although that is what it does. In the end, because of their stubbornness, the name stuck. I know what you are thinking: "People are weird.". But that is what makes life interesting, I guess… Anyway, do not misunderstand one thing: This energy can be used for both defense and offence, you just need to be more creative about it."

"How so?"

"Think of barriers as blocks as strong as metal. What do you think that happens when you hit someone with them? Pretty obvious if you ask me."

"They'll be crushed."

"If they let themselves be crushed. But there are more interesting applications with it compared to my super dry example such as increasing the reach of their weapons by a hundred fold… Best talk with an expert on it if you are more interested in researching it.

Finally, we have the combination of life and air resulting in light energy. Pure white in color and glow and the rule is annihilation. In other words, destruction of the highest order. Since its energy expenditure is so high, it is unreasonable to use it in combat no matter how attuned you are to it. However, if it is for the sake of small things such as poison, debris, and even malign energy from a person that does not need as much energy, it is super useful. Therefore, this energy is mostly used in medicine… although there are some people who used it to clean their houses." I cleared my throat and hydrated it with my saliva "Anyway, do not use this energy with proper control and knowledge on anyone."

"Debris? How can debris get inside you?"

"Explosions can do that for example. In any case, it is a very useful energy to have. Furthermore, for a reason I do not understand, it is extremely strong against undead and other "wrong" creatures, if you know what I mean. That reminds me, never use this energy on the training targets in the training grounds, ok?"

"Why is that?"

"Or else, you will pay a quite big fine for it. In any case, we are done with the lecture."

"We're done?"

"Yep. I think I have told you everything that I wanted to tell you. Do you have any questions?"

"What about corruption?"

"Corruption, unlike its reputation, is not a very used element because of its double-edge tendencies and because it is easily blocked by shields. It is the only element derived from life energy. Basically, if you flick the coin of life, you get death. Any other question?"

"What about the darkness element?"

"The what- Oh! That element." I created a [Node] of darkness and made a ball from it "You've already seen it before. Black with a silver white glow. I remember mentioning that I did not know much about it. It is a perfect mix between life and soul energies, if the ratio is just a little different it will not exist. As for its rules... From what I've seen, the best way to describe what it does is to say it exists…?" I answered uncertainly

"Exists?"

"Yup. Compared to all other energy that are not really able to maintain their form in the outside world unless you're actively keeping that way. This one however, will maintain its form for much longer."

'The name darkness does not really fit it because of that and its glow. The glow is bright, the color is dark, and it can only exist in the boundary of soul and life… Twilight…? Yep, that seems to fit it better.'

"Well, I need to research it more to give you a proper answer. But what I can tell you is that I may be the only one who uses it. Any other question?"

"Why did ask me those questions after you did… your demonstration if you were just going to tell me the answer later?"

"Ah, that." I pointed at my eye as I explained "Observation is a very important skill to have during combat. Well, it can also be applied to anything, really. As I was saying, during combat you'll encounter many cases of unknown variables- Yes?" I noticed that Nova had her hand raised

"I don't know what variable means."

"Let me rephrase that." I cleared my throat "During combat you'll encounter many unpredictable situations. Did you understand this time?"

"Yes."

"In those situations, you'll have to rely on your knowledge, techniques and intuition to either survive or achieve victory. That will only be possible if you are able to predict or lead the battle and one of the ways to do that is by observing your opponents."

"You are teaching all this. Does that mean that will I have to fight one day?"

"As your mother, I can say with 100% confidence that I don't want you to fight. But it is also because that I am your mother that I must teach this. I don't know what the future holds, however, if my teachings can help you in a tight spot then I have done my duty well."

"I don't really want to fight…" Nova sullenly said

I kneeled in front of her and hugged her "You don't have to if you don't want." I said while patting her back "I am not saying that you won't have to in the future. But right now, I will protect you from harm to the best of my abilities, until you decide to leave the nest."

"Hm." Was the answer I received

"Well. Now that that is over, shall we go eat?"

"I'm famished."

"Then, let's go."

"Wait!" Nova stopped me and I cocked my head in her direction "Do you mean that we'll descend the mountain the same way as we climbed it?"

"Why, yes. How else would you like to go?"

"I don't know. How about a safer way?" she pleaded

"Too much trouble. Let's go." I grabbed Nova and put the rug in the inventory

"Wait! Let me at least prepare my heart!"

"Don't be such a maiden."

"I am a maiden!"