The Regression Of A Grand Mercenary

Step by step, Thill took the first initiative to get closer. And in his simple stature alone, Ron could see Thill’s intentions all too easily by the calm in his eyes.

‘Hmm, he’s giving his brother the advantage by taking slow steps forward. With those small steps, it’s enough to give a chance for a mage to properly manipulate a spell.’ thought Ron.

Yet right as Thill took his tenth step, all of a sudden, the atmosphere in the training room changed.

And Ron saw the expression on Thill’s eyes harden.

“…?” Ron was curious in the sudden shift.

Dashing at a speed of an arrow, Thill thrusted his wooden practice sword forward to Theodore’s chest.

Stella could barely follow Thill’s actions in that moment. And seeing him show his abilities, she quickly thought of Theodore’s chances in winning.

As quick as she could, she turned her eyes to Theodore, expecting that on the first round of the duel, Theodore would lose without ever being able to create a spell…yet just as her eyes caught Theodore, she was yet again taken by surprise from the fact that Theodore showed a brave expression.

Although he was nervous to a degree that his breathing was uneven, he was ready to a certain point.

Theodore had already experienced a sparring session against his brother over fifty times…and never once has he felt the confidence to even claim an open attack against his brother.

But even so, throughout all the spars he went against his own brother, he picked up certain habits that would give him the advantage to take predictions and move forward.

At the moment Thill quickened his pace, Theodore quickly produced ten fist-sized fireballs without chanting and he threw it at Thill at a fast degree.

Flying over at a speed faster than a person could at throwing rocks, each fireball flew at uneven and random directions that felt as if Theodore had no control over.

And even though his attacks were slower than Thill’s movements, the randomness of those attacks caught Thill by surprise.

“?!” he quickly shifted his body and started dodging each fireball at an inch’s length.

Without using his sword, Thill simply dodged one fireball after the other in quite the rattling form.

Like the wind, he moved with such pace and grace that shook Stella even more to question her thoughts on Thill.

Meanwhile, Ron was by the side, watching intently at Theodore.

‘Hmm, despite such a basic spell, the boy was able to produce ten fireballs without any sort of drawback from pain. He’s clearly mastered the skill to a certain degree…but even so, it won’t be enough to even touch the other boy’s skin. Even if he threw all his fireballs at his brother, it’s certain that none of those balls will hit because of how slow they are compared to Thill’s abilities.’ thought Ron.

And like his assumptions, Thill came dashing in like a serpent easily making his fangs down to his prey after dodging.

But as his blade was nearing, Theodore had already expected it to this degree.

He was prepared.

‘Gotcha!’ Theodore smiled at the chance that he made happen.

At full control, all of those ten fireballs he threw earlier was suddenly pulled back to his direction like a ball being tugged by a string.

“!?” Ron was surprised by the flexibility of Theodore’s control…yet Thill, who had his eyes on Theodore simply smiled.

He already caught scent of the fires that were curving themselves back to their owner.

‘Hmm, if it were any other element, it could have probably caught me by surprise…but fire, by default is hot. It’s easy to tell where it’s coming from.’ thought Thill.

As it came to a foot close near Thill’s back, Thill quickly turned his body at a 180 degree with his blade. And in his turn, each fireball was cut by his blade in a single swing.

“How?!” Theodore was certain that the attack should have connected. But it seems as though that his brother had eyes at the back of his head.

“You think that it was going to be that easy to trick me?” said Thill as he looked at his brother in the eye.

Meawhile, Stella had her own thoughts to say.

‘…if it were some other adventurer who took it on, they would not have expected those fireballs from behind. It was done in such a seamless way. Not only did he preserve his mana but also, he took the risk of being struck almost at clear point. But his opponent right now…he is just on another level. He said that he was a blacksmith….but is that really the case?’

“…you never once did that before…I’m impressed.’ said Thill in compliment to his brother’s cunning attack.

But to his brother’s failed attempt, he didn’t feel proud at all.

“I… I thought that I could.”

“Don’t be so down about it. You learned something throughout all the spars you experienced against me. I call that growth.”

“…Damn it.”

“Now then, lets pick up where we left off.” at that moment, Thill quickly raised his sword again and swiftly touched the top of his brother’s head.

“!!” Theodore could barely follow through at that moment. He didn’t even saw his brother’s arms move…nor could he comprehend it.

And from then, the first duel was over.

“So, what do you think about my brother’s abilities?” asked Thill as he turns to the old man.

“I’ll give my full evaluation once all the three duels are over. For now, boy…approach me. I have caught glimpse of your potential…and the things you lack.”

With that said, Theodore approached Ron hesitantly. And as he came at an ear shot, the old man leaned his head over to his ear and whispered his advice.

“~~~~,~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~~”

“.…I see.”

“…Am I clear?” Asked the old man as he finished whispering.

“…Yes.” after that, something changed in Theodore’s eyes.

It was as if he had developed an open mind…an awakening to something new that he had never considered before.

And with a newly found sense of thought, he looked to Thill, ready to fight again.

“He must have told you something interesting.”

“…he did.” and in such a way, Theodore did something that caught Thill by surprise.

“What did he tell you?”

“…Let the embers dance and burn — Ignis Volara!”

And to his chant, he manifested three fireballs the size of his head.

“…A fireball?”

“Preparation….I lacked the proper way to manifest magic. By putting enchantments through my words, Mr. Ron Wessel explained that it would help me better my control over my own magic.”

“Ah right…I can see the difference.” said Thill.

Rather than just being able to manifest a burning ball of fire out of sheer will, by chanting words that attract the elements of fire, not only does this it help stabilize the the flame, but it also enhances the performance of both power and control.

As of now, Theodore’s flames were stronger, faster to manipulate and more stable.

Thill can see it from the way the air was slightly more heavier than his previous spell. With how Thill can feel the weight and strength of magic based off of the heaviness of the air around him, he could see that Theodore had improved.

“…I never would have thought of this. Good for you to be able to learn.” said Thill as he was genuinely impressed of his brother.

“Thank you…”

As the two conversed, Ron on the other hand, observed Theodore’s abilities.

‘Hmm…to be able to manifest and attract the elements of fire that easily in one single chant, this must be proof of his natural affinity to the flame. And if not, it shows his genuine talent over all. I had my doubts, but this is evidence enough of his potential.’ Thought Ron as he looked to Theodore with pure interest.

He even smiled at the thought of the possibilities of his future.

With that potential discovered, they moved on to the second duel.

“To be fair, manifesting a fireball without chanting is faster…but what do you prefer? Quality or quantity?” asked Thill as he walked back to the other end of the training grounds.

“That depends on the situation.” said Theodore.

“…Good, with that said…lets see if anything has changed.”

As Thill stood ready to strike, immediately, Theodore chanted his spell yet again.

“Let the embers dance and burn — Ignis Volara!”

At that moment, he manifested three fireballs and he attacked first.

As he threw those fireballs, he noticed the difference in speed all too well.

‘!!’ they were much faster now. Fast enough to even almost match an arrow’s speed.

The difference from before was grand.

Yet even with such a development, Thill was standing with no sense of worry at all.

As the fireballs came in close, he simply swung his sword sideways and destroyed each incoming fireball.

And as he did, he then took a step forward. Walking towards Theodore with a calculating gaze.

“Let me remind you that you can’t just stay in place Theodore…there are no boundaries in the training ground. You can use the walls, the ceiling, anything to your advantage.”

“…”

“If you stay around, I’ll eventually reach you again.”

“Khk!” taking his brother’s advice into heart, Theodore decided to move.

Yet instead of backing away, he ran forward.

“Ignis Volara!”

In a quick chant, he manifested a single fire ball and continued running.

And as he got close, he threw the fireball not at his brother but at the ground, near his brother’s foot.

The moment the fireball struck the ground, it caused it to break. And dust and rocks came flying around, blinding Thill from his brother’s sight.

Using that chance, Theodore came and manifested three more fireballs without a chant and he fired it at hi brother’s direction.

As the fireballs were thrown, each one flew past into the dust cloud. He expected that at least one could have struck his brother, but to his attempts, the fireballs only past through the dust clouds and nothing more.

“!?” confused as to where his brother was, Theodore looked around and found that his brother was above the corner of the ceiling of the training grounds.

‘How?! I never saw him move!’

Due to his inexperience, he never expected that from his perspective, Thill used the dust clouds to his advantage and moved at a rather fast pace.

At that moment, Thill launched himself from the corner and straight into Theodore’s direction.

Being taken aback by this, Theodore panicked and tried manifesting his flames yet again, not as a fireball…but as a blanket.

Instead of attacking, he created a wall of fire to block his brother’s view.

‘A new skill?’ Thill had never once saw his brother do this form of spell once. It might have been possible that he must have trained in secret on other forms of spells.

But at that moment, as he passed through the wall of flames, he came to the other side and saw that his brother was already out with his hands…ready to attack.

“Ignis Volara!”

At a point black distance, Theodore fired a fireball at his brother’s face with no hesitation at all.

And at that moment, Theodore had thought that he finally got his brother…

But to his surprise, Thill came about and shifted his entire body midair.

“!!?”

He lowered his legs under and kicked Theodore’s arms away from where he was originally aiming.

As Thill misdirected Theodore’s hands up to the ceiling, without any sort of control, Theodore fired his attacks up to the air and missed.

*Boom!* the ceiling was cracked open from the attack.

At that moment, Thill followed his kick with a straight punch to his brother’s stomach.

“KhF!” Theodore received half the force of a 1^st stage Pure core’s, causing him to lose strength on his legs.

As he fell to his knees, he struggled to stay conscious. Without anything to lean on, he fell face flat to the floor.

At the sight of his struggle, it was a sign that the 2^nd duel ended.

“Woah, that was crazy…you really almost got me there.” said Thill as looked at his brother who was struggling on the floor.

“Ughh…my stomach.”

‘Hmm, maybe I was too harsh.’ Thought Thill.

Seeing the event play out, Stella quickly rushed over to Theodore’s side to check on him while carrying a first aid kit.

As she arrived, she had him lay flat on the ground.

“He’s going to be fine.” said Thill.

But seeing Theodore struggle, Stella doubted it.

“You should have gone easy on him.” said Stella.

“…Easy? Are you sure about that?” asked Thill.

“…He’s your brother.”

“Yes…but he’s also dreaming of becoming a mage. Do you think that going easy on someone who has that kind of ambition really necessary?”

“…”

“I-It’s fine Mrs. Stella, I go through this kind of pain all the time when we were training back home.” said Theodore as he spoke while in pain.

“I just think that it was unnecessary to go that rough on your brother.”

“If I had gone easy on him from the very beginning, he wouldn’t have reached this far in just two months. And…he always has the choice to give up. My methods may be rough, but Theodore isn’t so foolish to give up on his dream.”

“…”

“Why do you think he’s still here?”

“…You have a warrior’s mindset.” said Stella as she looked to Thill with worried eyes.

“…Enough talking, Boy, come to me.” said Ron as he stared in contempt.

With his orders said, Theodore slowly walked to Ron in anguish.

As he came near the old man, Ron raised his hand and started healing Theodore.

“!?” this shocked him to see that the old man was fixing Theodore’s condition.

“…Hmm, you would have your chance at that moment if it wasn’t for the fact that the opponent of yours is more cunning than most snakes and foxes.” said the old man in a whisper to Theodore’s ear.

“…My brother, I know he’s still holding back. As usual, he’s going easy on me.” said Theodore.

“Really?”

“Yes…you might no believe this, but a couple months back, he was able to slay a lesser ashened dragon all by himself.”

“…He slayed a dragon? Where?”

“At our village…Fether Village.”

“Ah yes, that village. I’ve heard of this gossip. To think that it was actually real. And him of all people?” Ron sounded amused by what Theodore had spoke of.

“My brother is strong…and the possibility of me ever striking my brother straight to where it hurts is close to zero.” said Theodore.

“Hmm, that may be the case, but don’t sound so sad about it. Defeating him isn’t the objective of your duel…as far as I can tell, you do have the talent to attend the magic academy of this city, but the chances aren’t so high. Many are on par of you, some are more skilled and learned than you, but that’s only because the opportunity came late to you.”

“…what can I do to increase my chances in learning at the academy?” Theodore sounded desperate.

“You have an eager heart…your soul yearns to learn magic…the desire you feel, isn’t it beautifu?”

“It’s heartbreaking.” said Theodore as the thought of never achieving the chance to attend the academy crossed his mind.

“That it is…so if you want to achieve your goal, there’s only so little things I can tell you.”

“…”

“My second advice…to you, is that you look to the world…awaken your mind.”

As he said that, he puts his hand over Theodore’s head and from it, he made his mana flow through his mind.

“…?”

And from that very moment…

…Ron Wessel smiled.

Like a bolt of lightning coursing through Theodore’s mind, mana and knowledge overflowed his thoughts and desires…

Something was growing inside him…

The potential…

The talent…

It coarse through like a water flowing through branches of possibilities.

At that moment, Theodore awakened his mana core.

“…” his eyes were open to the sight of something new…

It was as if he was reborn…

“So, how does it feel to think with an awakened mind?”

“W-what did you do?” he asked as blood started to drip from his nose.

“I increased your chances in attending the academy.”

“It hurts…agh!”

“…Don’t worry, it may be a side affect of forcing your mind to open it’s mana core.”

“You forced me to open my mana core? Isn’t that dangerous? I heard that people who force open their mana cores often leads to them destroying their own mind…and worse yet, it leads to them dying!”

“It may have been if the person’s mind was weak…but seeing your talents, your potential, I was certain that you could take on the challenge.” said Ron.

“…” feeling this change, Theodore started to feel…strange.

”Ugh…my tongue, my tastebuds…why does it feel like I just tasted the skin a sour lemon?”

“Oh that, that’s another side effect. Don’t worry, that taste on your tongue will soon disappear in a couple of days.”

“…right.” feeling strange, he turned his head back to his brother and saw that the two were looking eye to eye at one another.

“…”

In a silent walk forward, Theodore could feel his brother’s bloodlust as he was getting closer to the old man.

“What did he do to you?” he asked as he could see the blood on Theodore’s nose.

“…I gave him my second advice.” said the old man.

“…you feel…strange.” said Thill as he could feel Theodore’s body feel heavy in the air.

‘Hmm, the mana around him suddenly became heavier….and this scent of lemon, could it be?’

Thill could easily read the sudden development.

As he turned his eyes to the old man, his eyes were furrowed.

“You could have killed him.” said Thill as his bloodlust suddenly covered the entire training ground. Making it hard to breathe not only for Theodore and Stella, but for the old man too.

“!!??” The old man was in shock by this sudden grow of bloodlust from the boy…

He thought that maybe a demon had walked into the guild…

But at the sight of Thill’s silent and distinct anger, the old man swallowed his nerves and faced Thill with a brave face.

“…Ahem, I wouldn’t have taken the chance if I wasn’t certain of the boy’s abilities.” explained the old man.

With such a bland explanation, it felt like it wasn’t enough to calm his anger…

But surprisingly, Thill closed his eyes and walked back to the other end of the training ground.

“…” there, he stood silently while closing his eyes.

“…”

“I-it looks like he threw his anger away.” said Theodore.

“…get ready for the final duel, boy. And this time, try to win patiently. I feel a dangerous feeling surrounding your brother’s presence.”

“…What?”

As Theodore looked to his brother, he suddenly met an image of a blade going through his neck at a flashing speed.