In the days that followed, Leon settled into a routine unlike any he'd known: intensely disciplined and carefully structured. Every day was divided into strict blocks, each directed toward the same goal—to grow stronger.
At dawn, as soon as the sky began to lighten, his body clock roused him. He didn't get up right away. Instead, he spent half an hour on the most basic meditation, stabilizing his mental nebula and trying to sense and guide the faint ripples of his Spiritual Power more clearly. Progress was maddeningly slow, but every time he successfully entered the meditative state, he grew a little more familiar with controlling his own magic.
At breakfast, he no longer sat there bleary-eyed or distracted. He forced himself to pay attention, listening for the snippets of conversation Aunt Margaret and Elisa occasionally exchanged about magic, politics, or events in the Imperial Capital. Like a dry sponge, he greedily soaked up anything that might prove useful. Even when he couldn't understand it yet, he committed it to memory. Under Aunt Margaret's seemingly casual but razor-sharp gaze, he learned to remain respectfully quiet in moderation. He no longer acted like the original Leon, either talking back or fawning over her.
Mornings were reserved, without fail, for going to the City Guard's base and enduring Captain Hans's "torment." Training remained brutal. Every sword swing, every weighted run, every sparring exercise left his muscles burning and his bones groaning. Captain Hans's barbs and merciless prodding never let up, either. But Leon's mindset had changed. He no longer saw the training as mere punishment, but as a furnace in which to temper his frail body. Gritting his teeth, he swallowed all the pain and exhaustion. His eyes held a resolve and focus he'd never shown before. He even began trying, when pushed to his limits, to use his faint Spiritual Power to sense how his body generated force and the subtle flow of fighting spirit. The results were meager, but actively thinking and trying was progress in itself. Captain Hans seemed to have noticed the subtle change. He still gave Leon no quarter, but now and then, an almost imperceptible flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.
Afternoons were his own, devoted entirely to magic. He spent most of the time in the Count's Mansion's vast library. He no longer wandered aimlessly; now he had specific goals. First, he pored over the basic meditation manual and booklet Elisa had given him until he knew every annotation and every diagram of Spiritual Power circulation by heart. Then he began systematically consulting the most basic books on magical theory: An Introduction to Magic Elements, A Preliminary Exploration of the Nature of Spiritual Power, Basic Rune Analysis... For trained mages, these were the equivalent of primers for small children. For him, a "magic illiterate," they were mountains he had to painstakingly climb. The obscure terminology, complicated theoretical models, and seemingly contradictory schools of thought often left him reeling. But he didn't give up. If he couldn't understand something after one read, he read it twice, then three times... He used the clumsiest methods, forcing himself to memorize, understand, and mull it over. Whenever he encountered a problem he truly couldn't figure out, he carefully wrote it down. But he didn't dare trouble Elisa or Aunt Margaret too readily, afraid of exposing his "ignorance" and unusual pace of learning.
In the evenings came the most "luxurious" part of his day. He would slip into Elisa's room on time and practice his unique "pillow cultivation method." With the help of Elisa's miraculous Breath of Serenity, his meditation was far more effective than when he practiced alone. He no longer contented himself with passively absorbing the soothing aura, but began trying to guide it actively. Carefully, he sent out a thread of Spiritual Power, like the finest tendril, attempting to "touch" and "understand" the magical properties within the cool fragrance that lingered around Elisa. He discovered that the aura wasn't of a single element. It was an incredibly refined, gentle field of Spiritual Power that could effectively soothe mental agitation and heighten perception. He even had the wild idea of trying to imitate the fluctuations of this field. Of course, that was pure fantasy. Every attempt was like a stone sinking into the sea. Still, his Spiritual Power and control grew sturdier through these subtle explorations.
As the days passed, Leon was like a spider silently spinning its web, weaving a net of strength without a sound. Under Hans's relentless pounding, his body gradually grew sturdier. He was still a long way from becoming a true knight, but at least he was no longer as weak and soft as before. More importantly, the greatest change came in magic.
It happened late one night, about half a month after he had begun this disciplined routine. Leon was immersed in deep meditation, his Spiritual Power intensely focused as he guided the dark-golden nebula to rotate slowly and steadily. After all his hard work, he had become much more adept at controlling his Spiritual Power. The nebula spun more smoothly, and its ripples spread with greater regularity.
Just then, a sudden idea struck him. According to Basic Rune Analysis, the most basic spell, Light Spell, consisted of an extremely simple rune structure representing the concepts of "gathering" and "release." Its essence wasn't to create light, but to disturb the particles of light elements in the air with Spiritual Power, making them glow briefly. He couldn't even sketch half a rune yet, but the idea of "disturbing the elements"...
A daring thought occurred to him. He stopped pushing the nebula and gathered all his intent. Instead of turning inward, he tried to extend it outward, toward the faint white specks he often "saw" during meditation—the basic light elements that seemed to hover just beyond his reach.
Recalling the principles of Light Spell, he put aside the complicated runic construction. In the simplest, most direct way, he wrapped a sliver of faint Spiritual Power around his "intent"—a powerful desire for it to "light up"—and hurled it at the nearest white speck like an invisible stone!
It was pure intent, without the slightest technique, more like an instinctive shout.
And yet, a miracle happened!
The lazy, drifting white speck suddenly flickered violently when struck by Leon's "impact," charged with his intense intent and Spiritual Power! Immediately after, a pale glow, dimmer than a firefly and lasting less than half a second, abruptly lit up in the darkness of his mental perception before his tightly shut eyes! Then it quickly vanished!
Had he done it?!
Leon jolted out of his meditative state, his heart pounding! The glow was so faint it was almost negligible, and it lasted only a fleeting moment, but he had unquestionably used his own Spiritual Power to influence the magical elements around him for the first time!
He hadn't relied on Elisa's aura or any external aid. This power was entirely his own! Though it was pitifully small, it was undoubtedly a milestone—a breakthrough from zero to one!
An immense joy and sense of accomplishment swept over him, nearly making him cry out. Instinctively, he tightened his arms around the "cultivation accelerator" in his embrace, nuzzling his cheek contentedly against Elisa's fragrant hair.
Just then, Elisa, who had been facing away from him and seemed to have fallen asleep long ago, stiffened almost imperceptibly. Then her cool voice sounded in the darkness, slightly hoarse with sleep but unusually clear:
"Did you just... manipulate light elements?"
Leon instantly froze. His joy was doused in ice water and vanished! Had she felt it?! Hadn't she been asleep?!
"I... I don't know..." Leon's voice came out dry with nerves. "I was just... meditating, and I thought... I saw a flash of light..." He didn't dare admit what he'd done, so he gave a vague answer.
Elisa fell silent for a moment, as if sensing something. Then she slowly turned around and looked at Leon's face, so close to hers, with calm violet eyes in the hazy darkness. Her gaze was no longer entirely indifferent. It held clear curiosity and... surprise.
"Externalizing Spiritual Power, elemental resonance... The disturbance is of the lowest grade." She stated it flatly, her tone giving nothing away. "It seems Teacher Margaret wasn't entirely mistaken in sending you to the Training Class."
With that, she turned around again, resuming her usual position with her back to him, and said no more.
But Leon's heart pounded again at the brief remark—this time with an indescribable excitement and... hope.
Elisa's words were, in a way, an acknowledgment of his insignificant "progress"! That meant his hard work, the direction he was taking—at least, neither was wrong! And she had mentioned the Training Class! Did that mean Aunt Margaret had already told her about the arrangements?
Leon couldn't sleep for a long time that night. The fleeting light at his fingertips and Elisa's unexpected acknowledgment were like sparks in the darkness. Though faint, they truly lit the road ahead.
His magic had begun to stir. His future held promise.
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