Weeks passed in a blur as all Wilhelm did was spar with Rachel or construct Frost Lance.
He didn't bother to even think about anything else until and unless he gained that ring.
During this time he'd learn quite a lot about Rachel although they were just minor details like her favorite food and things like that.
Wilhelm didn't understand why she was revealing all these things but he ignored them and only focused on improving.
He had to get that ring.
And so he had to beat her.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BANG!
Rachel's fist flew toward Wilhelm's abdomen, but he grabbed it, pulling her closer.
As She drew nearer, Wilhelms shifted to the side and launched a fist at her temple.
His fist, coated in Niflheim's frost, connected with her and forced her back a few steps.
Rachel, eager to retaliate, readied herself for another attack when a sharp pain shot through her head.
"Now!" Wilhelm, seizing the opportunity, pounced toward her and unleashed a roundhouse kick.
As it turns out, getting beaten up repeatedly does wonders for combat skills.
The kick was blocked by Rachel, who hastily raised her arms in an attempt to grab Wilhelm's leg.
BANG!
CRACK!
The sound of something breaking echoed as Rachel was thrown to the ground.
"that was close" Wilhelm thought, wanting to celebrate as he observed her and cautiously walked closer.
He didn't drop his guard—Rachel still hadn't used Muspelheim.
"Some me it's strength, use it Rachel" he inwardly prayed as he edged nearer to her.
From their countless battles and their conversations, Wilhelm had deduced that hers, like him, could only use Muspelheim for a limited time. However, unlike his ability—which came with severe drawbacks like frozen limbs or the risk of his body exploding—Rachel's limitations were less apparent.
Suddenly, as he came within range of her feet, she acted.
She crouched low and kicked at Wilhelm's leg.
"No!" Wilhelm realized his chances of winning were fading as he staggered back.
Rachel seized the brief opening, spinning her legs to deliver a blow to Wilhelm's left leg.
BAM!
He lost his balance in an instant and fell to the ground, but he quickly rolled back to avoid Rachel's follow-up.
Fire erupted as Rachel finally summoned Muspelheim, sending a tongue of flame toward Wilhelm.
The flames weren't intended to cause serious harm; they exploded just before reaching him, temporarily blinding him.
"Damn it! Now she's going to attack!" Wilhelm lamented, sensing the fire closing in.
In desperation, he summoned Niflheim's frost, freezing the moisture around him as he always did.
Though he had already constructed the Frost Core's second layer, which improved his control, it wasn't nearly enough against the battle-hardened Rachel.
"Come on!" Wilhelm screamed internally, willing something to take shape from the cold. But nothing did.
Rachel approached slowly, each step increasing Wilhelm's trepidation.
"No..I haven't lost yet"
He hastily formed a small ice stick. It was pitifully meager, and he knew it wouldn't be enough, but he clung to a desperate hope that it might help.
Then, it happened.
Something inside him broke.
A surge of power flooded Wilhelm.
"What..?" he was momentarily startled, however, he quickly drew on the newfound energy coursing through him.
Beside him, Aether began to coalesce, forming a construct—a Frost Lance.
"Go!" Wilhelm commanded, grabbing the lance and hurling it toward Rachel.
WHOOSH!
The lance soared like a bird, shattering the feeble ice stick in its path and closing in on Rachel.
"Burn" Rachel commanded, sweeping her flames toward the lance.
The lance began to melt but still held its course, alarming Rachel.
Instantly, all the flames around her redirected to her palm, concentrating their heat to melt the lance.
HISS!
Steam erupted as the lance rapidly deformed, but it pressed forward.
Sensing danger, Rachel tried to roll aside, but the distorted lance struck her shoulder and pierced it.
KISH!
Rachel let out a sharp cry of pain.
Meanwhile, her opponent's eyes shone with joy.
He had finally injured that battle-crazed maniac!
And then—
"Kekekeke."
A laugh escaped Rachel's lips as she flashed a wide, unsettling smile, the lance melting away completely.
"Good, good, good!" Rachel cackled like a witch, sending a chill down Wilhelm's spine.
"Wilhelm, you really are full of surprises! Only three weeks, and you've already managed to injure me like this.. very Impressive!" Rachel praised.
Wilhelm, however, was scared out of his wits as he looked at her, who now stood before him, her flames dissipated.
Watching her, he came to a realization.
This girl wasn't just a battle maniac—she was a masochist too!
"See you next time!" Rachel said cheerfully before grabbing his head and planting a fist.
BAM!
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Wilhelm, you good?" A voice awakened Wilhelm who opened his eyes to meet a wasteland of frost.
"Polaris… I..is that you?" Wilhelm asked as his eyes met a blue-robed man with white hair.
"The same one stuck inside this place." The blue-robed man—Polaris confirmed.
"I lost consciousness, didn't I? Nevermind.. of course I did." Wilhelm sighed.
"What happened there, I mean how did I conjure Frost Lance?" Wilhelm asked.
"To put it simply, the situation forced your body to." Polaris revealed as he conjured seats for both of them and gestured for Wilhelm to sit.
"Explain."
"Alright, you see back in the day before The Sovereign. Aetherists or what you call Wizards would spar or engage in life and death battles not only for gaining combat experience but also for an opportunity to break through. Both Greater and Lesser Aetherists had their own ways to break through but the crux was the same. Put your life on the line."
"Why? And what are Greater and Lesser Aetherists?" Wilhelm queried.
"Lesser refers to Aetherists below Saint and Greater for Saints and Quasi-Deities. Don't ask about Quasi-Deities, I don't remember much. And as for why? It was quite simple, the body doesn't want to die. For Lesser Aetherists it releases copious amounts of adrenaline that put the body into a semi-enlightened stage. The brain and the entire body works overtime to ensure its survival and in that moment, you'll find that you will be able to do a lot of things. Mortals experience increased physical strength and for Lesser Aetherists like you, the chance to construct a Spell Construct becomes a lot easier." Polaris explained.
"But I've been fighting Rachel for weeks,how can my adrenaline only now help me construct a Spell Construct?"
"Because it's a step-by-step process,adrenaline has been realising ever since your first fight with those mutts. Your progress has been accumulating with adrenaline only adding a bit more."
"But constructing Spell Construct requires understanding!"
"Understanding which you've already had! Without proper understanding of the Spell Construct, even if you had a hundred times the adrenaline rushing into your veins, the only thing you'd experience would be increased body actions and nothing more!" Polaris pointed a finger at Wilhelm.
"You already understood the core of the construct - use Frost Elemental Energy to converge and form a stick of particular durability and shape. You were only given a slight push with today's spar that helped you complete it in the end." Polaris concluded his explanation.
"I see." Wilhelm scratched his chin.
Suddenly a strange expression appeared on Polaris's face.
"Do me a quick favor and summon your Frost Lance."
"Huh? I can do that?" Wilhelm asked, visibly surprised.
"Niflheim exists within your mind, although it won't look quite the same. It'll be the most perfect version of the Frost Lance that one can summon with that Spell Construct." Polaris clarified.
Wilhelm was taken aback but nodded.
He raised his right hand and shoved it into the air in front of him.
Wilhelm during his spar with Rachel had used his instant to forge that lance but this time he casted the Spell.
"Forge, Frost Lance!"
SWOOSH!
In an instant, a lance appeared in his grasp.
It's appearance was a far cry to the one he had summoned a few moments ago.
This one was almost transparent with the only thing stopping it from being completely invisible being engravings carved onto it that were stretched across the entirety of the lance.
"This…" He was shocked to see these engravings.
"Just as expected it seems." Polaris commented as he eyed the lance. A sharp glint shone in his eyes.
"You know what this is?" Wilhelm asked.
"A language that existed before The Sovereign's coming. Jötun." Polaris revealed.
"Jötun?" Wilhelm felt something was familiar about it but didn't dwell on it much.
Polaris shook his head and sighed.
"It was a language that, from what I remember,was intrinsic to me when I was alive and since Niflheim is formed out of my being, then having Jötun isn't a surprise."
He nodded and inspected the lance and found another odd detail.
"Is it me or is this lance a bit too decorative?" Wilhelm voiced his thoughts as he looked at the Jötun inscriptions overlaying on top of each to form a design.
"That's just a linguistics quirk it has." Polaris dismissed it with a wave of his hands.
"I believe you should be waking up any moment now." Polaris suddenly brought up.
"Really?"
"Yes, what will you do after you awaken?" he asked.
A smile appeared on Wilhelm's face.
—------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wilhelm opened his eyes, he was in his bed.
During his bouts with Rachel, He'd learnt that Siegfried had a lot of minor functions that appeared a few days after the session began.
They were not of much importance such as the ability to send a spar request to both the teacher overseeing the class and the opponent.
But there was also another function.
Apply for Dungeon Run?
Yes No
He without hesitation clicked yes.
Application sent
Please wait.
Application Approved by Sir Tallow
Please await another notification for the dungeon key..
Wilhelm let out a grin.
"Great"
It was time to hunt some beasts.