Marcus Blade POV
"Ahh! Ahh! Ahh!"
Marcus swung his sword time and time again, constantly blocking the attacks of his assailant and current training partner...
A sword.
Or to be more precise, a enchanted sword.
Ever since ranking up, his training started speeding up in intensity as he explored new branches and uses of his profession skills.
And this enchanted sword was the result of that training.
It was created in the same way Marcus always created swords, that is, with his [Cosmic Forge (SS)], with a little twist.
After proving how far his magecraft skills had gotten, Andrew gave him a new assignement, to find a way to enchant a sword as he was creating it.
Marcus was obviously aware of how enchanting worked, as someone who studied arduously about smithing from the Forger side of his family.
Enchanting was the use of magecraft to imprint a spell into an item. This could be used through several methods of magecraft, like the various variations of runes and geometry.
It was a demanding couple of months, but he was able to achieve it.
Using [Cosmic Forge] to enchant a sword was not as simple as changing the shape of a sword to include the engravings of the spell during forging. After all, those engravings are a part of magecraft and therefore needed mana to perform it.
And that's where the greatest hurdle of enchanting using his profession was. While using [Cosmic Forge] what he was using to fuel his skill was not mana or aura, but a mix of the two along with Intent, i.e., Cosmic Energy. Therefore, the aura in its content was responsible for disrupting the spell engraving process, resulting in unsatisfactory results to say the least.
But Marcus soon found a work around in his other profession skill, [Cosmic Forge's Flame (A)]. With it's capability to change objects, it was the perfect tool for engraving.
He just needed to find a way to change a weapon using only the blue flames of the skill, instead of the whole thing.
And he did.
He called that Partial Flame Rearrangement, it allowed him to separate the blue and red flames to change a weapon's different aspects.
Blue flames were able to change an object's magical effects and therefore were suitable for engraving.
Red Flames on the other hand were capable of changing an object's response to Aura and Intent, which was more useful than it might seem.
And the sword to which he was sparring against was the first ever succesfull result of engraving using his profession.
It was engraved with a simple telekinesis spell, allowing it to float and maneuver in the air as if someone was actually wielding it.
This was great training actually, it allowed Marcus to spar against himself, or a version of himself that did not have a body.
However, it didn't take long for his control over the spell to fade and the sword to drop on the ground with the familiar clink of metal.
"Controlling a spell while fighting in two positions at the same time while trying to not give the advantage to neither side probably took a great toll on your mind. If you were to simply use it to hurl swords at your enemy you could probably do much better."
Andrew approached while saying those words.
"If I hurled something at my enemies, wouldn't a spear or an arrow be much better?"
"Hahaha! Who knows? I always though that a storm of blades raining down from the sky would be pretty cool."
Marcus chuckled.
"Perhaps one day, Master."
"Anyway, ready to see this month's progress?"
"Yes!"
Andrew took out an Appraiser and quickly checked the status that showed.
[
Name: Marcus Blade
Age: 7
Rank: G
Talent: S+
Profession: Cosmic Forger (SS)
Strength: F+
Speed: F
Stamina: F+
Vitality: E
Magic: E+
Willpower: C+
Charisma: A+ (This stat is completely unrelated to mana or combat, this stat cannot be evolved)
Skills:
→[Blade's Sword Art (F)] (21% proficiency)
→[Forger's Advanced Crafting Arts (F)] (40% proficiency)
→[Advanced Magic Arts (F)] (5% proficiency)
-> [Aura Control (F)](79% proficiency)
Profession Skills:
→[Cosmic Forge's Flame (A)] (57% proficiency)
→[Cosmic Forge (SS)](49% proficiency)
]
"You are doing a great job, Marcus. Your profiency is growing steadly and the way you chain your vast arsenal is getting more and more creative. That move yesterday was incredible: switching from an arrow with a spell that generated gasoline to a spear with a spell that ignited flames was brilliant."
"It was nothing, I'm surprised you are still on that, it didn't even burn your eyebrows."
"Kid, I'm an A-Rank Awakened. Are you really expecting an attack from a G-Rank brat would actually harm me? And besides, I was not complimenting the power behind the attack, but rather the ingenuity behind it."
"Master, your disciple can only take so many compliments at once."
"Hahaha, anyway, your father asked me to skip spar today, it seems that he has something he wants to talk to you about. Did you screw up in sword training again?"
"How could that possibly be true? It was only that one time! I haven't cut anyone's fingers this time."
"Whatever you say kid."
"Ugh, I will meet him then, see you Master."
"See ya, Kid."
Marcus left the training area with very little hurry, he was not that interested in meeting his father at the moment.
Not because he was going through a tough time with him at the moment, it was just because whenever his father asked him to interrupt his training it meant that it was something serious.
Last time it was that incident where he had struck a senior trainee in the hands, cleanly slicing their fingers.
Other times he was called to test his progress. He either was forced to take a written or a practical test about the subjects he had been learning.
Besides normal school stuff, there was also:
Swordmanship
Archery
Forging
Magecraft
Noble Etiquete
Clan Administration
Mana and Aura Control
Profession Usage
Among others.
So it was either that he caused some problem that he couldn't recall, or another evaluation.
'Honestly, I don't know which I prefer at the moment.'
Marcus was really looking forward to sparring with Andrew today, since he had devised a new combination of moves that he wanted to test, so he was itching for a fight.
'If I have some luck, I might get a swordsmanship practical test.'
After a long walk, albeit not long enough for him, he had arrived at his father's office.
He knocked on the door three times and waited for a response.
"Get in."
Hearing his father's confirmation, Marcus entered the office.
Already in the room was his mother who was standing as far away from father as she possibly could in the room. However, his father seemed totally unbothered by it.
Instead he was looking directly at Marcus, his expression serious.
Seeing his father's face, Marcus was perplexed for a moment. He turned towards his mother, his look asking for questions.
His mother looked at him, her eyes softening, she shook her head softly and slowly shrugged.
"What's happening, father?"
"Son."
He started with that, setting the tone of the conversation.
"I already told you how important it is to mask your talent until you are of age, correct?"
"Yes, until I can take care of myself or in a situation where I am forced into the spotlight, I shouldn't reveal any of my abilities."
"That is correct. Do you know why?"
"Because those on the Awakened Association would try to use me for their own goals, right?"
"It seems you are more attentive then I thought, as expected."
He walked around the table.
"Because of that, we made contact with the New Blood Association, officially cutting our ties with the old traditions and walking towards a new state of things."
He sighed before continuing.
"The leader of said Association, Yuki Frost, is hosting a ball in celebration of her daughter's, Daphne's, birthday. You were invited."
Marcus was startled.
'Was this ever mentioned in canon? No, I don't think so, but then again, Marcus must've met Ayza somewhere to fall in love and start serving her, right?'
"I was invited?"
"Yes. So, Marcus, I will ask of you to represent the Blade Family in this ball and successfully create a good impression on the New Blood Association, go all out if needed."
Marcus was surprised and overjoyed. After so many lessons, he was finally able to show off everything that he had learned to someone who was not Andrew? This was great.
Still, there was still some doubt in his mind. After all, going to this ball meant interacting with a lot of the main cast, and although he was not that concerned over canon, he still needed to be attentive to his every action.
After all, every interaction could create a reaction towards the story, resulting in events happening in a way that he could not react to.
'I feel like I am about to have a headache from walking in a glass floor.'
******
A/N: Things are getting set up.
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