The Saiyan Gamer


Chapter 10: House Of Bardock


Charisma Stat Has Been Removed From The Test Run Until Further Notice.

2 Attribute Points Awarded

Ha, I knew it wasn't important. I groaned loudly as consciousness returned to me.

After a few seconds of grogginess, I became aware of voices all around me. They weren't literally standing around me, probably in another room if the muffling meant anything, but I could hear them nonetheless. Before I opened my eyes, I tried to hear if there was someone in the same room as me, quickly realizing that I was alone.

I relaxed, especially when I recognized two of the voices that were speaking. Bardock and Turles. It must have been one of them that saved me from Cauliflo's gang, which I was more than grateful for. It was embarrassing having to be saved, but as long as they didn't rub it in my face, I'd live with it.

Now that I wasn't worried for my safety, I realized that whatever I'd slept on was incredibly soft, and on top of that, that was definitely the best sleep that I'd ever had. Even just laying in whatever it was felt great, and if it wasn't for the fact that the door swung open about five minutes later, I would have probably laid back and stared at the ceiling for at least another hour.

"You're awake," Turles said upon seeing me. "How'd you feel?"

"Incredible," I answered honestly, before sighing and swinging my body left and off of the side of the strange, soft surface. My lower half was covered by a warm, silky feeling surface that I was sure was fur, but not from a Meta-Wolf. "What is this?"

"It's a bed. Not many Saiyans use them, but they're common on plenty of other planets," Turles revealed to me. That was when I noticed the strange looks that he was giving me.

"What?" I asked, narrowing my eyes in suspicion.

"Well, do you remember how you got here?" He asked me in return.

"Not really. I was fighting those idiots and then I passed out," I said, carefully ignoring that part about me having to be saved.

"Yeah. Well, I found you and you were pretty fucked up," Turles said, still looking over me weirdly. "Like, very fucked up. You were bleeding a lot and we weren't really sure if you were going to live or not."

"Oh, so that's where my clothes went," I hummed. "Do you mind giving them back to me? It's a little cold in here."

"That's what you're worried about?" He asked, eyes wide in disbelief. "Not about how you healed after literally almost dying on my dining room table?!"

"Oh, well not really," I shrugged my shoulders. "I always heal when I wake up, and when I eat. Don't you?"

He stared at me for a few seconds, before simply saying, "No."

"Oh," I said slowly as my brain began to break through the fog of sleep.

I was beginning to feel like Luna and I was the only two of our kind; able to see the Game. Leeku couldn't see it, and I had guessed that it was because she was a girl. But that was proven wrong by the fact that Cauliflo, his two followers, and even Turles had to ask who I was. They couldn't see my name above my head as I could see theirs. They also clearly couldn't see my power level, or else they wouldn't have underestimated me.

And now, finding out that Turles doesn't heal when he sleeps, was the nail in the coffin. I was different, that was now plainly obvious. But why? My last hope was that when I was strong enough and returned to Omato village, my family would have some answers. Obviously, Luna wasn't a part of my family, but it was possible that I was able to see the Game because of something that ran in the family…

Right?

"Are both of your parents Saiyans?" Turles asked when I didn't respond further. "If one of them isn't, maybe your non-Saiyan side is where your healing comes from?"

I thought about it, remembering the strange dash and question marks next to Saiyan on my status sheet. Uncertain, I shrugged my shoulders and said, "I don't know. I've only ever met my Dad and he looked Saiyan to me."

"What happened to your Mom?" Turles asked, curious. The strange and suspicious look in his eyes disappeared, and I was glad.

"I don't know, I never got a chance to meet her," I said. "She's probably still in Omato town, though."

"Wait, I thought you said that you didn't leave Omato town?"

"I didn't leave Omato town, because I never lived there," I told him. "The most that I've even been in that town is about three minutes, and that was only because Leeku was really hurt and I needed to get her home."

"So you're telling me that your parents live in Omato town, but you've never lived there?" He asked, his eyebrows knitting together as he thought. "You've been living on your own ever since you came back from your purge?"

"Yeah," I said. "When I came back, they didn't want me, so I started living in the woods. I'm trying to get stronger so that I can go back to them and show them that I'm not a disappointment."

"Wow, sorry to say this about your family, but they sound like ass holes," Turles frowned as if he'd eaten a sour Bizel Berry. "What kind of parents would force their kid to live in the woods just because they weren't a certain strength?"

"Unfortunately, a lot of Saiyan parents are shallow-minded and stupid."

Bardock's voice came from the door and we both snapped our heads towards it. He'd taken a step into the room, and for how long he was standing there, I had no idea. Instead of being unnerved, however, his presence made me feel more relaxed.

"Sprout, this is my Dad," Turles motioned up towards Bardock. "His name is Bardock."

"We've met," I said casually. "He gave me some food the day that I landed."

Turles looked up at the older Saiyan with a surprised expression, before saying, "You didn't tell me that you knew him."

"It was hardly the time; considering that he was dying on our dining room table," Bardock sighed. "Besides, now you know, so what does it matter?"

"Hm," Turles said, his attention still not leaving his dad. "When you first came in, was you saying that happened to Sprout is common?"

Bardock crossed his arms across his chest, a deep frown melting into his face. "Unfortunately. Ever since the Scouters were invented, power levels became a new way to judge a person's value. The class system came about from it, and weaker Saiyans were pushed to the bottom of society, viewed as lesser just because of their lower power levels."

I was listening intently, leaning slightly forward so that I was closer to Barock. From Leeku talking about her mother and brother, I'd come to the conclusion that there was some sort of system to judge the strength of a person. Cauliflo's description had mentioned that he recently became a second class and that his ego was boosted simply because of it.

"Yeah, yeah, I know, but what's that have to do with parents abandoning their kids?" Turles asked, and I patiently awaited Bardock's explanation.

"Lowest in the class system is third class, which is anyone with a power level from 1 to 1000. They're viewed the lowest, and in some people's eyes, they don't even deserve to be Saiyans," Bardock said in a tone that gave me the impression that he didn't agree with the opinion of the others at all. "Because of this, children whose power levels don't look like it's going to pass 1000 by the time they're an adult are typically disowned by their families and either sent out of their villages or forced to live elsewhere in town, away from their family."

"Well, that's stupid," Turles grunted through his teeth. "Power level only has to do with battle strength. What if someone doesn't want to be a warrior?"

I couldn't relate, but I listened anyway. Why would anyone want to be anything but a fighter? Fighting is fun.

"That's the problem with Saiyan society. They focus too much on fighting and being the strongest, not on the things that are important, like listening to each other and working to becoming a united species," Bardock began to mumble under his breath, clearly irritated. "Anyways, let's forget the politics. Thinking about it too long gives me a headache."

I wanted to know more about the class system, but by the look on Bardock's face, I knew that the time had passed. I'd just have to ask Turles later. For now, I asked, "It's nice chatting and all, but it's getting really cold in here and this soft fur thing is nice, but not nearly warm enough. Can I have my clothes back?"

"I tried to stop her, but Gine burned them into ashes the moment that they were off of your body," Bardock revealed, much to my horror.

"Why?!" I threw my hands in the air in protest.

"Kid, when's the last time that you actually washed those clothes? It was a mercy to destroy them," Bardock said, one eyebrow raised. "But don't worry, we aren't going to let you walk around naked. You can wear some of Turles' clothes."

"Huh?" Turles turned to his dad, eyes squinted. "When did w-"

"He's your friend, Turles, are you really going to let him walk around with no clothes on just because you don't want to share?" Bardock asked, in a tone that made me glad that I wasn't on the receiving end. Turles's face grew slightly pink, and he turned away from Bardock and started going through a tall wooden chest-like object, out of which came several clothing items.

He handed me a few things that I did recognize, including a shirt, some pants, and a hooded jacket made of some kind of brown fur.

"Alright, when you're done getting ready, we'll be outside," Bardock told me, before looking directly at me and adding, "Before you guys go off and do your thing, I have a few things to ask you."

"Alright," I nodded my head, although that sentence made me a little nervous.

They left, and I changed quickly. The clothes were the most comfortable things I'd ever put on, second only to my Meta-Wolf full bodysuit. They were a little big on me, but not too much, and while the socks were new to me, they were welcome.

I left the room to find an empty hallway. The walls were made of what looked like trees but cut into the shape of a wall. Not knowing that you could use trees to build a house, I stared at it for a few seconds, before moving on.

Behind me, there were a few doors, but I knew that no one was in those rooms simply by listening in. The closest person to me was in the large room ahead of me, and when I walked in, I saw someone sitting on a chair near a table. Said table looked also to be made of wood, but a lot of it was now a dark shade of red, probably thanks to me.

The kid sitting down looked nothing like Bardock, Kakarot, or Turles. His hair was black, and spiked, flowing so far down his back that it ended at his ankles. In his hand, he held something square that I'd never seen before, and in his other hand, a small rectangular object. At his feet, Luna lay comfortably, head shifted upwards so that she was looking directly at him.

Level 11

Raditz

Race - Saiyan

Gender - Male

Age - 12

Reputation - Liked

HP - 17,658

Ki - 7,095

Power Level - 946

Raditz is the middle son of Bardock and Gine. He is a quiet boy, who is often lost in his thoughts or in a book.

He has no desire to fight, finding no enjoyment in it. Instead, he finds the most enjoyment in life from researching all of the different animals on Mount Corrina and the surrounding land. His biggest desire is to explore other planets and the wildlife on them.

He is currently amazed that you managed to tame an animal that has never been tamed in Saiyan history, and thinks that you're cool because of it.

"You're finally awake," Luna said, turning her head to face me. "When I heard the explosion, I thought the worst. I went as fast I could, but thankfully Turles got to you first."

"At least you tried," I shrugged my shoulders in response. A large part of me wondered how different the fight could have been if she had come with me. Could we have fought them all off? Doubtful, but we could have at least taken out the two weaker ones before I got knocked out.

In response to the dialogue between Luna and I; Raditz stared at us in amazement.

"How did you tame a Meta-Wolf?!" He asked me, his voice shooting out at a million miles per hour. "And she can speak! Dad told me that the bigger ones could speak, but I've never been able to see one!"

"The Six rarely ever leave the nest and the adults that do know how to speak Saiyan rarely come across a Saiyan who wants to sit down and have a chat," She said, followed by a small snickering sound. "And as to him 'taming' me, I don't think that would be the right word for it."

"Yeah," I jumped in, as I walked over to her and gently stroked her fur. "She tore out my eye in a field, and I dropped her out of the sky. After that, she's pretty much followed me around everywhere."

"If I didn't, you'd probably be dead by next week."

"I can handle myself," I huffed. "I took down that Wyvern on my own. You barely helped at all."

"I literally ripped out its eyes a second before it would have turned you to dust with its lightning attack."

"Pshh," I rolled my eyes. "I could have survived that attack."

"Wait, you've seen a Wyvern up close?" Raditz butted in again. This time, he was right next to me, stars practically in his eyes.

"Yup. I didn't just see it, I killed it too," I said with a grin, although this only caused Raditz to frown.

"Why'd you kill it?" He asked, clearly more than a little deflated.

"It was trying to kill me, what else was I supposed to do?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"From what I've read, they don't usually attack Saiyans unprovoked," He said. "You did something to get it angry, didn't you?"

"Well…" I rubbed the back of my head sheepishly, before saying, "Yeah."

He looked a little bit disappointed, but after a few moments, he sighed. "Can you draw?"

"I have no idea what drawing is," I admitted, much to the smaller Saiyan's surprise.

"It's when you see something and use a pencil to copy it onto paper," He said, as he twisted the little rectangular thing in his hand, and put the slightly thick, square thing into my hand. I stared at him in confusion, until he continued his explanation. "This is my notebook. I usually use it to record details about new creatures I see, but I also use it to draw them too. Look."

He opened the 'notebook' in my hand, to the first page. An incredible picture of a Meta-Wolf crouching down in front of a tree was on it, and I stared in shock.

"Wow, I didn't know that they built ship computers this small," I remarked.

"It's not a computer. I drew these," He told me, but I was honestly, still completely lost. Noticing my confusion, and likely Luna's too, he took the notebook from my hand and placed it on the table.

"Look, here's a blank paper," He said, pointing at one of the white squares that were inside of the notebook. "I'm going to draw you."

"Alright," I said. He seemed to go into the zone after that, because his attention was concentrated purely on the paper in front of him. Occasionally he'd look up at me, but then back again so quickly that I'd wondered if he even looked in the first place. Eventually, he lifted the strange rectangular thing, that the Game was now calling a pencil, off of the paper and showed me.

The picture was amazing, but the major shock came from seeing myself for the first time clearly. I stared at the image for a few seconds, before taking it out of his hands and staring at it some more.

"This… Wow, that's an amazing skill," I said after a few more seconds of processing. "How'd you do it? Can you teach me?"

"Another time," He said, before taking his notebook back and putting it into his pocket. "I'd better start my chores or my Mom will kill me."

I nodded my head in response and watched as he left. Once he did, the house was empty, apart from Luna and I. I turned to her slowly, asking in a confused tone, "Why are they being so nice to me?"

"I have no idea," She replied. "It's strange to see, considering all that I've heard about your species. That they're capable of such kindness is surprising."

If Brussel and those three idiots from yesterday were my only example, I'd have thought that Saiyans weren't capable of kindness either. However, I'd met Bardock, Leeku, that old lady Mareen from back in the town, and now Turles and his family, so I was sure that it wasn't entirely true.

"They're not trying to trick you either," Luna told me.

"How'd you know?"

"Turles, Raditz and Kakrot all like us, or so it says next to their reputation spot when I Observe them," She said. "I only met the mother for a second, but she already liked me too. The father is still a neutral, but at least none of them are below that."

"Good," I said, noting to myself that Raditz did have 'liked' next to his reputation towards me. I hadn't viewed Turles again since yesterday, and I was too interested in the conversation with Bardock to observe his sheet. Now, after concluding that I wasn't being tricked by a group of secretly evil Saiyans, I walked out of the front door with Luna close behind me; although she did walk off immediately after.

A wonderful smell hit me the moment that I stepped out into the open air. Surrounding the house there were many tall trees that provided shade for the house from the harsh sun. To my surprise, underneath me wasn't crystal, like the majority of the mountain. Instead of there being millions of sharp blades of grass, there was a strange plant that I'd never seen yet.

Picking out of the ground, I Observed it and the game identified it as a 'flower'. I took a sniff of it and realized that the sweet smell was coming from all the flowers around me. I like this place.

"Sprout, we're over here," Bardock called from my left. He and Turles were some distance away, sitting down at another tree table. I went over and sat down opposite Bardock.

"So… What questions do you have for me?" I asked, ready to get it over and done with.

"Well fi-"

"Bardock! The poor kid's probably starving!" A new voice came into the mix, from my side. I turned and saw a woman with black hair that was similar to Raditz, except much shorter. In her hand, she had a plate of food. The scent that came off of that plate made my stomach growl and my mouth water. "At least give him some food before you start asking him things!"

"Alright, alright," Bardock sighed. The woman placed the plate down in front of me and smiled warmly at me, before turning to Turles and asking him a few things. I took that time to Observe Bardock and the new woman, who I assumed was Turles' mom.

Level 10

Gine

Race - Saiyan

Gender - Female

Age - 40

Reputation - Liked

HP - 666

Ki - 500

Power Level - 200

Gine is the loyal husband of Bardock, and the mother of Turles, Raditz, and Kakarot. She was raised in the city of Galar and had to witness its destruction at the hand of the Tuffles.

Despite being thrown into the war at a young age, she remained a pacifist who firmly believed that if Saiyans and Tuffles sat down and talked it out, they'd find a way to end the fighting. When that didn't happen, she became a front-line nurse and a part-time adviser to the War Council.

He is currently happy that Turles finally has a friend.

-O-O-O-O-O-

Level ?

War Chief

Bardock

Race - Saiyan

Gender - Male

Age - 42

Reputation - Neutral

HP - ?

Ki - ?

Power Level - ? ? ? ? ?

Bardock is the husband of Gine and the father of Turles, Raditz, and Kakarot. His towns destruction was one of the first events that sparked the Great War.

Due to his entire family and village being destroyed while he was away, Bardock dedicated himself to the war in an effort to push past the guilt. His rage pushed his already Elite status into completely new territory that very few have followed.

He is currently wondering about your mysterious healing abilities, and why you were attacked.

Both of the descriptions surprised me, in two different ways. I couldn't see Bardock's level and power level, just like I couldn't see Raphalos's, which meant that he was probably extremely strong. There were five question marks next to his power level, which could only mean that his power level went above ten thousand. He's ridiculously strong.

I had the opposite reaction to Gine. I had to reread it several times before I accepted that I wasn't somehow reading it wrong. Her power level was only at two hundred even though she was a level ten, which was weird seeing as my power level was at two hundred and twenty-four at level seven.

Maybe she's dangerous in another way… Does intelligence not count as much towards increasing your power level as the strength and endurance stat? I stopped and thought back on my previous level-ups, comparing my latest power increase to my last. I realized very quickly that yes, intelligence didn't count much towards your power level. I wasn't sure if it helped increase it at all, but I'd have to wait until later to check.

Right now, some delicious-looking food was waiting to be eaten, and I wasn't one to make food wait.


"Oh… My… Goodness…"

I was shell-shocked and the empty plate before me was a witness that I didn't leave a crumb remaining. My stomach sang praises to Gine, even way after she had wandered away.

Even better was the fact that the meal would have given me an insane amount of HP if I hadn't already been fully healed. I wasn't sure if it was because there was more than just meat on the plate, or the fact that the meat was actually cooked.

"My mom is a great cook," Turles said from across the table, a slight smirk on his face on his face.

"Incredible," I said under my breath, wishing that there was more. "I have never cooked my food. I usually just eat it how it is when I find it."

"That might have worked on whatever planet you grew up on, but you have to be careful on Planet Plant," Bardock joined in from his place standing next to a tree. "Saiyan stomachs can digest just about anything, but there are more than a few creatures here that have poisons in their bodies. Even if something that you eat isn't poisonous, but they've eaten something poisonous recently, it can seriously mess you up, even kill you depending on the creature."

"So cooking it takes out the poison?" I asked, receiving a nod in return.

"That, and it makes food taste better," Turles said. "Only when someone does it right, though."

I'm going to need to learn how to do this too. I sat down with a slight smirk on my face, imagining what it would be like to eat meals like that every day. It would be a dream.

"Alright, kid, so what's the deal?" Bardock asked finally. "What did those kids want with you? They clearly weren't trying to kill you, or else you would have already been dead."

"They were trying to steal something from me," I told them, although I wasn't entirely sure if I should tell them what it was. Just knowing that I had the egg made Cauliflo and the others attack me.

"That's not the craziest reason I've seen for a fight," Bardock sighed. "But if they were trying to steal it, why didn't they just kill you and take it?"

"I have it hidden in a safe place," I replied, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief when he didn't ask what it was.

"Hopefully that safe place isn't in your cave," Turles said. "Luna told me that when she tried to return to the cave, they were going through it. She said that the big one said something about keeping it."

Boiling anger rippled through my body, starting in my stomach and spreading all over. I stood up so fast that the chair behind me was sent flying. Before I could go anywhere else, though, Turles stood up and grabbed my arm.

"You can't go back yet. They'd tear you apart, even if you are healed," He told me.

"Let them try!" I growled, trying to break free of Turles grip. However, no matter how hard that I tried, I couldn't even get him to budge. When I looked down at his arm, I noticed that light blue energy was wrapped around his arm like a glove.

His point came across like a slap in the face. I couldn't fight them, not while I couldn't control my energy correctly.

The anger didn't go away, but I sat back down on another chair and crossed my arms over my chest once Turles let go of me. My mind went through many different painful things that I wanted to do to Picklu, but I had to put them away to keep the conversation moving.

"Alright, I get your point. I can't do anything about it until you teach me control," I said through closed teeth.

"Pretty much," Turles said, bluntly. "But we can start today if you still want."

"Definitely," I replied without hesitation. The quiet that followed prompted Bardock back into the conversation.

"In any case, I hope your safe place wasn't your cave," Bardock said. "They'll probably have found it by now."

"It isn't in my cave," I said simply and curtly. "It's somewhere that no one will find it."

Truthfully, I had no idea where my items went when I put them in the Safe Place, but seeing as they always came back exactly how I left them, I assumed that they were somewhere that no one else could affect them.

Bardock scanned me over a few times, and for a second, I saw some sort of recognition behind his eyes, "How do you regenerate so fast?"

"I don't know. I just do," I shrugged my shoulders. "Whenever I eat or sleep, I always come out the other end fully healed."

"Strange," He said, his voice low and gruff. "You might have been given this ability on your first Purge. That's the only way that I can explain it."

"Given it? From those weaklings that I destroyed?" I asked while blinking several times in confusion. "Why would they want to give me anything?"

"People do strange things when they're on their last legs," Bardock said, a strange tone about his voice. He then rubbed the back of his neck with a look in his eyes that made me wonder if he was even there anymore.

"Why is that the only explanation though?" I asked. "Turles said that one of my parents might not be Saiyan, and maybe I got my healing from them."

"I thought that was a possibility too, until I got a better look at you," Bardock sighed. It was long and full of disappointment. "You're a full-blooded Saiyan. I know your parents; both of them."

"You do?" I asked, leaning forward in my seat.

"I did. We haven't spoken in 15 years, and apparently, in that time, they've become complete assholes," Bardock crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back against the tree, a sour look on his face. "Your mom, I can see. She's always been a bit of a bitch. But Omato was never that shallow."

"Omato?" I repeated slowly, my eyes slowly going from squinting to full-blown saucers. "You don't mean the same Omato that the town is named after, do you?"

"I do," Bardock confirmed, to my continued shock. "Although you definitely take your looks from your mom."

I remembered something that Leeku had told me on the way up Atross mountain, about Bardock fighting and killing a Wyvern Heir with two others, Omato, and someone called Vegeta. They were War Chiefs; the most powerful ones. I shiver ran down my spine as I realized that Omato, my dad, could have probably wiped me off of the face of the planet with just a glance if he'd wanted to.

"When I landed, my sister and her friends wanted to kill me, but he ordered them not to," I told them. "He said that I'd never be welcomed into the family with a power level so low, but he showed me mercy and let me go into the wilderness to either get stronger or die trying."

"The bar is on the fucking floor," Bardock groaned with a frown on his face. "But at least you can see the benefits of showing someone mercy. Without it, you would have been dead."

I thought about that, the idea bouncing around in my head before going away to be thought about later. Instead, I asked a question that I'd been wondering since the day that I got on this planet, "What is strong enough? What will my power level have to be for them to accept me?"

"Second class," He said confidently. "At second class, you'd be treated with at least average respect by most Saiyans. To be considered a second class, you have to have a power level of at least a thousand."

I'm not far from it! I realized, a grin spreading across my face. Probably only a few more levels and I'll be there!

"What is your power level, if you know?" Turles asked curiously, before recoiling at the glare that Bardock sent his way.

"I thought I raised you better than to ask people their power levels," Bardock shook his head, and Turles turned away, face slightly red. "It's bad enough that they've figured out how to make more Scouters. Now no one has privacy concerning their power levels."

Bardock threw his hands in the air, before going on and on about how bad the Saiyan culture is and how stupid they were. I wasn't listening too much, though, instead, I was looking down at my clenched fist with determination. I was close, but my power level wouldn't matter if I didn't know how to control my energy correctly.

Sensing that the questions were over, at least for now, I stood up and turned to Turles. "Are you ready to start?" I asked, fists still clenched.

"I was hoping you'd ask," Turles grinned.


"Controlling your energy has four levels to it. First, unlocking it. Second, using it to reinforce your body to defend yourself from attacks. Third, using it to reinforce your muscles to attack, and finally, using your energy outside of your body freely."

I listened with absolute focus as Turles explained to me the things that would elevate my power to new heights. We moved far away from the house, to the base of the other side of the mountain, opposite the town. Behind me, a waterfall roared, but nothing was going to stop me from hearing what I needed to hear.

"You've already unlocked your energy on your own, so we can skip that step," Turles said as his hand cupped his chin. "But you skipped step two, so we're going to have to go back to that."

"Why?" I asked. From my seat on the ground, I leaned my body forward and rested my cheek on my fist.

"Because, using your energy to defend against attacks is a lot harder than using it to attack," Turles told me, not helping my confusion at all.

"Then shouldn't I learn the easy thing first?"

"Not in this case. Knowing how to use Ki to strengthen your body for defense makes learning how to use it to attack ridiculously easier," Turles explained casually. I still didn't understand why learning to defend would help me attack, and he clearly noticed, because he said, "You'll understand once you learn it."

I took his word for it.

"Alright, now let's start," Turles said, before taking a seat in front of me, so close that our knees were touching. "Just listen to me, and follow my instructions. Close your eyes."

I closed my eyes and my other senses expanded. Far off in the distance, I could hear creatures running around, probably in search of food. The scent of blood mixing with water wafted into my nose as fish ate in the water nearby.

"Now focus on the energy inside of you."

Ignoring all of my other senses as best as I could, I looked inward. It took a few seconds, but then I could feel it. It was a warmth inside of me; like a small fire on a cold night. Unlike fire though, it pulsated inside of me, almost as if it was taking a deep breath every few seconds. I could feel it everywhere, in every toe, and every finger. But it lurked on the inside, hiding beneath the surface.

"Now, draw it out. Let it wrap around your body like you do when you use it to attack, but don't do anything. Just let it stay."

Just like in the cave against the Wyvern, my body began to vibrate with pure power. I could feel the energy that was previously hidden within my body extend out of every part of it, wrapping around it like armor. It was powerful, alive even, and… It was hard to keep up for longer than a few seconds.

"See, the tricky thing with using energy to protect yourself is that you have to worry about two things. One being that as a beginner, it's hard to keep it up in general, and two…"

A harsh impact made my eyes snap open and my hand fly up to my cheek. It took a second or two to realize that Turles had slapped me across the face, with a big grin on his face. I didn't resist the urge to punch him in the face, but he dodged it nonetheless, using his own energy to lift himself up a little off the ground and backward just enough that I missed.

"What did you do that for?!" I yelled as I slowly rubbed the mark on my face. He continued to grin at me in silence until I realized two things.

One, his attack didn't take off any of my HP, instead, my energy levels had gone down. Secondly, the energy around my body had disappeared back into my body, and I didn't even realize it.

"Distraction," I realized dryly. "I have to focus on keeping the energy around me, which is hard enough, but I also have to do it while being attacked by my enemy, which makes it even harder."

"Yup," Turles grinned. "So, your first assignment is to extend the amount of time that you can keep your Ki outside of your body before it fails. The best way to get better at this is honestly just to keep doing it and holding it for as long as you can."

"Alright," I acknowledged. "How long can you hold it for?"

"I could probably hold it forever if I wanted to," He said casually, not even noticing the pure disbelief on my face. "Well, except when I'm sleeping."

Is that even possible? I thought glumly. Well, he doesn't have any reason to lie to me. It looks like I have a long way to go.

"Anyways, I'll be right back," Turles said as he stood up and dusted himself off.

"Wait, you're leaving?" I asked, tilting my head up to look at him.

"Only for a little while," He said as he began to take off. "Let's just say, you're not my only student."

I wondered who his other student possibly could be, before deciding that it wasn't important and going back to working on my control. It was then that I noticed a small, weird shape hanging above my head. Inside of it was what looked like two triangles, one upside down, and one normal way up, with their tips connected to create a small hole. It looked like something that I'd seen on Planet X-32, but that version typically had sand in the top triangle that slowly fell down through that small hole into the other triangle.

This one didn't have sand, but a green liquid. It dripped slowly down from the top triangle, and into the bottom. I watched it for a few moments until it suddenly disappeared. Confused, but still curious, I went back to training, and the moment that I released my energy again, it appeared again.

Eventually, I managed to ignore it and focus completely on the task at hand. This didn't stop me from noticing, however, that the harder I worked at trying to control my energy, the faster that the green liquid dripped. When I really pushed myself, it would come down like a tap. Eventually, when all of the green liquid reached the bottom two hours later, I got a notification.

Basic Ki Manipulation Has Gained A Level!

Basic Ki Manipulation LV2 - You can run KI through your body with little control. With training, your control is improving but still can't dial down how much energy you use in a single attack. You can run Ki through your body as defense, but not for very long.

So that thing lets me know how close I am to leveling up an ability. I realized, now appreciating the strange object. Now, let's see if it actually helped me.

I noticed the difference straight away. While it was definitely still a strain to draw it out, it wasn't as hard as before, and I could hold it for longer. I smiled at my accomplishment, before passing out from exhaustion.


Hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you have any questions, ask them and I'll answer what I can in the next A/N.