Perhaps my words had some effect on Vist. In any case, I spent two days calmly copying books, sitting in her bubble-mansion. The magus never once approached me, didn’t even say a word. This time, I didn’t limit myself to selected spells but copied all the ones available to me. At the time, I reasonably thought that reaching the seventh circle was unlikely for me, so it was worth expanding my arsenal with as many sixth-circle spells as possible.

  “Lady Vist, I’ve finished. Thank you for your help!”

  I stretched the fingers stiff from holding the stylus too long and stowed the papers away.

  “So, have you decided what you’ll do?”

  “Lady Vist, over these past days, my stance has not changed. My team and I will use all our strength and capabilities to win first place in the tournament.”

  “You’re wasting your talent, Aney. With your abilities, and a little support from me, you could secure a respectable position at the Imperial court. You could command a garrison, or even an army… I could even help resolve your conflict with the church.”

  “Lady Vist,” I interrupted her, “better to lead a small pride of lions than to command a flock of sheep. I hope you understand my position.”

  Vist clenched her fists.

  “Very well, go. I won’t delay you any longer.”

  Perhaps I should’ve acted more diplomatically and avoided making enemies so directly, but… everything she offered was unnecessary to me. Just unnecessary. I descended the stone stairs and headed to the gate. For a while, I expected a magic strike in the back, but it never came.

  The afternoon streets of the capital were bustling, crowds of people moved along the roads both in vehicles and on footpaths. I turned toward Butch’s forge, since the third day from our agreement was ending.

  The workshop door was closed, so I knocked.

  “Mister Butch, it’s Aney, I’ve come as agreed!”

  The lock clicked from inside.

  “Mister Butch…”

  “Come in, follow me…”

  The old man grabbed my hand and dragged me into the room behind the counter, pulling so hard I nearly knocked things off the shelves around us. The room turned out to be a massive workshop with poor lighting but filled with many unfamiliar magical production tools. In the center, under a bright lamp, stood a large table covered with a black cloth.

  On the table lay a spear. No — a Spear!

  The color of old bone, it was an almost exact replica of the spear I had received from Kruk, but with a tip thicker by a finger’s breadth.

  I quickly approached the spear and picked it up. Heavier — much heavier than the teacher’s spear — but I was no longer the same Battle Master I had been. The spear was exceptional. A broad, long tip, a shaft carved with a scale-like ornament, and a slightly rounded counterweight.

  “Like it?” Butch asked.

  “Master, you’ve created a masterpiece!”

  I performed a slow, straight thrust. The motion was perfectly smooth.

  “Now pour some aura in and repeat the same thrust,” said Butch.

  Expecting nothing special, I did as he said. Suddenly, I noticed the strike was much faster, and — or so it seemed — struck an imaginary target far beyond my expectations. What the hell?!

  “Heh-heh, you noticed?”

  “What was that, Master Butch?”

  “That’s a spatial element from the monster whose body this spear was made from.”

  Damn! Now I understood how that cursed Hrust shredded my puppets — and me — so easily.

  “I couldn’t have guessed…”

  “I’m glad you like it. Alika, bring the saw!” he shouted to no one in particular.

  A short, broad-shouldered girl around fifteen entered the workshop, carrying Kruk’s spear and the saw Butch had used to cut the Hrust’s limb.

  “This is Alika, one of my great-great-great-granddaughters. I’m teaching her the trade, so to speak. Alika, greet our guest — don’t forget your manners!”

  He’s one to talk…

  “Good day, Mister Aney!”

  She handed the saw to Butch and the spear to me.

  “Good day, Alika.”

  “One hundred gold!” she held out her palm as soon as I took the spear.

  Laughing, I handed her the money, and the girl quickly ran off. That made me laugh even more.

  “Alright, Aney, enough chatter — we’ve got work to do!”

  I pulled out the Hrust’s limb, from which he cut another piece, and handed over another core from an eighth-class monster. Then Butch practically shoved me out the door and slammed it shut. What a family! But I had no time to worry — I burned with excitement, eager to test out the new spear. I was almost running toward Vasa’s palace.

  Danger! I stopped abruptly and saw an arrow fly past my eyes. The moment it touched the ground, a powerful explosion rang out. The blast wave hurled me onto the road, where I collided with a large cart.

  Where from? I didn’t sense any strong auras nearby, except for Vasa’s, whose palace was a few hundred meters away. Another arrow! I used the step-sequence technique toward the direction of the shot. Behind me, all hell broke loose. It was no use — I couldn’t find anyone!

  Damn it, how was that possible? The arrows were definitely enchanted with powerful spells — otherwise there wouldn’t have been such destruction. I returned to help the injured. Damn! Dozens of wounded and several dead lay on the cobblestones. A few carts and transport platforms burned on the road. Two large craters — one on the pedestrian path, another on the road.

  The wounded, mostly cut by stone shards and burned, cried out loudly for help. I quickly moved among them, distributing recovery pills. Sadly, five of the victims could no longer be saved.

  I approached the crater in the road — several meters deep. Most likely the work of a sixth-circle spell. But who? Vist? An offended team from the Capital Academy? Grim? The church? I was lost in speculation. It made no sense! Such a strike wouldn’t kill me — so why?! What was the point? A warning? A test of my abilities?

  Several strong Battle Masters approached, led by a Battle Ancestor. Turns out they were law enforcement. I pulled out my gold adventurer plaque.

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  “Yes, they were shooting at me,” I answered their question, “but I don’t know who it could have been.”

  “Did you see where it came from?”

  I pointed.

  “That way. But I couldn’t detect any strong aura there.”

  “That’s impossible…”

  “Try it yourself.”

  The Battle Ancestor ordered two Battle Masters to check everything along the arrow’s flight path.

  “Alright, we’ll check everything. If you uncover any new circumstances—please, inform us.”

  I waved my hand and walked toward Vasa’s palace. I wasn’t in a good mood. I kept thinking about what had happened. I crossed Grima and Vist off the list of suspects—they knew my true abilities too well to attempt something this foolish. The students? Too bold, even for them. But even for the Church, this attempt felt too unprofessional to be believable. Though the shooter was a master, I had to give him that. Still, his weapon was too weak to hunt someone like me. Well, I’ll keep two options open for now: the students and the Church. Chances are they’ll try again soon.

  “Oh, has my protégé finally returned?”

  Vasa stood on the stairs, hands on her hips.

  “Do you even remember how many training sessions you’ve already missed? Where the hell have you been? Off to the training grounds—now!”

  “Honored Vasa, I…”

  “You little brat, and you still have the nerve to talk back to me?”

  With a single strong motion, she hurled me toward the training ground and instantly raised a barrier to keep me from escaping. Not that I planned to. Instead, I drew my new spear.

  “Honored Vasa, may I test the strength of my protective sphere?”

  “Oh ho! A ninth-circle spear… Aney, are you finally getting serious? Where did you get your hands on this toy? Fine, let’s test it!”

  The Goddess of War drew her two sabers, which were in no way inferior to my spear in class. This won’t be easy, I thought just before she attacked.

  Holding a defense sphere with this spear was far easier than with the ice one I created using magic. For several minutes, Vasa delivered isolated but powerful strikes, with one saber and then both at once. The attacks were strong and fast—I couldn’t always distinguish or react to them—but the defensive sphere held firm like an unbreakable cliff. Weapons clanged and screeched at wild speeds.

  Realizing she couldn’t break me in a frontal assault, Vasa pulled back and got serious. Damn, she’s going for it…

  The Goddess of War took a stance, crossed her weapons, and began moving. Yes, it was her attack sphere! A living, sharp, and deadly steel ball rushed at me. The very first contact shook me. Ughhh, the recoil from the blows spread pain through my arms, reaching my shoulders.

  I tried to increase my pressure, but it was useless—she was slowly but surely breaking through my defense. I was still managing to parry every strike, but the distance at which I did so was shrinking, and her blades were getting closer to my neck. If this didn’t stop, I would definitely lose. But even my mana-crafted muscles and bones didn’t have the strength to withstand the Goddess of War. At least not while I remained on the level of a Battle Ancestor.

  Desperate, I poured a solid amount of aura into my spear, causing Vasa’s sphere to explode and sending the Goddess of War flying backward into the barrier.

  “What the hell was that?!”

  A long, horizontal wound was reddening beneath her chest, with blood slowly starting to seep out. She quickly swallowed a recovery pill and inspected the torn armor with her fingers.

  “Honored Vasa, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to!”

  Damn it, I really didn’t want this to happen. Wounding the Goddess of War during sparring—what could be worse?

  “Ha-ha, ha-ha-ha-ha, ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Finally!”

  Vasa jumped at me, grabbed me by the collar, and began shaking me like a tree ready for harvest.

  “Well?! Tell me—tell me what kind of trainer I am, huh? A good one, right? Ha-ha-ha!”

  I had no idea what was going on with her.

  “Why so quiet? Praise me, praise me now! This is entirely my doing, and you’re obliged to make sure the whole Empire knows it!”

  “Honored Vasa, I’m not quite sure I understand what you…”

  “Are you a fool? You just managed to wound a higher-tier God of War! I’m the best trainer on this continent!”

  “Yes, Honored Vasa, you are an excellent trainer!”

  “No no no no, this cannot be left as is!”

  She lowered the barrier.

  “Wait for me here, and don’t you dare—don’t you dare move! I’ll be right back!”

  She leaped high into the sky and vanished. I thought about reminding her that flying over the capital was forbidden but just waved it off. Honestly, I didn’t understand her excitement.

  “Here, now with him!”

  Vasa returned to the training ground with a slightly battered Munk and raised the barrier again.

  “Honored Munk…” I greeted him.

  “Gods, Vasa, what do you want from me? Hey, Aney.”

  “Fight him!” the Goddess of War barked at Munk. “I want to see from the

  sidelines how the Battle Ancestor trained by me tears apart a God of War!”

  “Vasochka, calm down, let’s just talk, and you can tell me what’s got you so worked up…”

  I think I started to grasp what was going on here. Vasa drew her sabers and, in a tone that left no room for doubt, declared:

  “Either you two fight now, or you’ll both be eunuchs in a few minutes.”

  “Honored Vasa…” I tried to calm her.

  “Shut up, you’re still a brat!”

  “Seriously now, Vasochka, that’s too much!”

  “Time’s ticking, don’t forget, Munk…”

  “Sorry, Aney, but if we don’t start sparring, she really might beat us both up… At the same time.”

  Damn tyrannical strength… I soared into the air and drew my spear again. Munk rather lazily attacked my protective sphere with his sword.

  “Yes, Vasochka, I can see he’s very strong. Can we stop now? I want to go home!”

  “Munk, either put in some effort or those prostitutes I pulled you away from won’t matter to you anymore, got it?”

  “Dammit, Vasa!”

  Munk finally created a sphere and attacked me. At first, it seemed he didn’t take my defensive sphere seriously, but over time, he started putting in real effort to break through.

  “Aney!” Vasa shouted. “Enough stalling—attack him, just like you did me!”

  Damn it, Vasa, Munk is a rank below you, such an attack would have serious consequences for him. Besides, I still didn’t understand how I even managed to attack you. I began pouring aura into the spear. For a while, nothing happened, but Munk started retreating anyway, and eventually broke the contact between our spheres. He stopped and sheathed his sword.

  “Vasa, I believe. I truly believed you even when you just told me, and now I’m convinced. Aney can suppress me with his defense alone, are you satisfied? Now take down the barrier, I want to go home!”

  I expected her to explode. But no, Vasa removed the barrier.

  “Go on, run home to your hussies! Cowardly bastard!”

  She came right up to me and punched me in the gut so hard that I flew back several meters.

  “And you, brat, when I say attack – you attack! Got it?”

  “Yes, Lady Vasa!”

  I sat down on the ground. Damn, that hurt! Munk headed to the estate gates.

  “I’m surrounded by incompetents!” Vasa bellowed to the sky across the whole neighborhood on her way to her palace door.

  Damn it, she’s completely nuts. I sprawled out on the ground and looked at the first stars. And how am I supposed to make sense of all this?

  For the next two weeks, apart from visiting Butch’s workshop every three days, I dedicated myself to developing my magic, engraving about two dozen fifth and sixth circle spells into my bones. I paid special attention to time and space element spells. There was even a sixth circle time spell that created a small time-stopping zone for a few seconds.

  It would be weak against Gods of War or seventh to ninth circle mages, but quite effective against Warrior Ancestors’ attacks. I remembered the defensive spell of that mad Rom and that all his magical works were lying in my storage. The idea was tempting, and I also didn’t want to walk naked to my death. Or a spell for compressing space over short distances could significantly speed me up. Overall, with my level of martial arts, these magical abilities were more of a useful addition than a major trump card.

  But I couldn’t stop thinking about strategies and tactics for using them. However, I desperately needed practice. Vasa, after that hole in the skin on her belly, decided that my training course was complete and it was time for her to bask in glory. From what I understood, not with much intelligence, she ran around the capital making me known to even the last beggar in the city. And though I was firmly against it, I couldn’t do anything against that thick-skulled woman.

  I was just sitting there thinking about how to calm that lunatic down, when she came to me herself.

  “Get ready, you’ve been summoned to the Imperial Court.”

  “Lady Vasa, what exactly do you mean by ‘summoned’? As far as I remember, I’ve never sworn allegiance to the court, so they can’t just ‘summon’ me like that.”

  “Aney, that’s not the way to speak. You should be making allies now, not fighting everyone around you. So get ready and let’s go. Now!” she added sternly.

  Fine, I’ll go with her—she had a point. I had already broken pots with both the Church over Kruk and with the mages over Vist.

  “Lady Vasa, who even wants to see me? I don’t even know a dog there,” I asked as we sat on the transport platform.

  “Crown Prince Wizard, the main contender for the Empire’s throne.”

  “Nope, don’t know him either.”

  “But he claims the opposite—that you do know each other.”

  I ignored those words and focused on my inner feelings. They were already screaming that the short period of quiet life was about to end. Overall, I concluded that my best option would be to quietly slip out of the capital without saying goodbye. But leaving the team right before the start of the tournament… That’s just low.

  “What are you thinking about?”

  “Building a little house in the woods, finding a lovely wife, having kids…” – “Something like that, Lady Vasa.”

  The Goddess of War looked at me suspiciously. For a long time.

  “Liar, and doesn’t even flinch!” She smacked me on the back of the head. “What’s next, baking pies?”

  “If they’re tasty, why not?”

  Vasa grimaced and turned away. It seemed she was uneasy about accompanying me to the Imperial Court. Did she know something, or did she also have a bad feeling?

  “We’ve arrived. From here on, only walking is allowed.”