Mythshaper

Since the moment the battle started, I knew today would turn out well.

My sword sliced through the hideous centipedes, one swing after another, as my essence threads drove through the air to dismember more. Normally, I would need to channel all my weight to form a potent whip of kinetic force that could tear through the monster's hide in a single attack. However, when I targeted the weaker parts, like the midsection in the segmented bodies, it only took a third of that, giving me all the freedom to cleave through three monsters simultaneously.

It was the first time the flocks of monsters were running away from me, not that they had much room to disappear. My essence threads could pull them back from a dozen metres away, whereas my levitation boots gave me free rein of movement in the rugged crater. High or low, near or far, the giant chilopods had nowhere to run.

Wind blades had been the most effective after my sword, but I restrained myself from shooting too many of them in case some of them went awry and struck anyone in the team. That was to say, I was not merciful when I found dozens of centipedes in the clear.

Bombarding them with wind blades and fire spears, I disposed of a large number of them before turning to others.

"That barely took any time, didn't it?" The words froze on my lips as I found all the other members of my team staring back at me. Their expressions were not kind.

Valeria was glaring, while even Telus, the burly youth I had befriended, shook his head in disappointment.

"Did I do something wrong?" I turned towards my parents. Mum wore a strange expression, exhaling softly as Father chuckled sarcastically.

Wasn't this how I was supposed to fight? I thought, looking around at the dismembered parts of the demons scattered all around.

"Good work, Arilyn," Elnar said, coughing. "Though, next time, how about you leave a few monsters for others?"

I tilted my head. "They didn't..."

I should have noticed it earlier. Even their pristinely clean attire evidenced that none of the four had much, if any, struggle against the centipedes.

"Killed five before you hogged them all," Valeria said, more disgruntled with herself than furious at me.

"I killed two," Marcus said, raising his hand, while the other two did not find it necessary to announce their numbers.

"No offence, Arilyn," Tellus said, "but I liked you much better when you fought solely with your sword."

There was a good-natured laugh to his voice, but I still apologised. After all, we were not a true team or on a real expedition. This was all a training stage. We were all there to gain experience. Every one of us had paid one way or another to be there. If I monopolised all the monsters, this would only stunt their growth. Not that I believed the Monster Hunter Guild would let it go to that, and neither was I a greedy prick to come to that.

To make it up to them, I insisted on them taking a part of the spoils, but none took up the offer. At least that gave me some extra time to reconsider how I approached the battle before we moved on to the next nest of demons. Now, how does a shaper control the battle without dispatching all the monsters? It would be another story if a horde of monsters overwhelmed us, but that would not be the case with Elnar controlling the numbers. Perhaps he would let a larger number out, given my expertise in dispatching them, but I still could not help but recall what Mum told me before sending me out to the battle.

According to her, there were two kinds of shapers out there. First were those most dominant on the battlefield. They dispatched monsters on first notice, specialising in overwhelming firepower. Mum's friend Selene was an apt example of this.

Whereas the other kind were more team-oriented shapers. They might not pack the same overwhelming force, but they were versatile in both offence and defence, and efficient in more than one element. They controlled the tempo of the battle while taking care of everyone's safety. Aunt Emi likely fell into this category more than Rose did, probably because Rosalyn fell somewhere in the middle of the spectrum, having both overwhelming force and versatility.

That was to say, none of the two kinds were better than the other. Usually, the dominant shapers were better suited for smaller engagements as well as when there was no other concern save for dispatching the monster. The versatile shapers were much preferred in more complex and long arrangements of expeditions. Both had their designated places. What was more important was to build a team around that.

Having said all that, I still liked the versatile kind more, despite the contradicting evidence of my action just now. I was versatile with elements, even more so than Rosalyn. As for not having a better handle on advanced shaping, it was only a matter of time. I believed even Mum was interested in being a more all-rounder shaper, despite her desire to train me in both to see where I flourished most.

Elnar took us deeper. Through the long, winding passages we went, as if venturing into a labyrinth. Nothing but moss and lichen seemed to grow as we delved. Even sporadic wild mushrooms and corpse flowers grew sparser as we made our way to enter a wide ditch. The dingy walls exhibited no human touch, only worn by the storm and the inhabitant monsters.

The number of demons was so large that we did not even need a seasoned tracker to find them. In the last few days, we had disposed of over a thousand of them, and yet their numbers did not seem to be dwindling at all.

Once again, Elnar stirred a giant centipede's dwelling as we stood in formation.

"Don't hog them all this time," Valeria warned.

I returned her a smile, levitating up. "I'll dispose of the ones airborne. You all can take anything that crawls up."

And with that, the fight ensued.

The number of demons seemed to be a little higher on this occasion. Still, I refrained from using any elements other than kinetic force, which was best at restraining the monsters at bay, while my blade did the dispatching.

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"Need a little help here," Lauren's voice echoed, and quickly, my threads shifted to fling away half the monsters springing at her.

"Ah, don't throw them at me!" Marcus shouted, hacking his bastard sword down like a monstrous club.

"Sorry," I said, quickly adjusting my threads to yank the monsters before crushing their bodies by channelling a greater force.

It seemed I was not doing great at setting the tempo for the others this time either. Perhaps I needed to get involved more, and that too without exterminating all the demons. I was not spending less essence by any means.

After a thought, I decided to return to my feet and lead with my blade, while my threads dispatched the monsters springing from the walls. That saved more of my stamina, as a greater part of my attention moved to channelling my essence.

"You know, you can use a little more of your power now," Tellus shouted, hopping next to me. "Don't know if you've noticed, but it seems Elnar has too much confidence in us after your show last time."

I had noticed. The number of demons was not coming down.

Valeria had a good handle on herself, as agile as she was athletic, already vaulting over and dashing around, staying clear of any centipedes as her arrows dispatched them. The only ones having problems were the ones deficient in experience.

Raising my essence output by a notch, I pushed off the flocks of demons with a surging flood of kinetic waves. It took the pressure off them for a moment. Marcus, especially, since his build was ill-suited for fighting against a large number of demons. Tellus stuck close to Lauren, using his robust aura to keep the giant centipedes off her shoulder.

"Keep up," our guide and protector's voice rumbled from the dark. "More are coming."

We barely had a moment to take a breather when another round of high-pitched squeaks reverberated throughout the pits. Another pack of giant centipedes swarmed from our right.

"And I hope you haven't exhausted your essence yet," Valeria said, landing behind us.

"I hope you have enough arrows to shoot at them," I returned.

If she believed that little exchange was enough to deplete my essence seed, she would be thoroughly mistaken. I was nowhere near exhausted from the previous scuffle.

With blade in hand, I advanced, releasing a wave of kinetic force to throw off a number of the demon centipedes as I dashed forward to swing my blade. Each strike mutilated a demon or two, but every once in a while, something clicked with my Swordsense, and my blade could completely sever through a centipede's body. But that was not nearly fast enough.

A couple of wind blades helped a long way, but I refrained from shaping flame, as that tended to frighten the demons.

The battle ended without much difficulty. As their numbers began to dwindle, the rest decided it would be better to flee instead of charging right at us. The remaining numbers were minuscule enough that we did not even bother to give chase. Some of us even needed to take a breather.

"A couple more rounds like this," Marcus said boastfully, "I believe I'm confident to face an elite monster on my own."

And then he sat on the filth-laden chasm floor to rest. He really had come around from the noblesse upbringing to fall in line with us.

Cleaning the ichor off my blade, I was about to reply to him when a flood of power surged within me, along with the Spell's merry voice.

[Way of Swordmanship V (2500/2500) is complete.]

[+5 to Fortitude, Agility, Uncommon Reflexes, Enhanced Aura.]

"What's with you?" Valeria bobbed her head. "You're... fuming?"

"Nothing much," I said, breathing evenly to keep my aura under control, as the empowerment took effect. "Got a lot of points from completing a way."

"It must have been one hell of a layer for your aura to surge like that," Tellus said.

"Only the fifth layer of swordsmanship."

"You've already completed the fifth layer?" Marcus said, baffled. "Solas, I've been stuck at the fifth layer for almost a year now, and I never missed a single day of practice."

That reminded me of the days when I had not yet awakened either of my sword sense or my aura. It would take me two or three hours to push a single point of progression. However, since the demon incursion, that changed completely, as sometimes I even gained two or more points in merely an hour of practice.

"You must have trained under someone great," Lauren added.

"I did," I agreed, shooting a sweeping gaze towards Father.

"It's not just about whom you train under, if that's what you're insinuating," Tellus said. "If that were true, we'd have many more great masters in the world. A mentor can only show the way; it is upon the apprentice to complete the path."

"So you're spouting wise words now?" Valeria quipped. "I guess getting rejected from the Oracle Academy has been quite enlightening."

"Hey, that's just uncalled for," Tellus whined.

"You took the admission test in the Oracle Academy?" I asked.

"Only someone outrageously gifted, or bone-headed, would apply for the academy at age seven," Valeria laughed. "And Tellus is a little of both. Well, more so of the latter, for still trying even after knowing the infamous notoriety of the academy."

"Stop tarnishing my reputation among friends," the burly youth said. He turned towards me. "Yes, I tried to enter the academy last year. Even made it into the final round of tests. I was this close to making it." He pinched his fingers to display how close. "Only beaten by fifty-six people."

I did not have a clear reference, but that number did not sound this close that Tellus insisted on. But considering that over ten thousand applied every year and only a tenth of them got in, it was quite close.

"Well, that gives you a better chance this year," I said.

"I hope so," Tellus said, exhaling deeply. "The only thing worries me is the second turn curse."

"Second turn curse?" I repeated.

"It's not a true curse," Valeria laughed off. "Well, quite true statistically."

"Oh, I have heard of this," Marcus said, standing up. "My father did not let me take the test last year because of this."

"And he was right to do so," Valeria said.

I waited for them to explain.

"The entrance test is essentially a test of potential," Tellus said. "And since they had already measured my aptitude last time, they have an exact reference to compare all the improvements I made in a year."

My eyes widened. "So you are saying..."

"They mark you," Valeria cut in, "to see if you meet the criteria of improvements needed to attend the academy. If they see you slack off, confirmed with your high score of last year, then you don't even get to move past the first."

Wow, that was the most elitist thing I had ever heard. Still, it made a little sense considering how many vied for a spot every year.

"By the way, it's all only a rumour," Tellus thought to add.

Valeria gave a laugh. "But the statistics add up. Barely one or two in a thousand of returning candidates make it into the academy."

"So if I want to attend the academy, I should only apply when I'm absolutely sure I'll make it on the first try," I muttered.

"That's what the most intelligent folk do," Valeria agreed. "But you may have no problem as you are right now."

That was probably the kindest thing she had ever said to me.

"The academy is bullish on shapers since its founding."

Maybe not.

"Speaking of which," Tellus interjected. "Are you entering the admission test this year? We could go together."

"I'm afraid I'll have to pass this time," I said with a sigh. As much as I wanted to attend the academy, I believed Mum would only let me attend it next year. She had so many things left to teach me, and so did Father. And there was still the apprenticeship under Master Kaius.

"Well, that works too," Marcus said with a laugh, slapping my shoulder. "One more spot for us."

"Enough chattering," Elnar's commanding voice broke our conversation. "Quickly complete your collection so that we can move on."

We disposed of a few more nests in quick succession and still had about a couple of hours left today. But that was when a crackling thunder boomed overhead, followed by more thunderous booms. No sparks of lightning reached down into the depths, but the deafening roar was sufficient to instil fear into someone's heart.

"Blighted heavens," Valeria cursed. "I hate the weather here."

Elnar faltered on the path to shoot us a look, then his eyes darted to my parents. "Looks like we have to cut today's expedition short."

He waited to see if there was any disagreement.

"That's the correct way of doing things," Mum said. "Although I believe you may have to wait a little longer, as I detect a couple of elite centipedes winding their way towards us this instant."