Stoney shouted in anger:
"Get me a doctor right now! The child had only just regained consciousness!"
The soldiers took Lane and brought him back to the infirmary again. Stoney, meanwhile, put a hand on his head and started sighing. He looked extremely worried.
"Master, will Lane be okay?"
Ogni answered:
"Don't worry. His brain is just tired. He'll be right as rain in an hour or two. That's not the issue. The issue is the entity lying inside that child's mind."
Then he let out a deep sigh and continued:
"Such an entity... was something like a god, Stoney. That child is like a time bomb. If one day he loses control of his body, he could even destroy this planet."
Stoney answered tensely:
"Master, such a thing will never happen. That child did everything he could to protect the fortress, to protect the people."
Ogni lightly shook his head.
"My son, that is not the issue. The issue is the power that child possesses. If he cannot learn to control it, it will be the end of all of us. What I saw there was horrifying. The child's sea of mind was on the verge of swallowing his entire being. This is not something to be taken as a joke."
This time Stoney spoke in a more serious voice:
"I will keep that in mind. I will teach that child to control his power."
Then Ogni went to his table and began drawing the rough draft of Lane's weapon on a sheet of paper. Stoney approached Ogni and asked:
"What are you drawing? The child's weapon?"
Ogni nodded in approval. Then he handed the draft in his hand to Stoney. When Stoney looked at the paper, he was surprised.
"Master, don't you think this weapon is a little strange too? It is a long combat weapon, yes... but this is clearly a double-headed scythe. Using even a single-headed one is already extremely difficult. Can a double-headed weapon really be used?"
Ogni was silent at first, then he spoke:
"Stoney, I thought the same as you. But the consciousness in that child's mind used this weapon in such a way that... everything was incredibly smooth. Every move was calculated. Even I could not decipher the movements."
Stoney looked at him in astonishment.
"Master, if even you couldn't decipher it, how am I supposed to understand it?"
Ogni took a deep breath and continued:
"Don't worry. The child saw all of the techniques. In time, he will learn them himself as well. The real issue will be the process of making this weapon. Extracting the spirit from the sword Lane gave is not simple at all. After that, melting that sword and shaping it into this form will also take quite a bit of time. Gathering the materials is a separate matter as well. That is why I say it will take at least two years at the earliest."
Stoney's eyes widened.
"Master, is that sword really that good? It takes two years? You made even my myth-level weapon in five months."
Ogni sighed and nodded his head.
"Yes."
Three hours had passed. Lane finally regained consciousness.
"What happened, damn it? Last thing I remember, something was swallowing me..."
He slowly got up and took a few steps. When he looked around, he realized he was in the infirmary.
"So they brought me to the infirmary... Then I need to find Master."
As Lane was about to leave the infirmary, one of the soldiers stopped him.
"My lord, wait. You have only just regained consciousness."
Lane said there was no problem and left the infirmary. He went straight to where the blacksmith was. Stoney and Ogni were sitting outside, drinking tea.
When Stoney saw Lane, he asked:
"Have you regained consciousness? Do you feel well right now?"
Lane answered: "Yes, Master, I'm fine right now."
Stoney then spoke: "Come. We were talking about the draft of your weapon and all that."
Lane approached them and pulled a chair for himself and sat down. This time Ogni spoke:
"Hey, child, the making time of your weapon will take at least two years. I also need to make it suitable to your height. Your height is still increasing right now, so getting the adjustment right is also a bit difficult."
Lane listened carefully to the details Ogni explained. Then he nodded his head.
"Alright, sir. Let's do it as you say then."
Ogni continued:
"I will make the weapon. And you will improve yourself until then. Also, you remember the moves, don't you?"
Lane nodded his head. "Sir, I remember them in general, but I couldn't keep the details in my head."
Ogni replied: "No problem. As you improve, those moves will gradually settle into your mind."
At that very moment, Stoney cut in:
"Lane, we need to start moving now. We have to reach the kingdom as soon as possible."
Lane said, "Alright," stood up, and quickly went toward the horses.
Ogni and Stoney had a short conversation between themselves. The dwarf Ogni said in a serious voice:
"Don't forget, you must teach that child to control himself."
Stoney nodded and left Ogni's side.
The commander of Fortress N016 was waiting for them at the gate to send Stoney off. After replenishing their food supplies, he sent the two of them on their way.
Lane and Stoney were moving forward on their horses. After a while, Lane asked:
"Master, how long will it take us to reach the capital of the kingdom from here?"
Stoney answered: "We'll arrive in about two weeks. What is it, has your patience already run out?"
Lane asked again: "Master, will we be training during that time then?"
Stoney answered lightly: "Of course we will. Why do you think I took this simple spear? Let it be for today. We start tomorrow morning."
It had become evening. Stoney stopped the horses and started setting up camp. Lane did not stay idle either; he went into the forest to hunt. In a short time, he returned after hunting three rabbits. About thirty minutes later, the two of them began eating by the fire.
Stoney tore off a piece of the cooking meat and looked at Lane.
"My son, do you know what the difference is between long weapons and medium-length weapons like swords?"
Lane answered briefly:
"No, Master, I don't. I only know that if you can protect your distance, they are the strongest weapons."
Stoney lightly nodded his head. "A good answer. But that is not the real answer."
Without taking his eyes off him, Lane asked: "Then what is the answer, Master?"
As the light of the fire struck his face, Stoney began to speak:
"The answer is actually very simple. Among weapons, the spear is one of the easiest to use and the strongest defensive weapons. Long weapons were never made only for attack, do not forget that. Yes, there are exceptions. There are also weapons like long maces or axes. But even they have high defensive potential at their core. The greatest advantage of long weapons is that the user can protect himself."
Lane began listening carefully. Stoney continued his words:
"A sword is more of an all-around weapon. It can be used for both attack and defense. A dagger, on the other hand, is priceless at short range. It may even have a chance of defeating a spear user, but only if it can get close. Every weapon has its own good and bad sides. A sword is in the middle of all these. It is neither the best nor the worst."
Stoney took another bite from the roasted rabbit meat. After chewing slowly, he continued speaking:
"The draft of your weapon also falls into the category of long weapons. That is why I will first teach you how to use a spear. Now the second question... What is the basic purpose of using a spear?"
Lane answered without thinking: "To stab, sir?"
Stoney nodded his head.
"Yes, correct. A spear is for stabbing. The stronger and cleaner it is used, the more effective it becomes."
Then, setting the meat in his hand aside, he continued in a more serious voice:
"Spear users use their bodies much more than users of close and mid-range weapons. Because the length of the weapon makes it harder to move it. That is why you must first train your body. Your body must be trained enough to feel how to grasp and carry the weapon. Only then, when you hold the weapon in your hand, can you be both strong and flexible."
Lane was listening calmly to what Stoney was explaining. Most of what he said was similar to the basic information taught to first-year students in the academies. But Stoney was explaining these much more briefly, much more directly, and without ruining their true meaning.
After a while, he spoke again:
"Your weapon has two heads. Moreover, those two heads can both cut and stab. That is why you must learn not only to use a spear, but also to use a sword. I can teach you the basics of swordsmanship. But you will need to receive training from someone who truly knows the sword itself well."
As Lane continued eating, he briefly said, "Alright." Stoney, meanwhile, explained to him the basics and philosophy of using a spear until midnight.
The next morning, Stoney woke Lane up early by pouring water on his face.
"Hey child, if you're going to sleep like this, you still have a long way to go. Get up, we're doing morning exercise."
Lane woke up shivering. Inwardly, he thought, "You shameless old geezer, is this how you wake someone from sleep?" and got up angrily.
After washing his face and hands, Stoney threw several thick sticks in front of him and spoke:
"Here is what you are going to do today. Without using your aura, you will do exactly one hundred and fifty push-ups. After that, you will swing these sticks. One per day, until you reach a level where you can shatter one in the air."
Lane's eyes widened. He thought to himself:
"Has this guy lost his mind? What the hell is one hundred and fifty push-ups? And without using aura or mana at that... On top of that, I'm going to try to break these sticks as thick as my arm by swinging them around. How am I supposed to do that?"
He tensed up for a moment. Just then, Stoney shouted:
"Go now! Warm up by running. You'll do forty laps inside this forest, and after that you can start training."
Without wasting any time, Lane started running straight into the forest. After the first ten laps, his body gradually began to change. Under the pressure of the run, his heart was beating faster, and Lane felt as though the flow around him was slowing down.
"As my heart rate increases, everything around me feels like it's slowing down... I should increase the tempo. He didn't say I couldn't use mana while running."
With that, he activated his aura and increased his speed. Everything around him began to seem even slower. Lane was running rapidly in circles inside the forest. His heartbeat had risen far above normal. When he finally completed the forty laps and stopped, he threw himself to the ground.
"It feels like my heart is going to stop... Even Master Gorn never tortured me like this."
He was lying on the ground. His breath was completely cut off. After a while, he pulled himself together, got up, and started doing push-ups. Push-ups were not the hardest part of the job. Because Lane had long since gotten himself used to exercise. So it was not completely exhausting for him. Still, when he finished the one hundred and fifty push-ups in intervals, his arms were burning terribly from the intense training.
By the time he reached the final part, about two and a half hours had passed since the morning training began. After resting for about half an hour, Lane took a stick into his hand and began swinging it. With every swing, he tried to keep the stick as straight as possible. After a while, this was what he realized:
"When I swing the stick, my body also has to keep up with it. If I put this into order, maybe I can succeed."
With that, he continued swinging. Time passed, the weather darkened, and night fell. Lane's hands were now bruised and battered.
When Stoney returned from hunting in the forest, he saw that Lane was still training. After watching him for a while, he said:
"You've been swinging that stick since morning, but you still haven't figured out where your mistake is."