episode_0154

“Concentrate. Close your eyes and focus your consciousness on your inner self, capturing the chaotic and foreign flow that drifts there.”

Training to become aware of the power of the Up, only at the level of elite knights. Unlike the traditional training that pushed physical limits, this was an extremely static practice.

All I had to do was sit on the floor, close my eyes, and meditate.

It was simply about finding a power that was nestled within me but was not originally mine, much like catching a passing cloud, succeeding in this abstract task.

“Is that all?”

“Of course not. That’s just the basics.”

Belloren knelt in front of me, one knee on the ground, reaching out her right hand towards me and lowering her head. The blue light began to emanate from her eyes once again.

“The Up is the power that protects its owner. That’s why it tends to repel the Up of others. So, when the concentrated power of the Up touches the vital point-”

– Squish.

“Ouch?!”

“…Concentrate.”

Her hand touched my chest lightly.

Slightly to the left of the center of my chest. The compressed flesh left a strange sensation, squishing under her touch.

It wasn’t the sensation of the Up, just the feeling of a caress.

…For a moment, it seemed like a low growling sound was coming from somewhere… Maybe it was just my imagination.

Belloren wasn’t raising a dog in the mansion, and surely Freide wouldn’t make such a sound.

“In a situation where the Up of another person touches your vital point, it’s a danger where you could lose your life in an instant, so your Up can only react reflexively to that stimulus.”

Belloren explained the reason for her sudden soft chest touch and comfortably sat back, explaining that it was similar to recognizing an assassin. People who are quietly hiding are difficult to find, but once they move, they stand out.

As she spoke, my Up began to react to the stimulus and started to shake, so the advice was to focus on my inner consciousness to find that tremor.

“I’ll give it a try.”

I followed Belloren’s advice.

Closing my eyes, shutting my ears, erasing even the touch of her hand on my chest and the faint scent of brandy from my mind.

Like sinking into a deep lake, I delved into my inner self, searching for the waves of tremors within.

Forgetting even the passage of time, just endlessly.

…

“…Let’s stop here for today. It’s a pity, but it’s not something that can be achieved overnight.”

When I woke up from meditation and opened my eyes again, the sun that had been hanging above my head was now sinking beyond the horizon.

“This… is not easy.”

I scratched the back of my head in frustration as I got up.

I must have been concentrating until it was almost evening. And yet, I couldn’t even grasp a small clue. It was truly frustrating.

“It can’t be helped. If it were something simple enough to succeed overnight, this world would be overflowing with high-ranking knights, wouldn’t it?”

Belloren smiled as if it was a natural result, brushing off the dirt from her knees with a gesture.

◆◆

That night, my heart belonged to Freide. It seemed like the child was feeling jealous in a strange way.

…I let it go since there was no need to address it.

◆◆

And so, several days passed.

As if this was the most important thing right now, Belloren devoted all of the training time to becoming aware of the Up, while Freide and I focused on meditation to meet her expectations.

In truth, I was the only one dedicated to meeting expectations, and Freide seemed to just want to finish this training as soon as possible.

Anyway, on one particular day.

– Kugung.

A change occurred in the training that had been wasting time without any results.

As always, deeply immersed in meditation, I sensed that something was different from before, something I had not felt before.

– Kugung.

Very small, very faint.

A barely audible resonance.

Resembling a heartbeat but not a heartbeat, an indescribable resonance that was flowing out from somewhere inside me and spreading throughout my body.

Consciousness and unconsciousness merged and shouted together.

This resonance was what I had been searching for, what I needed to find.

In that moment of realization, my mind quickly reached out like lightning towards the source of that resonance and grabbed something that had been dormant there.

And then.

– Ahhh!

In the next moment, as I reflexively opened my eyes, a blue glimmer was emanating from my eyes.

Unlike the bright light emitted by the Veloren’s eyes, it was a dim glow akin to a fading candle flame.

However, it was undeniable evidence of ‘manifestation.’

“…Amazing. Such a rapid achievement.”

The Veloren Master, facing the glow up close, looked at me with a genuinely surprised expression.

“Could it be thanks to the teachings of the Master?”

I chuckled and offered a humble response.

Feeling the awakening of the intangible power within me, feeling the flow of that power as if I could grasp it.

That’s how I awakened the power of the Up.

Although it was only a half-baked realization that did not yet reach the level of a high-ranking knight.

◆◆

“It…! It happened! I saw it too! That power of the Up!”

Was it because of the anxiety that I had awakened the power of the Up before her?

Since that day, Freide had been meditating all night and, not long after, she succeeded in a similar manifestation of the Up like me.

“Congratulations, Freide.”

“Congratulations. I heard that you had no talent in swordsmanship until you were appointed as a hero. This is an unbelievable talent as well.”

The Veloren Master and I congratulated Freide without any ulterior motives, seeing how stressed she had been about falling behind.

“Now, Freide, shall we learn how to use that power like Hilde?”

The method of using the manifested power of the Up.

The Veloren Master said that manifesting the power was just the first step, and to use it effectively in practice, one must fully understand how to handle that power.

Well, the method wasn’t anything special.

Since Freide and I had accumulated a weak Up, even though we had manifested it, we couldn’t showcase extraordinary skills like a high-ranking knight.

Therefore, all we could do was to focus the power flowing through our bodies in one place using sheer willpower.

Concentrating strength in the legs to increase agility, or in the arms to increase strength.

Or focusing strength on the part being attacked to slightly enhance defense, things like that.

Of course, increasing defense didn’t mean we could block a sword with our bare skin, it just made our skin a bit tougher like bear skin.

It was a waste of energy against enemies with weapons, but it might have a slight effect against unarmed fighters, perhaps?

The impact of the strikes from martial artists of elite rank or higher would have little significance in breaking through defenses, but below that, wearing even a leather armor would mitigate significant damage.

Hmm. It was an explanation that seemed like the disdain that had disappeared after being beaten by Veloren Kyung was slowly resurfacing.

Anyway, since that day, I honed the ability to quickly manifest the power of the Up without meditation, and how to integrate that power into combat.

Freide’s reaction was that it was a bit difficult to grasp the feeling, but surprisingly, I was able to handle the power of the Up very easily.

Is it because of the difference in talent between Brunhilde and Freide? It could be said so, or it could not be.

The reason was simple.

“…This feels similar to Kangwan’s sensation.”

The sensation of using the power of the Up to enhance physical abilities was almost identical to the sensation of activating Kangwan with the coldness of the Ice Heart.

The flowing power was just a difference between the Up and the coldness.

Thanks to that, I was able to adapt to the manifestation of the Up surprisingly quickly. Freide seemed a little envious.

“As expected of Hilde! Amazing…!”

While showering me with all sorts of compliments as if admiring me.

◆◆

It had been almost two months since I visited Veloren Kyung’s mansion.

Veloren Kyung introduced me to Mari as his daughter, and around the time he suggested that I could also call him mother inside the mansion.

A letter from an unknown sender arrived at the mansion.

/ It’s time to show your worth. Creamhilt. /

Just by reading the first sentence, it was clear who sent it. Who else would call me Creamhilt.

“This guy, now he’s openly giving orders as if I’m his subordinate.”

Argantir was calling for me.

/ The location of the third finger of the Kuma Eokcheonhoe, Ganaegle Feitan, has been confirmed. It must be time to strike. /

The moment to personally confirm the results brought by the information I had sold to him had arrived.

As a disciple of Veloren Kyung, the training was temporarily suspended.

It was time to become Creamhilt, the shadow of the Black Eagle, and turn the blood upside down.