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A Soldier's Life - 196 - Level Zero Mages
🕑 Added 2024-05-17 02:30:04 +0000 UTCChapter 196 Zero-Level Mages
As I prepared for a few hours in the dreamscape, I dwelled on the orcs in the Coliseum. They were impressive physical beings, taller than an average Telhian by nearly a head and broader of the shoulder by half again. The entire event was to reassure the people of Telha that the legionnaires were superior to the elite orc warriors. From the brief enhancement, I knew the tattoo spell forms would make them formable opponents, and in one-on-one combat, I was confident the average legionnaire would be the one at a disadvantage.
I entered the dreamscape and studied the book on alchemy, poisons, and powders. I was preparing for my attempt at the healing salve and decided to work on creating myconid powder on my own. It was not difficult as you just needed to take chunks of the flesh of the myconids and store them in a sealed jar in a warm place. The material would rot overnight, producing the spores. You washed the spores with purified water, stirred the contents, and skimmed them off the surface as they were not water-soluble. Then, you carefully dried them in the sun before sealing them in a bottle.
Of course, I could always order the myconid spores already prepared from the Imperial Alchemy College. As a Chancellor, Zyna appeared to have a large spending allowance that she didn’t utilize. Still, I thought it best to practice purifying the spores myself. The text noted that there were also a few different species of the fungal men, and the spores had slightly varying properties.
After finishing my evening’s study, I created the most fearsome orc from the Coliseum. He stood around 6’3”, about two inches taller than me. His ripped torso heaved with deep breaths as his dark brown intelligent eyes studied me. I could see Konstantin in the corner of my eye, itching to try his mettle against this new opponent.
I equipped the orc with the same broadsword and wooden shield from the arena before we started. His strikes were heavy but telegraphed. Maybe I had overestimated the orcs, or the dreamscape had not replicated them correctly. The combat looked more impressive from a hundred feet away. I allowed the manifestation to mimic the speed and power enhancement I had observed briefly from the tattoos. Before I realized what had happened, the tendons on the back of my hand had been sliced, and I dropped my black blade and was forced to freeze the orc.
I puzzled out what had happened. The orc had leveraged his blade for the opening, hadn’t attempted a killing blow that I was prepared for, and had settled for just a disabling blow. The legionnaires they had fought in the stadium received several slashes across their armor. I healed and manifested my parade armor onto myself before continuing my practice. The fight tilted in my favor, with my only real disadvantage being my limited vision with the helmet. If I faced two opponents, tracking both would be a nightmare. I removed the face plate, but it only slightly helped. I preferred my original open-face helm to this ceremonial armor one.
Discovering these things in the dreamscape was better than my first fight with the armor. My old helm had a wider facial opening, protecting only the cheeks and neck. I definitely needed more practice with the new helm and hoped Zyna could convince the gladiator to train me. I could try to visit the Imperial Legion Hall training yards outside the armorers.
I spent hours with the orc, refining his skill, speed, and power with just a thought. I even let the orc get accustomed to my air shield for a few rounds, removing the surprise advantage I had gained from it. The question was how accurately the orc’s abilities were recreated based on my observations.
I had created him from observing four orcs fighting for their lives. But perhaps the broadsword was not their favored weapon. Or maybe they hadn’t gone all out or were young and inexperienced. No. They were veterans, as they had a multitude of scars on their bodies. This orc was also larger and more dangerous than the orc slavers Maveith had created in the dreamscape who killed his sister.
I exited the dreamscape, this time even more motivated for my physical training. I consumed a major earth essence and a major essence of constitution. The earth essences were still not agreeing with me, but I was motivated to consume all of them and finish imprinting the new spell form.
I entered the common room to find a large crate. Apparently, Ignis had stopped by late last night and dropped off my weapons. I started going through the crate, seeing the round shield on top matching the parade armor but still having Zyna’s Kraken crest. I tittered as it seemed Zyna was keen on marking me as her property.
The elven daggers and hand axes had been cleaned, sharpened, and given simple sheaths. I inspected each weapon and had to agree the craftsmanship of the Caelorian elves was far superior to anything in the Telhian Empire. The final weapon in the crate was a short sword in a scabbard that matched the armor. On drawing it, it was clearly a runic weapon, albeit not dungeon-forged. I frowned as it was slightly shorter than the mage bane blade. This meant the mage bane would not fit as I had planned in the sheath.
Zyna exited her room and looked at me, arching her brow, surprised. I realized she was ready to go to class, and I was not armored as I had gotten engrossed in inspecting the crate. Fifteen rushed minutes later, I was ready and descended the stairs with her.
Zyna seemed amused by my hasty dressing. “I talked with Ignis last night when she dropped off the crate. I didn’t realize it had been almost five years since our last conversation. I was surprised you didn’t join us. We certainly were not quiet.”
“I was using the amulet,” I replied truthfully.
Zyna considered and nodded. “Be careful not to fall into that counterfeit realm. Too many students at the Mage College who use the dreamscape amulet end up preferring their time there over reality.” I nodded as I could easily see that happening.
“Ignis was impressed with the elven weapons.” I didn’t respond as I sensed Zyna was leading the conversation somewhere. We reached the classroom, and she probed, “You keep surprising me with the depths of your dimensional capacity.” She entered the classroom without waiting for a response. Was Zyna going to leave it at that or pry further?
For the next three days, she never mentioned my dimensional storage again. I began to learn to hate standing watch for three-hour blocks of time, but I got good at standing still. I found a use for the tower shield, bracing it on the floor to support my body weight. I could not glean much from the classes that I couldn’t quickly get from the books in my dreamscape. I was also glad Zyna never used me for target practice in front of the class, as she had alluded to.
In the afternoons, I practiced my alchemy skills. The healing salve I crafted flashed brightly when I catalyzed the ingredients with my aether. It meant it would have a good shelf life and a decent potency. It could only close wounds and slow bleeding. Repairing muscles, vessels, organs, or bones was beyond its scope. It would be helpful if my companions were injured, or if I bottomed out my aether, I could use it on myself. I placed a small vial of the paste under my cuirass to carry in case of emergencies. Based on my estimates, it should be viable for almost a month.
I received three different types of rubbery myconid hide. The fungus men were prevalent in the Endless Dark. The spores were just as easy to gather as the text indicated. You just needed to carefully dry them in a space without wind, as they readily took to the air. The problem with a lot of the powders in the alchemy book was that you needed to be careful when deploying them so that you were not also infected.
My earth affinity had passed 25, reaching 28, and I still had all six minor earth essences to consume. I had gained nine points from the six major earth essences so far. I would receive another three to four points from the minor essences as I was getting diminishing returns. I knew that eventually, only apex earth essences would elevate my affinity.
I had also consumed my last major constitution essence, a major strength essence, and three minor coordination essences. The rapid consumption of so many essences was wearing on my strained aether channels. I didn’t think I could continue at this pace for long, even though my body was successfully metabolizing them, I was feeling exhausted. Maybe I just needed to focus on the lesser essences for a time. Also, my stockpile was not infinite and was rapidly dwindling.
As the combat field trip drew closer, the mage aspirants, Flora and Livia, became increasingly anxious each evening. Their nerves affected their appetites, which had started to diminish. After finishing their cleaning, I cooked dinner while Zyna spent time in the common room mentoring Renna, Livia, and Flora with their magic.
Zyna had mentioned to me in private that Flora was the only one of the two mage aspirants who had a chance of creating a proper spell form. Although Livia had a strong aether shaping attribute, she lacked the manual dexterity in her hands to trace the spell forms in the air rapidly. You could trace it without using your hands, but that took a lot more skill.
The morning finally arrived when the mage aspirants would be transported to the western villages to hunt minor nuisances. Thankfully, I was permitted to wear my old legionnaire armor along with the helm. As I reported, nineteen Imperial legionnaires in their shiny armor stood in the stable yards. They gave me disdainful looks for my lesser armor, but no one spoke up. I carried the smaller round shield adorned with Zyna’s crest, which is probably why they bit their tongues.
A stout legionnaire approached me, “Zyna’s sentinel?” He didn’t wait for me to reply and asked, “Can you ride?”
“Yes, legionnaire,” I replied respectfully.
“Gather a horse from the stable hands. We ride to meet the carriages in an hour.” He turned and left me to organize the others who had been assigned to this duty.
The young, stable hands led me to the mounts I could choose from. Most of the mounts in these stables were owned or already assigned. Looking at my choices, I missed Ginger and wondered how she was doing. Maybe I could pay for a message sending to one of the stable boys and find out. I carefully inspected my options using what I learned from Lucian. I selected a massive dark gray stallion for his size and temperament. Of course, the horses here didn’t have a name, so I gave him one: Typhoon.
I quickly realized why Typhoon had been available. He was easily distracted by everything: other horses, grass, talking, animals. I was constantly working to keep his attention focused on where we were going. I was given orders to ride at the rear of the procession when we reached five covered wagons. Zyna was riding next to the teamster in the first wagon. Each covered wagon had six mage aspirants, a teamster for the horses, and one mage instructor from the College.
I guessed each group would have one mage and four legionnaires to guard the young mage aspirants during their hunt. The mages were expected to fight only with their spell forms, as none could cast true spells. This whole experience reminded me of when our training legion was sent to hunt brown goblins.
The carts rolled evenly on the paved roads as we left the capital. After five hours, we turned off the primary road, and the roads began to get rougher and were just packed earth. The wagons began to bounce some, but had some springs connecting the axles to cushion the trip. I was certain many of the pampered mage aspirants were unfamiliar with this rough travel by the unhappy looks on their faces.
Flora and Livia were up in the first wagon with Chancellor Zyna. Other than a passing smile from the two when their wagon passed, I did not see them again until we pulled into a sprawling village about twenty-five miles from the capital. The mood in the village was somber as the locals watched us arrive. It was obviously not the first time this procession had arrived in their village. A few legionnaires in worn Imperial legion armor lingered near a large wooden structure that was a tiny local Legion Hall.
The battered mage aspirants left the wagons, rubbing their bottoms and walking unsteadily from the trip. Zyna scanned the group of thirty-one young mages, the other instructors standing behind her. The legionnaires and I remained mounted in a large circle around them. Zyna addressed the mage aspirants, “Welcome to the village of Crestview. They will be hosting you tonight, and at first light, your mage instructors will take you to hunt. Each instructor was selected for their spells to locate targets for you. Each of your groups has at least one mage aspirant with a healing spell form and two with offensive spell forms.”
The young mages looked at the others who had been traveling in their wagons, realization forming on their faces. Zyna continued, “The others in your group have utility spells. Your job is to work together and bring down the local predators harassing the outlying farms.”
Another mage instructor stepped forward, taking over the speech. I could tell this graying man inspired the same level of fear that Zyna did. “You are going to be constantly evaluated from sunrise to sunset tomorrow. Those of you who show promise will be given additional instruction on how to cast true spells. For others,” his tone became ominous. “This may mark the end of your time at the Mage College.”
Nervous whispers rose among the young potential mages. From Zyna, I understood that the warning was empty. Each mage aspirant would be granted at least an entire year before facing expulsion from the College. By the end of that year, most of the expelled mage aspirants would have imprinted two or more spell forms onto their core. They would then either transition to another of the Imperial Colleges or enter service to the Empire. Anyone without noble blood would somehow find a way to serve the Empire.
The instructors shuffled the mages into a large inn that was out of place for such a small town. I followed the mounted legionnaires to the stables behind the Legion Hall. I rubbed down my horse while the others left their mounts in the care of the stable boys. Typhoon had been easily distracted the entire ride, and I got snickers from the other three men who rode with me at the back. Still, earning the trust of your mount could be the difference between life and death. After rubbing down the gray, I fed him a large dungeon apple.
I passed through the training yard where a few local legionnaires were practicing. After dropping my packs in the bunk room, I returned for some practice. I learned there were only fifteen local legionnaires, and they were not part of a mage company. They just supported the local magistrate and ran messages to the capital. The small garrison was at half strength as fourteen of their number had been sent to reinforce Macha.
I practiced with four but found no worthy opponents among the local legion men. Maybe my combat skills were advancing as well. I skipped the meal in the common room and returned to the bunk room. I was a bit sour when I noticed my saddle bags had been moved and most likely searched. I only had the standard legion travel gear in them, but still, I wondered who among these men was spying on me.
I ended up not staying in the bunk room and instead spending paying for an evening in the inn's common room. All the rooms were packed with the mages but a large silver to the owner, and I was allowed to sleep in a tiny cook’s room that was currently unoccupied. Only needing a few hours of rest meant I was wide awake shortly after midnight. I sat in the fire-lit common room reading my beginner alchemy book the rest of the night.
Zyna was the first down the stairs, well before dawn, but only after the cook had started her work in the kitchens. The smells of baking bread and frying meat drifted from the back room as she worked, humming to herself. Zyna looked mildly surprised seeing me. “Mage Judice set wards. There was no need to guard the inn.”
“Some legionnaires went through my travel packs,” I said, closing the book, irritated.
Zyna’s eyes widened in mild surprise. “Interesting. Anything missing?”
“No,” I said, making the book vanish.
Zyna sat across from me. The cook rushed out an early meal for her. “I wouldn’t worry about it.” She dismissed my sour expression. “I am certain anything of interest you have is secured.” She attacked the greasy sausage and hard-boiled eggs.
I waited until she finished her meal as the other mage instructors arrived for breakfast. Clearly, they intended to wait for the young aspiring mages and then scold them for being slow. “What’s the plan for today?”
Zyna was sipping some fruity wine whose sweetness I could smell across the table. “My fellows scouted the surrounding farms last night. The only real danger was a large bear and its cubs, which moved south. My group will be hunting a large fox about five miles south. It has taken down a few sheep in the last few weeks and is preparing to give birth.”
As expected, the instructors berated the slow-arriving mage aspirants as they arrived. “Should I saddle Typhoon?” I asked Zyna, who was carefully observing the interactions.
“No, you will be on foot with us. You can trust the other three legionnaires with us. There is no need for paranoia. This will be a simple walk in the woods.” Zyna said, standing as she gathered her small flock of young mages, including Flora and Livia.
An hour later, I was walking next to Zyna at the rear of our group. She had talked to each of the other legionnaires in our group. She calmly informed me, “The legionnaire who searched your pack is a cousin of First Citizen Justin Cicero. I will not have him disciplined, but I am surprised at his boldness.”
I grumbled as it looked like I was not free of the First Citizens. The mage aspirants at the front hunted small game as we proceeded, restraining squirrels with wind magic and killing birds with sprays of ice needles. It seemed a lot of needless death as the animals were not even harvested. Zyna explained, “They are trying to match the kill count of the other groups. The group sent to the grain stores will have the opportunity to kill dozens of rats. There is some prestige to killing the most creatures.”
We reached the fox den, and Zyna confirmed it was inside, allowing the mage aspirants to plan the attack. Of the six mages they had, one could thicken the air to slow down a target. One mage could see in the dark. Another mage could pull water from the air to form small ice needles but the velocity was not impressive. Flora could grow entangling vines, and Livia could heal injuries. One mage could jump over ten feet in the air, and another could stun on touch.
The ice mage seemed to take the lead and had the others prepare a trap for the poor fox. Flora grew vines in front of the den, and the jumping mage was going to serve as bait to lure it out. Watching their efforts when the fox did not cooperate and leave its den was a little comical. None of the six were brave enough to enter the den, with Zyna frowning and us legionnaires watching at the edge of the clearing.
The stunning mage was eventually goaded to enter the den. This caused Zyna to go on alert and step forward, ready to rescue the mage if required. As he took tiny steps toward the entrance, the fox had had enough. It barreled out of the den, its jaws closing on the poor man’s head. Now, I would admit the fox was not small, easily larger than the mage and over a hundred pounds.
It barreled into him, latching onto the mage’s shoulder and neck with his long maw. In his panic, the mage forgot to stun the fox, and his companions tried to save him with a storm of icy needles, but they had little effect as the air mage had thickened the air around the fox to slow it, and that affected the ice needles as well. The ice needles harmlessly pelted the large fox, who was pinning the mage to the ground. Seeing it was surrounded, the fox released its grasp, and bounded into the woods, its belly obviously swollen with a litter.
The vines Flora had laid out only momentarily slowed the creature, snapping due to the fox’s superior strength. A lance of fire from Zyna struck the fox, burning a hole in its side and throwing it into a tree with a loud crunching thud. Livia was already huddled over the injured mage, trying to heal the bite punctures.
Zyna was frowning as she approached the group. “That was a poor showing. You didn’t communicate and panicked when the fox showed itself. I am disappointed.” She turned away from the mages. None of these mages were sons or daughters of the nobility. They were all common-born like Flora and Livia. Zyna had been in the same position decades ago, and she expected more from them. I thought the fault was their instructors and not the young mages.
The walk back to town was in silence. The mages were fed and got to hear of the success of the other groups as they slowly returned. One group killed two wolves; another had slain seventeen giant rats and twenty-four small rats. The third group managed to track the two green goblins down but needed the legionnaires to chase them down in the woods. The last group located and killed a giant mole eating the roots of the trees in the orchard. Our group only had killed three harmless squirrels and a few birds minding their own business.
We stayed another night in the town. I slept in the spare cook’s room again, and in the morning, our procession returned to the capital. All the young mages had been bloodied, if you looked at it, and Zyna now had a clearer idea of which among them could become potential war mages. When I traveled next week to hunt gnolls with Renna and the true mages, I expected the danger level to be much higher.
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Comments
Dennis Crocker
“I ended up not staying in the bunk room and instead spending paying for an evening in the inn's common room” spending paying? paid
Brianna Stormcloud
Thank you for the sadly amusing chapter! It will be interesting if Zyna ever asks outright how big his storage is!
Medhanie Kidane
I think now the aime is to become a first citizen....😐
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Rahul Paul
This 1st citizen that too Justin is getting too annoying and boring now
Robert Biederman
Found another typo it reads I knew from zyna that the warning was hollow
Robert Biederman
Another typo I discovered in chapter 196 the sentence is rubbing their bottoms and waking on steadily from the trip
Robert Biederman
Let me read the whole sentence for you it doesn't quite make sense mushroom Men and store them in a sealed jar
Robert Biederman
There's a typo in the second paragraph almost right in the middle it should be then but it's spelled men chapter 196
Sincere
I been wondering this. Zyna said she will eventually have Dementia. But how? If the spell makes you young and healthy wouldn't that replenish or constantly heal your whole body? Wouldn't you constantly make new cells? New brain matter?
Jason Long
"but had some axles to cushion the trip" Should be springs instead of axles
Erick Thiemke
edited
Erick Thiemke
edited
Erick Thiemke
edited
Erick Thiemke
edited
Erick Thiemke
edited
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Erick Thiemke
corrected
Karnnie
Flora grew vines in from of the den. And the jumping mage was going to serve as bait to lure it out. Flora grew vines in front of the den, and the jumping mage was going to serve as bait to lure it out.
Karnnie
The mage aspirants as the front hunted small game as we proceeded, restraining squirrels with wind magic and killing birds with sprays of ice needles. The mage aspirants at the front hunted small game as we proceeded, restraining squirrels with wind magic, and killing birds with sprays of ice needles.
Karnnie
“Should I saddle Typhoon?” I asked Zyna, who carefully observing the interactions. “Should I saddle Typhoon?” I asked Zyna, who was carefully observing the interactions.
Karnnie
The wagons began to bounce some but did some type of axle to cushion the trip. The wagons began to bounce some but (hid or had) some type of axle to cushion the trip.
Karnnie
I was giving orders to ride at the rear of the procession when we reached five covered wagons. I was given orders to ride at the rear of the procession when we reached five covered wagons.
Karnnie
I took a small vial of the paste under my cuirass to carry in case of emergencies. I placed a small tin of the paste under my cuirass to carry in case of emergencies.
Karnnie
I manifested my parade onto myself before continuing my practice. I manifested my parade armor onto myself before continuing my practice. OR I manifested my armor onto myself before continuing my practice.
Erick Thiemke
This is dreamscape practice? Either works I think was stressing he didn’t have to create it and then dress….go go power rangers!
Xonian
Potential edit: “I manifested my parade onto myself before continuing my practice” Shouldn’t it be “I manifested my parade armor…”
Silver Beard
Is the ceremonial set of armor he got from the Duchess functional? He should bring it out. Get rid of the old crap... he'll make much needed room in his space and it won't chafe and bite as the cobbled together stuff he's current using. Let Zyna wonder. She's already got a clue... just keep feeding breadcrumbs. As Zyna said- he represents her. His image and hers depends on it.
Silver Beard
As I recall the herbalists went to collect the 3 ladies and, in their absence, he unloaded a ton of food from his storage and left it in the shop. They asked him to wait for them; but of course, he didn't.
Silver Beard
it's a weak potion. Had he greater a normal or 'dungeon' worthy one that would be over the top, but a simple recipe is not a big deal. He made PB&J not eggs benedict or something even more complicated/nuanced.
Erick Thiemke
no he did not meet them after. but the two herbalists would have told them
Sparkley Unicorn
So, dumb question but I'm dying to know. Did he ever actually go back and tell the 3 girls he got them a job at the herbalist place? I'm sure he did, but it seemed implied he immediately rushed off to do the tournament thing for the swords, and then left the next day.
Erick Thiemke
Actually I am trying to fix those corrections from the missing tablet reading you pointed out before I post a tablet reading again
Grayson
MC could become—over centuries—a world walking, warrior/true mage fighting evil
Victor Skaarup
He also has fire and air essences although hasn’t activated the affenities
Otto Kovar
I figured the quality of ingredients would make things easier... Yeah his reasoning is solid and you have mentioned it here in the comments, but this is a novel and the novel itself did not have that. Still not sure why he has been putting of the research into the topic. He knows very little in that regard, tha things he does know like how to theoretically heal it are a good start but he has been distracting himself with so much it seems like he stresses out about that topic and rather then confront the truths he needs to find. Unless you write otherwise it is still canon that it hurts by not a little and that it will further harm him the longer he leaves it be. Is there a plan to have an updated stat block once he has consumed all earth essences?
Erick Thiemke
the healing salve was easy because he spent a week prepping, also partly from the quality of the ingredients for the Chancellor and partly because it is the simplest alchemy. its effects are limited as noted as well, just closing wounds. I can go back to the reasoning for Eryk not to consult Zyna about his aether burn in a rewrite (my plan was for him to research which beasts might give an aether channeling essence besides a manticore). I feel not telling her has to do with fear of revealing his limitations/abilities to her. if, for instance, she wanted Eryk to use the tablet reader, the game would be up. right now, they just think the MC has affinities in the 50s or 60s as that is how powerful the First Legion and other other worlders are. Not sure if I will pursue the plot thread where Antonia finds out the truth when she can not locate other worlders where the MC appeared.
Otto Kovar
At least give us a bit about him contemplating his hesitance to it, he has been putting it off for quite a bit considering how serious it is. Well it was considered as a serious condition, and I would think the constant pain is quite the reminder on this topic. Is Eryk actually a masochist and enjoys the pain? If not why do we as the reader have no idea why he is not trying to get it fixed. Unless Eryk explains why he is putting it off, I will just stay confused on that topic. I do not want to force him, I do not want to take control, I am just confused at what is going on. The perspective you are writing is that of Eryk but we are left to wonder what his complete disposition is towards Zyna and why he is essentially ignoring his aether burn. I know you have mentioned it being bearable but currently it seems as if it was actually a non issue, is it? Do you want him to experience another major set back in that regard before giving in and him just needing to come clean. You could easily address it and it just takes a lot of time before he gets the "medicine" or to get healed or the process just takes time, but it feels so wrong with everything we know that he rarely if at all makes mention of his predicament. Thats my rant on that topic just wanted to get it out at long last as the chapters did not satisfy this curiosity of mine.
Otto Kovar
Well yes, i agree on that somewhat. Reducing the effects makes it harder to get excited about him getting essences, on the other hand once he has his spellform there is not much excitement in him advancing the magic affinity, though he still can get a benefit from it, even still greater than most people. It also creates just a new set of challenges, the hunt for apex essences, yes he will still have his benefits from minor essences and he just needs more. Maybe if he improves his stats by himself he is slowly resetting the diminishing returns, on the other hand, I always wondered... is the "diminishing return" due to the essence having less of an effect or because the higher a stat gets the greater the change, it was mentioned before that it scales on a square scale 10 points is double, and a double on the previous 10 points. Then what I disagree with is his progression should not go to the superhuman territory or at least not to far. Despite the supernatural aspect of his new life, the mortal danger of most everything and the still somewhat relatable nature of his struggles grounds this story quite well. If this novel would divulge to far in that direction where all challenges are now so far scaled up I would think the identity of it would be at stake, yes he gets stronger but more like he gets to the limits of human capability. ALSO yes there is stats progression and there is the progression of skills, and gear, which has been going quite well. There is still ways to go in other areas and if Eryk gets his hands on more magic affinities he can assort an array of abilities which is already quite good compared to most people. He has: dimensional space slow aging essence assimilation self healing air shield and soon earth speak(sense) He already has a water essence and started on illusion
Otto Kovar
I am honestly impressed Eryk learned to make a healing salve so quickly. Well yes, chemistry is mostly unchanging and having had the view on it from a modern perspective and from having some training with the Decimus, Eryk has some history to that, but I am sure there is more to the whole thing. On the other hand if Zyna catches a whiff of Eryk getting good enough in alchemy to actually make potions, she would offer him quite a bit so he stays an ally to the empire. (I am aware she has a "bad" opinion about potions made by alchemists) ALSO Eryk has been noticing that maybe his aether burn may have other debilitating effects, and he is still shy about at least mentioning the topic, he should seriously consider getting more informed about this.
Grayson
If you slow his progression too much by reducing the impact of essences, you eliminate the excitement of a progression series…It’s ok if he becomes superhuman, he’ll just face superhuman challenges…read the Amber Chrinicles by Roger Zelazny
Grayson
You could have Eryk catch Justin Cicero’s cousin searching his bag if you want more action…maybe a duel?Also, Eryk should use his time adding books from the mage college library and practicing with Imperial sword masters…he’s wasting an opportunity…
Scion
I think you would be cool if he could get a list of all known spells and their effects and add that to the library he could use the argument that he wants to Read all possibilities to better prepare
striderfighter
I look forward to seeing eryk actually interact with other legionnaires and sparring with them
Erick Thiemke
1st of 4 for the cycle. I was hoping this chapter would be more exciting than it turned out. Maybe needs a little added
