Elemental magic—one could even tell the difference between an ordinary man and that of a person who's closer to a demigod.
As both of them were walking down the basement, Otto tried to cool off his leaping heartbeat. It was finally time for him to have elemental magic in this world.
Footsteps echoed through the underground hall. Lantern smoke mingled through the air, the scent of kerosene seeped into his clothes. On the far end of the hall stood a double metal gate. Otto was taken aback that such architecture actually existed under these mountains.
"Who built this?" He examined the etched patterns on the gate—indescribable lines of text were carved neatly onto the surface. Nuria shook her head, her hand still holding the lantern. "I don't know. Maybe I'll ask the previous owner of this house once my time has come."
The old lady chuckled, but Otto's eyes remained fixed on the metal door. His fingertip traced the engravings gently before pushing his palm against it. To his surprise, the gate was quite lightweight despite it being made of metal.
As soon as he stepped in, a messy table appeared before him. Glass bottles arranged to the sides. Firewood below the cauldron has long burnt to charcoal. Nuria went ahead first to the shelves against the wall, pulling out an object.
Otto wanted to get a better look before deciding not to. He scanned the entire room before circling around the long table, taking a seat on a wooden chair.
Nuria placed the lantern on the table. She took out a cloth and laid it flat before Otto. And for the cherry on top, an object was placed on it. Like a royal chalice, its golden shimmer filled Otto's eyes. And just like the one back in the underground market, the surrounding air became viscous.
Otto was holding his other wrist firmly, his heart was drumming. His eyes are locked onto the golden skin before him. This was a game changer for his survival in this world.
At the same time, a palm tapped his shoulder. He broke his gaze with the apple to look behind—Nuria was there. "Now, don't forget to use the consuming method."
Consuming method? Otto scratched his head. He had never heard of it. It was simply because he didn't ask Gerav about the details of Elemental magic, nor was there any record about it in his combat guidebook.
"Oh, did that man never tell you of it? Well, it can't be helped with his old age." The lady chuckled before taking a seat beside Otto. Meanwhile, Otto's eyes still twitched from that statement. A part of him blamed himself for not inquiring of Gerav more about this.
Nuria explained in a clear tone. "Focus your Essence to push the apple's Essence into the part that you want to bite. After you take a bite from the apple, throw the rest of it away—taking another bite is useless as all the Elemental concentration will fall into that first bite."
"Why not save the rest as food stock?" Otto took the initiative to throw a question.
"Because it tastes bitter." Nuria curled her lips in amusement. She then placed her palm against her chest. "After you swallow it, control your Essence flow in your body. That disturbance is deadly."
Upon hearing this, Otto couldn't help but gulp. He remembered that old man advising him of the risks from excessive disturbance in the Essence flow. One mistake can lose his grip on the power, turning it into an uncontrollable elemental bomb in his stomach.
"Now, take your time. Don't be nervous." Nuria spoke in a soothing tone. That gave Otto a little spark of confidence. He diverted his gaze onto the apple—a golden glint flashed before his eyes. He grabbed the fruit, its skin felt smooth from a gentle rub.
Afterwards, he took a bite out of it and put the rest back on the table. After swallowing, a burning sensation reached his stomach. Before long, black smoke was flowing out of his mouth and nostrils. Excruciating dizziness penetrated his head like a hammered nail. He tried to regain himself before sensing a palm supporting him from the back.
He could hear a mumbling behind his ears. His eyes reddened. He tried to calm himself by finding his Essence flow.
There it is. Instead of one clear flow, Essence flowed in different directions like a ball of strings. He focused all his senses to command it. Little by little, the flow slowly straightened. But at the same time, the agonizing pain intensified—it was as if a whole spear was piercing his temples.
Followed by a heavy grunt, he kept his composure and tried to command the flow once more.
Minutes had passed, the throbbing pain went down bit by bit. His esophagus stopped throwing up black smoke. He leaned against his seat. Still gasping for breath, he glanced at his sweaty palm.
I did it… finally… Exhausted, he wasn't even capable of thinking straight. All he wanted at that moment was rest. It was then a hand patted his shoulder. He turned his gaze around, Nuria was seen smiling. "Great work, young man. All that is left is to head back to bed and get some rest. We'll begin your next phase tomorrow."
…
The sound of fire crackled from his left. Soft fabric draped over his skin. From the window, it was already dark outside. Otto was lying on his back, his eyes dazed into the wooden ceiling. He turned his head to the left, the old lady was reading a book.
"Are you going to make me a slave? I don't see any reason for you to help me." He locked his gaze onto Nuria. Confusion still lingered in his heart.
Nuria stopped flipping the page midway. She laid the book down on the table before glancing at the fireplace. This time, her face showed a hint of nostalgia.
"I didn't do this for your sake, Otto. I just wanted to repay my debt to that old geezer." Her eyes remained relaxed, smiling at that old memory. This was a normal response at first, but another question emerged from Otto's mind—just how much does she know of Gerav.
Before letting that thought catch up to his sleep, Otto immediately pulled the blanket and closed his eyes—before pulling it down to examine his body, which was still covered in bandages.
"Wait, my training is tomorrow?" His brows furrowed.
The old lady chuckled before picking up her book. "If I were you, I would've gone straight to sleep by now."