Chapter 439: Advanced Class

Julius stepped back, avoiding Cain’s sweeping leg, and then was forced to absorb as much kinetic energy from the sudden blast as he could. He failed to siphon all of it and was staggered backwards.

Cain, like the ruthless sparring partner he was, didn’t let Julius a second to breathe. He was already in front of Julius, swinging an open palm at his skull. Julius didn’t have the balance to dodge, so he had to bring his arm up to parry it.

Unfortunately, Cain chose to be mean and slightly restrict his movements with kinetic energy. Much like Julius’s own technique, Cain clamped down on his body. Thankfully, Cain was barely trying and gave him enough wiggle room to fight back.

Still, Julius was too slow and got walloped across the head, sending him crashing into the wall with a loud thump.

He groaned as he peeled himself from the floor. “I don’t see how this is going to help me choose what skill I want,” he grumbled to Cain, who tossed him a towel to wipe his sweat off.

“I want to see how much you have improved during your time away and see for myself if you should choose the general upgrade or if specializing might help you more,” Cain explained.

“Well, what is your verdict?” Julius asked curiously.

“Undecided,” Cain admitted he didn’t know without any shame.

Julius sighed. “Why do I feel like this was just an opportunity to beat me up?”

“That as well,” Cain said without hesitation. “Plus, it is not like you can choose the skill right now. With how your soul is at the moment, I don’t think it would be the best idea to choose a skill. Let it recover, and then you can choose an option.”

While neither Julius nor Freya told the man about the condition of his soul, it would appear that they didn’t have to. Cain had grabbed Julius by the shoulders the moment he saw him and gave him a thorough inspection, where the nature of his soul’s condition was revealed.

“Do you have a general idea about which skill you think might fit me slightly better, though?” He asked the large man. Julius at least wanted to narrow down some of his choices. He was mainly undecided between [Kinetic Energy Mastery] and [Kinetic Energy Refinement]. Those two seemed to be the better of the skills for his particular skillset, but he wanted Cain’s opinion.

“Truth be told, every skill would do you some good. The only skill that might be a little useless would be [Kinetic Amplification]. You already have more than enough kinetic energy to use, and you have just barely started to control that vast amount. Even if it didn’t increase the total amount you could use, it would definitely enhance the current amount by a decent factor. I don’t think you should choose a skill like that until you get a better grasp on kinetic energy. We don’t need you blowing yourself up over and over again,” Cain said with a laugh.

“I was thinking the same thing,” Julius admitted with a grin. “But you think that [Kinetic Force Adept] would be a good skill as well?”

“Oh, definitely. I had a similar skill when I was around your tier. It is similar to [Kinetic Energy Mastery], but it specializes a little more in direct combat. Think of [Kinetic Energy Mastery] as like [Fire Magic Mastery], whereas [Kinetic Force Adept] would be more similar to something like [Fire Blast Adept]. The latter focuses a little more on the explosive effect of the skill, rather than helping equally in all fire magic. So, for someone like you who likes to use powerful blasts of kinetic energy, it would go quite well. Not to mention you already have a Force Concept that would synergize well with it,” Cain explained further.

Julius was immediately interested in what Cain had to say. He had almost written [Kinetic Force Adept] completely off because it had adept in its name. But truthfully, it sounded like it was a better fit for his combat style. He wasn’t like some of the other students who used kinetic energy in more delicate ways.

His kinetic energy was used much like his overall fighting style—brute force.

If others used their kinetic energy like a Swiss army knife, then Julius was proud to say that he used his like a sledgehammer. Sure, he could still mimic some of the more delicate and finer workings of kinetic energy, but that wasn’t where his true talents lay.

He still didn’t know which skill he was going to choose, but luckily, he had plenty of time. His soul was still recovering, and with Freya’s help, it was going much more smoothly than his previous experiences. With help from her extensive knowledge and advanced techniques, he had learned that there were still minor fractures and scars woven throughout his soul that had never been appropriately healed, primarily because of his lack of experience with healing souls, but also because his skill wasn’t powerful enough to heal everything back to perfect health.

She told him that he shouldn’t worry too much about it, though. In the long run, it wouldn’t matter too much, and once he had evolved his healing skill to legendary rank, it would likely have fixed the issue for him and would have had minimal impact on his next soul evolution. Still, it was nice of her to take the time to make sure his soul was cleaned up. It truly felt like she cared about his well-being.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Something that he appreciated more than she could know.

***

A week went by very quickly. He mostly spent that time healing and relaxing when he wasn’t testing out his new void skill. He took this time to experience some of the more leisurely activities around Auraulos and found some fantastic spots.

One of his favorite discoveries was a hydrothermal spa that Freya introduced him to. At first glance, the place looked very plain and simple. But upon entering, he changed his mind swiftly. It was absolutely breathtaking. The hydrathermal was built on the side of the mountain, surrounded by snowy peaks and pools of sparkling, clear water, which created dozens of stunning waterfalls that all funneled into this little paradise.

A large number of enchantments were arranged around the property as well, which only elevated the atmosphere. The water was charged with numerous types of mana, which all sang in harmony as they seeped into your skin. It actually helped him meditate better than he had ever achieved before. Julius found it somewhat ironic that the bathhouse was owned by the same people who managed the one Doren destroyed in the past.

Julius brought that up a single time to the people running the spa, but quickly realized that it was a bad decision. He didn’t mention it for the rest of his time there. It would appear that Cain wasn’t the only person who held a grudge against Doren.