Chapter 111: A Thicker Foundation

The military compound of the Kingdom of Olmost was much larger than Zishan expected.

He had seen military stations, reserve lines, temporary camps and defensive formations throughout his time on the battlefield, but the compound inside the capital felt completely different. This place had been built for soldiers who were not expecting an enemy army to appear over the horizon at any moment. Of course, it wasn’t guaranteed that they wouldn’t be attacked. If one day the capital would be breached, one of the places who had to bear most of the brunt would be military grounds.

Training fields stretched across several sections of the compound, divided according to what the soldiers were doing. Some practiced with swords and polearms while others exchanged Magic from opposite ends of reinforced grounds protected by barriers. Several instructors moved between the groups, occasionally stopping someone to correct a stance or demonstrate a technique.

Zishan walked beside Elinox with Ollie following near him.

Silvy had claimed the top of his head.

Her tiny claws held carefully onto his hair while her wings remained folded against her back, her silver-gray eyes constantly moving from one place to another. Every time someone released a burst of Mana nearby, her head turned toward it as though she wanted to know what had caused the disturbance.

Zishan had already warned her twice not to pull his hair, but she had also ignored him twice.

"This place is huge," he said while looking toward another section of the compound.

"It needs to be." Elinox gestured toward a long building bordering one of the training fields. "Those rooms are used for meditation. Soldiers can reserve one depending on their rank and contribution, though there is a limit to how long they can remain inside."

Zishan glanced at the building. "What’s special about them?"

"The Mana inside is denser than outside, and the rooms isolate most disturbances. They’re useful when someone needs to stabilize their Mana, prepare for an Ascent, or simply meditate without being interrupted."

There were several other buildings beyond it, though one stood apart from the others with guards stationed near its entrance.

Elinox noticed where he was looking. "Those are comprehension chambers."

"Comprehension?"

"They assist with Skills."

Zishan’s interest was piqued.

"The formations inside can help someone focus on a Skill they’ve already learned," Elinox explained as they continued walking. "They won’t suddenly teach you something you don’t understand, but they can make it easier to comprehend certain aspects of a Skill. The effectiveness depends on the Skill, the person, and the chamber being used."

’Oh?’

That sounded useful.

Zishan had Perfected Glimpse, so he was not exactly desperate for help understanding most things the System handed him, but the idea was interesting enough that he wanted to see how those chambers worked later.

Ollie was looking around with less excitement than Silvy. He had already visited sections of the military compound during his time as a runner, though the boy admitted he could not remember where half the buildings led.

They passed another open field where several soldiers were circulating Mana while an instructor walked among them. This reminded Zishan of something he had been thinking about since speaking with the System.

"How did you undergo your First Ascent?" he asked Elinox. "I mean, was it difficult for you?"

Several soldiers nearby turned their heads when they heard her voice answering him.

More than a few had already been watching them.

Zishan noticed it after the third group they passed.

Some were looking because a High General had entered the training grounds. Others were clearly looking for another reason entirely.

Elinox was difficult to ignore. Her long silver-blue hair moved behind her as she walked, and even dressed in her military attire, she looked far too refined compared to everyone sweating across the training fields.

One soldier carrying a training polearm had been staring long enough that the man beside him had to elbow his ribs.

Elinox’s lavender eyes shifted toward them.

The soldier turned away so fast that Zishan nearly laughed.

’These soldiers are simps!’ He looked at Elinox from the side. ’Although Elinox is beautiful... well... she is indeed beautiful...’

His eyes remained on her for another second. ’Devastatingly beautiful...’

Zishan blinked. ’Wait, what am I thinking? Anyway, back to the topic.’

He cleared his throat as though doing so could also clear his thoughts.

Elinox did not seem to notice.

"My First Ascent wasn’t difficult in the way you’re probably imagining," she said. "The Imprint itself formed without much trouble."

Zishan raised an eyebrow. "Even with your foundation?"

"Because of my foundation."

That confused him.

Elinox glanced toward him before explaining, "A thicker foundation gives you more to gather and more to imprint. That can make the process heavier compared to someone whose growth has been ordinary."

"So being stronger before ascending can make the Ascent harder?"

"In some cases."

Zishan fell quiet for a moment as he thought about his own Stats, multiple Mana Affinities, Physique and the pile of Skills he had accumulated so far, which made his expression turn slightly strange.

Elinox continued walking as she spoke. "However, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If your foundation can withstand the process and the Imprint forms properly, the Tempering stage gives you much more in return."

"So more difficulty means a better result?"

"Not automatically," Elinox said. "Someone can have a thick foundation and still form a poor Imprint if their control is terrible. What matters is whether everything they’ve accumulated can be gathered properly."

That made more sense. Zishan remembered the System’s explanation about gathering everything he had accumulated, forming it into an Imprint, tempering himself with it, and then completing the Ascent.

"So yours was easy?"

"For me, yes."

Of course, it was. Zishan had somehow expected that answer.

Elinox tucked a loose strand of icy-blue hair behind one ear. "My foundation was already much thicker than most people at Level 99, so my First Ascent required more Mana than what would normally be expected. Once the Imprint formed, though, the Tempering stage went very smoothly."

"And then, you soared."

Elinox looked at him.

Zishan shrugged. "That’s basically what happened, right? You’re eighteen and already a High General."

A few soldiers within hearing distance suddenly became very interested in their own training.

Elinox’s lips curved slightly. "Something like that."

Silvy leaned forward from the top of Zishan’s head and stared at Elinox upside down. "Mama."

Elinox smiled at her. "Yes?"

Silvy made a satisfied sound before returning to her observation of the compound.

Zishan reached up and adjusted her position so she would stop sliding down his forehead. "Don’t fall, baby."

Silvy grabbed more of his hair.

"Ow. Not like that."

Ollie laughed beside him.

Before Zishan could complain further, a loud voice came from the training grounds ahead. "High General Holmes!"

Several people turned.

A group of officers occupied one of the reinforced sparring fields. Zishan recognized the insignia of higher-ranking soldiers even if he did not personally know any of them.

The man who had called out approached with several others.

His presence felt far heavier than the soldiers training nearby, and based on the way the others gave him space, Zishan guessed the man held a rank somewhere close to Commander Holtz—also because he bore the same insignia of a Commander.

"High General Holmes, we want to spar with you!"

Zishan glanced at him. ’Straight to the point, huh?’

The officer stopped several meters away and saluted Elinox properly before continuing. "We’ve been training against each other for weeks, but we’ve already become too familiar with our own habits. We want someone who can expose every mistake we’re making."

One of the officers behind him gave a dry laugh. "He means we need someone to beat the arrogance out of us."

"That too."

Zishan almost smiled. At least, they were self-aware.

The Commander continued, "The Sumwear Ascendant Convergence will be held in a few months. Olmost will be sending representatives again, and several of us are being considered."

Zishan had never heard of it.

The name alone sounded important enough that he made a mental note to ask about it later.

"We would appreciate your guidance, High General," the Commander said. "Even one session."

Elinox looked toward the sparring grounds, then toward the officers waiting for her answer.

Several of them already looked far too eager for people who had just openly requested to be beaten by someone younger than most of them.

She turned toward Zishan. "Do you mind if I do?"

Zishan shrugged. "I don’t. Just do your thing."

The officers looked at him.

Zishan looked back, speechless. ’Why are you looking at me? She asked, so I answered.’

Elinox turned toward the reinforced sparring field while Silvy remained perched on Zishan’s head, watching the group of high-Level officers with obvious curiosity. Ollie moved a little closer to Zishan as Elinox walked away from them.

The Commander grinned. "Thank you, High General."

Elinox stepped across the boundary of the sparring ground and waved her arm. "All of you may come at once."

The grin disappeared.

Zishan covered his mouth. ’Good luck, brothers.’

Several sections away from the training grounds, within another part of Olmost’s military administration, Crown Marshal Ernest Holmes was dealing with something far less entertaining.

A stack of documents occupied the table in front of him. He had started the investigation because of House Walker. At least, that was what he told himself.

The Walker Family had formally declared Zishan dead on the same day the young man had been deployed to the Eastern Battlefield. That alone warranted attention, especially with the strange way House Walker seemed determined to erase one of its own adopted sons.

Yet Ernest would have been lying if he claimed professional suspicion was his only reason.

Zishan Walker had somehow captured Noxi’s attention.

Ernest knew his niece.

He had watched that girl grow from an infant who could barely crawl into a young woman capable of terrifying entire military formations with one look. He knew how she treated men who tried approaching her, how little patience she had for proposals and how rarely she showed genuine interest in someone outside her family.

Zishan was different, and Ernest could feel it.

’Noxi is definitely interested in that kid!’

’No doubt.’

He leaned back in his chair and crossed his enormous arms. "Suspicious."