* * *
Joe woke and instantly sent a monster sense radiating out once again before relaxing with the clear return. His awakening wasn’t quite as restful but less startling. A cold emptiness at his side had him waking with a bit more concern than he was used to, then remembered that he’d asked Kilniara to not come in anymore. He was grateful that she’d listened, but at the same time sighed with the loss, remembering how it felt to have her pressed up against his side. He grimaced before softly laying back down and beginning his magical exercises. He practiced his mana point manipulation and expression diligently but was a bit more careful with his personal expression. As he began expressing it cautiously, he found himself comfortable without any pain. He increased his personal expression carefully right until pain began edging itself into his awareness. With that pain, he backed off and eased his mana expression to slow and steady. He alternated between mana point and personal work until he drifted back asleep late in the night.
Several hours later, Joe woke again, the light of the morning coming through the giant windows and he found himself alone. Waking alone proved quite disappointing, more than he ever realized. He almost decided to reconsider allowing Kilniara back, then snorted in anger at himself. He firmed his resolve, gritting his teeth and disciplining his longing before returning to his various magical practice. While his personal mana emission practice didn’t seem to be very useful beyond causing his emissions to be easier, it didn’t make the mana streams any different: more powerful, more constrained, or more… anything. If there was any difference, if felt slightly more controlled… or more controllable? Something?
The mana point manipulations, however, were much easier to notice progress on. They were thicker, quicker to respond, able to hold more mana, absorb it faster, and emit it quicker and in better control. For whatever reason, he was gaining greater and better control through his points than he was through his own personal emissions. Despite that, he made sure to continue working on his own personal emission as well, especially considering that he’d already experienced the magical version of overworked muscles. He had no clue if it worked like magical muscles, tearing with exercise and repairing stronger than before, but virtually everything else in his body worked that way, to a lesser or greater extent. He could only be certain if he tried. He’d taken to writing down the details of his exercise every day, making sure to do a simple yet repeatable test and kept track of time, volume, speed, and anything else he could think of. He kept a record of each of these aspects with meticulous, if quick, detail.
For volume, he simply took a full mana point and placed it against the page before emptying it all at once as rapidly as possible. It emptied rather quickly, in less than a second, and he would draw the perimeter of the mana expelled. Speed was also rather easy, again laying a mana point on a page and sending a stream of mana across the page for a couple seconds and marking how far the mana stream made it in that time.
While he didn’t have a watch, nor any way to reliably recreate an Earth second, he did have one point that he set to orbiting around his right wrist without stop going at one orbit per second, as best as he was able to guess. Once he had the orbit time set, he also attempted to set that point to continuously orbit without stop or change. At least, that’s the command he’d thought at it, and could only hope that it was continuing to do so. He did make sure to also never touch it, leaving it where it was. He’d timed the point to pass over one of his more prominent freckles on his wrist at exactly one second every time. It wasn’t the best time keeping method, and he had no way to prove that it was consistent, but he could only hope it was. He’d also set another mana point to do the exact same thing in parallel immediately beside this main ‘time’ mana point, but included the various exercises he was doing with the point and only that point, to make sure that the exercises wouldn’t actually effect the speed of the orbit. So far, he hadn’t noticed any change, both faithfully orbiting identically.
His mana point speed was an easy if more time consuming test. He made a maze once per week and attempted to run the mana point through the maze as fast as possible without touching the sides, using his time mana point to keep track of how well he was doing. He had to make sure that every new maze each week didn’t change too much, and had set up a specific set of rules that the mazes, while different in the directions they took, were identical in the number of direction changes and distance to escape the maze. So far, he hadn’t found designing a new maze too difficult, but it was starting to get frustrating thinking of a new maze every week. Despite that, he was already seeing a noticeable speed difference in the points. Even stranger, he saw that the speed and control gains of his mana points were individualized. The points that were used to practice movement and speed could go through the maze faster and with better control. The points that he did not practice using for speed or fine control proved awkward, slow, and crashed into the walls of the maze regularly.
It felt strange to him to see such differentiation, but it did make him realize he was going to have to begin practicing all the various exercises on all the points, including his one second point. That was the whole reason why he’d ended up adding another orbiting point to see if he could add it to the exercises while still keeping its function as a useful one second timer.
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For point size, strength, and other measurements, it was easy to now take slightly useful measurements by utilizing his timer. He finished off his exercises and tests for the morning and rose to wash himself. He took time to bathe this morning, relaxing in the warm bath and just happy to have a bath in the house with them. He spent his time in the bath alone, lingering and practiced his skills here, finding the warm water and quiet an enjoyable place to practice his skills. He ended up swapping his skills back to his daily usual when he arose with satisfaction at working out his skills and headed out to breakfast.
Surprisingly, Joe found himself first to breakfast and the staff came in to set up breakfast around a chair for him. Joe remained a bit lost watching the multiple busy staff setting up just his portion of the table. The room clattered with noise of the half a dozen staff rapidly putting dishes, bowls, cups, and silverware down on the table. Then, as suddenly as it began, the room was silent and empty once again, only the food and its scent proof of the work only just completed.
The rapidity of the change was so surprising that Joe found himself lost in the moment before he shook himself free and sat down at the table. The absurdity of the moment kind of had him discombobulated and he was at a loss of what to really do. The food was too fancy for eating alone, the silence of the room too deep, and the setting too stiff. Man… just want a simple meal, simple room, some jazz in the background, maybe rock if I’m in the mood.
Despite that, the smell of the food and his hunger drove him to eat and he dove into the meal, enjoying it immensely. After eating quickly for a few moments, picking at what he enjoyed, he slowed down and took his time, snacking lightly while he waited for the others to wake and join him.
Toulnaria, the Matriarch, arrived first, coming in from the entrance. The two enjoyed the meal, her place set as quickly and efficiently as Joe’s had been. She ate slowly and engaged him in a lengthy conversation as the others took much longer to wake. Just when Joe grew concerned with how long the others were taking, Gwenvair came out with a yawn followed by Kilniara, both a bit exhausted. Gwenvair stumbled into her seat without concern for the staff that were rapidly setting up her meal around her, but Kilniara seemed to stop in surprise, staring at the staff preparing her setting in a manner similar to Joe’s own surprise. Her shock was short lived as she quickly sat and dug in, utterly hungry.
They all dug in quietly, too hungry to talk. By the time the girls were ready to join the conversation, the boys stumbled in, obviously hung over, and Joe felt his heart spike, alarmed. He’s… not even fifteen, yet! What’s… Joe took a deep breath and calmed himself. Different place, different culture, different people… Joe forced a smile as he looked at the boys.
“Hung over?”
Zilnek actually growled at Joe but said nothing. Garnedell just groaned and ignored him as he slumped into the table to eat, shoveling his food in his mouth. The boys ignored Joe but Joe and everyone else chuckled, laughing at the boys, although they kept their laughter quiet out of consideration for the boys pounding headaches.
Joe kept the conversation quiet while speaking and soon the boys were comfortable enough to join in the conversation as well, if still shaky and slow. Breakfast continued with enjoyable light conversation throughout and they were soon back out wandering the streets. After a bit, Joe realized that there really wasn’t much different. Second verse, same as the first… or… second day. Joe kept his opinions to himself and tried to enjoy the day which, surprisingly, he ended up doing. Guess my dopamine levels have reset. No TV, video games, or internet… guess I’m starting to find the simple entertaining again.
They wandered the city, arrived at the large square where the epics were being performed again then enjoyed the snacks around the city until they ate lunch in the outer city once again. The festival, while mundane, still proved able to occupy him and he enjoyed himself well enough, staying out later that day to enjoy the company of the two girls. He was getting pretty frustrated with Gwenvair and while he was trying to be understanding of her desire to be with them, he was getting pretty frustrated with her always hanging out with them, interrupting any chance of a private moment with Kilniara. That evening, Joe sought out Kilniara away from Gwenvair.
“Kilniara?” Joe whispered.
“Hmm?”
“Could we… tomorrow… could we go to the festival without Gwenvair?”
Kilniara froze, staring at Joe with horror and Joe watched that horror growing on her face and felt himself freeze, worry spiking into fear. What did I do!? What… how was … how’d I screw up? Wait…crap! She’s speaking.
“…o not want her? She is not… I thought you liked her?”
Joe quickly back pedaled, rather worried, “I… ah… no, of course not. I do like her. She’s a wonderful young lady.”
Kilniara’s horror faded away slowly, but was replaced by confusion, “But then why would you wish to be alone?”
Joe saw this as an opportunity and clawed for it like a drowning man, hoping to save the situation, “Ah… well, if we want to grow as a couple, we must get to know one another as well. We cannot always only be in a group.”
Kilniara stared at him for a moment but then began to grin. Joe felt relief flush through him with her smile, “Oh. Yeah. I can… see the truth in that. Spending time alone with each other … that would be. You are very wise, Joe! That is an excellent idea!”
Joe smiled, relieved as he nodded while hiding his confusion, “It seemed like a good idea.”
Kilniara smiled, “Then, tomorrow?”
Joe nodded, “Tomorrow.”
Kilniara turned away and skipped to her room, Joe finally feeling his tension release with her leaving happily. He fled to his room to escape any other possible screw ups and soon found himself in bed ready for the night. He did practice his mana, mana point, and skills as well, able to spend quite a bit more time practicing as his exhaustion had retreated and he was feeling much better, having rested a good day or two from the week on the wall. That, and the bed felt wonderful.
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<Chapter 87 Continued>