It’s been three days since I started my trial. Three days without any sleep, I only stopped to eat and drink. During this time I discovered something interesting, when I inject magic into the dagger’s blade it actually muffles the impact sounds. Then again, the quantity of magic I have to inject is nothing to joke about. At the start of the second day I took off my bracelet, however it didn’t help as much as I thought. It looks like I only got a small boost in speed but that’s about it. At peak strength I can use Blade Empowerment for half an hour. I am constantly improving and I’m close to achieving my goal.

During this time Maria only came to tell me to stop. And when she’s not here Jaden is. Oh, speaking of Jaden here he comes again. I don’t understand why he is so worried about me, it’s not like I’m doing something dangerous. I passed out two times but that was at the beginning when I forgot to keep track of my magic. If he insists of coming here he could at least bring me something to eat.

“Alex, it’s been three days already, you need to stop.”

Once in my life I want to be alone when I do something and only then everyone comes to bother me. I don’t know if Jaden understands that a few days without sleep are nothing to worry about or maybe he doesn’t want to. It’s rare for me to do something like this. I’m the type of man that intends to finish what I started that’s why I only do things I’m confident I can do.

“I’m going to stop when I’m done. Look, I’m almost there and I don’t need you distracting me. Please just leave me alone.”

“But-“

“Just one more day, ok?”

“Fine, if that’s what you want.”

Jaden pouted and left. I know that he was worried about me but I told him repeatedly that I’m fine. Well, it looks like he finally understood that I don’t need his help.

For the past days I’ve been hitting the Wall and I still can’t do it. During the entrance ceremony I punched a hole in this shit using almost all my magic. Right now my magic pool is almost two times bigger and yet I’m still unable to put two scratches on this Wall. Is the Wall weak to blunt attacks or I’m incapable of bringing out the same power I did back then.

OK, let’s think for a second. During the entrance ceremony I used body enchantment and punched a hole in the Wall. Maria kept telling me that I lack power not speed. At first I thought that she was wrong. I tried focusing on speed but it was futile. Somehow I need to use more power. Now I realised something! When I punched the Wall my eyes showed me how much power I need to use to break it and I used the exact amount, and there is the problem, somehow I need to find out exactly how much magic I have stored in the dagger’s blade. I sat down and looked at the sky. A blue sun is really strange, especially when there are no clouds.

“Are you taking a break?”

It looks like people just can’t get enough of me. Shortly after Jaden left Maria came. Like Jaden she was here trying to tell me to stop. Some days Maria is so busy that I spend all day helping her and some days.

“Yeah, I’ve literally hit the wall too many times; I can’t seem to make it work and I still have no idea why.”

Maria looked at me then at the sky. It looked like she was thinking about something.

“What are you thinking about?”

Maria sat down next to me, still looking at the sky. After a few seconds she leaned on me and put her head on my shoulder.

“Now you won’t be able to move.”

“Wait what?”

Please tell me that she’s joking. Is this one of the situations where I’m supposed to stay just because she’s leaning on me? It’s a good thing that I look older than I am or else this would look really strange. It looked strange enough as it is but if I had a body that matches my age it would be downright bizarre. OK, let’s see where this is going.

“You know, maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.” said Maria.

“What are you talking about?”

“I gave you an impossible task. When I saw you performing so well I thought that giving you such a task will help you but as a teacher I shouldn’t have given a task I can’t complete.”

I can see where she’s coming from…I can’t think of anything to say to reassure her. She may be right when she said that she can’t complete it however I’m positive that I can, just a little more time.

“It’s not impossible, not for me. I’m close, I feel it…I need to control my magic better but that’s easier said than done. “

After I said what I had to say an awkward silence remained present for a while. Maria kept avoiding my gaze; it looked like she didn’t want to look me in the eyes.

“This may sound stupid, but you could try meditating.”

Meditating…Too bad I’ve already tried it and it’s not working.

“I’m not sure that meditating will do me any good.”

“When you meditate you usually pay attention to yourself. When I was an assassin I learnt that meditating with a weapon equipped helps you understand it better, and that’s the reason I was one of the best information gatherer.”

“Basically you had no luck with the meditation?”

“It’s better to say that my combat abilities were subpar, instead I excelled at information gathering and tracking. I saw other assassins meditating for hours before a mission just to get an edge and it always worked. You know, I am patient person unless we are talking about mediation, I can’t find the patience or discipline to do it.”

I don’t understand what this has to do with me. If there is a type of meditation that can help me I will try it. There are things that help and things that don’t but it’s not like I have anything better to do. Even if it turns out that the meditation is useless at least I know I tried.

“But then again, you spent three days here hitting a wall, maybe you will pull it off.”

She suddenly changed her tone; from a serious one to a sarcastic one. Well, I’m curious myself; if this actually works then I will be excused from hitting a wall.

“Since you don’t look like you have any intention of moving I will try that meditation.”

Without waiting for her answer I started using the most basic meditation technique I learnt from Maria. Instead of sleeping I use an advanced form I developed that put me in a semi-conscious state, it mimicked sleeping to a degree and I could use it anytime. Now I have to relax, take a few short breathes then a few deep ones. Concentrate on both me and the dagger.

Welcome to the abyss I guess. This place is as dark as I remember. Let’s see…Strangely enough my dagger was still in my hand and it looked pretty normal, normal and a little transparent. Both Black Blood and Blade Empowerment are still active in the real world so why isn’t the dagger’s blade black?

With the exception of my dagger everything seemed fine, or not. In the lake I noticed that it was swirling. It wasn’t swirling fast; it was rather slow and gentle. What is the reason behind that swirl?

I walked on the water surface until I reached the source of the swirl. I didn’t have any difficulty walking, good, it means I’m improving. The swirl is small and it doesn’t affect the rest of the lake. It doesn’t seem to affect my magic, what can it be?”

I went and took a closer look. To my surprises and disbelief the source of the swirl was actually the dagger I was holding in my hand. The dagger was standing vertically in the middle of the lake. Somehow the dagger created a zone where my magic couldn’t go and that resulted in the swirl.

I’m trying to figure out why there are two daggers. The one in my hand is a little transparent while the other one looks like the real thing however the real thing is it the real world… So what would happen if I were to pick the dagger in the up? I got close to the centre of the swirl and extended my arm trying to take the dagger. Fortunately the dagger was relatively close to the surface making it easier for me to pick up. The moment I touched the dagger it disappeared and the dagger in my hand lost its transparency. Two daggers fused together for no reason.

I gave Blade Empowerment another try. This time the magic just coated the blade instead of going inside it. I guess that trying it with one had is still too difficult to me. Second try; I used both hands carefully guiding the magic into the blade. Aaaaaand done! Finally the blade’s color changed…That’s strange, instead of looking full of magic, the dagger’s blade became metallic black. This color makes it look like a weapon instead of that dark color. That color was so intense you could barely see the blade at night, at least now I can see my own dagger.

Now that the job’s done here I have to return to the real world and test it out. Upon exiting my meditative state I noticed that it was already evening. I guess I really spent some time there.

“Are you done?”

Maria, still leaning on me, asked me with a curious face. She was more curious about the dagger. The blade kept its metallic color and I can feel the magic inside it. This time for sure…I will do it!

“Maria, get off me please.”

“Okay.”

After Maria moved I got up, took a stance and slashed the Wall two times. Both hits left a mark. In a moment the scratches disappeared but a single moment was enough for me to acknowledge that I succeeded. Things really are going smoothly, maybe too smoothly.

I wanted to boast to Maria before my pessimism gets the best of me. When I turned around I saw her staring at the wall, more exactly she was studying the spots where scratches were.

“See, It was……easy?”

In the middle of my sentence the dagger’s blade broke into little pieces. This is the second time I broke a dagger. I wish that the blade would have broken sooner; at least I wouldn’t have sounded like a retard.

After three days of almost non-stop usage plus this new form of empowerment the dagger literally reached its breaking point. I guess that my magic is too much to handle. Oh well, I think that I will use my fists more than any other weapon.

Maria chuckled. She looked at the dagger then at me and said with a smile: “Good job! It looks like the meditation helped.”

“So, do you have another one?” I asked Maria while showing her the dagger.

“Yeah, I will bring it later. Since we are here do you want to learn a new spell?”

I was surprised by her offer. I don’t mind learning something new. [Polymath] seems to work so I might as well take advantage of it.

“Since luck seems to be on my side I will take the bait.”

“Remember one year ago when I gave you the schedule?”

“Yes, I tried to scare you but it didn’t work.”

“When I distributed the schedules I used a spell I call [Sonar].”

“So basically you knew I was there.”

“Exactly. By creating magic waves I can detect other people and monsters. It’s an advanced spell, one used only by the skilled assassins.”

“That sounds nice. With that active nothing could ambush you. Think about the possibilities.”

“It’s not that simple. The spell isn’t really safe; a mage can feel the magic coming towards him, it won’t give you away but he will know that you are here. It’s useful; just don’t use it against another dark magic user.”

“Okay, I got it. So tell me how to use it.”

“A part of it you learnt when I taught you Shadow Step.”

“And the other part?”

Magic gathered at Maria’s feet and then something that I could only call a wave formed and was projected in a five meter diameter. When the wave reached me my body started to stiffen a little, like that sensation I have before sneezing. So that’s what she meant when she said that other dark magic users will recognize the spell.

That was cool. Every magician can create a fireball but I’m sure that not many of them can do this. If magic can pass through another person’s body then I can use this spell to make people nauseous or even worse.

“That felt…strange.”

“A dark mage will recognize the effect so you need to be careful with it.”

“So how does one feel the waves, how do I interpret that information?”

“When a person is in your range you will be able to see their silhouettes. It’s one of the things that can’t be explained by words. I know how it sounds but there isn’t any other way, you have to experience this for yourself.”

After reactivating Black Blood I tried gathering magic on my foot then releasing it. I tried to copy Maria but it didn’t go as planned. The magic I released just dispersed without doing anything.

“It looks like it didn’t work.”

No shit Sherlock. Everything went well up to a point and then the magic simply dispersed. It wasn’t exactly my fault, something just went wrong.

“Do you have something you can use as a magic catalyst?”

How am I supposed to have a magic catalyst…A magic catalyst is something that empowers a magic attack or a spell. A catalyst can be anything as long as it’s enchanted. Hmmm………What if I use the watch? With the enchantments done by Ellen I think it’s worth a shot.

“What are you going to do with that?”

When I took out the watch Maria asked me with curious eyes. I didn’t tell her anything about the enchantment Ellen made or the true origin of the clock.

“You said I could use a catalyst and there it is.”

“Give it a try.”

I opened the case, looked at the face and concentrated my magic in the middle of it. Instead of transmitting a wave why don’t I try creating a pulse? After enough magic gathered I sent it out. I kept sending out pulses.

I don’t know what happened but suddenly the world around me became black and white. It feels trippy. In this entire black and white filter I saw Maria’s magic channels. A series of channels and a core right in the middle of the body, so that’s how it should look like, nice. I can see a human’s magic channels in a reddish colour.

Maria put a hand on my shoulder and started shaking me. I closed the watch’s case and stopped the magic pulses. After a few moments the world returned to normal.

“Alex, are you all right?”

“Yeah, I was just a little surprised by what I saw.”

Maria's name for this spell was [Sonar] but I'm going to give it a new one: [Vision].