His vitality surged with resolve. There was no need to have such thoughts when he could enjoy the efforts of his training. The price had been paid and that bastard stray was dead, dead, and dead. Even if he met another one, he wouldn't be helpless. As long as he followed the path Marcei laid, he'd become strong enough to power through it all. He refused to be weak…not again.
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|DxD|- Chapter 25- Live
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Adam and Eve were the first humans the All-Father created, but not the last. He created more humans and spread them across the world, leaving Adam as the one to preside over them. Humanity saw Adam as their leader, and so the First Language was named Adamic in his honour.
The First Era began with Adam and ended with the Great Flood. It was unknown how many years it lasted. It could've been thousands, hundreds of thousands, perhaps even millions of years. Only those who survived the Great Flood knew.
The current era was just over four thousand years. Only the descendants of Ariya still spoke Adamic. It was the language of intent, said to be used by the All-Father to speak the world into existence.
"The last person who could speak matter into existence was our forefather, Adam. While we as descendants do not possess the ability, we can inscribe matter into existence by manipulating reality. This is how Ariyan Inscription Magic came to be known, and it shall be what I will teach you."
Half an hour had passed since Igor returned to the cabin. He sat on the wooden steps with a jug of water and a half-eaten nutrient bar on his thigh. He read a book on inscription magic while Tallus's mana of insight hovered next to him.
"Adamic has no formal text of language to study from. It is an innate gift and a blessing from the All-Father. Our writings would appear no different from garbled scribbles to others. Our conversations radiate as nonsensical garbage to ears unblessed by the Lord."
Igor casually read the book amidst his grandfather's explanations. His people could not only speak Adamic, but also understand, speak, and write all existing languages intuitively. It made him remember how Shuri asked him about English. Thinking about it now, English was probably a language, not a person like he thought.
"It is not clear how our ancestors of the First Era could inscribe, for mana was not conventional during those times. The Babel Tower was an attempt to research such a method. However, no significant progress could be made before the All-Father scrambled their progress. Without Adamic, their writings held no meaning to them."
Igor had accepted he wouldn't be able to inscribe. This book was more for passing the time than anything. As amazing as Inscription Magic was, he wouldn't give up his vitality for mana, not anymore. Maybe once he got older, he'd find a wife and their children could learn inscription magic.
"Yuck…"
He scrunched up when he thought of all the girls he saw. They were loud and weird, especially those his age. He didn't want to live with one, never mind marry them. And they pee weird.
"To begin inscription, it is important to have fine mana control. The energies of the world must be carefully guided in order to gain the best possible outcome."
Vitality was useless here. It was largely an internal energy and when released outward, could only manifest as a dense, burning mass of energy. It couldn't shift into any element and lacked the versatility of mana. At least it was very strong. Igor had that as comfort and it was his confidence against other races.
"Don't get arrogant, Igor. Teacher Marcei warned you."
He took a swig of water and put the jug on the steps. Igor continued to read the book, quietly understanding and memorising some of what was shown in the book. His view changed to an ancestor's perspective who was making the inscription for a simple candle.
The principles weren't too hard to grasp. A simple inscription on the wax drew elements from the air in ratios that would keep the candle burning and the wax self-repairing.
Igor closed the book and the perspective shift ended. As interesting as everything was, this book was ultimately useless for him. After finishing the water and the nutrient bar, he got up and went back into the cabin. He soon returned to the library and put the book in its original place. There were a series of them named 'Inscription II', 'Inscription III', and so on. Any other person would probably see gibberish instead of text. He still didn't know how that worked. Were the texts just lines of energy? Something to think about in his free time.
Igor made his way to Marcei's stack of books. Amongst the stack was Marcei's diary covering his observations on vital energy. He took it along with a leather-bound training manual. While strong, he didn't have much grasp nor knowledge over the different ways to manipulate vitality. It was only after strengthening his body to its limits that he was willing to begin today.
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|DxD|
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Mana was free as air and malleable like water. It could bend, shift, and contort to anything within the user's understanding. Its versatility saw widespread use in the supernatural world.
In comparison, vital energy was no different from rock. It was stubborn and unyielding. In thousands of years, it saw little application outside combat.
"Vitality is a weaponization of one's lifeforce. Life energy that is wasted into the air becomes contained within the body."
Igor sat on the roof of the cabin. His legs dangled over the porch steps. He read the training manual with great scrutiny while Marcei's insight continued to narrate next to him.
"I have always seen vitality as a never-ending circle of enrichment, a wonder of nature like the cycle of rain. In the Second Era, you are the first descendant to have awakened vitality so young. It's simply unprecedented."
Perhaps it was circumstance, but Igor knew it was purely luck. He'd spoken with Baraquiel and while there were some guesses, it ultimately can only be attributed to luck…and his mother.
"To understand how unique you are, I shall explain how the process of awakening is normally conducted."
Vitality and mana could never coexist in one body. It was asking fire to live in harmony with wood. Vitality is an extremely dense energy and burns away energies less dense than it.
"This does not give you immunity, Igor. A torch may burn away droplets, but a bucket will put an end to it."
Awakening vitality was no different from triggering an avalanche. A simple trigger would unleash a cycle that could not be stopped and would not end until death. Whether one wielded mana or a different type of magic, vitality would burn it all away in one swell purge.
"Awakening vitality was always seen as a process of great turmoil. Few were willing to endure the pain, and as the need for combat faded, so too did the need for vitality practitioners. Before I lived my first century, the last user of vitality passed and no one took on the mantle for the next four hundred years."
Igor both read and listened with rapt attention. The manual described vitality in great detail and Marcei's insight spoke depending on the page he was on. There were stories of great vitality users and how they evolved the energy.
But as the minutes turned into hours, Igor began to see something crucial when paging across the different books.
"Why is there so little on vitality?"
He understood partially. Vitality was very limited and as a combat-oriented energy, the peace of the past millennia offered little opportunity and incentive for innovation. But, compared to how vast techniques on mana were, all the books on vitality would barely stack to his waist, and most of those were just techniques.
He sighed.
"Don't complain, Igor. Take what you can get."
By this point, he was reading another book. It was deliberate on his part to skip over the techniques and other teachings shown. He wanted to have a clearer theoretical understanding of vitality before jumping into techniques.
It didn't take too long for Igor to read through his current book and the others. By then, he guessed he'd been awake for a full day and maybe some hours. Beyond being a little hungry, there was no fatigue.
After so many hours of reading, a small stack of books was next to him. He had his elbow on them with his fist supporting his cheek. He gazed at the endless grey and white with silent contemplation.
There wasn't much history on vitality, but he grasped one main point after reading through multiple manuals. Training was fine, but if he truly wanted the best improvement, he would have to go through battle—a life or death battle.
Igor found his confidence wavering. Could he do so? That stray devil was his first fight and he almost died. He was stronger now, but only against that stray. For a death battle? It meant a fight where the opponent was equal…or above him.
"..."
His right arm trembled and he forcefully grabbed it with his left hand. His eyes were dark, his teeth clenched in unwillingness. He barely made it out the first time. Did he have to go back in?
'If you survive, live well. Live silent.'
Marcei's words echoed. Perhaps he was right. Living well and silent was enough. As long as his head remained low, he could carve out a nice quiet life. He'd continue to grow stronger and live out his long lifespan. As long as he trained regularly and learned a few techniques, he could live in Kuoh with his new fami—
"No! No, no, no, no, NO!"
Igor shook his head while gripping it. His hair flung around like loose chains. His eyes caught sight of the ashes in the hourglass. He was once held down by the shoulder while that monster…
"I'm not going to be helpless! Not again!"
Vital energy blazed to life around him as he tore those grim thoughts from his mind. His father was a man who embodied his namesake, a man who was full of valour and bravery. His mother had a strong will and resolve. They both sacrificed their lives so he could live—and that is exactly what he would do. He would not just survive, but live.
"You hear that? You hear that you monster?"
The roof groaned under Igor's weight as he stood up. He glared at the ashes in the hourglass, his eyes glowing gold with manic determination. If he could survive that monster, he could survive anything. Anything!
"I'm going to get strong and I'm going to live!"
There was no choice. The world, the gods, would finish what they started if he didn't. His family did everything so he could live. Only power would ensure he would never have to live in fear.
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AN: Thanks for reading. If you got any questions, drop a comment. I'll answer what I can. I don't do spoilers.
Chapter 25
END