The Witcher: Elder Blood

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***

The blade in my hands made constant sweeps. With another swing of my weapon, I made a strike at the opposing blade in order to bring it to the side. To do so, I slid my weapon along my opponent's blade to circle around him and deliver a circular blow to his arm.

He was able to dodge at the last moment without falling for such a simple tactic. Already starting to make a new combination with my weapon, I was interrupted by the voice of my teacher.

- Gwanna carr - the words of the Elder Speech travelled across the clearing, followed by a slight movement of his hand, which dispelled my illusion.

There was no longer a copy of myself standing in front of me, helping with the training. It's hard to find an opponent to spar with on the grounds of Ban Arda Academy, so you have to make the best of it.

- You're doing great with illusions. I think we should do a practice test with them,' Hela Gedimdeit said as he came closer.

We were in a small clearing near the academy. It was only a couple of minutes from the exit of the academy to reach it. I come here at least twice a week to practise with my sword, and it's a good idea to keep in shape. A light workout in the room isn't enough.

- I tried to create a mass illusion, but it didn't work,' he said, and now that my mentor was here, there was no point in staying in the clearing. Putting my sword back in its scabbard and the one that had fallen nearby, I followed him into the academy. He wouldn't come after me just like that.

- No surprise at all. Mass illusions use single illusions created by a mage in conjunction with a ritual for each of those illusions. Only at the end do they combine into one supported pattern. It is too early for you to use such spells. Single illusions are enough for now,' he said in a monotonous lecturing tone, as he usually did in the general lectures he sometimes found time for. In private lessons, though, when Hela Gedimdeit is telling me theory, his voice is just as monotonous.

In one such class, I was taught how to use illusionary spells. There were several of them, each with a specific purpose. Earlier, while in the clearing, I had used Afan's Mirror, a spell that creates copies of the mage, or a copy if there is no use for multiple illusions. Of course, such illusions are not material, and the main disadvantage is the short range of the spell's support.

I was not enough of a simple illusion for training, so I used telekinesis in parallel for the second sword, which imitated the actions of the copy. It took me a long time to pull something like this off. It only took two weeks to master telekinesis, and an equal amount of time to satisfactorily use the two spells in training.

- I'll be busy with the Wizarding Chapter for the next two days. I won't be at the academy,' we were on our way to one of the practice halls. - It's time for you to learn teleportation,' he explained, noticing my surprised look. - I meant the spell, not your personal skills. It's too early to use them.

The Rector was right, controlling an Elder Blood is a complicated thing. According to him, you should first learn the usual magic that wizards are accustomed to, and then develop the abilities of the Elder Blood gene.

- It's worth remembering that teleportation is not the same as a portal,' the rector said as soon as we were in the empty practice room. - Teleportation, aka travelling through space, allows a spellcaster to move to a familiar place. Unlike portals, teleportation doesn't connect two points in space, so it has the following limitations: the range of travel, as well as the size of what the wizard is going to carry with him, depends on the amount of energy he can gather at a time.

During his lecture, he walked along the hall. When he finished explaining how teleportation works, the rector stopped in front of me.

- This is where the difference with your teleportation applied thanks to the Elder Blood gene arises. As I said before, you have the ability to instantly create a portal with a completely different structure and way of working, as I have learnt myself.

A more detailed explanation followed. Hela Gedimdeit explained everything about the proper use of teleportation, while showing me a couple of times in person.

When the theory time came to an end, I was placed in a drawn ritual circle. Opposite me, about five metres away, was a similar circle.

- Training such spells is dangerous, as well as all interaction with space, so we use special circles. In case of improper use of the spell, they will muffle the energy immediately, preventing you from harming yourself,' the man stepped aside from the line between the circles. - Your task is simple,' his right hand pointed to the second circle. - To move from your circle to that one. Concentrate, don't rush, there's no point. The main task now is precision.

I was required to recite the key-word for the spell, draw the Chaos energy from the earth (That is the element to which teleportation belongs) and tune in to the action itself: moving into the other circle.

- Telconta celeg adrhon,' the elven words slipped accentlessly from my tongue in the silence. I followed the rector's instructions without error.

A pulsating bright energy enveloped me. Before I could exhale, my eyes flashed, then all the light abruptly disappeared. There were no sounds or any of the usual body sensations. Only coldness, like a film enveloping me.

I couldn't lose my concentration. If I lost it outside the ritual circles, it would be the end - I'd be thrown out of my mind. I had a safety net - circles, but still I did not want to relax. In training I tried to give my best, so in the end I saved my personal and not only time.

Being in the black nothingness, in the midst of silence, formlessness and timelessness, I could immediately understand the difference between training teleportation with circles, even without using this spell without a circle. The difference was the possible movement. I couldn't choose a direction, only a fixed point to finish.

The movement was incomprehensible, as if you don't move in the usual sense, but just choose the desired exit point, and then find yourself there.

The familiar world popped out of the magical film, flanked by expanding space. The exit point collapsed while I was falling to the floor.

- Did it work the first time? - The rector looked at my shivering body in surprise. - Hmm, you shouldn't delay before moving,' he said in a sterner voice. - I told you, the cold in that place is real, and it's not just a peculiar sensation of moving through space.

It wasn't the usual movement of time as we know it, but there was an effect on my body that I could feel. I had to warm myself with a light spell, so easy to use that it was not necessary to say words (they were used because of the difficulty of forming difficult thought patterns), or to form signs with my hands (the signs served as ready-made blanks for transforming pure Chaos energy into the desired effect).

- Lingering on the limited passage through the circles.

- Are you talking about the only available exit in a circle? Yes, it makes the training easier,' he nodded at my result and analysed my condition just in case, then headed out of the hall with me. - You'll practice on the laps while I'm gone. As you saw, there are several of them, but they are only connected in pairs. Use them all in turn. When I return to the academy, you can move on to the next stage - free teleportation. Just don't use too many repetitions, you'll only hurt yourself.

- The cold is really unpleasant, - I'll have to take breaks after two or three teleportations, though this time I delayed, maybe it won't be so bad when travelling fast.

When we reached the fork in the corridor, the rector decided to explain about my further training.

- Listen, Eren. Your progress in magic at this point is almost enough to graduate from the academy. All you have to do is to learn the most difficult spells of the graduates, such as portal and teleportation, and then you can easily pass all practical and theoretical exams. Therefore, I would like to ask you to stay in the academy until you can master the capabilities of the Elder Blood.

- But we don't know how long the training will take,' I didn't want to stay here for too long, it's been over a year since I've been here. I'd grown accustomed to this place and the occasional trip to the city, but it wasn't the same, the magic didn't do much to brighten the boredom that overtook me.

- Don't worry, I'm only interested in a few things about using your personal Source. One more year is enough, I won't keep you longer. But you'll be able to study the magical arts more widely, you'll have full access,' I wanted to cover my eyes with my hands and sigh, but I held myself back. A year is a year, it won't make me feel worse, just more bored.

- Okay, I'll take a year. And as for the tuition, I won't have to pay anything extra? - I ask him cautiously. The rector's personal interest is one thing, but the use of the academy's resources can't be cancelled.

- Payment? Oh, that's right, you have a debt from the academy. Then, after next year, I'll have it cancelled, - I was more satisfied with this arrangement. Now I don't have to complain about boredom. Leaving the academy without any debts, that suits me fine.

- Then no more questions.

- Fine. I'll find you in two days, - we went our separate ways. The rector probably went to his office in the tower, and I went to the local kitchen. I had worked up an appetite from my morning sword training and the past class.