Doevm sat up in his broom closet and thought about yesterday’s battle. He went out and killed one boar. Frey killed another. Frey, Doevm, and Wade killed another while the other groups killed the other two. Wade yelled at Frey for throwing his spear and at Doevm for acting on his own. The tier one appeared and went after Doevm. Wade emitted a red mist as his life essence. The squad gathered materials, formed a net, and captured it. It knocked everyone unconscious and Doevm used magic and corpses to kill it.

‘The red mist,’ Doevm thought. ‘That’s the next form of life essence. When the green innocence of the soul is hardened, it is tainted with another soul’s anguish and turns red. But how powerful is that stage? Wade could only pierce through a tier one beast. He was knocked out, but he was caught by surprise. That mist didn’t act as defense, only offense. That’s why his toes were blown off. Only his toes? That doesn’t make sense.’ Doevm went out for a walk around the mansion to think.

The cool air woke him up as he walked around the flower beds. He looked at the empty spot where the guards practiced their spear training could almost hear Jameson’s voice yell “One!” he looked up at the sole window into the dark library. Crickets chirped under the moonlight. Stars scatted through the night sky listened to their songs.

‘Wade’s toes were gone, his legs were burnt, but his upper body was fine.’ Doevm thought as he accidentally stepped on a cricket. ‘That means he was either too slow to react or his life force could only defend a small area. Damn it Arthur, you were such a good teacher at fighting, but your explanations were terrible. Now I have to figure all this stuff out on my own.’ he took several deep breaths.

‘But that makes this a little more fun. What would happen if I consider life essence more like mana? Until now, I’ve only been using it without thinking about where or how much I wanted to use it. I knew it could be used offensively, but now I know it can also be used defensively.’ he smiled.

‘This reincarnation is the best. Fighting is so fun. I want to get stronger and figure out how to use my life essence in battle more. I thought I was going to die against that boar. I was going to die, and I loved it.’ he pulled out a tusk he had taken from the mother boar. ‘I wonder if I can ask the lord to turn this into a weapon?’ he tossed it up and down, circling the mansion and thinking about his fight when he heard some whispers. He wasn’t someone who would eavesdrop, but he was bored. He crawled through the flower beds to get a peek.

“Like this.” Thomas said as he swung his spear in strange directions. Each time he moved, a little bit of blood-red mist shot out, then dispersed. The whispering sound was the sound of the spear whistling through the air. He did a couple more moves as Doevm watched in contemplation.

‘It’s like breathing,’ he thought. ‘Only use it when making a move. To have it constantly activated is just a waste. Everything in between is just wasting energy.’

To confirm Doevm’s hypothesis, Thomas swung, and each time, red only came out in the swing. When he transitioned to other moves or changed his grip, the mist stopped coming out. “That’s enough.” Jameson said as he put a hand on Thomas’s spear.

“Why are you practicing out here and not inside?” Jameson pulled the spear away and crossed his arms. Doevm had never seen him so mad. His face was completely red, and he wore a strange snarl.

Thomas looked down and kicked some of the grass. “I just wanted to train a little longer and I didn’t want to wake my father. It was only for one night. Can you give me any tips on improving?”

“Sure, stop.” Jameson broke the spear in two and threw the pieces down. “Do you know why the guards have a separate facility? It’s to prevent outsiders from picking up our techniques.”

“Doevm copied your spear technique though.” Thomas mumbled.

“What was that? Speak up.” Jameson almost pulled out his military voice but looked at the quiet mansion and spoke a little softer.

“I said Doevm copied your techniques. He even knows how to fight hand-to-hand. I’m sure he didn’t even need to work hard for it. Father always compares me to him every time I mess up. It’s always about Doevm, Doevm Doevm. Why is he so special? He’s only a commoner. He can’t grow as powerful as a noble.”

“He’s a commoner with no help and a natural curiosity. He’s also, if you would have looked around, copying your techniques!” Thomas’s eyes went wide. He looked around, but saw no one. A red little mist went around his eyes, and he locked onto Doevm in the flowerbed. He stepped back, muttering an apology to Jameson.

Doevm stood up and bowed. “Young master, I didn’t expect to see you this night.” then he saluted. “Sir, you as well.”

“Quit the act and go back to your room.” Doevm turned around, internally sighing at being caught, but Jameson said, “Actually, stay, I need you to teach Thomas something.” Doevm smiled and bowed. “Tell me, what did you learn from watching Thomas train?”

“I learned life essence acts like breath. You attack, breath out, and use life essence. You can also apply life essence to your vision and other areas to enhance them.”

Thomas took a step back with even wider eyes. “You, how long were you looking at my training?”

“Just a few seconds.” Doevm said. “Thank you for the demonstration. I will be returning to my room, as I have just come back from a mission. Excuse me.” He bowed again and left the two.

“Did you see that?” Jameson mocked. “He picked up a secret in seconds. While he would have eventually learned it on his own, he saw how you used it and analyzed it. The boy is hungry for power. You are just going along with your father’s training. Get motivated or he’ll surpass you.”

“Yes sir,” Thomas mumbled. He picked up the pieces of his spear and stormed off.

“You’re a mad genius, setting Doevm up as Thomas’s goal.” Jameson said to the open air.

“Thank you,” Reginald cracked open a window directly behind Jameson. “Everyone needs motivation.” he shrugged. “But I came up with this idea only because you wanted to help Doevm grow stronger. This was a win-win for both of us. I expect you will keep the boy from growing too much. We can’t let the royals take him from us in the year-long war.” he leaned on the windowsill.

“Have you just given up hope of keeping Thomas out of the war?”

“He’s a little more than two years away from the drafting age. Whatever needs to happen for this war to start, it’s coming too late. I just hope we can get our men strong enough to protect him on the battlefield. Start transitioning the training to the more advanced techniques and send the guards out on more missions. I have a feeling these two years will be the final stretch.”

“Understood. And are we going to teach everyone how to handle their life essence as well?”

“No, just push Doevm forward. The rest of the guards might learn by watching him, but that’s uncontrollable. When Thomas goes off to the academy, I want him to take a guard or two his age. I want Doevm to be a bodyguard. The academy will only accept someone below age eighteen, and he can do it. Keep an eye on Frey as well. I’m considering him as a candidate, but he’ll need to grow more for that to happen. You’re hosting a test for a new squad leader, right?”

Jameson frowned, “Do you want me to push Doevm there as well? I can’t put too much on him.”

Reginald smiled, “Not Doevm, but Frey. This will be a test measuring how far he’ll go. Do you need anything that requires my permission for the test?”

“No,” Jameson pulled out a sheet of paper with all Frey’s details written on it. “I have all I need. Give me a few days and we’ll know his worth. Is there anything else you need?”

“No, good work.” Reginald closed the window and wrapped his velvet robe around himself, but he still felt cold. He felt his way through his mansion. He walked up the stairs to his bedroom, fumbling in the dark as he did so. He got to his bedroom door and started coughing. Opening the door, he crawled into bed and sighed. There were two pillows, and only one was his. Half of his sheets were worn, while the other side looked brand new. He closed his wrinkled eyes and fell asleep.