Chapter 9: Kaelthorn’s Motivation Rises

With practiced ease, Aden jumped over a few branches, his speed steady, a certain flexibility to his steps and a wide smile on his handsome face.

“Hahaha! I feel alive!”

Swinging to the tip of a large tree, Aden looked over the jungle, the heavy wind brushing his slightly elongated hair backwards.

His eyes peered to the location of the cabin and his master’s large frame.

“It’s so clear!” He muttered in awe.

This was the first time Aden had ever gotten the chance to fully handle his resonance, the other instances were in…. catastrophic scenarios, so his reactions were understandable.

Aden leapt to the next tree, a certain recklessness in his steps as he did so. His foot landed at the very tip of the branch, causing a shot of adrenaline to rush through him.

The air around him twisted slightly as he leapt and swung to frightening distances. His expression was teetering on eerie ecstasy with each leap.

Laughing wildly, Aden finally decided it was time to stop monkeying around and handle the task at hand.

His eyes peered into the distance until a large tree came into view, standing sharp and untouched by the blur of its surroundings.

With a satisfied nod, Aden leapt and swung to it’s direction. The wind brushing past his face with renewed intensity.

Landing in it’s vicinity with a thud, Aden walked confidently towards it, a small smile forming on his face.

His hands found either side of the tree, his eyes went shut, his expression blank and the air twisting a little more noticeably.

’Calm yourself and focus…’

Exhaling lightly, Aden attempted the same approach he did with the smaller tree.

But this time there was something different.

The chirps of birds, the slithering of worms, the gradual pecking of strange tree–living creatures and a thousand other creatures grew into his focus.

Aden eyebrows slammed as he tried to attune to the natural frequencies of the tree, but the flow patterns and dormant resonance affinities of the creatures there interrupted him every time.

Two hours passed as he tried to ignore the vivid chirps and annoying energies he was constantly met with.

He didn’t succeed.

Exhaling heavily, Aden’s sweaty palms unclenched the tree, leaving a slight depression in it’s wake.

His body slid against the tree trunk, his head faced upwards and he let out another sigh.

“Of course it wouldn’t be easy…” He mumbled.

His mind went back to the statement his stoic master said a few moments ago.

“Do not mistake insight for understanding, huh?” He smiled wryly. “He’s right, but he should at least give me my flowers once in a while.”

Laughing with himself, Aden sprang to his feet again.

Stretching his fingers, Aden leaned forward and closed his eyes once more.

The sounds had gone down, probably because the sun had begun to set, but Aden wasn’t one to complain as the first hurdle solved itself.

’Now all I’ve left to do is sort these energy signatures and attune to the tree’s. Should be simple enough…’

Aden squinted as always, but this time his eyebrows shot up almost instantly.

’What…?’

His mind struggled to process what he was seeing—or rather, what his subconscious insisted he was seeing.

Veins of energy, numbering in the millions, stretched across the tree, each shimmering in its own hue and pulsing at its own speed.

’Could these be the paths Master was talking about? They’re…incredibly complex.’

A sudden impulse hit him. He reached out with his own energy, tracing a single strand of the tree’s veins, and adjusted his rhythm to match its pulse

The result?

Two lines of blood flowing from his nostrils.

’An error. I didn’t match the speeds precisely enough…’

Letting the blood drip to the ground, he tried again, his energy moving at slightly faster pace.

Another failure.

’Slower this time.’

His energy flowed through the strand, but he lost control halfway and was expelled.

Two more drips fell out.

With furrowed eyebrows, Aden reached out even slower this time, and gently traced the surface before falling in.

He didn’t get complacent this time and actively followed the path his energy was led to, consciously and painstakingly controlling his speed.

One revolution went successfully before he was expelled once again.

Despite the failure, his expression grew lighter, he attempted it once again and managed two revolutions before being expelled.

Blood flowed from his nostrils but they were left unattended to as Aden got lost in his new experiment.

Two more hours passed and Aden’s faced had gone noticeably pale, a small pool of blood formed beneath his feet, drenching the dried patches of leaves.

“Finally!” Aden screamed.

Coughing, he spit out the blood that was contained in his mouth with reckless abandon.

“I know the circulations of that branch!” He gestured. “Hahaha!”

His laughter echoed through the jungle, and he realized with surprise how much time had passed.

He took a deep, cold breath and placed his hands back on the tree almost immediately.

“Master’s going to be so mad…”

Thanks to his little side quest, Aden now had a deeper understanding of Resonance, making it far easier to uproot the tree.

Still, the journey back promised no less challenge.

Each step he took was pure torture. He was forced to worry less about the tree and more about his neck not breaking with the frequency of how the tree fell.

“Urgh…hoo…haa…”

The transparent energy flickered around him as he moved, his mouth making “O” shapes as he tried to inhale and exhale as effectively as possible.

Aden’s teeth clenched as the weight beared heavily upon him, the small cracks of his bones traveled to his ears with unnerving clarity.

Sweat drops fell off his face, his face grew weary, his eyes barely keeping themselves open but stubbornly refusing to slip.

Burying his fingers into the bark of the tree, splinters burrowed into his fingers and blood flowed down his arms.

But he grit his teeth and consciously circulated his energy throughout his body albeit clumsily.

The air around him twisted, his half crouched position stabilized partially, but the obvious signs of fatigue remained.

For hours, Aden’s feet formed steep marks as he traveled an even longer journey.

Harmonies of the creatures of the night filled the air, the cold wind blew— not for his glorification this time.

Aden’s teeth clattered, but his feet kept moving—slowly, yes, but always forward.

He gripped the bark with fierce determination, fingers digging in as his eyes locked onto the smoke rising far ahead.

’I…..won’t…fail…’ he promised.

His eyes blurred heavily, his heart pounded heavily against his chest, the sweat drops never stopped falling despite the cold air that assaulted him.

His Resonant energy surged wildly, untamed and messy, yet it was all he needed to complete the task.

A memory surfaced in his mind as he grew closer to the cabin area:

Dark, effeminate…. familiar.

’I….won’t…let…you…down…’

It was unknown whom he was referring to— his Master or the strange figure that resurfaced in his mind.

Thud Thud Thud

The crackling of firewood travelled to his ears, the scent of meat filling the air.

With relief slowly returning to his expression, Aden dropped the tree with a loud boom.

“Master…I…did….it”

With a weak smile on his face, Aden finally let himself slip into unconsciousness.

Before he could fall, his master appeared and caught his bulky frame.

A faint glow sparked in his obsidian irises as he stared at the soot-covered Aden.

“What made you become… this?” he whispered.

His large hands brushed Aden’s hair aside, cleaning it carefully, as if the slightest force could break him.

Pressing Aden to his chest, he carried him into the half-built cabin. To Aden’s surprise, his room was already fully finished.

He watched Aden’s still figure for a while before rubbing his forehead slowly and stepping out.

“His determination is not of a noble. You keep giving me reasons to believe you’re not Sir. Daren.”

A small smile came to his face as he sat on the log of wood, watching the flames wave erratically.

“And frankly, I don’t really care who you are.”

His head went upwards, the stars revealing their heavenly figures. “All I know is you’re my student.”

“And I’ll kill everyone who dares hurt you. Even if I die in the process.”

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