The next morning, after a quick breakfast in the same dining hall I had visited the previous night, I spent several hours getting a few hundred pages into my newest book, as well as rereading what I had learned the previous day. My head was swimming with new findings I had taken in from my study and I already had the beginnings of a headache. And I knew I would have to reread all of the materials a few more times to get the most out of them.

Still, I had managed to learn some very interesting new pieces of information. For one, the searing pain I felt when channeling Mana was a dangerous sign and meant that my Channels and Core were far below the level necessary to safely wield my power. Thankfully, the introductory book on Mana cultivation also listed a method to strengthen both organs, to withstand more powerful Mana. I would need to immediately begin practicing this technique rather than continue to channel too much Mana and risk shortening my life.

The tome on Aether was even more dense with information and confirmed something I had already begun to suspect about Mages based upon the Academy. They loved to talk about themselves, and seemed to revel in explaining things in exhaustingly long-winded detail. Entire pages were dedicated to extensive personal diatribes on the nature of Aether and what makes it a superior aspect. But despite this, there was still extremely useful knowledge listed in its pages that I knew would be essential for my development.

Unfortunately, most of the methods it listed were nearly useless to me, in large part because I simply lacked access to necessary resources or skills to make use of them. Many Aether Mages had apparently spent years traveling the continent to learn from other countries, in an attempt to bolster their lifespan. However, there were several that had piqued my interest which I believed could be immediately integrated into my routine. One Mage in particular, a scholar with an Aether aspect by the name of Elliot Yardley, had spent several decades researching various dietary and medicinal means to improve cultivation.

His studies had mainly focused on increasing Mana purity and volume, but he had also researched several methods of improving organ durability. Unfortunately, he had also noted they took at least months of constant usage before any results became evident but I diligently copied down all the herbs and foods regardless. Anything to improve my cultivation was useful, and Yardley’s notes had mentioned many of these ingredients were relatively common and easily obtained, which translated to me as potentially cheap.

Later today, I planned to retrieve some gold from my personal stipend and head into the city to try and obtain some supplies. But before that, I needed to get started with my physical training. I had a long way to go and not enough time to get there. With that in mind, I got dressed into something I could easily move in compared to the standard Academy uniform, and left my room headed for the exercise facilities.

As I entered the space, I found myself in a large open room roughly separated into two halves. One side was a clear field of green grass, with several circles of packed dirt at the far end. The other half was flat stone, with a variety of unusual objects arranged in rows. They appeared strange, with long metal bars and cords made of an unfamiliar material. I soon found myself wandering through the rows, attempting to decipher exactly how these machines worked. My confusion must have been obvious, since a man who appeared to be training himself approached me after a few minutes.

It was impossible to tell from his attire if he was a Master, as his clothes were simple pants, shoes and a sleeveless shirt, though since he appeared to be in his twenties, I assumed he was part of the faculty. He was well over six feet tall, with a massive build packed with heavy muscles likely gained from years of hard training. His arms and face were deeply tanned and covered in thin scars, which suggested he had spent some time as a soldier. Something that immediately worried me was the smile on his face, which seemed closer to the grin of a carnivorous animal spotting prey than a mentor looking to aid a novice.

“I’m guessing by your bony arms and confused look you’re new to working out? Don’t answer, it's a rhetorical question. Well, lucky for you I am here to help you out. Name’s Sigmund but you can call me Sig, most people around here do.” he said loudly, as he shoved one giant hand forward for a handshake.

As I grabbed his hand, I winced in pain as Sig crushed my own in a vice grip. Pulling back my bruised appendage, I tried and failed to subtly check it for injury as Sig laughed heartily.

“My name is Vayne, and yes I was interested in learning some basic exercises. I would prefer to be at least a little more athletic, preferably as fast as possible.” I said as I rubbed my throbbing hand.

“Well kid, now that we got introductions out of the way I can help you get started on that. Even if it does help keep them ticking, not many Mages like coming down here and working up a sweat. I think they’re afraid it’ll rot their brains or something ridiculous like that. But you look smart, which means you’ll be down here plenty often. Right?” Sig said, leaning in almost threateningly on the last question.

I nodded nervously, wondering if there was a way to escape this lunatic with my other limbs intact. I’d gladly sacrifice plenty in the pursuit of knowledge and power, but I would prefer to avoid permanent maiming.

Snorting, Sig turned and started walking away from the rows of machines and towards the grassy section. For such a large man, I noted that he weaved in between the aisles with unusual grace and agility that belied his build.

“All of these are fancy machines from out east designed to pack on muscle in precise locations, but it doesn’t work well for new kids. Nope, what you should focus on for now is plenty of bodyweight exercises to build muscle and running or swimming to improve endurance. Oh, and stretch, always stretch after a workout and on days you are resting. And none of that eating like a bird nonsense like the rest of you Apprentices. The body needs fuel like a fire needs wood, and little bits of food won’t cut it.” Sig lectured loudly. It seemed he only had one volume level.

As we came to a stop, Sig began stretching lightly before examining me with an annoyed expression.

“You’re so damned scrawny I’ll have to start real light with you. But as long as you listen to everything I say, I’ll turn you into a top-level talent, as good as any knight. Now then, let's get started!” he yelled with a grin.

Over the next several hours I learned that grin was most likely the expression of a sadist, as Sig led me through a series of exercises that I suspected were a form of torture in some countries. Some, such as push-ups and squats I recognized from the Estton guard’s own routines, but others I had never seen before.

Many involved complex movements that required concentration and balance more than strength and nearly all of them were beyond my skill to complete without assistance. When I made the mistake of questioning the point of these moves, Sig glared at me for a minute straight before answering.

“Because most of you kids prefer to go for a 10 minute jog and call it a day, instead of training the right way. If you want to do it properly, you have to get your entire body built up evenly. These stances and moves are meant to do exactly that, hit all the muscles you may not think about and keep you from having any weak points in your build.”

I soon regretted questioning Sig’s methods, as he seemed to take personal offense to it. At the end of his tutoring, I lay on the ground with my entire body covered in sweat and racked in pain from the workout. Sig shook his head in disappointment, before nudging me with one foot.

“You are even worse than I had thought. It’ll take months to get you up to anything approaching okay at this rate. Oh well, come back tomorrow morning kid and make sure to eat plenty today at lunch and dinner. And make sure to get plenty of sleep and stretch before bed, otherwise you will regret it when you wake up.”

With those final instructions and a laugh Sig walked off, whistling merrily along the way.

Taking a few minutes to catch my breath, I eventually struggled to my feet and half limped back to my room. I needed a shower first to clean off the grime on my body, before I could head into the city and attempt to track down an alchemy supplier.

A half hour later, I headed out of the Academy and towards the city square of Volaris with a pouch filled with a few gold coins and a handful of silver. Along the way, I pulled out a supply list from my pocket. I needed three things from this trip, ash weed, star mint and wiyote. Ash weed was a dark grey herb used to brew tea which would reinforce the walls of Mana Cores and Channels. Star mint, a thick white plant could be soaked into bath water that would be absorbed through the skin and could heal minor damage typically caused by Mana training. Wiyote was a very small fruit around the size of a grape that, when ingested, would introduce a tiny amount of Aether that would be cycled through the body and act as a very mild form of cultivation. These three were the most commonly found in Yardley’s notes, and I hoped I could purchase enough to last me for months.

The main streets were as busy as the previous day, with dozens of people coming in and out of various shops. There were dozens of shops to choose from, but I knew I needed an alchemy shop in particular. I glanced up to the hanging signs, eventually spotting one with stylized depictions of flowers and a vial. The moment I walked into the shop, I was hit with a dozen conflicting aromas that made my eyes water.

The store was packed with dozens of shelves, filled to the brim with apparently thousands of different plants. Due to the sheer variety of products, I was somewhat worried about my ability to find what I needed with any speed. After all, I had no experience in alchemy and only had descriptions and halfway decent illustrations to use as a guide.

Thankfully, the owner was more than helpful and within an hour I left the shop with a pack full of supplies. It seemed alchemists often purchased unusual materials in bulk, and the man had not batted an eye at my requests. I had purchased enough to last me for around a month, after which I would need to refill my stock.

By the time I got back to my room with my newest purchases, the sun was high in the air and it was well into the afternoon. That left plenty of time to get started on the next stage of my Mana training. I had hoped I could begin casting spells soon, but the smart move was to postpone that stage until I no longer felt pain while channeling Mana. Instead, I would move onto another exercise I had found inside one of Master Julian’s books.

The exercise looked relatively simple, though I suspected it was much harder than it seemed. I would need to take small portions of Mana and slowly pull it through my body, to “temper” the organs as the process was called. Much like any muscle, by doing this for a short period of time daily my organs would slowly strengthen at their weakest points and become able to withstand larger and more powerful surges of energy. I knew I would need as little Mana as possible, because my own Aether Mana was far more powerful than any normal Apprentice.

Crossing my legs, I slowly pushed my mind towards my Core in search of my Mana. I noted that it took me a little less time than the previous day, around fourteen minutes, to locate my energy. That was good, it meant this could serve multiple purposes in my training. The tricky part now was pulling the smallest amount of Mana possible and gently pulling it along my Channels without causing lasting damage. Tempering was done by slowly increasing how much Mana the organs are exposed to, not by shoving insane amounts of energy and hoping they could cope and adapt.

Focusing deeply, I noticed with interest that my Mana was actually more loosely gathered than I thought at first, and appeared to be closer to a mist composed of tiny droplets of Mana rather than a solid mass. One of my books had noted that Mana could increase in density, but this was the first evidence I had to suggest what level I had reached. There was far too much about Mana cultivation that I was still in the dark about, but I had to press on for now.

Reaching out, I concentrated on a small droplet of Mana at the very edge of my Core and gripped it tightly. My head immediately began to throb with pain, but I pushed through and slowly began to push harder on the mote I had grasped. The next stage was to slowly pull this Mana throughout my body along my Channels before pulling it back into my Core. As long as I am performing the technique correctly, I should feel discomfort but not pain.

I carefully pulled my Mana along the Channel down my left arm and I could feel an internal pressure, as if my arm was swelling up. Over the next several minutes, I circulated this mote of Mana down all my limbs, tempering my entire body. After around five minutes, I began to feel a dull pain which was the first warning sign I should stop training for the day. It seemed Aether was even more powerful than I had thought, if only five minutes with such a small amount of Mana was my limit.

With a concerned sigh, I slowly released the Mana from my grip and felt it return to the mass in my Core. Standing up, I walked over to my pack and carefully sorted my new supplies into three neat rows onto the table next to the window. “A Study on Aether” had noted that all three brought with them extremely uncomfortable side-effects, but I would suffer through them if it helped me grow stronger.

I had taken the first steps on my journey, but I had many steps still to take before I reached my goal. Yet despite how far I had to go, I grit my teeth in determination as I recalled the dead look I had worn in the future. I would never become that person. No matter how much I had to go through, no matter how hard I had to work, I would change my life.