Chapter 10 "Esze Training"

Without realizing it, the sun had climbed up to the top of my head. The heat should have struck when the sun was shining. But I didn't have to worry about being burned. A collection of tall trees around protecting my skin from the sunray. The foliage was lush and leafy. Made a shade for anyone on the ground.

I was in Tenerif Forest, a forest directly adjacent to the West Elvian Kingdom. Together with Almira, we walked along the edge of a big river dividing the forest into two. Sometimes the woman looked across the land, perhaps missing the homeland where she came from. While I was looking at Kalen River, where my friends and I first came to this world. We both walked in silence, passing the pebbly river rocks and sand.

Around here, there was no one. I took off the straw hat given by Kak Shella and draped it over my back. Likewise, Almira appeared confidently with her Elvian form. Our sharp sense could feel if someone approached. So we weren't afraid when we both got caught by others. It felt so free and joyful when letting my hair strands be caressed by the breeze like this. A sense of comfort that never I got when my head was covered.

It has been about half an hour we left Glafelden's city gate. I had no idea where Almira took me. Usually, when she lectured me about Esze training, we went to the woods not far from the city. However, I didn't want to protest. I continued to follow her march to a small stream that led into the deep forest.

After walking again for almost an hour, Almira stopped. I blinked both eyes. The small stream that we followed led to a lake in the woods. The place was very moist and low-light. Although I knew the sun up there was shining brightly. The lighting down here was just dim. Hindered by the dense line of trees and foliage. The lake was quite extensive. Approximately as big as a soccer field. River stones and pebbles at the edges neatly arranged, which briefly looked like had been done by man-hand. With hundreds of colorful fish swimming happily, made the lake was so eye-catching.

"What a wonderful place!" I cried for joy. "Will we practice Esze here?"

"Of course. A comfortable and quiet place could help you concentrate better."

Almira put a leather bag on the top of a stone. The surface was flat and wide enough for her to sit on. Then she took off her shoes, then put them near the bag.

She glanced at me. "Why are you just staring like an idiot? Took off your shoes and come here quick!"

"O-Okay!" I replied spontaneously.

I quickly took off my sandals. After that followed Almira, who already had entered the water. The lake was filled with sharp and slippery rocks. I had to be careful if I didn't want to fall and got hurt. When the water has reached my calf, I had to hold the ends of the lace dress from getting wet. This outfit was given by Kak Shella. I shouldn't make it messy.

"Why are you acting like a noble princess? Hurry up, or I won't teach you!"

1. Who cared about this crap! I would apologize to Kak Shella for messing with her clothes. Moreover, she already knew my habit of often coming home in a dirty state. I quickened my pace to get closer to Almira. The bottom of the lake was deepened. Until finally, I arrived in the middle of the lake, and it shallowing my waist and lower body.

Almira stopped and turned toward me. "Well, Anggi! Before we start the training, I want you to tell me what the Esze definition is!"

"Huh, why? We're not in the classroom, right? What will I get by explaining it? A+ grade? First rank in the class?" I protested.

The first time she taught me to use Esze, Almira explained its most comprehensive definition possible. If written, it might reach one book. Whenever I started the training, she always asked that. Perhaps in her mind, she was teaching a class, and I was her student. It really sucks. What I wanted was for her to stop wasting my time like this.

"I just don't want you to forget the essential of Esze when you playing around too often."

"Gosh! C'mon! I'm still memorizing it until now. Besides, I don't play around."

"Then try!"

Honestly, I was very annoyed at all with her. If she was not stronger than me, maybe I'd hit her.

"All right!" I said. "I'm going straight to the point. Esze is one natural phenomenon given by Gods when they came down to earth. An ability to control and manipulate objects, people, and environments. To use Esze, we shall have 'structure' in the body. Esze structure was only owning by Elvian and Haier Elvian race, so-."

"Stop!" Said Almira. Her voice was loud enough to make me immediately closed my mouth. "As you know, only Elvian and Haier-Elvian have the structure. When I first met you, I saw your structure was more powerful and complicated. So that makes the body secrete an unusual aura. Over the past seven months, we've tried to suppress your aura to the standard point. So now there is no one else who realizes your aura.

"Also, over the past month, I taught you the basic Esze of wind element. Now I will teach you the water element. So pay close attention!"

I nodded.

Almira walked away from me to the middle of the lake that shallowed her body to the chest. She issued viglet, a stick to manifest Esze power of structure inside the body. Her hand lifted up that piece of wood. Her eyes then closed. Almira was in full concentration. I paused in silence so as not to disrupt her.

A moment later, the lake surface made a small rippling. At first glance, it looked like an earthquake, but the ground I stood on wasn't shaking even a bit. As if aware of the impending danger, the fish that had been swimming around hid behind a rock. Most fish with large fins tried their luck to swim upstream.

My eyes were back at Almira. The tip of her viglet emitting a small light. Then rotated her hand 360-degree several times. At the same time, the lake's water level spun to follow the direction of Almira's hand. Forming a large whirlpool with her body as the center. The water flowing whirled quite hard, my body repeatedly pushed by it. Luckily, I'd been away from the middle of the lake. If not, maybe my body would be dragged by the whirlpool.

Still concentrating, she began slowly raised her hand. Thousands of cubic meters of lake water floated to the air, following the viglet wherever Almira directed. Leaving a tad bit of water left in the lake. She moved the blob of water here and there. And then separated them into small parts, making each piece passed through the forest trees, then put it back together. I was amazed. Staring in wonder as witnessing the acrobatic performances.

Once comfortable playing, Almira released the concentration on viglet. Thousands of cubic meters fell from the air and returned to the lake basin. It splashed some mud on my clothes and face when hitting the ground. It's over! Kak Shella definitely disliked this.

Almira's index finger sent a gesture to come closer.

"It's shocking! Are you going to teach me that?" I couldn't hide a sense of wonder and my happiness. My heart was excited and passionate when seeing her performance just now.

"It's not easy, you know!? To master a new element, you should do the same as you used to when you learn the elements of wind."

"You mean 'feeling the spirit'?"

Almira nodded slowly.

I swallowed my saliva. Because the 'feeling the spirit' was not as easy as it looked. Your mind and soul must be connected with nature so elemental spirits can accept your intention and go inside your body. An elemental spirit could be considered as an invisible abstract living being. However, the Elvian prefer to refer to it as the embodiment of every element that made up the earth.

Suppose you want to use Esze new element. In that case, you should make an elemental spirit appeared and then going inside your body. So it would renew and coat your Esze structure with its element. The problem was, to make the spirits appeared in front of you was extraordinarily hard. Because they wouldn't appear in front of malicious and insincere ones. It took me over three hours to meditate to brought the wind elemental spirit.

Almira kept staring at me. From her eyes, I knew that she forced me to immediately start meditating. I sighed. Then tried to do what she said. I sat cross-legged on the lake bottom and shallowed me up to my chest. I closed my eyes slowly while initiating concentration.

When I got in the wind spirit back then, I was thinking about my friends and me. From the moment we were drawn into this world because of my carelessness. We must live stranded under the mercy of others. Therefore at that time, I was determined to use Esze power to protect my friends. Then out of nowhere, suddenly, there was a small plume of white mist in front of me. It was suddenly going inside my body without permission. As a result, now I could use wind element Esze.

I thought every spirit was the same. I had half an hour pondering the exact same thing as before. But still, there was no sign of water spirits around me. Then I closed my eyes again and rebuilt my concentration. An hour passed but remained fruitless.

"If I may give advice, think of different things. What did you get when you saw me before? Feeling what lies around with your senses. You'll figure it out by yourself later." Almira watched me from the edge of the lake. Sitting on the rock, and was munching her lunch from the bag. Looking at her made my stomach starving. But it seemed she wouldn't allow me to join her before I completely finished my work.

For the umpteenth time, I went back to concentrating. Kept my mind around me. I could feel the water temperature drops slowly, the sounds of birds chirping perched in a tree, as well as the movement of the fish that swam near me. As if I could see everything just by my senses. I also think about my next step in this world. Although I accepted reality, I still wanted to return to the former world to reunite with my parents. Suddenly, I got to thinking idly about what they would say when they saw me now? That their son had turned into a daughter. Ah, but before that, of course, I wanted my body back to normal.

The next two hours were wasted. I was still not managed to make a water spirit appeared. Feeling upset and disappointed. I came out of the lake with high emotion. Slamming my hand into the water and created a big splash.

"It's really a waste of time! Why are we should asking the elemental spirit's willingness to accept us for using Esze? Why don't we just arrest them?" I gripped my hand tightly, chattering the teeth with fury.

"Because they are not animals to be hunted. Pay attention to what you say, kid! Elemental spirits might be invisible, but they can still see and hear you!"

"F*ck! I don't care anymore." I turned around, facing the lake and getting ready to scream loudly. "Hey, you shitty elemental spirits! You all suck! I hope you rot here forever!"

A second later, something hit my back head. It was hurt. But I couldn't find the object that was thrown. For a moment, I realized it was a breeze wind. It was surely that. When my head looked back, I found Almira while pointing viglet at me.

"What are you doing, fool?" I protested loudly.

The woman slapped her forehead and shook her head. "I don't think you'd be so stupid. Insulting elemental spirits?! It's forbidden to say bad things about them, you even cursing them. You should be grateful the wind spirits in your Esze structure had been permanently imprinted. If not, he would be going to leave you now."

I caressed my back head she hit before. "So what if I insulted them? It serves them right!"

"The element spirits won't accept people who say bad about them. You're really stupid!"

Now, who cared about what she said? I grumbled as grabbing some food from her leather bag. It contains a few pieces of egg rolls rice. It was not so bad, but it was enough to fill my hungry stomach because doing things which wasting time for a few hours.

Today, we return right before nightfall. Almira had told me again to meditating in the lake. But I was reluctant to do so. In the end, she taught me more kinds of wind Esze techniques. Throughout the night, I kept cursing elemental spirits that made my emotions rose each time remembering them.