After a few more spars with Masked Saber, Michael finally won his first round.
He was not satisfied with the result, because he only won due to his Soultraits, Artifacts, and higher Tier. He still needed to work a lot on his skills so the victory was not sweet for him.
Nonetheless, Michael was quite excited. Masked Saber thoroughly explained what mistakes Michael made, and how he could get rid of his bad habits rather easily.
Michael listened patiently while feasting on well-prepared Tier-2 meat dishes with the first crop the farmers in his territory had harvested a few days ago.
There weren't many vegetables yet, and the farms beneath the treehouses were rather small, but they grew extremely fast. Thanks to the influence of the Tier-1 4-Star Nature Spirit, the Botanic Magician, the environment of the Untamed Jungle, and the addition of high-quality fertilizer, all plants flourished rapidly while maintaining extraordinary quality.
The vegetables his people harvested a few days ago were highly nutritious and they stored some origin energy as well. Just by eating the vegetables was it possible to refine his War Rune. Though the refinement was insignificant for Michael as a Tier-1 Lord, it was very useful for his subjects.
Just by eating the meat and vegetables they procured on their own, it was possible to practice the body refinement technique, Sacred Rectification, and accelerate the absorption rate while practicing Pandemonium's Requiem.
Michael was full of energy, and slightly excited when he finished his meal.
He was totally ready for the second aptitude assessment!
Now that he was done with the tasks in the Origin Expanse, Michael left. He returned to his small room in the Saphirelake Military Academy and left the dorms.
"Was this place so huge yesterday as well?" Michael blurted out after spending more than ten minutes navigating through the place that felt like a maze to him.
Turning around when he stepped outside, he noticed that the dorm was a huge skyscraper with more than 50 floors. It was more than 200 meters tall and towered high above Michael.
"To think that I didn't notice that when I arrived. Maybe I was too hungry?" Michael mumbled to himself before he turned around.
He opened the map of the Saphirelake Military Academy on his crystal watch and began to look for the hall he had to be in first.
'According to my schedule, I have to be in Block B, Physical Testing Zentrum Nr.4…in 30 minutes…' Michael read in his mind while searching for Block B.
Only now did he realize that the Academy's campus was a humongous area that housed way too many buildings and facilities for both students and staff.
The campus was spread out over multiple blocks with wide streets and walkways connecting the buildings. Michael could also see quite a bit of greenery. The walkways were lined with trees, bushes, and benches, providing ample opportunities for students to sit and relax in between courses during breaks.
There was even a huge park that seemed to be frequently visited to practice nature-related Soultraits, go for a run in the nature, or to do parkour using natural obstacles to prepare for the worst-case in the Origin Expanse.
Michael wanted to train his reflexes and nimbleness using natural parkours as well. However, he was too busy finding the Physical Testing Zentrum on the map.
Once he found it five minutes later, he had to run. Block B was quite far away from his current position.
Michael had to run a few kilometers in the next few minutes. That was still feasible, and it gave him enough time to study Saphirelake Military Academy's map thoroughly.
He figured out where he had to go once he finished his work in the Physical Testing Zentrum, and where all other facilities were located.
The libraries, laboratories, classrooms, shops, and administrative buildings for faculty and staff were neatly organized. It was not difficult to remember where everything was located since it made sense.
Overall, Michael felt that the Military Academy's campus was more like a university campus, a bustling and vibrant environment where students could learn, socialize, relax, and build their futures without worries.
It wasn't the cruel and merciless training camp Michael expected to encounter.
'At least the competition for the Real Combat assessment will be fierce!' Michael thought as he entered the Physical Testing Zentrum where his physical assessment was held.
Many students were already being tested. They demonstrated their speed, spontaneity, physical strength, stamina, and so on.
When it was time for his appointment someone called out his name. Michael walked over and started his physical assessment.
Michael's War Rune's refinement degree didn't improve a lot, but his breathing had changed fundamentally, decreasing his stamina consumption, and the time he required to replenish stamina. However, that was not all. He finished the first stage of the Berserker Physique, which increased his physical standard by a notch.
As long as he continued practicing the second stage of the Berserker Physique, he would be able to compete against Lower Tier-2 beings in terms of physical strength while not even being a Tier-2 Lord. That was possible, and something many wanted to attain; a powerful physique that had long surpassed the threshold of the ordinary.
After his physical test concluded with a test of his reflexes, Michael rushed over to his next appointment. His memorization ability was tested next.
Third, he had to sit for a knowledge test. By the time Michael's fourth appointment was held, he had already visited four different blocks.
It felt like his schedule had been prepared to force him to run through all the corners of the Saphirelake Military Academy. At first, he was a little annoyed about that. However, Michael quickly realized that the authorities wanted the freshman to acquaint themselves with the large, sprawling campus of the Saphirelake Military Academy.
The freshmen ought to understand that the Saphirelake Military Academy had every possible facility to unravel the hidden potential within everyone.
Archery ranges, boxing rings, parks, gravity rooms, ranches, breeding facilities, taming grounds, forging rooms, alchemy houses, entire faculties focusing on enchanting, Artifacts, and much more. The Military Academy had everything.
Not everything could be used free of charge because certain facilities required a tremendous amount of resources to be used and maintained, but that was only obvious.
When Michael reached his final appointment before the Real Combat assessment would start, he met up with Harry Baren.
The Soul Power testing device was fastened to his body through belts, and Michael activated both Eagle Eyes and Lesser Enhancement.
"Lesser Enhancement's Soul Power increased by 6 units and reached 75. Meanwhile, your 3-Star Soultrait Eagle Eyes improved from 169 to 205 Soul Power Units. I'm not going to lie to you, Michael…both increases are quite crazy for a young Lord. Either most of your subjects love you, or you were pretty fast at expanding your territory's population!" Harry Baren explained with a tinge of excitement in his voice.
Some of the staff members and students looked weirdly at Harry Baren, but neither Harry nor Michael paid them any attention. The two of them had spent a month talking about Soultraits, Soul Power, and various theories that squirmed through their heads. They had gotten a lot closer, and their relationship wasn't that of a normal researcher and student anymore. Harry Baren thought of Michael as a fellow lover of research and seeker of the truth.
He respected Michael and the few well-thought theories he had shared about Soul Power.
Michael never really did anything special, in his opinion. Until now, Michael merely blurted out what he thought when he spoke with Harry.
"I think it's a little bit of both. But is the increase of my Soul Power really that surprising? I mean 6 units for a 2-Star Soultrait and 36 for a 3-Star Soultrait doesn't seem out of the world," Michael responded calmly to Harry.
He learned that Soultraits with a lower star rating received a lower enhancement from a subject's Link of Loyalty, no matter how firm the Link of Loyalty was.
Basically, the Tier advancement of the War Rune provided a standard amount of Soul Power to all Soultraits, meanwhile, the Links of Loyalty increased the Soul Power by 0.0001%, or even less according to Harry Baren's studies. He reached this conclusion after conducting research on 10,000 participants who had Soultraits ranging from 1-Star to 3-Star. It showed that 3-Star Soultraits received the highest amplification of Soul Power from a single neutral Link of Loyalty.
Thus, Michael thought that it was only obvious that Eagle Eyes had a higher increase in Soul Power than Lesser Enhancement.
"It's not that simple, Michael," Harry shook his head.
"You have to consider that the number of Links of Loyalty increases as you expand your territory. But there is also another important factor that has to be taken into consideration; 'compatibility'. This is something I'm currently researching, so please take my answers with a grain of salt. My theories might be proven correct in the future, but please listen to me, and consider my theory!" Harry said before he looked at Michael with expectations.
Michael gestured to Harry, who smiled brightly before he continued to speak.
"The theory is pretty simple. 'Compatibility' can be divided into two sections. First, a Soultrait's compatibility with the wielder can influence the increase of Soul Power. This kind of 'compatibility' is inherited, but it can be improved by comprehending the Soultrait and mastering it," Harry explained the first point. He waited a moment to watch Michael's reaction before he continued with the second point,
"The second theory is that you have many Archers, or subjects who've trained their eyes for a long period. Your subjects are more compatible with the Eagle Eyes Soultrait!"
The staff members eyed Harry with doubt, but they noticed that Michael's reaction was different to the other students, who were still waiting for their Soul Power test.
Michael thought seriously about Harry's theory and frowned deeply.
"So you think that I'm more compatible with Eagle Eyes than Lesser Enhancement, or that my subjects are more trained in using their eyes, which increases their compatibility to the Eagle Eyes Soultrait – resulting in the increase of 36 Soul Power Units within a month?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
Now that he thought of it, he realized that it was not impossible. Harry's theory could be right.
However, to figure out more, Harry would have to create a complex formula and undertake constant testing of every Lord, who was willing to spend lots of time and effort to prove Harry's theories right.
"That's exactly what I thought!" Harry exclaimed excitedly, only for his smile to crumple a moment later, "Unfortunately, it's way too hard to prove these theories correct. The government won't give me enough funds to enter the next stage and deepen my understanding of the two theories.
Forget about starting the experiment with thousands of Lords, the funds I've been given won't even be enough to pay a satisfying fee to 10 Lords…"
Usually the reports of thousands of participants were needed to prove a theory right. Of course, it was possible to prove a point with far less, but the government became a lot stricter over the years.
Michael didn't know the exact reason, but it didn't really matter. It was a fact that Harry wouldn't be able to prove his point until he found a few more pieces of evidence that hinted toward the necessity to fund his theories.
However, Michael doubted that this would happen for quite a while. Nobody was keen enough to spend tens of billions on such an experiment. It was more important to fund other things, such as the growth of the newest generation of Lords.
Of course, Harry's research could help a lot. If proven right, his theories could turn into a practice on how to increase a Soultrait's Soul Power using specific training methods for all subjects – to increase their compatibility with their Lord's Soultrait.
However, it was too expensive to prove the point.
And, as a matter of fact, Lords with a high-star Soultrait usually had more benefits, in the first place. Their Soul Power increased rapidly to begin with. Hence, they did not require Harry's theory because it would mostly help those with weaker Soultraits.
Thus, even Michael didn't really feel that it was worth it to fund Harry's experiment. He could use his SoulStar Fragments to increase his Soultraits' Soul Power and their star rating.
"Well…I'm sorry to hear that…" Michael said a little awkwardly. He cleared his throat and took a look at the time.
"Unfortunately, I have to go now. The Real Combat assessment is waiting for me!"
Afterward, Michael disappeared quickly, leaving behind a few stupefied staff members, and Harry Baren, whose expression turned complicated.
"...but the Real Combat assessment won't start before afternoon…"
**
