Chapter 7: A Weird Cocktail and Lidor’s Decision

Auren sits at the breakfast table, thinking through his current priorities.I have three months. Master told us that if he acknowledges our results, we’ll receive another reward. He expects us to focus on Ren. However, I have many options—but it all comes down to Ren as well. To learn advanced techniques like Gyo, In, Ko, Ryu, Ken, and En, I need to master Ren first. It makes no sense to start working on advanced techniques without fully mastering Ren—it’s still one of the Four Major Principles, the foundation of Nen. However… I can probably study Shu. I’ll be maintaining my Ten practice anyway while training Ren.

Also… once I’m able to properly use Ren, I need to find out my Nen Affinity. That’s extremely important.

Suddenly, No. 24 speaks up, pulling Auren out of his thoughts.

“You seem to be in deep thought. Struggling with Master’s task?”

“It’s only been a day, and yeah— of course I’m still struggling. But I can already see the path forward. I’ll get there eventually,” Auren replies confidently.

No. 24 looks slightly panicked, not expecting such an open answer. They both continue eating without saying anything else.

Auren continues training as much as he can, devoting most of his effort to mastering Ren. Because of the immense Aura consumption, Auren decides to work on Ren multiple times each day—but only for short periods—leaving him with enough energy to focus on his other classes.

During class, while practicing Ten, Auren also begins training Shu in secret. He comes up with his own set of exercises. First, he focuses his Aura on his pen, doing his best to prevent any leakage, just maintaining his Aura around the pen. Later, he wraps a small piece of paper in his Aura and tries to use it to pierce and slice through a thick stack of old notes he no longer has any use for.

He also trains with his bokken, trying to reinforce it using Shu.

Regardless of what type of Nen user I am, basic Enhancement techniques will be valuable to me. Shu is strongest when performed by Enhancers, but as a swordsman, I’d be an idiot not to study it. It’s probably one of my most important advanced skills—and one of the easiest to train. After all, it’s just an advanced use of Ten. That means I can train both Ten and Shu at the same time.

Time passes. Auren settles deeper into his solitary lifestyle. Ever since moving into his private room, he rarely interacts with the other students—only occasionally talking with No. 4, No. 6, and No. 24.

Eventually, after nearly two and a half months, he reaches a small breakthrough. He can maintain Ren for a solid ten minutes. His Aura is still not very powerful, but it’s stable.

On a Sunday—exactly 8 days before the three-month mark, and before another student is expected to be dismissed—Auren enters his room, holding a wooden cup filled with water. He places it on his desk and stands in front of it. From his pocket, he pulls out a small leaf—plucked from one of the few trees in the yard—and places it into the cup, where it’s floating.

Nervously and with growing curiosity, he stares at the water, preparing for his Affinity test.

This is exciting… Water Divination! Let’s begin!

He activates Ren, placing his hands just above the cup.

Slowly, he begins to notice a subtle reaction—tiny drops of water trickling down the outside of the cup. It isn’t much, but the water level inside has risen slightly and begins to overflow.

I’m an Enhancer… that’s kind of boring—but I’ll take it. Enhancers are balanced in offense, and defense—they can straight up beat most other types in a fair fight, as long as no specialized Hatsu is involved. Still… it’s weird. I always thought I would be a Transmuter or a Conjurer. And these memories—they don’t feel like they belong to an Enhancer either. Anyway, let’s continue.

Smiling, Auren places a small cleaning rag beneath the cup and continues. More water trickles out as he maintains Ren, pouring more and more Aura into the water.

After about ten minutes, he’s panting, his body covered in sweat. The rag beneath the cup is now fully soaked.

Grinning, Auren picks up the cup and takes a deep sip.

What?! This… this is water. But it’s slightly… sweet? No—am I imagining things?

He takes another sip, not immediately swallowing this time, but slowly letting his tongue taste the water.

No, I’m not wrong. It’s sweet. It tastes like the mint tea we occasionally get to drink. Refreshing and light… but how? I’m an Enhancer. I need to check for other changes!!

Still confused, Auren examines the cup carefully. The water is clear—no sign of any foreign substance or impurities, ruling out Conjuration. The leaf isn’t moving, so he’s not a Manipulator either. There’s no unusual reaction, no phenomenon that would point to Specialization.

He lifts the cup toward the window, letting sunlight hit it directly.

It’s… slightly blue? The color definitely changed. Just a little. Like the taste—it’s barely noticeable, but it’s there. Could it be? I never thought about it before, but… I was close to death. The day those foreign memories entered my mind, I felt like a different person. Confident, calculating… stronger. Could it be? Maybe I was originally a Transmuter, and the memories came from someone who was an Emitter? Could these be remnants of two separate souls? The combination would indeed end up as an Enhancer, but there is something of both left.

In any case, I don’t think it makes that much of a difference—not right now. But I’ll need to run more tests to be sure. This could be a unique opportunity for me.

For now, I should act and train like an Enhancer. But if I’m right… I might be able to integrate both Transmutation and Emission into my Hatsu. In fact—I have to. Using Water Divination, is a great exercise for Hatsu training that usually only trains the type in question. If the water shows traces of both Emission and Transmutation, ignoring those affinities would be a waste. Still… if my Enhancement affinity is weakened because I’m sharing it with another soul, that could be a problem. Either way—I can’t let anyone know. Ever. My life depends on it.

Even more motivated than before, Auren throws himself into his training. The day before the next three-month evaluation—when, as always, one student is expected to be dismissed—he decides to rest. He practices Zetsu, aiming to be in perfect condition for Master Lidor’s appraisal tomorrow.

Suddenly, loud screams echo through the walls of his room.

It’s past curfew… what’s going on?!

Auren rushes downstairs and finds the other students gathered in the lobby.

He spots No. 22 and approaches him. “What happened?!”

“Heh. Someone ran. Apparently, it was No. 13! Everyone else is present,” 22 says with a smug grin. “Also, that guy did nothing but stuff his face all day! With that fat belly, he won’t get far, trust me.”

“How was he detected?” Auren asks, intrigued that a student actually dared to escape.

“I… don’t know? The master suddenly started screaming, and then he and Buno and Bunu just rushed outside. He Looked very pissed.”

How did they even notice someone was missing in the first place? Anyway… I want to see how this ends. I can train my Zetsu in the meantime.

Ninety minutes pass. Auren, sitting in his room practicing Zetsu, his senses sharpened, hears another commotion downstairs. He quickly rushes down again.

Master Lidor returns, carrying a beaten and bruised boy—No. 13. The boy is covered in cuts, his mouth bleeding, and he’s missing a tooth.

Looks like he got a real beating. But why bring him back… only to dismiss him tomorrow?

Uninterested in the rest of the drama, Auren quietly returns to his room, lying down in his bed.

The next morning, during breakfast, Elder Lidor storms into the dining hall, still visibly irritated.

“As you saw with No. 13, running away has consequences. He’ll spend the next few weeks in his bed, only receiving dry, stale bread and water. Let that be a lesson to the rest of you. Don’t run away. I will catch you, and next time, the punishment will make this one look like a joke.”

He pauses, then scans the room, eying his students, before his gaze lingers on a boy.

“Now, onto business. No. 18, you are excused from training. I’m sure you expected this. According to Buno and Bunu, you barely tried during physical sessions. Old Mu told me you intentionally failed your last exam. I have no use for students like that. You’ll work for me for the next ten years. Consider yourself lucky. But if you want to stay under my wing, you better change that attitude.”

Wait… he’s not dismissing No. 13, even after trying to escape? Why?! He punished him, he was so angry that he even beat him up—why would he let him stay? No. 18 didn’t try anymore, but he doesn’t seem much weaker than 13…. Why did Master make this decision? He’s clearly still angry. Wouldn’t it be simpler to make an example out of the runner and send him away?

Later that day, after sword practice, Elder Lidor approaches Auren, No. 4, No. 6, and No. 24, who are quietly seated in the training hall.

“I’m in a bad mood,” he begins. “I’ll inspect each of you. But before that—has anyone experimented with their new abilities? I’ll find out either way, but I’m giving you a single chance to confess.”

I have an idea… this might backfire, but if it works, I’ll be safe—and make myself look like an obedient coward.

Auren fidgets, making it obvious. Lidor immediately locks eyes with him.

“No. 23… what is it? This is unlike you. Speak.”

“Master… I think I accidentally discovered a hidden technique,” Auren stammers. “I didn’t mean to.”

“What did you discover?” Lidor asks sharply, a hint of worry visible on his face.

“I… used Ten while training with my sword, and at one point, I focused so hard, my Aura started wrapping around the weapon. I only noticed it recently.”

Lidor’s expression softens, then he laughs.

“You fool. That’s nothing to worry about. I’m a fair teacher, as I hope you’ve realized by now. What you discovered is a natural extension of Ten—some call it Shu. It means to enshroud an object with your Aura. I expected you to figure it out eventually. It’s actually part of my core teachings. I was intending to teach you that technique in a few years. No harm in addressing it early.”

He continues, “Shu strengthens any object you’re holding. In your case, it makes your bokken more durable. Continue practicing it. And as a reward for your honesty, I’ll teach you a different exercise involving Shu in a few months—once your Ren improves a little more.”

Lidor scans the others. “Does anyone else have something to say? As you’ve seen instead of getting punished, I rewarded No. 23 for his honesty!”

No one else speaks up, silence lingers in the room

“Fine! Then show me your Ren. Don’t go all out—just maintain a steady output. I want to see how stable your Aura is.”

Auren activates Ren, holding back slightly. After glancing at the others’ Aura, he adjusts his output to match—or maybe even slightly exceed—their level.

I don’t want the Master to think my Aura output is lower!

No. 4 and No. 6 begin to falter quickly. Their Aura becomes unstable, and within 3 to 4 minutes, both are forced to stop. No. 24 holds on longer, but collapses after 8 minutes.

I’m near my limit, too.

Lidor watches Auren closely, noting the gradual weakening of his Aura.

Eventually, the elder raises his hand. “Enough! The strength of your Ren is acceptable—but you must maintain it longer. I expect you to last at least 10 minutes! You had three full months of training, after all. No. 23, you barely passed. The rest of you need to improve. No. 24, you were close, but you still fell short by two full minutes.”

Auren lets out a quiet breath, satisfied with the result.

Lidor turns to him, approval visible on his face.

“No. 23, your reward is this: you may request teachings from Buno and Bunu. They don’t specialize in swordsmanship like me, but in martial arts. By now, you should have realized that they’re quite strong, despite their weird looks. This is your chance to learn something I can’t personally teach you. Don’t waste this opportunity.”

He adds, “While I usually discourage learning too many things at once… a bit of martial arts knowledge might serve you well in the long run.”

Not bad. I’m curious to see what they can teach me.