the mane and claws of a lion

Leonel took the brunt of the attack and retaliated with a knee but was stopped by a palm. he jumped back allowing Sarabi to attack with her claws, she slammed down onto Ansel's blade dropping it enough to slash his chest with her razor-sharp tail leaving a mark upon his sturdy chest piece although the force behind the attack pushed him back. crystalline pillars appeared below Ansel attempting to impale him, but years of experience allowed him to use them as springboards to jump up. a mistake, some distance away Leonel held his hand out as two spikes of glint stone were launched from the ground towards Ansel. from below him a fierce Sarabi awaited, her maw agape as blue flames coalesced and formed a rotating blue ball of destruction. he was trapped and he knew it, he gathered some mana from within him and simply formed glint stone out of the very air itself then launched off it towards Leonel avoiding the dangerous blue explosion that struck his former position.

Leonel caught off-guard over seeing someone quite literally defy the laws of gravity didn't have enough time to react and thus a mana coated fist sent him flying towards a nearby tree. he slammed onto it hard but quickly rolled to the side dodging a sword swipe which bisected the tree. " a lesson to remember boy, always make sure your opponent is out of it, the lees enemies you have upon the battlefield the higher your chances of survival go up" Ansel said as he attempted to strike down with the flat of his blade, yet a crystalline tail snaked around the sword arm and pulled him back as he felt a maw bite onto the other arm. a halberd rested upon the crook of his neck as glint stone covered his legs locking them in place." good, very good, you've proven to be able to best a simple newly knighted knight" Ansel said, behind his helmet a proud smile blossomed.

two sets of clapping hands eased Leonel's shoulders as he sucked the mana of the glint stone around him and held the halberd to his side. Sarabi came up to him and gave him a quick dry lick on the cheek then stood to his side. " with this spar you've proven your strength, tomorrow you will begin taking missions from the Carian hall, there they will provide from extermination missions to caravan escort, all goes yet you must be at your best during the full duration, i have more to teach you boy, but you need experience and you simply won't get it from sticking to me like glue, have the day off and rest" Ansel said and as a rare sign of affection he ruffled his hair before walking over to lady Astra's side. ' Good job little cub, I'm proud of you' Sarabi congratulated from their bond. Luna ran up really excited," that was AMAZING Leo!" she said as she shook his shoulder in childish excitement.

" Thank you, Lu, but really without Sarabi this wouldn't have happened" he said, a tail coiled around his arm affectionately, clearly, she liked his compliment. " It sucks though... now you're leaving, and you've been here for barely a couple of days..." she said as the reality of the situation came crashing down on her. " don't worry Lu even if I leave ill always find my way back to you" he said absentmindedly wondering what his first mission would be like. she stared at him wide eyed as a slight blush crept upon her, a radiant smile bloomed soon after. " of course, you're my sword and shield, no? you'll always come back... for now let's play something!" she said, excitement welling up yet again. " Sure, let me change from this equipment and we can play whatever you want" he said as he walked towards the equipment shack at the corner of the training ground.

soon after giggles and peals of two happy children echoed out. Astra watched them chase each other as Sarabi watched over them perched atop a glint stone pedestal. she smiled, happy to see her daughter make progress, her own mother never allowed anything to develop between her and Ansel, yet the bond formed between them only left behind a bittersweet feeling. conviction flashed in her eyes, 'child, mother will aid you in this, it is up to you to deliver the final blow' she thought as she leaned on the windowsill, a soft smile on her face. the next day came quick, Leonel could be seen sparring against Sarabi trying to get more and more used to her presence on the battlefield. 'Enough you two, come here Leonel, I... commissioned a set of armor from an old friend of mine as well as a new halberd, they like my armor and sword grow alongside the wielder by feeding on their mana, come try it on" Ansel said as he walked over with a large box and a halberd like shape covered in cloth. Leonel took the helmet and gazed upon it in awe, a heavy piece of armor almost resembling a lion's visage yet a glint stone crown atop it made it look even more regal, the long flowing blue hairs flowing from it resembled a lion's mane. only three slits upon it for the eyes and mouth yet when he put it on, he could see Cleary as if the helmet wasn't on him.

" All the armor has been enchanted by an old friend of mine; the helmet has been given a translucent enchantment from within so that your eyesight is not hampered" Ansel explained. Leonel removed his training armor and picked up the breastplate, a large piece of steel, heavy to say the least yet he knew that its armor was probably incredibly high. on it several engravings could be seen, as if telling an age-old story, it depicted warriors of different heritages and lords, all kneeling before a majestic lion at the center, behind the lion a resplendent moon shone with its full might illuminating all. " The armor is made of a glint stone steel alloy tempered in dragon fire, the mana conductivity is far higher than your training equipment, it's been enchanted to take blunt damage and the force behind it then turn it into mana for you to use" Ansel explained.

Leonel put it on and felt it shape and size itself to his body snugly covering him. the shoulder plates almost flowed with his movement never truly restricting him. he picked up the arm guards, they too told a story, the left one showed a glowing blue lion encrusted in glint stone leading a large army, the moon behind their backs shining and invigorating them all. the right one showed a lion standing at the peak of a snowy mountain roaring at the moon, bellow him was a sea of warriors kneeling. "truthfully I have no clue what those mean, the enchantress has the ability to divine even without the stars so that could be prophecies or just pretty decorations but never doubt the enchantments, both are enchanted to the extreme, both capable of storing excess mana for when you need it and both are easily capable of deflecting any blows, the gloves themselves are enhanced to better allow mana transfer and focus, oh did i mention that the insides of all these pieces are lined with dragon hide?" Ansel said, a smug smile upon his face as he watched the gob smacked boy put it on.

Leonel pushed forward and picked up the last set of armor, the leg plates and steel boots. the legs too told a tale, a large lion stood atop a cliff overlooking several other lions of different sizes and shapes, they looked upon him not as the pack alfa but more of as their family, how Leonel could tell this he had no clue. the other leg showed a lion standing proudly, the most alarming thing was the burning Erd tree behind him. still, he donned it all. the boots resembling lion's paws yet extremely snug on his feet. " My friend said something of "it can allow for his transformation as well" whatever that means I guess only you would know, tell me boy what do you think of it?" Ansel asked, a tinge of anticipation on his tone. "it's amazing to say the least... truly thank you master; with this I feel like I can take on anyone and come out on top" Leonel said as he clenched his gauntleted fist feeling the power behind it.

"Good to hear now try out your new weapon" Ansel said as he removed the cloth from a beautiful halberd. large in size with a crescent shape, it sloped to the top coming out onto a point. truly a masterwork in itself. the moment Leonel touched it; the thing shrunk in size perfect for his height. he griped it in wonder. it felt incredibly light to him yet when he placed it on a stone next to him the thing cracked it from the weight. " Made by an old blacksmith friend of mine, one of his best works he said, the weapon was also enchanted to fit you no matter the size, gravity enchantments have been placed on it allowing the increase of weight up to 12 tons" Ansel said as he watched him swing it around without any form of style. he frowned as he realized the boy had no fighting style at all. he reached for the space on his left as Ansel watched in astonishment as he dragged out a scroll. " This is my final gift, the Gundyr style, I found it in some old ruins long ago, it's meant for halberds so it'll be more than perfect for you, study it well whenever you have time, before we head off for the Carian Hall, I will teach you the glint stone space technique that way you can store your things in it instead of carrying everything around" he said, Leonel sat before him in rapt attention.

" This technique is simple, the space around us holds ambient mana, correct? then this very space will be able to hold more than just mana, watch me closely boy" he said before he wreathed his hand in mana and pierced a hole into the air itself and dragged his hand out revealing his sword. "Our own personal mana is inherently different than anyone else's thus only you could access your layer of space, go and try it but remember that you want to open the space not punch the air itself, sorcery is stronger when accurate thoughts are behind it" he said. Leonel did just that, he dragged a sliver of his growing mana and wreathed his hand in it then struck out, he felt like he pierced a thin veil and opening his eyes confirmed it. he instinctively knew that nothing laid inside his space, but he picked up his halberd and threw it in before closing it. he tried it again and thought of his halberd then felt it enter his hand then he pulled it. "Good, now you have access to infinite storage, just remember that the larger and heavier the item is the more mana is required, oh and don't throw anything living inside, the space has no air so you'll just suffocate someone in there although it could be used as a weapon now that I think about it" Ansel said as he scratched his chin.

" Now then, we should fill that space up with some supplies before heading for the hall, come boy were burning daylight" he said before walking deeper into the manor, Leonel right behind him. a quick raid of the kitchen dealt with any food issues for the next 12 years alongside some sets of bedrolls and tents he was set. soon enough it was time to leave. they headed for the gate of the manor knowing full well that Leonel wouldn't be stepping foot here for possibly a decade, or until He's called back Sarabi right by his side. one of the windows held a mother and daughter pair, Luna cried onto her Bussom as she watched her only friend leave for who knows how long. " shush child, know that he does this for you, do you think that Leonel would want to see you like this? he'll be gone for some time yes, but he will be back, now then child, when he gets back you can show him the might and beauty of a lady of Caria mhmm?" astra said as she consoled her daughter. Luna looked up to her, tears in her eyes yet a fierce determination present, she turned to the window and got a final glimpse of his retreating back before heading towards the study room with steady steps.