He passed through the gate and moved through the town. He watched the villagers. Children fighting with wooden spears, people shopping from shops... then he stopped in front of an inn. He got off his horse, hitched his horse to the place where horses were tied, and entered the inn. Inside, villagers, warriors, and all kinds of business owners were sitting in the center, drinking and laughing. He arranged a room for today with the innkeeper. And he left the inn. His palms were sweaty. He didn't like crowded environments.
He began to wander around, thinking of wandering a bit and then going to a place where he could be alone to try the necklace.
He glanced at many things such as the goods sold by vendors, food, weapons, spells, and weapons enhanced with Essence. Where the shops ended, he saw the houses where the people lived; most houses were two stories and made with various stones. He moved toward a separated area covered with grass where he saw children doing combat training.
A little further on, he saw a group sitting on the ground. A man's hair and beard had grown long and straightened. And his hair had turned completely dark. It was clear he was old. This man was sitting on a rock, and children were sitting on the grass in front of him, listening to him. He approached close enough to hear and leaned against a tree. There were more trees inside the settlement compared to the outside.
The old man seemed to be giving the children information about the lineages and the wars. And his speech was closer to Surface speech, like an educated person.
"Children, you have heard of 5 important lineages. I will tell you what they are. These lineages were formed in ancient times to be a power besides the Emperor and to protect the weak. The Loyalty, the lineage that advocates being loyal to the people and being just. The Power, a lineage that tells the strong to protect the weak and uses its power for this. The Wisdom, the lineage that aims to develop its people using knowledge and science and advocates for learning instead of power. The Freedom, the lineage of those who want to be free without being tied to a place. The Compassion, the lineage that tries to prevent discrimination by advocating that every living thing should be treated well and can be forgiven. These emerged as a small group at the beginning. Then, as they multiplied and grew stronger, they began to keep themselves separate from others. They applied their virtues only to those of their own kind and they became corrupted. The lineages of the actual founders formed the governing groups, and even their languages became different from the people. I am one of them. However, this corrupted order was not for me, and I came here to be close to the people again. I am trying to show you the way by teaching you these things so that you do not obey the orders of the ruling nobles without questioning."
While the children listened with excitement at first, they didn't seem to care much about the advice the man gave, talking and laughing among themselves. There were those who listened among them, but it's unknown how much they understood.
Even though Khaia knew a bit about these from what he read, he didn't know the meanings and the corruption. Because the books he read were Surface books. The children got up and went to play games by running. Some were wrestling.
The man had bowed his head toward the rock he was sitting on and was straightening his already straight beard with his hand. Khaia thought he could learn more things from this man, and the man looked like someone trustworthy.
He approached the man. The man raised his head and looked toward Khaia.
"Young man, are you a stranger?"
Khaia raised his eyebrows and spoke; "Yes, it's my first time here."
"Do you know the Surface language? Your way of speaking is similar."
"Yes, my mother was a Surface-dweller."
The man smiled. "So you are a half-breed. This is the reason why I feel very little Essence in your blood. Do you want something?"
"I heard what you told, and I thought you are an educated person. I need someone to help me."
"Of course. I will be helpful for the things I can do."
He thought he wanted to trust the man. But he couldn't tell everything, especially the necklace. And he sat on the rock next to the man.
"I am a half-breed, but I won't die; think of me as an exception. And trusting your knowledge, I want to learn the Essence techniques and how Essence is used, how it feels."
The man looked into Khaia's eyes. There seemed to be doubt in his eyes for a while, but then they returned to their former state.
"Alright. You don't need to tell the things you want to hide. I am not interested in your lineage either. I cannot teach every Essence technique I know to someone I don't trust. However, there are things I can teach you. I can explain the use of Essence and the feeling. My goal is to teach my knowledge to others. For this, I will of course explain information that will not contain danger apart from some of my information, and I will not ask the reason."
The old man was a truly good person. Khaia felt like the man could catch and interrogate him if he wanted to.
"Thank you, I would be very happy if you can explain now."
"Of course, I will. Essence use and the feeling of Essence are already intertwined subjects. First, you need to understand that using Essence doesn't actually mean spending Essence. Essence is secreted by that big tree you see, which we call the World Tree and is also known by different names. We don't have much information about how it happens. There are those who call this Essence 'The Blood of The Tree' and see it as holy. I will refer to it as Essence while explaining. This Essence mixes with the air, soil, and water. Some creatures can use this Essence unintentionally. We, on the other hand, can use Essence intentionally and for certain purposes. It is mostly used for fighting in combat and in special weapons. It can also be used in some systems and various machines. However, you want to learn the one for fighting. The Essence in the air, soil, and water can pass into our blood through contact. It circulates in the blood of every creature. Some who possess superior techniques can suck the Essence from the soil or water into their bodies; these are the exceptions. Normal ones use the Essence in the air and in their bodies. From the moment you are born, Essence accumulates in your body and circulates in the blood. Essence use begins with learning to direct the Essence in your blood by focusing on it. Essence responds to will; the stronger your will and mind, the better you control it. The directed Essence is released out through certain organs; it is used in wars by transforming Essence into certain things. To land a powerful blow, you gather the Essence in your fist and release it by transforming it into a force outside. Think of it like energy. Or you gather it in your eyes and develop your vision. As your mind develops and you get used to this, you also start to be able to feel Essence. In this way, you can predict the movements of creatures. As another use, for example, there are those who use spells; they direct Essence onto certain writings and shapes and transform Essence directly into a spell; spells are a completely different world, how spells are formed and where they come from is still not known for certain. Or you transform Essence into fire and can attack with fire; however, it is difficult to control the fire you release after transforming Essence into fire; for this, you need to combine the fire with Essence and control the Essence. There are many more usage methods. To learn how to use it, you must develop your mind and give your focus to Essence. When your mind and Essence come together, it becomes like moving your arm. For this, first try to control the free Essence found outside, in nature, instead of the Essence in your body. You cannot transform free Essence as you wish, but you can control it for a short time; think of this as practice. The Essence in your body, on the other hand, is now one with you and only you can control it. This is all I can say. I hope you understood. I am knowledgeable but I am not very good at explaining. And as I said, I cannot explain the techniques I use; you aren't the only person with secrets."
Khaia listened until the end, and even though there were things he didn't understand, he wanted to try as soon as possible.
"Thank you. It's late now, I need to go. This much information is enough for me."
The man stayed sitting there, approving with his eyes and head.
Khaia left from there and entered the forested area on the side of the city. He came to an area where he could be alone and was eating his meal.
After finishing his meal, he wanted to learn to control Essence thoroughly and use the necklace with the things his mother taught and the man explained. Thanks to his mother, he knew how to control the free Essence in nature. Just as the man said, his mother had taught this first. But even if he felt the Essence in his body, it was very difficult to control it; he felt like he could do it now thanks to the necklace.
His meal was finished. He took off the leather garment on him, looked at the necklace, and lay down on his back; he now needed to learn how to use it.