Return of the Runebound Professor

Chapter 391: The Start of Formations

Chapter 391: The Start of Formations

I can attack you, right? Emily asked, pausing to crack an eye open.

Feel free, Noah replied. Whatever lets you demonstrate your pattern the best.

Emily closed her eye again and nodded. She took another second to steady herself and drew a deep breath in through her nose. Letting it out through her mouth, her eyes snapped open and she lunged forward.

Noah shifted to the side, dodging out of the way of her punch as it whistled past his face. She whirled and sent a hook kick flying at his head. It went wide as Noah leaned back. More attacks followed it in rapid fire succession.

Emily had definitely gotten down the chaotic aspects of a snowstorm. Feet, legs, and elbows mixed in a flurry of strikes. None of them connected. Part of that was because of Noahs own experience hed been in too many fights to get caught off guard by Emily, who was considerably less experienced.

The frustration in Emilys features built as she pushed herself even harder. Attacks came faster. But, if anything, that only made the attack less effective. Emily was already avoiding targeted attacks because of her pattern, which seemed to embody the chaotic path of wind and snow in a storm.

Getting mad only made her blows even less accurate and easier to avoid. Noah dipped and stepped around the attacks. He paid careful attention to Emilys movements and posture. The pattern she was using felt like it had potential. She just wasnt bringing that potential out fully.

Noah caught Emilys wrist as it shot for his face, then spun her around. She let out a yelp and stumbled, nearly completely losing her balance in surprise. She frowned as Noah let her go.

What is it? Emily asked. I wasnt done yet!

Its fine, Emily. You were just going to exhaust yourself, and I think I already got a pretty good understanding of the problem, Noah said.

Emily blinked. She let her hand drop and crossed her arms in front of her chest, the frustration clear in her features. What is it? Ive spent so much time trying to study the snow and ice. I mean, it wasnt like there was an actual storm to look at, but I made small ones to look at. Why wont it click for me?

I dont know if Id say its not clicking, Noah replied. He held a finger up to forestall any more questions. From what he could see, the issue Emily was having had absolutely nothing to do with her understanding of her pattern.

If anything, she seemed to be quite on top of it. Moxies fears that Emily was on the wrong track were mercifully wrong. The problem seemed to be that Emilys pattern was just so chaotic that it was difficult to be effective.

She was wasting an enormous amount of energy and only a small portion of her attacks even had a chance of ever landing. It was basically a pattern that relied fully on overwhelming her opponent or getting a lucky strike in.

And you can only overwhelm an opponent that youre evenly matched with or stronger than. Emily doesnt need an ability that lets her win fights she should be able to win on her own. The pattern should be an edge that pushes her ahead.

What is it? Emily asked desperately, unable to contain herself any longer. Cant you tell me something? What am I doing wrong?

Nothing, Noah replied. Thats why this is difficult.

Nothing? Emily stared at him in befuddlement. Are you just trying to make me feel better or something? I can kind of match up against Isabel, but only just barely. Her pattern is so much better than mine. I have to be screwing something up.

I think the issue is with the pattern itself, Noah said. He caught himself and coughed into a fist. Sorry, that was poorly worded. Its not that the pattern is bad or anything. Its that I think you might be using it wrong.

What do you mean?

Noah sat down on the grass and crossed his legs. After a second, Emily did the same. She stuck her arms out behind her and leaned back as she watched Noah with an expectant look.

Lets say you and Isabel were perfectly matched, okay? Noah asked.

We arent. She wins literally every fight that she tries in. She went easy on me a few times, but that was because she felt bad.

Its a hypothetical.

Emily shrugged. Okay.

So, lets say you each have 100 units of power to work with, Noah said. The power is perfectly equivalent, since no pattern should be better than another.

Emily nodded for him to continue.

When you and Isabel have a serious fight, you both use all your energy. Isabel spends all one hundred on attacks that are all intentionally directed to win the fight. That works for her because her pattern is concentrated into her sword and shes focused on every individual attack as a portion of her pattern.

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Yeah. Its really strong.

Exactly, Noah said. But right now, your pattern spends energy attacking well, everywhere. I feel like less than ten or twenty percent of your strikes are actually something that threatens me. If I was fighting really seriously, I could ignore even more of them. A glancing blow to the shoulder is a worthwhile trade if I pay you back with one to the heart.

Emilys brow furrowed and Noah remained silent to let her think. To Emilys credit, it only took her a few seconds to realize what he was saying. She leaned forward and picked at some of the grass before her with a frown.

Shit. Youre saying I cant beat Isabel because shes using all her energy to attack me while Im basically only using a small portion of mine back at her?

Yeah. If you were fighting a whole horde of enemies, it would be different. Youd need to be able to attack in every single direction at a rapid pace. Your pattern, as it stands now, would be perfect for that.

Thats not really a common scenario, though. Emily pulled up another blade of grass. She pushed it into a ball in her palm and squeezed her hand shut around it. So my pattern is functionally useless.

I wouldnt say that. I think it would be more accurate to say it was useless right now.

Emily burst into laughter. Noah blinked in surprise. That wasnt the response hed been expecting to get. Shaking her head, Emily tossed the ball of grass to the side and gathered herself.

At least youre honest about it, Emily said. I prefer that to just being told everything will be fine if I try hard enough. How do I get past the whole right now part, then? What do I have to do?

Not much, actually. The big problem is that your pattern is ill suited toward hand-to-hand combat, Noah said. Fortunately, patterns are only the first step. Just because something doesnt work now doesnt mean itll be completely useless once you start adding magic.

So Ill catch up to Isabel once I use magic? Emily asked.

Noah waggled a hand back and forth in the air. I dont want to promise that. Theres no guarantee your pattern suddenly becomes useful the instant you start sticking power into it. But I know it can become useful. Its going to be about how creative you can be with your powers and your pattern. And, if you cant find a way to make them mesh, then youll have to find a new pattern and start over.

Emily chewed her lower lip. She looked back down to the grass. Neither of them spoke for several seconds. There was no reason to press Emily any further. She was a smart girl, and like shed observed, dancing around the topic was useless.

Im pretty confident she can find a way to make a pattern like this effective. She just needs to find a way to really optimize it. I dont know what that way is yet, but Id be shocked if she cant figure it out.

How do I put magic into my pattern? Emily asked. Is that the next step? Can I do it now?

Noah chuckled. I figured those questions were coming. Yes, you can but slowly. I want to stress something again to you. Using patterns normally is safe. Using them with magic is not. You could die if you do it without me present. Hell, you might even die if I am here. You need to be incredibly careful. Do you understand?

Emily swallowed and nodded. Yeah. Thats kind of everything with runes though, isnt it? I cant get stronger if I dont put myself through risks to get more energy and better runes.

Thats hardly true. Noble families routinely make Rank 5s that havent seen danger once in their life.

And theyre horrible fighters, Emily said. She crossed her arms and locked eyes with Noah. Im not stupid. I know what goes on. I dont want to be some pampered brat that cant defend herself. Moxie wont always be around to watch over me. I want to be able to defend myself. And, to do that, I need to be strong.

Noah nodded. He rose to his feet and held his hand out. Emily studied it for a second before reaching out and letting him pull her up to her feet.

Then Ill do everything I can to help you fulfill that goal, Noah said. And I figured youd want as much, which is why I pulled you aside first. Before we get started adding magic to patterns, I need you to try to think on why.

Why what?

Why are we adding magic, Noah said. What is it that magic will do to your pattern? What do you want it to do? Think on how it will take the pattern and optimize it so that it can capitalize on its differences instead of suffering from them.

Emily nodded sagely. Then she frowned. How?

If I knew the answer to that, I would have told you already, Noah said with a laugh. That answer is entirely up to you. If it were me, Id probably try to find a way to use less energy on the attacks that didnt hit. I dont exactly know how Id do that, though.

I think I see what youre getting at. If I use less energy, I can afford to miss all those attacks, right? So then Id be able to keep the current pattern. But how do you have an attack that doesnt use energy until you know its connected?

Thats the hard part. Just keep thinking on that. Now that its in your mind, we can get started with the absolute basics. And remember no practicing this on your own.

Or I die. I remember, Emily said.

Good, Noah said with a nod. He paused and pursed his lips. The remembering part, not the dying one. Now, focus on your pattern again. Whenever youre ready, start it again. Then let a tiny amount of energy start flowing from your Rune and into your motions. Its going to be really slow, but dont try to push it at all, even if you feel resistance. Understood?

Yeah.

Emily lowered into a fighting stance and Noahs domain shifted around her. He still wasnt great at controlling it, but he pulled the aura away from Emily gently. He left a very thin layer of it around her to repress any power she used.

She slowed her breathing and closed her eyes to center herself again. Then she burst into motion, trickles of magic tickling Noahs domain as they entered her movements. It was so subtle that anyone who hadnt been paying attention would have missed it but Noah was paying attention.

Tiny motes of crystalline energy swirled off Emilys fists. It wasnt doing anything quite yet, but it wasnt clashing with her. Noahs lips parted in a grin. This was the first time his theory had been proven.

Emily was channeling magic through her pattern. It might have been a miniscule amount of it, but shed done it. His student who had only been practicing for a short time had transformed her very motions into the beginnings of a Formation.