George had never been this exhausted in his entire life. His breath came shallow and ragged, his arms bruised, sweat soaking his shirt like a second skin. Before dawn, he'd been dragged to the Phantom Hunters' inner training field — a massive dome-like chamber deep inside the Institute, where gravity could be dialed up or down.
For the past six hours, it had been set to double Earth's gravity.
"I thought this was spiritual training, not a death sentence," George gasped, collapsing against the smooth white wall — now his best friend.
Saya stood nearby, flawless as ever, not a bead of sweat on her. "Every Phantom Hunter trains here," she said calmly. "If you can't move under double gravity, you won't survive a Phantom. Their very presence weighs you down."
George managed a weak grin. "And yet… here I am. Still alive."
"Barely," Saya smirked.
Lawrence entered then, black coat flowing behind him like a shadow. No gear, no orders — just quiet authority that made the air tense.
"You're awake," he said simply.
"Not much choice," George replied.
"Good. Then you're ready."
"The First Step: Feel the Flame"Lawrence gestured to a small stone slab rising from the floor's center.
"Sit," he commanded.
George obeyed, crossing his legs despite the soreness.
"To control Lixar, you don't start by using it," Lawrence began, pacing behind him. "You start by feeling it. A pulse beneath your skin — deeper than blood, quieter than breath."
"Every awakened soul burns with Lixar. But not every flame dances the same. Some flicker with anger. Others hum with sorrow. Yours…"
George closed his eyes.
He remembered the Phantom attack. His brother gasping. His mother bleeding. The rage. The flare — the surge inside him that pushed the Phantom away.
"That was your first spark," Lawrence whispered, placing a hand on George's back. "Now we fan it."
George inhaled deeply.
For a moment, silence.
Then — warmth. A flicker of heat at the base of his spine, flowing slowly upward through his chest.
"There," Lawrence said. "That's your Lixar."
Faint, but real. Alive.
"The Second Step: Ko — Control Through Focus"
"Now bring it to your fist," Lawrence said. "Visualise it. Compress it."
George clenched his right hand, focusing.
The warmth pulsed in his chest, creeping down his arm.
"Ko is all about intention," Saya said. "Concentration. You're wrapping your Lixar into one part — turning it into a weapon or shield. Like putting fire in a box."
His fingers trembled, teeth clenched. It was like forcing water through a clogged pipe. The Lixar resisted — stubborn, raw.
But George refused to stop.
He remembered the Phantom's hollow eyes, the way it tossed him aside like a ragdoll.
Never again.
Suddenly, his hand ignited in a bright blue shimmer — not flame, but pure Lixar. Condensed. Sharp.
The weight was heavy but steady. A humming vibration echoed in his bones.
"Good," Lawrence said. "Now hit the target."
A steel dummy rose from the floor.
George stood, raised his glowing fist, and charged.
With a shout, he struck.
A shockwave blasted outward; the dummy dented inward, deep and clean.
George stumbled back, stunned.
His knuckles buzzed with lingering energy.
"I… actually did it."
Saya cracked a faint smile. "Fast learner."
"But," Lawrence warned, "you were wide open everywhere else. Against a Phantom, you'd be dead before your next breath."
The Third Step: Gill — Spread Through DisciplineHours passed in drills.
Lawrence had George switch between Ko strikes, sharpening his control.
Then came Gill.
"Think of it as armor," Saya explained. "Instead of pouring Lixar into one fist, you spread it evenly — thin, like a second skin."
George stood, breathing deep. This time, the energy radiated outward — across shoulders, legs, core.
Harder than Ko.
Ko was like aiming a hose at a cup.
Gill was misting an entire greenhouse.
At first, the light flickered unevenly — arms glowing but back dark. Then it overcorrected and collapsed.
"You're trying to control it like muscle," Lawrence said. "It's not muscle. It's rhythm. Don't force Gill — sync with it."
George tried again, matching his heartbeat to the flow.
His breath slowed.
Lixar moved.
His whole body shimmered with soft pale light.
The veil of Gill.
"Move," Saya ordered.
He ran, rolled, leapt from platforms.
Every move burned, but he felt it — protection. Not as strong as Ko, but steady.
He tackled a practice dummy. The recoil barely bruised him.
"You've got it," Lawrence said quietly. "Your body's listening to your soul."
The Fourth Step: Rei — Awareness Is SurvivalGeorge had assumed sensory techniques would be easier. They weren't.
Rei required calm — something he had little of.
Lawrence took him outside the dome, into the woods beyond the Institute.
"Close your eyes," Lawrence said. "Now… spread."
George sat cross-legged under a tree. Lixar glowed faintly on his skin.
The first attempts were chaotic — his field too wide, blurring everything, then too narrow, then too strong, making him dizzy.
But finally, balance.
A steady 150-meter radius.
He could feel bark texture, hear animals' breath, detect grass movements.
Then — something else approached fast.
He snapped his eyes open just in time to dodge Saya's throwing knife.
She smirked. "Good. You're improving."
George exhaled.
Sore. Tired.
Awake.
Dusk settled, the sun's last rays melting behind the trees.
George stood beside Lawrence and Saya, hands tingling with residual energy.
"You've done well," Lawrence said. "Ko, Gill, and Rei — more than most recruits manage in a month."
"But the next steps," Saya added, "will be harder."
George glanced at his hands.
"What about Ying? And Affinity?"
"Not ready," Lawrence said.
"I still don't know what my Affinity is."
"You'll discover it when your soul calls for it," Lawrence said softly. "Usually in the face of death or a deep desire to protect."
George nodded, silent.
A long road lay ahead.
But he had taken the first steps.
Not just to protect his family.
But to stand as a Hunter — a shield between humanity and the horrors lurking in the dark.