After having his meal, Asher went to his bedroom, crossed his legs while sitting on the floor, some meters away from the mural and he began to meditate.
The art of meditation was foreign to him in the beginning but with time, he was slowly growing used to it. Previously, it would take a while before he could sink into his subconsciousness but now it was faster.
Meditation was a state of forging the mind.
The mind was the main weapon of every warrior, especially a swordsman. It was the core, the heart, the weakest and the strongest point of every warrior.
As he sank into a meditative state, the scope of his senses were increased by several folds, so much that he could hear the sound of King Swordsmen walking within the building and maids doing their chores.
Though he could hear their voices, it was muffled and made no sense.
All of a sudden, crimson light began to manifest, billowing upwards like flames. Without his knowledge, his body was being tempered, and his bones and muscles were absorbing a great amount of his battle force, but when it seemed like his reserves were running out, the billowing force would subside, accumulate, and spike after a while.
This was the main secret about the Shura Blade Battle Art. It constantly tempered the bodies of the practitioners until their bodies had the traits of blades. Their features are sharpened and just by releasing their aura, they could cause a piercing effect.
A swing of their sword would release a sharp, visible battle force, usually in the shape of a crescent light.
Notably, diamond-ranked individuals were able to release battle force from their bodies and cause damages greater than the reach of their weapons but not all diamond-ranked individuals could do it.
Performing such feats depended on battle force arts.
Because of this, Asher needed to get his commanders a flame attribute battle art that was higher than the Blazing Battle Force in order for them to master output. Output was the ability of releasing battle force to deal greater damage.
It could not be used for defence. For this reason, armor still reigned supreme.
While Asher was in a state where his spirit and body were silent, a certain consciousness longed for one of his ancestors to appear.
All of a sudden, the sound of knocks fell into his ears.
"Your Lordship!" Kelvin's concerned voice rang.
Asher opened his eyes. Unbeknownst to him, his dull golden eyes sparkled for a bit. Like the legendary burning golden eyes in the days of Lord Zenas.
Almost instantly, the door swung open and Kelvin rushed in with hurried steps. "My Lord, you did not eat your lunch and your dinner. You have tens of thousands under you; depriving yourself of food is unhealthy."
Kelvin spoke sternly.
Asher rose to his feet and clenched his fingers. Kelvin heard them pop so loud that he had to raise an eyebrow.
Was his lord's tendons made of steel?
The candle in Kelvin's hand was the only source of light in the room and it illuminated some parts of his face, revealing his sharpened features.
"You're growing thinner. You must eat meat and drink lots of milk for supper." Kelvin said with a crisp tone. He misunderstood Asher's refinement for him growing thin due to starvation.
His misunderstanding was plausible due to the fact that Baron James Ashbourne, Asher's father, never entered the realm of meditation as did his other sons so while Kelvin knew about meditation, he lacked knowledge of the effects.
He walked toward his window and looked at the stronghold. There were lamps and torches at some parts of the stronhold, while some were in pitch darkness.
The walls were the brightest. Large fires were arrayed throughout the walls to keep the soldier's space bright so they could not be blind to attacks.
Looking beyond the walls, all Asher saw was darkness.
"Kelvin. Have you published the news of my new title?"
"I have. Your name is on the lips of almost everyone in Ashkelon, Nineveh, and Silverleaf. They all know you've risen House Ashbourne to the level of a count."
He looked at the white-haired man whose gold-rimmed spectacles reflected softly and exhaled.
"That darkness is now my domain. What do you think I should do with it? I planned on expanding into the desolatelands, but the cold, old races, and lots of unknown factors bothers me. It will be harder to conquer than the wastelands."
"Both the wastelands and the desolatelands are the Endless Northlands and they should belong to an Ashbourne. You're hiding from the noble world, Your Highness. It's time we reveal to the world the might of the Ashbourne knights."
Asher sat on his bed and entwined his fingers.
"Once I have taken over Baron Tyre and Baron Scarlet, the Flamehearts will be wary toward us. Do you think he might ally with the southern wasteland lords, who are direct vassals of Count William?"
Kelvin adjusted his spectacles, revealing this was a tough question.
"I can not answer this question." He smiled wryly.
"I will not cross the borders of his domain if he trusts the alliance but now that I'm about to step into the world, won't he feel like I have no need for his help anymore?"
"You're concerned about him."
"I am. I don't want him to make a mistake that would turn us into enemies. After all, he gave me a treasured weapon."
Asher looked at Euodias, resting horizontally on its stand.
He proceeded to rise up from the bed and leave for the dining room. The moment he entered the dining room, he saw Cynthia ordering maids to arrange his meals.
The aroma of the roasted hexakad chicken activated his hunger. Luckily, he had merged more chickens to produce more diamond-ranked chickens.
Almost no one had ever been given a complete diamond-ranked hexakad to feast on.
The moment he sliced a small part and slowly savoured the juicy taste, Kelvin cleared his throat.
"Your Highness, when shall you head for Nimrim, the olive town?"