“Hello, class, good morning. Today, we’ll be continuing our lesson on energy types. There are a total of twenty energy types. In alphabetical order, they are air, cosmic, dark, electric, fire, ground, ice, insect, lava, light, metal, normal, plant, plasma, reptile, sound, spirit, toxic, water, and wood. Each energy type has its own real-world applications, as well as its strengths and weaknesses. Let us look at the ground type as an example. Humans use ground-type creatures to build infrastructure, garden, and mine. Of course, ground-type creatures use ground energy to fight both in the wild and in competitive fighting. For greater success in fighting, it’s essential to look at the energy matchup in any given fight. Ground-type attacks will naturally deal more damage against sound-type creatures than they would against insect-type creatures. For a complete understanding of type matchups, we can turn to the type chart, which indicates the base damage rate for all matchups in number form.”

  For a change, Axel and Spliff listened intently to the lecture. They absorbed information like a sponge when they paid attention.

  When school was over, Axel and Spliff walked to Brace's house to see what he was doing. Walking around the town was always a peaceful experience. The people were kind and friendly, and the town was among the safest on the planet—a quiet town with a small population of about two thousand two hundred people.

  When Axel and Spliff arrived at the eastern outskirts of the town where Brace lived, they saw Brace practicing his swordsmanship outside on his front lawn. After their hellos, the boys watched as Brace worked tirelessly, swinging his sword repeatedly. His movements were rigid yet flowed, and sweat covered his body, for he had already practiced for hours before the boys arrived. The boys could tell Brace was a master by how he swung the sword using his whole body efficiently, and then again, the same way he had done it before. After about an hour of watching, Spliff could no longer hold in the question that had been on both his and Axel's minds since they arrived.

  “Can you teach us how to use a sword, Brace?”

  “I already told you no. Besides, I'm already done for today.” Brace replied as he sheathed his sword.

  “So what are you gonna do now, Brace?” Asked Axel.

  “I need to study.” Said Brace.

  If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

  “Study what?” Asked Axel.

  “Sometimes, when people enter a dungeon, they write down their findings so others can learn from their experience. I stay updated with what's going on in the dungeon community so that I can learn from others and be as safe as possible when I enter dungeons.” Said Brace.

  “Cool,” said Spliff. Can you read it out loud so we can hear it?”

  “Sure, why not?” Brace said with a cheerful smile.

  That night, Brace, Axel, and Spliff stayed up late and listened to all kinds of recent treasure-hunting stories in a magazine that Brace was subscribed to — stories about rags to riches, battles over discovered items with incredible powers, and losses of companions. The boys listened with infatuation the whole night through, amazed that some men and women would put their lives on the line for the chance of treasure, and even more amazed that their friend Brace would embark on his own adventures, just like the ones in the stories, when he was out of town. When the boys began to look as though they were falling asleep, Brace offered to walk them to Axel's house.

  “Mr.Knapps? Do you think Spliff and I could be treasure hunters like you someday?” Asked Axel.

  “I think you can do whatever you guys put your mind to,” replied Brace. “But treasure hunting is very dangerous. I think it’d be best if you guys focused on your studies for now instead of thinking about becoming treasure hunters.”

  “I understand,” Axel said, half asleep.

  “Hello, Mrs. Asrock,” Brace said as Axel's mom opened the front door.

  “Hello, Mr.Knapps. It's nice to see you.”

  “Likewise. Will you be taking Spliff, too, for the night?” Mrs. Asrock looked at Spliff invitingly, and Spliff nodded.

  “Of course," Said Mrs.Asrock. "Have a nice night, Mr.Knapps, and thank you for bringing the boys home."

  “Brace smiled in her direction. “My pleasure, Mrs. Asrock.”

  On his walk home, Brace thought about how hard it must be for Axel and Spliff not to have a father in their lives. Both of their fathers had died in a mining incident. He felt especially bad for Spliff, whose mother's character changed after the incident. She began acting like a twenty-something and ran off to party and explore the world, leaving her son to be raised by Mrs. Asrock and school teachers. It's a good thing I come around now and again, he thought. However, if Brace was honest with himself, he felt he was falling behind whenever he wasn't out treasure-hunting or preparing for his expeditions. He strived to become the strongest version of himself, and he knew that meant finding powerful items and creatures to capture in I.C.C.T.s.