Nero was no stranger to pain, whether it was physical or mental. The long hours of training with a spear, until his arms were sore and his legs wobbly, often left him in soreness and some pain. The endless hours of studying about the world, only to realise that his knowledge of things was a mere fraction of what he actually thought, often left him in mental anguish.
Planning out his training, his studying, his future path, networking and maintaining healthy friendships often left him drained and fatigued. But never had he let any of that stop him.
It was for the same reason that he, as someone who had never even got something as simple as a piercing, did not hesitate to let Irene cover his entire back in a massive tattoo, regardless of how much it hurt.
She had shown him the design before she began, not that he would have complained regardless of what it looked like.
The tattoo was all in black, and was a series of smooth yet curved lines that never intersected with one another, ultimately forming a massive tribal tattoo. It covered his entire back and formed a perfectly symmetrical pattern that looked very pleasing to the eye.
With thicker lines near his spine, thinning out as they spread across his back, Nero could almost imagine them as a network of aether lines. Not that this was the reason he got the tattoo, but he was beginning to like it a lot. In fact, the more he looked at it, the more he liked it.
Of course, he was only looking at the sketchpad and not his actual back, but even so, he could imagine it forming an impressive sight.
"Did you add a charm element to it?" Nero could not help but ask after Irene had completed the entire tattoo and was treating his back. During the tattooing process, they did not speak as Irene needed to focus, and Nero was busy ignoring the pain.
"Why, is it that good?" she asked while chucking, but did not really wait for him to respond. "No, there's no charm element. The effects of the tattoo are purely functional, and if they have any aesthetic appeal, then that's a result of my own skill as an artist."
"Do you know about the draft notice?" he asked, aware that the news might not have spread yet.
"It's a level 1 draft notice, so anyone eligible who hasn't gotten around to their mandatory enlistment must answer. A lot of people hold off until they're reaching their age limit for mandatory enlistment of 25 before showing up, hoping to raise their level as much as they can. But because of this, they form a kind of reserve for the army to use in times of crisis. I already got a call informing me to report by tonight. By tomorrow morning, I'll officially be in the army. But you don't need to worry. Because of my innate ability, I'll end up in one of the auxiliary divisions. Maybe I'll even be paired with artisans directly."
Nero grimaced as he had the sudden realisation that Irene would have to reveal her ability while enlisting. She had avoided it for so long exactly because she knew the kind of attention it would attract. But there was nothing he could do about it.
"In two and a half years, I'll be 18. You'll still be serving then, so you'll have to take care of me when I enlist."
A mildly cold feeling spread on his back, and Nero knew that she must be using a healing card to finish the process. That way, he wouldn't need to tolerate the discomfort that comes with getting a new tattoo.
"Kid, if you're enlisting after graduating from KMA, you'll be made a lieutenant directly, even if it's only a second lieutenant. I'll have to ask you to take care of me. Put on your shirt, we're done."
Nero grinned at the fact that his thoughts had been seen through, but said nothing. Instead of putting on a shirt, he first walked to a mirror to see how his tattoos looked. They were extensive and looked ominous and forbidding. He liked it.
The tattoos would also be perfectly hidden as long as he wore a shirt, which was something he preferred. The fewer people that knew about this, the better, although he doubted he could hide it from everyone. Hiding it would become especially difficult after moving into the hostel.
"Not bad at all," he murmured.
"Patricks were cooler," Irene mentioned casually as she walked around her shop, cleaning up a little. Since she was about to enlist, she had to take her essentials. As for the rest, well, someone would probably take care of it once she stopped paying rent.
"Patrick had tattoos?" Nero asked, shocked.
Irene looked at him as if he was dumb.
"We dated for years, Nero, and my innate ability works through ink. He has dozens of tattoos. But for most of them, I used special inks that only show under special circumstances. One of them only shows up under UV, and another one only shows up under the triple eclipse. The rest are hidden, just like yours."
"What other secrets are you keeping from me? Do I have a nephew or niece hidden somewhere?"
"How dare you?" Irene asked, her voice filled with fake anger. "I'll have you know that I am a very conscientious woman. Your brother could only dream about getting close to me without marrying me."
Nero smiled, but did not continue to joke about the topic. Considering they had been married, perhaps only minutes or at most a few hours before, his brother was probably a sore subject, despite Irene's brave front.
"I need to do a couple of chores before I sign up for the hostel. I guess I'll see you around," Nero said, unsure of how to say farewell to the newest member of his family. "Be careful with the draft, and try to avoid getting in any trouble."
Irene ruffled Nero's hair fondly, before suddenly giving him a tight hug. Their parting was a silent one, as neither of them knew what to say. Nero did, however, mention that he'll stop ignoring her messages, so she should message him if she ever needed something. To begin with, the only reason he had been avoiding her was so that she could try to move on.
By the time he left the tattoo parlour, it was nearly 5 pm. In Aetherpeak, this meant that the night was closing in, as the mountains in the west would block the sunlight long before the sun reached anywhere near setting. This also meant that the temperatures were quickly dropping.
Without any time to admire the majestic pink and purple sky, Nero cycled as quickly as possible to a nearby plaza where he would be able to find Maxim's card shop. It was quite a popular shop, as Maxim was a very well known and established card artisan in the locale.
Although Nero already had a deck of his own, and would receive a free starter pack from his school, an Eldrim card master could never have too many cards.
If there were any interesting 0 star cards available, he would not mind using their promotion deal and buying himself some. That meant that he would have to compromise by buying a cheaper knife and phone, but he could live with that. The knife was only a temporary one anyway, he'd probably get his own back within a week.
Maxims was a three story building with an ostentatious banner out front, and a very prominent building facade. Out in front, a greeter stood by the door, welcoming incoming guests and bidding leaving one's farewell. Large windows allowed a peek inside the cosy store, as well as a display of some of their merchandise, which was not just limited to cards.
There were plenty of card cases, as well as card straps and dividers, all on display. Various types of raw materials which were used in the manufacture of cards were also listed in their catalogue, alongside a few unique cards that were only available at Maxim's Card shop.
In his youth, he had spent many hours plastered against the window, dreaming about the day he would be able to use them.
Going in for the first time, a freshly synchronised Neophyte, Nero was filled with excitement. He stepped into the store illuminated by warm, yellow lights and was instantly welcomed by the soft, distant buzz of countless others perusing their wares and card selection.
The ground floor was usually the busiest, for it stored the most common items, and was also where Nero would be searching for anything interesting.
"Hey, how are you doing?" Nero said with a warm smile as he walked up to a salesman, and pulled out his new ID card. "I heard you guys are having a promotion for new Neophytes."
"Indeed, we are, and congratulations on the synchronisation. It's always a special day, and it can be made even more special with some of Maxim's unique cards!"
The salesman was friendly enough, but it was obvious that he was repeating lines he had probably been taught or instructed to say. But that made no real difference, and Nero's eyes were glued to the massive grimoire that the salesman pulled out.
Grimoires were specially crafted books that preserved Eldrim cards and prevented them from suffering damage. They were not usually needed, but it was common practice to store rarer or unique cards in grimoires, not only in stores but by individuals as well.
The large, leather-bound book felt heavy even as Nero dragged it across the countertop towards himself and flipped it open. Each page contained only four cards, and there were countless pages to look through.
Each card was also different, giving Nero an enormous selection to look through. His eyes immediately went to the most popular Maxim card for Neophytes.
It was called Raise the dead!