As Kyle opened the door to his room, he saw a familiar face—someone he wasn't expecting to find sitting on his bed.
Alaric Vermont.
Kyle looked at the man in front of him, clearly puzzled as to why Alaric was in his room.
"Hey, you're finally back. How was your meeting with the family?" Alaric asked with a smile on his face.
"It was okay," Kyle answered with a slightly shaky voice.
"Ohh, alright," Alaric replied. He was standing now, walking around the room and glancing at various things. Suddenly, he turned toward Kyle with a serious expression.
"I'll cut to the chase. Do you think they've accepted you? You think those pompous little brats would easily accept a kid from the countryside as their brother just because they've been told to? If you do, then you have the wrong mentality—you won't survive in Vermont."
Kyle's face was blank with bewilderment. He'd known it would be hard to be accepted, but he'd put that thought behind him because they'd been kind when he first met them.
"They're only acting like that because your father is currently in the city. When he leaves, you're probably going to go through hell. You'll be bullied and mocked for one reason—because you're a bastard, and you can't change that fact. Cedric and Ciara have already started learning magic, but you're just a weak little boy. And the weak always get devoured by the strong—that's the rule of life.
"But what if you weren't weak? What if you had the strength to defend yourself?
"That's why I'm here, Kyle. I'm here to give you an offer. As you know, I'm a knight—a swordsman in a family of mages. From a young age, I knew I wouldn't be great with magic like my brothers, so I took a different route. And it paid off. So I ask you—do you want to be a swordsman? I'll take you in as my disciple and do my best to make you as strong as you can possibly be."
Kyle felt the tension in the air. This came out of nowhere. He didn't know what to say. He was undecided, but this was an opportunity to become stronger.
He looked at Alaric and asked, "Before I decide, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, go on."
"What do you stand to gain from this? What would you gain from teaching me swordsmanship?"
Look at this cheeky brat, Alaric thought, smiling.
"I don't stand to gain anything. I'm just curious how strong a cornered rat can get. Does that answer your question?"
"Yes, it does."
"So, what is your answer? Will you become my disciple?"
Kyle no longer had any hesitation. He needed to become strong—strong enough to match up with his siblings.
"Yes. I accept your offer. I will become your disciple."
"Okay then. Get some rest today and meet me at the training grounds first thing tomorrow morning."
When Alaric left, Kyle laid on his bed, staring emptily into space. His thoughts raced—the Vermont estate, his new family, and his new teacher, Alaric. But those thoughts didn't drown out one painful truth: the Vermont family had wronged his mother. And he had no way to make them pay—unless he got stronger. Strong enough to make them, and his father Veritas, regret the choice to push his mother aside.
With that conviction in his heart, Kyle drifted off to sleep. Today had been exhausting.
A few hours later...
Kyle woke up to the sound of someone at his door. When he opened it, Charlotte stood there.
"Young master, it's time for dinner. Apparently, you slept much longer than expected. The others have already finished eating. I would've woken you, but I felt you'd be tired from everything that happened today."
Kyle looked at Charlotte. Though grateful, he didn't feel like eating.
"Thanks, Charlotte, but I'm not really hungry. I don't think I'll have anything to eat."
"Are you sure? You didn't have lunch either."
"Yes, I'm sure. I think I'll just get back to sleep. I have a long day ahead of me tomorrow."
Kyle lay back on his bed, hoping for more rest. Tomorrow he would begin training with Alaric. But minutes passed. Then thirty more. And still—he couldn't sleep.
Maybe it's because I slept for so long, he thought.
He stood up, deciding to walk around to pass the time. But he had a clear destination in mind—the Vermont Manor's library.
He walked out of his room with a spring in his step. The library was quite a distance away. As he approached the large doors, a hand suddenly gripped his shoulder.
He jumped back, startled. "Holy shit!"
It was Barios, the butler.
"Ah, young master. I apologize. Did I scare you?"
"What do you think?"
"My apologies. I only wanted to know where you were headed this late at night."
"I couldn't sleep. I thought I'd come to the library and read for a bit. I hope that's okay."
"Of course it is. Just remember to get some sleep when you're done."
Kyle stepped into the massive library. He didn't even know where to begin. As he wandered through the aisles, he noticed some sections were labeled and others weren't.
He kept moving, searching almost as if he were looking for something specific. As expected from a mage family, almost every book was about mana and magic. He hadn't seen a single section on swordsmanship.
He kept walking forward, scanning titles. At last—he found one. A single shelf, dusty and forgotten, nestled at the library's farthest end. It hadn't been touched in years. On that shelf were various books about swordsmanship—small in number compared to the rest of the library.
Kyle sifted through them: The Essence of Swordsmanship, Introduction to Swordplay—basic titles for beginners.
Then, his eyes caught a book lying flat at the bottom of the shelf. No title on its cover.
Intrigued, he picked it up. He opened it—only the first page had writing; the rest were completely blank.
He flipped back and read the solitary line:
"A sword born from mana wields the greatest power."
As he said those words a strong pain descended upon his body agrrhh he screamed, but he couldn't overcome the pain his consciousness was fading and the last thing he heard was Congratulations, you have awakened the mana system...