"The very next day after Gornorax received the documents for the 'Rays of Hope,' he sent me a message through Rogan: everything was ready for the children's return. I couldn't imagine he would manage it so quickly. And at the same time… it once again proved to me that I entrusted the orphanages to the right hands."
"Right after that, I contacted the Jester. Without wasting any time, he transported all the children to Heinrich's estate, from where I was supposed to pick them up. Rogan and Eleria offered to help, and I didn't object — in fact, I was glad they would be with me. The Jester, for his part, asked Heinrich to join us, and in the end we had a small company of four."
"We visited each 'Ray of Hope' one by one, returning the children to the places where they had lived before. Their faces were glowing with joy — they were home again. The orphanage staff thanked us for the care and warm escort, and even the usually strict caretakers didn't hide their smiles."
"I thought we'd finish much faster, but the children… During the short time they lived together under one roof at the Jester's, they had already grown close and didn't want to part quickly. I understood them, so I waited patiently. Sometimes I even joined their games — they stayed near me all the time and didn't seem eager to let me go."
"Only toward evening did we finish the final return — to the Morven 'Ray of Hope.' We all breathed out with relief. Heinrich said goodbye to us and returned to his estate, Rogan left to join his father, who happened to be at that last orphanage, and Eleria and I headed back to the Academy."
"Adam… It had already been three days since he last appeared in our room. And not only there — he hadn't attended classes either. I want to believe the potion worked, and that he's simply spending every minute with his mother now, the mother he hadn't seen in so many years."
"Ever since my argument with Elizabeth, she hadn't contacted me once. Even when it was her turn to hold a training session for our raid group, Krul came instead. It felt like she was avoiding me. And… I can understand why. She, as always, wanted to help, and I… I ruined everything. I was the first to raise my voice, pushing her into anger."
"I admit it — I'm selfish. There's no other word for it. I simply can't be otherwise. Or rather… I can, but… I'm afraid. This realization came to me suddenly, like lightning, though the hints had been there on the surface all along. I just stubbornly ignored them because it was easier. But after the last conversation with Elizabeth — I stopped."
"Sirena and I came to the conclusion that I had to face this fear. Otherwise it would consume me. Fear of loss is the most dangerous enemy, and using it as a shield means losing. A simple truth, but only now did it truly reach me."
Alex smiled nervously, lying on his bed.
"Looks like with all this training and all these raids, I've gone completely dull if I now need so much time to reach such obvious conclusions," he muttered aloud.
"That's not true," Sirena replied calmly in his head. "Everyone reaches certain conclusions in their own way and in their own time."
"Are you making fun of me right now?" he asked, pouting.
"No," she answered in the same steady tone. "On the contrary — I'm proud of you. From the moment we returned to the past, I repeated that you needed to rely more on those around you. And Elizabeth's words only helped complete this process. I'm glad you made the right choice."
Alex exhaled heavily.
"I hope it really is the right one…"
And at that moment, someone knocked on the room door.
"Come in," Alex said.
The door slowly opened, and Elizabeth walked inside at an unhurried pace. The boy immediately sat up on the bed, crossed his legs, and fixed his gaze on her.
"May I sit?" she asked with a hint of uncertainty, glancing at the edge of his bed.
Alex nodded. Elizabeth carefully approached and sat down. The room fell silent: his gaze drifted to the door, hers remained on the floor.
Alex opened his mouth to speak, but she was faster.
"Forgive me," she said quietly, lifting her eyes to him. "It was my fault that I snapped that day. I let myself raise a hand at you… at my only nephew. And for what? Because you were trying to protect me." Her lips curved in an unsure smile. "Not a very good aunt, am I?"
"The only one who should apologize right now is me," Alex said, trying to keep his voice steady. "Your words about my selfishness were true. They… hit me hard, and that's why I lashed out. I'm sorry. You're the best aunt."
"Really?" she whispered, and tears glimmered at the corners of her eyes.
"Really," Alex smiled and hugged her. At first, surprise flashed across her face, but soon it softened into calm. She rested her head on his shoulder, allowing herself to enjoy the moment. And Alex felt relief — the thing he had worried about these past few days was finally behind him.
When the boy let her go, she wiped her tears and looked toward Adam's empty bed.
"He still hasn't returned?"
"No."
"I see…" she murmured softly, then asked, "When will you meet the Jester again?"
"Tomorrow."
"Tomorrow," she repeated under her breath. She fell silent for a moment, then sighed heavily. "When I first learned that you'd allied with the Jester, it worried me greatly. Even if he tries to earn your trust now, it's hard for me to believe in the sincerity of his actions… especially after everything you said about the war and its victims. I'm afraid he might manipulate you and lead you astray. That's what I wanted to tell you back then, but… the conversation went in a completely different direction. And it ended… the way it ended."
"I'm not a little boy anymore," Alex tried to reassure her. "I know what I'm doing. If you can't trust him — trust me." He took her hands in his. "Believe in me. I know what I'm doing. And I have a plan B if anything happens. So there's no need to worry."
Elizabeth smiled softly.
"You do realize that after the words 'there's no need to worry,' I will definitely not worry less?" Warm notes appeared in her voice. "But I trust you. And I'll support you if you believe it's the right thing to do."
"Thank you," Alex replied sincerely.
She pulled him closer and hugged him tightly this time. Alex again felt lightness and calm. In moments like this he clearly understood — everything he'd done hadn't been in vain.
Alex and the Jester sat in the man's garden, each in their own chair. The air was quiet and fresh, and a light breeze rustled the leaves on the trees. The Jester spoke first:
"Since our last meeting, I've been thinking carefully about your performance in the fight against that monster in the dungeon, and during our short but quite informative duel. And here's what I realized: you can't control blood and darkness at the same time. Am I right?"
"Yes," Alex confirmed without hesitation.
"In that case," the Jester leaned forward, "my first suggestion is not to focus on endurance, but to try learning how to combine them."
Alex raised a brow.
"Is that even possible?"
In response, the Jester only smiled faintly.
"You've already done something I once believed impossible. You are a pure-blood vampire, yet you managed to wield darkness. And that, as far as I knew, was possible only for pure-blood and half-blood demons. So at the very least, it's worth trying. If nothing works out — we'll forget this idea and return to endurance training. What do you say?"
"If you're so sure it's possible… why not? If it works, I'll become even stronger," Alex replied.
"I'm glad you like the idea," the Jester said with an easy smile. "Then let's begin."
He leaned back in his chair and nodded.
"In your right hand, focus a bit of blood. In your left — darkness."
Alex nodded and extended his palms. A thin stream of blood burst from his right wrist and quickly gathered into a dense sphere in his hand. In his left, a dark magic circle appeared, from which a small lump of darkness rose.
"And now… merge them," the Jester said.
Alex shot him a doubtful glance.
"Will there be any more specific instructions?"
"For now, just try to make them fuse. Let's see what happens," he replied calmly.
"All right," Alex sighed, about to act — but the Jester suddenly raised his hand.
"Wait."
He stood up, took his chair, and moved several dozen meters away. When he stopped, he waved his hand.
"Now you may."
"And why did you move away?" Alex asked suspiciously.
"Just do as I said," the Jester waved dismissively.
Another deep breath — and Alex turned his gaze to the two masses in his hands. "So, what, just smash them together? Or something more delicate?.. Fine, I have to try something at least."
He began bringing the spheres closer. The air between them grew noticeably heavier, and cold sweat broke across his skin. The closer they came, the harder the masses pushed away from each other.
Darkness twisted into a spiral, trying to slip through his fingers, while the blood surged forward, hurling itself at the black lump like a predator at its prey.
Alex tried to force them together, directing mana evenly into both palms.
For a moment, it seemed to him that a thin thread was forming in the center — something that could bind the two elements.
But within a fraction of a second, that thread turned into a crack, from which something else burst out — wild and uncontrollable.
Blood magic and dark magic clashed violently, creating a bright flash in deep red and violet-black hues. A dull boom slammed into his ears, and the shockwave, like the blow of a hammer, threw Alex backward. The chair beneath him toppled, and the ground at the point of impact crackled for several seconds from the leftover energy.
When Alex found himself on his back, a faint metallic smell lingered in his nose, and shadows danced before his eyes after the blinding flash.
In his head, Sirena's worried voice rang suddenly:
"My Lord! Are you all right? What happened?!"
He lay still for several more seconds until the world stopped spinning. Then Alex slowly sat up on the ground, resting his head on his hand, trying to steady his breathing.
"It's… fine," he rasped, feeling adrenaline slowly fade.
He lowered his gaze to his palms. Thin cuts had appeared on his skin, seeping dark drops of blood. The faint sting reminded him of the recent failed experiment. Without delay, Alex summoned healing magic: light-green circles flared above his hands, and a warm flow of mana gently wrapped around them. Within seconds, his skin was smooth again, as if nothing had happened.
The ringing in his ears gradually faded, and only then did he hear approaching footsteps. The Jester was walking toward him, laughing loudly as if he'd just heard the best joke of his life.
"Do you treat all your students like this, or am I special?" Alex asked with a crooked smile.
"Special," the Jester replied, barely holding back his laughter. "Because you're my first student."
"With that approach, probably the last," Alex muttered.
"Oh, don't be so grumpy," the Jester squinted slyly. "At least now you know that if you try to brute-force two different racial magics together, the result will be… well, you saw it yourself."
Alex nodded ironically.
"Thank you for the priceless lesson. But if you had warned me, I would've taken your word for it."
"And I thought you'd want to see for yourself," he smiled.
Alex got to his feet, irritation rising within him.
"If you've laughed enough, maybe it's time to give some concrete instructions, like normal teachers do?"
"Normal teachers?" The Jester smiled faintly. "This may come as a surprise, but I'm not going to be that kind of teacher. Even if I wanted to give you precise advice… I can't. I have no idea how to combine two racial magics."
Alex squinted in disbelief.
"You're joking? How do you not know? Then why start this at all?"
"Calm down," the Jester raised his hand. A magic circle flared on his palm, and two light tendrils emerged from it. They grabbed the chairs they had sat on earlier and gently pulled them closer. Once both were seated again, he continued:
"If it were impossible, I wouldn't have suggested it. I have a colleague who managed to combine light and blood. Granted, she's half-angel, half-vampire, so she was able to achieve it for that reason. And you, as I said earlier, are a pure-blood vampire who learned to wield darkness. Which means, theoretically, you should be capable of merging blood and darkness. However, how exactly to do it — I don't know. That colleague refused to share her experience, insisting that everyone must walk this path alone, without hints. So you'll have to experiment."
Alex exhaled heavily.
"And how long did it take your colleague to combine blood and light?"
"Four months. But she trained only twice a week. You, on the other hand, are a fanatic who dedicates far more time to training, so you should manage faster."
"I hope so."
The Jester stood up, slapped his knees lightly, and smiled.
"That's all for today — our first lesson is over. The next one we'll have once you've learned to combine blood and darkness."
Alex decided not to argue. He stood up as well and said briefly:
"See you."
They shook hands.
"I'll be waiting for results," the Jester said with a faint smile.
Alex replied with a short nod. A magic circle flared beneath his feet, and in an instant he disappeared, leaving the Jester alone in the quiet garden.
The reading hall was empty — only the soft light of candelabras reflected off the tall shelves lined with old tomes, and a fireplace crackled quietly somewhere deeper inside. Alex sat at a large oak table, completely buried under books, open folios, and stacks of parchment.
He let out a heavy sigh and leaned back in his chair.
"I hope there's at least something useful in here…" he muttered aloud, running a hand through his tousled hair.
In his mind, Sirena's quiet, slightly guilty voice sounded:
"I'm sorry, my Lord… I checked all my databases again, but I didn't find anything you need."
Alex gave a faint smile.
"It's all right, don't worry. It's not your fault."
He picked up another book, and the heavy pages rustled as he began turning them, searching for even the slightest clue.
"And so I spent the rest of the day in the reading hall. During that time, I managed to learn plenty of interesting new things, and also recall what I had studied back during my first stay at the Academy. Naturally, the first thing I did was search for any information on how two different racial magics could be merged. But after three hours of digging through old tomes, the only thing I found was some sorcerer's assumption that merging racial magic might be conceptually similar to merging elemental magic. That was literally it."
"Honestly, I was disappointed. But deciding that at least this was something, I switched to researching elemental magic fusion. And here the material was abundant — mostly because mastering elemental magic is far easier than mastering racial magic."
"As the name suggests, elemental magic originates from the natural elements: water, fire, earth, wind, ice, lightning. Six main elements. Anyone, regardless of race, can learn this magic, and controlling natural mana is much easier than controlling racial mana. That is why elemental magic is wildly popular among sorcerers."
"Next comes racial magic. This includes darkness, light, blood, and plant magic. Here everything becomes far more complicated. Even being a pure-blood or half-blood vampire gives no guarantee that you'll be able to control blood. Yes, the chances are higher than for someone without a drop of vampire blood, but still far from a hundred percent. Racial mana is much more temperamental than natural mana, and far harder to control. You need either remarkable talent, or long and exhausting training to make it obey you."
"Because of this, many demons, angels, vampires, and spirits don't even use their own racial magic, preferring elemental magic instead. For example, my father — a pure-blood vampire who had every chance to master blood magic — could never make it obey him no matter how hard he tried. In the end, he focused on fire magic, where he managed to achieve results."
"Of course, there are exceptions. Someone who is not a direct representative of a race can still master its magic. Like me, for instance — a pure-blood vampire who managed to tame darkness. The chance of success in such cases is tiny, and most who attempt something like that fail. But if I succeeded, then it's possible. All it takes is a sea of time, iron endurance, and maybe a drop of talent… though the last one is debatable."
"And finally — deviant magic. This includes healing, teleportation, and other types that don't fall under elemental or racial categories. Lorina Montamer's poison magic belongs here as well. Anyone can learn it, like elemental magic, but without talent or constant training you won't get far."
Alex exhaled heavily and tore his gaze from the book.
"As always: either talent or hard work…" he muttered to himself. "Though… why am I even surprised by something so obvious?"
Shrugging, he returned to reading.
"The concept of elemental fusion wasn't new. Many who mastered one element sought to take control of at least one more. For example, plenty of fire sorcerers also studied earth magic — for the sake of one of the most powerful spells: the meteor rain. It consumed so much mana that even the most enduring sorcerers collapsed after using it, but the result… was worth it. No wonder it was incredibly popular during wartime."
"Combinations of water and wind were also common. Such sorcerers could summon storm tempests capable of sinking an entire fleet. Ice and wind were often paired for creating blizzards, and fire with lightning — a deadly, almost instantaneous strike. Other combinations were rarer, but they existed. Sometimes you could meet a sorcerer who wielded both fire and water. They could never fuse them into one spell, but even simply mastering two elements was already a significant advantage over those who controlled only one."
"But the fusion process itself… For example, if you take air and water, trying to forcefully smash their mana together is the worst idea imaginable. Not only will you achieve nothing — you might even harm yourself."
Alex couldn't help smiling as he read on.
"Magic requires a delicate approach. First, you must allow the mana of one element to become accustomed to the mana of the other — this is the first stage of fusion. Only when they 'accept' one another can you move on to the next step — gradual merging. Smoothly, without sudden pushes, allowing two different manas to slowly intertwine into one. At this moment, the sorcerer's task is not to lose control over either of them. Tremendous concentration and endurance are required to maintain the balance."
"Mana is a capricious thing. Whether elemental or racial, it does not like being treated roughly. Some researchers even speculate that mana possesses something akin to consciousness. Each element seems to demand that the sorcerer remain loyal to it and use only it. And when you try to bring two elements together, a real struggle unfolds between them: each strives to prove that it alone deserves to become your strength."
"And then all that remains is to give them time… Time to grow accustomed to one another. Time for true merging to begin. And only after that can you expect results."
Alex leaned back heavily in his chair, feeling tiredness press slowly onto his eyelids. So much new information swirled in his head that it almost hummed like an old bell after a strike.
"After everything I've read here," he muttered, rubbing his face, "it feels like I'm not trying to merge two powerful magics, but to reconcile two stubborn children fighting for their father's attention."
Sirena's warm, soft voice echoed in his mind:
"Perhaps… such a simple, down-to-earth comparison is exactly what will help you reach understanding."
Alex gave a crooked smile and glanced at the table piled high with books. Beside him, in the very center, lay three particularly thick tomes bound in old, darkened leather. His fingers brushed over the rough cover of one of them, feeling the warm, slightly raised patterns beneath his fingertips.
"Maybe you're right," he answered Sirena. "But before I draw any conclusions… I'll try to approach this from a more… scientific angle."
He carefully opened the heavy tome, and the old pages rustled softly, releasing a faint scent of dried herbs and aged ink. Alex's gaze fell on the ornate title written in a strange hand, and he settled more comfortably, preparing to dive into a new layer of knowledge.
"To achieve a stable fusion of two different elemental streams, a sorcerer must understand that each mana possesses its own 'vibration frequency' and natural 'line of resistance.' At the moment of contact between two streams, a phenomenon arises that I call 'mana friction' — the mutual repulsion of the streams due to their initial incompatibility."
"The sorcerer's first task is to align these frequencies through synchronizing the internal rhythm of mana with the rhythm of breathing. Next comes the stage of temporary interlacing, when both manas interact without coercion. Only after the sensation of resistance decreases can one begin the convergence phase — the gradual merging of two streams into a single channel."
"The key rule: never attempt to mix two elements by force. Even if you can suppress the resistance, such a union will be unstable, and at the crucial moment the spell may collapse or explode."
Advice from the Field Journal of battle mage Fargus Riel.
"Combining magics is like working with two explosive barrels you're dragging on a single cart. Push too sharply and they'll blow. Pull too slowly and you'll lose your rhythm and burn out from overload.
Each element has its own personality. Fire is hot, impatient, quick. Water is calm but treacherous, able to wear down even stone. If you want them to work together, first show each one that you respect it. This isn't a silly metaphor — it's a feeling you must imprint into your mana.
My advice is simple: first let them 'meet' each other at low power, keeping both manas under minimal pressure. Only when they stop 'hissing' at each other can you start raising the flow and moving on to combat combinations."
Addendum from A Collection of Magical Observations by an anonymous author (year unknown).
"Callisten's research on stream harmonization is invaluable, but his works lack one crucial aspect: prolonged post-contact stabilization. When two manas first reach the merging phase, their mutual stability lasts only a short time. If the merge is not reinforced, the manas return to their original state, and all progress is lost.
To prevent this, one must apply the so-called 'anchor formula' — a short but continuous magical weaving that fixes the shared frequency of both elements within the mage's consciousness. This requires additional mana expenditure, but without it any attempt at forming complex elemental spells is doomed to rapid collapse."
The sun had long since slipped behind the horizon, and the reading hall had sunk into a soft twilight, chased away only by the warm glow of several lamps. Tired yet focused, Alex turned page after page, completely immersed in the text. Suddenly he felt a faint breath behind his back. Turning, he saw Eliria leaning slightly over his shoulder, her gaze skimming the same lines he was reading.
He smiled lightly.
"How long have you been standing there?"
"Three minutes at most," she replied and, glancing at the empty seat beside him, sat down. "If I recall correctly, you don't possess any elemental magic, do you?"
"Right," Alex nodded.
"Then why read about combining it?"
"I've been thinking about trying to merge my blood magic with darkness. And there's no information on combining racial magic. So I figured knowledge about elemental merging might help."
Eliria nodded thoughtfully, her eyes sliding across the piles of books.
"I see. I know a few volumes that might contain something useful."
Alex's eyes lit up with interest.
"Seriously?"
"Absolutely." She smiled faintly and stood. "Wait here, I'll be right back."
Already turning toward the bookshelves, she suddenly peeked out from behind one of them:
"By the way, how long have you been sitting here?"
"Five hours for sure… maybe more."
"Then I'll get you some coffee. If you don't mind."
"I definitely don't," he smiled warmly.
Eliria disappeared between the rows, and Alex shifted his gaze to the window. Night swirled beyond the glass, and cold moonlight slid softly along the sills. He yawned, stretched, and murmured quietly:
"And I didn't even notice the day go by…"
"You could use some rest," Sirena's gentle voice sounded in his mind.
"True… but now I need to wait for Eliria," he replied silently, staring back at the books.
About ten minutes passed before the girl returned. In her hands — two cups of hot coffee, and several massive tomes held aloft by conjured vines. Seeing Alex's table, she noticed him sitting with his arms crossed and his head resting on his shoulder, eyes closed.
Eliria stopped, a soft smile touching her lips. She quietly set the books and cups down, then stepped closer.
"Can you hear me?" she asked gently.
A sleepy, incoherent mumble was the only reply, his eyes still closed. With a small sigh, Eliria opened her inventory and pulled out a small green blanket. She carefully draped it over Alex, leaving him to nap right there in his seat.
She watched him for a few more seconds, then cast a brief look at the books she had brought.
"Well… let's see if there's anything here that can help you," she whispered, settling beside him.
Taking one of the books and a cup of coffee, Eliria immersed herself in reading. The reading hall fell silent once more, broken only by the soft rustle of turning pages and the quiet breathing of the one dozing beside her.
The first rays of sunlight broke mercilessly through the tall window, sliding across the tables until they stopped directly on Alex's face. He winced slightly, slowly opening his eyes. The light blinded him for a moment before he adjusted. He was still in the same reading hall, completely empty now, wrapped in a soft green blanket.
A glance at the table showed that the number of books had nearly doubled. Beside them stood five empty cups with dark residue at the bottom — silent proof of a night spent reading. Alex looked around the hall, searching for Eliria, but she was gone.
He couldn't help but smile.
"Well… I fell asleep right in the middle of work. Not very admirable. In the past, Eliria would've torn my head off for this…"
"Your head would have stayed in place," Sirena said gently, "but she certainly would have scolded you thoroughly."
"Yeah," he chuckled, "first she'd scold me… then tear my head off."
He didn't even have time to stand before Eliria stepped out from behind a tall shelf, carrying four fresh cups of coffee. Seeing that he was awake, she smiled warmly.
"Good morning. Sleep well?"
"Morning. Yeah, I slept well," he replied, then nodded toward the blanket. "And thanks for that."
"Always welcome," she said lightly, taking the blanket and storing it away.
Alex stood, stretched, and cracked his neck a couple of times.
"I brought you some coffee," she nodded to the cups.
He was about to thank her, but she suddenly froze, as if remembering something, and quickly disappeared among the shelves. Alex watched her go in surprise, then picked up one of the cups, lifted it to his face, inhaled the aroma, and took a sip.
A minute later she returned — this time with a small box of cookies in her hands.
"You probably haven't eaten anything since yesterday evening," she said with a hint of reproach.
"Thanks for caring," he said, handing her one of the cups.
Eliria accepted the cup from his hands, and for a moment their fingers brushed. Then both of them turned toward the window, taking a few sips at the same time.
"So, did you sit here the whole night?" Alex asked.
"Yes. That's normal for me," she replied calmly. "I looked through the books I recommended to you yesterday, but unfortunately, there was nothing useful there."
She lowered her gaze slightly.
"Sorry for giving you false hope."
"It's not a problem," he smiled. "I already know what might help. Now I just need to test it in practice."
He took a cookie from the box and bit into it.
"Well?" Eliria asked softly.
"It's good."
The girl smiled in quiet satisfaction and looked away, taking a sip of her coffee.