After Aelar left the house, Elena turned to Icariel with a gentle smile. "Sit at the table for a moment," she said. "I'll get you some of Aelar's clothes and something to eat."
"Thank you," Icariel nodded politely, then sat at the long moonwood table.
"I'll be back soon," Elif said, standing up. "I need to go change—wait for me, okay?"
"I will be right here."
As he sat alone, Icariel glanced around the elven home once more. The soft lantern light, the still air, the carved wood—it all gave him a strange comfort. "Really comfy..." he muttered under his breath.
Soon, Elena returned. "Go change in the room on the left," she said kindly. "Your clothes are in there."
Inside the room, Icariel found a set of elegant black clothes laid out neatly: a long-sleeved shirt that reached past his thighs, black trousers that extended far down his legs, and a pair of sturdy brown shoes with sharp, pointed edges. Clearly, they had belonged to Aelar—and they were slightly too large for him.
After dressing, he stepped out of the room just as Elena approached.
"How do they fit?"
"A bit too big," Icariel admitted, tugging at the sleeves.
"Hmm, I guessed as much," Elena said thoughtfully. "Aelar is taller and leaner than you. I'll get better-fitting ones for you later when I go out."
"Thanks," Icariel said with a small, grateful smile.
They sat down at the table together, and Elif joined them shortly after. She now wore a soft green dress, the same elven symbol stitched into its chest: the sword with no edge and no handle. Her small figure and slow steps gave her a peaceful, quiet presence as she walked toward the table.
"This food is called Jeprak," Elena said, placing a large wooden plate full of green leaf-wrapped balls in front of them. "It'll taste good."
"I remember," Icariel said, already grabbing one. "Aelar shared some with me on the way here."
They ate in silence for a while, only the soft clinking of dishes and chewing filling the air.
Eventually, Icariel leaned back and sighed. "I'd eat another if my stomach allowed it."
"Glad you liked it," Elena smiled.
Elif looked up and asked, "Where did Father go?"
"I assume he went to meet His Highness," Elena replied.
Elif's face changed at that. She made a small, puzzled expression but said nothing.
Soon after, the door opened, and Aelar stepped back inside. His face looked serious—tired, maybe even burdened—but the moment he saw Elif and Elena, he smiled.
Turning to Icariel, he said, "My wife wasn't too hard on you, was she?"
"Not at all," Icariel replied. "The opposite, actually. She really knows how to cook well."
Aelar chuckled. "Glad you liked it. Now—wait for me outside. Warm up your body a bit. I'll remove this armor and join you soon."
"As you say," Icariel said, pushing his chair back and stepping outside into the calm air.
Standing just outside the house, he took in a deep breath.
"The mana here…" he murmured. "It's so calm… and there's just so much of it. They really are blessed."
Then, the door creaked open again, and Aelar stepped out. This time, he wore the same style of black elven clothes Icariel had—but they fit him perfectly.
"You look ridiculous," Aelar said with a smirk, eyeing the oversized sleeves and pants Icariel was swimming in.
"I feel ridiculous," Icariel replied dryly.
"Cut them."
"Huh?"
"Yes, cut them. Make them shorter. Fit them to your size."
"But… I thought since they were yours, I was only borrowing—"
"Hah!" Aelar laughed. "Don't worry. I've got dozens of them. Cut away."
So Icariel did just that. He tore the shirt at the sleeves and adjusted the pants, making everything shorter and tighter to his form. When he was done, he stretched out his arms and legs.
"Much better. Now I can actually move."
"Good. Now let's step a bit farther from the house," Aelar said, his tone sharpening. "It's time to begin your first day of training."
Aelar stood close to Icariel now, his tone shifting into one of seriousness.
"Icariel," he began, "Elif told me you've never been trained by anyone before, right?"
"Yes. No person has ever trained me," Icariel replied simply.
That was all Aelar needed. The elves, sensitive to deception, would detect even the slightest lie—but this one passed cleanly. Truth rang clear in Icariel's voice because he was telling the truth: no person had taught him.
Aelar crossed his arms and nodded thoughtfully. "That means you're a true genius," he said. "I won't pry into how you came to do the things you can, or what drove you to start. That's not mine to know." He paused, then added, "Elif mentioned something else—she suspected you might have the Infinity Body. But after meeting you... I know now. You don't."
"No," Icariel said. "I told her the same."
"Good." Aelar's expression didn't change, but something sharpened behind his gaze.
"I can teach you many things—combat stance, fighting techniques, mana reinforcement, nature spells, and healing magic. So let me ask: where do you want to begin?"
"Healing," Icariel said without hesitation. "Nothing else."
Aelar stared at him, eyes narrowed slightly, then nodded. "Good. I won't brag… but I'm one of the best when it comes to healing spells. It's one of the reasons I rose to the position of Warleader. If you want to learn—I'll teach you all I can."
"I'm thankful," Icariel replied softly.
Aelar stepped closer. "Can you try using the healing spell again? Like the one you used back then?"
"Yeah. I can try."
Without delay, Icariel sat down and calmly summoned a small flame in his palm. Without flinching, he let it burn into his skin, scorching his hand slightly.
But Aelar didn't widen his eyes at the burn.
He widened them at what came next.
Icariel closed his eyes, reaching inward. The White Sense had already registered the healing spell, and he concentrated—not on mana manipulation, but on one simple, overwhelming desire:
Heal.
He pressed his other hand against the burn, and a soft green glow began to rise from his palm. It wasn't near as bright or fierce as what he'd done in the forest, but the light shimmered, held, and then faded. The burn was gone.
Aelar stared in stunned silence.
"You can cast it at will..." he whispered. "Not as large as before when you evaporated all the mana around you as a sacrifice—but still… For a human to use a spell like ours… that's incredible. I guess for that to happen, you must really value your own life."
Icariel opened his eyes slowly. "Above everything," he answered.
"That was a basic healing spell," Aelar said after a breath. "The one you used before, in the forest—that was a high-tier spell. Maybe even top-ranked, since I wasn't there in the moment it was cast. I think your survival instinct kicked in, and your desire to live overwhelmed every barrier, and the mana reached your pure desire. That's probably why you cast it."
"Maybe," Icariel muttered.
"Since you can already use healing magic like this," Aelar continued, "I only have one thing left to teach you."
Icariel tilted his head slightly. "What is it?"
"The ability to cast healing magic while moving, even in combat. No need to sit still. No need for calm."
Icariel blinked. "Is… is that even possible?"
"How do you think I became Warleader?" Aelar grinned slightly. "I used to be a lunatic in battle. I'd get wounded and heal myself mid-fight—keep going until my enemies dropped."
"And you're teaching me that?" Icariel asked in disbelief.
"It's nothing," Aelar said firmly, "compared to what you did for my daughter."
But then his face turned serious again.
"Before we start, though, I need to ask you something that's been bothering me for a while."
Meanwhile, inside the elven home...
Elena sat quietly at the table with her daughter. The glow of the lanterns danced across her silver hair.
"Elif," she asked gently, "why did your father bring that human boy here to live with us?"
Elif frowned slightly. "I don't know, Mother. He just suddenly said he wanted to propose the idea to Icariel. When we met him, he offered it outright. Maybe because he saved my life?"
"That's what I thought too, but he could have just given him a reward. There was no reason to bring him here," Elena said, looking distant. "It's not like the boy asked for shelter. He didn't even seem to expect anything. Aelar could've just offered him,coins, or even something he needs. But to let him live here... to speak to him that way… to train him personally? There's something odd here."
Elif smiled, amused. "Well, if it's about being odd—that boy has it all."
Elena's eyes widened slightly in realization.
Back outside…
Icariel looked up at Aelar. "What it is?"
The Warleader crossed his arms again, staring into the distance like he was trying to solve a riddle that had no answer.
"It's been bothering me," he finally said. "I've never met someone like you. So tell me, Icariel…"
"How is it possible that you can cast flame, healing spells like that... when you don't even possess a mana core or mana circles?"