The person was standing directly in front of Lucan, straight-backed and completely still, as if rooted to the ground. Lucan immediately shifted into a defensive stance, his body reacting on instinct as he prepared for a possible threat. But before anything could happen, a voice rang out—familiar, calm, and filled with quiet confidence.
"Lord… I can pick hardwood easily."
Lucan's eyes widened slightly. He recognized that voice instantly, even before his mind fully caught up.
"Kenny?"
The person stepped forward, and the sunlight no longer hid his features. His face came clearly into view.
It was Kenny.
Kenny was small in stature, his body still that of a young boy, but the log resting on his shoulder was enormous—far too large for a normal person to lift, even with both hands. Yet Kenny held it casually with one hand, balanced over his shoulder as if it weighed nothing at all.
Lucan looked at the massive piece of wood, then back at Kenny. For a brief moment, his thoughts stalled, and he didn't know what to say.
Lucan rubbed his eyes, half-expecting the scene to vanish, wondering if this was a dream. He couldn't believe that just a small amount of CP could make someone this strong in such a short time.
The other three were just as stunned. They could hardly believe what kind of power their lord had given them—power capable of transforming a young person like Kenny, who previously lacked physical strength, into someone who could lift such a heavy object with ease.
If the power was truly this great, then what they were feeling in their own bodies had to be real as well. Their stamina had increased, their muscles felt denser, and they were clearly stronger than before—strong enough to work continuously without feeling exhausted.
Evan walked over to his son and immediately took the log from Kenny's shoulder, placing it firmly on the ground. In an angry and worried tone, he said, "Kenny, what would have happened if that wood had fallen on you? The power only made you stronger, not made of steel. If the wood had fallen, your bones would have been crushed."
"Sorry, Dad," Kenny replied quietly. There wasn't a single drop of sweat on him from lifting the log, but there was a visible trace of shock on his face when his father suddenly stepped in and took it from him.
The hunter brothers remained silent throughout the interaction, watching closely, but Lucan did not stay quiet. He said, "Evan, let's leave it for now. Kenny will be more careful next time."
Lucan looked at Kenny and made a small gesture, waiting for confirmation before adding, "You will be more careful, right, Kenny?"
Kenny answered instantly, "Yes, Lord."
Evan then said to Lucan, "Lord, if he is careful, then that is good."
"Back to work." Lucan declared. He picked up a stone, and with the help of the others, began slowly building the wall piece by piece.
The hunter duo and the father-and-son pair worked alongside Lucan, all of them contributing together to the construction of the shelter.
***
She was practicing a mana-breathing technique. Her face carried a soft glow under the sunlight, her hair neatly tied back, her complexion pale and calm. Her clothes were tidy, though clearly not freshly washed.
Around her body floated tiny blue particles, slowly entering through her nose and exiting as dark, black particles with each breath she took.
Kaela was practicing the technique Lucan had given her. This method helped her absorb nature's mana into her body while expelling the impure, wasted mana outward.
She sat on the ground, legs crossed neatly atop one another, hands resting together in her lap. The air flowed steadily into her nose, slow and controlled.
She felt a growing excitement as she practiced, because with every passing second, her body felt lighter, stronger, and more balanced.
Her mana was becoming thicker and purer. It flowed through her body toward her heart, strengthening the mana circle there, making it powerful enough to sustain a greater amount of energy.
After fifteen minutes of practice, she opened her eyes.
"The feeling is really great. This technique helped me stabilize my mana circle, and I'm much closer to actually becoming a first-circle mage," she said quietly to herself.
She stood up and shook her clothes, brushing the soil from them.
She continued speaking, her voice low and thoughtful. "If only I had found my master a bit earlier, my sixth sister might have been saved. He would have taught me, or helped me save her. Thinking about the past won't help me now. Let me focus on practicing mana control."
She closed her eyes once again, carefully sensing the mana within her body. The mana flowed slowly through her, moving toward the heart circle, then traveling down her arm to the tips of her fingers, where it tried to escape.
"What's this problem now?" she thought, attempting to force the mana outward. Just before she pushed it further, a memory surfaced—the massive fireball she had once seen in the valley.
That fireball was created through Lucan's imagination. In both the past and the present, no one else had ever created something so large. Her master could do it because he used a small amount of imagination along with specific points of control.
But Kaela didn't need to know all of that.
Like her master, Kaela imagined a single concept—hot. As soon as she did, her hand began to warm. At first, she thought she had done it easily, but the warmth quickly intensified. The heat grew excessive, and her hand became painfully hot.
Suddenly, a cry escaped her lips. "Ahhh!"
Kaela lost control. She saw steam rising from her hand and instinctively tried to dip it into nearby water, but she stopped herself—she knew it could be poisonous.
"What do I do? What do I do? My hand…" she murmured in panic.
Then, like a flash of insight, an image formed in her mind—the coldness of her home. Imagination could be anything.
The mana continued flowing through her arm, responding to her thoughts. When it sensed her desire for cold, it adjusted accordingly. Her hand began to cool rapidly, and steam rose as the hot and cold energies collided.
Kaela stopped only when the sensation returned to normal.
"I will never do that again. Not until my master is with me," she said firmly to herself. Her trust in Lucan came not only from his greater intelligence as a mage, but also from the care and guidance he showed her.
"Master first raised his hand…" she said softly, lifting her own hand in imitation. "He probably imagined fire in a ball shape."
She copied the image in her mind. The mana gathered in her hand, once again trying to escape.
"I remember he said 'fireball,' right?" she muttered unconsciously, saying it aloud.
In the very next second, a small fireball formed in her palm. She felt the heat surge briefly before it shot upward.
She opened her eyes immediately to confirm what had happened. She felt the heat come and go in an instant.
Looking up, she saw a spark falling back down. It grew larger and larger as it descended, heading straight toward her.
She instantly jumped sideways. The spark struck the ground—it was the fireball she had created and successfully used.
"But Master's fireball was bigger—so big it could fill an entire valley. Then why is mine so small?" she pondered for a moment before saying, "I'll ask Master when I get the time." She can only hope that her master would one day make it easier for her to create a larger fireball.
She continued practicing, repeating the process to increase her proficiency with casting fireballs.
As she trained, a thought crossed her mind, and she spoke it aloud. "If I can teach my siblings too, they'll be able to protect themselves. But only if Master agrees. I can't make him someone who gives everything away. What would be left for me then?"
"Let me practice," she said, returning her focus once more to shaping another fireball.
***
The rope scraped against Kenny's palm as he pulled hard, trying to tighten it properly around the wooden frame.
"Kenny, tighten the rope carefully," someone called out to him.
Kenny nodded and did as he was told, focusing as he tightened the rope securely at the corner of the shelter, making sure it wouldn't loosen.
Then, a familiar voice echoed in lucan's mind—the voice of the system.
[Medium Shelter Complete : +50 CP, +5 LP]
Lucan glanced at the notification briefly before lifting his eyes toward the shelter itself. The walls were fully raised now, standing firm and solid. Compared to the small shelter they had built earlier, this one was clearly larger—spacious enough to comfortably house a family of five.
The ropes had been tightly secured around each corner, supporting a roof made of layered leaves, carefully arranged to block sunlight and rain alike.
"Lord, who is going to live in this shelter?" Evan asked Lucan while moving a few rocks aside to clear the area.
Marcus and Elias stepped closer to Lucan as well, their expressions thoughtful. One of them spoke up, "Who needs the most space in Elysian right now?"
Lucan hesitated. He found himself caught in a moment of indecision. He didn't immediately know who should receive the shelter. Did he need it the most? Or should it go to Nors's family? Or perhaps Kaela's family needed it more?
Lucan knew that whatever answer he gave would change the balance within the group. Granting the medium shelter to one family would inevitably affect the hierarchy—whether others accepted it willingly or not.
So the question lingered in his mind.
Who would be chosen to live in the medium shelter?