PART 1
I still wanted to know why Manyblood was considered the weakest among the five kingdoms and why the king, in particular, created manomancy. From what I could understand, the king's creation was to gain knowledge on either getting a royal animal to Dragonhood faster or what my father had been doing: trying to develop a new path entirely. I understood that Dragonhood gave immense power, but why wasn't Manyblood able to just get their hands on one of the four royal paths?
"Doesn't Manyblood have mana beasts, Father?"
"Yes, they do," he replied, finally catching a carp. He checked its body for any healing improvements, then placed it back, trying to catch another.
"Why don't you start with that instead of starting from scratch, trying to discover a new mana beast here, especially since you said most paths outside the four royal ones usually end in false dragons?" It was my personal belief that Father could use all his knowledge to find an already-existing mana beast and just find knowledge on that respective path. Watching Father's intense gaze toward catching another fish, I asked more questions. "Why can't they just draw power from them, instead of finding another new ascendant beast entirely?"
"Well, Astraaaayggga," Father said, stretching as he finally caught another fish. He checked its body for healing from cuts, but still found nothing, letting it go back into the pond. "The king especially doesn't count false dragons as a path to Dragonhood. As I said, not all mana beasts are able to give the best path towards Dragonhood. What the king wants are true dragons, and that in itself is incredibly difficult. We do have people in Manyblood who have achieved Dragonhood, don't be mistaken even the king himself but he ironically possesses a false dragon. Each kingdom has a deep spiritual connection to a path, except for Manyblood. The king wants a new, alternative path unique to Manyblood so that when any possible war starts, we would have a unique path that levels the playing field against other kingdoms. It's more political than you think. The knowledge of having a true dragon path is very secret and protected. Even if you gain it, it's still difficult, as the seeds of true dragons only evolve if they decide to fuse with your core."
"According to me," Father continued, "there are actually specific animals that tend to show more dragon seed purity than others due to contracts. Over years of perfecting development, the seed grows where there is a high concentration of true dragons weirdly enough as the seed manifests in different animals according to the kingdoms, acting as a big monopoly on who has more access to Dragonhood of a particular path. Therefore, eating such animals is hugely prohibited," Father explained.
Finding a new path would definitely be a difficult one. I stared at the necklace Anaya had given me. Why especially the koi fish? Since an Authority is a power of dragon magic, that could mean the koi fish has the ability to ward off dragon magic. Interesting. I see why Father believes a possible path is possible, and it could be incredibly powerful if that happens.
"Well, look at my fish," Father said, trying to touch one. It swiftly dodged his hands. "Tsk. Fast one, there. I believe there is a possibility after all the evidence I have seen, and personally, I want to be able to give you a good fighting chance against the Authority."
"But even with that, Father, let's say you finally get one of these fish to evolve into a mana beast. How would you know what to do to make it evolve to the next stage?"
He looked at me, knowing I had little knowledge of life outside the barriers and seals. "Well, son, that's a long and difficult question to answer. To answer your question... yes, you're right. But inside a successful mana beast resides, like I said, Dragon Seeds. If these seeds are nurtured properly and the person linked to the mana beast is of high compatibility, they can start the animal on the path to becoming a dragon by using intent magic to understand the beast on a deeper level. Well, that also requires the beast to be sentient as well. Oh my, that's all complicated," he said, scratching his head. It appeared Father was the type of person not to worry about what was ahead; he preferred solving one issue first, then the next, and so on.
"But I disagree with the king, as I believe false dragons are also powerful, since they are more like hybrid creatures," he said, a knowing look in his eye.
"Do you think this fish path might be toward false dragons if it happens?" I replied.
"Well, Astraga, that for now, I can't say. But having a mana beast that is sentient would make the job easier, as you could ask it questions while testing and be able to break the boundaries, and who knows, become a Primal Dragon, hahaha. Don't mind me, it's just wishful thinking."
"Remember when I explained the analogy of the three men wanting to start a fire? The second man, especially if he had access to dragon magic, could cast a spell without losing any energy. That's how powerful dragon magic is."
"So, meaning, Father, dragon magic is the highest form of power?" I asked.
"Yes, my son," he smirked.
Alright now that we are done here while im away all you have to do is simple feed the fishes and check on the tiny pricks on their bodies if it has healed properly. By any chance you see that mark them with these rubber as he showed me the location of where he. Kept them as they looked more like a rubber band than anything.
"That's it?" It all sounded too easy. I expected something more complicated, maybe by exposing the fish to high concentrated mana source they would evolve. How long has father actually been doing this research on these fish.
The book you're holding will explain more. its quite simple if by any chance we find 1 then we can start to teach it how to absorb to know… its core as we can't use that test i uses on you and your sister to measure animals as their blood functions differently from ours some don't even have blood per say.
PART 2
We finally left the cave and headed home. I couldn't wait to see Astraya train. I was hoping I could pick up a few lessons and find a loophole to use mana myself.
"Father, how powerful can a specialist be?" I asked.
He looked at me, and it was clear he had seen firsthand what a specialist could do. "They've achieved a mastery of one elemental mana so profound that even the mana submits to them." He explained that this world favored people who were masters of one thing, as their cores were built for it. "Tell me, what's the advantage of being a jack-of-all-trades but a master of none? You just end up being average, don't you?"
Well, I thought, back in my world, it was similar. Specialists were paid more and even got more respect. Still, for me, being versatile was a better choice. It was an important skill set to have. The situation reminded me of a video game I used to play as a kid. You would build your character's abilities with points in speed, strength, agility, and healing. Players had two mindsets: specialist or generalist. Many would focus all their points on one or two abilities to be the best in that area. But players like me always believed in a more balanced approach. We wouldn't be the best, but we'd be good at everything. This was until the game added a reward system for overall performance. And, surprisingly, those who went for a more balanced approach got a better overall rating.
I had to disagree with my father. While he clearly believed in the specialist approach, I didn't think you were "average" just because you couldn't reach the highest levels in multiple areas. In my mind, a generalist was a specialist in their own right.
"But Father," I countered, "wouldn't that make a jack-of-all-trades a specialist in versatility?"
He was visibly stunned. "Wow, Astraga. I've never thought of it that way," he said, touching his chin. "On a large scale, it makes sense. But at the end of the day, son, you also have to accept the current state of things. Look around you; only a master truly dominates this world. In the end, son, anyone can build a house if they have a well-rounded knowledge of how to build a foundation. But if you want a building that can reach the stars, you need a specialist…a master."
"Very good, Astraya, you learn fast." I could already hear the familiar voices of Mother and Astraya.
"Thank you, Mother. I'm already getting how to channel mana."
Astraya can already channel mana? I thought. "Father, I'll run ahead!" I said.
He smirked, waving me off. It was only a short distance, but the anticipation was killing me. This was it; I had to see it with my own eyes.