The next day arrived quickly.
In the main office of the Kiran family, Aleric was meeting with Matheus and Octavio.
Spread across the large table was an enormous jade map.
The map depicted a vast region of the continent, with mountains, cities, borders, and territories carefully carved into its surface. Small pieces had been placed across different locations, representing armies, fortresses, and potential routes of movement.
Aleric held one of the pieces while studying the map with a serious expression.
"Matheus, Octavio, the conflicts are growing more intense by the day."
He slowly moved the piece across the map.
"Our side of the continent is smaller because of the Magical Beasts Mountain Range. That makes every dispute over territory and resources even more intense."
Matheus crossed his arms.
"And we still have the Radiant Church and the Dark Alliance influencing events from the shadows."
His expression was troubled.
"Even if they aren't directly involved in a war, their actions can completely alter the balance between kingdoms."
Octavio remained silent, studying the map.
Aleric nodded.
"We need to be prepared in case either of them attempts to interfere directly within our territory."
The three began discussing possible countermeasures.
However, before they could reach any conclusions, the office door opened.
Myth entered quickly.
Aleric turned his head.
The moment he saw his son, he immediately noticed that something was different.
Myth was excited.
But it wasn't the kind of excitement caused by fear.
His eyes were shining with anticipation.
"Myth, did something happen?"
"Father!"
Myth hurried over to him.
"I made a huge discovery! This will definitely help us increase our strength. Come with me!"
Aleric raised an eyebrow.
"A discovery?"
"Yes!"
Myth grabbed his father's arm.
"Come with me!"
Aleric was surprised by his son's behavior.
Then he glanced at Matheus and Octavio.
"Matheus, Octavio, you're dismissed. We'll continue this discussion another time."
"Yes, my lord!"
The two bowed and left the office.
As soon as the door closed, Myth pulled at his father again.
Aleric had no choice but to follow.
"What is it, Myth? Why are you in such a hurry?"
"Father, don't ask."
Myth smiled.
"Seeing and experiencing it is better than any explanation."
Aleric became even more confused.
The two crossed the corridors of the castle until they reached an area known only to a few people.
Inside the armory was a hidden passage.
Aleric knew the place very well.
It was one of the secret areas used by the Kiran family to train certain techniques.
Some of the family's ancestral techniques relied on surprise. If their enemies discovered their training methods, they could develop countermeasures.
Because of that, the location had to remain hidden.
Myth opened the passage.
The two entered.
After crossing the short corridor, they arrived in a spacious room.
There was a bed, a bathroom, and various other necessities for someone staying there for an extended period.
At the center of the room, however, was something entirely different.
A magical formation had been engraved into the floor.
Aleric looked at it.
Four points were positioned around a central core.
Myth pointed toward the formation.
"Father, this morning I was thinking about helping you train using my gravity magic."
Aleric looked at his son.
"But I can't train with you every day."
Myth continued:
"So I thought about creating a formation that could do it by itself."
Aleric fell silent.
Myth smiled.
"And it worked."
The formation began emitting a faint glow.
"The four nodes continuously absorb Earth-element essence from the surroundings. The energy is guided through the formation lines into the central core, where it is compressed by the Weight Seal."
He pointed toward the center.
"After that, the formation can maintain the gravitational field."
Aleric stared at the formation for several seconds.
Then he turned toward his son.
"Son..."
"Yes?"
"Could you explain that in a simpler way?"
Myth blinked.
"Oh."
He thought for a moment.
"In short..."
He pointed at each section of the formation.
"Earth element from the environment."
"Then the attraction nodes."
"The flow lines guide the energy."
"The gravity core gathers everything together."
"And then we have the gravity field."
Aleric finally seemed to understand.
Myth continued:
"I also added voice commands."
"Voice commands?"
"Yes."
Myth nodded.
"We can increase gravity all the way up to one hundred times normal gravity."
Aleric's eyes widened.
"Up to one hundred times?"
"Yes."
Myth pointed toward the center of the formation.
"Father, I believe this can help you a lot. You're already an Eighth-Rank Warrior and not far from reaching the Ninth Rank. Give it a try."
Aleric took a deep breath.
Then he walked toward the formation.
"If I step on it, won't the formation be damaged?"
"Don't worry."
Myth answered immediately.
"It won't break easily, and it's automatically supplied by the Earth elements in the surrounding environment."
"Then how do I activate it?"
"It's simple."
Myth explained:
"Once you're inside the formation, just give the command."
Aleric nodded.
He stepped into the center.
Took a deep breath.
Then said:
"Increase gravity five times."
The next instant—
Boom!
An invisible pressure descended upon his body.
Aleric's muscles tightened.
One knee bent slightly.
He immediately felt the difference.
It was as if his body had suddenly become much heavier.
Aleric remained still for several seconds.
Then slowly straightened his back.
"This..."
He looked at Myth.
"This is incredible."
A smile appeared on his face.
"Son, I have no idea how you managed to create something like this."
Myth shrugged.
"I just read the books about magical formations in the library and tried creating one of my own."
He looked at the magic circle again.
"Something at this level is within my capabilities."
Aleric chuckled.
"You really are different from other children."
Then he began training.
Inside the gravity formation, Aleric started performing physical exercises.
The area affected by the gravitational field occupied nearly half the room, giving him plenty of space to move.
Myth watched for a few moments.
"Father, I'm going to begin my own training."
Aleric continued exercising.
"You don't need this room?"
Myth shook his head.
"No. I can use my own gravity magic."
Aleric nodded.
"Very well. See you later, son."
He paused briefly.
"I'll continue training and bring your mother here later."
Myth nodded.
"See you later."
Then he left the room.
---
A short while later, Myth arrived at the training grounds.
The ten orphans were training under Octavio's supervision.
Myth watched for several seconds.
Most of them were using swords.
That was quite common.
Across the continent, the sword was one of the most widely used weapons among warriors.
Frederica was the first to notice Myth's arrival.
She immediately turned around.
"Everyone, the Young Master is here."
The others stopped their exercises.
Quickly, they lined up side by side.
Myth approached them.
A satisfied smile appeared on his face.
"Good morning."
"Good morning, Young Master!"
Myth looked at their weapons.
"I see you've already chosen the type of weapon you'd like to use."
He glanced at the swords.
"I may not know much about swordsmanship, but Octavio can help you with that."
Then he turned around.
"Follow me to the same place as yesterday."
The ten began following him.
"I prepared a surprise."
Myth slipped a hand into his clothing.
"I went there earlier and made a few modifications."
He pulled out several small wooden tokens.
A bird was carved onto each one.
They looked remarkably similar to Jin.
Myth tossed the tokens to the ten youths.
Each of them caught one.
"Hold onto them."
Frederica examined hers.
"Young Master, what are these?"
"You'll find out when we get there."
---
After some time, they reached the mountain behind the castle.
The ten youths were surprised.
The area near the waterfall looked completely different.
The ground had been leveled.
Various patterns had been carefully inscribed into the earth.
Myth pointed at the area.
"I set up a magical formation in this section of the mountain."
Everyone became attentive.
"It's a barrier that prevents other people from entering."
Myth raised one of the tokens.
"The only way to pass through the barrier is with one of these tokens."
Rodolphe's eyes widened.
"Incredible."
The others looked equally surprised.
Myth continued:
"You've probably also noticed the formations on the ground."
He pointed at them.
"These are magical formations as well."
The ten moved closer.
"They'll help with your training."
Myth pulled something from a small pouch.
A magical core.
"Every day, each of you will receive a Rank One magical core."
Some of their eyes lit up.
But Myth's expression became serious.
"Pay attention."
Everyone immediately straightened up.
"Do not sell these magical cores."
The ten fell silent.
"This formation requires a catalyst to function. The magical core will act as its energy source."
Myth pointed toward the center.
"And the formation's purpose is to increase gravity."
The ten youths were shocked once again.
"Each of you has an individual formation."
He explained how to place the magical core, activate it, and deactivate the gravity field.
"Every day, you may collect one magical core from Thyrus."
Myth looked at each of them.
"One per day."
Then his expression became serious.
"I won't personally supervise your training all the time."
The ten straightened their posture.
"Therefore, take this training seriously."
"Yes, Young Master!"
Myth nodded.
After explaining the basic operation of the formation once more, he left the ten youths to begin their training.
Then he looked toward the forest.
"Jin."
The little bird was standing nearby.
Myth extended an arm.
"Let's go."
Jin flew onto his shoulder.
Myth gently stroked her feathers.
"For the past few days, I've had the feeling that you've been trying to lead me somewhere."
Jin tilted her head.
Myth smiled.
"Then show me."
Jin immediately took flight.
Myth followed after her.
The two continued deeper and deeper into the forest.
At first, the surroundings were still familiar.
But as they advanced, the trees became denser.
The sound of the waterfall gradually faded behind them.
Myth continued following Jin without knowing exactly where they were going.
What neither of them realized was that they were slowly entering the outskirts of the Magical Beasts Forest.
That region was still considered the outer perimeter of the forest.
Yet even there, Magical Beasts could already be found.
And some of them were Rank 1, Rank 2, and Rank 3 Magical Beasts.
Jin continued flying ahead.
Myth narrowed his eyes.
For the first time in a long while, he felt that something different was about to happen.