Days turned to weeks, and weeks quickly morphed into a month.
Kael returned to the forest whenever he could—never going too deep, never staying too late. He practiced as much as he could, though each training session left him extremely tired and fatigued. But nonetheless, he continued.
His arm still ached after training. His body still felt weak… but the stick in his hands no longer felt foreign, even though he wasn't used to it fully yet.
Today, he was also going to do what he usually did: explore the forest, check his soul realm to see if there had been any changes, and also get some training done.
Kael was outside with his father, bidding him farewell since his father was going off to work.
It was late morning, and the sunbeams shone over the dew-filled grass, making it shimmer. It was refreshing, coupled with the early morning breeze. Kael closed his eyes to savour the moment.
His father was near their floating car. Its door was opened, and he was confirming something on the holographic screen that appeared from his wrist link.
He tapped it, and the holographic screen disappeared. Then he turned to look at his son.
"Okay son, I'll be leaving now," he said, smiling.
"Okay dad," Kael said as he hugged his father.
"Are you going to the forest today?" his father asked.
"Yes dad," Kael answered shortly.
"Okay, make sure you be careful. Don't get hurt by monsters," his father said, a hint of concern showing on his face.
"I'll make sure I'm careful, Dad," Kael said with a smile to reassure him.
"Okay son, bye," his father said as he entered the car and closed the door.
There was a low hum from the car, and after one minute it left, leaving behind a streak of blue glow as it headed towards the floating city.
Kael waved until the car could no longer be seen on the horizon.
Kael then proceeded to the path to the forest. He was used to taking it now—he could probably take it without even looking.
The neighbouring house, which was a bit far from their own, looked silent. Kael usually saw it daily, but he had never seen anyone around it.
He continued walking. His mood was happy for no reason. He himself did not even know why. He was just… happy.
After a few minutes, he came across the dirt path that entered the forest.
The path was beautiful and serene as usual. The smell of the slightly damp earth was pleasing to the nose.
He stopped for a little while to look at the ancient trees at the edge of the forest. He was still amazed because the trees looked ancient and incredibly tall. It seemed like they were hiding something—something Kael had promised himself he would uncover.
After a few minutes, he entered the forest.
The ground below his feet felt soft as he stepped on the moss-filled earth.
The air felt cool, and the sounds of the creatures of the forest, coupled with the faint sound of the distant flowing river, plus the sound of the wind brushing against the leaves of the trees, felt good to hear.
But as he was walking, he noticed something on the forest floor.
There was a footprint.
A small footprint of both feet.
It seemed to belong to a young child, probably his age.
"Hm… could someone else have passed through here?" Kael pondered as he continued making his way towards the clearing.
As Kael entered the clearing, something was different.
Not a monster.
Not a creature.
There was a person.
Well… not technically a person.
A young girl.
The girl was sitting on the rock where Kael usually sat.
As Kael came closer, the girl seemed to be focusing on something with her eyes closed.
She had short blonde hair and a beautiful, doll-like face.
As Kael moved closer, he also noticed that there was a ball made out of mana floating in her hands, which were placed in front of her.
There was also a device next to her. It looked like a staff… or maybe a wand. Kael didn't know.
The wand or staff had etchings on it, and it had a glowing core. Its front looked like a ball, and it was glowing blue.
The girl's eyes opened, revealing blue eyes that were clear and slightly large.
Kael stopped, not knowing what to do.
"Ummm… hello," Kael said shyly.
"Hello," the girl answered in a soft, cute melodic voice.
Kael remained silent for a bit. He did not know how to continue.
"Who are you?" the girl asked cautiously. She spoke before Kael could even think of what to say.
"I-I'm Kael… Kael Valen," he replied.
"I come here sometimes," he added.
The girl narrowed her eyes and looked straight into Kael's.
"This is my place," she said, puffing up.
Kael blinked, slightly taken aback.
"Your place? What do you mean by that?"
She stood up slowly, still watching him carefully.
"I found this clearing first," she said. "So it belongs to me."
Kael frowned slightly.
"That doesn't make sense."
The girl scoffed.
"It makes perfect sense."
Kael hesitated, then asked, "…Are you done?"
The girl stared at him as if he had said something stupid.
"Obviously."
She added, "So you keep coming here often… and why?"
Kael glanced at the rock and the river.
"I do. I come here most of the time. It's peaceful, and I train here mostly," Kael said shyly.
The girl's expression changed slightly.
"Train?" she repeated.
"Yeah. I usually train with that stick over there," Kael said as he pointed to the stick laying near the rock.
The girl looked him up and down, then shook her head.
"That's not training."
Kael's eyebrows twitched.
"What do you mean?"
The girl shook her head, then said, "Most people don't even use swords these days. Do you know that?"
"Yes, I do. But I still love using it, so I'm going to train more," Kael said with determination.
The girl raised her hand slightly.
"So… you know how to do magic and use mana?"
Kael froze.
"Uhh… I've never used it, but I can sense it."
The girl smirked faintly.
"You're really clueless. Sensing it is different from using it."
Kael stared at her for a moment.
"Magic… was that magic you were doing right now?"
The girl smirked.
"Yes. Yes, it was."
Then she paused.
"Wait… have you never used it? Not even to make a mana ball?" the girl added, her face turning shocked.
"Yeah," Kael said.
Her eyes widened.
"What—?"
"I haven't ever used magic," Kael said.
The girl was still shocked.
"How shocking," she said, looking at him, then added, "Do you want to learn?"
Kael was surprised by the offer.
But he did want to use magic, since his mother usually used it at home—mostly for basic things.
And he was also curious to see how magic was used in this era.
"Okay. If you're willing, then I have no reason to refuse," Kael said with a smile, his mood changing.
The girl looked at him silently for a bit.
"My name is Clare… Clare Ashford," she said.
"I'm going to try my best so that you can learn magic," she added.
Kael's heartbeat sped up. He didn't know why, but it was probably because he was about to learn how to use mana.
"But you don't have a wand," she said as she looked at him.
"Ooh," Kael muttered.
"But don't worry. First, I'll teach you how to sense mana properly," she said.
Kael was surprised because he had never seen his mother using a wand before.
"Okay," he said as they both sat down cross-legged.
"You don't have to make a mana ball on your first try, since you don't have a wand, and it's also your first time. So just try your best," she said with a smile.
"You're going to have to close your eyes, focus, and sense the mana all around the air, okay?" she said to Kael.
Kael proceeded to do as he was told. He focused and tried his best to sense the mana.
Then Clare continued speaking.
"Now, even though you don't have a wand, I want you to try and visualize a ball made out of mana in your head."
She knew he couldn't do it. She just wanted to see how good he was at controlling mana. She didn't expect much from him.
Kael then put his hand in front of him and tried to visualize the mana ball in his mind, trying to manipulate mana.
Clare watched him closely.
Then something happened—something Clare didn't expect.
A small blue glowing orb appeared on Kael's hand.
It was small… but it appeared.
Clare was shocked.
"How did you do that?!" she shouted.
Kael came out of his focus, and the ball disappeared. He only saw it for a second, but he had made it without a wand nonetheless.
He was speechless for a while.
"I don't know," he said, smiling sheepishly.
"No one can use magic without a wand, so how did you do it?" she asked, her tone full of surprise.
Kael shrugged.
"I don't know. Maybe I just got lucky," he said, still smiling.
Clare didn't know what to say anymore.
She knew it was impossible… so how could this boy make a mana ball without a wand?
She had too many questions in her head.
"Only genius prodigies from House Atherion in the floating cities are able to do that," she said, not taking her eyes off him.
"Oh… does that mean I'm a prodigy?" Kael asked, smirking.
Clare rolled her eyes.
"Of course you're not, you dummy," she said, laughing.
"Maybe it was just a fluke," she added.
She didn't want to believe her own words, but she couldn't believe a country boy could use magic without a wand.
"Well, I have to go home now. I'm late," she said as she stood up.
"Wait. I'll head home too. I'm tired. Using mana is really tiresome," Kael said as he stood as well.
But before they left, Kael looked at the trees.
The crow was there.
Still watching him.
"Have you ever seen that bird since you started coming here?" he asked Clare as he pointed towards it.
Clare shook her head.
"No. No, I haven't. It does look weird," she added.
"Yeah, it does."
They then went home speaking as they bothe went back home.