A Thrilling World

The rest of the morning had passed quickly. After tending to her animals, Valeria had shown Cael how she cared for the fields and greenhouse.

The watering process was simple thanks to her magic—just a basic hydrogenesis spell, nothing extraordinary. But when she summoned streams of water from thin air, Cael’s reaction was pure, unfiltered awe.

It was strange. While he seemed to understand the concept of magic, she got the impression he wasn’t used to seeing it in practice—at least, not conjuration spells. Maybe mages in his world had different methods, like the element-kinesis her father once said was common in other lands.

Whatever the reason, his amazement was endearing. She enjoyed impressing him, especially the way he watched her intently, studying her every movement as she worked.

Afterward, they had returned inside, where she had attempted to dazzle him further with her cooking skills. She had made one of her go-to breakfasts, mixed eggs: a simple dish of beaten and fried eggs combined with onions, smashed potatoes, garlic, mushrooms, and a touch of butter. Fortunately, Cael had seemed to enjoy it.

Now, they were back in the living area, working through another book for their language lessons. Since he had picked up vocabulary so quickly from the previous one, she had chosen a slightly more advanced storybook depicting various actions on an adventure.

"Climbed," Cael repeated, reading the word off the page. "The boy climbed a mountain."

Val nodded. Once again, she was impressed by how quickly Cael was picking up her tongue. They had already been studying for three hours, and as he read, he scribbled notes in what she assumed was his native language. The characters were so different from her own that they looked like nothing more than random lines to her.

She was curious as to where Cael had learned all of this. He looked to be around her age, but the way he tackled learning resembled that of an academic from her other story books.

"Good," Val replied, patting him on the shoulder. His eyes flickered to meet hers, and he flashed her a brief, awkward smile before turning his attention back to the page and fidgeting with the pencil in his hand.

She inwardly sighed. Still, despite his astonishing progress, it was clear he was growing restless. He was doing a good job of hiding it, but every so often, his gaze would wander to the window or the door.

Honestly, she couldn't blame him. Whenever she had gone through lessons with her parents, she could only endure them for so long before needing a break.

The problem was, she had tried to suggest a break several times already, but he had shockingly rejected each of her offers. Instead of taking a moment to relax, he just kept going, almost like it was some sort of chore.

She supposed he was eager to learn, but this wouldn't do. There had to be something she could do to either make him rest or make the experience less dull. But what?

Her eyes widened as an idea came to her.

"Look, Cael. This word is 'run,'" Val said, pointing to the picture of a man running away from a monster.

"Run," he repeated, looking at the picture intently. He started jotting something in his notes when Val suddenly stood and began jogging in place.

"Yes! Run!"

"?!" He wordlessly stared at her, startled by the abrupt movement.

Val grinned and began to jog faster. "Ruuunnn," she chanted, making exaggerated motions. Then, she took a deep breath and spun around, sprinting around the living area.

"Cael, you too. Together. Run." She smiled and beckoned at him as she continued to circle the room.

Cael glanced away, and his cheeks reddened as he seemed to think it over. However, instead of joining her, he just shook his head and returned to writing in his notebook.

She pouted, disappointed by his lack of response, but she didn't let it deter her. Instead, she grabbed his hand and pulled him to his feet.

"Come on!" she exclaimed, tugging him toward the front door. "Follow Val! We can run outside!"

"Val?!" Cael exclaimed in surprise as he stumbled after her. She ignored his protests, dragging him out the door and leading him into the forest.

"Here we are!" she declared, gesturing to the vast landscape before them. The familiar, towering trees stretched toward the sky, casting long shadows across the earth. Birds chirped from the branches above, and a cool breeze rustled the leaves. In the distance, the faint sound of a stream trickled through the quiet forest air.

"Run," she instructed, pointing further into the forest. Then, without hesitation, she took off in a sprint with her cloak billowing behind her.

Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Cael still staring at her in bewilderment. She waved him forward, hoping it would help.

"Come on, Cael!" she called out. "You have to run!"

He remained unmoving, seemingly hesitant or unsure of what to do. However, his expression quickly shifted, and he promptly shot forward at full speed.

"!?"

Oh wow—he was fast.

Valeria found herself being chased now, and she had to admit, it was thrilling! She grinned, pushing herself to go faster as she weaved through the trees.

"Run, run, run!" she shouted, laughing as her heartbeat pounded in her chest. The wind rushed against her skin, and the sun warmed her back.

This felt different from her travels between the city and the cottage. It wasn’t just movement; it was freedom, joy—running for the sake of it.

She stole another glance behind her. Cael was gaining, and his determined smirk made her breath hitch. He looked nothing like the shy, awkward boy from earlier. Now, he was focused and confident; the change excited her.

She giggled and turned her attention back to the path ahead. Just as she did though, she felt his hand nearly brush against her back.

Somehow, he had closed the gap. He was right behind her now.

She gasped and surged forward, but he did the same to match her pace.

For a while, they raced through the trees, feet pounding against the earth. She stuck to the paths she had carved out over time, but every so often, she swerved into the untamed forest to keep things interesting. Cael followed without hesitation, never complaining—even when branches smacked at his arms and face.

He must've been a warrior or adventurer of some kind in his old world, because it didn't take long for him to gain the lead and eventually overtake her completely.

Ultimately, she slowed, gasping for air. Her lungs burned, her legs ached, and her throat felt raw from panting.

A small part of her pride had wanted to use windwalking to enhance her speed like she normally would, but that would have been cheating. Besides, she was having fun.

She collapsed onto the grass, then rolled onto her back to stare at the sky. They had reached one of the clearings closer to the mountains in the east where the trees grew sparser. Sunlight streamed through the branches, painting shifting patterns across the ground.

Cael sat beside her, chest rising and falling heavily. Despite his exhaustion, he was smiling.

"Run is… fun?" she asked, glancing at him.

"Run is fun," he agreed, nodding his head. "But run is hard. Val's run is hard."

She laughed. "Val is fast," she replied, sitting up. "Val runs a lot. Cael is fast too."

He nodded again, and for a moment, she simply watched him. His ashen-brown hair was damp with sweat, and his lightly tanned skin glistened in the sunlight. A faint smile lingered on his lips, and his grey eyes shone with energy. He looked the same, yet so… different.

"Is Cael okay?" she asked him, reaching out to touch his arm.

"Yes," he answered. "Just… tired. Very tired." His smile turned sheepish.

"Val is sorry. Val made Cael run far."

"Is okay. Cael liked running with Val."

Her heart fluttered.

"V-Val liked it too."

She leaned back on her hands to gaze up at the sky once more. The clouds drifted lazily overhead, providing a little bit of reprieve from the direct heat of the sun. She closed her eyes, listening to the birdsong and the gentle rustling of leaves.

"Val," Cael said suddenly. "What is that?"

She opened her eyes to find him pointing at a large boulder marked with deep gouges.

"Target practice," she told him. "I used to practice my magic here."

His brows furrowed slightly.

"Watch," she said, rising to her feet. She brushed grass from her dress, then extended her palm toward the rock.

Muttering an incantation under her breath, she felt the familiar rush of energy as wind swirled around her hand. The power built, stronger and stronger, until it manifested into a crescent.

"Vas!" she shouted, releasing the spell.

The blade of wind shot from her palm, carving another deep gash into the rock.

"!?"

Cael’s eyes widened in astonishment. He rushed over to run his fingers over the fresh cut.

"Amazing," he murmured, his voice slow and deliberate as he struggled to recall the right word. "Val is… air mage?"

"Yes," she answered. "More specifically, an aeromage. Father was a master of several magics. Mother was a healing mage."

"Amazing," he repeated. He didn’t seem to understand everything she had said, but she could tell he grasped the core of it.

"Thank you." She blushed slightly. His praise reminded her how her parents would do the same, but there was something else—something new—about hearing it from him.

"What about Cael?" she asked eagerly. "Cael show Val magic?"

Her mind raced with possibilities. What kind of spells did he know? It had to have been different from hers at a bare minimum.

However, Cael shook his head. "No. No magic."

Her eyes narrowed as her gaze bore into him. Was he seriously trying to lie to her again? It was obvious he had magic; she had vaguely sensed mana swirling within his body when she first summoned him.

Did he just not want to show her? That didn’t seem right though. Comparing magic was common among mages from what her father told her.

Perhaps he was just shy.

"Here," she said, motioning for him to hold out his hand.

He paused for a second before complying.

She placed her palm atop his, letting a faint trickle of her mana flow through him. Cael's warmth and the smoothness of his skin beneath her fingertips was a pleasant sensation.

"What is Val doing?" he asked.

"Testing you." She focused, sensing how her mana interacted with his. Her father had tested her the same way when she was a child, and her mother had done it often to help Val visualize her own energy.

There was no resistance, and his body assimilated her energy effortlessly as she searched him. It meant that their mana types were compatible with one another, so he likely had an affinity for wind or water like she did.

But there was something wrong.

It felt as if there was something preventing him from accessing his power. There was a good deal of energy inside him, but it was sealed away.

Had he done this to himself? Or perhaps it was someone else?

She had heard of mages born with overwhelming power who needed to seal it away to stay in control. But Cael didn’t seem like one of those. The amount of magic within him wasn’t abnormally high. Plus, she couldn't see any of the seals that would've been necessary to do that.

Frowning, she withdrew her hand. Maybe this was what he meant by 'no magic'. He had mana, but he couldn’t use it.

A pang of guilt hit her as a thought occurred to her.

Had she taken away his ability to use magic when she summoned him?

"Did Cael… lose magic after summoning?" she asked hesitantly.

Cael's brows knitted together. "What?"

"Magic," Val repeated, gesturing to his body. "Magic gone after summoning. Magic gone because of Val?"

He was in the middle of shaking his head when he suddenly tensed up, and his eyes locked onto something behind her.

"Cael?" Confused, she followed his gaze over her shoulder.

There, at the other end of the clearing, stood a lone silhouette.