Ominous sparks

Life at home after our eventful day in the town settled back into familiar rhythms—well, mostly familiar. Fren and Roseline seemed determined to prepare me for the future in their own ways, and though they hadn’t said it outright, it was clear they wanted me ready for the academy whether I liked it or not.

Every morning, Fren and I trained in the backyard. His steady hand guided mine as I learned the basics of swordsmanship—the proper grip, precise strikes, and, most importantly, patience.

“Your stance is too rigid,” he said kindly as I adjusted my footing.

I frowned, trying to mimic his movements. “I don’t get how you make it look so easy.”

“It’s not easy,” he replied with a smile. “It takes years of practice. But you’re doing well.”

Swordsmanship itself was a complex affair, with ten mastery levels:

Blade Initiate

Steel Novice

Iron Apprentice

Bronze Adept

Silver Duelist

Golden Warrior

Platinum Knight

Obsidian Champion

Mythril Sage

Eternal Blade

It was a hassle trying to remember all of them, but Fren’s explanations made it easier. For now, I had six years to at least reach Steel Novice. My training began with grips, stances, and basic strikes using a wooden sword—heavy enough to double as strength training.

In the afternoons, Roseline took over. Her first lesson wasn’t about casting spells or manipulating mana, but about feeling it.

“Magic begins with feeling your mana,” she said, leading me to a patch of grass near the house. Sitting cross-legged, she motioned for me to do the same.

At first, there was nothing—just darkness and the faint sound of wind rustling the grass. But gradually, I felt something: silver threads glowing softly, weaving through my body in intricate patterns.

“I see them,” I whispered.

Roseline smiled. “Good. Mana is clay—you shape it with your mind.”

She demonstrated, conjuring a flame that shifted into water, then into a delicate snowflake before dissolving back into threads. Inspired, I tried to visualize fire myself. A small red flame appeared, flickering weakly. At the same time, a golden flame shimmered faintly on my eyepatch.

Curious, I touched the flame—predictably burning my finger before it vanished. Roseline laughed, healing the burn instantly. Fren appeared, calm but alert, as Roseline proudly announced: “Raizen cast his first spell… then touched it and burned himself.”

Despite the mishap, Roseline’s grin said it all: I had taken my first step into magic.

I left them together, my mind buzzing. I was progressing faster in magic than in the sword—even if by progress I mean I was able to cast a flame that couldn’t last five minutes.

“He’s turning out to be a prodigy,” Roseline stated proudly, her face filled with glee.

“...but that ominous presence is a concern as well,” Fren replied in a serious tone.

“I registered two mana signatures from him the moment that flame appeared. It wasn’t dangerous, so I let him be. But something else is his mana pool. It’s massive. The first spell a person casts normally takes a lot of mana for the initiation of flow—usually leaving the caster with more than half of their mana spent. He didn’t even seem disturbed by it, going straight to try something else.” Roseline sighed.

“His mana right now, if you quantify it in reference to yours, what would it be?” Fren asked as she rose from the grass.

“...two out of a hundred,” Roseline admitted, her tone suddenly serious.

“That high, huh. You know what that means, right?” Fren pressed.

“It means... we can train him to be strong enough for us to have our entire family as a party!” Roseline exclaimed, her excitement bubbling over.

“Right you are,” Fren said with a soft grin.

By the evening, I was back to staring at the prairie, the weight of the day settling over me. And still, the academy loomed as well, its promise of structured education and noble training haunting me like a distant storm cloud. School meant monotony; even with magic involved, how could it possibly compete with the life I already had here?

I sighed, wondering what else awaited me in this strange and unpredictable world.