Mana Heart

A green crystal materialized as soon as the screens vanished. It swirled around him, and then broke down into a swarm of glitters that seeped into his skin.

Jered's heart thrummed. One beat. Two beats. Three beats. Like a drum reaching its crescendo, its pace slowly increased, until an uncomfortable pressure settled on it. His heart squeezed, trembled, and washed him over with pain. That must have been what a heart attack felt like. Still, he soldiered on. Sweat dripped down his face as he clutched his chest. His breathing came out in short bursts. 'You got this, come on!' he told himself, biting hard on the piece of cloth. The pain made him light-headed, sluggish, and weak.

Fortunately, thanks to past experiences, he could tolerate it better. A cold sensation enveloped him, like a blanket of ice draping over his shoulders. Then it heated up, becoming unbearably hot. The extreme switch in temperatures made him feel sick. His stomach churned, and for a moment, he found himself on the edge of throwing up. However, he endured. He knew it wouldn't be long until it was over.

Once the sharp, blinding pain tapered off—

[Your Mana Heart has been successfully forged.]

[Due to your low rank, your Mana Heart is currently inactive.]

—his heart resumed its steady rhythm. Everything was back to normal. Well, as normal as it could possibly be. With a deep sigh of relief, Jered shoved himself up, and slipped out of his sweaty clothes. After a trip to the shower, he eased himself under the blankets. Contrary to when he got his Mana Circuit, he didn't feel any changes. Then again, his Mana Heart was inactive. It was not surprising, though still disappointing. After weathering through all of that pain, it did leave a bitter taste in his mouth.

With a flick of his wrist, 'Art of Fire' came sailing straight into his hand. It was the last tome he had left.

Honestly, he wanted to read it first. But now he wasn't so sure. Maybe it was better to just absorb it. He didn't want to get caught off-guard like that morning. The tome was not even that thick, to begin with. After considering the pros and cons for a while, he decided to trust his gut feeling. Whatever. "Absorb."

The tome crumbled into wispy lights that forced their way inside Jered's head. Thankfully, the pain was minimal. A headache would feel worse.

[Knowledge transfer: 99%]

[You have learned the spell 'Fireball', Lv.1]

[Summons a sphere of fire. Its size, quantity, and power depend on the spell's level.]

[You have learned the spell 'Fire Wall', Lv.1]

[Creates a wall of flame around the caster, or a specific target. Its size and durability depend on the spell's level.]

[The spells 'Fireball', 'Firewall' resonate with the spell 'Vizier's Light'.]

[Fireball has become Lv.5]

[Fire Wall has become Lv.5]

[You now need less mana to conjure both spells.]

Jered was almost overwhelmed by the clusterfuck of screens. Still, the feeling of improving was amazing. With a slight thought, his mana gathered atop his hand, burning, growing, and swirling into a scorching sphere. Compared to 'Vizier's Light' and 'Pharaoh's Flame', it was reasonably tamer. Jered didn't need to concentrate to keep the fireball from going out of control—he could only hope that he'd reach that kind of level for the other more dangerous spells too.

He clutched his hand into a fist, watching as the crimson flame licked through the gaps of his fingers.

A soft knock on his door snapped him out of his daze. Jered reacted quickly, and promptly ended the spell, "Come in."

There was a few seconds of silence before the door creaked open. Jasmine quietly made her way inside, and just as quietly, closed the door. He knew why she was there. He expected she'd wait until tomorrow as per their agreement, but it looked like she couldn't wait any longer, "Sorry," she mumbled, fiddling with her fingers, "It's just that...something's been bothering me."

Jered propped himself up, "Hmm, can you be more specific?"

"Umh... well, I've been feeling anxious... I don't know why. Like, I feel weird…"

"Do you know what happened to you?"

She hesitated for a bit, then shook her head, "I only know that it has to do with that Shadow thingy. After the earthquake, everything is blank. You said I fainted, right?"

"Right," Jered nodded, "Look. I'll omit the whole explanation about magic for now. It's complicated, and not even I know everything. So, this is what happened to you..." he proceeded to give her a summary of what Rainey had told him. And that while she was physically fine, she was actually in danger—and not only from the Shadow. If the secret spread to unwanted ears, Ashy Petals would be knocking at their door, and not to recruit Jered.

Jasmine lapsed into silence. It was dark in his room, and under normal circumstances, he wouldn't have been able to see her expression. But he was not normal. His eyes could pierce through the darkness, and see the defeated, scared grimace on her face. She must have been thinking that her life was over. And in a certain way, yes, it was. Jasmine couldn't go back to what she was less than 24 hours ago. Maybe Rainey would come up with a solution, but it was not guaranteed. Jered watched as she dragged her feet towards his bed, and flopped next to him.

He slung an arm over her shoulder, pushing her head into the crook of his neck, "It's okay, Jaz. The situation is indeed complicated, but I'll make sure you're safe."

"Hmhm," she spared him a glance, and struggled to smile, to show that she was fine. She wasn't. She just wanted to believe that the world was not as scary as it sounded, that she was not going to die because of a mistake no one had control over, "I don't want you to get hurt because of me..."

He waved her off, "Oh, don't worry about it. I have great friends, and an even greater way to gain power. I just need time. Everything will be fine, so please, don't be sad. Ah, here... I almost forgot," Jered slid a hand underneath his pillow, and retrieved a fancy, velvety box, "We were so busy celebrating and making a mess that it slipped out of my mind. Happy birthday, you silly loaf."

Jasmine blinked, secretly gasping. She didn't need to open it to know that it was expensive. Through the pale moonlight, the brand emblazoned on the box's lid sparkled beautifully. Pandora. With a quivering, careful hand, she took the proffered gift. She pursed her lips inward, and slowly latched the box open. Nestled cozily between the black, silky cushions, was an exquisite charm bracelet. The chain was silver, intricately woven with beads, and with a sapphire heart dangling from the middle.

"Jered, this is..." she bit her bottom lip, delicately extracting it from the box, "... so beautiful. How much did you pay for it?"

"It's okay, I could afford it. Now, come on. Try it."

She fidgeted with the hook before she managed to clasp it around her wrist. It fit her perfectly. She gently caressed its surface with her other hand, marveling at its well-crafted beauty. Something like that was not cheap by any means, "It's very pretty... I love it," Jasmine mumbled, mesmerized by the gift. She even brought a finger up to rub the moisture off her eyes, "Thank you, really," she turned sideways, and looped her arms around Jered's neck. She pasted herself so much into him that she was almost straddling him.

"I'm glad you like it," Jered patted her back, smiling, "As soon as I saw it, I thought 'Yes, this would definitely suit her'. And indeed, it does suit you."

"..."

Silence.

"Are you scared? I told you, I'm not going anywhere. I'll be there to make sure they don't hurt you. Today was a bit dangerous because I was caught unprepared. It won't happen again, I promise."

"..."

"Mom will be fine too. So don't feel guilty."

"..."

"Jasmine?"

She sniffed, pulling back slightly. There was a certain look in her eyes that he seldom saw. It was one of those moments where Jered couldn't read her. He tilted his head, hoping to catch her eyes, to find more, "I'm sorry, it's just that..." she finally looked up, her voice cracking with tears, "... I've been thinking about something."

She was being cryptic again.

"And is this something making you sad?" Jered probed.

"Kinda," Jasmine chuckled, "I was thinking about my wish."

"Now, why would your wish make you sad?"

She laughed harder, "Well, you have to find that out by yourself. It would ruin the game if I told you."

He pouted, and Jasmine was almost tempted to lean forward and take a bite of his lips, "That's not fair. Can't you give me a hint?"

"A hint, huh?"

"Yeees, hint, hint, hint. Gimme hint."

"You see, dear brother, I've already given you plenty of hints. Any more than that, and I might as well tell you everything."

"Then, tell me. I want to know."

"Nuh-huh. I would die of embarrassment and shame if I did."

He huffed, "You damn vixen."

"Hehe," Jasmine snickered, and to Jered's surprise, she narrowed her eyes, and sneaked a bite on the tip of his nose. She must have been startled by her action too, for a huge blush spread across her cheeks. She cleared her throat, passing it off as nothing out of the norm, "Weeell, I'm off to sleep. I really love this bracelet. I'll treasure it! Thank you, bro! You're the best!" she climbed off of him, and skipped towards the door, "Nighty!"

Jered touched his nose, not knowing what to think. He was not stupid. He was emotionally detached, but not stupid. Jasmine's behavior alluded to something, at a can of worms he should probably never open. No use thinking about that now. With a sigh, he opened his hand, and resumed his training.