Chapter 4

An hour later, he heard his door open.

"Brother, wake upppp… oh, you're already awake," Liliya finished dispiritedly. She must have been really eager to wake him up, and Lucas shuddered at the thought of how she would attempt to wake him up.

"Morning, Lili," he greeted her with her nickname.

"Morning, but how come you're awake already?!"

"Well, what can I say? I like to exceed expectations," he replied with a smirk, causing Liliya to pout in displeasure.

"Anyway, who will exercise with us?"

"Brother Steven of course! Mom and Dad will join later, and Sister Rosa is busy."

"Busy with what?" Liliya shrugged her shoulders, and Lucas didn't inquire further.

"Come on! Get ready! We'll wait for you in the backyard!" With that, Liliya left his room, leaving him to change into comfortable clothes for exercise.

When he arrived at the backyard, his brother and sister were already there. As he approached them, he activated EoO to view their information.

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Name: Steven Harren

Race: Human

Age: 21

Gender: Male

Magic tier: 5

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Strength: 70/85

Dexterity: 83/97

Speed: 89/93

Endurance: 67/75

Will: 73/75

Mana: 55/70

Magic: 62/90

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Talent:

Major Sword Mastery

Major Spear Mastery

Major Shield Mastery

Minor Bow Mastery

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Skill:

.....

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His brother was superior to him in every way, but then again, it was to be expected since he was much older and didn't have the curse. His brother also had higher physical attributes, fitting his role as a martial artist.

For information, a martial artist was someone who possessed a body core instead of a magic core. The body core processed the raw mana into the aura, an energy that shrouded martial artists, passively making them stronger and offering protection. Instead of relying on spells, they utilized various techniques. They didn't have a broad array of techniques, unlike mages who could cast various spells.

Lucas then looked at his sister.

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Name: Liliya Harren

Race: Human

Age: 7

Gender: Female

Magic tier: 1

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Strength: 6/65

Dexterity: 15/86

Speed: 15/85

Endurance: 13/64

Will: 40/90

Mana: 2/100

Magic: 2/87

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Talent:

Major Wind Magic Mastery

Minor Lightning Magic Mastery 

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Skill:

....

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His sister, while having lower attributes, showed good potential as well. On top of that, she possessed two talents, leaving him to ponder why he didn't have any inborn talent at all. It would be dishonest to claim he wasn't envious at all. Examining her attributes, it was evident she had the potential to become a mage if she chose to pursue that path.

"Good morning, Lucas," Steven greeted him. "Ready for your exercise?"

"Sure," Lucas shrugged nonchalantly. Despite his indifferent demeanor, he was secretly eager to engage in the exercise. Not because he particularly enjoyed it, but rather to go observe whether this physical activity would result in an immediate increase in his attributes or not.

"Good. First, we're going for a warm-up. Follow my lead, okay?"

And so they started with warm-up exercises, followed by running laps around the backyard. Lucas grudgingly admitted that his sister was better than him. She could run faster and longer than him despite being the youngest one. It showed just how bad his physical body was.

After running to exhaustion, Steven took the opportunity to offer some guidance.

"While being a mage means you don't need to move around too much, it is essential to have a healthy body and strong legs, especially on a battlefield. A mage becomes an easy target without proper protection. In such situations, you can only rely on your legs to carry you away from danger. Additionally, a mage must learn to maintain focus on their casting, even when danger approaches. Magic is the primary weapon for a mage, and it needs to be ready at all times. Moreover, learning how to cast magic while in motion is crucial, as casting while on the move is better than being a sitting duck against a threat. Which is why, you will learn them in the future, but since you can't use magic, we will focus on fortifying your mind during these exercises."

"How?"

"Well, during push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, I will ask you random questions, and you have to answer them correctly. If you can respond accurately, even when your body and mind are fatigued, or your attention is elsewhere, then you've at least grasped the basics."

Lucas considered it, thinking that if it was just like that, he believed he could do well. He also had to agree with what his brother had said. Common mages often focus too much on casting magic, leaving them vulnerable in the face of danger. They became a liability when they repeatedly failed to cast magic while panicking. That was why a mage should keep a cool head and know the timing to cast magic.

"What's the capital of the Maguza Kingdom?" Steven asked.

"Morgia!" Lucas replied, gritting his teeth as he pushed his body up from the ground for the tenth time.

"Correct! What's the name of Maguza's King?"

"King- King Ju- Julius Abeforth Maguire!" Lucas managed to answer, falling to the ground in exhaustion before pushing himself up again.

"Yes. What's the symbol of the Harren Family?"

"Ugh…. Rose with Five Petals and Thorns…. Made of swords!"

"Again! Correct!"

"What's 129 multiplied by 321?"

"What?" Lucas asked dumbly, while doing sit-ups. "It is about 40 thousand or so!" He continued after a quick calculation.

"Almost correct! If you fall down from the sky, what magic will you use to stop falling?"

"Feather—"

"Buuz! You die!" Liliya interrupted while giggling. "You can't use magic silly!"

Lucas glared at his sister with a stink look. He really didn't need her to remind him of that.

"Ugh!" Lucas finally had time to rest by lying on the ground.

"Brother, you are so weak!" Liliya giggled.

"Shut up," he muttered with a mock glare directed at her.

"Nuuh!" She did an adult thing by sticking her tongue out at him.

"You good?" Steven asked.

"I'm fine…. And that's a lie." 

Steven chuckled when hearing that. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it. Besides, this is only the beginning. We haven't done anything hardcore yet."

"Please don't tell me about it," Lucas begged. He didn't need to hear it, and he didn't need to see it.

"Hahaha, well, take a rest and get ready for breakfast. What will you do after that?"

"I probably will be reading in the library. Why?"

"Nothing. Do you need help?"

"I could use advanced books. Do you have them?"

"Not much? Unless you want martial arts books and such." Steven shrugged his shoulders. "Why do you need them?"

"I need them for research, and yeah... I think I want them." There was no reason to say no. Even if he couldn't become a martial artist, the knowledge about it would still be beneficial to him.

"When will you have free time?" Liliya asked while rubbing her fingers on her back.

"I don't know, probably never. Why?" He lied. He knew why, but he wanted to make a payback.

Liliya pouted. "Nothing!"

"Aw! Little Lili is angry."

"I'm not angry you dimwit! I won't play with you again!" She shouted as she stomped away. Both Lucas and Steven chuckled while watching her go. It was always fun to tease their little sister.

'Though I should make time to play with her,' Lucas thought. Due to the pressure to enroll in the academy, he didn't have much free time to enjoy himself, much less spend time with his family, aside from eating together.