Warm and Soothing

"You've got good reflexes, at least," Vince heard Nyx say as he opened his eyes, only to see the dagger in his hand.

Vince couldn't believe he had caught it with his eyes closed. It felt easy, almost instinctive, as if his body knew exactly what to do.

"Feel nature's energy the same way you sensed the wooden dagger approaching. With calm surroundings and steady sounds, it's easy to notice any disruption. Now that you've done it, expand your awareness and open yourself to nature. Learn to see beyond what your naked eye can."

"Hey, this is a wooden dagger, but it still has a pointed edge. You could have injured me."

"Lily said the Captain's little boy is agile and has good reflexes, so I wanted to see for myself. It was also to test if this training is worth anything. I'm not the type to waste time on useless things. Being a city guardian is a demanding job, and I've got a family to feed."

"A family to feed? So you've got a wife and kids?"

"I've got three horses, four rabbits, and six birds."

"No mice?" Vince chuckled. What was he, Cinderella?

"Five minutes. That's all you have left."

Bummer.

But wait, did Nyx just call him 'little boy'? This Dracula.

Vince closed his eyes and focused again.

Silence.

For a long minute, which felt like an eternity, Vince kept his eyes shut and tried to feel nature's energy once more.

Then it came—a loud clap of thunder and a flash of lightning.

Vince didn't see anything, but he felt a surge of energy in the air.

It had no scent and no temperature, but it felt nice, like a warm blanket in the middle of winter.

Lightning was a primal force of nature, holding a raw and powerful energy. That's why it was rare to have an affinity for it, because that kind of energy was difficult to control.

Vince was relieved. If he could sense that, it meant he had the potential to feel all the energies of nature.

He just needed to learn how. It was a good start.

Somewhere in the forest, where Nyx stood among the shadows as if he were part of them, he looked up at the sky where thunder and lightning roared.

His hollow black eyes were unreadable, but deep down, he wondered why lightning had suddenly struck in the middle of clear weather. There hadn't been any signs of a storm earlier.

Nyx watched as Vince remained in his spot for the next few minutes. Vince's posture was ramrod straight but relaxed, his breathing even, and his energy calm and unsuppressed.

Nyx could tell it wasn't easy for him to sense the nature's energy.

On a typical day, Nyx would hide his presence completely in the shadows, his energy fully masked so that even those with the most heightened senses would struggle to find him.

But today, he only concealed a fraction of his energy. Vince was still dormant and couldn't feed his soul force with nature's energy, so it would have been impossible for him to locate Nyx if he fully concealed himself.

He was giving Vince a chance to prove himself.

If Vince could pass this simple test, it would mean he was worth Nyx's time.

However, from what Nyx could see, Vince still couldn't sense anything beyond the superficial.

Five minutes passed, and still, there was no answer from Vince.

"Tell me your guess," Nyx said.

He crossed his arms, remaining invisible to Vince, having blended into the shadows and becoming one himself.

Five more seconds passed, and Nyx sighed.

"If you're not confident in your guess, just tell me. I don't want to waste my-"

Nyx cut himself off mid-sentence when Vince raised his hand and pointed in a specific direction.

Vince's eyes were still closed, but a smirk curled on his lips.

When he opened his eyes, Nyx was standing right there, exactly where Vince had pointed, just ten meters away.

Nyx was now visible, not because Vince had seen through his shadow cloak, but because Nyx had revealed himself to confirm that Vince's guess was correct.

"I see you can now sense nature's energy. That's a good starting point," Nyx said nonchalantly.

Vince shook his head. "I didn't do it."

"What do you mean?" Nyx asked.

"I still can't sense nature's energy. The books say I should see dots of light flowing around when I close my eyes, and hear its subtle rhythm, but I didn't see or hear any of that."

"…"

Vince grinned, brushing his hair back with his fingers.

Nyx looked confused, and Vince was living for that expression on Dracula's face.

"How did you find me, then? Captain didn't mention you had any gifts. You're a dormant who can barely do anything."

"When the lightning struck, I felt its energy for a brief moment. I've never felt any energy before."

Vince glanced up at the sky.

It was grey and morbid, but the clouds didn't suggest rain was coming anytime soon.

"But in that brief moment, I learned what energy feels like. It's warm and soothing."

Nyx continued watching Vince, waiting for him to explain how he found him based on that alone.

"The forest is filled with natural energy, and it's warm everywhere. In most places, especially during the day, shadows have lower temperatures. But a shadow influenced by a force other than nature is even colder. I noticed it because, just like how the wooden dagger disrupted the forest's calm earlier, your shadow's temperature disrupted the natural warmth of the forest, making it stand out."

Nyx's face remained neutral, but deep down, he was caught off guard by Vince's explanation.

For someone who had just started sensing nature's energy, seeing faint light and hearing its subtle rhythm during concentration was typical.

But sensing the energy's temperature was rare.

Only those with an adept grasp of nature's energy could do that, and it usually required a power class higher than fourth-class awakened.

But how could this dormant manage to do such a thing?