CHAPTER 9: Training

JOHN REYA

Sylvia was gone. I finally let go of my persona and let all my tears out. I cried like a child. A child who has lost someone. I will only be able to see her again with the two next messages.

I screamed at the top of my lungs. The small animals jumped out of their bushes and ran away from me. My mind was swamped with the memories of me and Sylvia spending time together. We spent 4 months we spend in each other's company. I didn't know whether it went by fast or slow. Time seems always to be an enemy of mine.

Sylvia treated me as if I was her son just like both of my parents.

Teaching the things I lacked when coming into this world. My fighting skills with a weapon or not. My morals and even scolding me in a motherly way.

I waited patiently for a message. Maybe a surprise from her but that message never arrived like the original timeline. She said everything that was needed and now I bare her will that I will use to better the future.

"No time for crying on spilled milk."

I stood up, it was daytime. The fog enveloped the entire forest. Giant trees that I had never seen before were towering over me.

I began to walk in random directions.

Which path did Arthur take? I didn't know that. I can just hope that it was the right one. Augmenting my body, I climb up the tree. With mana rotation, I can prolong the usage of mana.

I began to jump from tree branch to tree branch, leaving only a barely noticeable crater. I should be near the slave traders but the more I searched, the less I was certain that I took the right path.

TIMESKIP.

The fog was playing tricks on my mind. The pain and injury I've gotten from beast ambushes were eating my sanity. I'm hungry. I'm thirsty. I could only think of food and water. The food supply ran out quickly and I still have a little bit of water.

I sensed something. It was almost a mana beast but the mana was weird. I instantly realized it, fear was instilled into my body. I was able to sense it because it wanted me to sense it.

I hadn't had the strength to turn around. The source of this brilliant mana source slowly crept up on me. A hand was placed on my left shoulder. A wet feeling was followed up by the touch of the hand. Finally having enough strength to break the trance, I turned around.

A woman was standing, covered in blood. The skin that wasn't covered in blood presented pale. Her eyes and hair were raven in color. Her face seemed familiar but due to the blood, I couldn't recognize her. But the uniform seems familiar. At that second, I realized who it was. My conscious slowly drifted away from her magic. She was Lance Aya.

CECILIA

"How is your training with grandpa Virion?" dad said.

"It's been really good. But since grandpa is an augmentor and I'm a conjurer, I couldn't have a lot of conjurer training." For some reason, using augmentation was easier. Normally the line between augmentation and conjurer blurs at silver and disappears at white core but it feels like I could do both earlier than others.

The door opened and it revealed my bodyguard Aya but covered in blood carrying a child. "Big sister Aya, what happened?" She widened her eyes in my presence. Even if she had sadistic tendencies, she wouldn't want me to see her covered in blood.

Why is she holding that child? Did she torture him? Her illusion magic usage is already going too far but torturing a child is even too far for her. "I disposed of the slave traders but found this child near it. My guess is that he was captured by them and barely escaped."

"Then why did you bring a human here? Just kill him," dad said.

Aya was looking at the child. Her face was filled with hesitation from my dad's orders. "I don't think that's a good idea. I believe that he is the unexpected guest."

Unexpected?

"What do you mean by that big sis?" Aya looked at dad if she could answer that question. He nodded. "Your grandma Rinia gave us 2 tips about the future. The first one was "let our cute Tessa play in an empty castle."

I thought for a bit till an idea popped into my head. "Was that when I awakened?" She nodded.

"The second one was, ''Be welcoming to an unexpected guest" and I believe that he is that so-called guest."

"What's so special about him?"

"He was using mana. Maybe better than some adults."

Dad's eyes widened. "Wha- that's impossible."

My curiosity grew by the two rambling and I tried to sense his core. Keyword "tried". A head pain enveloped my head. He is above me? I'm only a mid-red core.

I felt bad for that boy if he would've died. "Hey dad and big sis, since he is special, why don't he and I train with grandpa Viri?" Both of them stopped at my sentence.

"No way I would let a human-."

"But I believe I can grow as a mage if I have a sparring partner?"

Dad began to think. "Fine but only if father agrees," he said in a defeated tone.