Glen Todler's Journal.

"What....!!! Mom..... Son....!!!?" Samantha looked confused.

"Oh it's nothing Sammy. This boy here started calling me Mom. I believe, he feels that I am nagging at him like his mother. So instead of getting angry, I started calling him son. As you saw yesterday night, he behaves like a child anyway."

Samantha looked from Pheonix to Kate's face who were looking at each other and grinning foolishly, shook her head in defeat and took the chair and started to read a book.

Kate also took a book from the right side and saw only 1 chair available. Before Pheonix could ask her to take the chair, she sat down on the floor grinning at Pheonix in triumph.

"Look who's acting like a child now? Mom." Pheonix shook his head and sat on the chair.

After 15 minutes, he stood up stretched and sat down on the floor. Took the lotus position and started to read happily.

"Hey why did you got down?"

"Honestly, I am used to reading sitting like this since my childhood Kate. You take the chair."

Shaking her head, Kate got up, stretched once, straightened her cloths and sat on the chair. "Thanks Nic, I was feeling a bit uncomfortable sitting down. Let me know if you want to swap places."

"Nic." Now you gave me a nick name too...."

"Of course, why waste energy calling such a long name. "Nic" suits you well."

"You are truely unbelievable." Samantha looked at Kate with disappointment, who simply shrugged and started to study.

Smiling, Pheonix also opened the fragile book and found out that, it was a kind of personal journal.

The book read,

" In my attempt to increase my magical ability, I had carried out many experiments. Most of them are failures but a few success had given me immense satisfaction.

I am "Glen Todler." This is the 23rd day of the year 752. I am 56 years old now at the time when I am logging this successful work of mine."

Pheonix was taken aback to know the year in which this dairy was written. It was more than 450 years old....!!!

" People say, the inborn magical ability you possess at the time of 16 to 17 years can only be improved by a maximum of 3 folds. It doubles when you reach your 20th year and triples at 25 years. Even, the was proven to be teue by thousands of people, many thousands of time. Time and time again by many great researchers and talanted mages.

My magical abilities like others were also awakened around 17 years. Unfortunately my mana pool size, to keep it politely was the size of the content in a huge chamber pot of a child's room during a summer's night.

I was mocked due to my abysmal ability. By the age of 25 my magical ability reached almost 1/4th the size of the normal chamber pot.

Unable to hold the laughter in, Pheonix burst out laughing. Both the girls who were reading seriously looked at him but their gazes held two entirely different expressions.

One had a murderous gaze and one had a curious look.

"Found something funny?" The girl with the second type of gaze asked with a warm smile.

"Ya, It looked like a type of journal, and the person is comparing his abilities with the content inside a chamber pot."

Kate giggled but looked sternly at Pheonix and said. "Son, the thing you learn will be the thing you do as you grow. So get out of the chamber pot and read something decent if you don't want to be the content of a chamber pot yourself."

"Ok Mom, point noted." Pheonix slightly inclined his head with a warm smile and continued reading.

" For some odd reason, Samantha was getting irritated by their conversation. "

" By the age of 26 even my fiancee, who was engaged to me for a couple of months considered me the content of a chamber pot too and left me.

This was the point that triggered something inside me and I started to think, search, discuss and work on, "How To improve my mana pool". And after 30 years of cleaning the chamber pot, I finally got successful. Today my mana pool is like a big puddle of water formed during a heavy rain. Almost 50 folds than what I had on my 25th year.

Is this achievable? I would say yes. Is it achievable by everyone? I will say 'No'. It only works on few who are blessed with a certain kind of bloodline. And even after that it's hard, because you have to work for atleast a couple of decades to even start noticing the slightest change in your mana pool.

I will continue my research for now. Lets hope I can find a few others who can improve their mana pool like me."

Pheonix turned a page and saw the handwriting slightly changed as if it was written by the same person but at a much later stage in his life.

"This entry is made by me when I am at 256th year. I had taken a few studends under me but most of them cursed me for not improve their mana pool even after a couple of years and left. Fortunately, I had found 2 students who helped me note my journal again.

Those two boys made me notice that, those who start practicing this method before their first manapool boost will get better results.

Note : Those who are reading it, if it's not useful to you, please pass on to someone else who might have use for this.

Pheonix turned the page and saw the procedure written there and was stunned for a moment. It was ridiculously close to the exercises and the meditation method his master had taught him.

After going through the book and reading each and every letter and closly observing the images drawn till the last page. He closed the book and sighed audibly.

"What? Did the contents of the chamber pot fell on you?" Samantha spoke irritated.

Pheonix ignored her words, got us and stretched a bit and noticed that it was lunch time. "Kate, care to join for lunch?"

"Sure, I am feeling hungry too."

"Just wait a moment, I will change my clothes, as our princess here noticed, I am feeling sweaty."

As soon as he walked out, Kate looked at Samantha with disappointment. "Sammy, I must say I am truely disappointed with your behavior towards Pheonix. Why do you behave in such a way? What had he done to you personally to make you feel so irritated?"

"I don't like his attitude Kate."

"Attitude!!! Seriously Sammy!! The thing you see as attitude is nothing but humour in everyone else's eye. Try to observe him carefully and then decide. When had he ever made others look bad? Except, perhaps that dick head of a boy. When had he ever disrespected others? And it's not even a full day that you came to know about him. I never imagined you to be so judgemental, Sammy."

Kate left the study after saying that.

Samantha was stunned for a moment. She was not the one to be judging someone on thei⁰r first look. She was never such a short tempered girl, she would never get irritated so easily. Then, why is she acting like this infront of this boy? Why is she getting irritated towards whatever he does? He never did anything to provoke her or never misbehaved with her. Then why???"

She came to her senses and when she saw the other two walking towards the door, she felt jealously!!!! This feeling made her even more surprised.

"Wait, I will also join you two for lunch." Samantha walking towards them as soon as she finished speaking.

Kate raised an eyebrow. Taking a deep breath, Samantha looked at Pheonix directly. " I am sorry that I was provoking you unnecessarily. I am generally not someone who judges a person from their looks or their status. I don't know what had gotton into me to behave like this with you. I hope you can forgive my rudness and give me a chance to correct myself."

Kate smiled and gave a nod of approval to Samantha. Pheonix smiled and said. " You tried hard but failed in provoking me princess. It's alright, we all try to judge someone earlier than we generally do with the others. Come let's have the lunch together. "

Smiling, all three of them came out of their living quarters.