Chapter 1.16 — The New Path Forward

  Tess’s gaze drifted around in the room, as she stood in place. It was obvious that she wanted to let me stay but for a moment she seemed conflicted.

  Well it makes sense this will be a huge risk for her to take, but—I really need her if I am to succeed!

  Silence filled the room, as the faint sound of the clock ticking grew louder…

  Tess’s eyes drifted, her lips partially parted—only to immediately close, she seemed like she was struggling for a bit.

  “You alright there, Tess?” I let out a small chuckle.

  “Yes…“ “I’m—fine.” Tess spoke firmly but shook her head, as if she was in denial.

  Suddenly she pulled something out and before I knew it—the smell of smoke filled the air as Tess inhaled deeply—her hand slightly shaken…

  Yep—she’s definitely not fine. I leaned back, giving her some space.

  “As I said, maybe we should talk?” Tess asked as her voice softened.

  I raised a brow, “you sure?”

  Tess rolled her eyes as she walked over locking the door.

  Yes, gotcha!—I tighten my fist in triumph—smiling from ear to ear.

  Tess shook her head as she caught my enthusiastic expression.

  “Please take a seat and explain it to me, Mr Nachman!” She elegantly gestured towards the seat.

  I placed the book in front of her, "before that, does this mean you’ll reconsider?” My eyes grew bigger as I couldn't contain my excitement.

  Tess sighed deeply. “Are you seriously asking me to stop your expulsion? You know I can’t—”

  “—No, not that!“ “I mean, you'll reconsider not seeing me anymore!” I huffed as I folded my arms…

  Tess’s eyes widened, “Ohh, uhm…“ “I see, so that’s what you meant.” Her voice grew quieter as she looked slightly to the side—a hint of embarrassment.

  “It’s fine… and to answer your question, that book. I think it is something you’ll find very interesting." I smiled warmly.

  “You see—this particular book only holds a little snippet of those strange symbols… however magic that hides it, well let’s just say it's a bit on the tricky side, since one wrong move and—poff!“ “You're gonna be reading ashes instead.” I sarcastically explained—waving my finger.

  Tess raised a brow as she put out her cigarette. “But how? I didn't give you enough to figure this out?”

  I closed my eyes as I looked down for a moment.

  Well of course, I only knew because you have to do this boring puzzle so many times in the game to unlock this hidden language—But of course I can't tell her that… However…

  “Well, I can't blame you since there’s something you overlooked… you gave me just enough study material during the year. That I was able to figure something out—but the rest.” I smirked as I reached into my cloak.

  I pulled out a stack of papers, it was the same ones she’d given me that time at the Marquess mansion—where she scolded me… that hurt my feelings by the way—so now, it's payback time!

  Tess’s face turned into confusion… well of course she’s not convinced yet! I showed her a specific page—suddenly her eyes widened.

  “This here, is what you really wanted me to look at, right?

  Tess froze… a bead of sweat rolled down her face as she was visibly shaken.

  “You’re overthinking—I just needed your help to translate as much as you could—not just from that single page!" Tess’s gaze sharpened.

  I clicked my tongue. “Ohh, really?” I pulled another book out from my cloak, holding it in front of me.

  “You see, all this would have made sense… if it wasn't for this book. It's from the Marquess library that Ann was so kind in letting me borrow.” I explained in a calm voice.

  Tess went silent, she didn't seem to understand the implication. “Huh! Isn’t that just some old fairy tale? How does it relate?”

  A smile curled on my lips. “Ohh, so you don't know! You see, the reason that page caught my attention is because I have read this fairy tale once before and the page I translated said the key was in this book!”

  “This page you gave me contains instructions on how to find the books containing those hidden symbols… and the key to unlocking, can be found within this fairy tale; the tragedy of the maiden princess.” I huffed proudly—slamming the book in front of her.

  Tess froze, her gaze drifting to the book—as if trying to piece it all together.

  I sighed. “So tell me, why are you looking for those symbols? And why couldn't you just tell me straight?” Huffing through my nose.

  Tess looked down as her bangs cast a shadow, hiding her eyes…

  I knew why, but I had to act ignorant—couldn't outright reveal that I had cheated.

  I looked at her, hoping for a reaction, but she just sat there, her gaze fixed… she then stood up and walked over, standing beside me. Her expression was unchanged as she towered over me, her eyes fixed on me.

  A cold sweat ran down my spine as I felt intense pressure filling the air. Before I knew it, Tess embraced me in a tight hug.

  “That’s my apprentice! Well done.” Tess smiled brightly as she squeezed the air out of me… I could practically hear my bones cracking.

  Suddenly, a rush of warmth surged throughout my body and my face turned beet red. A feeling of happiness began to fill me as my mind went blank—I was completely overwhelmed by her warm embrace—not realizing I had stopped breathing.

  “Ahh, Tess—air!” I tapped her frantically on the arm.

  “Ohh, sorry,” she jumped back and immediately released me from her embrace.

  As I was catching my breath, Tess leaned in and placed both her hands on each of my shoulders… The smell of smoke had dissipated and been replaced by her sweet perfume—she smelled like a flower…

  “To think you somehow figured this out? Honestly, I just wanted you to help me out a little—but to decipher this much… is just too incredible!” Tess said excitedly as she shook me back and forth.

  “I can't believe it!” Tess paused for a moment as it suddenly dawned on her, “to think I was bested—by a seven-year-old!” She sighed.

  “I guess I owe you an explanation, you see. These symbols are from an old and very powerful civilization. They wielded an unprecedented power—a power that lies within these symbols… these—Runix.”

  “I see,” I folded my arms as I nodded.

  “I can't say much more… other than I'm sorry for what I said earlier, I honestly didn't want to expel you… but I had no choice—however, you somehow decoded a text that, for everyone else, is meaningless—hence complicating our situation even more." Tess tilted her head slightly, caressed her arm.

  I chuckled as I leaned in. “I don’t need the orphanage, school or even the Royal Academy, Tess—I need you!”

  Tess paused for a moment, then blinked rapidly. “Huh! Pardon?” She widened her eyes in surprise, “you—need me?”

  “Yes, I actually need you to teach me the four common languages and the language of Elves… in return I'll help you with your Runix quest! What do you say?” I reached out my hand as I spoke with conviction.

  Tess gaped in shock, “Language of the Elves? How do you know—”

  I winked as I looked towards her shelves—filled to the brim with a mix of common and weird looking books… I placed a finger on my lips, “that’s a secret.”

  Tess hesitated for a moment as she seemed to assess my proposal, she then took a deep breath as she reached out and accepted my hand.

  “As I said earlier, Mr. Nachman, you're gonna be a terrible man… I mean—Leo,” she said sarcastically with a warm voice.

  A short while after leaving Tess’s office I began to head home. I haven’t really seen Jen and Grey after the appraisal at Marquess mansion… everything became a blur like some kind of bad dream and I lost the courage to face them.

  “Right,” I slapped my cheeks as I sped up my pace.” It's about time I keep my promise to those two!”

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  ***

  The weather was bright as the sun shone freely with no clouds standing between it and the earth… the air was fresh and the smell of lemon lingering faintly in the air.

  In a garden a woman paced around frantically as she shook her head in annoyance.

  “Grey, have you seen my sword?” Jen shouted from the garden.

  “No, have you looked in the bedroom?” Grey tilted his head back, as he worked on something on his crafting bench.

  Jen slammed the door open as she ran inside the house. “Come on, I put it in the usual place, so how come it's gone?” Jen's face fumed as she gritted her teeth.

  Grey smiled awkwardly as he scratched his head.

  “Uhm, well maybe you just forgot… you know, you’ve not really been yourself since the appraisal—”

  —a thud echoed through the house as a knife was lunged straight into the wall beside Grey's face—he gasped as he swallowed down the last sentence.

  “It was you wasn't it? You took my sword Grey!” Jen’s eyes burned as she glared at him with her lifeless eyes.

  Grey froze as a cold sweat ran down his spine, “Ahh… well, you see…”

  Before he could finish a door squeaked open, as someone entered the house unannounced… Jen and Grey’s faces dropped in surprise when they realized who it was, standing at their doorstep.

  “Leo?” Jen and Grey spoke in unison as they stepped closer.

  I immediately bowed deeply. "I'm sorry, please forgive me!” I shouted as my voice cracked.

  Jen and Grey froze as they looked at each other concerned.

  As I kept my head down as I bowed even deeper.

  "Thank you… I know I asked you to please give me some time, figuring this out for myself since that day—and you respected my wish!”

  I then stood up straight, "as promised, I will explain everything!” My face turned serious.

  We sat down around the dinner table as I explained everything so far… well the stuff i could tell them that is.

  “Huh? Tess wants to work with you despite the risk?” Jen gaped in surprise.

  “Hmm… incredible, you must have done something out of this world for her to do this!” Grey held his chin as his gaze turned intense, as if trying to deduce Tess’s motivation.

  Jen folded her arms, “Simon too, I don't know what he's thinking, but I guess he's not a bad ally.” She sighed deeply…

  I looked at Grey, “Uhm, I hope the store didn't suffer too much because of me?”

  “Hmm, well I did lose a lot of customers… but weirdly business is slowly beginning to pick up again—maybe not everyone knows you're my stepson?” Grey furrowed his brow.

  Suddenly, Jen leaned in and grabbed me by the shoulders, “but you cannot involve Ann! You understand!” Jen said in a sharp tone.

  “No, I'm not!” I raised my hands as if to surrender, Jen tightened her grip on both my shoulders.

  Grey gently grabbed Jen by the arm, “relax, you know that Leo wouldn't do that.”

  Jen took a deep breath, composing herself, “I know, but knowing her she’s probably not gonna listen… Leo, you need to reject her if she does!” Jen spoke with a firm but calm voice.

  “I’ll try, but I can't promise anything,” I looked away, forcing an awkward smile.

  “That settles it—now what happened out there? Why didn't the Orb show anything?” Grey asked, shifting the topic.

  “I'm not sure, but it seems like I have no Afinix…so no magic, I guess.” I looked down as a feeling of depression crept in.

  “That can’t be? I’ve never heard of such a thing… you should be dead then!” Grey said.

  “Huh?” I looked up in surprise, "what do you mean?”

  Grey folded his arms as he thought for a moment, “From what we know, all living beings have both Afinix and Manaflux residing in them—so one without would probably be dead… in theory anyway."

  Wait what? I looked down at myself thinking of that day. “But… since I came here, I've been able to feel something weird inside—”

  “Huh? Since you came here?” Jen raised a brow, as her face turned surprised.

  “Ahh, no sorry… I’m just overthinking things—don’t mind me.” I scratched my head.

  Grey suddenly interjected, “But still—we don't know enough about it, maybe your magic just hasn't manifested yet!—I think—Maybe?” Grey's face contorted into confusion as I almost could hear the gears turning inside his head.

  So I should be dead, yay… not really reassuring, but seriously if what he says is true then I—suddently a thought came to me like a jolt of lightning.

  I shot up my chair. “Wait, what about that device Simon used on the night you found me? Doesn't it measure Manaflux levels?! Wouldn't that mean if I have Manaflux, then surely I would also have an Afinix? right?” My voice boomed with excitement.

  “Ohh you mean the Crystal Gauge? No sorry, it's only to react to the flow of magic left behind in an area, it's not built to measure a person's Manaflux directly—besides it's built with the same technology as the appraisal Orb, so I doubt it would have worked?.” Grey explained with a calm voice.

  I tighten my hands, making a fist as I refused to give up so easily.

  “Then what about sensing Manaflux? Isn't that part of training? Couldn't you guys sense my Manaflux? Or maybe that Seer from the Temple Order—aren’t they like, very sensitive and—”

  —Jen gently placed a finger over my mouth, shutting me up. “No, it's true that sensing Manaflux is part of training—but, the Manaflux in young bodies are just too immature to be sensed.” She slowly explained.

  I froze as I could believe what I was hearing!

  Grey sighed, “That’s why we need the apparasiel Orb, as it ultimately serves many functions.”

  Jen removed her finger from my mouth. “Besides, Manaflux needs to be at a certain strength before sensing is possible—not even Ann’s maanflux can be sensed yet, and she's two years older than you… so there are no shortcuts.”

  “Wait a minute, are you saying if we wait long enough—then maybe my magic would mature enough to be detected?” My eyes began to shimmer in excitement.

  Grey slammed his hand on the table, “hold your horses!… what we’re saying is— maybe! Since we wouldn't know for sure, not until you become older—this is uncharted territory!” Grey's voice firm.

  I slumped down into the chair, as my feelings were all over the place. Seriously this really sucks, it sucks soo bad… What am I supposed to do now?

  Jen and Grey looked at each other concerned, not sure what to do… as I looked down at the table I took a deep breath as my mind was racing with a million thoughts. My eyes slowly began to drift around the room, contemplating everything that’s happened so far.

  What in the world can I do? Without magic, there’s no place for me in this world.

  My eyes suddenly went to a halt, as I saw a faint light coming from Grey's workbench.

  I stood up and walked over. It was a Manashell that was getting ready for spell loading, I was just sitting there—waiting for someone to craft it.

  As I kept staring at it I suddenly thought back, to my real mom and dad, to my aunt… how I have been a burden to everyone after my parents died!—But—no more!

  I cannot give up, not now… I realized that my options were limited, like—extremely limited… but there's always—A WAY OUT!

  I held the Manashell in front of me. “Hmm, I see then… Hard Mode it is!” I muttered under my breath.

  “Huh Leo are you alright?” Jen asked with a concerned expression.

  I turned toward them, “If i have limited options—then I’m gonna choose ALL of the options!!”

  “Ehhhh?” Grey and Jen said in unison.

  I walked over to Grey. “Please make me your apprentice, teach me everything about ShellCraft!”

  Grey’s face turned into shock. “Uhmm, are you sure? Aren't you gonna wait a bit until we know for sure about your magic?”

  “No, there's no point… I cannot allow myself to drown in self pity—that’s why I need to do everything I am able to do at this moment!” My voice boomed with resolve.

  I then turned to Jen, “Please also make me your apprentice, teach me everything you know about swordsmanship!”

  Jen smirked as she nodded, “Hmm, you're not gonna take no as an answer—of course I’ll teach you!”

  Grey widened his eyes, “Hey, come on Jen… Leo can't possibly, it's a full time commitment to study under a single master—but he's asking for three masters? That's too much!!”

  Jen shot Grey a sharp look, as she suddenly pulled a sword out from under the table, “see, i knew you had hid it somewhere! But sticking it under the table like that—you didn't have time to think it through—did you?”

  Grey scratched his chin looking away, embarrassed. “Ahh, no it was a spur of the moment!”

  Jen smiled, “just look at him Grey, he's resolved… don't you think we should at least let him try?”

  Grey sighed as he folded his arms. “Fine, if you're okay with it, we'll take you as our apprentice!—but no slacking off, ya hear!!”

  “Hehe, I'll make sure to beat you into shape—get ready.” Jen, with a grin, leaned in and gently pushed her finger on my chest.”

  With an awkward grin I slowly nodded as cold sweat ran down my spine. It suddenly dawned on me—I might have overdone it.

  Both of them placed a hand on my shoulder. “Well, Mr. Nachman—let the training begin.” They proclaimed in unison.

  I suddenly began to feel a little uneasiness, as I stared at them.

  Ehh… maybe—this was a mistake?

  ***

  Four years later.

  “So this is it.” I stood tall as I stared down the dungeon entrance.

  Ann stood behind me, hiding, “Do we really need to go down there?”

  “No, we don’t… I already told you not to come.” I gave her a deadpan stare.

  “And I told you that I wasn't gonna leave you!” Ann pouted in protest, as she clung to me.

  “Yes, you said that, and honestly, I don't know how long we can hang out in secret, especially when you insist on coming with me to dangerous places.” I said annoyed.

  I pushed her away, but she kept clinging to me—like a cat—seriously?

  “Just accept I'm not gonna leave you no matter what!” Ann clung even harder to me.

  I stopped for a moment, then I let out a sigh. “Fine, you win. Let’s go then.”

  “Uhm… I…” Ann shook her head.

  “This is important, Ann! Are you coming or not?” I glared at her.

  “Okay, fine… let’s go down the deathtrap then!” She shouted.

  As we began our descent into the dungeon, Ann began to shiver.

  "What's so important? You want to go to such a creepy place?” She asked with a trembling voice.

  My lips curled into a grin as I glanced back at her.

  “The evolution of Manashells!”

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