Krovane sat cross-legged, with Emily and Hugo facing him. There were many things he still needed to learn and understand, at least enough to catch up to Hugo and Emily, who were already far ahead of him.

  Even so, Emily had always been smart by nature. She did more than just learn about this world and the magic power that was completely new to him. She even went the extra mile, taking part-time jobs and surviving on the money she earned until now.

  “So, what we are learning about now is mana,” Emily said, her expression serious.

  Krovane mirrored that seriousness, fully ready to absorb whatever information she was about to share.

  “Mana is… imagine a source of magical power that only certain chosen people can use. Those people are called awakeners,” she said, then paused for a moment. “Humans can start connecting with mana even while they are still in the womb.”

  Krovane was slightly shocked. “So even a baby can already have an affinity with mana?”

  “Yes. Though from what I read, the chance is very small. Most humans awaken at the age of ten, around fifty percent. The unlucky fifty percent awaken at eleven, or twelve. Even worse, some only awaken to mana at the age of twenty.”

  Krovane nodded slowly as he took that in, then spoke again. “If someone already awakens to mana at the age of five, wouldn’t it be normal for kids between ten and fifteen years old to fight monsters?”

  “Yes,” Emily replied, “but there is one thing you need to remember. They have to train their Mana Core, so they can level up and gain enough power to do that. I will explain this part in more detail later.”

  “Okay.” Krovane nodded quietly.

  There were so many fascinating things, and he truly wanted to absorb every lesson about this incredible thing called mana.

  Emily continued. “When someone is chosen by mana and starts to connect with it, they will develop something called a Mana Core.”

  “Just like what monsters have?” Krovane added.

  “Yes,” Emily went on. “The Mana Core is located in the human heart. Or more precisely, mana transforms a person’s heart into a Mana Core.”

  Krovane touched the left side of his chest when he heard that explanation.

  “A person needs to cultivate this Mana Core,” Emily continued, “by training their body, practicing magic, and also by killing other creatures that possess Mana Cores.”

  Krovane replayed her explanation in his head. “Killing creatures with Mana Cores too? Do you mean monsters? Or other humans as well?”

  “All of them,” Emily replied. “That is how we cultivate our Mana Core and raise its level.”

  “Okay,” Krovane said quietly.

  Emily gave a faint smile and continued. “Well, let’s go straight to practice so you can understand this better. Now close your eyes.”

  Krovane closed his eyes, following her instruction, and tried to calm everything inside his mind.

  “So, Krovane…” Emily continued. “This will be difficult the first time you try it. But with your eyes closed, you should start to see something. Small lights scattered all around the area. Think of them like fireflies or something similar. Calm your mind and keep focusing until you can see them. Tell me when you do.”

  “Yes,” Krovane replied a moment later.

  “What do you mean by yes? Focus. You do not need to answer,” she said.

  Krovane opened his eyes and looked at Emily. “Emily, you told me to let you know if I saw what you described. And I did.”

  “No way!” Hugo said. “There’s no way it’s that easy!”

  “Is it not supposed to be this easy?” Krovane asked quietly.

  Emily shook her head. “Close your eyes again. Make sure once more, and describe what you see so I can confirm whether what you’re seeing is a mana particle or not.”

  “Okay,” Krovane said.

  Krovane closed his eyes again, and almost instantly, he saw tiny grains of light floating around him. He did not know how he could see them when his eyes were closed. Still, he could clearly feel those small particles of light spread throughout the entire area.

  “I can see them,” Krovane said again. “They are small and scattered all over the room, and they move around, especially near where you two are.”

  “Krovane!” Emily called out firmly.

  Krovane opened his eyes. “What?”

  “Do not joke around!” Emily snapped.

  “Yeah, weirdo,” Hugo added. “You’re describing mana particles while talking so casually. We have more experience than you, so don’t try to make things up.”

  “I don’t understand,” Krovane said, looking confused.

  “You need to be fully focused for mana particles to appear,” Hugo said next.

  But… Krovane really did see them. He was not making it up. Or was what he saw different from what they meant?

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  “What exactly did you see?” Emily asked again.

  “That light. Small, like fireflies, just like you explained.”

  “Are you sure?” Emily pressed. “Even while you were talking? White in color?”

  “Yes, some of them are white.”

  “What do you mean by ‘some of them are white’?” Hugo snapped.

  “There are white ones, and there are other colors too,” Krovane replied. “Like a dark swirl. It’s strange to call it dark inside darkness. Maybe a swirl of purple?”

  Hearing that, both Emily and Hugo showed very different expressions.

  Emily froze, while Hugo looked stunned, his mouth hanging open.

  “No way, you’re joking!” Hugo said, clearly annoyed.

  Krovane wore a confused expression and turned to Emily.

  Emily took a deep breath, then explained. “Normally, a Novice like us can only see mana particles in their original form, which is white. Only when someone breaks through to level eleven and starts gaining an elemental affinity can they see mana particles in other colors.”

  She continued. “That rule does not apply to me because of my signature ability, Elemental Convergence. I can see those elemental particles. That is part of my ability. But for you to see the color purple… that should not be one of the basic elements like Earth, Fire, Water, or Air.”

  “Do you mean I have an affinity toward elemental mana too, Emily?” Krovane asked.

  “Yes. And if my guess is correct, purple means… the Dark element.”

  A sudden sound of impact echoed across the floor. Both of them flinched as Hugo punched the floor.

  “You two are making me feel like I’m the most behind,” Hugo said, clearly irritated. “I don’t even have an elemental affinity yet.”

  “Quiet, Hugo! You’re acting like a child. You’ll get one after you reach level eleven,” Emily said firmly.

  Krovane looked at the two of them, then thought about it again. “The Dark element?”

  He turned back to Emily, who was clearly ready to continue.

  “You said there are only four basic elements, Emily. But my elemental affinity isn’t even among those four.”

  Emily nodded slowly. “We can’t confirm it right now. And I’m sure you won’t be able to use this element yet either. So we’ll talk about it again after we reach level eleven.”

  Krovane simply nodded at that explanation. There were still many unanswered questions. Even so, just reaching this point already made him feel full of information, all of it completely new and overwhelming in this world.

  Next, Krovane continued his training session, following everything Emily instructed him to do.

  The core of it was simple. Krovane could already feel those elemental particles around him.

  What he needed to do was try to communicate with those mana particles and draw them into his body. All Krovane had to use was his mental command.

  And right when he silently asked, like… please… mana particles, come closer to me…

  He planted that thought deep in his mind, closing his eyes and focusing as hard as he could.

  Slowly, those mana particles began to move. They drifted closer, then started to spin faster as they gathered around his body.

  “This will take time,” Emily explained again. “At the very least, the first response you’ll get is that the mana particles react to your call by vibrating. You keep doing this until they move closer and gather around you. Normally, this takes several days.”

  Several days?

  But… the mana particles were already gathering, wrapping around Krovane’s body at that very moment.

  Should he tell the two of them?

  They would not believe him again if he did.

  Krovane kept doing this again and again, following Emily’s instructions. He drew those mana particles in, breathing them through his nose, pulling them into his body.

  He continued until the mana particles began to spin inside his Mana Core.

  This was something an awakener had to do continuously and with discipline, to support the cultivation process of their Mana Core.

  “When someone has good control over their mana,” Emily continued, “they will start to properly control their abilities. Their signature ability. Just by using their mental command.”

  Okay… so… that meant Krovane should be able to control whatever was causing his left hand to turn dark, with that strange, shadowy flow beneath his skin.

  Like, he should be able to make his hand return to normal. Or even make it stronger by applying the transformation more properly.

  Krovane slowly began to understand how this magic system worked.

  Until…

  “Krov! What happened to you?!” Hugo shouted loudly, startling Krovane and forcing him to open his eyes at once.

  Krovane was breathing heavily as he looked at the expressions of the two people in front of him. They looked different, but both clearly showed shock.

  “What?” he asked.

  “Your hand!” Hugo said, his face tense.

  “My hand?”

  Krovane froze for a moment, then felt something strange in his left hand.

  He slowly raised it, not daring to look at it yet, turning his gaze to the right instead. His left hand moved into his line of sight, right in front of his face, but Krovane kept his eyes half closed, refusing to look properly.

  For some reason, he was not ready.

  Then… he forced himself and opened his eyes fully.

  No!

  Krovane jerked in shock.

  His hand was trembling. The skin had turned dark, like solid reptile scales, while the palm remained a lighter shade. One thing stood out clearly: his fingernails had become sharp and pointed.

  It even felt like his hand had grown larger.

  He moved it slightly and felt the power inside it.

  “Krov, can you control the transformation?” Emily asked. “Like, can you return it to normal?”

  Krovane glanced at Emily for a moment, then nodded slowly. He tried to control it using his mental command.

  At the same time, the color of his skin began to brighten. The heavy pressure in his hand faded as the transformation reversed quickly, and soon, his normal hand returned as if nothing had happened.

  “No way!” Hugo said after that. “You make it look so easy.”

  Krovane turned toward Hugo. “Is it not supposed to be this easy?”

  “Yes. You are seriously annoying,” Hugo replied.

  Emily then nodded lightly. “Well, nice start, Krovane. You can already control the mana, and you can even control your ability quite well. Though for now, it seems you can only manage the transformation in your hand.”

  Krovane nodded quietly. But something strange was happening inside him, something sudden and intense. Why did everything feel so drastic? He felt confused.

  Emily frowned. “What? Why are you just staring into space like that? Is something wrong?”

  Krovane swallowed hard.

  “Why, Krov? Are you feeling sick or something?” Hugo asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Yes,” Krovane muttered.

  “You need to use the bathroom?” Hugo pressed.

  “No… I’m starving!” Krovane finally said. “Why am I suddenly this hungry again?!”