A groan of frustration came from the training hall on the third floor of Manuel's tower. It was one of many. That day, Jin seemed particularly grumpy, and his vocabulary reflected it.

"You stupid piece of useless rock!" he yelled at the concrete slab in front of him, which was supported on two sides by sturdy brick pedestals.

Hearing the sound down in the kitchen, the fairy caretaker rolled her eyes and flew off towards the source of the noise, expecting that her services would once again be required. It wasn't the first time Samlas' magic would be needed, and frankly speaking, she was already getting fed up.

Jin clenched his fist. In a splash of ink black, the magic around it gathered into a wobbling golden aura. He took a stance and threw his punch at the concrete slab.

A large crack appeared on its surface, splitting the rock in two. Jin hopped in place just as Samlas arrived in the room. She wasn't sure if it was due to his success or the fact that he may have injured his hand.

"Did you break your hand against the slab again? I won't keep healing it! It's been three times already!" the pixie snapped at him, grabbing his attention.

"No, no, it's fine. I think." He moved his hand around. It hurt a little, but not enough for him to bother her with it.

"But look! I did it!" he exclaimed and stepped aside so she could look at his success.

"Oh wow, congratulations, you can throw a strong punch," Samlas replied, but it seemed that the boy was far too enthusiastic to register her sarcasm.

"I need to show the others! They'll be so surprised!" Without a moment of delay, he grabbed his jacket and hat from the coat rack and headed downstairs.

"Don't be late for lunch again, or I won't save you any!" Samlas yelled at him, but his stomping down the stairs was too loud for him to hear her. She sighed and looked back at the split slab. It wasn't every day one would get to see wizards in training. Though she quietly wished that the wizards in question wouldn't get into so much trouble.

Jin ran up the hill near the tower and looked around. Finding the first of his friends wasn't too difficult. Kaili was far too easy to spot. She was lying on the grass in a nearby meadow, just at the edge of the forest. It was a beautiful warm day, perfect for a little lightbathing.

"Hey!" the boy called out to her as he approached, causing her to quickly get up.

"Jin! You done with your training today? Though we weren't allowed to disturb you when you were in the zone. Your words exactly."

"And it worked out! I was able to focus, and now, I can do something really awesome!" The way his face glowed with enthusiasm was contagious.

"Like a new spell? Come on! Show me!"

Jin smirked as pride rushed to his head. For a moment, Kaili would've sworn she saw a bit of Manuel in him, although only so briefly it didn't even get to alarm her.

He walked over to the nearest tree, clenched his fist, and took a stance. His golden punch tore through the wood, leaving behind a large dent.

Kaili clapped. "Oh wow! That's so cool! So you actually learned how to use enchanting?"

"Yeah, it's not that hard in reality. You just need to be a lot more aware of your own body, especially the part you wanna juice up. And then, you just feel that faint whoosh, and as you punch, you release it like a quick wham!"

The young dryad giggled. "You really can't explain at all. But I know what you mean. I feel something similar when I do this,"

Jin watched her magic in awe. One of the vines wrapped around her arm came undone. She spun it around, loosening it more and more, until it could eventually touch the ground. A bright shade of pink flew alongside it like paint sliding down a rope. Then, once the preparations were ready, she twirled around like a ribbon dancer. With a single strike of her hand, the vine extended and slashed through the air, cracking like a whip. The tree that Jin had punched snapped and moaned as it fell to the ground, cut down in a single slice.

Both kids scrunched up their faces as they looked around. Cutting down a tree just like that could be a big deal, considering that Manuel had spent the last few days fixing everything after his duel with Rudy. They feared that he wouldn't be too happy with them causing more mess, but since he didn't seem to be around, they both soon sighed with relief.

"Whoa..." Jin said as soon as his mind fully processed what he had just witnessed.

"Hehe, impressed?"

"Y-Yeah! How did you do that?"

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"Simple really. It's just like you said. The vines are a part of me. I just enchant them instead of anything else. They can reach farther and have smaller surfaces, which makes them perfect for cutting. Then all I really do is slightly sharpen the magic around it."

Jin didn't know what to say. Whatever he managed to discover about magic was already common knowledge to her.

"I... Wow, that's crazy!"

"Crazy dangerous, maybe," Airo's voice came from somewhere above them. "You should try to make it less lethal. As far as I know, you're no whip expert, and if it can cut down a tree in one swing, that could most certainly hurt you. Gotta be careful when you practice these things."

The two kids looked up. They paid little attention to the words the young Cloudfolk said. Instead, they were too flabbergasted by the fact that he seemed to be flying.

"You can fly?" Jin asked, his voice cracking with surprise.

"Nah, this ain's flying. Remember what Manuel did during the fight? Well, I kind of modified it. Found the perfect ratio of wind magic that could keep a Cloudfolk afloat. Now, I can just hover anywhere I want." He grinned at them and laid back in his invisible magic.

"Whoa. You guys are crazy! It's like you've already made your own spells!" Jin couldn't wrap his head around when they managed to progress this quickly.

"So did you!" Airo nodded towards the tree.

"Oh, nah, that's just a punch."

"A punch that can break wood like it's nothing. That already makes your bare hand stronger than most. Think about that. You're probably in like the top 10% of the strongest people out there."

"Maybe even 5%. There aren't that many wizards," Kaili complimented him further.

"Heh, thanks guys," he replied and scratched his head. A shade of red appeared on his face, prompting Kaili to smile a little at the sight.

"I... Umm... I wanted to show it to Cia too, so..."

"Ah, yeah, she's back at the tower in her room."

"Careful though, she's kinda grumpy. Went there this morning and she hissed at me. Didn't dare to enter since," Airo added.

"Well, fortunately, I'm an expert at taming imps," Jin grinned and turned on his heels, heading off towards the tower.

He waited until he was far enough from his friends that they wouldn't hear him. There was much that was troubling his mind, but he didn't want it to trouble theirs as well.

"Stupid humans!" he groused about his own species. "What the hell are we good for, huh? Nothing! Stupid squishy skin that can't handle anything. Stupid heavy body that sinks and doesn't float. What a pile of stupid anatomy! Why the hell can't I just be good for something!" he kept on muttering as he entered the tower. His shoulders automatically flew up as he forgot himself and slammed the door.

"What on earth got into you?" Samlas greeted him from the staircase.

"Nothing," Jin replied and put his helmet onto the coat hanger.

"Really? Stupid humans? Body that doesn't float?" That sounded a lot like more than just nothing.

Jin rolled his eyes, leaving her without a response.

"You shouldn't be so harsh on yourself. Or on any human in general."

"Why not? What good are we? Dryads can feel the nature around them and have the vines as an extension of their body. Cloudfolk can summon clouds and their bodies are so light they glide on air. Fairies can fly and move stuff with their mind. Heck, Cia's mixed heritage gave her bloody fangs and feet that stick to surfaces like she's a bug! Why can't I have anything? Why do humans have to be so useless?"

Samlas raised her eyebrows. "Wow, you really don't feel alright. What happened to you?"

Jin sighed. "It's the magic. They can all use it so easily. Airo's there already turning his aura into a different element and I just... well," he raised his hand to the level of his eyes and gathered magic around it. "This is all I can do. A strong punch. And even that took so long to learn. It's just like... I don't know, like humans can't do anything special."

"Well, it's no wonder. You were created as a species for simple labour. You weren't born out of magic like everyone else. It makes sense you'd be... more straightforward."

"Wow, thanks, now I really feel better!" Jin snarled at her, his eyes full of anger.

"Ah! Found out!" Manuel's voice came from the floor above shortly before he teleported between the boy and the fairy.

"Look! Murtensiel's map of mankind and the magical miscellaneous!" he said with a face full of joy and practically shoved a massive dusty book in front of Jin's eyes.

"Wha? Manuel! What are you doing?"

"Look! It's a picture!" the wizard said as he opened the book somewhere in the middle. There, across the two pages, were countless circles on which stood the drawings of all sorts of different creatures.

"An encyclopedia? So what?"

"You don't see it?"

"See what?"

"The Dryads are up here. Cloudfolk here on the right, and imps down here at the bottom. But here are the humans!" he pointed at the character standing at the very centre.

"I don't follow."

"Murtensiel believed that humans are the perfect clean slate. Magic always has its opposite. Dryads might understand nature, but something like fire would be uncomfortable and difficult to use for them, since, you know, they're kinda plant-based. Cloudfolk can fly easily, sure, but I'd like to see them manipulate earth. You get it now? We are the perfect blank page!" he exclaimed with the vigour of a motivational speaker and slammed the book shut. A cloud of dust flew off the cover, causing Samlas to back away and Jin to sneeze. "Right now, you might feel like you're learning slower, but you will eventually realize the true range of your abilities. Unlike your friends, you don't have biology as your 'sponsor'. You are on your own. You can be whatever you want to be."

"Easy for you to say. You already have all the magic one can desire."

"True, but I worked hard for it. Be patient. A wizard's growth is not a straight line, unlike with most skills. Inspiration and creativity can come from anywhere and in those moments comes a certain feeling of clarity. Then things begin clicking together. Like cogs falling into a mechanism, you begin to understand the grander picture of magic and suddenly, everything seems possible."

Jin rolled his eyes. Manuel's rambling contained the intonation of a fanatical cultist, yet held the unwavering logic of a scholar's speech.

"Thanks. I–"

"You're welcome," Manuel replied before Jin could continue and quickly disappeared to put the book back in its place.

The boy's anger and frustration was gone. Although he did not feel too happy with the kind of species he was, he no longer felt like shouting and slamming doors. Slowly, he walked to the second floor and stopped in front of Cia's room.

"Damn it! Start working or I'll turn you into scrap!" he heard her shout from the inside. A drop of cold sweat slid down his forehead. Airo was right. She was indeed in a rather sour mood.