"...pff."

"Hm?"

"Bwahahaha~!"

"S-Stop laughing!"

"Hahahaha, I can't, I'm dying! You should have seen your face!"

"Stop it already, it's not that funny..."

I turned away in complete embarrassment, my face flushed.

What Miss Body-of-a-Ten-Years-Old is laughing about is that... I slipped. Kinda.

After the fierce fight with my father, we had to go nearly as soon as that finished. We got back home, ate once again as a family, I said my goodbyes to my parents and we were off to the capital. Leyna asked just in case if I wanted to go alone, but I was adamant on that it definitely would be better to go together than me getting lost somewhere on the way. With a snicker, she agreed.

The problem with this was that we traveled by flight, which meant that as I can't use magic, Leyna brought me with her. Which wouldn't have been a problem, if this traveling method on my side didn't require me to hug her as strongly as I could. Despite her saying things like "you should be happy you can embrace someone as beautiful as me in your arms", I didn't actually feel like being happy. At all. It sounded like a big hassle. And it was. But as I promised I won't whine about every small thing, I went along with it and we started our grand journey to the capital. Which lasted exactly twenty minutes long.

As I said, I slipped. I was actually more exhausted after the fight with my father than I actually felt like I was, which meant the sword clashes we made took a toll on my arms and as such, not even half an hour into our flight, my hug around her waist silently, for a second even without my own notice, let up and I got into a freefall.

This was the first time in my life I felt like I could die in any second.

But you say, what about the serious father-child duel to the death (with small exaggeration)? No, no. You have to remember something. We are talking about someone who had regular training with his father. We are also talking about someone, who a few weeks ago didn't even knew if you eat or drink magic, so anything flight related was impossible even in his wildest dreams. Until then. So, if you think it's weird that someone who had enough experience to do a duel with a strong swordsman or live off in the wilderness by himself actually feared being in the sky more than fighting some big animal... yes, it might sound weird, but that doesn't change the fact I felt like with the speed I was falling, I could just splash on the ground when I reach it and that's the end of the line for me. Obviously, it didn't happen.

Coming to my rescue was a wingless angel with burning red hair, who got down from the heavens to catch this falling idiot super fast and picked me up before we slowly started decelerating until we reached the ground and I fell face first into the grass, my legs shaking. This was the day I got traumatized by flying.

After a short break, without my consent we went flying again, as not far from us there was another town called Dirham.

Leyna said it's unnecessary to try to rush it, as we will reach the capital a lot faster than anyone even on horseback could, so we took the day off to look around the town, until night came for us and we had to take out a room in an inn.

"Eham. Either way, back to topic. Magic."

Before Leyna got into a laughing fit, we actually started reviewing what I remembered about magic from my two weeks of learning.

There's three very important value in magic. Without these, even if you can use magic by looks perfectly, inevitably it will fail and it will fall apart or backfire in some form. What she tried to bring up as reference was fire, having 3 condition that builds it up and if either one of them is missing, you wouldn't get fire out of it.

For magic, this was control, potency and knowledge.

Magic control is needed, because without perfect control, your magic can fall apart or worse, came out with a burst as it gets more power than the user intended to give it to.

Magic potency is about the quality of the magic your body can take in. Leyna said they grade these as Base, Common, Rare, Fine and Refined. Actually, it doesn't stop here, as there are two other higher tiers called Glorious and Gluttonous, but according to her, anything above Fine is near grandmaster level of magic mass that fewer and fewer people can use as you go into these heights. Also, even if your body can take such a mass of magic to classify as Gluttonous, it’s worth nothing if you yourself can't make full use of it due to lacking in other departments.

The last and apparently most important part is pure knowledge. You can try using magic, but it will absolutely fail or wouldn't even show any effect without you knowing what or how things should affect the objects or materials you want to use. Tremendous amount of research and experimentation gets put into magic and then the results are put into books. Spell books usually help you understand basic knowledge about magic like elements, spells for them or some even how to do some basic level element mixing. There's another kind of book, which is a grimoire. Grimoires are used for more complex magic formulas, mixing more than two elements together or even talking about how to make up elements outside of the natural four.

"You know, in reality, everyone can use magic."

Leyna talked as she stood up from her bed on the other side of this two-person room.

"In potency, Base exists because every living being has the potential to use it."

As she talked, she took some sharp turns left and right, and in the end, she was standing right before me.

"What do you think, why don't you see farmers just using magic to water the fields or tend the soil?"

Now that she mentioned it, she's right. Despite how it would be much more efficient, I had never seen either of the mentioned methods in usage. Not that I had seen many use magic to begin with, but I guessed that just gave more ground to her argument.

"You don't have to answer, this is a freebie. The reason for this is fear. Remember what I said before about water magic?"

"Ah... the bleeding out one?"

"Yes. I said you could do it to someone which is actually half true. Obviously if you could accidentally do that to someone, this would have turned into some weird assassination method that you can hardly stop. I said that to don't scare you completely away from magic at your first meeting with it but still warn you. The one who would bleed out is none other than you."

"Um..."

"I think you understand what's the idea here. If you fail magic, there's a high chance it's not just not doing the formula you wanted, but the plan to use magic backfires on you instead. If you are fortunate enough for it to be an accident, you can save yourself from the situation if you have enough control over it. The problematic part comes after someone doesn't have that control."

"I think I understand. So regular people could use magic, but since their control is not good, they might hurt themselves instead."

"Hurt is a light word. With water magic, as I said before, you can bleed yourself out in an accident. With fire magic, you can set yourself on fire and that flame for sure will burn you to crisps. Despite earth magic being one of the easier ones, I saw someone pierce himself through the stomach somehow. That's why I'm happy that it seems you have an affinity to wind magic, just like me."

"I have? So that means you can teach me?"

"Maybe. Hopefully. I'm a Sage, you know."

"I see."

"With that, we end our lessons for today, but there's one final thing..."

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

"What is-"

Bamm!

In the next instant, I was on the floor, rolling around and clutching the top of my head.

"This is for what happened this morning. Despite now saying I'm relieved you show affinity for wind magic, at that moment I was furious but was holding back because of your parents. They are not here anymore though, so I can happily beat your ass."

"Huh?"

I was still confused as it didn't even reach my brain what happened. But even if it did, I felt like my head got ripped in two.

"What happened under the fight with Boro was ultimately lucky, but for a beginner like you it was extremely dangerous, and in this case not for you..."

While I tried to focus on what Leyna is saying, she went back to her bed and sit on it cross legged.

"The formula there seemed like an unconscious one to me that happens sometimes to people new to learning magic, so since it was not your doing actually, I can't clearly fault you for it. But what do you think, what would have happened if this wouldn't have been the case back there? A lack of control would mean you oversize the magic and it has a stronger punch. This is still a good outcome. But with a lack of knowledge about what you are doing?"

I looked up to the bed and she turned her head to the right, as if asking me for an answer.

"Air is an interesting substance. You breathe it in and exhale it, you use it every day, it's essential for life. And yet, it's a double-edged sword without a hilt in the hands of a mage. Take the air away and people suffocate. Make it fast enough and it blows you away without a problem. Thin as well and it might cut. But make it dense enough and it might turn into worse. For you? Maybe the impact breaks your arm and twist it in a way it wasn't meant to be in. But if someone stands before it? With enough potency, let's hope an arm remains there afterwards."

The calmness of her voice sounded unfeeling, her face showed no emotions. I was frozen in place after seeing this side of this eternal sage and it made her words all the more pressing.

"As I said, lesson for today ended. Tomorrow we start again early, so let's go and sleep as much as we can."

With that, she rolled off the bed and smashed into the floor, falling asleep instantly.

For a few minutes, I just sat there on the floor beside her, thinking through her words over and over again until it was ingrained into my memory.

I never thought I would fear the wrath of a nonchalant girl like her. Looks like my traumatic experiences didn't end with flying, instead it was just the start of it.

Without saying a single word, I reflected on myself and my action, then tucked myself into my bed and tried to sleep as instructed, still holding my aching head.

—¦—

After getting out of bed, we fast ate up and left the village. As I was hanging on her again in the sky, she continued on about magic theory and magicrafting, with some basic knowledge I might need like the currency, values of basic commodities. This lasted for hours without end, with tremendous amount of small knowledge snippets and while it felt like a long drill, I knew this was necessary and best if I remembered it. Maybe she was just bored flying for so long, I personally was just happy that I got back the more humorous Leyna instead of where we left off yesterday.

After a little pause happened in our conversation, I asked her about something that bothered me for a while.

“Hey Leyna, can you tell me why my parents never talked about their life in the capital?” I didn’t dare asking my father after it seemed like a touchy point for him. Same with my mother. So, all I could do is ask the only other person who might know something about it.”

“It’s… not a happy tale. I won’t tell you the exact details because I don’t want you to think bad of Boro,” she said after a short silence. “It happened not long after the Terzo incident. There were some people who tried using your father’s power and his sense of justice to their own goals. They deceived him. Badly. And that’s why he gave you that advice. Follow it, okay? You don’t have to worry for now, but once people catch wind of your background or you make a name for yourself it might happen. Promise me you will tell me or the friends you will make right away, okay?”

“Alright, I will,” I said reluctantly. So my father did something he regrets ever since. I wouldn’t have guessed it from the way he always acted in the village.

After my answer Leyna looked a bit relieved and started talking about some other topics with a smile on her face.

Apparently, Leyna might like this girl called Bonnia, because the name came up every hour at least once. How she was apparently a new member of the sages. That despite how young she was (if two hundred is young in elf age), she had a potency around Gluttonous, yet she had absolutely no talent to formulate magic herself, which was already quite unique in itself, not to mention how an elf like her couldn’t even use the most basic spells. Instead, she's a genuine genius with discoveries that changed some part of magicraft for the better. That she got the nickname Hekate from the Balduan Republic out of respect for her craft. From what Leyna told me, she sounded like an interesting person with a weird, twisted personality, but despite the clear signs of trouble around her, how Leyna talked about her so passionately made me sure about that if I had the chance, I wanted to meet this girl.

"Oh, I see the capital from here. That means we go down and walk from here."

"Huh? Can't we just fly in?"

"Well, I will answer that while we walk."

We got to the ground, I let go of Leyna and we started walking down the road, side by side.

"I get straight to the point. I don't think you are good enough to go along with me."

It kinda hit me as weird to tell me this now.

"Um... sorry?"

"Don't have to be. You are Boro's kid, so I trust in you and I accept your decision, be it anything. In short, this is your last chance from backing out, otherwise, you have to turn into my little doggy for a while and do what I tell you to."

"I already made my decision. I wouldn't back out now."

"Good to hear. Then let me be clear then, you might be a good swordsman, but I don't think you are on par with an apprentice in the academy. At least, not yet. What you need is some time, learning and real life experiences. You have the skills with the sword, but that will amount to nothing against people who use magic on the side as well. That's why, I want you to enroll. Into the academy, I mean."

She said loud and clear. But I had questions.

"But isn't this some famous academy? Could a country kid like me even enroll there? Or I can assume you pull some strings for me as the Sage...?"

"Pff, don't make me laugh, I don't help with anything. At least, I can't. You must remember that I am the advisor of this country. That's a high enough rank in the hierarchy that every moneybag and noble will look at you and imagine a knife in your back, simply by being associated with me. Either that, or they try to use you to earn favors. You are Boro's child and he clearly said what he wants you to do. If he wants you to be a nobody and earn your fair share, you will and I help as little as I can, until the right time comes."

"I see."

"As for enrolling into the academy, you can. Absolutely. It's mostly thanks to weird customs that no one questions for some reason, but it's good for us, so let's pretend it's normal. To enroll into the academy, you just have to go to the gate, go on, give a bow and... ask for it."

"...what?"

"Just go for it and they let you in. I did say they are weird. They even give you a room as lodging with it."

I was kind of dumbfounded and confused how this would even work.

"It is weird, indeed. Wouldn't just everyone want to go there then? Don’t they regulate it somehow?"

"As I said, even a know-nothing country bumpkin like you is accepted and they can't be sweet talked into shady dealings either. Well, there is a little bit of a regulation with three itty bitty trials, but you don't have to worry about those, no one died in the last 80 years. I think."

Suddenly, a big and wide grin appeared on her face that I didn't saw in a while. So she's just playing with me.

"Okay, I do that then."

"Huh? That's it? Not even a little revolt?"

"Woof."

"...pff."

"You said it."

"I know, I know. Before I leave, take this."

She handed me a little... ring looking thing. It looked very simple as only a single small gem was embedded into the middle, so small if you didn’t try to specifically look for details, you could miss it. Otherwise, the jewelry was fully made of some golden material that had an interesting greenish hue to it.

"And what is this?" I asked.

"Ah, it's kind of like a trade secret and something you shouldn't have anyway, so please only take it out at night and put it on your index finger."

When I thought about it, it would look weird if a country kid like me wore some fancy jewelry that's very obviously not something he should do by appearance and I would bring too much attention to myself with it. Most likely the sword on my side will give me enough attention as it was.

"And what is it good for?"

"If you do what I said, maybe you can hear the voice of an alluring ghost that tries to seduce you."

"...can I block out those voices if I take it off as soon as possible?"

"Yes, you can, but then the bewitching voice can't tell you where to meet someone or maybe some other interesting tidbits. You know, this ghost is said to be pretty chatty at night."

So it’s some kind of long-distance communication device? I kind of understood why she said this was trade secret, I’d never even heard of such a thing before.

"Also, take this as well," she handed me a poach. "This is enough for around two weeks, though mostly just for food and shelter. What I recommend is for today, just look around and find yourself a place to stay at. After waking up, you can go straight to the academy and ask for the enrollment, you are still just in time with that. I think participation for the trials will end this week. The trials are changed every time, so I can't help with that, but at best it takes around a week, so that amount of coin will be enough. Otherwise, just wait for the cute ghost to contact you. Everything's clear?"

"Yes. I think."

"Then off I go, can't stand still for even a moment. I have to check into the castle and I'm on the way again until Ashton is back at the castle, which will take a bit of time on horseback. See ya and good luck!"

With these rush last words and a strong wind gust, she was off in the sky again, going towards the capital city with high speed.

"So she was even holding back because I was clinging on her..."

I grabbed the sword on my waist that my father gave me. Despite being old, it looked like it was maintained nicely and according to my father, despite he never used magic, it was a sword capable of channeling it, which I was sure would come in handy after I learn how to control magic effectively.

I thought about what happened in the last few days, about my first adventure, the things I learned and how all of these are just small dots on a big scroll called the world. I knew some things which amounted to nothing. Which was exactly why I was eager to learn more. I wanted to know more. With newfound determination, I walked down on this narrow dirt road.