How does he do that? Every detail is so precise. Every shade brings an incredible sense of depth. It’s almost like I am looking through a window, not staring at a painting. And it’s almost as if the painting tells me what the painter wants me to know.

Adion was standing behind Quahim, watching the old elf paint. It was something he did for at least a short while each day. Adion knew that he would never have a chance like this ever again, so he tried to make the most of it.

Unfortunately, it’s a long way to go before I can begin to replicate that. But Quahim is probably one of the best, if not the best, painter on the continent, so I shouldn’t expect to be able to do what he does after only a year.

Adion went back to his own painting, the one he had named ‘A mother’s smile,’ adding some finishing touches. He had hoped to gain something from watching Quahim, but it was impossible to implement anything in a short time.

I suppose it’s part of the charm of the painting that it’s not been painted by an expert. And I am only painting it for myself at the end of the day.

Adion continued painting for hours, his mother's hair now much more detailed and alive than when he first painted it.

I feel like I can still feel her smile even while turned away. That’s nice.

Adion stared at the painting for a while, enjoying the sensations the painting had always given him.

Even if it’s not actually her, it feels nice to be close to her again like this.

Adion didn’t feel like start painting anything else; the day was coming to an end, and he was enjoying the silent and calm atmosphere in the studio. Snow was falling heavily outside the window.

It would have been a nice scene if I didn’t have to worry about getting to Cyalis in this weather.

After a while, Adion noticed Quahim putting down his brush, bringing him out of his thoughts. He turned to see that Quahim had also finished his painting. Adion got up to take a closer look.

It’s one of the happy ones.

It depicted an elven woman sleeping on a couch with an open book on her chest. The sunlight coming in through the windows lit up the room, giving the painting a very cozy and homely feeling.

“This one took you a while,” Adion said after a while. Quahim usually finished most paintings in a week. This one had taken him almost a month.

“I usually take my time when painting her,” Quahim said.

Her…I’ve seen her in a few other paintings, come to think of it.

“Hevima,” Adion said. Somehow feeling that was her name.

Quahim looked at Adion in surprise. He stared in silence for a while before turning to look at his painting with a small smile, “Truly a marvelous world. Isn’t it?”

“Mm,” Adion agreed.

Adion didn’t ask anything about the woman. He could make a few guesses. Quahim never asked much about Adion, either. There were never any questions about his family or what he painted. It was a nice, quiet understanding. What needed to be said could be said through their paintings.

“I bought you some cake,” Quahim said after a while.

“Cake?” Adion turned to Quahim in surprise, “Are we having a going away party?”

“Ganta, no,” Quahim said, “It’s your birthday, no?”

“Oh…You’re right,” Adion said. He hadn’t kept track of the days much, completely forgetting that he was turning 17.

“I’ll go get it,” Quahim said as he got up from his stool and started walking downstairs.

I thought I’d be able to spend my birthday with my family this year. I guess it doesn’t really matter. It’s just like any other day, really. And I’ll get to see them soon.

Quahim returned with two plates of cake and gestured for Adion to take a seat on the carpet.

“How did you know it’s my birthday?” Adion asked as he sat down.

“I’m a Diamond mage,” Quahim said, “You might have excellent control in hiding your strength and element, but you’re not hiding your age. It makes it easy for me to tell how old you are.”

“I never realized that you had such a good aura sense. I’m not able to tell age down to the day like that,” Adion said, “How come you’re not advancing to the Soul stages? If you practice aura a little more, it might be possible, right?”

“I have no desire for it,” Quahim answered.

“What? Why?” Adion asked.

“Well, perhaps there is some curiosity in me. It would be fascinating to see how far I can go. But it is not worth spending my remaining time on. I’d rather paint,” Quahim said.

“But if you advance to the Soft Soul stage, you’ll be able to live for much longer, having a lot more time to paint,” Adion said.

“True,” Quahim nodded, “Still. I have come to accept my old age and the time I have remaining. If I can spend my last years here in my studio painting, I will have lived a nice little life.”

But why not live an even nicer life?

Adion didn’t ask, though. He and Quahim started eating their cakes.

If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.

“I never asked when your birthday is,” Adion said.

“You don’t really care past a certain age,” Quahim said.

“Now I feel like a kid,” Adion said, looking at his cake.

“You are a kid,” Quahim said, “So eat your cake.”

Adion smiled and continued eating.

“Have you decided on when you’re leaving?” Quahim asked.

“Soon,” Adion said, “The weather is getting worse. I don’t want to wait until it’s too late.”

“I’d wait for it to pass, but it’s up to you,” Quahim said, “Just know that it won’t be a pleasant journey. And you might arrive in time even if you leave a month from now if the snow has melted.”

“I’d not be able to relax waiting for something so uncertain,” Adion said, “It might be slow to travel in the snow, but at least I’ll be making progress. I’ll wait for a week and see how things look.”

“Mm,” Quahim nodded.

The sun had started going down, and due to the clouds, it was already dark outside. So Adion got up to leave once they both finished their cakes and their talk.

“Thank you for the cake, teacher,” Adion said, “It was delicious.”

“Mm,” Quahim nodded, “Happy birthday, Adion.”

Adion made his way out on the street. Even with people working to shovel the road, the falling snow constantly worked against any effort to clear the roads.

Will I even be able to travel in this weather? If I hire a carriage with Silver beasts it should be possible, if a little slow.

It took Adion a while longer than usual before he reached the inn due to the street conditions.

Since it’s my birthday, I’ll relax a little tonight. Maybe I can take the brothers out for some food and drinks. They are not close to 15 yet, though. So maybe not drinks.

Adion got to his room, threw his backpack on the floor, and hung his robe to dry.

Maybe we should just get something to eat at the inn. I don’t want to go out there again if I don’t have to.

Adion made his way to Perk’s and Tib’s room and knocked on their door.

“Boss!” Perk greeted as he opened the door, “Notice anything different?”

“You have advanced to Iron,” Adion said with a smile, “Good job, Perk. Was it hard to compress your core?”

“Not at all, boss,” Perk said with a big smile, “I was more than ready for it.”

“That’s good,” Adion said, “But don’t grow complacent. It will only get harder from here on out.”

“I know, boss,” Perk nodded.

“But for tonight, we can celebrate a little,” Adion said, “Let’s go get some food.”

“Really?” Perk asked, “Where?”

“Er…Let’s go out and see if we can find a nice restaurant, I guess,” Adion said.

I guess it’s not so bad out there. A short walk is fine.

“A restaurant,” Perk said excitedly, “Did you hear that, Tib?”

“Mm,” Tib nodded and opened his eyes. He had been sitting cross-legged on his bed, manipulating shadow mana.

It feels like he has gotten pretty good control. Better than expected. But I’ll need to be closer to be sure. I’ll test him a little tomorrow.

“Get dressed,” Adion said, “We’ll leave immediately.”

“Mm,” Perk nodded and went to get something warm on his body. Tib didn’t argue and went to put on his boots.

When they got outside, Adion picked a direction at random and decided to stop at the first best restaurant he could find. And it didn’t take long before he spotted a place that he had walked past many times before. Looking in through the windows, it seemed like a nice enough place.

It’s nothing too fancy, but that would have only been a hassle.

They went inside and took a seat at a table deep inside the restaurant, where a waiter was quick to bring them menus.

“Order whatever you want,” Adion said.

“I want the duck,” Perk said straight away, “I’ve never had duck before.”

“Sure,” Adion nodded.

Tib wanted to try duck, too, so Adion saw no reason not to either. The three meals arrived not long after they had ordered, along with a beer for Adion and glasses of water for the brothers.

“We’ll be leaving in about a week,” Adion said as they started eating, “So be prepared for that.”

“Oh,” Perk said, “Alright, boss.”

“Will it be alright with this much snow?” Tib asked.

“That’s why I want to get moving,” Adion said, “If it keeps going like this, it will take well over a month to reach Cyalis. And we can’t be late.”

“Mm,” Tib nodded.

“I’ll need you two to look into hiring a carriage,” Adion said, “You don’t have to hire anything right now. Just bring me some information about the options. I want a driver to steer the carriage, maybe two. And I want it to be pulled by Silver beasts.”

“Won’t that cost a fortune?” Perk asked.

“I have the money, don’t worry about it,” Adion said.

“Mm,” Perk nodded.

“We’ll take care of it, boss,” Tib said.

“Good,” Adion said, “You want dessert?”

“No,” Tib shook his head.

“I do, boss,” Perk said.

“Mm. Me too. Are you sure, Tib?” Adion asked.

“I am sure,” Tib said, but Adion could tell he wanted some.

“You should have something since we’re celebrating your brother’s advancement. I’ll order us three pieces of cake,” Adion said.

“A-Alright,” Tib nodded.

Adion also ordered some drinks for himself, but even though he liked Tib and Perk, they weren’t the best drinking partners. So after a while, Adion called it a night, and they all left to head back for the inn.

I miss drinking with my teammates. I wonder what they are doing right now? They’re probably somewhere in the Kuwa Mountains. I can’t wait to hear all about it when I see them again.

Once back at the inn again, Adion sat down on his bed to train his aura after leaving the brother in their room. Even if he had decided to take a break from training for the day, it just felt too odd to go to bed without exhausting his Will more.

It was a nice day. But next year, I’ll celebrate with my family and Sell. I’m looking forward to it.