~January 2nd, night~

“I told you already Commander. You guys could have stayed inside. You don't need to set up camp.” Jet complained.

Samuel waved his hands in protest. “Hehe, that's alright My Lord. These brats have been rather spoiled lately. A few nights out in the cold winter would be good for them. Plus, this is your home. How can us soldiers use it? The Duke General would punish us.”

After confirming that Jet was okay, the Commander went into action. He reported what happened to those in Phoenix Military Complex, and decided to stand guard. Which is why, right now, there's tents surrounding the octagon bungalow.

“Ceh! I won't tell. You won't tell. How is he gonna know? Besides, this wouldn't be the first time you sleep in this house.” Jet said teasingly.

Unfortunately, both Samuel and Brenda were oblivious of the matter. “What do you mean, young sir? Who's been using this house?!”

The Commander did not know about it. Jet regretted mentioning this. “Oh, hehe, it doesn't matter. Just forget about it, alright?”

Samuel and Brenda looked at each other. Moments later, both of them had the same evil grin on their faces. “It was Ida, right? It must be her.” Brenda guessed confidently.

Jet said nothing. But his answer, in the form of a nervous chuckle, was obvious.

“That's just great. Today, instead of snow, they will sleep on my flames. Excuse us, My Lord.”

Before Jet could say anything, both of them had already rushed to one of the tents circling the octagon bungalow. That was probably where Ida was.

Jet could only sighed. “I'm sorry sister Ida. I pray for your safety and wellbeing.”

The door of the octagon bungalow slowly closed.

###

Jet did not go to his bedroom. Instead, he is now sitting on the soft sand in the middle of his underground training arena. Jet closed his eyes, doing his best to recall the method to activate his core as per the stranger's instructions.

Deathwish core acts like a beast core. Unsurprising, since it was the core of the Beast Lord. The near death pressure is what makes the core grow stronger.

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If the core is likened to a seed, then what Jet experienced has nourished the core. Turning it into a sprout.

“Hahahaha, this is it. What a refreshing feeling!”

Because his heart is where his energy core is, Jet's body was not just brimming with physical energy, but core energy as well. What does that mean? It means that unlike most people, Jet is constantly in his powered up mode.

In fact, he used this energy to kill his two kidnappers. Unfortunately, the boat was summoned by magic. When his kidnappers died, the boat was destroyed.

“Hmmm, I wonder if this core is like an aura core or a mana core.”

After thinking about it, Jet decided to try using it like an aura core first. He may not able to form a core of his own, but he had religiously read on the characteristics of both cores.

Aura core usage is quite straightforward. Physical energy will be turned into arma energy. The arma can be redirected to the entire body or a certain part to strengthen it. For example, a fist fueled with arma will have multifold improvement of its strength.

Jet decided to do just that. He concentrated. And slowly, the energy converged on his right fist. Having no target practice nearby, Jet directed his fist to the soft sand.

“Whoa…!” Jet was mesmerized.

His fist created a shockwave. The residual energy from his fist turned the sand into a glacier. Shooting sands knee high into the air. The wave only travelled a few feet around Jet, but it was clear evidence of how strong the punch is.

“Hahaha! I can use aura skills. That's great. That's super fucking great! I can be a swordsman like father.”

Super excited, Jet began practicing his moves again. He executed his punches, his kicks. Sometimes he would jump over the air and kick around.

Usually, an aura user would be accompanied by their elements with every move. Jet's moves only had translucent energy shadowing them.

But Jet could care less about them. Whatever that translucent energy is, it gave him a significant boost of power.

“Huff…huff…hahaha, this is great. I am super grateful for this belated birthday gift. Thank you strange man for this power.” Jet laughed gleefully as he lie down on the soft sandy arena.

The effect of the Deathwish core was great. But Jet only managed to activate a small portion of the core, hence the boost of energy is not yet aplenty. His energy level right now was only slightly better than those with no core.

As he was lying on the sandy ground, his mind wandered. “Hmmm, can I also use magic?”

Jet sounded a little bit greedy right now. From someone with no core, to now having one, that should have been enough. To be able to use aura and magic? That was unheard off.

Still, this is the core of a god. So…anything can happen. Right?

Besides, he was just playing around. Regardless of the result, there's no harm done.

Thus, he began following the basic magic skill he read about.

Everybody that just started practicing their magic skill will begin with condensing their elemental energy into an orb. That is also the first attack skill every mage will learn.

If you are a Fire user, you shall produce a Fireball.

A Water user shall produce Waterball.

And so on and so forth.

Remembering that tidbit, Jet hesitated. “Right! I don't have any elemental attributes. Am I…am I just wasting my time?”

Soon, the hesitation in his eyes turned to resolution. “Fuck it! I'm just playing around anyway.”

And so, the core in his heart came to life again. Converting physical energy into core energy. This time, the converted energy traveled to his brain. Where the mana core usually resides.

A mage's greatest weapon is his mind. Where his imagination, fueled by the strength of his core, turned dream into reality.

Jet was not hoping for anything, yet he was pleasantly surprised. “Fuck! I can usually do it!”

Floating above him, in all its translucent splendor, was an energy orb. Perhaps the reason it's almost transparent is due to Jet having no attributes.

Jet shot up, and sat up straight. “I wonder if I can shoot this thing like a Fireball.”

There's a wooden stool nearby. A perfect target practice. Jet concentrated, and threw it like a snowball. Just like when he was playing with the servants back in Brandr's Manor.

The stool stood no chance at all in fighting back. It disintegrate into pieces not bigger than a matchstick.

“I can use both! I am a mage and an auror! Hahahaha!”

The underground training arena thundered with laughter from a thirteen year old.

The thirteen year old who had just given up hope in life yesterday.