As the Long Days went by, Howard slowly began to get used to the whole situation. In fact, he found it reassuring, as he technically didn't need to do absolutely anything to survive, which was very strange for an adult man.

He would wake up, contemplate life, his Mother would pick him up, show him the house and the world around him, feed him, say things he still didn't understand, feed him again, and then put him to sleep. Howard believed he had been in this cycle for almost a month now, and, curiously, regarding this strange language, he was already starting to comprehend some things. His Mother would oddly point to various objects while trying to make him learn their names as quickly as possible.

A normal baby at this age wouldn't comprehend. Actually, from what Howard knew, they naturally absorb meanings in a non-mechanical way. But well, maybe his Mother didn't know that.

Fortunately for Howard, that was a good thing, as even though he didn't fully understand what was being said, he began to grasp some words – not many, but it was something. He believed that this quick understanding of the language came from the combination of an adult consciousness with a baby's brain.

He also practiced his tongue several times a day, moving it in the weirdest and most tiring possible ways, trying to speak those strange and mysteriously complex magic words. In the meantime, both his Mother and Father, whom he later found out was one of the young people from that day, would occasionally chant some curious magic words, phonetically diverging from their normal speech, and magical things would happen – like lighting a fireplace, creating light, summoning water out of thin air, and other such things.

Interestingly, the spoken language sounded like a romance language to his ears, something like Latin, Italian, or Portuguese. On the other hand, the language used for magic seemed heavier, like Russian or Polish.

However, to them, magic appeared to be something mundane enough for them not to care much about it, just like some technology or useful tool for modern humans on Earth, who had forgotten how miraculous those technologies really were due to the lack of the difficulties they faced centuries ago.

This was obviously strange for Howard, but he was slowly getting used to the whole situation, which had become almost common during every moment of his day. Still, no matter how common it seemed, it couldn't diminish the grandiosity Howard attributed to it all.

After waking up, today would be the same as the previous days, and Howard knew it very well. So, he was trying to say the strange exact word of the first spell he had heard – the spell of light. Since its phonemes were relatively simpler than all the others, Howard hoped it would be easier to complete.

And he didn't have much time, as at any moment his Mother or Father would enter the room and trap him in that tedious lifestyle.

However, Howard believed he was getting better at it and thought that in a few days, he might achieve his goal.

And unexpectedly, before he even realized it, he saw that he had successfully spoken the word. The pronunciation wasn't much different from what Howard had heard on one of his first days of life.

But for some reason, even though he believed he had done everything right, nothing truly happened.

What was the reason for that? Maybe he wasn't talented enough, or perhaps he was too young? Howard didn't believe that, as he had already seen other people in the village who were similar to his parents, so he quickly assumed that this village might consist of some unusual humans, all seemingly using magic in their daily lives. If that was the case, it would be natural to think that everyone had talent for it. If not, and the tradition broke even for just one generation, maybe even this knowledge would be lost or something like that.

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So, Howard knew that it wasn't a lack of talent, probably, but something else.

But what was it then? Was the word being pronounced incorrectly? No, even though it was different, originating from a baby's weak voice, it was entirely correct.

Maybe it was the intensity with which it was spoken? Definitely not, as he vividly remembered his Mother saying the word almost nonchalantly.

So what was it? Howard was caught in his thoughts until he finally solved this simple but strange problem.

In his memories, Howard recalled a word and an effect, a characteristic that he saw in all the spells. But it couldn't just be a language; it had to be a magical and ancient language. Or, clearly, it wasn't a common language since the people in the village didn't use it. However, it was strange to think that a language had such power, so most likely, this power originated from somewhere else – perhaps from the human consciousness itself.

Could this power come from will? The word itself already carried a meaning, and when combined with the will, it would generate spells.

But then, how could it be done? Because apparently, it had to be practical for everyone in the village to perform repeatedly.

Howard knew that the magic in his world, which he never believed much in, but knew his parents practiced, involved the union of will with symbols, sometimes egregores of gods, which when merged with the human mind, could bring positive or negative effects to something. Unfortunately, his knowledge on the subject ended there and didn't go any deeper.

So, seeing that his Mother was taking longer today, Howard tried to perform the spell again, but this time, he fully fixed the idea of light in his mind before pronouncing the word... which, once again, didn't work.

And now, Howard didn't know why. Maybe he was just a failure at magic? Howard truly didn't want to believe that, but well, was there anything else to think about at the moment? Fortunately, Howard's Mother soon appeared to rescue him from that moment, feeding and entertaining him while continuing to show him the world he was inhabiting.

At this moment, Howard believed he had been in this new place for perhaps two months and was enjoying the magical and fantastical environment. When he went out with his mother, he couldn't help but think of the Argentine Patagonia, or even the beautiful landscapes he had seen in New Zealand during a trip he took with some friends from university.

Howard was lost in thoughts about his past life and family when two more people he didn't know arrived at his parents' house and picked him up for a while, but he didn't really mind.

But when he was put back in his usual place and left to listen to the conversation, there was one word that was extremely recurrent throughout the conversation – "Mana." And at one point, one of those people, who seemed to be about the same age as his parents, not only used the word but invoked it. However, from it, no physical event or anything of the sort happened. Instead, the environment was unexpectedly captured by a strange but energetic and even good sensation. And that was when the puzzle was finally solved by Howard, who, after seeing this, finally realized what he had been doing wrong.

Of course, the word and the will were extremely fundamental, but if words and wills alone were enough to move the world, then the Earth would already be infested with such magicians. But no, something else was necessary, some kind of fuel to connect both parts. Of course, consciousness played a role, but to truly create something in the sensible world as a human without using their sensible and physical means, something else was needed, and here, in this world, or at least in this village, that something was curiously called "mana" – the same mystical energy from fantasy origins that reverberated through all the literary works of his previous world.

Howard was so immersed in his thoughts and thoughts about mana that he was unconsciously speaking the word, which not only merged with his will but also with the mana itself, and then generated his act right in front of him, in the presence of his parents and their guests, who, upon seeing this, were simply shocked.

His parents already knew of his magical talents, but starting to speak at two months of age and not only that, but also successfully casting a spell – that was, as they believed, unprecedented in the world of Astrion.