Chapter 03: Advanced Attribute

It barely took me any time to complete my homework, but I spent about half an hour on other studies before I ran to find Mum. A month had passed since I picked up running, and I hadn’t grown bored with it yet. Learning to run had stretched my world vastly wider than it used to be. I didn’t believe I would ever grow tired of it.

Mum was cooking our supper in the kitchenette, humming some familiar tunes soothing to ears.

“Move carefully within the house, pumpkin.”

“I’m done,” I called, sniffing the aroma wafting from the pan. “Spinach, yuck!”

“Already?” Mum turned to face me, completely overlooking my dissatisfaction with the food. She took the notebook from me and turned page after page, her eyes scanning over my messy handwriting. “Wow, pumpkin, you aren’t lying when you said you’ve learned all the letters.”

“That’s not all...”

She flipped to another page, where I had tried to arrange letters into words and sentences. Her brows furrowed as she examined the page.

It’s normal for infants to do at least this much, right? I thought as she returned her gaze to me.

“Ari, how did you learn all this?”

I shrugged. “I read your books... I mean, I tried to read them and imitated...”

“You imitated,” she mumbled, her impressed tone fading. “The sentences are clumsy, but for you to learn all this by yourself... Which books did you read?”

“It was a record of exotic creatures. It has a lot of beautiful pictures. Let me bring it to you.”

Wasting no time, I hurried to the study room and climbed onto the stool to pick up the leather-bound book, already set apart from the rest.

I returned with the same enthusiasm, clutching the huge encyclopaedia to my chest, when my foot bumped into something. Unable to balance myself in time, I fell, my head knocking against the hardwood floor.

It was only during summer Mum had removed all the cushioning after I had learned to walk properly. Without it, I felt the full brunt of the blow. A yelp escaped my lips, causing Mum to leave everything behind to come to my rescue.

“My boy,” she cried, swooping down to take me into her arms. “Are you alright? I told you not to rush within the house. Now look at yourself.”

“I’m fine—”

She shushed me, drawing her palm over the slight bump on my forehead. Golden light spilled out of her hand and soothed the pain instantaneously, while the power rejuvenated any kind of exhaustion or weakness I hadn’t even realised I had.

It barely took a fraction of the golden light to heal the bump, while the rest spread throughout my body slowly—I could almost envision it in my mind’s eye. She has gotten better at this.

[Congratulations! You have completed the Way of Essence Sense IV (100/100)]

[Way of Essence Sense V (100/250) is available.]

[You have met both requirements for an Advanced Attribute.]

[Please choose between the two options: Arcane Acuity | Essence Sensitivity.]

“Wow!” I mumbled unwittingly before the spell could finish. I didn’t know what the other requirement had been, but for the first time, I was given a choice for my reward.

“Ari, what’s wrong?”

Arcane Acuity or Essence Sensitivity... Why do both sound so impressive? I thought hard, as both options seemed like they could push me closer to wielding magic. One literally had the word “Arcane” in it, while the other, “essence,” basically meant the fuel of magic.

My joy knew no bounds. It was only when Mum nudged me, pulling me up to her eye level, that I came out of my stupor.

“Pumpkin, are you feeling alright?” Worry tinged her voice. “If you feel any discomfort, I can take you to the healer, and—”

“Mum, which one is better?” I asked, excited enough to fumble the question. “Arcane Essence or Essence Acuity?”

Mum blinked, then her eyes narrowed sharply. “What did you say?”

“Oh, I said it wrong,” I admitted, realising my mistake. “It’s Essence Sensitivity and Arcane Acuity. Quick, tell me which will make me a magus...”

My voice slowed as I realised Mum didn’t share my enthusiasm.

“Sweetheart, where did you learn all this?” she said, a line forming between her brows.

“The spell told me.” I noticed she was holding her breath. “The spell always rewards me whenever I complete the Way, and this time...” Mum rubbed her forehead. Did I do something wrong? “... it gave a choice between the two options.”

Her expression only grew grimmer as she began examining me. Her eyes squinted, spilling deep golden light. Those unusual eyes bore down me as if searching to find something wrong with me.

“Did I do something wrong?” My voice came out hesitant, perhaps even frightened.

As though realising her reaction wasn’t appropriate, Mum’s eyes returned to normal, and she hugged me tightly. “No, pumpkin, you did nothing wrong,” she said, soothingly stroking my head.

“Are you not angry at me?”

“I can never be angry at my sweet boy,” she said. “No matter what you do.”

“Even if I don’t eat spinach?”

“Even if you don’t eat spinach, broccoli, fish, or any of the vegetables,” she said, cradling me quietly. “I’m sorry, Ari. Mum didn’t want to scare you...”

“Mum is never scary.”

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She kissed me on the cheek, her eyes turning teary. “Alright, can you tell Mum what this is about?”

I had learned a general idea about the Spell from all the stories she narrates me to sleep. Of course, there were still many holes in my knowledge, as Mum deemed some stories were too convoluted and sensitive for a child’s mind. Essentially, an Entity named the Oracle had devised the Spell to fight against dark forces that had threatened to engulf the entire realm.

And it had worked. It had been centuries since the world had experienced any calamity. Civilisation was thriving. With the support of the Spell, the number of awakened was multiplying in each generation.

Apparently, only one in thirty was born with a mark like the one on my palm, and the Spell helped them cultivate their powers.

Of course, my curiosity had only piqued from there, and Mum had to narrate stories about the Oracle and the First Knight to appease my thirst. Nobody knew how much of the story was the truth and how much of it was pure fiction, but the presence of the Spell proved there was at least some authenticity to the tales.

I explained about the Way of Essence Sense, from where it all began. Mum listened in silence, her face was a mask of solemnity.

Eventually, she rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache building. “To awaken a perception-based attribute of Advanced rank, one must complete the seventh step of meditation,” she said to herself and turned to me. “How did you even learn Meditation, much less complete seven whole steps of it? You’ve not even seen two winters.”

“Watching you do it every morning...” I said, as though it was only natural. She seemed like she wanted to object, but suppressed it. “Oh, it was an accident. Whenever you healed me, I could see the golden threads spreading all over… then the Spell said it was meditation...”

“More like visualisation, which is a big part of meditation...” Mum explained, and then her eyes widened once more. “Wait, did you say you glimpsed the golden threads of light?”

I tilted my head in confusion and nodded slowly. Is this something to be surprised about?

Exhaling sharply, she stooped down to my level. “Can you describe it to me, what you see when I cast the spell on you?”

I told her about the golden shimmering threads, weaving their way inside me in a symmetrical form. How the power resonated with me and became a part of my being. By the time I finished, her expression couldn’t have been more astounded.

“There’s no mistaking it,” she muttered to herself, “my son can really see the aether. I don’t think Jinn had that gift...”

“Mum?”

The smell of burned vegetables drifted to our noses, causing her expression to stiffen. She carried me back to the kitchenette to stir the pan.

“Pumpkin, do not choose your rewards now, alright?” she said, turning the stove down. “Mum will check if it’s safe for you to gain those attributes at your age.”

I could only agree and stayed in her arms while she finished cooking. She didn’t seem to trust me enough to leave me out of her sight, while the promise of magical power lingered in my mind. After serving me my supper, she crept to the study room and unfolded dozens of thick leather-bound books that were filled with small-lettered words.

She even put on her glasses at some point, which she always avoided unless she was drawing geometrical figures and runes on things. She flipped through one book after another, noting down things in my notebook, which went completely over my head.

I gave up on understanding an hour ago and instead concentrated on solving the puzzle piece Mum had made for me. There were some complex rules in it that my feeble kid brain barely comprehended, but it was fun to play with. Not to mention, my time spent solving the puzzle counted towards the Way of Education.

“Arilyn, can you summon your [Profile]?” she asked, resting the tomes.

I nodded again, eyeing the mark on my palm.

“Reiterate everything you see,” she said, her tone unusually serious. “Don’t leave anything out.”

As I listed my attributes and the points in them, she nodded along, though her expression twitched momentarily once or twice. Surely, my attributes explained why I was so smart for my age. Her lips parted slightly when she heard about my gift.

“[Fractal Soul]?” she repeated after me, her expression growing contemplative. “This is likely what enables you to see essence threads and aether.”

“Is that a good thing?” I asked.

She stared at me for an extended moment before giving a nod. “It’s a very... good thing.”

I considered her words and expression and felt she wasn’t painting me the entire picture. But she was my mum. It was likely for my own good.

“Alright, Ari, you’ve given me a great scare today,” she said. “I guess it’s time to educate you a little about the Spell and the attributes... I’m not sure I can make it clear enough for you to understand, so if you don’t get something, ask me questions, alright?”

I nodded eagerly.

“Foremost, you need to understand that you’re special,” she said. I raised an eyebrow, urging her to elaborate. “There are two types of people in the world. First, those who are blessed by the Aether and born with the spark of magic, and those to whom the Spell grants magic.”

“I’m the first kind?” I asked, unable to keep my hope from spilling into my voice.

“Maybe.” The corner of her lips curved slightly upward. “Magic comes easier to the first group, but that also makes their path more... arduous. I won’t go into unnecessary details. It’ll only confuse you right now. You just need to make sure you keep your gift a secret until it’s time.”

“Why?”

She explained that people blessed by Aether received unwanted attention from various groups, both good and bad. Some simply wanted to study unique gifts, while others sought to use them for their own designs. The empire had a protection law in place that allowed them to take anyone blessed into custody, where they would be trained through all the hoops. While it didn’t sound bad to my ears, Mum seemed highly against it, so I promised her to keep it all a secret.

“Now that’s out of the way, it’s time to decide about the attributes,” Mum said. “Even with all its limits and constraints, the Spell is a force of goodwill and...”

She still seemed worried and hesitant to go forward with this.

“Mum, as soon as I learn magic, I’ll help you with your work,” I said, clasping my palms into fists.

“My sweet boy, you don’t need to worry about that. But if you really want to learn magic, I suppose I can’t stop you. Be aware, however, for the path of a shaper is not easy to trudge through.”

With my enthusiasm returning, I didn’t even hear the last part. “Which one should I take? Essence Sensitivity or Arcane Acuity?”

“It depends,” she said, pausing to think of an explanation. “As the name suggests, Essence Sensitivity sharpens your senses toward various essences, while Arcane Acuity is a more specialised attribute that enables a shaper to some specific fields of study. I’d advise any novice not too keen about studying to take the first option, whereas Arcane Acuity needs immense hard work for it to come to fruition.”

“Then which one should I take?”

“There is no wrong choice,” she said with a smile. Fearing I did not understand her explanation properly, she decided to provide easier examples. “Think Essence Sensitivity as a magical nose, whereas Arcane Acuity is a magic wand which will only be useful if you know your way around it.”

I hummed, considering. “Hmm, if I cannot use the magic wand in the end, is it not better to have a magical nose?” Hopefully, it actually doesn’t grow a second nose, or I might lose it.

“Like the answer to most questions involving magic, it depends,” she sighed. “But you can already see essence threads. There’s no point in taking Essence Sensitivity. It would hardly add anything that your eyes will fail to perceive.”

“Right,” I agreed, though I didn’t understand half of it.

“The process may give you a headache,” she said, “but I’ll be with you throughout to help. It shouldn’t be a problem.” She clutched my shoulder, her golden essence at the ready. “You can begin now.”

I sucked in a deep breath. With her approval, I wasted no more time summoning my [Profile]. The Spell presented the options once more, and I focused on the tab for Arcane Acuity.

[Please confirm your choice: Accept | Decline.]

[You have chosen Arcane Acuity (Advanced). However, since your body and mind are not fully developed, as a safety protocol, the Advanced Rank Attribute may take a few hours to take effect.]

[The Spell hopes you understand their plight.]

Huh, I guess most of Mum’s worry was unfounded after all.

In the end, the process took all night. I didn’t feel anything out of the ordinary and slept through it, while Mum stayed awake the entire night to ensure nothing went wrong.