Our footsteps echoed through the empty palace halls as Alice and I walked side by side in silence, on our way to meet her father in the garden so he could send us out for the first time. It would've been a blatant lie if I said I felt good after suffering a panic attack back in the office, but having Alice smiling cheerfully beside me helped ease my mind. My only wish was for the uneasiness within me to settle down entirely.

“Hey, Alex,” Alice said, nudging me with her elbow. “I want to make a suggestion.”

Honestly? I expected her to speak up as soon as we left the office, but we were already close to the garden by the time she said anything; however, what was more surprising was that she started with a suggestion, piquing my interest. Immediately I tried predicting what she wanted to say, believing it was either about how to deal with the sudden change as I couldn’t feel my mana core or how to control any potential panic attacks in the future. It would’ve been an understatement if I merely said that I valued her opinion; her comments often led me to new discoveries.

“And what might that be?” I asked, looking at her with a coy smirk.

“I think I figured out a way for you to gain an advantage during our duels. Have you thought about going shirtless?” She chuckled, surprising me with her bold teasing.

“Maybe I should at this point.” I burst into laughter as out of all the things she could’ve said to me, that was what came to her mind.

Somehow she always had a way of making me laugh, no matter how troubled I was.

“Come on. Father’s waiting,” she said, pushing the door open.

Elwyn stood by the fountain with a backpack set on the ground, awaiting our arrival.

“I see you two are in a good mood.” Elwyn crossed his arms and looked over at me. “And it seems my wife’s gift worked flawlessly. I can’t sense an ounce of mana coming from you.”

“A bit too well. . .” I huffed, scratching the back of my head.

“Did something happen?” He looked confused.

Alice didn’t speak up, leaving it up to me to share if I felt comfortable.

“Suffered a panic attack as some old memories triggered, but thanks to her,” I smiled at Alice, “I was able to overcome it.”

“You good now? If you want, we can send someone else or delay the trip for next month.”

“Thanks for the offer, but I want to be the one to do it as soon as possible. I think it’ll give me the closure I need to overcome what I’ve endured.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll keep Alex safe,” Alice said with a smug smirk, knowing she was stronger than me.

“In the likely event that I don’t return, her confession saves everyone the trouble of finding out why.”

My joke had her father snickering, but it resulted in my ribs being probed.

“Should I return later?” Elwyn asked, trying to hide a warm smile.

“Sorry,” we simultaneously said, composing ourselves.

“Alright,” he said, picking up the backpack and handing it to me. “There should be more than enough in here for your trip. I also made sure to pack up a few potions just in case.”

“I’m presuming the mountain is dangerous?” I asked.

“Our scouts regularly check the mountains, so there shouldn’t be anything you two can’t handle, but that doesn’t mean you should be careless. Understood?”

“We’ll be fine,” Alice said to her father, placing her hand on my shoulder. “No need to worry so much.”

“You’re asking for a father to not worry about his child. . . One day, you’ll understand.” Elwyn sighed. “Anyway, your objective is simple. Collect the Astral Moonflower and make it back without getting into trouble. Alice, you already know where they grow, and thanks to Asia’s drawing, it should be fairly easy to identify.”

“You’ve never seen them?” I looked at Alice, surprised considering how much time she spent in the garden.

“They’re hard to grow, and once you pluck them, they don’t look the same. So it’s not like I didn’t want to. I just never had the time to go during a full moon.”

“It’ll take about a day to reach the mountain, so you have more than enough time.”

“Race you there?” Alice suggested.

“It’s not a sprint, you know?” I chuckled, knowing my mana regenerated while moving. “It’ll be an easy win.”

“You think so?”

“Sure, you’d be in the lead at first, but once you fall behind, it’ll be all me.”

“Now you’re just edging me to do it.” Alice chuckled. “We should bet on it.”

“Look at you two,” Elwyn interrupted with a soft chuckle, taking a step closer while looking at Alice. “I’ve been blessed with a beautiful and courageous daughter within whom I see so much of her mother. You’ve grown into a fine young lady, and as a father I couldn’t be prouder.”

“Dad. . .” Alice mumbled, averting her gaze with a shy winsome smile.

“And you, Alex.” His focus shifted to me. “Though our training hasn’t ended yet, I want you to know that you honor me by accepting to be my student. I couldn’t have asked for a finer young man on whom to bestow my knowledge.”

“The honor is mine,” I said, touched by his words.

He pulled Alice in for a hug while placing a hand on my shoulder, and despite how she sometimes acted, it was sweet seeing Alice snuggle against his chest.

“Wait,” Alice broke away from her father’s embrace. “Why does it sound like you’re saying goodbye? You’re not going to be gone by the time we return, are you?”

He laughed, shaking his head. “You make it sound like I never say anything nice, and no. . . I just felt the need to say it. Besides, once you return, you’ll be wishing I went away since we’re going to be changing how we train.”

“How we train?” I asked.

“Alice, you’ll be working on your core-”

“For real?!” She yelled with a radiant smile.

“Breathe. . .”

“Sorry.” Alice lowered her voice, tucking her head and bringing her arms to her chest.

Her father sighed, shaking his head. “I know you’re excited, and I’m sure you’ll be thrilled once you break into the second circle.”

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

“Yeah,” she said, lowering her arms. “It’s been years since I’ve formed my core. To think I’ll finally get to work on it.”

“You’ve been preparing yourself for what is to come, and by showing patience, you’ll now reap the reward.”

“What about Alex?” Alice asked, seeing that I was just quietly listening to them.

“He’ll be working on unlocking his gift.” He turned to me, crossing his arms. “Since you’ve decided not to strengthen until both cores are unlocked, which I agree with. . . you’ll be working on breaking that seal and then developing a dual strengthening method.”

“Wait, dual strengthening?” Alice furrowed her brows. “Are you trying to progress both his cores simultaneously?”

“It’s never been done before, so we don’t even know if it’s possible,” Elwyn said, exhaling slowly. “However, if we don’t find a way, then there was no point in having him wait all this time.”

“If anyone’s going to find a way, it’ll be the two of you,” Alice said proudly. “But first, let’s go get that flower and cure you of poison once and for all.”

“Agreed.” I chuckled, tightening the straps around my shoulders.

“Before you go, Alice, would you mind giving us a second?” Elwyn asked.

“Sure?” Alice looked at me for a hint, but I was just as clueless. “I’ll wait in the hallway.”

“I’ll be there soon,” I said, looking back at her father.

He waited for her to leave before pulling me under his arm as we walked side by side toward the door.

“So a panic attack, huh?” He chuckled.

“Yeah. . .” I didn’t think he wanted to talk about that, but understandable enough.

“I hope you’re feeling better, but if you feel anything’s wrong, don’t hesitate to return even without the flower.”

“Of course. Alice’s safety will be my top priority.”

“Yours too, don’t forget that.” He paused for a second before glancing back at me. “Alex, I’m leaving my daughter in your hands. I want you to protect her, and I don’t mean just now but at the academy too.”

“I will,” I reassured him, stopping myself from mentioning my doubts that I’d be able to attend.

“Good. Now my mind’s at ease.” He let go of me, taking a few steps ahead. “Good luck on your journey.”

“Thanks,” I said as we parted ways.

Alice patiently waited for me as she sat on the stone steps with her legs crossed, humming what sounded like the songs they played during the festival. However, as soon as she saw me, she stopped.

“What did dad want?” she asked, taking my hand that I offered to help her up.

“He asked me about the panic attack.”

“You okay?”

“I’ll be a lot better once we get this flower.”

“Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

----------------------------------------

Our first journey together had us venturing east as we took it upon ourselves to collect the Astral Moonflower, a key component in curing my blindness that had been plaguing me since I escaped Tartarus.

Leaving Thysa behind was strange as we typically trained together under Alice’s father during the day, but we both agreed it was a welcome break. However, now that Elwyn told her she would be strengthening her core, I wondered if she was eager to return more than she was thrilled about traveling with me.

“It feels so good to be out of the city!” Alice yelled, cheerfully skipping around, enthralled by the surrounding wilderness.

I couldn’t help but admire her free-spirited nature.

“I told you we’d travel again together.”

“You did.” She giggled, putting her arms behind her back while looking up at the trees. “And I didn’t even have to run away this time.”

“Certainly made my job easier.”

“However, they took away your chance to be a knight in shining armor, swooping in to save the distressed princess.”

“Been there, done that,” I teased, slowing down just in case she turned around with a complaint.

“I know. How could I forget your heroic leap to protect me from harm? Noir never stood a chance against you.” Alice pointed her tongue at me.

“Good. As long as you remember.” We laughed it off, but my smile slowly faded as an idea came to mind that made me feel anxious. “Hey, Alice. . .”

“Hmm?” She mumbled, turning toward me. “Hey. . . What’s wrong?”

“I want to try it.” I clenched my fist, looking her directly in the eyes.

“Try what exactly?” she furrowed her brows.

“Casting a spell,” I said, sighing nervously.

“Hey.” Alice approached, grabbing my hand gently. “You don’t have to force it, but if you feel ready, I’m right here.”

“I have to.”

“Okay then. I won’t stop you.” She let go of my hand, taking a few steps back. “Cast Stride.”

“Why Stride?”

“Well. . . I don’t think you want to get hit if you try casting Shield and it doesn’t work, nor am I going to let you Blink, knowing you might end up disoriented because of the gift.”

“Makes sense,” I said, taking a deep breath as I readied myself to try my hand at casting again. “Here goes nothing.”

“You got this,” she encouraged me.

Controlling my breathing and closing my eyes, I focused on my core as if nothing had changed. While I couldn’t feel it anymore, I knew it was still there. All I had to do was visualize the mana and force it out.

“Stride!” I yelled vigorously.

In my mind I was doubtful I’d get it on my first try, but a soothing feeling of energy swept through me as mana engulfed my body, answering my summons. It was as if a familiar friend appeared back in my life, embracing me warmly and causing me to shed a tear of joy which I immediately wiped away with my left hand, knowing Alice was looking. Words couldn’t describe the gratefulness I felt knowing nothing had changed.

“You did it!” She yelled, running up to me.

Immediately I could tell by her smile and the look she had that my surge of emotions didn’t go unnoticed despite my best effort to keep them in check as soon as they surfaced. She decided to overlook my selfish desire not to cause a scene again when she’d typically tell me to let it all out.

“Ready?” I said, confusing Alice with what I meant. “Blink!”

I teleported away and started running toward the mountain, hoping it would help clear my mind.

“Hey! That’s not fair!” However, she quickly noticed I wasn’t stopping. “Blink!”

Mana fluttered around me as if it had been there my entire life, and today, I gained a great deal of appreciation for its existence.

We raced for a bit, but once we realized how long we had to go, we agreed it wasn’t worth the effort as we wanted to enjoy our time traveling. Still, it was fun to race for a bit, and I used that experience to get acquainted with the new feeling of drawing mana in; however, I quickly learned that my recovery slowed down a bit since I was shoving it all in aimlessly. Sylphena warned me it would take a bit to adjust, but our trip was likely enough, or so I felt.

We reached the mountain before we knew it and all that was left was for us to find a place to spend the night while we waited for the full moon tomorrow. Maybe we didn’t need the extra day, but it certainly lifted the pressure of being in a rush.

“Want to climb up top?” I looked toward Alice as the mountain wasn’t necessarily the biggest around. “I bet there’s a killer view.”

“Up there?” She hummed. “We’d need to go around where it’s not as steep.”

“You think so?” I chuckled, stepping closer before looking for a good spot for teleporting. “Blink.”

While the range was roughly around the same as Mana Sense, it made climbing up a mountain a much more enjoyable experience.

“Really?” Alice asked, sighing as she knew she had to follow me. “We couldn’ve gone around.”

“If you’re afraid you’ll slip, don’t worry! I’ll catch you,” I teased, surprised that she wasn’t the first to come up with the idea.

“Blink.” She appeared next to me, grabbing my arm for balance as we stood on a steep slope. “If you fall, I’ll kill you.”

“Worried about me?” I smugly smirked, which didn’t seem to amuse her.

“Unbelievable. . . Blink.” She reappeared near the top, casting her gaze upon me with a coy smile. “You coming?”

“Right behind you, Princess!”

Before I knew it, we had reached the breathtaking view overlooking the Elven Forest that led to Thysa, as tomorrow was the day we were finally going to get our hands on the Astral Moonflower.

Chapter End.

Thank you for reading.