Days came and went with the lessons and theory provided by Indrath, and the progress on the seal was also nearing completion with every passing day. I would have never thought I'd be so easily immersed in this concept of knowledge, but yet here I was.

The day-to-day life of hunting for coin had become something that rarely crossed my mind as the time with Indrath made me forget such things, even if it was dull work and didn't really keep me entertained.

With every lesson, Indrath taught me the significance and purpose of The Xios's Esoteric restrictions, a power that came with an instinctive level of mastery over any form of mana essence and martial skill.

The day started off with the usual exchange and routines, however, today Indrath seemed to be looking forward to something as he spoke up.

"The Xiao's Esoteric restrictions are known for the incredible adaptability it has, and they are capable of anything with no limit or bound, as you’ll soon come to find out. You've experienced a fraction of this yourself, I’ll admit the trait isn’t something I completely understand, but I feel as time passes, they will grow with you. I also speculate in time, you will begin to take the toll of them yourself, as I’ve noticed you feel as if you are missing something and it’s a subject I can only teeter around, there could be dire consequences to it if I don’t. Regardless there will be plenty of time for you to discover the meaning of that as well, and I want you to experience something that made me smile, a reminder that you’ll have to create yourself, until then let’s get some fresh air," Indrath said with a small hum before he motioned for me to follow him out of the door, and into the lower district of Carith.

My gaze looked at him with some confusion at what he meant by all that, “fresh air? Carith is a dump. You won’t find fresh air anywhere around here." I scoffed before following him, seeing as he wasn’t taking no for an answer.

I wasn’t sure exactly where he was heading, but we passed through the Lower District toward the Northern Gate and out of Carith's walls. For the most part, he walked with confidence akin to someone who owned the very road they tread upon, his head held high, and a golden gaze that pierced could only be described as 'out of this world' almost as if he was looking through the passing crowds with regret but disgusted all the same.

“If you forgot to mention, you didn’t even tell me where we are going,” I asked once more as we walked out of Carith.

"I didn’t forget,” he said, turning to me with a smile before giving a light laugh, "The seal is almost completed, there is one final step to go through, but it will serve its purpose, so we can begin the practical lessons we discussed," he explained leading me further beyond Carith’s walls, seemingly toward the tree line some distance from the city itself.

A small moment of silence passed between us as my steps followed behind him. “Couldn’t we have just done it back at my place?” I asked with a hint of annoyance.

Indrath only gave a small hum before he replied, "That would have been an issue. If I am to teach you everything, I need a larger space to work with." He said as his steps carried us to a large clearing in the woods.

I didn’t bother to argue with that logic as it made sense. It didn’t take long for Indrath to find a comfortable place to sit before he began the start of another lesson. "As you remember, we’ve discussed Magical energy and its capabilities to reconstruct physical energy, which in the end will allow you to use Elemental Magic and not only one but all four of the major elements which will lead to other forms of magic, but the basics will come first," Indrath explained as a flame sparked in his hand with little effort, “The Esoteric restrictions will have no trouble in manipulating all four elemental forms at once, the unique thought processing of your Esoteric restrictions will breakdown the understanding of each element, to recreate its form with the Magical Energy absorbed by your core, there will only be a slight difference in strength, this is because magical energy will always be superior to physical energy. After the seal has settled this will be what you will be limited to, replicating the form of magic Physical energy can produce,” He explained with the flame within his palm moving around at his very will, before he held the flame with atop his finger.

“This flame is created the same way, my magical energy manipulating physical energy. Why don’t you give it a try? Hold out your hand and imagine a ball of flame in your palm, allow your Esoteric Restrictions to take over and manipulate the magical energy within your core to recreate the flame” he instructed while keeping his flame hovering above his hand.

I was a bit curious if that would actually work, seeing as I was only ever able to use Wind before I received this Core. Regardless I held out my hand, “I probably look like a fool right now, but alright," I said as I pictured a flame similar to the one he created, and I certainly didn’t expect something to happen.

A flash of insight coursed through me and suddenly the image of a flame burned in my hand, only a small smirk of amusement left my lips, before I could see Indrath's face filled with pride. "Impressive as ever…Kazu, this won’t take us long,” he said with a small chuckle before taking a step toward me and placing his hand on my shoulder.

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Hours went by, and the sun began to slowly fall beyond the horizon, by the end of the lesson, I had successfully created all four forms of elemental magic, a feat never done before in mere hours. although the spells were rather at a novice level, I still couldn't deny my mastery over the Elemental Forms and obtaining a higher level of elemental magic was in my grasp in the coming days.

For a moment, we simply sat in silence before Indrath spoke up, "Do you question why I chose to show you these things? Why do I go to such lengths?" He asked with his golden gaze fixed on me.

Truthfully I didn’t expect him to ask a question like that, and it did cross my mind, but I answered honestly. "Well, you said you had your reasons, and in a way, I don’t mind it. I don’t really know why, but I find myself comfortable with all of this… maybe its just nice to have someone around" I admitted with a shrug.

Indrath's golden gaze gleamed in the dying sunlight, and a small smile appeared on his features. "I’m glad you feel that way, even when you are aware of the things I can’t tell you. At the very least, I can share some things about myself with you," he hummed before carrying on. “As you’ve seen, I possess magical energy, something I’ve explained as magic only obtainable by greater beings. I don't have a formal explanation for this, I do not consider myself a God, but I’ve watched the fall of worlds, the dust of ages gone by… memories that can no longer be shared over a glass of wine. Your Esoteric Restrictions react to the presence of the aura my magical energy exudes, you might begin to perceive me as some special being, but I’m nothing more than someone who failed to protect what mattered most to me in this world.” Indrath explained as his gaze lost focus in the distance for a moment, it wasn’t the first time I had seen him like this, but this time I could almost feel his sorrow as he looked at the sky with a small melancholic expression. Almost as if the memories were painful, and yet I wasn't sure how I should feel. I wasn’t capable of feeling for others. Even with his aura, I simply didn't have it in me.

“You sound like a lonely old man, Indrath," I scoffed before standing to my feet and stretching. "Regret… feeling guilty isn’t something I've felt or know much about, but is it worth the suffering?"

The air between Me and Indrath stood silent for a brief moment before a laugh much louder than the previous chuckles filled my ears. "If I said no, I’d be lying… though I don't regret everything,” Indrath answered with a thoughtful hum as he focused on me. “I am many things, and so are you, and what you decide to do with the life you live will define that. There's still so much for you to learn and discover, but know this I will do everything in my power to help you experience something you couldn’t," He said before standing up and dusting off his pants as his hand extended out to me, “it’s getting late we should head back.”

The words didn’t completely settle, and I found myself confused by his response, but for some reason, I was able to understand his intentions. A small moment of silence passed before I grabbed his hand and stood to my feet. “Why do you have to be so cryptic, it's hard to understand you sometimes," I scoffed as he chuckled at my comment.

Indrath's words seemed to hold a deep meaning behind them, a hidden meaning, but it was something that he wouldn't go into detail with, it was more than likely one of those things he didn’t want to share for my safety as he once put it. Even if I found myself questioning these things, I knew there was no way Indrath would tell me, so it was better left at that.

We made it back to Carith just as the sun was just beyond the horizon, and yet Indrath was sure to talk casually about other things as we walked home.

Once we reached my abode, it was nothing short of a routine for Indrath to cook dinner before heading to the sofa, where I laid back and felt his aura calm the aching void in me. It wasn’t a bad thing to have someone to share a home with, a person you could rely on for help, and it was something I didn't realize was missing from my life.

“You know... thanks for this. For everything, really. I don’t really care what you think of yourself, but you're not that bad. Out of all the nobodies that bothered me, I could have never expected to meet someone like you," I admitted, a small rare smile tugged at my features before Indrath chimed in with a small chuckle.

"That means a lot coming from you. However, you don’t need to thank me. I’m doing this for myself as much as I am doing it for you. And both of us will grow from this nostalgic experience" he said warmly with a gentle smile.

"Can’t you just take a compliment?" I remarked with a small roll of my eyes.

Indrath simply smiled in response before letting out another chuckle, “I appreciate it, Kazu, I really do, and I look forward to many more conversations with you," he said before patting me on the head like a child, a gesture that made me feel the littlest bit uncomfortable, I was no child after all.

My face only contorted into an expression of annoyance as he chuckled at my reaction before a scoff of humor left my lips. "I guess I can deal with that, now then, if you don't mind, I'm tired." I said, walking off with a stretch to the bedroll of compiled sheets I used as a bed.

"Of course, I'll see you in the morning. Get a good night's sleep," Indrath said before leaving me to rest. It wasn't long until my body found relaxation as I let the thoughts of the day go through my mind.

For the first time in a long while, I felt truly content, almost as if my hollowness was slowly being filled in, a sensation I had only experienced in the memory of my childhood.

A few days went by as we continued to train, and each day I improved my elemental forms. Eventually, the concept of most A-ranked spells became clear. In the end, it was nothing more than manipulating the magical energy within my core to cast a spell of its respective element.

I even began to wonder how high of a rank I was, in terms of the standard E to SS ranking system. I felt that I was somewhere in the upper A rank, considering my recent achievements, but there was no way to confirm it, and I doubted most A ranked individuals could use all four elements with a growing mastery of them at their disposal.

I also enjoyed the company of Indrath, his conversation was never boring as he always seemed to find a way to spark my interest with his knowledge, and he was certainly not a bad cook, It felt as if he was passing time with an old friend. I knew he had his secrets, but even if I knew that to be true, I still didn't think much of it. It seemed to be something that was out of my reach to question.