Basil arrived home and handed his mother the ingredients he had brought back, then they enjoyed lunch together happily.

After they finished eating, Basil grabbed a carrot and started munching on it as he went to his room to rest. The past few months had been tough on him, and he just wanted to relax a bit in his room, which he had missed sleeping in.

Knock Knock

“Aunt Latifa, it’s me, Anmar,” Anmar knocked on Basil’s front door.

Latifa, Basil’s mother, answered, “Ah, come in.”

Anmar entered the house, glancing around as if searching for something. When Latifa noticed, she smiled and asked, “What’s this? Are you looking for Basil?”

Anmar answered, blushing, “Yes, is he here, Auntie?”

Latifa replied, “Yes, he is. But he’s resting now in his room. He’ll be up around lunch if you want to wait for him.”

“Ah, alright, I’ll help you while I wait.” With that, Anmar joined Latifa, assisting her with cooking and housework.

Meanwhile, in his room, Basil was actually not sleeping. He was just relaxing. When Anmar arrived, he sat up, thinking, “Damn, why is she here? She came right after I got back. How did she even know? Did Mom tell her? No, from their conversation, that doesn’t seem to be it… Ah.” He remembered the encounter at the market earlier that day. “Damn, if I had known I’d run into her, I wouldn’t have made such a fuss.”

Basil thought of a way to escape. “If I try sneaking out the window, she’ll hear me for sure, and Mom will know I ran away—that would break my promise to her. I’ll just have to wait for Anmar to leave.”

Basil stayed in his room for a long time, making Anmar start to wonder about his absence. After some time helping Latifa, Anmar sat waiting.

Latifa finally said to Anmar, “Why don’t you call your mother? We’ll have lunch together.”

Anmar replied, “Sure.”

Basil peered out of his door and saw Anmar heading out. “Nice work, best mom ever,” he thought with a grin, and sneaked out of the house.

He opened the door quietly so his mom in the kitchen wouldn’t hear, but as soon as he stepped outside, he heard a voice, “I knew it. Here you are. Did you really think you could fool me?” Anmar was standing by the door, waiting for him.

Startled, Basil quickly composed himself and replied, “Fool you? What are you talking about? I just woke up and wanted some fresh air.”

Anmar crossed her arms and said, “Oh, really? Fresh air, huh? Don’t try to fool me.”

Basil scowled internally. “Damn it, why’d I have to meet her on my first day back?”

While Basil was lost in thought, Anmar asked him, “Where have you been these past months? I heard from Aunt Latifa that you were training with a friend in magic. You’ve been gone for two months, camping and training together.”

Basil replied, “Yes, that’s true. What’s wrong with that?”

Anmar smirked, “What’s wrong? Do you think I’d believe that excuse? I know you too well. You wouldn’t leave Aunt Latifa alone to train with some friend. Everything you do is for her or for your own interests. Even if this was something you’re interested in, you’d never leave her alone for so long. So, tell me honestly what you were doing all this time.”

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Basil had no answer, remaining silent for a while before finally saying, “I don’t owe you an explanation. Now, move aside.” He started walking past her.

“Wait, where are you going?” Anmar asked, turning to yell at him. Basil replied, “That’s none of your business,” and continued on his way.

Basil usually spent time in the library, reading for hours. But after all his training with his master, he had already learned far more than what the small library offered. He had read all the books on magic and martial arts available, and practiced the combat arts he could learn from them.

Now, with nothing specific to do, he wanted to go to the forbidden forest. But he had promised his master to take a break for the next week, and, above all, he wanted to spend more time with his mother.

Walking aimlessly, Basil found himself at the edge of the forest. “Oh, I guess I got used to coming here. I should head back. Mom must be waiting for me for lunch.”

He returned home, hesitating a bit before finally entering. Inside, he found his mother, Aunt Samira, and Anmar chatting and laughing together. His mood lifted slightly.

“Oh, Basil! Look how much you’ve grown. I haven’t seen you for months now. Why didn’t you visit?” Aunt Samira asked happily.

Basil replied, “Ah, sorry about that. I’ve just been really busy.”

Samira laughed, “Busy? Isn’t my house right next door?”

Basil had no answer, standing silent for a moment. Noticing this, Samira changed the subject, “Alright, let’s start eating.”

After the meal, Basil asked his mom if she needed anything and fulfilled her requests before heading up the mountain to watch the stars at night. Anmar kept following him every day, as usual, but he kept managing to evade her each time.

A week passed, and the day arrived for Basil to resume his training. He met his master, and they headed to the territory of the giant blue apes.

A week into his training, Basil kept encountering Anmar each morning. She would ask questions, and when he didn’t answer, she’d try to follow him but eventually lost him every time.

One day, Anmar found herself deep in the forest, panting and thinking, “Huff… Huff… I haven’t found him anywhere in the forest… Could he have gone into the forbidden area?”

As she pondered, she heard noises coming from the territory of the giant blue apes. Her suspicions grew, and gathering her courage, she entered. She followed the sounds, getting closer to the source.

Roaaaar

A loud growl erupted behind her, and she started running faster, glancing back to see a giant blue ape chasing her.

Roar

Ahhh

Anmar ran with all her might, seeing a light ahead marking the forest’s edge. As she reached an open space, she couldn’t believe her eyes—there was a boy she knew well, just twelve years old, fighting a large number of giant blue apes with ease.

Roar

The ape chasing her swung its hand towards her head, and in terror, she fell to the ground. Anmar closed her eyes, bracing for impact, but when she opened them moments later, she saw the ape frozen in mid-air.

Turning, she saw an old man standing with his hand on his chin. He looked at Basil and called out, “Come over here, Basil. It seems you have a guest.”

By then, Basil had already defeated many of the apes, and the remaining ones were immobilized by his master’s command. When Basil arrived and saw who the “guest” was, he was shocked to find Anmar.

“Idiot!” Basil shouted in anger, “You’ve been tailing me day and night for two weeks, but I didn’t think you’d be stupid enough to enter the forbidden area.”

Anmar stayed silent, but tears began to well up. The master gently knocked Basil on the head and said, “I taught you how to fight, but it seems I’ll need to teach you how to treat women, too.”

Anmar began crying and, in between sobs, said, “I… I know… Grandpa… I know… he’s hopeless.” She buried her face in the master’s embrace.

“Master, I’m not bad with women; it’s just her that I don’t get along with,” Basil tried to explain, but it was too late. That little trickster was already playing her role well, and Basil couldn’t find anything else to say.

The master spoke to Anmar after she calmed down. “Little one, though Basil’s approach wasn’t great, he was right about the dangers of the forbidden area. You were just lucky this time.”

Anmar nodded obediently, “Yes, Grandpa, I’m sorry.”

Basil turned, heading toward the exit of the forbidden area, and Anmar followed. She stopped him, asking, “Basil, so you’ve been training here all this time with Grandpa?”

Basil looked to his master, who nodded, granting him permission, and he replied, “Yes, that’s right. Master told me not to tell anyone about him, so I told my mom I was training with a friend.”

Anmar nodded in understanding, bowed slightly to the master, and said, “Ah, I see. I’m honored to meet you, Master.” Then she looked back at Basil, “So, how far have you come in learning magic?”