"Is that... me?"

I was utterly shocked. When I looked in the mirror I saw a young man that looked quite tall, but very weak and pale. I had long pointy ears and a chiseled chin. "Fang, how do you feel?"

"I feel fine. I feel... stronger, more mature. my voice got a lot deeper too."

I was white as a corpse but it seemed that my skin tanned with every passing moment. my yellow melting eyes had the light of a thousand suns illuminating a galaxy. I was simply stunned by my new appearance but the spell that Ason cast shocked me to a greater extent." That was so cool! can you teach me how to do it?"

"no time for that now." He said as he glanced at a nearby bush. "Is there something in bushes?" I asked warily of his reaction. he looks nervous. "Nothing to be worried about" he forced half a smile, but he still looks nervous...

"well, what now?"

"You should learn how to survive, how to hunt, and how to grow your food. you need to become stronger. After you become stronger, you can pursue the arcane arts."

"What's the endgame?"

"I think not dying should be enough for you, you ungrateful boy!" The skies darkened! "I-I appreciate it, plenty sir!" The truth is I am sweating so much that my shirt is soaked. Damn, he's so scary!

"Good. now, let's continue. I have more urgent matters." Ason drew a magic circle with 12 symbols. "the magic in the universe is based on the natures of the twelve gods.

I am the god of lightning and the other 11 gods possess different natures. The gods allow their powers to be learned by the mortals of the universe." Should I ask why? Yeah, what's the harm anyway?

"Why do you allow it to be learned then?"

"It is none of your concern." He seems upset. Have I said something I shouldn't have?! come on, you said something about choosing me because I'm curious...

this guy is really annoying, hmph!

"moving on, it is not easy to learn magic. your prowess depends on two factors: Your understanding of your nature and the amount of mana you can circulate in your body. Although in theory, you can get infinitely stronger as you are only limited by your lifespan. although, it is less of a problem for you as you are an elf after all.

"A what?"

"An elf. you have those in books on earth, don't you?" I'm seriously clueless... never seen any in books.

"Sigh... The average elf can live to 160, far greater than most humans. they are much more connected to the nature gods, unlike the other races. I have a liking to elves, and since we're on elven territory it should help you blend in. although, to be honest, I think it might be a bit late to blend in now."

"Why's that?"

"I guess I should have mentioned that you are not going to be very popular."

"And again, why's that?"

"you are a champion. Champions are a threat to every kingdom as they have very unique personalities that allow them to reach new heights in their fields of study. your magic will soon be unlocked and once you'll unlock it, your power will rise tremendously."

"Other people can't become strong like champions?" I am not Powerful in any way possible...

"everyone can become powered, but the chosen ones, the champions, are known to be picked by the gods themselves. Why would a god need a weak champion?"

"Ohhhh... umm, I'm sorry but I am not strong and I don't think I'll be strong soon even if I'll train."

"Then your new life is going to be taken. again."

Taken... again...

Those words are just sinking in.

I-I... I can't die again. I want to know more!

"What is my next step?" my brows furrowed and his eyes burned with determination.

"Learning to defend yourself. It means learning magic."

"I'm in for that, but how?"

"Well, first: you have one power at birth and you can pass certain tests given by the gods to gain access to their powers. anyone who wants can take the test but you can and very likely will die in the test. If you pass, you can access this god's power and bend his nature to your own will."

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I listened to every word Ason said.

I am genuinely curious about the concept of learning more than one element. Who knows, maybe combinations will open once I understand how it works. but still, I wonder why he allows mortals to learn magic in the first place?

"how do I know which power I possess?" I hope he won't dismiss my question just like always.

"Good question. do as I say and concentrate. it's important."

I hope I won't mess up...

"You won't." He could read my mind all this time!?

"hold your palms against each other." "like this?"

I held my hands joined together, open-palmed and straight-fingered.

"yes. now try to feel the flow of mana in your body. once you feel it direct it to your palms.

The feeling you feel right now is the mana being gathered." I tried my best but nothing happened. after a few minutes, a few drops of sweat started to roll down my forehead, and suddenly, the air around my hands froze.

"Fang, it seems you are a frost magician. Cong-." just before Ason finished his sentence, I saw something else around my palms. I saw a small purple hue covering my palms.

"That bastard... Why him?" Ason had a displeased look. "You are a rare kid. ever rarer than I thought... You were blessed by two gods. You were born with two powers. If it was just my blessing and jin's blessing It would have been just fine but this lowly god, Osborne? unacceptable!" Am I going to die this soon? I just got my life again.

"Don't worry, It's common for a champion to have more than one blessing. maybe it's good that Osborne has blessed you, He must have seen your past life and judged you as worthy of being a death mage and in time... a necromancer." "Necromancer!?"

I always had a fascination with fantasy books about dead armies devouring towns. I used to steal my father's books from his study room just to read them. the beating that came after that was less fun...

"It will take you some time to master a spell, let alone a resurrection spell. Enough of that, we need to seal one of your powers."

"Why?" I thought it was a good thing?

"if we won't, you might destroy your mana system. When that happens, you will become a demon controlled by your bursting mana and at a certain point, you'll run out of mana. you absorb mana from us, the gods, although you are restricted by your body."

"What happens if you run out of mana?"

Ason pointed at a certain object on the ground, laying on the ground under a tree. Around that object are fallen trees. When I looked carefully, I noticed that it's not just an object.

it was a boar that looked like it was emptied from inside. It didn't smell nor made a sound. it was empty. the definition of lifeless.

"Most dual elemental animals don't know how to seal one of their powers so they can't survive more than a few days. That is what happens when mana is no longer circulating in your body."

"Which one should I seal in your opinion?"

"As much as I'd prefer that you'll learn jin's power, frost, you need minions to grow accomplished.

Of course, it is your decision after all."

"Why necromancer then?"

"I think you'll be able to be to learn shadow spells pretty quickly which will help you to build yourself a small squad. but to be honest, surviving is on a much higher priority right now as you're very far from being a mage.

"I see. listen, it is going way too fast for me to understand but I promise to do my best.

I'm not going to let anyone decide for me again."

"Don't be greedy. there is a thin line between driven and greedy."

"Yes my lord. You have given me so much and I wasted your time and for that, I ask for your forgiveness."

I did ask a lot of questions, didn't I?

"It is most welcome but I wish I had the time to answer you. now, is there anything more or we can start sealing your other nature?"

"We should probably get started, my lord."

"Yes, we should."

meanwhile, half a kilometer from Fang and Ason were standing a pair of elves, scouting the scene as one of the elves whispered to the other.

"We must report it to hoshimura."

"What do we tell him?"

"Call the bear hunters."