(Kyla’s POV)
In the weeks after my debut, I saw Pyro less and less. He was kind when we spoke, but never like before. My training with Valencia progressed quickly. Once I could tolerate my enhanced senses, she taught me how to make use of them, or filter out their inputs if I didn’t need them.
Along with enhanced senses, I had to learn the fundamentals of magic all over again. The existence of a spirit world was a well kept secret from the general population. Spirits were virtually impossible to kill and on occasion they appeared on the physical plane. That only happened far underground where few would venture, so it wasn’t difficult to keep the secret, but to avoid panic, and because no one really needed to know, Pyro decided to eliminate all references to spirits.
That was why he came up with the term “mana” to describe the energy leaking from their realm. Spirit energy fuels all magic, but the people know it as mana. This also explained the overload phenomenon. The human body is capable of manipulating the energy, but it lacks certain organs and channels that would facilitate this process without causing harm.
Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.
That was the difference between me and a human. The ritual I underwent gave me a core that filters and purifies the energy, and channels through which to direct it efficiently. Because of that I was able to improve my sun magic tremendously, but it didn’t come without a cost.
Most of the other hero candidates were the same, but the heroes were on another level. I still lacked understanding of their power, but what I did know is they had somehow fused with spirits and become something like a living spirit relic.
There was only one being similar to the heroes, they were called spirit reapers and they didn’t like the heroes much at all. I was currently tasked with tracking one of them. His name was Virgil and was one of the men responsible for my brother's death.
Out of curiosity, and a desire to learn about the past I left behind, I asked to work under Irina, managing the SAFE enforcer agency. A number of recent disappearances and mysterious deaths had left the organization without a leader. Irina stepped in to fill that void. I didn’t know her well, but aside from Pyro, she was the only hero that was actually pleasant to be around. I looked up to her and was grateful for an opportunity to work with her.