As Micah pulled away from Elysha and their embrace ended, the little girl rubbed her eyelids and said, “Thank you for hugging me, Micah.”

He shook his head. “Oh, you don’t have to say it again,” he replied, chuckling humbly. “It was nothing special. I just did what I can to help!”

“Still, thank you.”

Micah stepped a few meters away and transformed back into his smaller form. Elysha watched as his majestic form changed into that of a small fluffy ball.

“Woah, now this way can help me conserve my energy better,” he said, then looked up, “What? Caught mesmerized by my transformation?”

With a blink of her eyes, she replied, “You looked cuter and cuddlier this way.”

“That’s not true!” he pouted with furrowed brows. “Micah is NOT cute! Micah is cool, smart, handsome and very cuddly!”

Then, looking back at the stone platform, he remarked, “In any case, I must say that even though you were not able to pass the trial, you committed yourself to absorbing new knowledge and showed your will and determination to persevere to a certain point.”

“I never said I couldn’t passed it.”

Micah turned his head toward her. “Huh?”

Elysha’s gaze hardened as she remembered seeing a shining ball of light hovering over Elder Merakia’s hand. “I will keep going until I create a white orb.”

“Are you a masochist?” he blurted out in bewilderment. “Weren’t you in tears from the pain? Have you lost your mind?”

“No, it’s not that!” she shouted. “It’s not because of that.” Then she looked down at her opened hands. “When I think of not being able to reach my goals—that I’m failing at what I want to do—it hurts me more than any headache I’ve ever had.”

Then her hands trembled, and so did her voice. “I don’t... I don’t want this to happen again. So please let me try one more time.”

He sighed, his small, fluffy form slumping slightly as his tail flicked. “Elysha, I get it,” he said. “You’re determined, and I admire that—I really do. But pushing yourself to the point where you end up crying and clutching your head in pain? That’s not determination, that’s just stubbornness.”

Elysha frowned, “Micah…”

She locked eyes with him, wondering as to how she could convince him.

“Please... believe in me,” she begged earnestly. “One day, when I become a mage, I promise I will use my magic to make the most yummy food you could ever eat.”

His ears and tail perked up, his eyes sparkled with joy, and a bright smile spread across his face. “Really?!”

“Yes, and Elder Mera and I are also making pastries when I get back,” she nodded her head. “You can come and have some if you let me focus more on my theonum core.”

“Okay!!!” he replied, his tail wagging as he leapt into the air, flying in circles and giggling. “Micah trusts you!”

~ ❈❇❈ ~

Elysha settled back onto the cold stone pedestal, preparing herself for her last attempt.

Micah, having stopped his joyful spinning, turned to see her close her eyes and sink back into her headspace. The image of the girl in pain flashed through his mind and he began to think of possible solutions.

‘Ugh, is there anything I can do to help her through this ordeal?’ he thought as he looked up at the sky, the cloud dissipating to reveal the sun shining in the blue background. ‘I can’t stay any longer in these woods, or we’ll be returning late past noon!’

He looked back at the girl, concentrating again on her subconscious, then stared at the keyhole stone resting against her chest. Suddenly, a glimmer of an idea formed in his mind like a light switch.

“Elysha!” he shouted, breaking her concentration. “Micah can help you create that white orb!”

Her eyes snapped open, and they flickered as she turned to look at him. “Huh? How? she asked, surprised and confused. “What do you mean by helping me create the white orb?”

He flew over, landed on her dress and asked, “Remember when Micah stayed in your keyhole? I think this stone can be quite useful in easing the pain in your head.”

“Ease my pain?”

“That’s right, even though Micah is not sure if this idea of mine would work, but it is at least worth a try!”

Elysha’s eyes continued to stare at him until she reached for her necklace and looked at it. It was just a gray stone in the shape of a keyhole that had been in her hand when she first woke up in the forest. She still didn’t know what connection she had with the mysterious object, but to help her in this situation...

“Do you really mean that?” she asked softly. “Can you really help me?”

“Of course!” Micah affirmed without hesitation. “Take the necklace off your neck and hold it on one of your hands.”

“Okay,” she said, removing the necklace and holding it with her left hand. “Like this?”

“Like that, yes,” he nodded, placed his paw on top of the keyhole stone and instructed, “All right then, now take a deep breath, close your eyes and imagine something nice.”

“Something nice?”

“Such as a leisurely walk in the woods with Elder Merakia, or any memory that brings you joy and happiness.”

“Happy memories,” Elysha murmured, taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, ready to let the imagination take over.

“...”

In her mind’s eye, she saw an image of Elder Merakia strolling through a sunlit forest. She saw herself walking with her, hand in hand, as they continued through that scenery. Then she pictured herself being wrapped in her guardian’s comforting hug, and then being read bedtime stories under a warm blanket.

Micah noticed a smile on Elysha’s face as she immersed herself in her imaginative endeavor. He said, “This is going well. Now regulate the spiritual energy within you and connect these visual images to your theonum core.”

Following his words, Elysha focused her concentration on regulating her theonum, making a connection between the memories. Slowly but surely, they merged together, blending into a white, blurry entity—her soul identity.

Micah took notice as he felt the regulation through the touch of Elysha’s hand. ‘She’s doing it! Please let this go well,’ he spoke in his thoughts. “All right, now merge with your soul identity to connect with your theonum core, then use your will to create the white orb.”

Elysha nodded, delving deeper into the process. Within her headspace, she looked at the white blurry figure.

‘My soul identity…’

She took a step forward and reached out to touch it. As the tips of her fingers touched the entity, it suddenly exploded, and a sharp pain reverberated through her head, shattering the harmony of her concentration.

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“Eee-k—!” Elysha winced as the sharp pain lanced through her head, and she pressed her right hand to her temple. “Ouch, it hurts again!”

Micah’s ears perked, taking note of the pain and quickly said, “Elysha! You’re almost had it just now!”

She frowned and murmured, “You said you were going to help me ease my pain…”

“I am, since now that I can see your energy regulation, Micah is going to try to use this keyhole as a device that can block the pain.”

“You can…?”

“I can!” he said aloud, knitting his brows together and using his own theonum to create a depository within the object. Then, he used his other paw on her skin and stated, “Elysha! Try again this time!”

She nodded, a look of perseverance on her face. She pressed on despite the lingering pain, finding strength in the waves of cherished memories that pushed her forward.

In her mind, she remembered wanting to explore the possibilities of theonum magic, and to become a mage so that Elder Merakia would be proud of her. She remembered crying on the ground and listening to the story of the little girl who wanted to fly and touch the stars. She remembered wanting to understand who she was and who she wanted to be.

‘I…’

She remembered seeing the view of the world outside of her window, and eating breakfast with Elder Mera. She remembered waving goodbye to her as she walked into the forest, and waking up in the same forest for the first time. She remembered the question her guardian had asked her.

“What is your name?”

The girl could feel the pain leaving her, replaced by a sensation of calm.

‘... I am Elysha.’

Then, in her mind, she opened her eyes to see a giant keyhole-shaped structure in front of her; the black void inside was darker than the mental space around her. Not only that, but her feet were soaked in a shallow body of water.

Elysha’s brows furrowed and her lips tightened into a flat line. She turned her eyes to the white, blurry figure standing nearby, as if it could vanish at any moment. She kicked her feet across the shallow pool toward the creature, leaving the keyhole in the darkness.

Approaching the bright entity, Elysha paused before the figure, then hesitantly raised her hand. She reached out and her fingertips touched the white being of light.

“—!”

Her eyes widened as she saw moving images of memories inside the entity—memories that belonged to her, from when she had first awakened in the forest to her comfortable embrace with Micah.

Elysha’s eyes warmed, reflecting the light of the colorful scenes as she wrapped the white being with her arms. Her lips opened and she spoke, “You are my collective memories,” she said. “You are me; you are who I am. My soul identity.”

She could feel the happy, positive sensations touching her nerves. Elysha closed her eyes and said wistfully, “A shiny orb… I want to see a shiny, bright orb from the darkness…”

Meanwhile, Micah watched as Elysha’s breaths returned to a steady rhythm, the pulsating ache in her head gradually subsided, and the tension in her muscles melted away.

‘Ah, it worked; my idea somehow worked!’ he exhaled in relief, his tail drooping to relax. The next thing he noticed was something manifesting before his eyes.

A minute later, Elysha took a deep, steadying breath and slowly opened her eyes. Hovering just above her right palm was a small orb of light that she had materialized.

The orb glowed with pure white radiance, emanating an iridescent ring that surrounded it. Its brilliance mesmerized her as it swayed from side to side, as if dancing with an ethereal grace.

Tears welled up in Elysha’s eyes as she gazed at the translucent orb, her irises reflecting the shimmer of the orb itself. “I… I did it…” she murmured.

“Congrats, Elysha!” Micah cheered, his excitement overflowing as his tail wagged fervently. “You did it! Elder Merakia would be proud of—”

Before he could finish his sentence, the white orb suddenly dissolved, vanishing into thin air, leaving nothing but the bare palm of Elysha’s hand.

Her smile wavered. “Oh…”

“Uh, it’s all right!” Micah hastily reassured her. “Come on, it’s the very first time you’ve ever conjured magic! This is just the beginning of becoming a mage. You’ll get there in time! You’ve done well!”

Elysha stared at her empty hand for what seemed like an eternity, processing the fleeting nature of her accomplishment.

‘Micah’s right,’ she thought. ‘Even though I only saw it for a short time, I was able to concentrate and see my soul identity.’

Then, a realization hit her. ‘If I were able to create a white orb then…’

The thought of succeeding in connecting with her theonum core curled her lips into a smile. Her cheeks puffed up and she couldn’t help but feel her blood rushing all over her body with happiness. She slid herself off the pedestal and moved around, stretching her limbs.

“Aww, look at how happy you are,” Micah grinned.

She turned to him and said, “Thank you, Micah. You helped me so much.”

“Ehehe, you’re welcome!” he chortled, playfully covering his embarrassed face with his thick tail.

Soon after, her curiosity sparked, and Elysha asked him, “Oh wait! Does this mean I passed the Trial of Iröstos?”

Micah’s expression shifted, and he hesitated for a moment before saying, “Oh, um, Micah should tell you the truth.”

“The truth?”

“Yeah… the trial, that is—uh—it was never really a real one to begin with,” he admitted, a nervous laugh escaping him.

Elysha’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Wait, so you’re telling me that everything I’ve been through was all a fake?!” she exclaimed, completely shocked.

“Micah was really surprised that it took you this long to realize that the trial was not even real.”

Then he puffed out his chest and wagged his tail, stroking his smug grin. “It proves that Micah did a really good job of staging everything, ehehe.”

Elysha frowned, clenched her hands, and then used them to grab the gray-furred Zhivopian when he wasn’t looking at her, lifting him up.

“Wa-ah—!”

Caught off guard, he flailed his body in the air, trying in vain to free himself, “Let me go! Like I said before, Micah is not a stuffed animal!”

“No.”

“No?!”

“You’ve lied to me, therefore, you are now my stuffed animal.”

“NOOOOOOOOO—!!!” he screamed, still trying to flail his limbs to free himself. He continued to do so until Elysha let go, sending him spinning a few meters into the sky.

Her frown deepened. “You should have been honest with me from the beginning.”

“Haha... I apologize for not being completely honest and forthright,” Micah replied calmly, dizzy and floating in all directions.

“... I really thought that I was doing something meaningful for myself,” Elysha muttered, looking down and away from him.

He shook his head to focus and sighed, “Fine, I’ll tell you the truth.” Then he flew down closer to her and continued by explaining, “Only the Nine Deities of the Asnoiji have the authority to conduct a true trial.”

“Huh? The Nine Deities?”

“Nine of them, that’s right. For us in the Forest of Iröstos, our guardian and deity is currently in a dormant or inactive state, and I have taken the liberty of drawing inspiration and creating a trial for you.”

“I see…” Elysha then asked, “Why did you make a trial for me?”

“Because that crazy old witch—” Micah suddenly coughed a few times before he continued, “because I sensed that you were new to the forest, as I had never seen you before. Everyone in this forest has normally gone through the deity’s trial at least once in their lives, usually during their childhood.”

“Childhood? I didn’t know about this before…”

“Mm-hm! Not only that, but your guardian told me all about you and asked me to protect you from any possible dangers.”

He also added, “We, the Asnoiji’s people, can sense the theonum of our kind, which means that we can detect each other’s spiritual energies from various distances. That’s how Micah was able to find you.”

“Find me?”

“That’s right, except that the theonum link was very weak. So weak that it was really hard for me to maintain the connection and even find it in the first place.”

Elysha’s eyes widened in surprise, then she pressed her hand to her chest and looked down at the ground. “Was my core really that bad?”

“Your core wasn’t weak in a bad way, it’s more like… it needed to be strengthened and nurtured,” he said.

“Hm…” she took a moment to process Micah’s words, her expression calm yet thoughtful. Finally, she let out a sigh. “Well, I understand now. I know that I needed more time for my core to grow and let me use magic, I hope…”

“Oh, definitely! It’s not surprising, considering you’re still learning just about everything.”

As the initial excitement wore off, Elysha yawned, her body feeling heavier by the second. “I’m so tired I can hardy move; I want to go home.”

Micah landed on the ground in front of her, swaying his tail. “That’s normal after such an intense focus,” he said reassuringly. “It takes time for your energy to recharge. You pushed yourself really hard today, Elysha.”

Her lips curved into a small smile. “Thanks, Micah. I wouldn’t have made it this far without you.”

“Of course! Some things can’t be done without me,” he proudly puffed out his chest as an idea struck him. “Oh, but you know, there’s someone else who would like to hear about your achievement.”

“Who?”

“Your guardian, Elder Merakia,” he replied. “Why not share what you accomplished today with her?”

A spark lit up Elysha’s eyes at the mention of her name. “You’re right, I should show Elder Mera! She’ll be proud of me.”

Micah beamed, his tail wagging at her reaction. “That she will!”