Inside a circular room, an old man sits on a chair nearby a window staring at the scenery outside with a book on his lap. It was Thormiel.
“Lord Thormiel please lend us your strength!”
“Lord Thormiel please save my daughter!”
“Lord Thormiel my kingdom is under attack by a demon lord!”
“Lord Thormiel! Lord Thormiel! Lord Thormiel! … … …”
“Silence! Why do you all rely on me on such insignificant matter!? For what reason do you think that I release my knowledge to the public!? It’s for all of you to stop relying on me!” Thormiel shouted and turned towards where all of the voice is coming, but what he saw is darkness and shadows who wears smirking masks.
“Hahaha! What are you talking about? You’re the Great Magician Thormiel right? You’re the most powerful being living in this world. Then you must lend your strength to the weak.” Said by the millions of shadow in unison.
“Lend my power to the weak? Why should I do that?” Thormiel asked with uninterested look.
“Because you’re strong, you’re the Great Magician Thormiel—“
“That prison like title is something that the people forced on me, so why should I help them? This is getting stupid I shall eliminate all of you.”
“Hahaha! Can you do it with a body like that!?”
“What in the world are you saying!?” Thormiel shouted and tried to stand but can’t move his body. He looked downward at his hands and saw it rapidly aging and turning into ash before he could even speak his body turned into dust.
“Waa!” Theo shouted in his wake in the middle of the night covered in sweat and feeling cold while breathing deeply.
“This has been the 3rd time I had a dream of the old me turning into dust this month. Is this some kind of premonition? Sigh.” Theo said, putting his head back on the pillow.
“What’s wrong Theo!?” Gilbert shouted as he entered Theo’s room.
“It’s nothing father I just had a bad dream.” Theo calmly spoke.
“This is the 3rd time this month. Ever since your 10th Birthday 3 months ago you started having these nightmares.” Gilbert said worriedly and sat beside Theo on the bed. “Does the entrance exam in the Knight’s Academy worries you too much?” Gilbert said with a worried face that annoyed Theo.
“What? Yeah exam yes, I guess.” Theo said with a smile holding back a punch on his father who seems making fun of him.
“Don’t worry about it too much, your older brother wasn’t that talented in sword or magic but he still manage to pass the exam, it should be easy for you.” Gilbert said with smile and leaved Theo’s room.
“I don’t even want to go there, I’m content just living here in the mountains far from the cities. Sigh.” Theo said. But I cannot put dirt on my parent’s name that is something I decided ever since I was reborn in this world. Theo thought as he return to sleep.
* * *
The sun is high up in the cloudy sky and smoke is rising from a small blacksmith workshop that is located nearby Theo’s house.
“Theo more fire!” Gilbert shouted as he watch the metal he’s going to forge while Theo works the furnace blower.
“Yes father!” Theo replied as he pulled and push faster.
“Do your best Theo, this sword I’m going to make for you will be one of my best creation.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
“It’s time. Theo grab the hammer!”
Thun Thun Thun. The sound the metal made as Theo hit it with a hammer. He strengthened himself with Qi and with every hit he made the anvil where the metal is place digs into the ground little by little.
Asha watched her husband and son in the distance and noticed Lorgen and Nelma.
“Ara Lorgen, Nelma what brings you here?” Asha said with a gentle smile.
“Not much I just came to tell that there’s a trader wanting to buy all the swords.” Lorgen said and handed over a paper to Asha with the written amount the trader is willing to pay.
“10 silver coin per piece!?” Asha shouted in surprise, this was understandable in this world a family of four would only require an amount of 5 gold coin to have 3 meals a day for 30 days.
“Yeah, lately the quality of the swords Gilbert made have become high and many traders has been interested in it.”
“Ara really? I don’t see much difference. He did say something about a magician that scolded and given him a book in the middle of night about a month ago before he begun making swords nonstop.”
“Haha. That is to be expected since only an experienced eye can discern the quality of the swords but to think the reason to the sudden rise in quality of his works is the mysterious magician, Gilbert is really lucky.”
“Ara is that so?”
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“Yeah, this is the second time the mysterious magician helped him.”
“Ara-Ara so Lorgen? Where’s is the earning of the shop?” Asha said cheerfully and smiled but her eyes was scary.
“Y-Yeah, I forgot to hand it over sorry.” Lorgen said and hurriedly handed over a pouch filled with coins
“Ara thank you Lorgen.” Asha said and begin counting the coins.
“A-Asha, are you still mad about the thing Gilbert did on Theo’s Birthday?”
“Ara what are you talking about? Hmm ah, that time you all got drunk and my husband used all the money from the shop to buy more alcohol? I’m not mad about it anymore since my husband repented and pledge that he will hand over all the money to me from now on, fufufu.” Asha said but her eyes and smile was sinister.
“I-I see, so about tomorrow I’ve already prepared a carriage for Nelma and Theo to take them in Siroth.”
“They really grow so fast, I want Theo to be a child a little longer.” Asha said with a solemn look. Lorgen silently agreed as he looked at Nelma who’s watching Theo and Gilbert from the front door.
“Alright I can take it from here, you can rest now Theo.” Gilbert said while Theo wipe away the sweat on his forehead.
“Is it over? Can I come in now?” Nelma said as she watch from the entrance of the smithy.
“En, it’s fine now.” Theo replied with a gentle smile.
“So, Theo can we do it again? I know I can do it correctly this time!”
“No, you better rest today we’re going to travel extremely far tomorrow.”
“Just a little—“ Nelma cutely said but Theo gave her an intimidating look.
“Nelma don’t you remember that you froze a small area of the forest and even froze one of the Guardian Golem?” Theo whispered. I can’t believe this kid. He thought.
* * *
A few days ago somewhere in the forest of Tironde
“Nelma since you finished the basic training for increasing your mana capacity and controlling your magic you will now start to learn how to use Ice Element Magic and remember to keep it a secret from anyone alright?” Theo said and saw Nelma standing in salute cheerfully.
“Hurry up Theo! I been waiting for this for so long!” Nelma said with glistening eyes.
“En, it’s good that you’re enthusiastic about magic but you need to do it carefully or else you might endanger your life.”
“E…nthu…sias…tic?” Nelma tilted her head.
“Just be careful when practicing magic.”
“I got it! But Theo is really amazing even though you can’t use magic you know a lot about it you’re like a teacher!”
“En, thanks anyway in order to use Ice Magic you need to focus your mind and imagine a cold, thick and hard pointy stuff, since your mana has a great affinity on ice element it shouldn’t be too hard to do…”
“Like this?” Nelma said and the air begins to cool down the tip of her orange colored hair have turned white. From her hand a lump of crude ice can be seen floating.
“En, to activate ice magic this easily you really did trained your magic control, if not your hand might have been frozen, now this is the hard part. Nelma turn that crude lump of ice into a pointy rod and use it to pierce that tree.”
“Alright!” Nelma cheerfully said but learned the hardship of shaping magic, after a grueling hour Nelma shouted. “Y-Yes! It’s pointy now!”
“En, you know learned just how hard it is to create magic be proud of yourself.” Theo said looking at Nelma who’s sweating even in a cold surrounding. “Now release whatever that thing you created and pierce that tree.”
Nelma pointed her hands towards the tree and released the pointy lump of ice from her hands but it only flown for about 3 meters. “W-Why Doesn’t it shot like my water magic!?”
“Elemental magic are not the same to one another Nelma, just because you can control one of them doesn’t mean you can do the same to another. Do you best, ice magic is not on the basic element circle, it will be hard to control but at the same time it’s more powerful.”
Hearing the encouraging words of Theo, Nelma focused her mind and continuously tried to pierce the tree with her ice magic, hours have passed and Nelma’s cheerful expression had turned painful as she breathes deeply.
“I didn’t expect you to successfully do it in your first time, anyway let’s go back Nelma, you’re already on your limit.”
“Just a little bit more I know I can do it.”
“Nelma your face has turned pale, if you still continue you might pass out.”
“Just one more. Theo please.” Nelma said in seriousness, her natural cheerful expression is nowhere to be seen.
“Alright just one more after that we’ll return to the village—“ Theo said and was interrupted by the heavy stomp coming closer to their location.
“W-What’s going on? Where’s that footsteps coming from?” Nelma asked in fear.
“Its fine Nelma it’s coming from the Guardian Golem they keep talking about.”
But Nelma was too afraid to hear Theo’s words because of her mental fatigue she couldn't think clearly, Nelma focused her senses and could only hear the footsteps getting closer and closer. Her pupil dilate when she saw the silhouette of the Metal Golem Knight in the distance.
“N-No! Monster!” Nelma shouted in panic that caused her ice magic to run wild, her mana was squeezed dry by her ice magic that froze the surrounding area and even froze the Metal Golem Knight but Theo casually blocked it with his own mana.
“Sigh. You’re too reckless but it’s my fault too, anyway let’s go home stupid disciple.” Theo said with a gentle smile and carried the sweat covered Nelma back to the village.
* * *
Present
“Theo I’ve been thinking can’t I just chant to use that magic you’re teaching me?”
“Nelma I know it’s tempting to use the easy way but what I’m teaching you has no chant and if you rely on chanting you’re as good as a useless inept worthless magician.” Theo said with pity.
“I see, in that case I’ll do my best and practice more!”
“Oi, Nelma let’s go back.” Lorgen said.
“Coming! See you tomorrow Theo.” Nelma said with a cheerful smile and leaved.
“Theo, I’m sure Nelma will grow into a beautiful woman in the future so if I’m you I would make her mine now.” Gilbert said after watching the kids talk.
“En, I’m sure she will after all she lost all that extra fat.” Theo said that surprised Gilbert.
“I-I see kids do grow quickly these days.”
Tomorrow came. It was dawn and a red colored carriage is waiting for its passengers to arrive in front of the Farheath Village, the first passenger to arrive was Nelma wearing a well-made casual brown clothing accompanied by her father Lorgen who’s carrying her luggage.
“Nelma be careful alright.” Lorgen said with a worried expression.
“It’s going to be fine papa Theo is with me along the way.” Nelma said with a cheerful voice.
“Theo, right if Theo is with you everything will be all right.”
“Hehe, even if monsters appear Theo will easily defeat it.”
“Nelma, do you love Theo?”
“Of course! Theo is my master after all!”
“M-Master?”
Moments later the second passenger arrived along with his father and mother, for the first time Theo didn’t wear his casual clothes and is wearing a well-made dark blue colored suit with a sword hanging on his left side.
“Good morning Lorgen!” Gilbert shouted carrying Theo’s luggage.
“Good morning Chief.”
“Hahaha, Theo is wearing a suit!” Nelma said from inside the carriage sticking her head out the window.
“What’s wrong with? It suits me doesn’t it?” Theo asked. Nelma tried to make fun of him but Theo’s intimidating stare made her silent.
Theo gets on the carriage and sat, facing Nelma.
“Be careful on your way the two of you.” Asha said.
“Yes Mother, I will send a letter when we reach Siroth.” Theo said.
With a few more words of goodbyes the coachman begin to drive the carriage, and after a few minutes when village cannot be seen anymore. Nelma who stick out her head out the window sat down properly and begun to cry.
Seeing her cry Theo turned his head to look at the outside greenery and thought. This is going to be a terrible road trip.