“W-why not?!” Adrian asked in disbelief.

“You’re far too young and stupid,” Samuel said, a sly grin on his face. “Besides, it’s an important responsibility. I see no reason as to why I should vouch for you.”

“It’s because…because-”

“Kid,” Samuel began, interrupting Adrian. “If you can’t even string your words properly, then you really have no idea as to what you actually want.”

…That’s not true,” Adrian responded, shaking his head defiantly.

“Oh come now,” Samuel chuckled lightly. “All you know is only a bit of magic. Do you honestly think that’s enough to make you worthy of becoming a mage? And besides, look at this place.” Samuel gazed upon the wonderful farm. “Your parents have worked real hard to get this farm up and going, and I sure as hell can bet they would want you to continue their lineage.” Samuel then looked Adrien square in the eye before saying, “Do you really want to throw all of that away, shattering your parent’s dreams, all for the hope of becoming something that I’m pretty sure would never happen?”

“You’re wrong!” Adrian objectified, suddenly shouting at the traveler. “I do have what it takes to become a mage!”

“Oh ho, and shouting is your only way of convincing me, huh?”

“N-No that’s not it!”

“Then tell it to me properly. What is it that you want?” Samuel firmly and slowly asked Adrian.

“I…I…” Adrian suddenly turned quiet, finally giving into Samuel’s words while trying to properly get his thoughts together.

What was it that Adrian wanted to get out of becoming a mage? What were his true desires? His whole life, Adrian had been living a peaceful and carefree life on the farm that his family has owned for generations. He was supposed to become the heir to this farm and continue on with the lineage. That was what he was destined to be, and yet…

“I want become a mage because…” he began, very slowly and carefully. “Because I want to take my life into my own hands.” Adrian then looked Samuel firm in the eye, his gaze unwavering. “This world is much bigger than just this farm. There are so many more things to do than simply taking care of livestock and tending to the crops. Yes, I am aware that this is something that my parents would want me to continue, but-” Adrian then sharply inhaled. “I don’t desire it. I desire to become a mage.”

“Hmmm.” Samuel crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. “And you are very sure that this is what you truly want?”

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Adrian confidently nodded. “More than anything else.”

“I see,” Samuel said, closing his eyes. “Then I hope you’re ready.”

“Ready for what?”

“Flame wave,” Samuel suddenly chanted, casting a scorching wall of blazing orange towards Adrian.

Upon witnessing this assault, Adrian yelped and rolled to his right to avoid the oncoming attack.

Completely dumbfounded, Adrian shouted, “What are you doing?!”

“You said it yourself, Adrian,” Samuel affirmed as a water serpent began to take form around his body. “You want to explore the world, so allow me to show you what this world actually looks like. Water snake!”

Adrian’s heart rapidly pounded against his chest as the snake from Samuel’s torso slithered in Adrian’s direction at an alarming rate. Running forward and stumbling to the ground, the serpent barely missed him by an earshot.

“Come now, you can do better than that!” Samuel taunted. “Tornado!”

A strong gust of wind suddenly picked up and began to tower over Adrian. He grew fearful at this sudden development. His fight or flight responses were screaming for him to run away, and that’s exactly what he wanted to do.

However, what would running do for Adrian? If he ran now, wouldn’t that mean that he was accepting defeat? That he was not ready to face the harsh realities of this world? If that were the case, then he would be better off spending the rest of his days on the farm. But that was not what he desired. He wanted to take destiny into his own hands. No, he wouldn’t back down now.

As his fear dissipated, an ever-growing flame began to burst forth within him. Standing firm and facing the tornado head on, Adrian devised a plan. He would use this tornado to his advantage and get a higher ground over Samuel. When the time came, he would then make his very own assault.

Fully resolved, Adrian dashed towards the tornado and allowed himself to get sucked into the vortex. As he ascended higher towards the sky, he waited for his moment to strike. He remained diligent, and once the time came, he twisted himself free from the tornado’s grasp and began to descend towards the earth.

Panic began to set in, but he would not allow for this moment go to waste. With the wind blowing against his face, Adrian screamed, “FIRE BALL!” The largest ball of flames that he had ever composed grew at the palm of his hands. His focus was set on Samuel. Adrian deeply inhaled, closed his eyes, and once he knew he was truly ready, he sent the projectile right at Samuel.

Adrian felt a sense of satisfaction upon releasing the spell. He did what he had sought out to do successfully. However, that euphoric feeling soon went away as Adrian then immediately realized that he was still plummeting towards the earth at an extremely fast velocity. He began to scream his lungs out, his mind racing over the fact that he was surely going to die. And he would’ve died if not for-

“Wind Bed.”

As Adrian was inches away from shattering his skull, an upward force of wind stopped his departure. The wind then went away, and Adrian fulfilled his destiny of faceplanting (except in a very gentle and non-lethal manner).

Once Adrian had recovered from his shock, he looked up and scraped the mud away from his eyes. As his vision cleared, he could see Samuel with his arms crossed and a bit of clothing singed at his right shoulder. So it seemed that Adrian did hit Samuel after all.

Walking to where Adrian laid and crouching besides him, Samuel’s eyes were gleaming with satisfaction.

“Nice going kid,” Samuel said, patting Adrian. “You’ve proven your worth. I’ll go on ahead and talk to your parents on taking you on as my apprentice.” Samuel’s sly grin was once again present on his face.