Kai’s eyes opened slowly, the blurry image of a chandelier covering his vision. Sniffing the air, a sweet smell inundated his nostrils, sending a wave of warmth throughout his body. His loose clothes rustled along with the blanket as he propped himself up, rubbing his eyes as he looked around the unfamiliar room. The fancy decor and seemingly expensive materials made him feel a bit weird. That, accompanied by the golden chandelier with actual candles hanging off of it, led him to believe that he had died once again… or at least it would have were it not for the woman sleeping at his bedside.

As he turned to look at her, the head full of pale blonde locks he expected was instead replaced by a luscious, healthy golden hair. Her fair, rosy complexion brought a rush of blood toward his face. Elizabeth… He felt his heart pounding against his chest as he looked at the woman, whose appearance hadn’t changed one bit in the past five years.

However, unlike five years ago, her attire was drastically different. She wore a green, military uniform with silver shoulder guards and a pair of brown pants. Leaning against the bedframe, a sword rattled quietly as Kai moved about. Elly let out a soft breath as her eyes blinked open. Lifting her head, she stretched and let out a long yawn. However, her arms froze mid-air as she stared at Kai with widened pupils, tears forming around her emerald eyes. Without hesitation, she jumped on Kai, hugging him tightly as they fell on the bed.

Her body shivered, and she inhaled and exhaled sharply while hugging him tighter and tighter. “Kai, you… how dare you scare me like that?!” Her cracking voice rang in Kai’s ears, whose initial shock still hadn’t disappeared.

“I-...” His faint voice struggled to escape his mouth, as the air entering his lungs became scarcer under Elly’s hold. Frantically patting her back, his face began to turn blue as he once again began to fade into unconsciousness.

“Aye, Kai, don’t die! I’m sorry!” She anxiously got off of him, and he inhaled deeply as oxygen once again reached his brain.

“Goddamn it Elizabeth, if that snake didn’t kill me you would have finished the deed!”

“Snake? What snake?”

“Uh… nothing, don’t worry about it.” Kai chuckled, taking off the blanket covering his steaming body. Looking down, he found himself in a loose, green pajama. Blood rushed to his face once again, which he did his best to hide however it was much too difficult without the mask covering his face.

“Don’t worry, we have a lot of doctors and nurses. Sorry for the pajama size though, we didn’t have any that fit your body in such a small time frame.

“It- it’s fine. Thank you…”

“Mhm,” Elly grunted, however, her expression quickly turned serious as she locked eyes with Kai. “My mother told me something bad happened, but doesn’t know what. Kai, what happened to your parents? To your mana veins? To your core?! How… - Just, just tell me everything…”

Kai hiccuped, his muscles twitching as he stared into the elf’s eyes. Clenching his fists, he began recounting the story, not missing any details aside from hiding his secrets. From the day she left to meeting Julie and Orphelia… to fighting bears and snakes, and finally to arriving here and getting caged.

Elizabeth’s expression changed several times, from anger and shock to awe and pity, but she also began piling up some questions as she analyzed Kai’s story, however, she held back as he finished up.

“It wasn’t a fun journey I have to say… but I’m here because you offered to be my teacher. I’ll take you up on that.” Kai’s eyes shone with resolution as he looked at Elly, whose pupils trembled briefly.

“Elly,” he continued in a wavering voice. “Please, help me find a way to heal my mana veins. Teach me! I want to become stronger… I-”

“That’s enough,” Elizabeth spoke over him. “I’m not going to teach you and lead you to an early grave!” She jumped to her feet, glaring at Kai as she took a deep breath.

“Listen, Kid, I know what you want to do. Stop it.” Her concerned voice rang in Kai’s ears, making him shiver. However, an unwilling anger built up inside of him, but he did his best to contain it as he looked at the floor. “You should count yourself lucky you’re even alive! You-, your mana veins are practically useless, not to mention your core! It should have shattered a long time ago! You’re lucky you’re still alive!” Her voice gradually rose, turning into a yell as tears streamed down her face.

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“Elena… oh, Elena… why?!” She fell to her knees, hugging the bed as sorrowful sobs echoed in the room, accompanied by soft hiccups. Whatever words she wanted to say got stuck in her throat, and her eyes turned red as she gripped the sheets. Her nails dug into her palms through the fabric, intense, violent emotions taking over her body as the reality of the situation fully set in.

Kai leaned toward Elizabeth, however, the door slammed open before his lips could fully part. Aina stormed in like a typhoon, a worried expression painted on her face as she kneeled next to her daughter. Gently patting her back, she turned silently toward Kai, whose face was a mixture of worry and anger. The woman looked away, letting out a soft sigh as she sat in silence

A few minutes passed, and Elly finally lifted her head, turning with a flushed face toward her mother. “Mom, Elena… Ray, they-”

“I know… I- I was just outside, I heard the entire story…” she said sheepishly.

Watching the two interact, Kai couldn’t help but feel a knot in his stomach, his heart burning as images of his mother flashed in his mind. These damn memories… He sighed and did his best to hold back his tears, sitting quietly as the tense atmosphere eased up.

Aina coughed lightly and got up. Sitting on the bed, she looked at Kai with a gentle expression. “Kid,” a soft voice escaped her lips. “I’m afraid my daughter can’t teach you anything… You can’t use magic anymore, she-”

“I can use magic, it’s just… it takes time.” Kai interrupted her. “As I said, there is a way to heal, at least, my veins. I have no idea what to do about my core, but if at least my vein-”

“Kai! No!” Aina retorted. “The method you used it’s… It’s way too dangerous! Do you think you’re the first one to come up with it?! I’ve seen people, just as desperate as you do the same thing! They-”

“I’m different!” Kai retorted as he raised his voice, “My mana veins are-”

However, his voice quickly got shot down as Aina’s hand flew to his face. The sound of a fierce slap reverberated in the air. Kai’s face immediately turned red, the imprint of a palm burning on his face. Aina took back her, gently rubbing it while giving Kai a fierce look.

“The slightest misstep will make your veins completely shatter and break. If it’s just them, that’s fine but… But if your core explodes-.”

Her wavering voice stopped, unable to continue explaining the horrific consequences that would befall him.

Kai’s pupils trembled, his stomach dropping as he clenched his fists. “What other… what other choice do I have?” His voice cracked, barely containing the torrent of emotions within him.

“There’s one thing you can do…” Elizabeth interjected, her voice barely escaping as she said hesitatingly. “You can turn your useless mana core… into a body core.”

Aina’s pupils widened and immediately shook her head. “No! No way! That’s too dangerous, too reckless! No one has ever succeded in doing that!”

Elizabeth took a deep breath, exhaling slowly as her lips parted. However, as she turned to her mother, the language escaping her body turned foreign. He didn’t recognize it as Lazarah, the continent’s universal language, nor as Elvish, be it the little he studied it.

“Mamă! Nimeni nu a supraviețuit vreodată când miezul de mana a fost uscat și rupt. Nimeni nu a supraviețuit mai mult de o săptămână când venele lor de mana s-au rupt. Uită-te la el, uită-te în ochii lui și spune-mi că ar accepta să trăiască ca un infirm!:

Aina turned silent, her eyes glimmering as she switched between the bewildered Kai and her propsoperous daughter. “Ascultă, Elizabeth, Kai-”

“Kai..” Elizabeth didn’t let her mother finish before speaking. “La fel ca tatăl său, are un foc aprins în suflet. L-am văzut, de ziua lui. Sufletul care se află în el nu este obișnuit. Este puternic, mai puternic decât orice altul pe care l-am văzut vreodată, la fel ca și voința lui.

Dacă nu-l ajutăm, va continua să-și riște viața într-o urmărire fără sens. Dar dacă reușește să treacă și să-și transforme cu succes miezul inutil într-un nucleu corporal... ar putea începe să caute modalități de a folosi magia Onkos din nou.”

Aina inhaled deeply, closing her eyes as she pondered over her daughter’s words. Finally, she turned toward Kai, a defeated smile creasing her lips. “Fine, Kai. Prepare yourself, I’ll help you start the process when the time is ripe. Until then, train, and get your body ready… if you’re successful, you may be able to find a way to truly heal your veins, given your intellect.

However, even with a functional body core, too much magic may completely cripple you.” She turned around, not waiting for Kai’s answer as she waved toward her daughter. Elizabeth’s expression was up, and gave the boy a small kiss on the forehead, carrying his heart gently before running toward Aina.

“Can I train him?” She asked just as they turned around the corner, however, Aina’s response didn’t manage to reach his ears as he stood in complete silence.

“What the fu-”