The boy looked up at his sensei, his eyes uncertain. "But what if it doesn't work?" he asked. The sensei's face was stern, his eyes glinting with a hint of annoyance. "I dare not explain this concept to you again, young man," he said. "Have confidence!"

The dojo around them was old and worn, the wood weathered to a soft grey. Termites had eaten away at the beams, and the dirty white wallpaper was peeling off in strips. The air was thick with the scent of old wood and sweat.

The young boy stretched forth his short, skinny arms for the hundredth time today, and shouted "Basic Skill: Ember! Go forth!"

From his caramel toned hands, a copper bronze aura rapidly formed in front of his palm, twisting and turning like a typhoon. Am I really going to do this? There's no way, I've practised this basic elemental skill for the past 10 years of my life, in the end, I never could and I never will be able to use it. The aura then instantly evaporated into thin air as did the boy's self-confidence.

"I'm sorry sensei, I just can't do it, I'm a useless mage..." the boy said, disappointed in his performance. His mouth bent into a frown and his gaze dropped, carrying a truckload of sadness. "You are far too anxious, Efy, anxiety is a murderer, you must eliminate it before it eliminates you." the old man reassured him. He repeatedly hit Efy on the head with his staff in a slow and light motion.

"But it's not so easy, Sensei Boha, all I can do is move objects.." Efy contested, "I know how the concept works but everytime I try something new, my head starts to get dizzy, my heart stomps and my stomach starts to feel ticklish. I don't want to become a physical class combatant, I want to manipulate elements! Yet all I can do is swing weapons around! And the Port Of Black Fountain Academy's entrance examination is tomorrow…" he continued, further falling into his own despair.

Boha felt that Efy's worry was justified, however as his sensei, he had to provide him with self-belief.

"Then swing your weapons!" Boha smiled. "I can't keep you here any longer if you are not growing. Efy, become a powerful mage, even if it means you can only manipulate the Xor inside weapons!" He continued, not daring to let Efy gloom in his distress any longer.

"But..." Efy gave it some thought. He really was stagnant even after Boha agreed to accept him as his student.

Boha had found Efy when he was just six years old inside the main-square of Port Of Black Fountain. Efy was verbally bullied for his darker complexion in the town. Boha had always spectated the boy on his daily visits, until the moment a man struck Efy. He could not bear to see such heartlessness further, so he took Efy to his dojo and provided for him.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

"See the world for yourself Efy, become the best mage, become the #1 Xor expert! When nothing stands in your way, there will be no shred of doubt left, you will be able to manipulate all types of elements." Boha had confidence in his unique student.

This was a world where confidence was equivalent to power, where swordsmen could jump as high as mountains as long as they knew they could, where archers could multiply arrows' shapes and sizes with a single thought, where mages could conjure elements and release them without limit to power. Where there was a shred of doubt, even a micrometre, a superhuman action was not possible, even if the user themselves did not know they held doubt. As long as one 100% knew they could, they could. This was called Xor.

However in such a world, this young boy, Efy, possessed intense anxiety, hence he could never become as strong as he wanted to, for you were only as powerful as you knew you were. In a world where Efy wanted to conjure elements, he could only move objects. He was no swordsman but was very capable of swinging swords around the air with just his fingertips. This was something he knew he could do, the only thing this boy was truly confident in.

"You're right, the Port Of Black Fountain Academy's entrance examination begins tomorrow. I wish to keep you a little longer before they begin, but it seems I've been far too selfish. You are intelligent, Efy, I am proud you were a student of mine, I should've let you leave months ago, I have probably stunted your growth by spoiling you." Boha confessed, turning his head away from embarrassment.

Efy is saddened further, remembering the trauma he faced from the townspeople. "What do I do about the bullies?" He had always felt frightened to join the academy, but it was the only way for him to open his opportunities, Port Of Black Fountain was only a drop in the ocean compared to the magnificent cities, in fact, that town was only the little brother to Black Fountain City. Efy would only be able to get there through scholarship as it was a distant relative.

"Efy, I understand you may not know your early past or where your parents are, but the world is vast; I am almost certain that there are people like you out there. Xoria is the greatest place on earth, its cityscapes span throughout the whole continent it resides in. You must keep pushing forward, for you can only make it to Xoria through various scholarships. Keep winning, keep your head up high and become the best mage in all of Xoria. No one will dare to disrespect you, and no doubt shall find comfort in your mind. "

...

A few hours later, Efy had already left with his things, all contained within a Xor Orb, which is a storage utility that can contain as many items as you believe it can hold and shrink to a portable size. However Efy's orbs could only hold up to 3 items and were larger than a human, resulting in Boha creating one for him.

Efy nervously stumbled through the forest, the paper-white crescent in the sky slowly fading more and more into existence. If I wasn't such a baby I would've left hours ago, I'm definitely going to encounter a phanxor on my way...

Suddenly, a phanxor willed into existence. This was the power of Xor. Efy, because of fear, fully believed there would be a phanxor, and there, a phanxor spawned into existence, as monstrous and tyrannical as he had just imagined. The creature was pitch-black, with an infinite void for eyes, it stood on two legs expanding to be the height of two humans. Its wings spanned beautifully from its back. It was a bipedal dragon.

The phanxor let out an agonising screech that emitted sound waves towards Efy. Somewhere inside, Efy believed he would die right here, yet that belief did not execute Xor, as he knew he had to survive to fulfil his promise. Efy attempted to harden his body, a basic defence technique regularly used in battle, but failed miserably. He received the full brunt of the sound waves.

Efy was in danger.