It was a completely normal day as the late-summer sun cast its warming rays on the winding streets and branching alleys of Sigella, causing bright reflections on the slippery, white stone tiles that plastered the business district. A small group of children could be seen running around in their school uniforms, inspecting the goods of various stalls while goofing around.
Teo did not have to fear punishment for being late today. Ever since he had finished his first real Enchantment on his own, his granduncle had been very kind and understanding of his wishes. If he did not slack off too much and kept the results coming, his uncle would not interfere, so he was free to play around with his friends whenever he wanted now.
Most days after school, they would loiter around town, stroll at the beach, study for upcoming tests, or train at the woods near Teo's house. Of course, this was in addition to Teo's regular training regime, that he had only lightened a little bit.
"Can we stop at this café for a while? I just love the waffles they make here!" said Angelika with a sweet smile. She had become much more extroverted since moving to Sigella and meeting the boys, no longer afraid of openly showing her emotions.
As no one voiced any objections, they scuttled through the busy street and into the shop.
*Dring!*
A small, bronze bell was fastened to the door and rang out as the new customers stepped in. It was not particularly full, but far from empty. Angelika's taste was quite exquisite for a former farmer's girl, and the café she had taken a liking to was one of the more popular, expensive ones in the area. In fact, their hard-to-afford pricing was the sole reason why it was not always packed to the brim with hungry customers.
"Welcome! A table for three?" an attentive waitress asked while doing a slight curtsy, perfectly showing off the white, long legs peeking from under her black skirt, a sight wasted on the three kids.
They took their seats somewhat in the back because all the window places were taken and quickly ordered their food. Angelika preferred sweets and ordered waffles with hot cherry sauce, just as she had previously announced.
Apparently, she was getting used to city-life and her new-found wealth brought by the Associations stipend at last. She finally allowed herself to spend some money on fun, instead of saving every cent for her parents and siblings. She was not becoming egoistical though, with their current finances, her whole family could indulge in luxuries they had only dreamed about previously. She had been the only exception for months and years, struggling to get used to it.
Teo and Jack were not as keen on sweets for lunch and ordered the daily menu instead, fried Arancini with Jasmine tea.
They always wondered how Angelika managed to get sufficient nourishment from her sweets-based diet while simultaneously keeping her beanpole-like proportions, but had decided to focus on more pressing matters after a few pointless experiments.
A short wait later, they were delivered a small pile of steaming-hot, golden rice-balls that exuded a spicy, exotic aroma. They quickly dug in and gulped down the small treasure boxes stuffed with various fillings, such as sparkling pieces of meat, fresh vegetables, pulped tomato, and cheese. They were so eager, that Teo even burned his tongue on a thick blob of delicious, molten cheese, despite his increased fire resistance.
After the meal, they continued to stroll along the streets for a bit until Jack decided to head over to Teo's place for afternoon practice, old Phillip couldn't have gotten far yet anyway.
…
"How is your family doing lately?" asked Jack, trying to initiate some small-talk with Angelika.
"Good. My mother finally found some work in a small bakery," she said, looking out of the coach window while fiddling with her long hair.
"She seems to enjoy the freedom of the city, working and shopping by herself when and where she likes. I have never seen her this happy," Angelika added thoughtfully after a short pause. She was probably the only family member that questioned their new lifestyle and what conditions it was built upon.
"Well, that's great! We should definitely go visit her sometime!" responded Jack, way too enthusiastically.
Angelika smiled sweetly and pushed the complicated thoughts to the back of her mind, then she said,
"Sure, but maybe we should give her some time to settle in!"
After a short trip along the winding, rocky path, which had long been worn out and solidified by regular usage, they passed by a swathe of green-yellow fields on the outskirts of town. Here grew a plethora of different food crops steadily approaching ripeness, that doused the area in a myriad of colors. Soon they could see the tall iron gates of the Grassdown estate and the looming forest in the distance.
"Thanks, you can take the rest of the day off, Phillip," Teo said and handed the man a silver coin. Apparently, his social conscience was bothering him enough for always taking advantage of his driver, to make him give up a sizeable portion of his pocket money in retribution.
"Thank you so much, young master! I will pick you up tomorrow like usual then," the middle-aged man said, smiling from ear to ear as he turned around the carriage; it would be steak-night today.
They headed over to the backyard and continued all the way to the edge of Thorn Forest.
Yes, the ominous forest bordering the small village of Ritark reached all the way here and even farther. From Geography-class, Teo knew that it was one of the most extensive forests on the Continent and stretched throughout the whole north. From the stormy coasts inwards to the heart of the land and up to the towering Black Mountain Range, it was enormous.
They settled down at the usual spot and soon began to practice Magic and sword techniques. At least the boys did, Angelika was not very proud of her physical prowess and preferred just to study Magic or cheer on the two ruffians from the sidelines.
"I want a rematch! I have finally perfected my ultimate move; you better prepare to eat dust!" Jack exclaimed with fire in his eyes as he challenged Teo to another Magic duel. So far, he had never won one, but that only seemed to spur him on further.
"Sigh… We already sparred two times this week, Jack. Can't you let it rest already?" Teo replied with a bored look while rolling his eyes. This was getting old.
When it came to pure swordplay, Teo was no match at all for his muscular competitor, but if Magic were involved, the scales would turn quickly, leading to another one-sided encounter. Jack did not seem to know the meaning behind the term 'giving up', though.
"I shall not rest until all evil is vanquished!" Jack hollered in response without specifying what evil exactly needed vanquishing.
"Alright then, but try to make it short, yes?" Teo slowly shook his head and gave in. He knew better than to try and avoid it.
"Then, I better not make you wait!" shouted Jack and readied himself for a charge.
"Try not to hurt him too much, Teo!" Angelika interjected in a caring voice, not considering other possible outcomes. The remark almost made Jack cry a silent tear, but he quickly pulled himself together and concentrated on the battle.
"Here I come!" he bellowed and charged towards Teo, his wooden sword suddenly engulfed in a scalding blaze.
Teo smirked and took on a defensive stance. He would not gain anything by wiping the floor with his friend directly; if he was so insistent on challenging him, he could just as well serve as a training dummy for Teo's sword-practice.
The moment both swords collided, a swarm of sparks diffused into the surroundings, and a shock wave swept over the nearby grass. Teo's feet slightly sunk into the soft ground, but he continued to stand firm.
He was facing an onslaught of blisteringly hot air and heat rays but did not seem bothered at all. His body and sword were wrapped by a thin, dimly-glowing layer of Mana that kept the rampaging Fire Elements out and protected his fragile wooden sword from charring or breaking.
"Didn't you say you had a new trick up your sleeve?" Teo taunted with a slightly contemptuous smile, agitating the red-haired boy even further.
"Oh, you'll see!" Jackson hollered as he hammered swing after swing onto Teo's tight defense.
They brawled like that for minutes, making full use of the footwork and Elemental control they had mastered so far. It looked like a balanced fight for any watching outsider, but Teo was already severely limiting his magical Skillset to preserve the status quo.
"Alright, you have proven yourself worthy, vile spawn of darkness! If you can remain standing after facing my ultimate technique, I will admit defeat!" roared Jack, wholly absorbed in his heroic delusions. He was developing in a weird direction lately.
Teo could not suppress a chuckle after hearing his best friend spout one stereotypical line after the other.
"Ultimate Technique: Death Inferno Drill Firestorm!" recited the spiky-haired boy and struck an embarrassing pose while roaring like a madman. Let's just hope he will grow out of that phase.
Like a flood, the surrounding Fire Elemental Threads surged towards his outstretched hands and gathered in a giant vortex. From afar, it almost looked like a bright, red umbrella he was holding.
Jack spent almost a minute charging his attack, time he would not have in any half-serious battle, but Teo just stood there waiting. A massive drill had formed in front of the boy and exuded waves of parching heat, threatening to incinerate everything in the surroundings, yet Teo showed no signs of worry. In fact, he almost looked expectant.
"Fire!" with a final shout, the menace was released and zoomed straight towards Teo, igniting the air in its path.
'You know what to do?' Teo asked the Golem resting on his chest with a silent transmission.
'Already working on it!' Goliath replied cheerfully; he seemed to be in high spirits.
Within a second, a funnel-shaped wall of Mana appeared in front of Teo, rotating in the opposite direction relative to the advancing drill. It intercepted the attack with calculated precision and began its work at unwinding it, channeling the constant stream of concentrated Fire Elements it ground down towards Teo's chest, where he absorbed them into his body.
'How naïve, using a modification of my own technique against me…' Teo thought with a grin.
After dissolving the burning drill in its entirety, he sat down cross-legged on the soft grass and closed his eyes. He needed to focus on assimilating the blazing energy before it could damage his body too much.
'Wow, that's a large haul! You would need at least a week to gather that much juice!' Goliath exclaimed happily using voice transmission.
This was the closest Teo could get to Fire-Supercharging right now. His Fire Affinity was still too low to do the same, but using his friend as a proxy, he had access to highly concentrated Fire Elements, which he could incorporate into his growing Mana Core.
Of course, this shortcut could only be utilized with sufficiently high fire-resistance and Goliath helping in the process, or he would be burned to a crisp within seconds. It was a very effective shortcut, nonetheless.
Exhausted, but further upset by Teo ignoring him, Jackson stomped on the ground a few times, devastating the local flora. As soon as Teo opened his blue eyes again, Jack called out to him,
"Alright, you win this time. But don't get used to it!"
They all started to laugh without a care in the world.
"Well, I don't know about you guys, but that got me hungry! How about some roast beef? I know a great shop near the harbor!" Jack suggested with a gentle smile, his previous fervor nowhere to be seen.
"I'm sorry, I need to get home soon, or I will be late for dinner," said Angelika apologetically, avoiding Jack's stabbing gaze.
"I'll join you! We can head over there after we bring Angelika home," Teo responded, saving Jack's mood.
It was not a terribly long way back to the city, even on foot, and they made it there in less than an hour thanks to their increased stamina, taking in the scenery along the way. They quickly walked Angelika home just in time for dinner and continued their way to the harbor district, a dim shadow following behind them.
The two boys leisurely talked about school and how to improve each other's battle techniques further; they were an odd but awkwardly fitting couple.
As always, Jack could not keep in his excess energy and would sometimes outpace Teo by a few meters, dashing around the place and calling his friend a slowpoke. But when he ran into a dark alley, and neither came back nor responded to his calls anymore, Teo became suspicious.
"Jack? If this is a joke, then it's not funny! Come out now!" Teo was sure that his friend was just playing with him and would jump out, trying to scare him at any second now.
Instead, he felt a blunt impact on his neck as he ran after him into the alley, and numbness spread throughout his body. He felt dizzy, and his vision slowly faded. The last thing he saw was a dirty sack being pulled over his head, while Goliath's panicked shouts vanished in the distance.