Avan Neidleest, fifteen years old. He has grown a lot. Yet his fate was always there, unchanging. "Mother, I'll be going out."
"Take care!" Carpei's words gave Avan the boost that he needed for the day.
He grabbed the huge greatsword that was sitting in front of the door. As he took it out, his body seemed to give up on him as it immediately began to fall off to the ground.
He grabbed the hilt and dragged it outside, behind of their house.
He focused himself and tried to gather mana, yet there was none. "Still none huh..."
He lifted the greatsword up and swung it.
And suddenly, it was like every single bone in his body broke down. But it was just his imagination, as the pain got worse. But he was unfazed.
He continued to swing it until his whole body bled out. His hands, tired. His whole existence was nothing but to swing that sword in the hopes of getting stronger. To not tarnish his mother's name.
His words that he always said as he swung his blade was his motivation to get stronger.
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Swing it, until your arms bleed out,
Make your screams be victory shouts,
You swing your sword about,
So swing it again and again, never doubt.
-----
Find the ecstasy in pain,
Do it again and again,
You might think you never gained,
But you don't have the right to complain
-----
You're weak and unneeded,
So become heated,
Be defeated,
As long as you can give your mother, the glory that you wanted.
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"I will swing through the pain and I will find ecstasy in it. Swing as your life depends on it. Bones will break, but your will won't. Your mother's honor will be destroyed, but you don't have one. Ignore everything, the path to become strong is painful. My goal isn't to be the strongest, but the be strong enough for her." Avan swung his sword once again and the leaves and grass around him began to fly away from him. Leaving where he stood completely empty.
But he dropped his sword as another wound appeared on his wrist. It stretched too much and blood was gushing out.
Two swings of his full power, and his body was about to break down.
He looked over at his neighbor's place and saw a father with his two kids practicing with a sword.
He smiled sorrowfully and swung his sword again... and again... until the night came.
He placed down his sword and rested for several minutes.
He went to the shower of their home and there lies a single gem, stuck onto the wall. He touched it, but nothing happened.
He called his mother to touch the gem and suddenly, water started to flow. "Thank you mother."
"No problem, get some rest. I'll cook some food later." Carpei responded.
Avan showered himself and wore some of his clean casual clothes. A casual shirt, tucked into his breeches.
He went out at the middle of the night and went in the royal castle's library.
Hundreds of people were inside even though its night, but the amazing thirty floors of the library tower kept everyone busy as there were millions of books in that library.
Avan went in the library and showed his identification card. He looked around and saw that the librarian was new and couldn't find the old one.
The librarian was confused at first but then asked, "Oh, are you Avan Neidleest?"
"...Yes I am." Avan replied.
"I see. Well, just please proceed to your normal chambers."
Avan lowered his head and went to the farthest door on the right.
"Hey, hey! That's the forbidden section of the library! You can't go the-!" One of the people in the library shouted.
"No, no. Its fine." The librarian said. "He's a different case."
"Oh... Is he some kind of genius?"
"I guess he does emit that kind of aura."
"But his skin is pale and he felt so lifeless. Most of the high ranking mages here also felt alerted when he came in. I'm pretty good at magic but I tell you, I didn't even notice him behind me."
"Oh, you're not from here are you? He's Avan Neidleest. He's... a child who was born without a single ounce of mana."
"Hahaha! You jest. Even magical tools today can regenerate their own mana. I doubt that a human who was born from his own mother doesn't have mana."
"No, it is true." The librarian then closed in on the man, "He's a cursed child. He was basically born without a mana. And mana is in everything that lives. Plants, animals, humans... and some special cases, magical tools. But he was born without it. So that's why his skin is pale and his whole body is so lifeless. He's known around here as a Living Corpse."
"Oh... you're serious... then why is he allowed in the forbidden chambers?"
"At first he just came here to satiate his knowledge. He spends most of his hours here. But the old librarian and the Tower Master of this whole library didn't care what he did in this whole library. That's why even the Tower Master doesn't care that he read forbidden books or try to chant forbidden magic. Because it can't be used in the first place. His existence is just painful and an insult to this world you know. He basically defies all laws of mana by having no mana at all."