- How the hell can you heal someone without proper medicine?
Riox caused an awkward situation with this question, making the people around him stay in silence and staring at him like an owl. The atmosphere became suffocating for Riox, so he pushed away himself from the table, being ready to stand up in an instant and running out the house as the wind blew through it's windows. But when he stood up, Mira caught his hand and stopped him from leaving the kitchen. She pulled him to sit down again, then she asked him with more curiosity.
- Why do you ask so strangely? Do you really don't know?
- I-I don't. I don't know.
- Because I did this ... "Domain of Life : Healing Sphere"
And the words left her lips a ball-like thing appeared between her palms, emitting a greenish light. That thing seemed as if it would be made by water, but it wasn't. The kids stared it together without a word. Mira slowly pushed her palms to each other and the sphere disappeared, then looked at them with a scary smile.
- Do you know what I found when I examined both of you?
Riox and Ayla just looked at each other silently and shook their heads as a no.
- Both of you. You have an AMAZING affinity for mana! And the most shocking part is that you are ONLY 14 years old! IT'S A BLESSING!
Mira bursted out with an insane laugh, but her eyes showed calmness and excitement too. She immediately wanted to start practicing, but they needed a few days for complete recovery, so she let it go for now.
- If you both will be completely fine, I will teach you the basics of magic! Let it call a day and go rest. Oh, I almost forgot to ask. How did a human boy and a dark elf girl wander in the forest?
*Mira said, the elf. A dark elf. Don't tell Ayla is ... Aaaaand yes. Now I see her little, but pointed ears. I thought she has just a different skin tone, but I walked on a totally wrong path. Okay, I need to improvise something. What did occur frequently in the medieval era? Campaigns, plague, merchants, nobles. Wars. Got it, sudden attack! An assassination attempt! It's too ridiculous."
Riox caught Ayla's hand, giving her a sign to let him speak.
- We didn't remember anything what happened. The first memory I have is that we lied on the ground and the first thing we saw was the sun.
- And you wandered the forest to find some village, my instinct says.
- Yes, but we were completely lost and without food and water ...
- You are here. I got it. A bit off but it's an acceptable explanation. Ok, go and rest. Fill up yourself with energy, because the theoretical part of magic is hard to understand. Sadly, I can't teach you to use magic. I'm only a Tier 2 magician with life attributes.
- You ...
- That's all for today! In 2 day later we will continue it!
Mira didn't let Ayla ask anything, while Riox left in a speechless state. He needed some time to recognize the changes around him, especially that fact this is a different world with different laws and possibilities. Such things as magic was just an imagination of a person as the different races like elves too.
The 2 days should fly away as a bird in the sky, but not for Riox. He was excited what secrets can this world show to him. The second came slowly. Riox just lied or sat on the bed while Ayla went out from the house. He just stared at the floor or the roof. Mira just came in the room and headed out from the house. When she put her hand on the door handle, she noticed Riox sitting in silence on the bed.
- Riox. Could you help me pick up some firewood? I assume my brother will come back today from his hunting, so we should prepare for it.
- Oh, oh. Fine. Sure. I'm coming.
*I feel strange about myself. It was exciting to see that magic thing., but I feel some emptiness inside of me. I can't tell myself what it is.*
- Um, Mira. Can I ask something?
- Sure, but you already did it. But I'll let you ask one more question.
She just smiled at Riox with this well-known joke.
- How did you know anything about magic and why did you not learn more about it?
*As I saw the expression on her face, like the water froze to ice. I touched a sensitive point in her I shouldn't. I will apologize.*
- Sor ...
- It's okay. Don't feel guilty because of this. Let's have a deal. You help me to gather firewood and clean the dishes, and I will answer your question!
- Deal!
After the short chatting, Riox and Mira left the house and walked to a barn. The doors was opened widely, the inside of the barn was filled with piles of firewood. The building was a bit off from the village, because if a fire occur, it has less chance to spread towards the houses. Riox looked around, the feelings of a typical village, a smaller community that settled a long time ago and lived like they were separated from the world, but it was not the case. While they carried the firewoods, Mira told she heard that the village is much older than some city, and the village was not surrounded by forest at all time. In the north, there are legends said about a tree that older than thousand years and the high concentration of magic there made the forest spreading. However, the exact reason still unknown for the people. The kingdom sent some high leveled magicians to examine the surroundings, but they didn't find any difference or clue, so they left.
In a short of an hour they finished the work they agreed, so Riox and Mira sat at the table in the kitchen. Mira prepared a cup of tea for both of them, and started to speak as fulfil her promise to Riox.
- Before you start it, do you know where is Ayla?
- Oh, you don't need to worry about her. She played with the children and became tired very fast. I checked her, she went to sleep before we came back.
- Fine. Now I'm listening. But if you touch some sensitive part of it, you can skip it, I won't force you. Tell me what you feel you should do.
*I don't want to force anyone, even if we made a deal, I don't want to push her. Her kindness is already a thing you can't repay even with your everything. I just simply want to know more about this world, so I can prepare Ayla to live safely in the future when I leave.*
- It's not a big deal. When I was 18, I had the chance to enroll into the Royal Academy. I was lucky because I passed the tests. The first year was parted in two. One is the theoretical learning, the second is the actual magic usage and stuff. I had no clue why, but even though I finished with a highscore on the theoretical exams, I was lacking in the usage lessons. They did not tell me anything why my progress was stuck, but I did what I could, pushed myself as hard as no one. At the break time of the summer, I finally broke through the wall and achieved the Tier 2 level. My happiness has gone the moment I stepped into the garden of the Academy. A guard stopped me, he crumpled a letter into my hand and said : "You are no longer the student of the academy. Scram!". I-I ...
- You can take a break anytime!
- No-no. I'm fine. After that incident, my brother heard what happened to me and left the Adventurer's Guild to follow and help me wherever I go. A friend of his told us before we leave the reason I've been kicked out of the academy. The reason was just that I had no affinity for battle magic, just healing. We left the capital and settled here after a long journey. He became a hunter and I turned into a priestess-like person. The people here are so kind, they do not judge anyone, even if you come from a different country of race. This village in the middle of nowhere is more like a treasure.
- Last, but not least. Why are you so kind for us? We are strangers after all.
- Um. I have a different reason for that. You know, we have lived in this village for 17 years now. I have a disability and I can't be pregnant and bear a child, but I always wanted to.
*She told me these things from the deepest parts of her heart while smiling and shed her tears in silence. She is a true warrior, but I can't become her child.*
- I can't fulfill a wish like this, because we will never be blood-related.
- Who cares?! Even if we saved you ... you also saved me.
- What are you speaking of?
- My desire to be a mother is slowly consuming my common sense. People said the life attribute is a miracle, because it's rare, but it has a drawback. The people who get life attributes, they became unable to give birth, let it be a man or a woman! Many became insane because of this and did suicide before they turned 30! I am lucky because there are some potions the alchemist of the village can make and suppress these things!
Mira broke out in tears, she could not hold her emotions anymore. For the first time, Riox felt sadness, but not because of him, but in place of Mira. He stood up and walked next to Mira.
- Mira! ...