Valerian opened his eyes and he was shocked. The world seemed to have undergone a change that he could not understand. The void was filled with shimmering lights. He rubbed his eyes and tried to focus on the lights a bit harder and he found that these lights all had different shapes and colors.
Some of these lights were triangles, while some were spherical. He could not understand what was going on so he just sat there watching the lights flicker and shimmer in a daze. For the first time in the past couple of years, Valerian forgot to rush out of his bed to finish his routine.
…
Diligentia also was among the early risers of the orphanage. Last night did not bring her a peaceful sleep, Valerian's face kept her up. He was the first child whom she had raised from an infant to a toddler. To her, Valerian was a child of her own. Many times, Diligentia would blame herself for not being able to take care of him properly.
She was bound by the laws and system of the world. If someone found that she was too close to the boy who was declared to be cursed, then things will become even more difficult, she will not be able to keep Valerian inside the orphanage. Thus, she never showed too much care for him when other people were around. However, thinking about last night. She could not help herself and end up in front of the library door.
She knocked at the door but there was no response from the inside. This silence heightened her anxiety even more. Diligentia thought of something and pushed the door open. The library was silent as usual, after entering she closed the door behind her. She was aware of where Valerian would sleep so she walked over, and crouched to look under the table. She found the boy gazing ahead in a daze.
Diligentia called out to him in a gentle tone, "Val."
The child heard her voice and turned her head, Diligentia took one look in his eyes and she was shocked, in those silver pupils she saw light patterns flickering like fireflies. She covered her mouth with her hand and mumbled, "Blessing Of Magus."
Valerian could hear her clearly, he raised his hand to weave signs and asked, 'Mother Diligentia, what is happening to me? What are these lights?'
The lady recovered from her initial surprise and with a bright smile, she said, "Val, you have been blessed by the moon of Magic. You can now use mana and become a Mage. As for the light patterns you see, they are the mana runes. Initially, mana has no shape, to cast spells, it is needed to be shaped into runes. The knowledge of runes cannot be taught but only passed on by the blessing."
Valerian nodded and asked her, 'Like you do that warm light?'
Diligentia chuckled and said, "Yes, however, that is just the basic spell. In our world, there exist so many magic spells that you cannot even imagine."
Valerian gazed at her looking all excited and watched as the flickering lights slowly vanished from his vision. He made some signs to tell Diligentia, the lady smiled and said, "Do not worry, it is only normal for them to vanish, now those patterns are etched in your memory, try to focus and you will be able to recall them. Tell me what signs can you see."
Valerian nodded and closed his eyes, then he focused on trying to recall the mana runes. Slowly he could see flickering lights again, waving his hands he told Diligentia what he saw. However, when he opened his eyes, he found that Diligentia was not looking happy, on the contrary, she had her eyes wide open and her mouth covered. She had no doubt about what this boy had just said, was true.
The child thought he had done something bad, and began to doubt himself. Diligentia could tell from his visage what was going on inside his little head. She said, "Val, you must never tell anyone that you can see the seven runes. Okay? Promise me."
Valerian raised his head and asked, 'Why? Is it a bad thing?'
Diligentia shook her head and placed her hand on his head as she said, "No, it is not a bad thing, but extremely fortunate. I have never seen any Mage being able to have the knowledge of all seven runes. However, there are people who greed after such talents and would harm you to cease what you have."
Valerian nodded and promised not to let anyone know about his knowledge. However, as curious as he was about this newfound blessing, he could not help but ask, 'Can I cast a magic spell?'
Diligentia smiled and was about to say something when she stopped. She said, "Before you could start casting spells, you need to read books to learn about magic. Okay, it will take you a few months."
Valerian nodded and agreed, after all, he had no idea what magic was. That settled, Diligentia told him to rest and walked out of the library. She frowned hard, and mumbled, "Forgive me mother Vita, I could not tell him that despite his blessing, he could not cast spells because he lacks the ability to speak. He cannot read the incantations."
Well, this was the reason why Diligentia told Valerian to read books. She was not sure of how to tell him that his inability was going to hinder his blessing. She walked back to her office room and sat down on the desk. Her mind was muddled with thoughts of Valerian breaking down after finding out the truth.
…
Months have passed and life has continued like the usual for everyone in the orphanage, even Valerian was not doing anything out of the ordinary. He would tend to his chores, and then after a meal, he would go back to the library to read his books. Lately, he has begun to dream of himself casting spells to brave dangers.
Every child was just like that. They will all start to imagine themselves as heroes if they get a taste of power. Valerian has never yet cast a spell, but he was not as clueless as before. The first book he got to read stated that the basic requirement of casting a spell was to read out the incantation or to chant the magic spell.
He did not say anything to Diligentia, nor did he feel broken, because, that same book told him, that the essence of casting a magic spell was to understand the meaning behind that spell. The chant was only there to help the people come up with initial imagery in their minds.
Valerian did not say anything to anyone and quietly tried to learn spells mentioned in the book. Diligentia was unaware that her excuse to delay the spell casting had set the boy on the path of self-teaching. She might have prayed to Mother Vita for a week if she found out such a thing.
…
One evening, Diligentia was taking her leisurely stroll inside the garden, she looked around and found that Valerian was nowhere to be seen. This time around the boy would always be inside the garden. The winds carried a slight chill to them. She was worried about his health and began to look for him.
In the end, Diligentia ended up in the backyard of the orphanage, she spotted the boy sitting in front of a wilting flower. She wanted to go up and ask him, what he was doing here, when Valerian raised his hands, with his palms facing the flower and his lips moved.
Diligentia was surprised, her mind flooded with lots of complex thoughts. She was half expecting that Valerian could successfully cast the spell, but it all went away with a sigh. Valerian gazed at the flower for a few moments, before lowering his hands and letting out a deep breath.
His actions made the lady feel her eyes burning. She wanted to cry and sob, and complain to the god she believed in, she wanted to ask them, why did they give this child blessings if they did not want him to use them.
As her heart was flooding with maternal love, she was shocked one more time, Valerian raised his hands and made a few snorting sounds from his mouth. This time, a dim green glow emitted from his palms, covering the flower, and soon, bringing it back to life.
Valerian had cast his first magic spell, and Diligentia was the witness to this. She wanted to rush forward and hold him in her embrace. She wanted to tell the world that Valerian was not cursed, because the cursed did not get blessed by the Moon Of Magic, however, when has life ever worked the way people wanted it to?
A set of footsteps approached Diligentia from behind and a feminine voice asked, "Head Mistress, what are you doing here?"
This voice made Diligentia surprised, but Valerian was shocked and overcome with fright. He did not expect that he will be caught by this devil as soon as his blessing bore fruit.