A big black bear was frantically running through a thick forest. It was heavily injured with an arrow stuck on it's back.
Running 200 meters behind it where two people, both male. The older looking one had long black hair and a large scar across his face. The younger man had short white hair and surprisingly a cloth covering both his eyes. These men where obviously Owen and Zane.
Eight years had passed since Owen told Zane his story and a lot has changed since then.
Zane was 15 now and had grown up to look quite like his father...except for the hair. He was really tall and had a large muscular body. That was probably because of the intense training he had been doing over the years.
Even though Zane was now twenty, he still hadn't awakened his element. Zane was devastated, this was the same feeling he had when he discovered he was blind and also the same feeling when he discovered that his body couldn't naturally generate mana.
This revelation forced him to find other ways to get stronger. His father didn't want to avenge Zane's grand parents any more, however since Zane's goal was to reach the absolute peak anyway he thought he might as well settle some old debts.
Zane had begged his father to train him and after some promises, and convincing Olivia, Owen had agreed. Turned out that Zane could grasp everything Owen taught him with no problem at all.
Zane had grown incredibly stronger in these years. He had upgraded all his abilities and also gained new ones. His most valuable discovery was an ability he called 'mana breathing'.
Zane had found a way to produce his mana dust inside his lungs. Every time he exhaled, mana dust was distributed in front of him. However this dust could only travel a meter from him before it disipated. This method took 10 mana points with every breath. He had also developed other methods for when he needed to see further than one meter like.....
"100 point sight grenade" Zane said as he threw a white object with the shape of his original mana ball.
<(- 100 mana)>
The 'sight grenade' flew and landed on the back of the bear. It then exploded into mana dust, which stuck to the bear and surrounding trees.
Zane's new mana dust was made of microscopic mana balls with a density dependent on how much mana points Zane used. His original mana dust used 10 points and lasted for one second. The mana dust which was distributed by the sight grenade Zane just threw used 100 points of mana and lasted for ten seconds.
"Father!, Boost me!" Zane shouted. Owen suddenly accelerated while Zane slowed down. Zane threw a 30 point mana ball on his Father's back before he got out of his one meter vision range.
<(- 30 mana)>
Owen suddenly stopped and crouched when he reached 50 meters ahead of Zane. Through the mana ball, Zane could see that his father had stopped and accelerated as fast as he could, reaching his father in two seconds.
Zane jumped on his father's back and Owen suddenly stood up with force, boosting zane into the air. Zane soared in the air like a car jumping of a ramp.
Zane was boosted 40 meters in the air and he couldn't miss his target from such a height. Also because the bear was the only thing Zane could see in the forest, even his father had disappeared from his view. He had used a 30 point sight grenade on him after all.
Zane unsheathed the bow on his back and put an arrow on the string before pulling back and closing one eye to take aim, which seemed useless as both his eyes where covered by the cloth anyway.
Zane released the arrow and it flew out of the bow towards the bear. 'Bullseye' Zane said as his arrow penetrated the bear from the back of the head.
<(+ 300 mana)>
"I hate this part" Zane said as he started free falling back to the ground. With his height he might break a bone or two if he doesn't slow his descent. Also he couldn't see where he was falling to.
"200 point sight grenade"
"200 point sight grenade" Zane announced as he threw two grenades from both his hands. He had made them so that they would explode as soon as they touch something.
<(- 200 mana)>
<(- 200 mana)>
The first one exploded on top of a tree and the second on on the ground. Zane could now see where he was falling to as he landed on a tree branch before sliding down the tree, cutting his hand on a piece if bark in the process.
This all had taken a while to explain but it had been about 8 seconds since Zane threw the first sight grenade at the bear.
Zane quickly walked to the bear while he could still see it. According to his calculations there where only two seconds left before his 100 point sight grenade lost it effects.
Zane arrived at the corpse just before it disappeared from his vision. He then sat on top of it as he waited for his father. The two 200 point sight grenades he had activated when he was falling where still in effect as their mana dust would desipate only after 20 seconds.
Zane used this time to just look at the trees and grass in melancholy. Zane had been training since he was seven. However he was still weaker than any other Fifteen year old. Hunting normal animals became too easy for him while hunting the weakest of mana beasts was way to dangerous.
Zane's father soon arrived and they carried the corpse back home. Bear meat was not edible, however the skin was very much sought after by rich noblewomen so Zane and Owen could still sell the corpse.
"How was the hunt today ?" Olivia asked the two boys as they ate their dinner, which was deer meat. Ever since Zane started training, the family had had an abundance of meat. So much so that 75% of the family's income now came from selling meat.
Olivia had long finished paying her 5 year debt so she opened a small meat shop. Zane had suggested naming the shop 'Butchery' and for some reason that name really fit.
"It was fine, although the bear was a little faster than we imagined. We had to use the boost method otherwise it would have gotten away" Owen chuckled.
"Owen ! that's dangerous what if my son get's hurt?" Olivia complained.
"Ohh come on wife he's fine !. Look see he's...not eating for some reason. Are you okay son ?" Owen asked as he noticed that Zane had been holding the same piece of meat for the past 10 minutes.
Zane took a deep breath, first to calm his nerves and second so he could see his parents, who were sited a little bit over a meter away.
"Mother, Father I am leaving home."