"You know, the world is quite vast and marvelous, with many wonders and mysteries everywhere. We never cease to discover new things. Sometimes I wonder what's in this world, how it was created, who created it, and..."
"Satoru, stop talking like you're some wise adult and start practicing. I want to see your new move."
"Alright, Sofi."
"I'll try, but I'm not sure if it'll work. Everything is in God's hands."
A couple of kilometers away from the village, on an empty plain, Sofi and Satoru stand. Satoru intended to practice, but he ran into Sofi, his childhood best friend, who insisted on watching him train, curious about Satoru's power.
[Cursed Reverse Technique: Red]
A black sphere forms at the tip of Satoru's index finger, then turns into an intense red. It emits a bright red light that dazzles and obstructs vision. Sofi has to shield her eyes from the strong red light. After a few seconds, the intense light starts to fade until nothing remains.
Satoru remains frozen in place, hand extended forward, unmoving and silent.
"Is it supposed to blind the enemy?"
"..."
"No, it's supposed to unleash a strong gravitational force that sends you flying." Sigh
"I have to master the cursed reverse technique to be able to use red. I'm hitting a roadblock."
"Cursed reverse technique? What's that, Satoru?"
"Uh, to put it simply, it's a spell that allows me to heal any injury, just like that."
"Like healing magic?"
"More or less."
Satoru walks over to where Sofi is sitting on the grass. He sits beside her, takes an apple from Sofi's bag, which she brought before coming to this area, and starts eating it silently, contemplating how to continue growing in strength. There's a moment of silence and awkwardness between them. Satoru is unaware because he's lost in thought, but Sofi senses the tension and speaks first.
"Satoru, I still wonder how you can cast spells without having magic."
"Huh? Haven't I explained it already?"
"Yes, but you explain it in such an adult way, I feel like I'm talking to my dad or grandfather when they talk about their work."
"True, you're still a little kid."
"Hey, I'm older than you."
"Just by a week."
"But I'm still older, hmph."
Making a small pout, Satoru finds this adorable and can't resist pinching Sofi's cheeks.
"You may be older, but I'm more mature than you. Plus, I'm the one looking after you."
"That doesn't change anything, hmph."
"Haha."
The awkward atmosphere has shifted to a cheerful and fun one. Satoru's conversation becomes filled with jokes and laughter. He teases Sofi for her innocence, while Sofi just pouts but doesn't get mad.
"By the way, Satoru, what will you do once you have a grimoire?"
"To be honest, I have no idea. Because if you think about it, what good is a grimoire if I can't use magic?" - (But it might work with cursed energy)
Rubbing his chin, Satoru begins to contemplate the possibility of using a grimoire with cursed energy. Will he be able to do this, or will he just have an empty book that's useless?
"Why don't you become a magic knight?"
"Huh?"
Snapping out of his thoughts, Satoru looks at Sofi strangely at this question.
"Why do you ask that?"
"Well, because you're strong, so you could possibly become a magic knight."
"But Sofi, I don't have mana."
"But you can cast spells, like that blue orb."
"Yes, but..."
"No excuses. You'll become a magic knight."
"But I don't want to be..."
"Shush. As the older one, you'll become a magic knight and defend this village from evil and potential disasters."
"Why do I have to be a magic knight, Sofi? I just want to explore the world."
"Because I'm the older one, and if you don't, I'll reveal the secret you're hiding from your parents."
"..."
"I'll take that as a yes."
After this beautiful conversation between childhood friends and after making this beautiful promise (extortion), Satoru returns to the village and leaves Sofi at her house before walking around the village, watching all the people walking with joy from one side to another. Satoru finds this moment amusing and peaceful. He walks to a corner of the street where no one sees him, clasps his hands, and disappears from the village.
At Satoru's house, he appears a bit far from his house. He walks calmly, feeling the breeze on his face and the freshness of the air. Before entering his house, the door opens, and his dear father comes out with a very cheerful smile. He meets his son and greets him with excitement, tousling his hair with his left hand and then leaving for the village.
Satoru watches his father walk away, finding it strange to see him so happy. So he enters his house and asks his mother to find out what's happening with his father. She's equally happy but simply tells him that his father has found a very attractive job opportunity and will be working in another village in a few days.
Upon hearing this, Satoru could guess the excitement of having more money from this job, so he decided to congratulate his father on this job opportunity, but only when he returns.
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*Several hours later*
"Haha, and this is a great opportunity to earn more money and we can save it for later in case of emergencies."
"Well, Dad, what's this job that has you so excited?"
"Well, the job is to build some houses in another village by request of the capital."
"The capital cares about us, cares about the commoners."
"Believe it or not, son, they do care a little."
"A little, you said it yourself, Mom."
"And where will you be working?"
"Well, in a couple of days, I'll go to the village of Hage to build the houses."
"Village Hage, where have I heard that name?"
(Village Hage, Village Hage, that name sounds familiar)
"But the best part is that you'll come with me, Son."
"Huh? Why do I have to go?"
"Because you'll help me." (^v^)
"..."
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*Two days later*
Satoru and his father begin their journey to the village of Hage for his father's job. Initially, they wanted to go by carriage, but there was no one to take them, so they set off on foot, which would take about 2 or 3 days of walking.
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"We've arrived."
"No, son, we still have a way to go."
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"We've arrived."
"Not yet."
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"We've arrived."
"No, we haven't."
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"We're here."
"No!"
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"We're here"
"NO, SATORU, WE'VE ONLY BEEN WALKING FOR 43 MINUTES."
"But are we there yet?"
"SATORUUUUUUUU"
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"Papa"
"What?"
"This one, how do I tell you ....mmhhh"
"Just say it son"
"But are we there yet?"
"....."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, WE'RE NOT THERE YET AND STOP ASKING EVERY 5 MINUTES"
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*Two days later*
"Dad."
"Yes, Satoru, we've arrived. Now you can relax and stop asking."
"That's not what I was going to say. I just wanted to say, watch out for that kid running towards us."
"Which kid???"
*Thud*
*Falls to the ground*
"That kid."
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"Ouch, my head. Uh, who are you people?"
A small child with green eyes and disheveled, ash-blond hair, with a single tuft sticking up from the center of his head, the same child who collided with Satoru's father, raises his head to see whom he bumped into. He had been running as fast as he could to prove his strength, but he was too focused on running to notice the people in front of him.
Satoru sees this little boy and finds him quite familiar, his appearance, way of speaking, and messy hair. He feels like he's seen him before but can't recall his name. The boy sits on the ground, rubbing his forehead but still looking at these strangers to him, while Satoru's father gets up and brushes off his clothes.
"Are you okay, kid?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. But who are you? I haven't seen you here in the village before."
"Well, welcome. We're here to work on building some houses."
"Houses??? Ah, you're the people who were supposed to come. Father Orsi is waiting for you, come on, hurry."
The boy quickly gets up and runs off towards the village but turns back to see if they're following. Satoru's father starts walking with the boy, but Satoru stays behind, watching the boy.
"Hey kid, what's your name?"
"Huh? Uh... My name is Asta, and what's yours?"
(Asta, huh) - "My name is Satoru, nice to meet you, kid."
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