After hastily making his way back home, Ken finally managed to close the door with a sigh. A little too much had happened in just the span of a few minutes, so his brain was taking a moment to catch up to the day's events.
"Ha ha ha!" Rex's voice rang out from somewhere behind Ken, "You will never catch me!"
Turning towards the mouse, Ken noticed Dex running away from Dex and Fitz who were currently trying to catch up to him, presumably playing tag. It looked to Ken that his furred friends hadn't noticed the light, or just didn't care. Still, he was happy to see them once again.
A smile painted his face, grateful for the opportunity to come back home safely. However, his smile faltered when Fitz almost caught up to the brown mouse, causing the one-eyed rodent to scream "Ahhh Haste!" Suddenly, the mouse shot forward, launching himself straight into the wall.
Everyone in the room stopped in shock with wide eyes. Rex groaned as he began to stand, rubbing his little head. "Ow, that really hurt."
Kenneth stared at Rex in bewilderment, "Were you always able to use magic?"
The one-eyed mouse tilted his head slightly, until the realization dawned on him. "Holy shit!" Rex exclaimed, "I've never used any magic before! Haste!" Rex dashed forward once again at a speed that shouldn't be possible for him.
As Ken watched the mouse continuously dash throughout the room, Dex began to speak, "Haste!" This time, the white mouse began to dash around the room at a speed comparable to Rex's.
'What the hell is going on?' Ken thought. He then turned to Fitz, who shrugged and then tried the spell on his own. Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, Fitz also managed to use the skill. With three rodents screaming haste at the top of their lungs, the other rats in the house began to investigate the noise.
They too began to try using the spell, which ended in success. However, as the animals in the house kept running around using the spell, Ken began to quickly feel sluggish. He quickly realized that his furred friends weren't using their mana, but his own.
"Stop!" Ken exclaimed as sweat began to form on his brow. All the animals quickly came to a halt and turned towards him. "I don't know how, but you guys are draining my mana. Last I checked none of you guys were able to use magic. Why did you try to use the haste spell Rex?"
The mouse in question shrugged, "I didn't want to get caught. Something just told me to try it out. I didn't think it'd actually work." Ken sighed, thinking back to what the Jackalope said. It had told him to use his power as a what? An Inheritor? He could only use Haste, and now, the animals he considered friends could use it. What was the reason for that?
Questions filled Ken's mind as he tried to focus. A certain memory then entered his mind. It was when he first met Rex and Dex. He recalled when he had given them names, and the three of them had a strange glow emit from them. Then their strange transformation shortly after. The same had happened with Fitz and the rats as well.
Ken had forgotten about those events, considering they hadn't taken in any more animals. However, if he was able to name an animal, and then they could use his own skill, that would be groundbreaking.
Magical beasts did exist in this world, but ordinary rodents shouldn't be able to use magic or aura whatsoever. Being able to share your skill or magic with mana less beings was unheard of.
An idea began to form in Ken's mind as a smile formed on his face. If he could not only talk to animals but also give them the ability to use his skills and magic, then things could be even better for all of them.
"Guys," Ken began, "Try to not use the spell too much. It's wearing me down and I'd like to not be drained of mana constantly. A collection of groans and complaints reached his ears, causing him to roll his eyes.
"Look, only use it for emergencies. I need to figure this whole thing out first," Ken said firmly. If he was to listen to the words of the Jackalope, then he'd need to understand the power he has. The way the mythical beast had also told him that he'd need to be stronger for the near future also made Ken feel a bit uneasy.
Not wanting to take any chances, he'd try to get a grasp of what he could fully do. "I'm going to need to go somewhere really quick," Ken said as he began to make his way up the stairs. Bathing quickly to remove the grime and dried blood on him and putting on a fresh set of clothes, Ken grabbed every last coin he had and made his way outside once again.
///
Ken sighed as he stepped out of the shop. In one hand was an empty bag that used to be full of coins. In his other hand was a skill book for the spell 'Fireball'. It wasn't a particularly strong spell, but it was good enough for now.
'Consume' Ken thought, and a fluctuation of mana began to emit from the book and towards Ken's core. After a few moments, the book began to gray and slowly turn to ash, floating away with the slight breeze.
Opening his eyes, Ken began his trek to the outside of the capital. It wasn't exactly a good idea to use offensive type magic in the middle of a busy street. It seemed much livelier than usual to Ken. 'Must be because of the Jackalope,' he thought. It wasn't exactly a common occurrence for something like that to happen, so it must have really shaken those who had witnessed it or the golden light.
Ken soon made it to one of the gates that led to the outside of the capital. When he tried to cross the threshold, he found himself being blocked by two guards. "Um, excuse me?" Ken said politely. Neither guard moved, instead saying in unison, "Come with us."
A bad feeling began to form in the pit of Ken's stomach as he started to be pushed by one of the guards. "I don't think I committed any crimes." Ken tried to say. While it was true he hadn't personally committed any crimes, he was still guilty by association. But he was sure the guards didn't know that.
"Just shut up and follow us, otherwise we'll cuff ya and drag ya along," one guard said firmly. Ken just sighed and began to follow the guard ahead of him.
After an hour or so, Ken found himself in a large room that had about a dozen other people in it, all of whom were either sitting or standing. A row of chairs sat along a stone wall, occupied by five other people. Opposite of them was a row of guards dutifully watching the white haired men across from them.
Ken grimaced at the site. He had an inkling as to what was going on currently. "Sit," One guard pointed to an empty chair. Following the guards orders, Ken took a seat next to an elderly man who was clearly unhappy with the current situation. The man's arms were crossed as a large frown painted his face.
"I've been here for an hour now," the man began to speak, "I went to go get flowers for my wife's birthday, when suddenly I'm grabbed and forced to come here without so much as a reason why. Can one of you explain what crime I committed or why I'm here?"
Before one of the guards could berate the man for his rude tone, a deep voice rang out from the entrance of the room. "You are here because the king has ordered me to investigate a matter which concerns the safety of the Kingdom and its citizens. All I need is to ask you some questions individually and then you can be on your way."
The person who everyone turned their attention to was a large man in a white and blue military styled suit. Medals and ribbons were displayed on the man's chest clearly showing his accolades and achievements.
The man's long black hair was in a ponytail that fell to the middle of his back. A neatly trimmed beard and a serious expression sat on the man's face. The man's height almost had the top of his head touching the top of the doorframe. The man's shoulders were so wide he practically had to turn sideways in order to walk through the door. The person who was seemingly in charge was utterly massive.
It was clear to everyone that this man was truly a warrior. The agitated man from before no longer had a look of annoyance, but a grimace. "Y-yes sir. Of course. Anything for the safety of the kingdom." The man stuttered.
"Thank you for your compliance. Now, I am General Hunt. I will interview each of you one by one. You can come first, sir." The General gestured to the older man who had been talking a moment ago.
Nodding, the man stood and followed General Hunt through a doorway nearby. After the door closed, an uncomfortable silence settled into the room.
Ken shuffled uncomfortably in his seat. He was sure they were looking for him, considering the other men next to him. But he wasn't sure how they were going to react once they found out who he was. Unsure if he should try to lie his way out, Ken sat in silence trying to figure out what he should do. This day was certainly a very long one.