The table was piled high with an array of dishes, their enticing aromas filling the air. I glanced at Kaelon, who was tearing through his food with such zeal it was as if he hadn't eaten in days.
"Slow down would you, they're not going to disappear ya know."
"How could I not?!" he retorted between bites. "I'm so envious of you, having your sister cook these for you every day!"
My sister, not missing the opportunity, decided to take a jab at me.
"At least Kaelon appreciates my cooking, unlike a certain someone."
I rolled my eyes, leaning back in my chair.
"So Kaelon, why not talk a bit about yourself?" my sister asked, shifting her attention back to Kaelon
Kaelon froze, seemingly caught off guard by the question. He quickly swallowed his food and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
"There's nothing much. I grew up an orphan, living on the streets and scraping by with whatever I could find."
An orphan, huh? I found it hard to believe that someone as lively and cheerful as him had such a rough childhood.
A faint smile could be seen on Kaelon's face, he continued, "The orphanage caretakers found me and took me in, along with other kids who didn't have anywhere else to go."
Elysia looks at Kaelon with empathy in her eyes
"I see. That must have been rough for you"
Kaelon shook his head
"Nah it all good, those kids at the orphanage are practically my family right now."
A brief silence hung in the room
Realizing the atmosphere had gotten heavy, Kaelon quickly mutter an apology
"Ah, sorry if I have ruined the mood."
"Oh, don't worry about it,"
"I should be the one apologizing for asking about your past."
The rest of the night proceeded as normal, as Kaelon shifted his attention back to the dishes in front of him, happily gobbling them down. Once we had finished, I helped clean up the dishes while Kaelon prepared to leave.
"Hey, Kaelon, I think you should just stay over for the night. It's getting pretty late out."
Kaelon quickly shook his head. "I can't. I've already overstayed your hospitality."
"It's fine, don't worry about it. My little brother won't mind it either"
Elysia reassured him while looking at me.
I was about to protest, but I decided against it after seeing the look my sister gave me.
"Just listen to my sister and stay for the night. Don't worry about it."
Kaelon hesitated for a moment before letting out a soft sigh
"Alright, if you insist, I appreciate your hospitality."
"Great!" Elysia clapped her hands together, "You can just sleep in Caelith room."
Elysia turned and headed to grab some extra blankets, leaving Caelith and Kaelon alone.
"You got a great sister, you know that."
"Yeah, I know." My expression remained unreadable.
It was late at night, I lay in my bed, staring at the ceiling. The soft glow of moonlight filtered through the window, casting a gentle light across the room.
There are four months left before the Academy starts, and I need to prevent my sister's death during this time.
"Can't sleep? Something on your mind?" Kaelon asked, lying on a spare mattress next to my bed.
"Hm? It's nothing."
Kaelon shifts his body to his side, facing toward me.
"Hey, aren't you excited that we're going to the Academy in 4 months?"
"I guess so."
"Oh come on what with that reaction!" he exclaimed
"Can't you at least show a bit more enthusiasm on that face of yours?"
"I don't know what you're talking about"
"You're no fun, you know that?" he retorted
Suddenly, his trademark grin spread across his face. I could almost see the gears turning in his head, knowing it was bound to be something stupid again.
"Well, now that I'm a mage, do you think girls would start falling for me?"
I just shift my body to the other side, not wanting to continue on with his shenanigans
"Yeah, good luck with that."
'Hey! What is that supposed to mean?"
I didn't respond, just closed my eyes and let out a quiet sigh.
The next morning, Kaelon asked if I was going to the instructors to awaken my core. Since I had already awakened my core, I quickly came up with an excuse.
"I'll go later, got something to take care of today, you go ahead"
"Alright, but don't cry when you get left behind"
He laughed, giving me a casual wave before heading out.
I made my way back to the secluded place in the woods, passing by the classes set up by the instructors and making sure I don't get noticed.
There are numerous ways for one to progress their mana core, either through absorbing the surrounding mana throughout the body reinforcing their core, which is a slow process. The faster way would just be absorbing the mana from crystal drop by Wraith, which are creatures that are basically manifestations of concentrated mana.
Out of the four paths, I chose to stick with Inferno Mastery, the same path as my previous life. I needed strength quickly, and relying on what I already knew felt like the best choice.
The mana that mages use is different from the mana that make up the world.
Mages use their cores to transform the abundant raw mana into a specific mana tied to their path. In my case, I need to first convert the mana inside my core into Ignis—fire mana.
I sat down and began focusing on the mana currently in my core. I feel my body getting hotter, as heat begins to escape from my mouth.
After a while, the mana inside my core has fully assimilated itself to Ignis.
With that, I was once again an Inferno mage. I stood up, raising my arm toward a tree. I felt my mana converge in front of my hand, as I mutter the incantation.
Flame orb
A ball of flame forms in my hand. I aim it toward the tree. The flaming ball surged forward, losing momentum as it traveled before eventually fizzling out and leaving only a slight char.
I sighed. In my previous life, I could have reduced this entire forest to cinders with a snap of my fingers. But that power is long gone, and all I can do now is climb back.
"I should use my remaining time to reinforce my core."
I suddenly hear the ominous sound of a clock ticking, like when I first died, clutching my head as a surge of pain envelops me before I lose consciousness.