I finish organizing the bookshelf. Took longer than I thought. Most of the stuff in this place is Cassian's. Weapons, books, random junk that somehow still looks expensive.
"Thanks for the stuff, Cassian," I mutter, dragging my feet toward the dining table. I sit at the end, facing the wall like some loner in an old tavern.
I take a bite of bread. It's dry. The barbecue helps. Chewing feels like the only noise in this whole damn house.
---
"I should start training tomorrow... pushing my body now would be dumb."
I talk to myself again while cleaning the table. Old habit.
I stack the chairs, set everything neat, then head upstairs. The house is quiet—too quiet. Each step creaks like it's trying to scream.
When I reach the second floor, I check out the rooms. No clue which one was Cassian's, or if he even had a guest room. I just pick the biggest one. Safe bet.
Inside, there's a desk, a shelf, and a half-cracked window letting in the wind. I sit on the old chair in front of the desk, flipping through a notebook. Just a list of things I'd finished. I read it for no reason, then close it and toss it into the drawer.
I pull out a book on the basics of magic. Dusty. Pages slightly yellow. The kind of book you'd read in your first year of magic studies.
"Seriously... I can't believe I have to study this crap again."
I groan, flipping through the pages one by one. Even though I know the methods, I need to understand the structure, the steps, the why. That's what matters now. My instincts are still sharp, but everything else? Rusted.
I finish the whole book in one sitting. Memorized. Every diagram, every rune structure, every flow chart.
I push the chair back and stand. The lights flicker a bit as I turn them off. I walk toward the bed. It's smaller than what I'm used to. Cheaper. Feels like sleeping in a guest room with no heat.
"This still doesn't feel like my place..." I mutter, lying down and pulling the blanket over me. The moonlight slips through the window, pale and quiet.
I glance up at the ceiling.
"...The stars are shining brighter tonight."
I raise my hand, staring at it.
"One day... I'll reach my old level. No matter what."
My eyes close. Sleep pulls me under like a wave I can't fight.
---
The sun hits my face like a slap. I grunt, squinting as I sit up.
"Ngh..."
My stomach growls loud. Like a damn monster.
"Guess I'm starving," I say, dragging myself down the stairs.
I throw together a basic meal. Bread, eggs, some leftover meat. Not fancy, but it works. I eat in silence, finishing the plate clean. After pushing the chair in, I head to the basement.
"Time to check my condition... finally."
The ladder's cold as I climb down. The basement's darker than I remember. Just me, stone walls, and dust.
I sit down in the middle. Legs crossed. Hands on my knees. I take a deep breath.
Focus.
Most people didn't use this method before. Sitting still, feeling the body, channeling mana. But that changed around 1350 years ago. A bunch of mages figured out a method that lets you scan your own body more precisely. Safer. Smoother. More efficient.
I draw mana from the air. Slowly. Letting it pass through my skin, flow into my veins, and trail along the mana pathways. Each pulse feels like heat crawling under my skin.
"It's hot..." I whisper. Doesn't matter how many times you do this. Mana always burns a little.
I let the flow continue. Steady. Focused. Mapping everything inside.
Then—
"Huh...? What's this?"
Something's... off.
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End of Chapter
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