The rest of the week turned to a blurry mess in Valar’s mind. Every day consisted of the same schedule: Breakfast, lecture, lunch, life magic class, dinner and sleep. Every single gap in this schedule was filled with relentless training. Valar found himself training after waking up, before sleeping, in class, outside of class and even during lunch.

  All of this training wasn’t on the rune of life. Contrary to Valar’s initial expectations, he found himself enjoying reading about life magic and other general subjects immensely. Memorizing the rune was still his primary goal for the moment, but he could do other things too.

  Other things meaning training and learning, not actual free time.

  Every single time Valar stopped his furious efforts, his anxiousness and pain arose from the depths of his mind and soul. "I’ll fall behind", "I will amount to nothing" and "I’ll die weak" were common thoughts in Valar’s mind when he stopped his training. That only led to him picking up the book once more.

  The lessons themselves were interesting but nothing groundbreaking was introduced. A few days were spent on the runes that governed the shape of spells, and the life magic classes continued on the rune of life. Surprisingly, Julie Livren progressed fast in that regard too. Not with blazing speed like Valar, but still holding pace to complete the rune in a month or less.

  Elaine was understandably proud of her niece, but she endeavoured to help everyone equally during the classes. At the end of the first school week, on 4th day, over half of the class had graduated from pen and paper and had moved onto drawing the rune onto air with their mana instead.

  The professor warned Valar to not draw the rune on his skin just yet. Drawing it in the air was relatively risk free, even if he drew it horribly, but drawing it on the skin… That put it in contact with his magical pathways. Even the smallest error could cause disaster.

  The consequences of an error in drawing a rune or spellform on skin depended on the affinity that was utilized. Valar’s life magic could cause growths, mutation, disease or even turn his own blood poisonous. In some cases, nothing happened at all, but nobody was stupid enough to take the risk?

  Fire mages could burn themselves, water mages could dilute their own blood or blow up their appendages. Wind mages could rip themselves to shreds and earth mages could even grow rocks inside their own body. All in all, spells of every single affinity could misfire if they were cast carelessly, and the consequences were dire each time without fail.

  The only two life mages who needed that warning were Valar and Julie. They were both at the stage where they were tempted to start drawing runes on their skin, although Valar was still well ahead of the girl. Part of why Julie was so far in the first place was her willingness to train with him.

  The others did not enjoy Valar’s presence. They congregated away from the thirteen-year-old and studied between themselves, avoiding Valar at all costs. His progress was disheartening to them, and they wished to not be part of it. Julie had thought differently.

  Why avoid the untiring student who progressed at blazing speed when you could join them in study? On the third day of their academy week, Julie joined Valar in his corner of the classroom.

  She drew the rune in the air fifteen minutes later.

  Still, no one else joined their study. Brenda, the dark skinned girl who had talked during the first class, almost came over on 4th day, but ended up staying in the bigger group instead. That was fine with Valar.

  Julie was nice to him. Valar recognized that her motivation for being nice was at least somewhat selfish, but that didn’t matter in his mind. She worked hard and progressed because of it; Valar’s occasional help only accelerated that development. They chatted often during the lessons, and Valar’s anxiousness surprisingly didn't rise during that time. Even if he wasn’t actively working, their discussions revolved around magic and the learning process.

  It was useful. He was being useful.

  Valar didn’t learn much of the young woman who studied with him. She was a Livren and Elaine was her aunt. She was seventeen and had awakened a little over two months ago. That’s where Valar’s knowledge of her stopped. As the woman was a noble, he could assume more, but he didn't want to shift his opinion of the woman based on guesswork.

  Elaine estimated that Valar could possibly draw the rune of life at the end of the next week if he continued at his current pace. He was far into the intricacies of the rune and was pretty sure that he could even draw its shape in his sleep.

  All in all, the four days of study were a time of progress for Valar. He felt that he was moving forward at a good pace, and the pain in his soul didn’t grow. He managed to hold it back with his progress…

  Valar wasn’t the most accomplished student on paper. The two savants had apparently learned their first rune already, but that was to be expected. Tracking the student’s progress was also difficult when some had already started before the semester, training with tutors and family members from the moment they awakened.

  Still, those who could successfully draw a rune on their skin were few. The Wendir fire mage who had threatened Zeke and Valar was one of them, but Valar had found out that he had awakened over half a year ago. That only meant that he had had more time than others, not that he was more talented.

  In fact, Valar was sure that the young Wendir scion was one of the least talented people he had ever met. He had seen the fire mage demonstrating his ‘great power’ on the hallways. When Valar looked at the fire, he felt that it was just wrong. Profoundly wrong.

  The fire didn’t feel like it had any power behind it. It was a measly flame that Valar wanted to snuff out, but even he realized that that would be stupid. Let the man play with his candle.

  If Valar hadn’t sworn himself to secrecy about the fire in his soul, he would have shown that excuse of a mage some real fire. It just felt so wrong… wrong… Wrong.

  Valar cursed loudly in his shower. He was leaning on the bathroom wall, breathing heavily. The boy could see his reflection on the glazed tiles of the wall, and his eyes were bright orange, bordering on red. The shower was more steamy than usual too…

  I lost control? I lost control over that shitty matchstick? Valar had unintentionally drawn out the tiniest bit of his own fire, and his body felt that.

  The amount that had emerged from his body had been infinitesimally small. Still, Valar felt pain radiating out from his core as his body protested against the act of magic. I need to figure out this fast… Losing control like this could lead to all kinds of trouble. I failed…

  Valar’s tears joined the stream of water rolling down his thin body. His small failure felt soulcrushing. All my work, all my training… Still, I fail like this.

  Valar’s 5th day morning shower was a long one…

  After his shower, Valar went to grab breakfast. The plan was to eat as fast as he could and return to training. Every minute spent not training was a wasted one in his mind, but he still had to eat. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, Zeke was about to destroy Valar’s plan completely.

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  “Good morning, Valar. You’re coming to the city with me today!”

  “Wha-... No!” Valar practically yelled. “I need to train, Zeke. I already told you that yesterday.”

  “Train this, train that! You need a day of relaxation and good food, not more training!”

  “I’ll be left behind!” a tone of panic entered Valar’s voice.

  “You. Are. Already. Ahead,” Zeke punctuated his words with pokes on Valar’s chest. “In fact, you are wildly ahead of most of the academy! I can guarantee you that most students are heading to their families or the city today, and so will you. You need more energy, and studying is only draining that!”

  “But… Studying. I planned to train the whole day…”

  “And now you’re not doing that. I consider you a friend, and friends tour the city together, alright?”

  That same back and forth continued for the whole breakfast, but Zeke didn’t give up. He stubbornly insisted that Valar was coming to the city with him and even followed him to his room. Zeke’s stubborn energy eventually won out, leading to the current situation.

  “Did you have any plans?” Valar asked as the pair stood at the academy entrance.

  “Nah. I didn’t have time to plan because you were so stubbornly refusing to come.”

  “Huh… So what do we do?”

  “We could head to the city proper, away from the noble areas?”

  “You know what… I think I’d like that.”

  In his furious training, Valar had forgotten that he actually wanted to explore Rhondell in earnest. The rune of life and the several books in his room had taken all his time and he hadn’t had time to consider actually relaxing. Strangely, the anxiousness or pain in his soul didn’t rise to the front either. Spending time with Zeke… It was nice.

  The pair’s walk to the more southern parts of the city was a relatively long one. During the hour of walk, Zeke and Valar chatted about the past week, surrounding city and even their childhood. Zeke was much more vocal about that though, as Valar didn’t want to reminisce on those years of his life in the least.

  Zeke Forger was the son of a blacksmith in Rosthorn, the biggest city on Leoria’s western border. His mother worked in the smithy too, and their business had been a relatively good one. His family wasn’t rich, but they didn’t have to worry about food on their table or a roof on their heads.

  The young man had been born at a good time, as he hadn’t had to experience a single major Khateshi attack. The last offensive had happened just a year before he was born, and the border had been as peaceful as it could be after that. The empire of Khatesh only attacked once a decade or two, so the border city had been peaceful for Zeke’s whole life.

  He had grown up in the smithy, and like most parents, his father’s plan had been to give the smithy to his son after he became an adult. Most awakened as affinityless, so he had prepared for solely that possibility. Still, his parents had always had a lingering suspicion that their boy was different.

  Zeke had been enamoured with the concept of energy from a very young age. He had basked in the sunlight and watched the forge with bright eyes every single day. That had led his parents to believe that he could possibly awaken as a fire mage. They had held out hope for that possibility but hadn’t told their son about that wish. They didn’t want to cause him disappointment when he awakened as affinityless instead.

  When the seventeen-year-old Zeke awakened, his parents had initially assumed just that. Their boy hadn’t awakened to the fire affinity, and their smithy would have a worthy successor. That turned out to be false very quickly.

  For the start, Zeke’s eyes glowed blue when he inspected people around him. That wasn’t anything special—the boy had blue eyes anyways! His raving however… That was different.

  The boy had always been interested in energy. Now that he was a man, that interest turned much more manic. Eventually, after a long rant about the magnetical energy in the air, his parents had finally taken him to the infirmary.

  They were exceedingly worried. Had something gone wrong in their son’s head? He was becoming an abyss-cursed lunatic! The possibility of their son being an abstract mage didn’t even enter their mind. Abstract mages were so rare that even the possibility felt impossible.

  The life mages of the infirmary had initially thought the same way. They didn’t find anything wrong with their spells though, so a gold rank healer came to the city with the next possible caravan. That was when the mystery was solved.

  “He walked into the room, looked at me and started laughing,” Zeke recounted. “The gold rank mage had seen through me instantly!”

  “What happened next?” Valar asked curiously. It was a good story, and he wanted to hear more!

  “The next week was total chaos, I tell you! Representatives from every academy came to visit our smithy. It brought so much business to our doorstep! My parents were ecstatic!”

  “Why did you end up choosing the royal academy? I’m sure there were many other choices available?”

  “Oh there were! It’s a bit embarrassing to admit, but I chose the royal academy purely because of the representative…”

  “Who did they send? Was it one of the professors?”

  “No… The representative was a knight. The king sent Dervish to get me!”

  “Wait.. who’s Dervish? Valar asked confusedly.

  “You.. You don’t know about the fallingstar knights?” Zeke’s tone was incredulous. “They’re the kingdom’s best, only sent out when there’s no hope of victory without them! Dervish is maybe the best duelist in the nation! I’m told that she could hold her own against even the princes!”

  “Why haven’t I heard of these fallingstar knights? They sound cool!”

  Zeke shrugged. “I’m guessing that Lyndale never needs their services. The residents of Rosthorn get to see one of them every few years. They’re absolute stars to us! I couldn’t say no to her when she recommended the royal academy. I folded instantly…” the young man scratched his neck in embarrassment.

  “I think I’d like to see these knights one day,” Valar mused. “They sound like powerful people.”

  “True… True,” Zeke muttered. “But you wouldn’t want to end up in a situation where one of them is needed… Trust me on that.”

  The pair ended up sightseeing in the city proper for a few hours. They ate some meat pastries for lunch and continued walking around. Valar ended up having loads of fun that day.

  Eventually, Zeke needed to leave to meet his family. They had moved with him because the royal family had offered them a nice house in one of the upper districts. His parents wouldn’t need to work a single second in their life. They had nurtured a strategic asset, and that was enough for the kingdom.

  When Valar asked what Zeke meant with his words, the energetic man shook his head ruefully. “I can’t really tell you much, but let’s say that the royal family believes that I have a lot of potential to be useful in the higher ranks. They are investing in me.”

  Just like Viktor is investing in me? He does have an abstract affinity, and it seems to have pretty amazing uses. Getting such an affinity can uplift your entire family just like that?

  The abstract mage said his goodbyes to Valar after that. They had walked back to the noble district during their discussion, so Zeke didn’t have a long way to head to his parents. Valar wouldn’t probably see him the coming day either, as Zeke wanted to spend his time with his family.

  Regardless of where Zeke had gone, Valar was now alone in the city and he wasn’t sure what to do. A nagging feeling in Valar’s core told him that his soul desired more training, but Valar was still a bit hungry. Luckily, Valar knew a place where he could grab food and still return to the academy before day turned to night.

  The Iron Owl.

  The food there was delicious and affordable. Even if Valar had way too much money, he wouldn’t start spending it like crazy. The orphan boy knew how hard getting money could be, and he wouldn’t use it recklessly.

  Valar checked both his pockets and coin pouch. The overwhelming majority of his funds were in the coin pouch, but that didn’t mean his pockets were empty. Well… They were almost empty.

  A single dirt-covered copper coin lay in Valar’s pocket. Is this from when we entered the city? Arthur tossed this on the ground, if I remember right. It didn’t matter. That small coin could stay in Valar’s pocket. He wouldn’t toss the dirty coin in his pouch, and the coin rested nicely against his thigh anyway. Why am I even thinking about this? The silly copper coin doesn’t matter in the slightest!

  Needless to say, Valar had more than enough money to visit The Iron Owl. The way wasn’t long either. He snaked through the noble district’s streets, eventually reaching his destination. After a small hesitant wait, he opened the door and walked in. Valar was due for a good meal and some relaxation.