Impressed
"Jenna is calling for you two," she said. "She said to meet her at the dining table."
Bell and Marc exchanged confused glances.
Still, they nodded and followed her back inside the orphanage, unaware of what awaited them.
As the two of them stepped inside the orphanage, they immediately noticed that the dining table was already crowded. Jenna was there, along with Grenold and the other kids, all seated properly. However, what caught their attention the most was the unfamiliar man sitting among them.
Jenna noticed Bell and Marc standing near the entrance and gestured for them to come closer.
"Come here," she said warmly.
As they approached the table, Jenna smiled and began introducing them. Marc looked at the unfamiliar man with visible confusion before turning to Jenna.
"Um… who is he?" Marc asked.
Jenna's smile softened, and her tone became slightly serious. "He is one of the reasons why this village and the orphanage are still standing."
Marc gotten more curious.
"A few years ago," Jenna continued, "there was a group of invaders who controlled dangerous creatures. The village was on the verge of collapsing. We were completely overwhelmed."
She glanced toward the man. "Then suddenly, a random figure appeared. That man right there."
She pointed at him.
"He defeated the invaders and the creatures they controlled. After that, he even helped fund the repairs of the village. He also paid for the remodeling of this orphanage."
Marc listened intently, barely blinking.
"And do you know what he asked for in return?" Jenna added with a small laugh. "Nothing. Just some booze."
"Hey, hey, hey," the man suddenly interrupted, waving his hand. "You're making me sound way too heroic."
He leaned back slightly on his chair. "I just happened to pass by the village, and I had some spare coins on me." He paused, then thought to himself, (Those were my savings… T_T.)
[image here or on kofi]
The man then straightened up and smiled casually. "Anyways, my name's Juro. Nice to meet ya."
Marc looked completely amazed. He quickly bowed his head a little and replied, "Uh, I'm Marc, Sir Juro, and this is…"
Before he could finish, he noticed Bell had gone quiet.
Bell was staring directly at Juro.
Unlike Marc, Bell was not focused on the story. He could feel it. Even though Juro was clearly concealing it, a powerful flow of mana was leaking out ever so slightly. With Bell's experience, he did not need long to tell.
This man was strong. Very strong.
"Uh…" Marc hesitated, noticing the sudden silence.
Bell finally looked away, then glanced at Marc before turning back to Juro. "I'm Bell."
"Hoh…" Juro smirked slightly, his eyes narrowing with interest. "What catchy names you two have there."
Jenna then explained why they were called over.
She told them that for the past few days, she had been quietly peeking from the back of the orphanage, watching how hard both Bell and Marc were training. She saw them practicing mana control again and again, pushing themselves without complaining.
"I felt bad," Jenna admitted softly. "I don't know much magic myself, so I couldn't really help you two."
She then looked at Juro. "That's why I decided to ask him. I asked if he could take you both as his students and help you grow stronger."
Both Marc and Bell froze in confusion.
"Eh…?" Marc muttered, completely shocked.
Bell's eyes widened slightly, clearly not expecting this either.
Juro then crossed his arms and spoke calmly. "Although, I can't just let two random kids follow me."
He glanced at both of them. "The world out there isn't all sunshine and rainbows. It's dangerous. Before anything else, I need to know what you're capable of."
Jenna smiled confidently. "I can assure you, these two are very talented. Geniuses even, for their age."
She looked at Bell and Marc with pride. "I believe that one day, they might become people others will look up to."
"Hoh, is that so?" Juro said with interest.
He stood up from his chair and stretched. "Alright then. Let's head straight to the back, shall we?"
Marc's face instantly panicked.
"Ehhhhhhhhh???" he exclaimed. "Wait, right now? We're getting tested right now??"
Jenna only laughed softly and patted Marc's head. "Just do your best."
Bell watched the exchange quietly. In his mind, thoughts began to line up.
'I guess having a teacher wouldn't be too bad,' he thought. 'He clearly has a reputation. Me and Marc could use that to enter a school and gain recognition. And he's definitely strong…'
As Bell was lost in thought, he suddenly felt a presence above him.
He immediately looked up, startled.
Jenna was right there, smiling gently as she patted both Bell's and Marc's heads.
"You too, Bell," she said warmly. "I know you're more of the calm type, but I'll cheer you on as well. Just do your best."
Bell blinked in surprise, then slowly nodded.
"Yes," he replied quietly with a smile.
As all of them arrived at the back of the orphanage, the other kids, Grenold, and Jenna stood off to the side, watching closely. Bell, Marc, and Juro remained in the middle of the open space.
One of the kids, Nelly, tugged lightly on Grenold's shirt and looked up at him.
"What are Brother Marc and Brother Bell doing?" she asked curiously.
Grenold smiled and gently patted her head. "They're going to show us some magic."
Bell and Marc stood side by side in the center while Juro faced them with a relaxed posture.
"Don't tell me we have to fight you to show our capabilities," Bell said with a cocky tone.
Marc's eyes widened with worry. "Ehhh?? Fight?? Him?? I've never been in a fight before… but…" He glanced at Bell and clenched his fists. "If you're with me, Bell, then I'll try."
Juro tilted his head, clearly confused, then let out a short chuckle.
"Pfft, no no, kids. I won't be fighting you," he said while waving his hand. "That's some old teaching method or something."
He then continued calmly, "I meant what I said earlier. I just want to know your capabilities. So show me the best thing you can do."
"Phew…" Marc sighed in relief. "Oh, okay. So we don't have to fight you."
"Nope," Juro replied. "Just show me whatever you want to impress me."
Marc clenched his fist in excitement. "Alright, that's better."
He then looked at Bell. "Can I go first?"
Bell smiled slightly and nodded, stepping a bit to the side to give Marc space.
Juro crossed his arms, his expression calm, but inside his thoughts were different.
'I'll just pretend to be impressed,' he thought. 'Then I'll turn them down, say the path I walk is too dangerous. These kids would be better off with a proper tutor than following someone like me.'
Marc extended both of his arms forward and took a deep breath.
As he exhaled, mana surged through his arms, flowing all the way to his fingertips. Almost instantly, that mana transformed, shaping itself into elements that formed on each of his fingers.
"Hoh… so you're using mana magic," Juro exclaimed, his eyes narrowing slightly in interest.
"That explains the huge pool of mana inside him."
"That's not all, heh," Marc said confidently.
Marc focused on his inner mana and opened ten percent of it.
Instantly, the flow of mana within him became thicker and far stronger, surging through his entire body. His eyes were engulfed in a bright blue glow as mana flooded them, and his hands were wrapped in dense streams of mana while still perfectly maintaining each individual element on his fingers.
'That kid really is something,' Bell thought in amazement. 'He did all of that on his own without even asking me for help.'
"I call this form… Zen!" Marc exclaimed proudly.
The kids watching from the side stared in pure amazement. Even the adults, Jenna and Grenold, could not hide their shock at the overwhelming display of power coming from such a young boy.
Juro looked genuinely amused. "Zen, huh? That's a powerful name."
'crazy… 'Juro thought. 'He already unlocked those eyes, even if it's still in its early stage. But there's no doubt about it… those eyes are real, Pure eyes.'
At their peak potential, they were one of the many forms of magic that came from natural essence itself, that The Greatest Mage discovered. At full mastery, the user's vision became incredibly sharp, allowing extreme clarity and powerful zooming capabilities. Beyond that, Pure Eyes significantly amplified mana output, letting pure mana flow automatically through the body, constantly cleansing it of ailments and toxins.
'It's amazing,' Bell thought. 'That kid already reached the first stage… while I still haven't. Not yet.'
Bell watched Marc quietly, his gaze sharp.
"That's not even all!" Marc exclaimed happily.
He raised his hand toward the sky, preparing to release more power.
Before he could, Juro suddenly raised his hand. "That's enough. Stop there."
"Eh? Whyyyy?" Marc complained as the glowing mana faded and his form slowly returned to normal.
Juro smiled,"Let's not scare the kids and the villagers with some massive fire explosion in the sky, alright? ^^"
"Ah… sorry, I didn't think of that, hehe…" Marc said, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.
Juro laughed lightly and praised Marc for what he showed, clearly impressed.
'Looks like it's going to be a bit hard turning them down… especially if the other kid also has talent like this,' Juro thought.
As Bell walked forward for his turn, he raised his hand and gave Marc a high five.
"Nice one," Bell said calmly.
Marc grinned widely and hurried to the side, his eyes shining with excitement as he waited to see what Bell would show.
"Unfortunately, I don't have those eyes like him yet," Bell said, a confident smirk forming on his face, "but I can still show you something impressive."
'He said yet… ' Juro thought. 'So he's certain he'll unlock those eyes in the future. That kind of confidence isn't empty.'
"Alright," Juro said, crossing his arms. "Show me what you've got."
Bell closed his eyes.
Then, in the next instant, he opened them and looked directly at Juro.
A violent burst of wind ruptured outward.
"Kyaaaa! What was that?!" Jenna shouted out in concern as she and Grenold quickly stepped in front of the kids, shielding their eyes from the sudden blast of dust and wind.
Marc, who was standing nearby, got blown off balance and fell to the ground.
"Eh?! What just happened?!" he exclaimed, completely confused.
Juro's eyes widened, his hair blown wildly by the pressure of the wind. A smile slowly spread across his face.
Bell exhaled spoke calmly, "Well? How was that?"
"Hahahahaha!" Juro burst out laughing as he brushed dust off his jacket. "You can use mana imagination?! That's one hell of a tough kid you are."
Mana Imagination.
A technique created by none other than The Greatest Mage himself.
A rare form of imaginary magic.
Mana Imagination creates a fake visual and sensation of an attack for the one it is targeted at. It does not cause real physical damage, but the sensation, pressure, and danger feel completely real to the target. It is mostly used to intimidate students, warn enemies, or test opponents without needing to perform any actual physical movement or release real attacks.
For mana imagination to work, the user must possess mana stronger than the target, or at the very least match the same mana level frequency. If the mana levels do not align, the target will feel nothing at all. Because of this, it takes an enormous amount of mental strength, focus, and intellect to even produce a single imaginary attack with perfect accuracy.
"Hah… I knew he'd counter it…"
Bell thought to himself as he quietly caught his breath.
"I used mana imagination and aimed directly for his neck using wind magic imagination. In a split second, he immediately countered it with magic imagination wind slice…"
Bell clenched his hand slowly.
"And his mana is far higher and stronger than mine…"
Bell's eyes narrowed as he recalled the moment.
"So the only way for me to even make him feel the attack was to pinpoint the lowest frequency of mana flowing around his body. The moment I found it, I immediately released all of my mana at once just to match that low mana frequency of his…"
A faint exhaustion showed on Bell's face as a thin layer of sweat formed on his forehead.
"That alone almost drained me…"
Bell straightened his posture, forcing himself to remain calm and composed despite the strain.
"But at least… it worked."