Morning arrived quietly.
Too quietly.
Reeve opened his eyes and immediately felt it.
Something heavy pressed against his chest—not pain, not fear—
but pressure, like invisible water filling the room.
"…So this is my mana," he muttered.
Before he could move, the pressure spiked.
The wooden floor beneath his bed cracked.
"Up."
Lunareth's voice cut through the room.
Reeve turned. She stood near the door, already dressed, expression serious.
"Training starts now."
Training Ground — Outside Eldmere
They stood on an open field far from the city.
Grass waved gently in the wind.
Lunareth raised her hand.
"Close your eyes."
Reeve did.
"Do not release mana. Do not suppress it.
Just feel."
At first—nothing.
Then—
It came.
A flood.
Mana surged inside Reeve like a storm trapped in a glass bottle.
It pushed, twisted, demanded to burst free.
His breathing grew uneven.
The grass beneath his feet began to wilt.
"Focus," Lunareth said calmly.
"Mana is not strength. It is intent given form."
Reeve clenched his fists.
"I don't know how to shape it."
"That's because you're treating it like a weapon," she replied.
"Stop trying to command it."
"…Then what do I do?"
"Listen."
Inside Reeve — Nyx
[System — Nyx]
"…This is difficult for you."
"You noticed?" Reeve replied internally, forcing a smile.
[Nyx]
"You generate mana instinctively.
But you lack structure."
"Teach me."
There was a pause—longer than usual.
[Nyx]
"…Very well."
The sensation shifted.
Instead of pressure pushing outward, Reeve felt his mana circle inward, forming slow, controlled currents—like rivers instead of waves.
"Don't fight it," Nyx whispered.
"Give it a path."
Back to the Field
The grass stopped dying.
The air stilled.
Lunareth's eyes widened slightly.
"…You changed the flow."
Reeve exhaled deeply.
"It feels like holding my breath… but with my soul."
"That's correct," Lunareth said.
"Mage mana is breath.
Yours is gravity."
She raised her hand and released a small pulse of mana toward him.
"Now—deflect."
Reeve reacted instinctively—
Mana surged.
BOOM.
The ground exploded.
Dust filled the air.
Kaelith, watching from afar, clicked his tongue.
"He's going to destroy the field."
Elaryn smiled faintly.
"…But he didn't lose control."
Second Attempt
Reeve steadied himself.
Sweat dripped down his face.
"Again," he said.
This time, when Lunareth attacked—
He didn't block.
He redirected.
The mana bent.
The pulse slid past him like water around stone.
Silence followed.
Lunareth lowered her hand.
"…You're learning faster than you should."
Reeve laughed weakly.
"I nearly passed out."
"That's because your clothes are still consuming mana," she reminded him.
"You're training with a handicap."
"…Great."
A Warning
Nyx's voice echoed softly.
[Nyx]
"Reeve."
"What?"
"…Do not rush."
"For once," Reeve replied,
"I'm not."
The system went quiet.
Lunareth turned away.
"That's enough for today," she said.
"If you continue, the seal may destabilize."
Reeve nodded.
As they walked back, he looked at his hands.
They no longer trembled.
Not because he was stronger—
But because he was in control.
Far Away
Deep underground—
A symbol pulsed faintly.
Cracked.
But not broken.
A voice echoed in the dark.
"…He has begun shaping it."