Lucas was still smiling ear to ear when he made his way back into the Stella family’s home. He was still high off the feeling of his own mana as it flowed through his body. It was a hard feeling to describe when he thought about it. The closest comparison was that the sensation was almost like the feeling of an ocean flowing within his body. The comparison felt right, given the sea of darkness he sank into during his meditation.

  “Someone looks happy.”

  Lissa’s words made Lucas realize that he wasn’t the only one awake anymore, and he looked around to spot both Fay and her parents sitting around the kitchen table, eating some breakfast. All at once, the smell of freshly made pancakes and syrup hit him and Lucas’ stomach audibly growled. His cheeks went a bit red when Fay giggled and Magnus laughed.

  “Come and eat, Lucas. It sounds like you could really use some food,” Lissa suggested, smiling at the teen and gesturing towards the open seat at the table where a plate of pancakes already waited.

  “Thank you,” He said as he quickly took the offered seat and dug in.

  For a few minutes, the table was quiet, with everyone enjoying their breakfast. But eventually, the silence was broken as Magnus put his fork down and looked at Lucas from across the table.

  “You were out there a while, weren’t you, kid?” From the man’s tone, it was more of a statement than a question.

  “I couldn’t sleep,” Lucas admitted, focusing on the plate of pancakes when he saw the concerned look that Fay was giving him. “So, I wanted to get some fresh air, and then I figured I would try those mana exercises again. I didn’t realize how long I was doing it, though.”

  Magnus just looked at the teen, one eyebrow raised. He didn’t ask any more questions about why he’d been up so early, though, and Lucas was thankful for that small mercy.

  “You managed to do it, then? You found your mana?” He asked.

  “Yes,” Lucas smiled as he took the moment to feel the warm sensation of the mana within his body. “It feels… Amazing. It’s hard to describe it.”

  Both Magnus and Lissa were both grinning at Lucas at that point, and Fay was beaming at him with the largest smile he’d ever seen from the blonde.

  “It tends to be like that, yeah,” Magnus chuckled. “It feels different for everyone, but it’s always an experience.”

  “But that means that we can teach you how to actually use magic, now!” Fay chimed in, unable to hold back her excitement anymore as she practically jumped out of her seat.

  “Breakfast first, Fay,” Lissa chided, though she was still smiling as she watched her daughter. “Then, you can go and train.”

  “But-”

  “No. You know the rules. Eat your breakfast, clean up, then you can go train,” Lissa firmly shot down Fay’s argument before the younger girl could even try.

  “Yes, mom.”

  Lucas barely managed to muffle his laughter as he watched Fay sink back into her chair, looking like a scolded puppy.

  “Fay can run you through a few more exercises this morning. Now that you can feel the mana inside your body, she’ll teach you how to feel and draw in mana from the world around you,” Magnus explained between bites of his own breakfast.

  “What exactly will that do? I already have mana in my body, right?”

  “The mana inside your body isn’t an infinite resource, Lucas,” Lissa explained. “You have a limited amount, though some people have larger pools to draw from than others. Your body passively absorbs mana from the air to refill your own reserves, but there are ways to speed that up by focusing and actively drawing in that mana.”

  “It makes it easier to train,” Fay added. “Instead of having to wait hours for your mana to refill, you can cut down the time a ton and get back to training with your magic.”

  Now, Lucas was a bit confused. “So, the mana I feel in my body and the mana in the air are different?”

  “Not exactly,” Magnus replied. “Mana is still mana, no matter what form it takes. But it does become a bit different once you absorb it. Our affinities naturally alter the mana we absorb in a way that makes it easier for us to use it for our magics. It’s why learning a new type of magic can be so hard, your mana is already aligned with your affinities, not a different type of magic.”

  “That… Makes sense,” Lucas replied, thinking it over as he took another bite of his pancakes.

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Now, as I was saying, Fay can teach you some more mana exercises this morning. I’ll be busy with the shop, so after lunch, Lissa will be taking you to meet with someone. I reached out and asked some questions, and it turns out that the town’s local alchemist also has an affinity for Illusions.”

  “You mean Granny Wren?” Fay asked, looking pretty surprised.

  “Yea, I was surprised too when I found out. She doesn’t use it much, so most people focus on the more obvious Brewing affinity.”

  “Who’s this ‘Granny Wren’, and what’s a Brewing affinity?” Lucas asked, feeling more confused as he listened to the conversation between Fay and her father.

  “Oh! Granny Wren isn’t my actual grandmother or anything,” Fay replied. “Everyone just calls her that because she’s pretty much old enough to be everyone’s grandmother. And a person with an affinity for Brewing can use their magic to make mana infused drinks and potions. Some make alcohol, but Granny sticks to making all sorts of potions.”

  His mind flashed back to the bright green potion that Fay had used on him and Dusk, and his gaze drifted to the unblemished skin on his right arm. The redness had faded over the last few days, leaving his arm looking as good as new, as if he’d never been injured in the first place.

  “So, she made those potions you used on me?” He asked the blonde.

  “Nope, those were made by one of Granny’s apprentices. She gives the good ones that he makes away to people who come by. Granny’s potions are way stronger, and cost a good bit of money, too,” Fay explained.

  “Just how old is she if everyone calls her Granny?” Lucas couldn’t help but ask.

  “I wouldn’t ask that question around her when you go to visit,” Magnus joked with a laugh. “She may be old, but she’s still really quick with that ladle of hers and she knows how to hit you to make it hurt.”

  “I think Granny Wren just turned a hundred and eighty a couple months ago, right, dad?” Fay said, missing the way that Lucas’ jaw dropped as she turned towards her father.

  “A hundred and eighty?!” Lucas shouted, baffled at the absurd number.

  “Oh…” At his outburst, Fay went quiet while Magnus and Lissa sighed.

  “You forgot to tell him about that, didn’t you?” Magnus asked as he sent a deadpan stare his daughter’s way.

  “Maybe,” Fay squeaked out, her cheeks coloring as her parents stared at her.

  “You make it sound like someone being a hundred and eighty is normal!” Lucas said as he looked between the three.

  “It’s a bit rare, yes, but someone hitting a hundred and eighty years old isn’t unheard of here, Lucas. There are even people out there who are older,” Lissa replied.

  That made Lucas stop and stare. A hundred and eighty years old already sounded insane enough, but to imagine that someone could be even older was just absurd.

  “How?” He finally asked.

  “Magic,” Magnus replied simply.

  The glare that Lucas sent the man just caused him to laugh.

  “Ok, ok. Jokes aside, the answer really is magic. You already know how magic naturally strengthens your body, but it can also increase a person’s lifespan. Mana is pure energy, and that energy is also very good at keeping a person younger longer and keeping them going at a much older age.”

  “So, someone living to a hundred and eighty is normal?” Lucas asked again.

  “A hundred and eighty is towards the higher end of a mage’s lifespan,” Lissa explained. “With magic, a mage tends to live twice as long as an Ordinary human would. So around two hundred is around the upper end of what most can live to. Plenty die at a younger age, magic is dangerous to use, and this world is dangerous as well. But it’s also not unheard of for someone to live past two hundred.”

  “If I remember right, the oldest that anyone has ever reached in recorded history was around two hundred and twenty-something,” Magnus said.

  Those numbers were baffling to Lucas, not just the idea that anyone could live that long, but that he would potentially live that long.

  “How old are you guys, then?” He asked, looking towards Lissa and Magnus.

  “I’m forty and Lissa is thirty-nine,” Magnus replied with a small chuckle. He could see how shocked Lucas was at the new information he’d learned.

  The table devolved into silence after that, with the family giving Lucas some time and quiet to process the life-changing information. It was something he appreciated, though he was too lost in his own thoughts to say it.

  Eventually, Lucas finished his breakfast and cleaned his plate. Leaving his dishes in the sink, he made his way out towards the backyard again. Before he could, though, Magnus stopped him.

  “After this, your training is going to shift a bit, Lucas,” He explained. “We’ll be spending some time after dinner on physical training since I’ll be off work by then. As for the mornings, I want you to work by yourself or with Fay to keep up your mana exercises. After lunch, you can focus on your affinities. Think you can handle it, kid?”

  It was a solid plan, though it left Lucas with much less free time. Normally, that might have bothered him, but he’d made up his mind to prepare and learn as much as he could in the month of time that he had left.

  “I can take it,” Lucas replied, his conviction firm as he stared back at Magnus.

  The older man nodded and grinned. “Good.”

  Lucas turned to Lissa and smiled a bit, nodding in her direction. “Thank you for breakfast, by the way.”

  The older blonde just smiled in return as she began to clean the table.

  “You’re welcome, Lucas. I’ll call you when lunch is ready, then we can visit Granny Wren.”

  Finally, Lucas turned to Fay. The other teen was looking at him with some concern, and Lucas forced a smile onto his face as he gestured to the door.

  “Come on. We’ve gotta train.”

  The sight of Fay’s concerned look being replaced by a brighter smile made Lucas’ own grin much more natural as the blonde rushed out the door ahead of him.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

  You can find it here if you want to check it out. Those who join can read a full 8 chapters ahead.