Datari is talking as she’s carefully grinding something in a mortar, her soft voice competing against the fragrant smell of plants to fill her house.

“...the eruelliem thing you can do, is moving the mana in your body. It will naturally reroilém where it goes.”

“Reroilém?? Can you give me an example?”

For once, my go to trick to deduce an unknown word fails.

“Focus mana within your eyes and then open them.”

Well, fine. That one’s for you Bob. I’ll try to get a glimpse of what’s going on.

It takes a few minutes, as he brings grain after grain of mana to our eyes. Most of it doesn’t stay put and starts moving back in the strange ways of mana, playfully following my bloodstream, or my nerves, or my bones, or just moving ignoring any physicality like it isn't even there.

It doesn't take long before my closed eyes start itching slightly, in that same strange unsettling way as when I leveled up, like the tiniest bugs are poking around. It's much weaker, I probably wouldn't notice it if I wasn't paying attention, but still irritating.

It makes me want to open my eyes, perhaps it will go away.

As the itching gets stronger I give up and open my eyes.

I can’t help but gasp as the usual darkness of her house is gone.

Well, not quite.

There’s no more light than the little that comes through the entrance and the opening in the roof, but I can perfectly see every detail of the surroundings.

I see clear enough I could count the number of logs for the fire piled up in a small alcove dug into the earth. I had never noticed before that there even was an alcove dug into the earth to store logs!

Instead of an indistinct mess of dried leaves and stems on the walls, it’s now a distinct mess of dried leaves and stems on the walls.

Ok, when I say it like that it's not quite as impressive as how it really feels.

“Wow, this is awesome.”

She only answers with a knowing smile.

The colors are missing, but the contrasts are incredible.

The effect quickly fades away as I take a good look around Datari’s house for the first time, as if every movement added the thinest layer of blur and shadows in front of my eyes.

I’d never noticed the cloth of the mattresses on the ground had patterns.

Couldn’t keep the mana in our eyes while you moved, sorry.

It’s alright. More importantly.

“What else can I do?”

Datari's smile widens a little at my eagerness, her eyes twinkle a little as she answers.

“Indeed, what can you do, human? Explore and see.”

I nod thoughtfully, it’s not the first time she gives me this kind of answer. Even among gilfeiths, there’s a lot of variation in how mana reacts to individuals. Some find it easy to ignite while others use it with success to create movement, or to heal.

I’ve never seen Datari cast anything but I suppose she has plant-related tricks? She's pretty much the local shaman, not particularly outstanding, but competent.

Wouldn’t it be fun if under the kind lady mask, there was a mad pyromancer? Ashes make for a great fertilizer.

Why don’t you try pushing mana to our ears instead of saying silly things? We’re probably not in a place where we want a highly enhanced nose. I guess you could try our tongue too but I can’t imagine that to be particularly exciting, and I’m not sure if we can do anything about touch.

Hmm. I’ve got a better idea, give me five.

...Sure.

“So, is this process of mana manipulation, focusing it in things, what is called infusing?”

Infusing things is pretty important, and probably the main reason why Skarix can deal with the needs of a whole village and have time leftover in his smithy. A common practice whenever somebody handles a tool is to infuse it beforehand. I’ve seen Guervac do it before he gets to chopping down trees. He spends a couple minutes focusing on his axe and the iron slowly becomes darker and stronger. Probably sharper too, considering the ease with which he slices through trees, but that might just be the gilfeith's muscles speaking.

“Focusing? You mean rertnecnoc? Not quite, but it’s similar. There’s an etnolov when we infuse, meaning. And more mana too, ten to twenty points instead of the one or two you’re using right now.”

I don’t really register the end of her phrase as I’m distracted by tiny motes that seem to be drifting in the air. They somehow don’t block my vision, as limited as it is in the dimly lit house, and yet…

Bob? What are you doing?

I stay very still as he doesn’t answer and more and more of the motes become perceptible, smaller ones drifting into view, or just appearing somewhere like they always had been there…

Oh.

I’m seeing mana.

No meditation bullshit, no struggle to see outside my body, it just works on top of everything else.

Still, I close my eyes and try to move towards that very particular mental place where I can pick up whatever signal had been allowing me to sense the little I have so far.

…

Wow. There’s so much of it. I knew it intellectually already, but with whatever Bob is doing, I can sense mana everywhere, more and more smaller pinpricks suddenly appearing in focus, as the larger motes slowly grow in my sense from the size of a grain of sand to the size of maybe a fly or something.

Now that I can get a better look, those motes are very angular, unique and wild forms, not unlike snowflakes under a microscope, but with even more possibilities. Nothing like the suspended spheres I was imagining when i didn't know better, that's for sure.

If I had to describe what my mana sense feels like, I’d say it’s a bit like a radar in three dimensions.

Just like hearing, it works to feel mana particles behind me just as well as those from in front of me. I can sense inside of myself, I can sense through the ground or through the walls (well that’s a first, but it sure works). There’s only one blind spot, a point somewhere in my brain, a rather small volume, that might be spherical but might also be something else entirely. One that currently seems to be pulling in all the mana around like a very silent vacuum cleaner.

Bob's doing, for sure.

And suddenly, perfectly naturally, I realize that if I want to, I can act on those small motes that surround me. It’s like a newborn taking a breath for the first time, the lungs were there all along, only waiting to be used.

I take a lonely speck of power, a minuscule thing floating nearby, and I flex this new muscle I have, slowly bringing it close. I pull it all the way through my skin, and bring it close to that unobservable place, the source of this new ability, before letting go.

It keeps some momentum, and a second later I can't see it anymore.

I do it again, and it’s easier.

And I do it one more time, and it’s even easier.

I lose myself a bit in the feeling, until Datari’s gentle voice shake me out of my trance.

“What you’re doing is good, but don’t push too much, stop when you’ve got an eniargrim”

“Eniargrim?”

Headache. I can feel it already.

“Pain.”

What? How can you have an headache that I don’t?

Don’t ask me, don’t want to know, this sucks. Ouch.

Uh. I’m perfectly fine. How strange.

I’m going to take a nap, goodnight.

All..right?

I guess it's better not to overdo things then...

I play some more with the mana as the effect slowly fades. Eventually, in spite of my efforts to stay still and add in fresh mana motes to keep it going, I'm back to usual. A bit better than before, for sure, but I still can't use mana manipulation by myself yet.

One hour of frustrating efforts later, trying to flex a muscle that stubbornly doesn't want to listen to me anymore, I leave Datari to her curious herbal preparations. She’s added quite a few pots to her impressive store today.

“Thanks again for your help and patience Datari, see you some other day.”

“May your sun shine.” She answers.

“May your star rise.”

It took me some time to translate the traditional gilfeith farewell words “Allirblosleek” and “Al Acsercallertse” but I think I’ve got it about right now. They don’t really fit in their usual speech patterns, remnants of an older tongue or something.

I freeze mid step as I brought my progress log to the front of my mind.

[Day 23 : 1 F. M. & W. Dweller, 1 Flexible Body, 14 Mana S., 10 Mana M. ]

Wow. That’s… That’s just massive.

I’ll have to further investigate on the possibilities of concentrating mana but this is a very promising start.

Mana Manipulation

After mana sense, mana manipulation is the natural second step towards any kind of magical prowess. You have started to impose your will on the mana that infuses this world, either inside or outside of your body. This Trait makes it easier for you to manipulate mana, both in finesse and in quantity.

This Trait has improved your stats and mana pool, this effect remains even if the trait is lost. Currently : 3 Int, 26 Mana

This Trait resonates with your forming Vindicator Trait, it will grow slightly faster.

With this jump, mana sense is two third of the ways toward being my first completed trait. As I bring forward my status, I feel a strange mix of pride and helplessness at how much I've grown and how long the road still is.

General Characteristics

Traits System skills and abilities Titles

STR : 113 DEX : 107 HEALTH 112/113 END : 113 MANA 226/226 INT : 133 M. HEALTH 84/98 SAN : 98 Trait-Bound stat points : 28/199 General Characteristics

Traits System skills and abilities Titles

Mental Traits Prudent : "What's the worst that can happen?" - Famous last words you do not live by. Split personality [B] (2) : You're never quite alone. At least he's friendly! - Evolving 9% Cynical : People are selfish, and will always be so. Never trust too much. Altruistic (-) : You're a really good friend to have, shame you rarely get along with people Mana Manipulation (-) : Forming : 26% (+3 Int, +26 Mana)

Mana Sense (-) : Forming : 66% (+1 Int, +66 Mana)

Star-longer [R] (-) : Forming : 4%

Vindicator (-) : Forming : 31% (+4 San)

Physical Traits Adaptable [R] (+) : Humans have countless defects, yet they always adapt and overcome Adaptable [B] : System-granted superior adaptability. Survive and thrive. Athlete (-) : Forming : 4% (+1 Str, +1 Dex)

Bodybuilder (-) : Forming : 7% (+3 Str, +1 Dex, +1 End)

Flexible Body (-) : Forming : 7% (+2 Dex)

Forest Dweller (-) : Forming : 13% (+1 Dex, +1 End)

Hiker [R] (-) : Forming : 22% (+1 Dex, +2 End)

Mountain Dweller (-) : Forming : 16% (+1 Str, +1 End)

Sword Proficiency (-) : Forming : 14% (+1 Str, +1 Dex)

Wildland Dweller (-) : Forming : 16% (+2 End)