Nyx Pov:

When my mother suggested a duel, it made my day. Finally, it was a chance to prove myself in her eyes. "Mother, I would love to, but may I have some time to get ready?" I needed to ensure that all my magic was up to snuff since that was the cornerstone of all my abilities. Mother was very powerful, and I needed to plan everything out perfectly if I wanted even the slimmest chance of winning.

"Oh?" Her eyes twinkled like stars in the night sky as she gazed down at me and a lovely smile flitted across her lips.

"Mhm. I'm close to a breakthrough with my magic, and I want to be able to use it in our duel." I nodded my head and clenched my two new weapons. I was extremely close to learning how to use the same magic that mother uses to create things, but I didn't want to use that as a clone. Instead, I wanted to transform one element into another and then be able to manipulate it with magic at will.

She nodded her head and crossed her arms. "That is acceptable. Is there anything I can help with?"

"Do you have any more magic items like Arcanium?" I could keep pushing forward if I could get my hands on more magical artifacts. I was reaching for the stars, and there would be nothing that could keep me down.

She hummed thoughtfully for a moment before standing up and glided over to the bag she usually carried around. "I actually do, now that I think about it." She pulled the opening apart and reached her hand in its depths before she withdrew a small glimmering blue orb.

Instantly, I felt my heart race. That was a water mana orb! I could consume it and gain access to another branch of mana! "Mother, please, can I have that?" I could feel my mouth watering at the prospect of adding another branch to my mana foundation. I already had fire, wind, darkness, earth, and lunar mana at my disposal, much to Kharon's chagrin. But I couldn't help it. I loved studying magic and all the effects that it brought. It was like a rabbit hole, and I wanted nothing more than to get to the bottom of it all.

She stared at me for a moment, and I could feel her eyes drinking in my future before a grin split her face. But it wasn't her usual dopey grin. No, this was the grin that struck some fear into my heart. "Oh? Do you want it that badly?" Her words were lathered in mischief, and I knew I was about to get teased.

"Yes, please." I widened my eyes a little at her and flashed her the best set of begging eyes I could at her. If it works with Miss Alessia, then it has to work with mother.

"Hmm, I'm not convinced that you do." She straightened up and tossed the orb into the air. The light caught the ambient water mana leaking off it and scintillated in the air as it rose to its peak and fell back safely in her hands. My heart jumped in my chest as I watched it fall. I wanted that core so badly. I wanted the knowledge that was contained within. No, more than that, I needed it.

"Please don't tease me. I really want that." I couldn't help but pout as I stared up at her. It wasn't fair. I didn't want to be teased right now. I needed to start the preparations for the upcoming duel.

The grin that plastered her face came back as she shrugged, and reached back into her bag, and withdrew another orb. This one was a deep vibrant purple and glowed a faint white in the center. "Fine, I won't tease you right now, but if I'm going to give you the water core, I might as well give you the gravity one as well."

"Mother, what's gravity?" I asked as I set my new weapons down, reached out, and gingerly took the two orbs from her. My heart fluttered in my chest, and I could feel the drool building up in my mouth at the prospect of adding not just one mana branch but two! Two whole mana branches! I'm going to be unstoppable.

"Well, that's a complicated question, with even more complicated answers. But I guess I can give you the rundown." She retracted her hand and reached out to the metal that sat on the table. "So, you see this Mithril, right?" She asked as she grabbed the silver metal and held it in her hand.

I nodded my head as I pulled the orbs close to my chest. I was terrified that they would slip out of my grip, fall to the floor, and shatter.

"So, everything has a weight, but the weight itself is determined by how much gravity is pulling on it. For example, Mithril is lighter than sky iron, because gravity can only pull on it so much here. However, gravity itself is stronger, or weaker, based on the object's mass." As she spoke, she gestured to the various metals on the table. But I ignored that. Instead, I was fixated on her words since I really enjoyed learning.

"So gravity is what constantly pulls everything down? That's interesting." I nodded as I clutched my mana cores like eggs, trying to keep them safe. I had a newfound respect for the core now nestled against me. It would be a great boon indeed on my journey.

"Exactly. There is actually more to it than just that, though. But that requires a lot of math, and it is over my head." Her grin became a little sheepish as she spoke.

"Mother, can you teach me?" I felt another smile cross my face. Mother was so smart. If she could teach me everything she knows, I would be a mighty dragon. Especially if I mastered something as strong as gravity.

"I don't know the exact math, as that is some really advanced stuff, but I can teach you the basics and whatever I may know." She chuckled nervously and ran her black metal-clad hand through her hair.

"Thank you so much, mother. I want to learn whatever you can teach me." At that moment, I wanted to rush over to her and give her the biggest hug, but my hands were full.

"I'm proud of you, Nyx. You've grown up so much." Mother's eyes glimmered as they stared at me, and I felt warmth coil around my heart and heat rise to my cheeks. She walked over to me, squatted down, and wrapped her arms around me, pulling me into a deep hug. But I was frozen there, unable to move. Her words froze me in place as my heart hammered in my chest, and I could feel nothing but relief and happiness that permeated my being. Whatever reservations that I had about her not being around vanished.

"I love you, mother." The words left my lips as I nestled my head into her and closed my eyes. The warmth that radiated from her reassured me but, above all else, made me feel safe. Mother really was the greatest.

She stiffened a bit before she relaxed and clenched me harder as she pulled me into her. "I love you too, my little Nyx." Her words were but a whisper as she held me as close as she could, and she buried her face in my hair, muffling it. But I was a dragon, so I could still hear her as clear as day.

"Mother, are you crying?" I asked as I pushed away from her the best I could with full hands.

"No, I wasn't." she was quiet for a moment as she wiped away her face. But the remnants of tears were all too visible for me to see. She smiled at me, and I knew she wasn't sad. She was happy, just like I was.

I grinned at her and let her have her moment as I rushed over to my backpack and gently set the mana cores down. Now that I had these two guys, I could focus on the next part of my training. I needed to consume the mana within to start, and once I did, I needed to figure out how to summon the mana as needed. But my wand was one of the most critical tools in my arsenal since it allowed me to channel mana properly and accurately. Though according to Mr. Kharon's books, one day, I wouldn't need a wand once I learned how to properly cast magic.

"Mother, would you mind if I visited Mr. Kharon soon? I need to get a few things from him." I opened my backpack up, gently set the mana orbs within, and zipped it closed.

"He's on vacation, Nyx. I don't think you should bother him." Mother's voice radiated from behind me and was back to normal. Well, I shouldn't say it's quite normal, but she sounded much happier than she did earlier.

"But, I'm never a bother! Besides, he has my wand and a few other things that I need to get ready for our duel." She has some nerve to think that I would be a bother to Mr. Kharon. I could never be a bother to him. He loves me too much for something like that. But it was unfortunate that I left some of my more critical magical components with him, but we were working on some stuff before all that happened. But now I had to convince her to let me go.