“No good. Do it again.”

Two figures were currently standing in a caldera. One was a small boy struggling to make the golden blob in his hand take shape. The other was a feminine man with a stern expression on his face.

“This is really hard,” Weryn complained loudly. He had a problem with having the mana take form.

He could get the mana to concentrate in one place yet he couldn’t get it to change its properties so it could be correctly referred to as magic.

Erebus stood with his arms crossed and eyes slightly narrowed. He had left his [Eye of Void] uncovered so he could watch Weryn’s progress. The boy was capable of wielding large amounts of mana, he just couldn’t grasp the concept of changing its properties.

“Listen,” Erebus sighed after the umpteenth attempt to make a small fire. “Stop thinking of mana as just mana.”

Weryn still displayed a confused expression.

“Watch.”

Weryn focused his eyes onto Erebus’ outstretched palm. A small blob of mana manifested in his hand before changing shape.

It was a fire, then it changed into a puff of smoke that molded itself into solid ice. The ice then molded itself into two figures that were dancing in the air. The ice figures danced as if they were real until they figures melted into water then turned into dust. The dust then transformed into a slight breeze that ruffled Weryn’s cowlick.

“Woah.”

“Yes, woah,” Erebus responded. “Mana can take on the form of anything if you will it to. It can become the most devastating weapon or the softest touch. If you never understand that, you won’t be able to wield it properly.”

Weryn stared at Erebus in awe. He normally acted like a dolt... but he was actually a decent teacher. He told Weryn what was wrong and how to fix it.

“I-I’ll try again,” Weryn said with newfound confidence. He stuck out his hand again and focused his attention on the blob of mana that formed.

“No. You’re trying too hard,” Erebus scolded. “Just will it to change and it will obey. The dragon race, despite the elves protest, have the strongest affinity with magic. We don’t have to force it.”

“Ugh...”

“Close your eyes. Stop staring at the mana like it’s some type of unidentified creature.”

Weryn obeyed and closed his eyes.

In the darkness, Erebus’ voice surrounded him. “What do you want the mana to become?”

“An ice dragon! Like the figures you made,” Weryn answered. The figures had been so pretty.

“Imagine the form you want it to take. How big should it be? How cold is the ice when you touch it? What is its purpose for taking that form?” Erebus’ omnipresent voice questioned.

Weryn squeezed his eyes tighter. Did Erebus put this much thought in when he performed his magic? It had been so flawless and moved on quickly, there was not nearly enough time to think of all of this.

There was no way he could ever reach that level.

“Just do it.” Erebus, who had noticed Weryn’s hesitation, was not amused. He could see the confused shifting of the mana as Weryn tried to use it.

The young child had obviously underestimated the amount of sheer concentration and skill it took to become a skilled mage.

The detail that you spent in learning magic while in your beginning stages is the most important. These were the habits that you would carry on throughout the rest of your life. When you learn how to cast magic, you can’t unlearn that way. You can only strive to improve it.

Meaning, if you failed at learning at how to cast magic properly when you were first starting off, you would never be better than that. At least, not by very much.

Which was why Erebus found this to be the most important part. If you didn’t spend enough time and effort during the earlier stages, you could never become a powerful mage.

“What are you thinking about?” Erebus asked Weryn as the boy continued to struggle.

“Huh?” Weryn opened his eyes and stared at Erebus in a bemused manner.

“What is running through your mind as you try to manipulate the mana?” he rephrased his initial question.

“It’s a little embarrassing to say out loud.”

Erebus shook his head in irritation. “Say it. If you ever want to learn how to use magic, that is.”

Weryn’s cheeks reddened a little. “Uu~ I was thinking about how I wanted to be able to cast magic like Master Erebus one day.”

“Useless thoughts. Vanquish them, you’ll never reach that level.”

Weryn’s eyes widened in shock.

Erebus shook his head again. He was able to see Weryn’s mana flow, it was certainly a sizeable amount that would turn him into a powerful man. Mana flow, by the way, is how much mana circulates through your body. People with more oppressive auras, so to speak, typically boasted a stronger mana flow than those without.

Anyway, he would never reach the level of the originals.

It was a gap that would never be bridged.

The originals were a bottomless cup to how much mana could be in their body, the others were not.

They may have deep ‘cups’, but there was a bottom to that.

It was the same for Weryn, his potential was great but he would never become that strong.

“It has nothing to do with you being incapable of forming magic now if that’s what you’re thinking. It’s more of your bodies physical limit, you’ll never be able to cast magic of that intensity. And if you do break that limit, you will die. Instantly. Do not bite off more than you can chew, understood?”

Weryn nodded his head dejectedly.

The elder dragon sighed. “It’s not like you’re weak. I’m able to see how much you can utilize, and, trust me, it’s quite the amount.”

“Thank you for humbling me, Master Erebus.” Weryn bowed, he was truly grateful. It was childish for him to think that he would ever be able to be as powerful as Master Erebus, it was physically impossible for him to do so.

“Now, now, Erebus. Don’t be so rough on the child,” a female voice said before Erebus could respond.

The two turned their heads to the new arrival. A curvaceous woman wearing form-fitting leather gear walked towards them. Her golden hair was in a braided high ponytail that swung at her lower back. The woman had a plain but pretty and soothing brown eyes.

“Ayirn,” Erebus said dryly. “A pleasure to see you. What brings you here?”

She smiled warmly. “I came to see what you two were doing. I heard that you were actually going to teach him magic, so I wanted to see his progress.”

“What do you mean by ‘actually’? I’m his mentor.”

Ayirn shrugged and nodded her head at Weryn who was staring at her unabashedly.

“Let me see what you can cast.”

“U-um...”

“He can’t get the mana to take form. I’ve been trying to teach him.”

She let out a small gasp and covered her mouth. “Oh my, he can’t achieve form yet?”

“He’s filled his mind with pointless things,” Erebus answered.

“Hmm...” Ayirn drummed her fingers on her lips as she thought. “Erebus probably gave you some really vague explanation, right?”

“It was not vague.” Erebus glared at her.

“Sorry,” she said. “How about this, I want you to make me a flower out of magic. I don’t care how you form it, I just want a pretty flower to look at.”

Weryn nodded his head then closed his eyes once again. Maybe an ice dragon was too complicated for his skillset right now, an ice flower would work better! He didn’t really understand the concept of ‘willing’ the mana to take form so he just repeated the mantra ‘pretty ice flower, pretty ice flower’ in his head.

Something cold was in his hands. Weryn cracked an eye open to see an ice rose in the palm of his hand. A large smile broke out on his face. He had succeeded!

“Thank you,” Ayirn said, taking the flower from his hand and examining it. “I see... his natural talent lies within ice magic.”

“So it would seem.”

Erebus and Ayirn appraised the magic with skilled eyes. Even though they had such laid-back personalities, they were some of the best mages in the entire world.

“A little rough but doable,” Ayirn muttered as she spun the rose around. “It’s rather good for his first attempt.”

Erebus nodded in agreement. “If he really trains hard, he could become an amazing mage.”

Weryn’s eyes lit up with excitement. They were praising him, these two masterminds were praising him! A novice among novices!

“Well then, I shall be taking my leave. I just wanted to see how you two were doing.” She started to walk away before stopping. “Oh, Erebus, you’re staying to see this year’s tournament? I presume.”

Erebus made a face. “Indeed I am.”

A small smile flitted at her pearl-colored lips. “I see, well, goodbye for now.”

Weryn was still basking in the glory of his success as the female dragon walked away.