In a hallucinating state, I stuttered. "Bye, mo-"

But before I could fully speak, something shook me, causing me to awaken. Opening my eyes, I squinted them, noticing a familiar figure weighing down their body on my chest.

"It's morning, Wryn," she hugged me harder. "How are you?"

Blinking out of confusion, I relaxed, hugging her back. "Oh, it's you, mother."

"How are you doing, my little guy?" My father came into eyesight, rubbing my head.

I closed my eyes, ignoring the joke. "Pretty good."

My mother grabbed me, slightly increasing the pressure of the hug. "I love you."

"Enough," I pleaded, slightly pushing away my mother. "Enough."

"Wow... I see how it is. Alright, we will leave you alone!" My mother mocked, standing up and marching out of the room. Her expression depicted a more facetious tone than a serious one, or at least I hoped for my own safety.

"Breakfast is almost ready," my father said, dragged out of the room by my mother. "Put on some new clothes and come down and eat..."

I laid back down, covering my head with a pillow. 'What was that dream...'

Before I could even think about it, a voice questioned. "May I enter."

Quickly jumping out of my bed, I turned my head, looking around. "Who's there?" Rubbing my eyes, I looked at the door.

Peaking out of the entrance, someone announced. "Sir, you must get ready for breakfast. You'll need it..." The person entered the room. "Today will be tumultuous for you."

Turning my head, I noticed Tehla, but I wasn't sure what she was implying.

I was basically forced to urgently run into the bathroom. "I'll take a bath by the time I finish, have my clothing ready."

"Don't make a mess like last time," she shook her head in disappointment. "I'm the one who will have to clean it."

"Sure thing," I reassured, closing the door and waving my hand.

I placed my dirty clothes into a basket, other than that, I took a bath like last time. Drying myself off and covering myself with a towel, I gazed at the mirror.

A stream of emotions hit me. 'I'm getting tired of emitting a child...' The realization that most of what I did was mimicking a child was quite taxing.

I wanted to live normally...

Biting the inside of my cheek, I closed my eyes, then opened them.

Shaking my head, I made sure I was wrapped with a towel before I went outside.

I opened the door, noticing, Tehla had her eyes closed, holding the clothing not too far up for me to reach.

Using all my strength, I carried the clothes with both my arms. I ran back into the bathroom, kicking the door and causing it to close.

"The clothing will be quite heavy, but fear not, they will be comfortable enough to eat in," she announced.

Raising my eyebrow, I goggled at the clothes, placing them on a table. I shifted through the clothes, witnessing the elegance. The pants consisted of white material with linings of gold near the ankles and knees. The white long-sleeved shirt with hues of red around the wrist complimented the outfit.

The outfit was simply exquisite...

I couldn't help but doubt that it was me in front of the mirror. Quickly brushing my hair and breathing in, I opened the door. "How do I look?"

"Handsome, and you did your hair," she applauded, nodding her head. "Bravo!"

After I got ready, it was time for breakfast which was pleasant. Mostly because Alren wasn't present... The maids reported, Alren had important business, so he couldn't eat with us.

The hearty breakfast was quite delicious, leaving me with a full stomach. We all finished relatively quickly, creating an awkward silence, but my father broke it. He stood up and moved towards me, giving me a hug and kissing my mother. "I'll be going to work now."

Remaining silent, I wanted to ask my father questions about his work, but he was ready to leave. Closing my eyes, I smiled, So back my head, tilting my head. "Can I come to work with you one day?"

My father emerged with a luminous smile. "Sure thing, my boy." He began rubbing my head. "I'll let you know when you can come."

"Whenever the time is right, let me know," I said, avoiding eye contact.

"I love you," my father smiled, waving at us.

Once my father left, one of the four maids shifted her head downwards. "Are you ready, Mrs. Radcliffe?"

My mother, with sparkling eyes, replied. "Yes!"

"What's there to be ready for?" I asked, creating eye contact with my mother.

"Jasmine and I will be exploring the garden of Eden. It's only a fifteen-minute walk!" She answered, sipping on her drink. "Would you like to come?"

Shrugging, I finished my last bite. "Sure."

My mother beamed, growing a dimpled smile, opening her mouth, but before she could talk, Tehla interjected. "Mr. Radcliffe, unfortunately, can't attend your event. However, you may continue your plans, ma'am."

"Do you mind if I ask why?" My mother stood up, nearing Tehla.

"Ma'am, Wryn will be training today, and before you ask if you can attend... The answer, unfortunately, is no." Tehla stood firm, directly facing my mother, looking her down.

My mother crossed her arms, staring up at Tehla. "He's my son." She waved her arm in the air. "I can attend his training if I want to!"

"Mrs. Radcliffe, would you mind calming down," a voice interjected, coming from the room's entrance.

My mother turned around, facing the voice. "No, I won't calm down!" Her face veins began bludging as she gaped at the entrance. "I'd like to see what you're putting my son through! Which sane parent would allow someone to do whatever they want to their son?!"

From the entrance, two individuals came into sight. Alren came into view, but there was also a child with him.

I stood up, gazing at the child. 'A child? No, that's a teenager...'

The teenager wore a dark blue robe with matching pants. He was also brown-skinned, and more importantly, he had elvish ears.

Tilting my head, I continued staring at the teen. 'Maybe he's Alren's servant? I mean, Alren is the type of person to abuse children for fun, so it wouldn't be too wrong of me to assume so...'

While all the arguing occurred, somehow the teenager came in front of me.

All I could hear was a hum, causing me to fall backward. "How did you..."

"Get here so fast?" The teen offered his hand.

My mother stopped arguing, facing me. "Who's this boy?"

Alren scowled, rubbing his hand on his forehead. "Ughh, this is annoying." He signaled his hand, ushering the boy and me to follow. "His name is Llram Daerora, and he will help teach Wryn some basics. Mrs. Radcliffe, there's no need to worry about Wryn. I promise I will take great care of him, so, now if you would, we have work to do."

The teen and I followed Alren out of the dining area towards the entrance. Behind me was my mother gazing upon my face, but she didn't say anything, remaining still.

Tehla placed her hand on my mother's shoulder. "I hear gooseberries are in season!" She started moving, slightly dragging my mother with her. "We can go pick some for the residence. Berries make nice cakes!"

My mother followed Tehla out of the residence, but before leaving, she looked back. "Good luck, Wryn."

I formed a smile, looking out the entrance, waiting for the door to shut. Once the door shut, the noise died down...

Or so I thought, Alren screamed, scaring the shit out of me. "Enough bullshit! We're wasting time."

Turning my body, I noticed Alren and the Boy — Llram — move downstairs, so I followed.

"Today will be covering the basics of fighting. However, such a vague term is not helpful. Today will necessitate hand-to-hand combat," Alren quickly spoke, descending the many stairs.

We reached the training room. Alren closed the door by placing his hand on the wall, momentarily standing still, looking back, but walking towards the center.

"Llram, I believe you can handle this part of the training. I have work to attend to, so make sure not to slack off. By the way, training should last until I come back," he said, looking down at Llram. "If you get hungry, there should be supplies in your magic ring. No excuses!"

Llram casually placed his hands behind his head. "Will you be using the transportation relic that we entered from?"

Gritting his teeth, Alren shook his head. "Yes, now that you mentioned it." He closed his eyes, letting out a deep breath. "It's not like it was supposed to be a secret or anything."

"Shit, my bad..." Llram began humming, avoiding Alren.

Alren looked away, facing me. "Wryn, we possess a transportation relic in this training facility. I had it installed here, specifically for me, since I'm busy and getting to places can be tiresome."

"Or like every other person, you could use the public transportation portals," Llram gibed.

Alren continued, ignoring Llram. "Try not mentioning such a relic in your basement because it will be troublesome for me." He looked away from me, creating a stern face, looking at Llram. "Llram, make sure to train Wryn. Not only is my ass on the line, but so is yours. So try not to get Headmaster Vafaren even more indignant at us."

"Sure thing," Llram shot a wink at Alren.

I stood there whispering. "A portal?" My confusion was considerably high, but I had concluded: Alren and Llram were testing me, or Llram was an idiot. I went with the first option as Alren appeared to be planning something, but I wasn't sure.

Maybe I was overthinking it? Could Llram really be so mindless...

Alren kept shifty eyes, marching forward until he reached the end of the wall. He set his hand on the wall, a circular structure developing out. Shortly after, the inside of the structure was illuminated in a shade of purple.

Alren faced us, raising his hand in the air — a type of farewell — and marched into the portal. He vanished likewise the structure vanished, slowly condensing back into the wall.

Llram immediately appeared in front of me, our eyes meeting each other.

"How did you do that?" I lowered my eyebrows.

Llram lifted his right hand in the air. "We're going to start." Moving his hand down, he snapped. "Downwards."

I winced, falling to the ground. "What the hell..." I kneeled on the floor as the pressure forced me down, continuing to become even stronger. Grinding my teeth, I tried standing, but I couldn't, causing my veins to bulge.

Llram tilted his head, lowering his body, becoming eye to eye with me. "Yo, aren't you going to fight back, use your magic, or something."

The pressure eased up, allowing me to stand up halfway. "What the hell are you doing? I thought I wasn't allowed to use magic during training!"

"I knew that," he responded, scratching his head. "I was testing if you would use magic, and since you didn't... good job!"

Standing up, I clicked my tongue. "Aren't we supposed to be training in hand-to-hand combat or whatever Alren said!"

Llram let out a sigh, cracking his neck. "Alright! I'll teach you the basics, but don't cry! No more, Mr. Niceguy," his smile turned into a stern expression. "Alright?"

"Yeah, whatever."

"Just come at me! Hit me with your best shot!" He said, standing, legs wide apart with his hands behind his head.

I strode towards Llram, cocking back my right arm, putting all my body weight, hurling a punch towards his body.

Llram grasped my fist, holding it. "Why, hello there." He teased, shaking my arm up and down.

I speedily threw another punch, using my other hand, near his left side.

Llram was distracted, or so I thought…

Llram’s eyes locked with my own, changing the direction of my arm. My left fist collided with my face, forcing me to take a couple of steps back. Llram grasped onto my right hand, making it, so I wouldn't fall.

My face turned red as I tightened my eyes. "What's the point of this? You'll obviously win."

He closed his eyes, slapping himself with both his hands. "Ok, time to get serious."

"Uhh," I narrowed my eyes, looking at him.

"The point is to teach you that you won't get stronger by carelessly punching. No matter how much you train in these next few months, you won't accomplish zip. That being said, there is a method of fighting which is quite suitable for you." Llram released my hand. "Inattentive punching and kicking won't benefit you. Therefore, I'll teach a style of fighting used for hand-to-hand combat originated by the once nomadic tribe of Vrakor."

Tilting my head, I blinked at the boy, skeptical at first, but I shrugged it off.

Llram focused on the floor. "Quite frankly, hand-to-hand combat is futile in a real fight. Since, in a real fight, of course, you'll use magic and weapons. Honestly, this combat style will mostly help develop your fundamentals." He focused up, looking at me. "Without further ado, we're going to begin."

I gaped at the teen, confused with his attitude change, but I shook my head, paying attention.