The moment Kan woke up, he was excited. This could be the day Nicole was coming back. 2 days had passed since he had challenged the villagers. Kan was excited that Nicole could be coming back, but he was also nervous. There was only 3 days left, including this day, until the disaster. He could only hope that Nicole came back today so he could convince her to help him save the village of Clear View.

After getting up and eating breakfast, Kan decided to do his daily training. Even if there was an incoming disaster, Kan knew that he shouldn’t skip out on his training. He knew that spending his time worrying about the disaster wasn’t healthy for his mind, so it was better to just train and become a little bit stronger in the small amount of time he had.

While running his regular route around the village, Kan began reviewing everything he had prepared the past 2 days. During these 2 days he had learned a lot more about seals from his mother and Madam Don. The two seal he had managed to learn was one that slows an opponent's movement and one used to sense another person’s presence. These seals were important to Kan’s plans for the future.

The seal used to slow down an opponent was very useful in battles. But the only drawback of this seal was that the effectiveness of the seal depended on the users strength. If Kan’s opponent was stronger than him, then his opponent wouldn’t be affected as much. The other drawback was that this seal took some time to draw and in the middle of a battle, a second lost can lead to a crucial mistake. Madam Don and his mother had made it seem so easy and quick to draw, but it wasn’t as easy for Kan.

The other seal was used to sense the presence of other people. To sense other people’s presence, you first had to seal some of you mana, or spread it, until someone else’s mana interfered with it. This one was somewhat easier to use but also more draining because of the way Kan was using it. The stronger one made the seal, the larger the range it could sense people. Besides being able to use it in the moment, this seal could also be used to sense an area for a long period of time. Kan had planted a seal at the doorstep of the watch tower so he would know if anyone entered. Not only did he placed one there, he had also placed one at George Nice’s bakery.

About a year ago, George had left the village and supposedly returned to the capital because of family matters. During that time, Kan had investigated the bakery but he couldn’t find anything there. But now that the disaster was going to happen soon, Kan needed to be wary of George again. He knew that George was going to be one of the leaders of the attack.

Kan’s limit for the Sensory seals were 3, but 2 was already draining enough so he decided not to create a 3rd one. He still needed enough mana to use in training.

Besides dabbling in seals, Kan had also learned a lot more about Material locksmithing. It amazing the first time Don showed him how material locksmithing worked. The first thing Don created to show Kan was a padlock. Don used regular iron and made a padlock. The process seemed normal enough, but Kan could sense that Don was engraving mana into the padlock.

“What do you think I did, Kan?”

“I’m not sure if this is correct, but you were using mana to engrave something into the padlock. It’s kind of like how mage locksmith create seals.”

“Hahaha, very observant, Kan. It is very similar to how mage locksmiths create seals, but not only did I use mana I also used my own energy. Being a material locksmith doesn’t mean that we don’t utilize energy from our body like combat locksmiths or mana like mage locksmiths. In fact, being a Material locksmith means combining both aspects into one to create the strongest locks. Now look at this padlock and its key, do you know what has been added to it.”

“It looks like you added durability onto the lock. And there are other additionals but i’m unsure what they do.”

“Good, you have a keen eye, Kan. The lock’s durability is strengthened but I have also added certain conditions to it. If anything other than that key is inserted into the keyhole then the lock will harden even more. It will be more and more difficult for any person to break it through force.”

“I see.”

“Hahaha, if you want to learn more, I don’t mind teaching my skills to you. I am the only Material locksmith in this village and I would be glad to have someone inherit my skills and techniques.”

“I-I am grateful Mr.Don. I would love to learn from you but…”

“It’s ok, Kan. I know that you are learning a lot as a combat and mage locksmith. I just hope that one day that you will keep your interest in Material Locksmith. Many people believe that Material Locksmiths are worse than Combat and Mage Locksmiths, but I don’t believe that.”

“Yes, I don’t believe that one is better than the other. I believe that the strength of a true Locksmith comes from combining the skills of a Combat, Mage, and Material Locksmiths.”

……

While reminiscing about what he had learned these past 2 days, Kan was almost done with his 5th lap around the village. There was only one thing that had been bothering him these past 2 days. He still couldn’t figure out the question Carl had left him: “Think about what you can lock and unlock.” Kan was still stumped over this question and he didn’t want to ask anyone for help. He wouldn’t truly learn the answer to this question if he cheated and ask for helped.

While Kan was lost in thought and finished his final lap around the village, he felt one of his Sensoy seals go off. It was the one at the watchtower. ‘Nicole’s back!!’

Even though he was tired and sweaty from his training, Kan began running towards the watchtower. He didn’t hesitate to to unlock his body to make himself faster. Thinking about how to go even faster, Kan used magic and created a gust of wind that pushed him from behind. It didn’t take long for him to reach the watchtower. The door to the watchtower was closed but he knew someone was inside. And without any of the traps being activated, it could only be Nicole.

“BIG SISTER NICOLE, ARE YOU HOME!!!!!”

Kan was just too excited that he couldn’t contain his emotions. He continuously pounded at the door while calling out Nicole’s name. If he continued anymore, it would seem that the door was going to break down.

…...

While Kan was beating down the door, Nicole had just dropped off her luggage in her room. ‘What is that boy doing?’ She was shocked because Kan was yelling so loud and pounding her door so much that she could hear him even if she covered her ears. Nicole quickly walked down the stairs, afraid that her door was going to be broken.

“Stop!Stop!Stop! You’re going to break down my door, Kan.”

The moment she opened the door, she saw the smiling face of Kan. He looked so happy and excited like he had just found a pot of gold. But it’s not like Nicole didn’t like Kan’s carefree happy smile. It actually brightened up her day. These past 2 days had been tense and depressing so seeing Kan’s smile, made her a little happy.

“Good morning, Nicole.”

“Good morning to you too. So, why are you trying to break down my door so early in the morning?”

“Oh, sorry. I wasn’t trying to break down your door. I just really wanted to see you. I felt that you were home so I rushed here and I wanted to be the first person you see.”

Nicole smiled wryly at this foolish boy in front of her. She could see that Kan was drenched in sweat, probably from training, and he was also out of breathe. She could only see Kan as a foolish boy for rushing to see her even though he was tired. ‘I see, so that Sensory seal was his.’ Nicole had already sensed an abnormality the moment she got close to the watch tower and after a few second she found the Sensory seal. The Sensory seal was very weak and amateurish, so Nicole didn’t mind it too much. But to lure whoever was using it, she triggered it.

“So how did you figure out I was home?”

“Oh yeah. These past few days I have been training and learned about seals…”

Nicole listened as Kan began to retell everything he had learned the past 3 days. Once again, Nicole can only be impressed at what Kan told her. He was already learning about seals, material locksmithing, and how to deal with different types of fighting styles. And how old was he, only like 7.

“So why were you in such a hurry to meet me?”

“Oh yeah. But can we take a bath first Big Sister Nicole. I’m all sweaty.”

“Umm, you can go to the well and wash yourself.”

“No, let’s take a bath together.”

“Oh right. I don’t have a bath so we can’t bathe together.”

“Hehe, I knew you were going to say that so I built a bath already.”

‘What.’ Kan grabbed Nicole’s hand and started walking towards the well. From a distance away, Nicole could see that there was a small shack by the well. Before she left there wasn’t a shack here, so it had been built in the 3 days she was gone. ‘Why is this boy so obsessed with baths?’

“Tadaaa, I created a bath that is fully private. I know that you are shy in showing your body, so there is a roof and walls covering all sides.”

That wasn’t the problem for Nicole though. She just wasn’t used to bathing with another person so she felt awkward taking a bath with Kan. But seeing the effort Kan had gone through to take a bath with her, she gave up on resisting.

“Ok. Ok. I give up. I’ll take a bath with you.”

Nicole and Kan took off their clothes and hung them in the small compartment. Nicole was surprised at the attention to detail that Kan had put into this bath. After the entrance door there was another door that led to the bath. In that small space there was a small compartment to put there clothes. Before entering the bath they wrinsed there bodies.

“Is this warm water?”

“Yep, I learned from Mommy how to create a Heating seal. I don’t have perfect control on adjusting the temperature yet, but I can keep the water warm at least.”

“So what did you want to talk about?”

“Big Sister Nicole, I want to negotiate with you about the attack on the village.”