When we got back on the road, Chelsey was driving this time with Vaero reluctantly agreeing since he was recovering from the battle earlier. With Vaero in the front of the carriage and with me in the back, there was a distance between us with the air empty as we minded our own business. I looked down at my now wrapped arm ‘Is it not normal for my body to be healing this fast?’ I had thought like that since meeting these two was the first people I have come in contact with after waking up.

My gaze shifts to the back as I peer out between the small gap made from the cloth, watching the scenery of trees and the road coming in and out of vision. Things stayed this way for a while before Vaero broke the silence making me turn my head to him “Hey Crim, you don’t use magic right?”.

I looked at him confused, it was the same thing he said when we were sparring. “No, I don’t think so, unless I’m doing it without knowing.”.

“I didn’t think so.” He looks off to the side “I still don’t trust you but I have to admit, that's pretty impressive to be able to fight that wolf with no form of magic to assist you.” his voice had a hint of dejection in it.

I turned my head to look out the back again and after that small exchange the air was filled with silence once again. ‘What would magic even be? I know so little of everything.’ I think to myself as I quietly watch the scenery pass by once again.

Darkness creeps over my view as night time sets in and shortly after Chelsey stops the carriage in a small opening near the road to set up camp. After camp was set up and provisions were eaten Chelsey then told me “If you don’t want to sleep, I won’t force you since you get those horrid nightmares so I hope to rely on you to watch over the camp during the night.”. I nod to her before she adds on “And if you really are feeling tired, please let me know!”.

I started to poke around the firepit as the two went off into their tents for the night. After a while of watching the flames dance around I decide to take out the monster essence from earlier to entertain me. My eyes are attached to the light blue orb once it comes out of my pocket. As I sit there with the orb in my hands studying it, I get this feeling that my body is telling me to get comfortable and while holding onto the orb. With nothing but time on my hands during the night, I decide to do what my body wants.

After I was sitting on the ground with a tree against my back, I held the orb in my lap and closed my eyes. Sitting there for a few minutes with nothing happening I start to think my body was playing tricks on me but as soon as I did, with my eyes still closed it felt like the whole area around me changed.

I found myself inside an empty place with thin air. Everywhere I looked was empty except for one thing that was far off in the distance that I couldn’t make out. With curiosity running its course, I wonder what the thing is and start to walk towards it. No matter how long I walked towards the thing in the distance, it never got closer. The only noticeable thing was the air would get even more thin. I continued for a long while before giving up when the object never got closer.

By the time I opened my eyes, daylight was already breaking through. I look down to see the essence is still in my palms. I place it back into my pocket, as I get up, my body feels rested. Seeing as I still had some time before I should wake them up, I filled it with swinging my sword.

By the time I worked up a sweat, it was about it to wake them up. After everyone was awake and we ate our morning grub we packed everything up and went on the road once more.

With Vaero driving once again, I felt more comfortable in the carriage. Still curious about monster essence and magic, I turned to Chelsey who was paying attention to her notebook. “Chelsey, what are these monster essences used for?” my hand fiddled in my pocket, bringing it out.

With a smile on her face, she puts the book to the side and reaches out to grab it and I hand it over. “From my limited knowledge as a merchant, people inclined to magic absorb the mana essence that flows out of it and make it part of their own.” She pauses for a moment “And with that they cultivate their essence, one reason why high grade essence can sell for lots, especially the ones above rank five help break through the ten rank millages.”. Her eyes gaze into mine and she says with a smile “I hope with my limited knowledge, it helped understand things.”.

With her handing back the essence I tell her “No, that's more than I know, I can understand why you want to bring essence you got for cheap to a palace to sell them more.” Chelsey lightly blushed as I paused for a moment before adding “Are there many people who use magic?”.

With her face returning to normal she answers “I myself don’t use magic but there's a lot of people who do, Vaero in fact uses magic so if you have any questions about magic, it would be best to ask him.”. A question popped in my head ‘I should also ask him why he would know if I use magic or not.”.

After being satisfied by the answers I turn my gaze back out the carriage. After the exchange, there wasn’t much else said before the next stop to camp for the night.

After everyone had gotten their nightly fill of food I asked Vaero if he could tell me about magic before he went to sleep.

With Vaero sitting on the opposite side of me on a stump, he started talking “I overheard what you two were talking about earlier on the road, you want to know more about magic?”. I nod my head and he continues “I myself have never gone to schooling but this is what I know, everyone who is inclined to magic has an innate type of magic which can only be checked by special devices.” “When my father got me tested while I was young, my element was body enhancing but that doesn’t stop people from learning other types of magics, the other magic other than the one you are innately born with will just perform poorly.”.

Understanding what he’s saying so far, I nod along. “As for what Chelsey was saying earlier, mana essence rank or just mana ranks go from one to one hundred with one being the lowest. With cultivating the mana that flows in the air around you, you can absorb it and make it your own which in turn helps increase your mana pool and or enhances your abilities.” “How people describe others that use magic is based on their mana rank, every ten ranks you get through will increase your mana pool and ability powers way more than a single rank with each interval of ten having its own name to best describe the rank of the magic user. As well, every thirty ranks increase your mana pool by tenfold of what you would normally, it also gives you a skill suited to your magic.”.

“Spells can be learned by yourself since understanding how magic works will also increase the power behind the spells but every thirty ranks, you will develop a skill which can’t be learned from normal terms.” Vaero stops for a moment and peers at me intently, studying me “My knowledge may be limited but I do know one thing that just doesn’t fit and it’s that no mana flows out of you which normally, even with people who don’t use or study magic should have at least some mana that flows around them.”.

After he tells me that, it makes more sense to why he kept on asking if I did use magic. While lost in thought Vaero gets up “Well, it’s getting late, I’ll be heading back now.”.

“Wait, what rank are you then?” I stop him and curiously ask.

After hearing that, Vaero turns around and starts walking towards the tent, a faint voice could be heard while he walked away “Eighteen…”.

The fire crackled as I was the last person by it, once again I pulled out the monster essence and studied it. While studying it I wondered if it would be possible for me to absorb it even though I don’t have any mana. Without Vaero teaching me how to do it, I improvised, doing the same thing that I did last night.

After comfortably sitting down and holding the orb in my hands I close my eyes and try concentrating on the mana that flows out of it. After a few moments I opened my eyes to find myself once again in the empty area with something still off in the distance. The air was still thin here, almost hard to breath. I decide to sit down and try doing what I just did here to see if anything happens.

After sitting until daybreak once more, I felt nothing at all. The only thing that was different was that I felt a bit rested. With a little bit more time before I should wake them up, I once more went out to practice swings.

When the time came to wake the others up, beads of sweat were starting to fall from me. After we all got our morning food with little small talk as usual, we got ready to get on the road once more.