“A divine spell?” Renna and I said at the same time. We both looked at one another, then back to Bastian, who was smiling.

  “Yes. You both deserve to see what a Divine spell looks like. There are very few people alive who have seen a Divine spell.”

  There were many things I wanted to ask Bastian. I wanted to ask how he froze us in place, how he created that crystal shield, how was he able to react to Renna when she was moving so fast? So many questions, and I hoped he would answer them all. After he showed this spell, I would ask him.

  “I need the three of you to stand still. If you do, you might get hurt as I want to demonstrate this spell’s full power.” Bastian saw the three of us nod our heads, then he raised his hand to the sky.

  I looked up and watched as the clear blue sky turned dark as black clouds appeared within seconds. A few seconds later, I felt the hairs on my arms stick up.

  “Behold, the Veil of Lightning!”

  Then it began. Lightning rained down from the sky, striking the ground with deadly intent. I swear I could feel static from the lightning touch me, though I was pretty sure that was in my head. It wasn’t just a few lightning bolts that came crashing down. There were dozens, hitting the ground one after the other in rapid succession.

  The ground was being hammered, with some lightning bolts hitting close to where we were standing. I nearly jumped back. Thankfully, I was able to keep control of myself. I could tell the lightning bolts were controlled, as I watched ten hit the same spot while others got close to us, but not close enough to harm us.

  The grand finale was a sight to behold as countless lightning bolts strike the ground at the same time. I lost count after fifteen, since they were hitting the ground so fast. The crackling of lightning stopped, and the clouds disappeared, revealing the clear blue sky once again.

  In total, there had been far too many lightning bolts to count. There had to have been hundreds, maybe even a thousand that struck the ground, all in less than a minute. The raw power was frightening, how could one deal with such a spell? I looked over at Arsted, who was as stoic as ever. Did he have a way to counter such a powerful attack, or would he have been burnt to a crisp?

  I looked to my other side, where Renna stood, and she looked in awe at what she’d witnessed. How could you not? If I were able to perform such a spell, monsters would never be a threat again. At least I assumed, though I wasn’t sure how strong monsters could become.

  “That is the power of a Divine spell,” Bastian said.

  I noticed beads of sweat dripping down the mage’s face. That spell must have used a lot of mana, though he did use mana fighting us as well. He didn’t appear exhausted, which made me wonder how much mana he had in reserve.

  “That was amazing to watch! Wow! Is it possible to counter this spell?” Renna asked.

  “Yes, if you have the proper training. A Phoenix ranked blade user would have the capability to do so,” Bastian said.

  “Then I’ll have to get there, I want to be able to fight against a Divine spell!” Renna slapped her hands together, her face full of determination.

  She reminds me of… No, I shouldn’t think of such things. It’s not fair to compare anyone to someone from my old life. Still, I had no doubts in my mind that Renna would become a Phoenix ranked swordswoman. Her skills were incredible, and she was only twelve. I couldn’t let her outshine me, at least not too much.

  “Thank you for showing that spell, it’s good to see what a Divine spell can do,” I said.

  “Many mages never get past the intermediate level because they can’t fathom the true potential of magic. That is one reason I wanted you to see this spell,” Bastian coughed hard. The moment he stopped coughing, water appeared in front of him, and he drank it. “Am I correct that you can control two elements at once and no more?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Very good. I can control five elements at once.” A fireball, waterball, earth, crystal, and a small gust of wind formed in front of Bastian and disappeared a moment later. “Not many magic users can control two, let alone more. You’ve got potential, just don’t let what I’ve said go to your head.”

  “How could I let that go to my head when I can’t do anything close to what you can?” I said, which got a laugh from the old man. “I do have some questions. How were you able to detect Renna’s attacks when she was up close? Can you show me how to create a crystal shield? And-”

  “Whoa there, hold up a second little man,” Bastian said, raising his hand and laughing once again. “First thing you need to realize, you have a long way to go before you can think of creating a crystal shield.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Creating a small crystal is very taxing, especially when you’ve never done it. You do not have enough control over magic to create such a thing, not yet. I would say, once you get to a Mystic level of magic, you can start creating a crystal. You’ll see what I mean when you get there.”

  That took me by surprise. Bastian was saying I couldn’t make a crystal shield, even though I was an intermediate magic user. I thought my mana reserves were large but clearly it wasn’t. It made me wonder how big Bastian’s was.

  “For your question about how I could detect Renna’s movements… Let’s just say you’ll have your answer shortly.”

  “What about the skill to freeze someone in place?”

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  “I’m afraid that too is beyond your current capabilities,” Bastian said. “I get your excitement, little man; I really do but you need to be patient.”

  I know I am technically a ten-year-old but being called little man kind of irked me, even if I respected Bastian and his power. Bastian was right that I needed to be patient. Coming here had been a great decision, for it showed me how far I was from truly mastering magic.

  “Follow me, it’s time for your reward,” Bastian waved us over as he started walking up the steps to his hut.

  Renna was the first to follow, with me right behind her and Arsted coming up last. Bastian walked into the hut and motioned for us to take a seat. He made some tea and gave us cups, which I gladly took. I enjoyed tea a lot in my world, and I of course liked it in this one as well.

  Once that was done, Bastian walked over to a cabinet and opened it. He took out a scroll and walked over to me. “Take this,” he said and handed me the scroll. “There are a couple spells in there that will help you get stronger more quickly than you are now.”

  “Thanks,” I quickly grabbed the scroll and opened it. The first spell I saw was an answer to the question I asked Bastian earlier. It was called analysis, which was very similar to the spell analyze. Analyze could detect weaknesses in weaker monsters and some poisons or mana disruptions as I had discovered back in Alcion.

  Analysis was different in that it allowed a magic user to track fast moving targets and not just people or monsters, but spells and projectiles as well. Now I understood how Bastian was able to defend himself against Renna so well.

  The other spells weren’t very useful, at least in a practical sense. They looked to be spells that drained a user’s mana at an excessive rate, judging by the description. “Why are most of these spells saying they will drain my mana? How will that make me stronger? The book I read stated killing strong monsters was the best way to increase my mana.”

  “Would that book be called A Beginner’s Guide to Magic?”

  “Yeah.”

  “That book is out of date. Few people have access to books like that. Trust me, the spells in that scroll will make you stronger much faster than hunting monsters. Now, this isn’t a get strong quick. While this will help you get stronger, it’ll take time. The reason I gave you four spells like that, is the more unique spells you use that drain your mana, the quicker you will get stronger. Increasing your mana is like growing a muscle. Doing the same thing over and over will slow your progress, whereas doing something new or utilizing magic in combat will help you grow faster.”

  “Oh, that’s good to know,” I said. Man, magic was more complex than I expected. Elias never mentioned this. I wished Elias were still alive, as I wondered what he would have thought if I’d told him this. Since he didn’t know, then this must not be common knowledge.

  Unfortunately, I still didn’t have an answer to combat someone of my skill level in close-quarters combat. With analysis, I could at least detect and react better. There had to be something I could do to replace the crystal shield Bastian used.

  “Trust me, you’ll appreciate this scroll when you’re older,” Bastian went back to where the scroll was and took out a sword. “Renna, this is a sword I think you’ll like.”

  Renna took the sword, and I saw a look of awe on her face the moment she touched the handle. “Woah, this feels… weird,” she said.

  “That is a magic sword, one that I give to worthy warriors. When you activate the magic within that sword, your speed, strength, and reaction time will increase a bit. You’ll get about thirty seconds to utilize this increased power. You will be able to activate the sword three times a day. There is a risk if you do use it all three times as the last use will exhaust you once the thirty seconds are up.”

  “Wow, that’s amazing! I didn’t know a sword could have this kind of power!” Renna was gripping the handle tightly and for a moment, I thought she was going to activate the blade. Then she set up the sheath on her back and sheathed the weapon. “Thank you so much!”

  “You’re welcome,” Bastian said. “I never thought I would give a magic sword or scroll to kids; I hope you will use them well. I imagine Peruvian will keep eyes on you.”

  “Do you think he’s plotting to use us someday?” I asked.

  That got a loud laugh from the old man, who went on far longer than he should have. I didn’t understand why he found that comment so funny. “Ah, that’s a good one. I don’t know what he is planning. All I can say is I would bet that you’ll see him again.”

  I looked at the scroll and the magic sword Renna got. This knowledge was worth it, even if Peruvian asked a favor of us someday. It’s not like we had to say yes. It was a problem for another time.

  “Now then, the three of you may stay the night and you shall leave in the morning.”

  “That works for me,” I said.

  “Good. Kid, make sure to use the spells in the scrolls before you go to bed every night.”

  “Okay, I will!”

  “I’ll leave you to it. If you need me, yell my name.”

  Bastian went out the back of the hut. Where he went, I had no idea, and I wasn’t going to try following him. I was surprised he trusted us unsupervised. I looked at the scroll. I know he said to do the spells at night but why not do them now? We weren’t going to be fighting anyone today and if Bastian couldn’t handle anyone who tried, then we would be good as dead anyway.

  “Arsted, let’s spar!” Renna said.

  “I had a feeling you were going to say that,” Arsted said.

  Well, this would be a chance to test the analysis spell. After their sparring match, then I would test the spells in the scroll. I walked behind them as they got into position in front of the hut. While they were still getting situated, I activated analysis.

  It was an odd sensation. A rush of energy coursed into my eyes, almost like a light wind was brushing against them. The sensation reminded me of a caffeine rush. I hoped this worked like Bastian said.

  Their spar began. Renna rushed forward and once she got close to Arsted, she activated her sword’s ability. I could see her quick movements. What used to be a blur was now visible to me. It was almost like time slowed down enough for me to see what was going on.

  I saw Arsted intercept Renna’s sword, and Renna took the lead with her constant assault. This was amazing! I was seeing every strike Renna was doing and Arsted’s defense. Once thirty seconds passed, Arsted made his move and quickly disarmed her, winning as easily as he always did.

  They sparred two more times. each time, Renna activated the sword when she thought best. On the third spar, the moment the thirty seconds passed, Renna dropped her magic sword and fell onto her butt. She was gasping heavily and looked like she was on the verge of passing out.

  Well, it was good to know what happened. The only reason to use the magic sword’s ability a third time would be in a dire situation. Arsted helped Renna up. After a few minutes, she was able to walk again, though she was breathing hard the whole time.

  Now it was my turn to use the scroll Bastian gave me. I looked at the spell, which directed I raise my hand over my head. Then I chanted the words, “by the everlasting body, unleash this wind from within!”

  A powerful gust of wind surrounded me, then burst forth from my right hand, toward the sky I was aiming at. While the wind was strong, it didn’t last more than a few seconds. I felt my mana reserves drop like a rock. Once the spell was done, I found myself breathing hard, with my hands on my legs to keep myself standing.

  Wow, Bastian wasn’t kidding about the uselessness of these spells. I thought as I gasped for breath. There was no point in trying to use this in combat. At least I knew to use these spells before bed like Bastian suggested.

  With that done, the rest of our time before bed was spent being lazy. I never saw Bastian, and before I knew it, we went to bed. In the morning, Bastian didn’t show himself. We took a quick walk around the hut and saw no sign of him. I ended up shrugging to myself and then we departed for Starcrest.