INFINITE - 39
Juro thought it over before smiling.
"I see..."
He leaned back comfortably.
"Well, even without me, I'm sure everything will work out, Your Majesty."
The king smiled back, though there was a trace of uncertainty behind it.
"Mmm..."
"I certainly hope so."
..
The king looked at Juro.
"Since you and the kids are planning to travel, there's an Adventurer's Guild here in the kingdom. You can register as adventurers together."
He gestured toward the royal crest resting in Juro's pouch.
"Simply present that crest. It'll save you from the usual paperwork, and you'll be promoted straight to at least A-Class. As for the boys, they'd likely start around B or C-Class."
Juro raised an eyebrow before smiling.
"Well, that's certainly convenient."
He chuckled.
"Alright then. We'll register while we're here."
Bray spoke up.
"Do you also intend to have the boys attend an academy while you're staying in the kingdom?"
Heler nodded.
"Indeed. If you'll be here for a while, you're all welcome to stay at the castle. Bell and Marc could also attend the academy alongside Princess Noria and Princess Brea."
Juro thought for a moment.
"We're not planning to stay very long."
He smiled.
"But the kids might enjoy the experience. How about Bell and Marc accompany the princesses to the academy as their guards or something"
Bray tilted her head.
"But... we already have knights stationed around the academy in case anything happens."
Heler smiled.
"Bray is right."
He looked toward Juro.
"Perhaps Bell and Marc could instead be appointed as the princesses' temporary assistants. They could attend the same lectures while accompanying them throughout the day."
Juro grinned.
"Ooh... I like that idea."
King Brunzel nodded in satisfaction.
"Very well. It's settled."
He smiled warmly.
"We'll prepare rooms for you and the kids during your stay."
Juro, Bray, and Heler all smiled, bringing the discussion in the dining hall to a close.
..
Meanwhile….
Back in Noria and Brea's room, Marc had somehow managed to finish reading three entire books, his enthusiasm never fading.
Bell, on the other hand, sat quietly with his eyes closed, meditating.
Curious, Brea looked over at him.
"Bell... does doing that help you recover mana faster?"
Bell slowly opened his eyes.
"Something like that."
He smiled lightly.
"It's also a bit more efficient for me."
At the same time, a thought crossed his mind.
"I still can't gather mana very well whenever Marc is nearby... unless I completely focus on it through meditation."
Brea's eyes lit up with interest. She turned toward Noria, who immediately understood what she was thinking.
Noria smiled and gave a small nod.
The two girls scooted a little closer.
"Bell," Brea asked hopefully, "could you teach us how to do it too?"
Bell blinked in surprise.
"Oh?"
"You two want to learn as well?"
He looked between them.
"But... can't you already perform basic magic?"
Noria nodded.
"We can."
"But we can't maintain our magic for very long, and casting several spells in a short amount of time drains our mana really quickly."
Brea continued.
"Our instructors said that's normal and that it'll naturally improve as we get older."
She smiled sheepishly.
"But... we wanted to know if there are other ways to improve our mana too."
Bell closed his eyes for a moment, quietly considering it.
After a brief pause, he nodded.
"...Alright."
The two girls immediately smiled with excitement.
They sat cross-legged on the floor, copying Bell's meditative posture.
Bell moved behind them before kneeling down.
"Gently close your eyes."
They did as instructed.
Bell carefully placed one hand against each of their backs.
"You can both feel my hands, right?"
The two girls nodded.
"Alright," Bell said softly. "I'm going to release a small amount of mana through my hands. What I want you two to do is focus on becoming familiar with its flow. Once you can recognize it... try gently pulling the mana toward yourselves."
The two girls nodded.
Bell released a faint stream of mana from both palms.
Noria and Brea immediately focused, shutting out everything else as they concentrated on the unfamiliar sensation flowing through their backs.
Neither of them tried to force it.
Instead, they simply familiarized themselves with the feeling of mana itself.
A minute quietly passed.
The room remained silent as both girls continued concentrating.
Watching them, Bell smiled inwardly.
"Yeah... this is normal."
"This is what an ordinary nine-year-old experiences when first learning to pull mana. It takes patience... and a lot of practice."
His thoughts drifted to Marc.
"Marc, on the other hand..."
A small smile appeared.
"He's a talent that surpasses even geniuses when it comes to understanding mana."
Just then...
Bell felt something.
His eyes shifted toward Noria.
"Oh...?"
A tiny pull.
It was weak...
...but unmistakable.
Only a moment later, he sensed another faint tug.
This time from Brea.
Bell couldn't help smiling.
"These two really are sisters."
Their progress was almost identical.
Several more seconds passed.
Then Noria's body finally began drawing mana toward itself.
Slowly.
Steadily.
Without interruption.
Barely a second later...
Brea's body did the same.
Bell smiled with quiet satisfaction before gently lifting his hands from their backs.
At the same time, Marc noticed faint streams of mana gathering throughout the room.
Curious, he set his book aside and looked toward the two girls.
Bell caught his eye and quietly placed a finger over his lips.
Marc immediately understood.
He smiled and nodded.
The room fell silent once more.
Marc watched in fascination as gentle streams of mana continuously flowed toward Noria and Brea.
Bell quietly walked over and sat beside him.
"You can see it?" he whispered.
"The mana? Yeah," Marc whispered back with an excited grin. "I can!"
Bell nodded.
"The amount they're pulling isn't large... but it's steady."
"Mhm!"
Marc continued watching with bright eyes.
After another few moments, Noria and Brea slowly opened their eyes.
Both stretched comfortably before standing.
"My body feels... lighter somehow," Brea said, flexing her fingers.
Noria nodded in agreement.
"And it feels like my mana has grown a little."
The sisters looked at each other before smiling.
Then they turned toward Bell.
Bell simply smiled back.
"Congratulations, you two."
Both Noria and Brea gave him a polite bow.
"Thank you, Bell."
Bell gave a small wave.
"You don't have to be so formal."
The two girls laughed before sitting back down.
Marc immediately beamed.
"Congratulations, Brea! Noria!"
He scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed laugh.
"You two learned it way better than I did when Bell first taught me."
"I actually fainted."
The sisters stared at him in disbelief.
"...Huh?"
Both of them were genuinely confused.
The meditation had felt gentle—almost relaxing.
How could someone possibly faint while learning it?
Bell could only smile awkwardly.
"Well... that's because what happened to Marc wasn't exactly normal."
Fortunately, Marc didn't seem to remember much of that first lesson himself.
Still curious, Noria looked back at Bell.
"Bell..."
"What exactly is this technique for gathering mana?"
She tilted her head.
"I've never heard of anything like it before. Not even at the academy."
Brea nodded in agreement, her curiosity just as evident.
"Yeah... our instructors never taught us anything like this."
Bell answered calmly.
"To be honest, I wasn't familiar with it at first either."
He smiled faintly.
"I just kept experimenting with different ways to gather mana until I eventually discovered that method. After that, I taught Marc how to do it as well."
He paused for a moment.
"But when we visited the library in Lonan Village, I found out it was actually an old traditional method of gathering mana."
"Ooooh..."
Marc, Noria, and Brea all reacted at the same time.
Bell nodded.
"I guess that's why most modern academies and magic institutions don't teach it anymore."
He scratched his cheek.
"From what I read, it's considered... inconvenient."
Marc tilted his head.
"Inconvenient? How?"
"Well," Bell explained, "it's very effective when you're sitting still and able to fully concentrate."
"But during a battle, or any situation where you need to move while recovering mana, it's much less practical."
"The current method is more flexible. Mages can naturally recover mana while moving, fighting, or casting spells."
Marc nodded in understanding.
"Ooo... I see."
He looked back at Bell.
"So does that mean I have to meditate all the time if I want my mana to keep growing?"
Bell chuckled and shook his head.
"Not really."
"You have a special ability that lets your body naturally absorb and recover mana on its own."
Marc's eyes widened.
"Really??"
Bell simply nodded.
A bright smile immediately spread across Marc's face.
"I see..." Noria said thoughtfully. "We just learned a pretty interesting piece of history."
"Indeed," Brea agreed with a smile. "You're surprisingly knowledgeable when it comes to magic, Bell."
Before Bell could respond, Marc happily wrapped an arm around his shoulder.
"I know, right?" he laughed. "He's gonna become a genius at magic, and I'll be learning right beside him!"
Noria and Brea couldn't help giggling.
Bell looked at Marc for a moment.
Then, despite himself...
A small smile appeared.
Just then, Noria suddenly remembered something.
"Oh!"
She looked at Marc.
"You said you were interested in the horlenses, didn't you?"
Marc's face immediately lit up.
"Ooo! Mhm!"
Brea smiled.
"Then why don't we go see them up close?"
Marc blinked.
"Wait... really?"
"I can?"
The sisters nodded.
"Of course," Noria said as she stood. "Come with us."
Marc shot to his feet before excitedly turning toward Bell.
"Come on, Bell! Let's go see the horlenses!"
He reached out his hand.
Bell smiled and accepted it, letting Marc pull him to his feet.
"Alright, alright," Bell laughed. "Let's go."
The four of them left the room together.
As they walked through the castle halls, passing maids, servants, and knights politely greeted Noria and Brea as they passed.
Marc, meanwhile, was completely captivated by the castle itself.
His head turned from side to side so often that he could barely decide where to look next.
"I feel like my neck's about to fall off from looking around so much..." he joked.
The two princesses laughed.
"We're here."
They stopped in front of a large wooden door.
As it slowly opened...
A gentle breeze carrying the scent of flowers drifted toward them.
Beyond the doorway stretched a wide grassy field filled with colorful flowerbeds, small ponds, and scattered trees.
Several horlenses peacefully rested beneath the shade, while others quietly drank from the water or wandered across the meadow.
Marc's eyes sparkled.
"Whoa..."
"There's so many of them!"
Unable to contain his excitement, he quickly turned to Noria and Brea.
"Can... can I pet one?"
The sisters smiled and nodded.
"You can."
Marc carefully approached the nearest horlenses.
Although he was excited, he slowed his steps, making sure not to startle it.
He gently reached out...
...and softly patted its side.
The horlenses remained completely calm, happily accepting the affection.
A huge smile spread across Marc's face.
Then...
A smaller figure waddled toward him.
A baby horlenses gently bumped its head against his leg.
Marc's heart practically melted.
He immediately crouched down and began gently petting the little creature.
"Aw..."
NYERH!
The baby horlenses let out a cheerful cry before happily rubbing its head against Marc's hand, already seeming to have taken a liking to him.