Gathering and Earth Magic
I must have dozed off while watching Dad practice last night, because I woke up in the morning without stirring at all during the night. When I got out of bed, Dad was already gone, but I could hear the sizzle of cooking and smell toast, so he was probably making breakfast. I used Clean to wash my face and went back to the other room to change.
“Morning, Dad.”
“Morning, Vio. You ain’t got no headaches or feelin’ rough anywhere, do ya?”
I greeted Dad in the dining room, and he worried about headaches, but I felt fine as ever. Turns out, last night I didn’t just fall asleep—I probably passed out from running out of mana. I didn’t feel hungry or dizzy or anything, though.
“Well, normally folks get hunger, headaches, or dizziness, but sometimes you just get so doggone sleepy you drop right then and there. Kids just startin’ with magic get so caught up in the fun, they don’t even notice their stomach’s empty and keep goin’ till they suddenly topple over.”
Ah, so that’s a common thing for kids learning magic. So maybe my nodding off during training was just mana exhaustion after all? I’m a little embarrassed, but if I’m using up all my mana before bed and recovering well, maybe my total mana pool’s getting bigger. Yeah, I’ll keep training myself to use it all before sleep.
The heavy door was taken off my room, replaced by a wooden partition.
“Dad, what’s this?”
“Ah, that door was heavy, so I took it off. But I figured changin’ clothes without a door’d be embarrassing, so I put up this here screen to give you some privacy.”
Dad’s such a gentleman! He’d never say something silly like a five-year-old talking nonsense. He worries about me but lets me handle dressing and bathing on my own once he knows I’m okay. I’m really glad he picked me up.
After breakfast, we did some stretching, then headed out to gather herbs quickly. I’m aiming to deliver 5 points, so I practiced collecting 30 Healing Herbs and 20 Mariki Herbs carefully and quickly. I bundled 10 at a time, put them in a basket, and stored them in my Magic Bag. When I take them to the guild, I put them in my usual bag but pause time briefly to keep them fresh.
We started pretty early, like on school days, so even after gathering, barely two hours had passed. I still had time before lunch, so we decided to combine Dad’s mana control practice with an experiment making clay dolls.
“Earth magic for me’s mostly been shields, pits, or spears for attacking, but you’re thinkin’ up some clever stuff, Vio.”
“Yeah, I thought starting big and working down to small detailed dolls would help my mana control, and it’s safer, too. If you gather herbs all day, you’d probably get bored, right? Making earth dolls is like playing in the mud, so I think it’ll be fun.”
Dad was impressed as we practiced earth magic on a patch of field. Since it’s near the river for easy watering, and we hadn’t planted two rows near the house yet, it was perfect for practicing.
“Earth magic works better if you place your hands right on the soil while casting instead of just chanting at a distance. I used to think that was just how it was, but maybe it helps mana flow smoother.”
Dad made a hole a few centimeters deep just off his hands. A pitfall from earth magic. Makes sense it’s easier to move your mana by flowing it through the soil than just throwing it around. I hadn’t thought of that before—he really uses his instincts for magic.
Following his lead, I flowed mana through the soil, feeling the strange sensation of the earth responding under my hands. I wondered how far I could send my mana. After filling one furrow with mana, I pushed it deeper. It seeped in like water soaking through dirt. Maybe if I flowed it faster, it’d go even deeper?
I sensed reactions from stone-like things and mole-like creatures underground; mana pushed back from them, like a radar. It was so fun I kept flowing mana until suddenly my hand was pulled away.
Dad had scooped me up. We headed home with me still in his arms. I wished I could have practiced more, though.
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Seems I got carried away and drained my mana too much. I remember being carried home, then taking a nap. Waking up in my bedroom was a surprise.
“I shoulda stopped ya sooner, but you scared me good.”
Dad wasn’t mad but clearly worried. He even gave me a mana recovery potion, which cost him a silver coin. I felt awful about making him spend money.
“Don’t fuss over money. Sleepin’ heals ya fine. I just gave you the potion to be safe.”
I felt sorry for worrying Dad by being reckless. I’m supposed to be an adult, but sometimes I act like a kid. Getting curious makes me try new magic without thinking, like last night’s earth magic experiment. I didn’t even ask Dad before I tried flowing mana deep into the soil. I need to be more careful.
I apologized, then told Dad I sensed stones and small creatures while flowing mana. He told me there’s similar magic in wind spells—magic to detect enemies.
Oh, like sonar? I think I’ve seen games with water or wind magic used like that. It’d be cool if it showed enemies in color, but I guess we don’t have status screens.
Dad said it’s safer to have detection magic when exploring dungeons, so I’ll practice it.
I must have slept for about an hour, then ate lunch. Dad promised to help me with martial arts training after. If he hadn’t given me the potion, I probably couldn’t have trained today. I realized I really need to watch my actions better.
What do you think about this chapter?
