Two Years Later
The thin coating of mana wrapped around my body flickered and wavered as I concentrated, trying to maintain the delicate balance. Sweat beaded on my forehead despite the cool evening air in the forest clearing behind the church. My muscles trembled with the effort of keeping the energy stable.
Just a few more seconds, I told myself, gritting my teeth as the mana skin threatened to collapse. Hold it together...
But my concentration finally broke, and the protective layer of mana dissipated like morning mist. I collapsed to my knees on the forest floor, breathing heavily as exhaustion washed over me.
"That's all I can manage for now," I muttered to myself, wiping sweat from my brow with a dirt-stained hand.
Two years. It had been two years since I'd gained my first taste of mana from Sister Lily's trust value, and while I'd made progress, it felt frustratingly slow compared to what I knew I should be capable of.
But at least I'm getting somewhere, I reminded myself as I sat back against a tree trunk.
Over the past two years, I'd gradually gained small amounts of additional mana from Father Orsi, Nash, and Recca. Each increment was modest—nothing like the flood I'd received from Sister Lily—but they'd slowly built up my reserves enough to make real training possible. More importantly, they'd allowed me to experiment with different applications of my energy.
What puzzled me was the complete absence of trust points from Asta and Yuno. Despite growing closer to them, despite them clearly viewing me as their big brother, I hadn't received a single drop of mana from either of them.
Maybe it's because they're main characters, I theorized, stretching my sore muscles. Maybe their trust works differently, or maybe I need to do something more significant to earn it.
Rather than waste time trying to force Hero X's dimensional abilities—which still required far more mana than I possessed—I'd focused on techniques I remembered from the anime. Captain Yami's mana enhancement had been my primary inspiration, and I'd made decent progress in wrapping my muscles with energy to increase my strength and speed.
The mana skin technique, however, remained frustratingly elusive. I could create a thin layer of protective energy around my body for a few seconds, but it was weak and unstable. Still, it was progress.
And at least my hand-to-hand combat is improving, I thought, flexing my hands and remembering the kickboxing training from my previous life. Without proper sparring partners—as Asta and Yuno were still just kids playing around—my martial arts practice was limited to solo drills and techniques, but muscle memory was slowly returning.
The past two years had also deepened my relationships with everyone at the church. Asta and Yuno now genuinely saw me as their older brother, coming to me with problems, asking for help with everything from climbing trees to understanding Sister Lily's lessons. Nash and Recca, now four and three respectively, followed me around like devoted shadows, calling me "Kenji-nii" and demanding piggyback rides.
I really do have a family, I mused, watching the sun begin to set through the forest canopy. Even if my powers are still pathetic.
The growing darkness reminded me that I should head back. Standing up and brushing dirt from my clothes, I made my way through the trees toward the warm glow of the church.
As I emerged from the forest, I noticed Father Orsi and Sister Lily standing by the front door, both looking unusually worried. Their tense postures and hushed conversation made my stomach clench with concern.
"Father Orsi? Sister Lily?" I called out, jogging toward them. "What's wrong?"
The moment Father Orsi spotted me, his face transformed with relief and panic. He rushed over and grabbed me by the shoulders, shaking me frantically.
"Kenji! Thank goodness you're safe!" he exclaimed, his eyes wide with worry. "Yuno went to the village to pick up supplies this morning and hasn't returned! And then Asta ran off looking for him, and—" Tears started sliding down his face. "I'm so worried something's happened to them!"
I gently but firmly extracted myself from his grip, causing him to stumble and face-plant into the snow. Turning to Sister Lily for confirmation, I saw her nod gravely, her silver eyes filled with concern.
A chill ran down my spine that had nothing to do with the winter air. The timeline, I realized with sudden clarity. This is around the time when Yuno's pendant gets stolen in the manga. The drunk man, the incident that sparks their rivalry...
"I'm going to find them!" I declared, already moving toward the door.
"Wait, Kenji—" Sister Lily started.
But I was already grabbing the tree branch I'd been using as a makeshift broom from where it leaned against the wall. Channeling mana into it to make it fly, I launched myself into the darkening sky.
"I'm coming too!" Father Orsi shouted from behind me, scrambling to his feet. "Wait for me!"
But I was already soaring toward the village, the cold wind whipping past my face as I pushed my improvised broom to its limits. My heart raced with a mixture of urgency and, admittedly, anticipation.
This is it, I thought, banking around a cluster of trees. This is the perfect chance to finally earn Asta and Yuno's trust. Even though things worked out in the anime, this is real life—anything could go wrong.
As I approached the village, I climbed higher to get a better view. What I saw below made my blood run cold.
Yuno was on the ground, crying and holding his face where he'd clearly been struck. A large, drunk man loomed over him, while Asta—brave, foolish Asta—was frantically attacking the man with his bare fists, only to be easily swatted away again and again.
No more hesitation, I decided, diving toward the ground. I scooped up a good-sized rock as I swooped past, wrapping my legs in mana for what I was about to attempt.
"Hey!" I shouted as I approached the scene.
The drunk man looked up just as I snapped my fingers. The sound reverberated through the air with an almost supernatural clarity, and the rock in my hand began glowing with brilliant white light—a simple reality alteration that was well within my current abilities.
The sudden blaze of light blinded the man, causing him to stumble backward with his hands over his eyes. I used that moment to leap from my broom, mana-enhanced legs driving me forward in a powerful flying kick that caught him square in the jaw.
The impact sent him crashing into a nearby wall with enough force to crack the stone. Yuno's pendant scattered from his grip, landing in the snow nearby.
I landed in a crouch, immediately snatching up the necklace and falling into a combat stance, ready to continue the fight. But as the glowing light faded and my vision cleared, I saw the man slumped unconsciously against the wall at an awkward angle.
That... felt way too easy, I thought, sweatdropping. Maybe I'm stronger than I realized?
I straightened up and coughed lightly, trying to look more composed than I felt. Turning to face Asta and Yuno with a small smirk, I slipped one hand casually into my pocket while holding up the pendant with the other.
Asta's eyes were practically sparkling with stars, his mouth hanging open in amazement. "That was AWESOME!" he shouted. "You saved us! You just—you went WHOOSH and then BAM and he went flying!"
Yuno sat in the snow, staring at me with shock and something that looked like awe. His usual composure was completely shattered.
I walked over and gently placed the pendant back in Yuno's trembling hands. "You okay?" I asked softly.
Yuno clutched the necklace to his chest, tears streaming down his face. "I... I couldn't protect it," he whispered. "I was so weak..."
"Never better!" Asta declared with a grin and a thumbs up, before promptly falling backward into the snow, finally succumbing to his injuries.
"Asta!" Yuno cried out, crawling over to his friend. Tears ran down his face as he looked at Asta's bruised form. "I... I... I should've..." he sniffled, unable to finish the sentence.
Asta smiled up at him despite his battered condition. "Don't worry, Yuno. I've always got your back."
Then, with sudden determination blazing in his green eyes, Asta struggled to sit up. "That's why I'm going to get stronger and become the Wizard King!"
The declaration hung in the air like a challenge. Yuno's eyes widened, then narrowed with matching determination.
"No," Yuno said firmly, clenching his fist around his pendant. "I'm the one who needs to get stronger and become the Wizard King."
Asta grinned despite his pain. "Well then, I guess that makes us rivals!"
They reached out and clasped hands, sealing their newfound rivalry with matching looks of determination.
Then both of them turned to look at me expectantly.
I couldn't help but laugh. "Don't look at me like that. Two Wizard Kings is enough—I just want to live a fun and free life." Why do I sound like Luffy? I thought with amusement.
Their faces fell slightly, disappointment clear in their expressions. I reached out and flicked both of their foreheads gently.
"Don't look at me like that," I said with a smirk. "Since you guys have such grand goals, I guess it's my job as your older brother to keep you two safe until that happens. Plus, I can't have my younger brothers getting stronger than me—that'll just never happen."
The effect was immediate. Both boys' eyes filled with tears of joy, and I could see the absolute trust and faith they placed in me shining in their expressions.
"Alright, let's get out of here," I said, ruffling their hair.
But as I spoke, I saw something that made me freeze. Two streams of green light—invisible to everyone else—flowed from Asta and Yuno toward my wrist, where the number 4 flickered and changed to 6. Suddenly, an enormous surge of mana flooded into my body, far greater than anything I'd experienced before.
Main characters, I realized with excitement. Their trust really is different—more valuable, harder to earn, but worth so much more when you get it.
The amount of mana I now possessed felt incredible. Not infinite, but substantial enough that I might actually be able to attempt some of Hero X's simpler abilities.
We started walking back toward the church, but suddenly heard a loud yelling getting closer.
"ASTAAAA! YUNOOOO! KENJIIIII!"
Father Orsi came flying in on his broom, moving far too fast and looking like he was barely in control. He crashed into all three of us in a massive group hug, tears streaming down his face.
"Thank goodness you're all safe! I was so worried!"
Yuno started to blush but quickly tried to put on a stoic expression, while Asta laughed. "Of course we're okay! I'm gonna be the Wizard King after all!"
As Father Orsi prepared to take Asta and Yuno back on his broom, I felt a mischievous urge. Walking over to the stick I'd flown in on, I picked it up and looked at my companions.
"Hehe, let me try something now that I have more mana," I muttered to myself.
I snapped my fingers, and reality rippled around the wooden branch. Before everyone's amazed eyes, it transformed into a pristine white blanket that immediately began floating in the air.
All three of them stared in utter shock as I hopped onto my new flying carpet with a grin.
"Well?" I called out, already rising into the evening sky. "You coming or what?"
Before rushing off leaving them scrambling to catch up.
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Note: Hope you enjoyed the chapter!