"Nine hundred and ninety-seven!"
"Nine hundred and ninety-eight!"
"Nine hundred and ninety-nine..."
"One thousand... ."
A boy, around 15 or 16 years old, with short blonde hair and sparkling blue eyes, wearing a white shirt and black shorts. His name was Asfinne Seknoten.
He sighed heavily in exhaustion. The surroundings were a large forest. Tall trees, with bright green leaves and dark brown trunks, showed their age. These large trees surrounded Asfinne.
Ahead of him stood a huge mountain with countless holes. His gaze and smile adorned the mountain with pride, but his surroundings began to blur.
Just as he was about to get up, he collapsed. His body couldn't take it anymore. He felt like he was going to faint...
"No! This is only a thousand times. Others who practice have practiced tens of thousands of times. My body can't stop here!"
Even though his mind was telling him to say that, his body was starting to feel tired...
"I... I must... become the greatest wizard ever!"
After he finished speaking, the surroundings darkened...
He was lost in a dream world, venturing into a world full of monsters. Until he came across a figure with long, blue hair tied in a ponytail. Before the two of them could say anything, a voice echoed throughout the area.
"Wake up!"
"Wake up!"
"Wake up, Fin!'
He looked around. His surroundings were beginning to crumble. The person in front of him was fading away. Now, there was nothing left. He closed his eyes...
Light filtered through his eyes. He opened them to see the dilapidated, brown wooden ceiling that seemed to collapse at any moment.
The bed he was sleeping on had no sheets. It was a hard wooden bed. The pillows were covered in mold. He got up and saw a girl, around 15 or 16 years old. She had fiery red hair and golden eyes. She wore a modest outfit. She looked angry, but also concerned.
She crossed her arms and looked at Asfinne before speaking.
"Did you sneak out of the village and go train behind the mountain?!"
She looked angry, but she seemed more concerned than Asfinne. He chuckled dryly, thinking to himself.
"You don't seem angry."
As he was thinking, a voice shouted. It was a red-haired woman with a scary, angry expression. She grabbed Asfinne's shoulder and squeezed it slightly. Asfinne felt the pain in his shoulder and it slid off.
"So, did you get out?"
Asfinne stopped laughing and thought of a reason to excuse him or mitigate his punishment if he were to be punished. But as he thought about it, he couldn't come up with a good answer, so he had to tell the truth.
"Uh... yeah, I'm leaving."
"Fin, did you know that everyone at this orphanage was so worried about you that they all went looking for you?"
The red-haired girl said angrily, but tears were still streaming from her eyes. She looked like she was about to cry. Asfinne could feel her sorrow.
"I'm sorry, Sonia. I didn't think you'd feel this much concern for me."
Asfinne stroked her cheek with his hand to wipe away her tears. Meanwhile, Sonia unknowingly hugged her.
By the time Sonia realized this, she had pulled away, her cheeks red.
"Who said I was worried about you?"
She acted shy and ran away before saying,
"The food is on the table. Mom made it. Don't forget to thank your mother, too."