It's been two months since I last heard from the ghost, yet I know she's still there, watching.
The only times she has revealed herself, was the first day, and a couple of weeks later, when she granted me a strand of her mana.
That kind of mana could have killed anyone if not controlled correctly.
But for some reason, I was not afraid.
I took the challenge, and made it my own.
The motions came easily, it was almost easy.
Drawing in the mana, and letting it flow through my body felt as simple as breathing.
And strangely enough, I felt grateful.
Grateful for the challenge. I need to do whatever I can to get stronger, because the way I am now, I will not be able to live the free life I dream of.
Since that day, I've spent nearly every waking moment training.
Meditation, strength work, running outside, sword practice, anything really.
My form is terrible, I know. Even after two months, I can't swing a sword without feeling awkward.
Every time I practice, I can almost feel her laughing at me.
After months of swinging the blade around, you'd think I would figure something out, right?
Haha nope.
Still, I keep trying.
So today I plan to focus on the path of the sword, imagining a perfect arc.
To nobody's surprise, it fails miserably.
The swing pulls me off balance, and I fall face‑first into the ground.
I let out a groan before laughing to myself.
"Maaaan… what the fuck?" I mutter between chuckles.
This time, I hear another sound echoing down from the spire.
She's laughing at me.
"Lady," I call up, "chill on me."
"You can't expect me to know what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing!"
She just laughs again.
I grin up at the ceiling. "You wanna help me out or something?"
A soft voice drifts down from above.
"No," she says.
It's silky and calm, like waves breaking gently along the shore. It's a soft voice, but one carrying absolute power and confidence.
"Worth a shot I guess," I mutter
Nothing changed for the next month.
My routine never changed. Sleep, eat, train, meditate, repeat.
Something had to happen eventually.
And it did. On one of my midnight runs.
I was running in the forest beside the Veylor estate. It's peaceful in the forest. The monsters don't come close to the estate.
With my mana-infused body, I can reach speeds ordinary humans could only dream of.
It sounds impressive, but compared to others in this world, it's nothing.
Up ahead on the path, I saw something lying in the dirt, and came to an abrupt halt.
From afar, it looked like a dead animal.
But, as I got closer, I noticed it was something else.
It wasn't an animal, it was a girl, unconscious.
She had a deep gash across her chest, ribs covered in purples bruises, skin torn around her body, and an arm twisted unnaturally. Her breath was shallow but she was still alive, her blood dripping onto the dirt below her.
She looked around my age, maybe eight, with long grey hair that spilled across the ground, covered in grime.
Atop her head a pair of ears poked out, maybe six inches long, with soft purple insides that matched the mauve color of her eyes.
She wore nothing but a set of torn rags, barely enough to cover her.
It was a beastkin.
Even when young, they were known for their incredible strength.
So what could've done something like this to her?
That's when I heard it, a deep rumbling growl echoing from deeper in the forest.
It grew louder. Closer.
Heart pounding, I scooped the girl into my arms and started running toward the estate. I could hear the creature gaining on me. The girl was quite heavy, despite her small body, slowing me down quite a bit.
But I wasn't fast enough.
The beast burst from the treeline, landing hard between me and the forest's edge, cutting off my escape.
The sound jolted the girl awake.
"Agh—!" she gasped, clutching at my arm. Her voice was hoarse, trembling with confusion and pain. "Who are you? Let me go!"
I nearly stumbled as she squirmed in my arms. The timing couldn't have been worse. I didn't have time to deal with a terrified beastgirl right now.
"Calm down," I muttered, lowering my voice as I looked around for cover. "You're hurt. Stop moving."
She kept struggling, hitting me, her small fists hitting my chest.
She would've packed quite the punch too, if she hadn't been severely injured.
"Get off me! Put me down!"
I sighed and crouched by a tree, setting her down gently against the trunk.
The earth was cold, morning dew clinging to the roots around us. I turned to face the creature that now stood in between me and the estate.
"Stay here," I said firmly. "Don't make a sound. We'll deal with your injuries later."
"You'll die," she shot back, voice thick with fear, "Humans are weak. That thing will tear you apart! I can still fight!"
I looked into her eyes, saw raw terror, but also a glimmer of resolve. She wasn't just scared, she was concerned for me.
"No. You cannot," I replied quietly, crouching beside her. "You can barely move."
She tried to punch me. It was a hard punch, much harder than someone should've managed with her injuries, for me it was weak.
I caught her fist mid-swing and held it there, feeling the tremor in her arm. Her skin was hot with fever, and her breath came in uneven gasps.
I sighed and gently guided her fist back to her lap. "You stay here. Don't move."
She glared up at me, jaw clenched, pride fighting through the exhaustion. But she didn't move again.
I turned to face the beast before me.