1. Underneath the Floor Boards
Just like every other day, I am lying on my bed. The day is breaking. I stretch my body since I am feeling a bit sore.
Thud… thud… thud… thud…
Footsteps? They sound like my father's.
Bang!
My father forcefully opens the door.
"Hazemuru. I always had a feeling that you weren't my son. Your mother — that scum of a woman — confessed to me on her deathbed that she had you with another man," he shouts at me.
Well, I wasn't really surprised. Look at how dashing I am while didn't quite have the looks. It was quite obvious I didn't have his genes. What's with the look on his face? Does he intend to kill me? No. He wouldn't go that far.
"A bastard like you has no place in this house. But since you are still a minor, I won't throw you out just yet. Get out of this room and head to the stables. That's your new room until I think of what to do with you."
He makes it sound like he is doing me a grand favor.
One of the laws of this kingdom states that no child under the age of sixteen can be disowned by their parents or guardian. If he breaks the law, he will be sent to the Imperial prison for two solid years.
"I should have known. From your abnormal mana circuit. A perfectly healthy man like me could never breed a deformity."
He plays his best card — my abnormally bent mana circuit.
Normally, mana circuits are supposed to be straight lines that help conduct mana from the individual's mana core. But mine are severely bent, which makes me unable to cast spells or direct my mana.
He leaves the room, and I start to pack my bags for the stable. It stinks, as expected. I drop my bags by the haystack.
"Your mother's burial will be held tomorrow, but unfortunately, you aren't invited," the head maid says with a smirk on her face.
I'm glad I didn't want to attend it in the first place.
"Your father said I should let you know that you have been removed from Ainsberg Academy. Sadly, he won't be able to pay your fees anymore. According to him, he has better things to do with his money."
The maid continues to smirk.
"Oh, is that all? If you don't have anything else to say, then you are excused," I reply calmly.
The anger on her face is evident. That's nice. I hate people who take pleasure in another person's downfall.
Two days after my mother's burial, my father marries another woman. It's not as if he had been a faithful man. My mother caught him multiple times in the pleasure district. I'm sure this woman was one of the many he cheated on my mother with.
None of this is my concern. I just need to see at least one meal a day to survive this hellhole while I figure out my next course of action.
After a while, my father appoints me as the caretaker of the stables. If I refuse, I won't get enough food to eat. Though that head maid has been serving me spoiled food for the past four days.
I can't continue like this. I need a way out.
Just as I am walking over the floorboards of the stable, I hear a creak beneath the board I am standing on. I bend down to check it.There's a gap. I pull the floorboard open and see a dusty-looking book lying on the bare ground, covered in webs.
I carry the book out and begin dusting it.
Ahem! The dust enters my nostrils.
"Beginner's Guide to Mana Circulation and Magic — Volume One."
Let me see who the author is.
"Benihamt Drucan."
He was the first and only mage in history to reach the peak stage of the 9th Grade. Some even say he reached the early stage of the 10th Grade — a mystical level of magecraft that even the great Benihamt himself couldn't fully master.
This could be the cure to my mana distribution problem.
I don't know how this kind of book ended up in a stable, but I am going to take this chance.
The first page contains meditation poses and breathing techniques. I try the first pose and add transverse breathing to it.
I feel like I am one with the world. I can hear the breaths of the horses clearly. The chirping of the birds.
What's this energy I am sensing?
It's mana.I can sense it properly now.
Blood?Blood is coming out of my nose.
I guess I pushed it too hard on my first try. Maybe I should try again tomorrow?
Nope.
Unless I cough out all of my internal organs, I'm not stopping.
After numerous attempts of only lasting about five minutes, I can now last twenty minutes — and it's just midnight.
My whole body is sullied with blood. Time to take a break.
I feel a bit different this morning. I can now faintly sense the mana from the horses in the stable.
After a week of rigorous practice, I can properly sense the mana of the horses.
I have completed the first stage of the guide — Perception.
Next is the second stage — Circulation.
I continue my meditation. This time, it is very painful. I can feel the mana distributing from my mana core, hitting dead ends in my circuit.
I have an idea! What if I try to separately distribute my mana to each part of my body, one at a time? Instead of using just one channel, I can create several channels, with my mana core as the generator.
Ghk!
What's happening?My eyes are closing on their own, and my body is falling to the ground.Everything goes blank.
The next time I wake up, it is already night. I passed out in the afternoon.
I need some water.A liquid pours onto my face.It's water.
Did I just cast a spell?
Let me try again."Flame Arrow."An arrow of flames appears beside me.I can now cast spells.
But I thought they required chants. I just said "Flame Arrow" and it appeared.Interesting. Only high-grade mages can omit parts of a chant.But I barely said anything at all.
Let me check the book.
Upon picking it up, it turns to dust.
Suspicious?Then I guess I have to find the other volumes.