Tecnomagic Engineer

Morning arrived. Just before the kaorrax began to sing, I was already up, still in the early hours. I arranged my books, looked at them, didn't like their position, and rearranged them again, a process that lasted until breakfast, all for one reason: Scilia's visit. Why was I doing this? Don't ask me, at that time, it was something I didn't understand either, but now, I understand very well what it was. During breakfast, my parents were startled by the way I was acting, a way they had never seen before. I had always been calm, but that day, I was running from side to side, checking if everything was as I wanted it to be.

- "T-Taryn... Have you ever seen him like this before?" my mother asked in a low tone to my father, while sipping her morning tea.

- "I don't remember ever seeing him like this" my father replied while eating a large Hornock steak before heading to work.

-"Hmm... But if I were to say why he's doing this... I'd say it's because of the girl who will visit him today, what was her name?... Ah, yes, Scilia, right?" my father completed while finishing his citrus juice and standing up to take his plate to the washroom.

- "B-because of the girl? Taryn, he's still too young to think about these things, I think you hit your head to say that" my mother said, indignant.

-"Hmm... I think he's already old enough to have several girlfriends, just like I did at his age hahahah" my father said, laughing heartily.

While my mother hit my father for what he had said, I finished my preparations for Scilia's arrival. Now, with everything the way I wanted it, all that was left was to wait for the moment someone would knock on the door. I sat there, on the chair, near the entrance door, waiting. Time passed and passed. It was almost noon, and there was no sign of Scilia or Miss Vyresska. I was starting to lose hope at that moment. My mother, who had been watching my behavior since early on, was becoming more and more apprehensive, as she had never seen me do something like that for someone else before, and she feared that, if Scilia and Miss Vyresska didn't show up, I would be hesitant to relate to other people in the future. Besides, she didn't want to see me sad. However, before she could take any action or make any movement, someone knocked on the door. At that moment, I jumped out of the chair and ran to the door. Upon opening it, I was delighted to see that both Scilia and Miss Vyresska had accepted my invitation and had come to my house. Before entering, Miss Vyresska apologized for the delay, saying they had a small unforeseen event but came as soon as they could.

- "M-Miss Vyresska, Scilia... You came, that's great..." I said, smiling.

- "Hello, Dravyn and Miss Elaris! Sorry for our delay, I had a small issue at the bakery today because many people wanted to buy bread and cakes" she said, laughing, a bit embarrassed.

- "No problem, Miss Vyresska, the number of people in the village has increased a lot, so it's expected that the work would also increase" I said, nodding.

- "And you too, Scilia, hello!" I said, smiling.

- "H-hello, Dravyn... " she said, in a timid tone.

- "Let's go inside? I'll prepare something for us to eat!" my mother said, much less apprehensive than before.

They then entered, and while my mother and Miss Vyresska talked, Scilia and I went to my room. There, I showed her my book collection, which was, I must say, very well organized. Scilia looked at that huge collection of books and, although she initially hesitated to accept my invitation to read them, she couldn't help but be surprised by the number of books and how well they were cared for. She then asked if she could take any of them, to which I quickly affirmed.

- "Wow... Dravyn... H-how many books do you have here?" she asked.

- "Hmm... About a hundred? Something around that... I didn't count them all" I said, laughing, a bit embarrassed.

- "C-can I take any of them?" she asked, a bit shy.

- "Sure, feel free, Scilia, but if I could recommend a book, I'd recommend these here..." I said, while handing her the first books I had received when I was little.

- "Elementary Mathematics... Magic and the Expansion of the Energy Vein... and... Geography of the Empire? Wow, amazing..." she said, with her eyes shining and as she opened them and saw their contents.

And so we stayed there, reading and commenting on everything we saw in the books. Somehow, that seemed to bring us closer and calmer, making all the bad moments we kept to ourselves seem insignificant in the face of the vast new world we had there. At some point, my mother and Miss Vyresska called us for coffee. When we got to the kitchen, we were pleasantly surprised to see they had made several types of bread and sweets, which smelled wonderful. One of them, in particular, a kind of dessert, but frozen, made from a fruit called Alkarith, had won my heart. It was something splendid and refreshing, achieved only thanks to Miss Vyresska, whose mana veins they hadn't narrowed and, therefore, could produce a kind of magical power that resembled ice. Additionally, the recipe for that dessert was also something only she knew, but, after some insistence, it was passed on to my mother. Upon realizing that Miss Vyresska had her mana veins expanded, I became excited, as I could ask her for advice and see if what was happening to me was normal.

- "Miss Vyresska, may I ask you a question?" I asked.

- "Of course, Dravyn. What is it?" she replied, curious, while eating a small bowl of frozen Alkarith dessert.

- "W-well, I noticed you said your mana veins were expanded and not narrow, correct?" I asked.

- "Yes, that's true. Why?" she retorted.

- "I've been trying to expand my mana veins for some time now, but, to this day, I haven't even been able to feel them. However, I always get very tired when I try, which I believe is a sign that I'm doing the process correctly, even though there are no results. Could you help me understand what's happening?" I asked hopefully.

- "You're already trying to expand your mana veins? W-well, that's something that should only be done when the arcane flow is almost ready to flood the body, usually at 5 or 6 years old. Of course, it's possible to try earlier and even succeed, but there won't be much difference compared to those who attempt at the appropriate age. Still, I can try to sense the path of your mana veins. Do you want me to do that to help? Maybe I can identify the problem..." she replied, surprised that I was trying to expand my magical veins so early.

Indeed, the book said the ideal age for expansion was when the body was closer to going through the arcane flow. However, it also mentioned that results could be achieved earlier. Therefore, I had nothing to lose by trying.

- "Yes, please help me find out if I'm doing something wrong, Miss Vyresska" I said.

We all went to my room. There, Scilia was reading several books, while Miss Vyresska and my mother watched as I entered a meditative state to locate my mana vein. As soon as I felt it, I informed Miss Vyresska. She asked for permission, lifted my shirt, and placed her open hand on my back. She closed her eyes and focused.

After a few seconds, I began to feel a tingling sensation surrounding my heart and lungs, as if a current passed from Miss Vyresska to me, circulated through my organs, and returned to her. It wasn't painful, but it brought a sense of peace, hard to explain.

She then asked me to try expanding my mana vein again, as I always did. After a few minutes, she asked me to stop and finally gave her opinion:

- "Hmm... Your mana vein is very narrow. But don't give up. I've seen people with veins even narrower than yours who managed to expand them successfully when they were close to the arcane flow. Continue your training when you're closer to that moment. You're 4 years old now, right? In about a year, you'll start noticing drastic changes. Don't give up." 

While passing her hand over my head. At that moment, I felt a bit discouraged, but I knew I couldn't give up. I decided to follow her advice and resume my training more intensely when I was closer to the arcane flow.

Scilia, noticing my downcast expression, approached with my book on magic and mana vein expansion and gently tapped it against my head, saying:

- "Don't give up."

For the first time, she smiled in an enchanting way. I don't know what expression I made, but that smile restored the confidence I had lost, filling me with an energy burst I hadn't felt in a long time. My heart raced, and, for a moment, I lost control of my words:

- "R-right, I... I fail won't... I-I mean, I won't g-give up, you can be sure!" I stammered.

When we noticed, the daylight had already started giving way to the stars and the two moons. Realizing this, Vyresska called Scilia to leave, as it was time. At the door, before leaving, Vyresska called me close, gave me a tight hug — so strong it almost crushed my internal organs — and, at the same time, gentle in her own way.

With a trembling voice, she said:

- " sniff...Thank you so much, really, thank you..."

and ruffled my hair while some tears ran down her face. Scilia, intrigued, asked why she had done that, but Vyresska brushed it off, saying it was nothing.

When it was Scilia's turn, I said goodbye by asking a few questions:

- "So, how was today? Did you like it?" I asked, smiling

- "I-it was... nice.." she replied.

- "So, can I count on you two coming here again next weekend?" I asked eagerly.

Scilia's eyes sparkled for a moment, and with a low and shy response, she said:

- "..Sure..."

And that made me extremely happy.