Before leaving and deactivating the sound barrier, I coldly scanned each person present. My voice was low, but full of authority.
■— Everything that has been said in this room... dies in this room. —
●— And try to act normal around us. In the other world, we were just two normal kids. Changing worlds doesn't mean you have to treat us differently. —
The silence that followed was absolute. No one dared to say anything else.
We made our way through the city as the streets began to fill with midday activity. We passed by the Hunters' Guild, where a stall displayed various hunting products: tanned hides, claws, fangs, and meat hanging on iron hooks. Among all the goods, Neo noticed something that caught his eye: an egg, slightly smaller than an ostrich's, and a jug filled with milk.
●— You, what do you think if we eat breaded chicken with mashed potatoes? —
■— Bro, you know things, I think it's a great idea. —
Our companions, still tense due to our presence, put aside all prejudices and relaxed their postures when they realized that, despite our great intelligence and our degrees, we were just two ordinary kids.
Neo and I strayed from the group and headed to the stall. Neo inspected the egg with interest, but before he could ask the price, the clerk, a skinny man with a sour face, looked at us with disdain.
— Clerk — Eggs are a luxury item. I don't sell them to just anyone like you. —
Before Neo could respond, a towering shadow fell over the clerk. A man, taller and more robust than Durman, strode forward and pushed him aside.
— Justo — Since when does a simple merchant have the right to address two men walking in the company of guild masters like that? — The clerk paled.
Justo on, the Hunters' Guild Master gave us an analytical look before giving us a sharp smile.
— Justo — We'll serve you right now, go into the guild if you want to buy something. —
He turned to his workers and gave them quick orders. Meanwhile, he turned to Durman and Sena, crossing his arms.
— Justo — Who are these two? — Durman sighed and patted him on the shoulder.
— Durman — That one is my disciple and the other is Sena's sister's "friend." — Sena nodded calmly.
— Sena — And it would be best if you didn't treat them like trash, Justo. — The hunter let out a deep laugh.
— Justo — Ah, I see. —
He turned to us with a mocking expression and raised a breast of gigantic dimensions.
— Justo— Are you sure you don't want this to eat? Don't get scared.
Neo reached out without hesitation and took the meat, examining it with interest.
●— It's what we were looking for. Deliver it as is. —
Justo blinked in surprise but said nothing. When the goods—the meat, the milk, and the egg—were handed to us, wrapped in cloth, on the table, I paid with six silver coins, which I casually tossed down. The clerk was astonished, and the hunting master looked down on us. Durman stayed talking with Justo, bidding farewell to the group with the promise of being home by lunchtime.
As we walked through town toward Astrid's house, we passed a bakery and I stopped.
■— I'm going to buy some stale bread. —
— Astrid — What do you want stale bread for? —
■— To make breadcrumbs. —
Astrid didn't ask any more questions. She just watched curiously as he paid a few copper coins and received several pieces of dry bread.
We continued walking until we came across a vegetable stand. We bought a little bit of everything, but when we got to the potatoes, Astrid frowned.
— Sena — Why do they buy those stones? They're only good for feeding horses. —
Neo and I looked at each other and smiled without answering anything.
Finally, we arrived at Durman and Astrid's house. As soon as we entered, we headed to the kitchen with the ingredients in our arms.
— Dalia — What are you doing? —
■— Let's cook. —
The servants looked at us nervously, but Astrid raised a hand.
— Astrid — Apparently they want to cook. —
The servants obeyed, though they stood nearby, watching curiously. After a while, Neo and I emerged from the kitchen with a large pot of mashed potatoes and a tray laden with breaded giant chicken fillets.
Durman was talking to Sena at a corner of the table, while Selene, Astrid, and Dalia were talking amongst themselves, while the servants were setting the table. Just as Neo had instructed them a few minutes ago.
The servants looked on indecisively. Neo ordered them to place eleven plates on the table.
●— Sit down. Everyone. Let's eat together. —
The servants exchanged glances and waited for Durman's approval. The blacksmith grunted and crossed his arms.
— Durman — Didn't you hear them? They said to sit down. —
The four servants sat on the far side of the table, away from Durman or Sena. But Neo stopped them, ordering them to sit in the center of the table. Slowly, the servants settled themselves at the table, still unsure.
Dalia was the first to try the puree. Her eyes widened in surprise.
— Dalia — …Is this horse food? —
Durman took a bite and nodded approvingly.
— Durman — It's good. —
Astrid tried a piece of breaded chicken breast and was surprised.
Selene, with a curious expression, took a bite of the seasoned vegetables and accompanied them with freshly baked bread. Her cheeks flushed slightly as she savored the mixture.
Sena looked at everyone with a smile before tasting the puree.
Durman noticed that the servants barely touched the food and decided to take action. He patted one of them on the back and spoke in a firm voice.
— Durman — Come on, don't be shy. These two see everyone equally.—
Peter dared to try the food… and was amazed. Soon after, Eliza followed suit. Then Henry and Joan.
The mealtimes became a relaxed and warm atmosphere. The servants not only enjoyed the food, but also the recognition as part of the family.
Just as the meal was about to end, Dalia broke the silence with a satisfied smile.
— Dalia — By the way, there's a bet between Neo and me. —
Neo, who was drinking water at that moment, almost choked and blushed immediately.
— Astrid — What kind of bet, dear? —
Dalia, without losing her composure, explained the bet while everyone listened with interest. When she finished, Durman burst out laughing and, without warning, slapped Neo hard on the back.
— Durman — That's the way to go, lad! — he exclaimed proudly.
Neo nearly fell off his chair from the blow, and while he was recovering, Durman froze. He realized what he had just said and done. He looked at Neo with a serious expression and said in a more subdued tone.
— Durman — Sorry, kid… I didn't mean to call you that or hit you so hard. —
The servants were surprised to see Durman's attitude. However, as Neo rubbed his back, he smiled naturally.
●— Don't worry about the formalities, Mr. Durman. —
■— Selene, get ready, we'll have to go to a wedding —
Sena gave a small nasal laugh looking at her sister, while she looked at me very angry.
Durman laughed out loud before picking up his glass and taking a deep gulp of wine, satisfied with Neo's response. Astrid stood up and looked at everyone excitedly.
— Astrid — Well, since there's a bet, I propose we go see those interesting inventions and decide who wins. —
As the servants cleared the table, they insisted several times on doing it themselves, as Dalia wanted to help.
Finally, Dalia and Neo went to the workshop to get their inventions and placed them on the dining room table for display.
One by one, they explained how their creations worked, a long explanation that could bore anyone—everyone except me. (I was taking notes on Dalia's invention and sending messages to Neo, laughing at his miscalculations.) After the demonstrations, where each of them brought a small pot of water to a boil, it was time to vote. The results were 3-2 in favor of Neo.
— Durman — No matter how good you are, Neo, my Daughter is better. — He said with his arms crossed and a smile on his face, looking at Dalia.
— Astrid — I just want Neo to win. — Without hiding his favoritism.
— Sena — Dalia's is easier to mass produce, so it's better. — She said with an analytical expression.
Selene agreed with her sister and I voted for Neo just to piss him off and have him marry Dalia.
— Dalia — Well, you won. — She sighed as she crossed her arms and looked at Neo with an amused expression.
Neo raised his arms in victory and shouted:
●— ¡Yes! —
But suddenly he turned as red as a tomato when he remembered what it meant to win the bet, to marry Dalia. His expression changed completely, and while everyone looked at him curiously, Astrid let out a mocking laugh.
— Astrid — It seems our champion has just remembered what's at stake… —
Neo looked Dalia in the eye and tried to speak, but the words wouldn't come out. I slapped him hard on the back and shouted, "I'm sorry, I ...
■— Long live the bride and groom! —
— Sena — A toast to the bride and groom! — She raised her glass of wine enthusiastically.
Laughter and celebration filled the dining room. After several minutes of celebration, when the atmosphere began to calm down, Neo stretched and said in a casual tone:
●— What is it? 3:00 already? A nap wouldn't hurt right about now. —
Everyone, except me, looked at him in surprise.
— Dalia — What's a siesta? And why at 3 when it's 25? —
Neo and I looked at each other.
●— What do you mean it's the 25th? —
— Selene — In your town, isn't the day measured in 40 hours? How many hours do they measure it in then? — She said quickly, pretending to be nice.
■— We measure the year in 365 days, with 12 months of approximately 30 or 31 days, except for February, which has 28 or 29 if it's a leap year. We divide days into 24 hours, each hour into 60 minutes and each minute into 60 seconds.
— Astrid — How strange your town is. —
— Selene — What is the reason for this strange distribution? —
●— In our homeland, we counted with the joints of our fingers. We indicated numbers with our index finger, using the first joint of our finger for one and the last joint of our pinky finger for twelve. With our other hand, we counted in cycles of 12, forming a system based on 60. —
— Durman — So, to say you have 25 units of something, you show two fingers of your right hand and the first phalanx of your index finger? —
■— Exactly. —
— Selene — Selene, you realize that this way of counting is much more efficient, especially if you want to indicate quantities to someone who can't hear you. —
— Dalia — Your people measure time in a very strange way… Normally, a year has 400 days, with 16 months of 25 days. A day is 40 hours, 40 minutes, and 40 seconds. —
■— I guess this is one of the cultural differences we expected to find when we arrived in the city. You never go to bed without learning something new.
As we ate, the conversation flowed in different directions, with several voices speaking at once and comments exchanged across the table. As the meal drew to a close, our conversations continued, revealing how different our cultures were and how much Neo and I still had to learn.
==+-+N+-+==
At the end of the meal, Durman excused himself, explaining that he had to forge a sword for the marquis's son. I tried to insist on accompanying him, but he shook his head and looked at me seriously.
— Durman — This is my punishment, not yours — He said placing a hand on my head — Stop insisting, remind you that I am the master of the blacksmiths guild — He said while ruffling my hair. (His way of speaking reminded me of my father)
With Durman gone, Sena also excused herself and decided to go to work. Selene said goodbye to Hunt and then the others before leaving for work as well. Hunt, Astrid, Dalia, the servants, and I remained in the dining room.
●— And now, what do we do? —
■— In the idea. —
— Astrid — How good are you with spells? —
Finally, we went out into the courtyard, and Astrid proposed a magic duel. She explained the rules: we could only use magic with the amount of mana we had deployed, meaning we couldn't use folded mana magic. We looked at each other in confusion, not understanding anything she was saying.
— Astrid — Forget it and get ready. — She said as Peter left a tank or reservoir in the middle of the yard. And she activated the soundproofing device.
Astrid warned us not to touch it. That it was for the protection of Dalia, the servants, and the house.
Hunt decided to go first by creating two fireballs, perhaps before he could throw them. Astrid reacted faster and neutralized them with two air bullets, creating two flashes around Hunt. I followed, trying to attack her with an air-powered water jet, but she defended herself with a magical shield made of hexagonal pieces.
Without giving us time to react, Astrid began casting her own spells at us. With two raised fingers, she sent fiery projectiles our way, with the skill of an orchestra conductor. We managed to deflect them easily.
— Astrid — If that doesn't work for them! —
At that moment, a strange presence emanated from the subdimension. Hunt pulled the Noin snake-scale goggles from the subdimension, and we both put them on. We could see a fire-shaped eterana formation surrounding her, filled with low-density mana. She fired two fire bullets at us, with electrical charges causing dielectric breakdowns in the air, connecting with the ground and walls of the barrier, but Hunt stopped them with one hand, and I simply dodged. Then, she unleashed a more intense firefight.
— Astrid — Now I will use my true ability. —
She raised her hands, and the air thickened. The ground beneath our feet shook, and a stream of water began to erupt. Suddenly, columns of pressurized water rose up around us, trapping us in a vortex. Hunt tried to use fire, but the humidity smothered it before its flames could spread. I tried to push her away with bursts of air, but the vortex spun too strongly.
(#■— If we continue like this, it's going to drown us. —#)
(#●— We have to get out of here somehow. —#)
For a split second, Hunt and I exchanged a glance and nodded. We stopped fighting the water current, using the flight system to stand in the middle of the vortex, forming an arrow shape with our arms outstretched, and opening mini portals to the subdimension in our hands, we absorbed all the water. Then we slammed it back down onto the surface.
Astrid smiled in amusement and stamped her foot. Immediately, the ground beneath us split open, and a dozen earth spikes emerged. We rolled in opposite directions to avoid them, but at that instant, Astrid made a water whip appear in front of Hunt, striking him in the abdomen. Hunt was thrown back against one of the walls.
■— Ugh! That hurt... —
Taking advantage of the distraction, I launched a blast of air at her feet to knock her off balance. But Astrid used the momentum to spin in the air and launch a barrage of water projectiles in my direction. I dodged some and deflected others with my own wind, but one hit my shoulder, numbing it.
— Astrid — Come on, is that all you have? Is this all you've learned in six years in the cursed forest? It's not bad, but you're still lacking. —
Hunt stood up and brushed the dust off his clothes. Then, he raised a hand and created a circle of fire around him. I realized what he was planning and began to gather air. In an instant, we unleashed a whirlwind of flames that surged toward Astrid.
Unfazed, she raised a single hand, and the whirlwind dissipated. Then, in a fluid motion, the water on the ground whipped up and struck us hard, knocking us to the ground. Astrid stomped her foot, and the earth swallowed us up to our chins.
— Astrid — I think that's enough. — She said while deactivating the barrier and the soundproofing.
— Dalia — You look very pretty buried like this, how cute. — She said, bending down to poke me with her finger.
Hunt pulled a hand out of the ground, stood on the floor, and stood up as if he were coming out of a pool. I mimicked him and then faced Dalia very closely. (I'm a little taller than Dalia.)
●— Do I still seem cute to you? —
Dahlia blushed, but Astrid quickly separated us. After a break, we were sent to shower. Hunt and I took the opportunity to go to the subdimension and shower.
When we returned, Astrid explained to us that, despite knowing how to use several styles of magic, which is extremely rare, we didn't know how to use magic and that we were like animals in danger. (Considering that we learned to use magic by copying the mutants in the forest or teaching ourselves, I don't think we're too bad.) She explained how mana is deployed and how to do it correctly.
The next few hours were intense training. It was frustrating, as we burned ourselves several times due to poor connections to the ether. Dalia gave me a peculiar tip: imagine it as holding your breath and slowly exhaling. I tried it and, finally, I was able to unleash my mana for the first time.
At that same instant, Hunt also managed to unfold his own. But since our bodies can't hold the liters of folded mana, the excess began to spill out of our bodies, forming a sparkling golden aura. Astrid, watching nearby, raised an eyebrow, fascinated by the spectacle.
That's when Astrid explained to me in detail how mana worked. According to her, we're all born with a natural mana limit roughly equivalent to our weight divided by 100. In my case, at 80 kilos, that means I can store up to 0.8 liters of mana when unfolded. If the mana is folded once, that capacity increases tenfold, reaching 8 liters. Folding it twice brings us to 80 liters, three times to 800, and so on until a sixth folding, 100,000 liters—something only the legendary Envoy of Tolmas, Iliathis, managed to achieve.
However, handling mana isn't that simple. The human body can't sustain mana without consequences if one attempts to use it in large quantities without unfolding it gradually. Using mana while it's still folded generates magical waste that can't be recovered. Therefore, it must be unfolded before use. Most people only handle unfolded or folded mana once. Ordinary mages can handle it folded twice; advanced mages, three times. Prodigies achieve four or five foldings, but these are extremely rare.
Astrid wasn't satisfied yet and forced me to keep training. Hunt ran out of mana and escaped punishment. He went with Astrid and Dalia to the dining room, while I continued training.
When I deployed my mana for the second time, the aura expanded even further, shining with even greater intensity. But it wasn't until I reached the third level of mana that everything became overwhelming. The aura emanating from me reached a volume of 400 liters.
Astrid was watching me with shining eyes, but suddenly she frowned. She yelled at me that my aura was too dense, as dense as liquid mana, which could cause a collapse if left unregulated. She told me I should try to adapt the mana's density to that of the air and disperse it gently. But I couldn't. The pressure was too much.
In slow motion and strobing, I saw Astrid rush to a door in the house. Upon exiting, she pulled out a massive Magiston crystal, nearly 30 cm long and 10 cm wide. She tried to absorb the mana from my sphere, but Hunt opened the subdimension and sent the mana into the house's battery. Gradually, the intervals became shorter until everything went black.
The last thing I saw was Astrid and Hunt trying to counter my aura before I passed out.
When I woke up, I was lying on Dalia's lap.