Gale quickly turned around and found his mother standing behind him. Shocked by the unexpected visitor, he immediately doubted his eyes.
"Mother? How are you here?"
"I'm not here, it's just a spell I left on you to allow me to keep an eye on you. Unlike my irresponsible daughter, I left it as a fail-safe in case something went wrong with the plan. It was also a good chance to observe the way your abilities work."
Gale's face turned red when he thought about his unspeakable last few days. He was quite sure no son would want his mom to see him starring in those scenes. He didn't know if to feel harassed about being watched, or angry that she just admitted to understanding Lena's plans yet said nothing.
"Did you… watch?"
"I did, but I was concentrated on observing the movement of the mana around you every time you had charmed this woman and absorbed some of her energies. This ability is quite ingenious, even I wouldn't be able to copy it. If a powerful charmer had the chance to watch you execute this technique repeatedly, he'd probably be able to improve his own technique by leaps and bounds."
Hearing that she observed carefully every time Nancy peaked didn't make him feel any better, especially when taking into account they have peaked together many times. He started feeling frustrated, why were all the female members of his family sticking their noses in his privacy?
"Is it going to remain forever on me?"
"No, it would only last for a few more days before the mana disperses. Maybe a week."
He glared at his mom and couldn't stop himself from feeling disturbed. It was a privacy breach!
"Don't blame me. You only told me you had the powers to absorb others' magic, but you never specified the way you did it. I must admit though, I'd never thought you were such a professional boy toy. I almost regret being your mother."
Gale felt goosebumps spring up all over his skin as he trembled in his place when unwelcomed thoughts about dreadful scenes with his mother invaded his mind. His mother was as much of a bully as Lena.
"Relax, I'm just joking. Anyway, kill her. Don't leave your dirty job for others and pretend it makes you pure."
She pointed at Nancy who was still captured at the corner. Nancy was cowering on the floor since the moment Elizabeth showed up; she knew there was no way a True Mage could cast such a spell, and not even an Advanced Mage could. It meant Elizabeth was at least an Expert Mage, which meant there were 13 of them in the kingdom!
Nancy lost hope of survival; knew nothing could convince an experienced woman like Elizabeth, unlike a young man like Gale.
"But she never planned to kill me, why can't I spare her life?"
"You already know why. If you keep her alive it would only force me to kill her myself. My spell isn't enough for that, so I'd have to come here myself. If that happens, I'll have to kill everyone in the mansion to protect your secret."
Gale sighed. He convinced himself that Nancy has brought it on herself by trying to detain him. He created a fireball, condensed it to a diameter of a single centimeter, and shot it. Nancy's body quickly caught fire and turned into ashes in front of Gale.
"Come back home. I will train you until it's time for me to leave. Once your training is completed, you will go on your own journey to explore our continent."
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6 months later:
Gale, Nina, Elizabeth, and Donne were standing next to Gale's father's grave. The funeral just ended a few minutes ago and it was time to say goodbyes.
"you've completed your training. Now go and don't rely on your status, since nobody will protect you. Go to the capital and try to put what you learned to some use. You will hear about the Bathory house when the right time comes."
Elizabeth offered some parting words before she turned around and left. In those past 6 months, Gale learned how to harness his new powers as a True Mage.
He only strengthened his body with earth mana; his affinities with darkness and fire didn't increase when he was promoted, thus, he decided to wait until he gets affinities in the Mage levels before strengthening the rest.
"I hope you can make a name for yourself in the capital and in the empire, so we can build a safe home for our descendants to thrive in."
Donne and Gale nodded at each other and left the cemetery as well.
"Where are we going now?"
Nina asked Gale as they walked toward the cab center to hire a coachman to take them to the capital.
"To the capital, we've talked about it."
"What are we going to do in the capital?"
"Ehm, train and wait for the tournament?"
"So you have no idea."
They arrived at the center and started to search for a cab. It was a 2 week's journey by carriage, part of which was through isolated places without any settlements in a radius of a few kilometers. They would always wait for carriages to assemble and only leave when the convoy included 10 Expert Magicians or 2 True Mages.
"Hey Gale, check this man out. He looks young yet he is already an Expert Magician. We should befriend him during the ride, he must be from a good background."
"Then let's sit by his side."
When 3 more Expert Magicians arrived a convoy of 15 carriages set out. The convoy had let the Expert Magicians and Gale ride for free, while the carriages that didn't have Expert Magicians had to pay protection fees.
Gale and Nina followed the man into the carriage he sat in, forcing 2 other travelers to switch carriages with them. Their new carriage was now the most important in the convoy; out of the six guards, there were three in the same one.
"Why are you following me?"
The man asked with a worried place, it was evident that he didn't want to pick a fight with a mage.
"You look young for your stage, so we wanted to make friends. How is it, feel honored?"
Nina answered with a haughty tone; she enjoyed using Gale's status as a mage.
"Don't try to intimidate him. Sorry for her behavior, she's just a bit playful. I'm Gale, may I know your name?"
Gale's politeness improved their image in the eyes of the stranger whose face was already slightly distorted from Nina's answer.
"I'm Lionel Clay. Delighted to make your acquaintance. You can call me Leo in such informal circumstances."
"Informal? Does it mean you're a noble?"
Gale was surprised to find out Leo was a noble. Leo had a short stature, around 170 cm tall. His body outlines weren't visible since he was wearing a hooded robe that covered his clothing underneath them, so it was hard to determine his build. His hood was down, letting Gale and Nina see the face of an average-looking man with long, blond, curly hair, emerald eyes, and a slightly crooked nose.
"I'm the son of a Baron in the Clarence dukedom. I try not to flaunt my nobility rank too much in front of strangers since my nobility rank is the lowest. I'm always worried to boast in front of a higher-ranked noble."
His laughter sounded real and friendly, making Gale feel more comfortable around him immediately, especially because he also preferred not having to use his title as an earl's son. His father's title passed to his mom temporarily until Donne would get to the Mage Phase.
Nina, however, was less trusting toward strangers. Her knee hit Gale's, hinting at him to ask again with his charm on.
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