The morning sunlight poured through the large glass windows of the bedroom, casting warm, golden squares across the thick carpet.
The room was quiet, save for the soft rustle of fabric and the heavy, slightly labored breathing of the young master.
"Keep your back straight. Next set, young master," Ambrosia instructed, her voice completely nonchalant and devoid of any outward emotion.
She stood beside Fainyx with her hands neatly folded over her clothes, her face a perfect, unreadable mask of cold professionalism.
However, despite her icy demeanor, her sharp eyes watched his every movement with intense focus, completely ready to catch him if he stumbled.
Fainyx was in the middle of a carefully designed, light circuit training routine.
For a normal child, it would be nothing, but for his frail six-year-old body, it was exhausting. He moved from doing careful, assisted squats by the bed, to light wall-pushes by the wardrobe, and finally to slow, balancing steps across the carpet.
Sweat beaded on his pale forehead, and his chest heaved as he tired easily, but he pushed through the circuit without a single complaint.
Ambrosia handed him a warm, damp towel as he finished his final repetition. Fainyx wiped his face, panting softly.
"You completed the circuit faster today," Ambrosia said, her tone remaining entirely flat, though a faint glimmer of warm pride softened her strict eyes. "You did well. Rest now."
She gently guided him to the cushioned window seat. "You know," she continued, staring blankly out the window with her usual emotionless expression, "I have a little boy at home who is exactly your age. He is an absolute terror. He spends all day screaming in the mud and terrorizing the neighbor's chickens. Your quiet compliance is... highly preferable."
Fainyx listened quietly, nodding once. He knew that beneath her cold voice, Ambrosia possessed a very warm heart, and this was her own strange, deadpan way of showing affection.
However, Fainyx's heightened senses were currently focused on something entirely different. Standing perfectly still in the far corner of the bedroom was an incredibly dense but tightly compressed mass of ancient mana.
It was Ruth. The ancient dragon was using a high-tier invisibility spell, completely cloaking his physical form. To anyone else, that corner was empty. But Fainyx could feel the dragon standing there, secretly and proudly watching his circuit training like an incredibly overprotective parent. Fainyx simply ignored the invisible dragon, allowing Ambrosia to tuck him back into bed for his required afternoon rest.
Hours later, the sun dipped below the horizon, and the estate fell into its usual midnight silence.
The invisible latch on the window clicked, and Master Yong slipped inside, followed closely by a now-visible Ruth.
"Alright, kid, tonight we are moving past the basic theory," Yong whispered, his black eyes shining with excitement. "We are going to test your elemental affinity and control with an intermediate water manipulation spell."
Yong held out his hand, and without chanting, he drew moisture from the air, forming a perfectly smooth, floating sphere of water. "Your job is to grab this water with your mana, hold its shape, turn it into a ring, and then into a needle. Let us see how much control you have."
Yong floated the sphere over to Fainyx. Fainyx didn't pretend to be weak, he knew these two men respected pure skill. He reached out with his perfectly concealed mana, grasping the water.
In the blink of an eye, the sphere flattened, expanding outward into a flawless, rapidly spinning ring of water. A second later, the ring snapped inward, condensing tightly until it formed a sharp, hyper-compressed water needle that hovered perfectly still in the air.
Yong blinked, his jaw dropping slightly. "You didn't even fluctuate the ambient mana," Yong muttered in disbelief. "The control and the form... it is absolutely perfect. You really are our little monster kiddo."
Ruth crossed his arms, a deep smirk of pride tugging at his lips. "Of course it is perfect. Excellent work, Fainyx. But that is enough for tonight, you need your rest."
Once the two men slipped back out the window, Fainyx waited in the dark until their presences completely faded. Then, he threw the blankets off.
Standing in the middle of the room, Fainyx summoned the Dragon Magic golem spell. His mana concealment wrapped tightly around the magic, ensuring not a single drop leaked out. The glowing circle appeared, and the perfect physical replica of himself materialized on the carpet.
Fainyx pushed a thread of his magic into the construct. The golem slowly stood up on its own two feet, perfectly balanced. It still couldn't walk, but just having it stand was a massive upgrade.
"You will be very useful," Fainyx whispered. "I will call you Fain."
He commanded Fain to lie down on the bed and pulled the blankets up to its chin. Satisfied with his perfect scapegoat, Fainyx pulled the fabric of space apart and stepped into the Aetherium.
The pure, vibrant air of his dimension instantly filled his lungs. Fainyx walked across the glowing grass, heading straight for the massive, winding river.
"Kyu~!" Lumi, the tiny white weasel, darted out from the bushes, scrambling happily up Fainyx's leg and settling onto his shoulder.
Fainyx smiled. "Watch this, Lumi. I am going to make some renovations."
Standing at the edge of the river, Fainyx completely dropped his perfect concealment. He tapped directly into his bottomless core, releasing the terrifying, oceanic pressure of his magic. He raised his hand, and a massive chunk of the earth near the riverbed rose high into the air, creating a towering cliff of solid stone.
Then, applying the exact same water manipulation technique Yong had taught him, but scaled up a million times...
a roaring, majestic waterfall burst forth from the top of the newly formed cliff.
He didn't stop there. He raised both hands, channeling his Earth and Wood magic simultaneously. The small cottage dismantled itself, and fresh, massive trees magically wove their thick branches together. Within minutes, a luxurious, beautiful two-story wooden villa formed right on the edge of the river.
As Fainyx lowered his hands, he felt something tap against his boot. Lumi had proudly returned carrying a single, completely useless tiny twig in its mouth.
Fainyx let out a genuine, bright laugh. He crouched down to pet the weasel,
And then, his chest violently seized.
Fainyx gasped, his eyes widening as a sudden, heavy pressure rushed up his throat. He doubled over, and a massive mouthful of dark crimson blood erupted from his lips, completely drenching the front of his loose shirt and splattering onto the glowing grass.
He stayed on his hands and knees for a moment, breathing heavily. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, looking at the stark red stain on his clothes.
The terminal clock in his body was gone, but Ruth's medicine was still actively working to expel the Hollow Constitution's dead mana from his system.
'I was wondering when I would cough up blood again...' Fainyx thought, his internal voice calm despite the violent scene.
'I guess releasing all that magic at once forced it to react.'
"I guess I used too much magic," Fainyx said aloud, his voice slightly raspy.
He raised a finger, instantly forming the compressed bead of wind and water magic Yong had taught him. He flicked it over his clothes, and the chantless structural breakdown spell instantly vanished the blood, leaving his shirt perfectly clean.
However, the magic could not erase the heavy, metallic scent of iron lingering in the air.
"Kyuuu!"
A distressed, heartbroken whimper broke the silence. Lumi, possessing incredibly sharp senses, smelled the blood.
The tiny white weasel's beady black eyes instantly filled with actual tears. It bounded forward, completely ignoring the massive new villa, and scrambled frantically up Fainyx's arm.
Lumi reached Fainyx's shoulder, burying its face into his neck, and wrapped its small, fluffy white paws tightly around him, crying softly into his hair.
Fainyx blinked in surprise, feeling the tiny creature trembling against his skin. The heavy weight of his past trauma and the isolation of his secret life seemed to melt away under the warmth of the tiny, weeping weasel.
A soft, fond smile graced Fainyx's lips. He reached up and gently stroked Lumi's trembling back.
He laughed, a quiet, reassuring sound that echoed perfectly in his private place.
"It doesn't hurt at all. Lumi, don't cry."