The morning after the festival, I woke before the chickens. The barn was dark. Cold. I lay on the straw and stared at the ceiling.
I had been in Oakhaven for weeks. Maybe longer. I had stopped counting. The days blended together – eggs, water, wood, river, Lora, sleep. Repeat.
It was good. Too good.
I sat up. My body felt rested. The Prophet Model moved smoothly now. I was not tired. I was not hungry. I was not in pain.
But I was not getting stronger.
I had not practiced mana sensing since Elias taught me. I had not tried to transform into a small blade or a tool. I had not absorbed a single crystal.
I had been living. Not preparing.
The false hero was still out there. The mines were still digging. The golem was still waiting in the cave.
If something came to Oakhaven, I would not be ready.
I got up. I walked to the river before sunrise.
The water was dark, the sky grey. I sat on Lora's rock. I closed my eyes. I reached out with my core, feeling for mana.
At first, nothing. Then a faint pulse. The soil. The trees. The water itself. All alive with energy.
I focused. I pulled a thin thread of mana from the air into my core. My energy ticked up by one point. Then another.
It was slow. But it was something.
I stayed there until the sun rose.
---
Lora found me an hour later. She stood on the bank, a basket in her hands.
"You're early," she said.
"Couldn't sleep."
She sat beside me on the rock. She set the basket down. Inside were mushrooms and herbs.
"For my grandmother," she said. "She wanted soup."
"I can help you carry it."
"You don't have to."
"I want to."
She looked at me. "You're different today. Quieter."
"I'm thinking."
"About what?"
"About getting stronger."
She did not ask why. She just nodded.
We walked to her grandmother's cottage. The old woman was sitting by the fire, wrapped in a blanket.
"Ash," she said. "You came."
"I help where I can."
"Good. Lora needs help. I'm old and useless."
"You're not useless," Lora said.
The old woman laughed. "You're kind, child. But I know what I am."
I helped Lora clean the mushrooms and herbs. She put them in a pot with water and set it over the fire.
"Stay for soup," she said.
"I can't eat."
"Then stay for company."
I sat by the fire. The old woman dozed. Lora stirred the pot.
"Ash," she said. "Why do you need to get stronger?"
I hesitated. "To protect this place."
"From what?"
"From the false hero. From his soldiers."
Lora was quiet for a moment. "My father died in his mines. My mother died after. I know what he is."
"I'm sorry."
"It's not your fault. But you can't fight an army alone."
"I know. But I can try to be ready."
She looked at me. Her grey eyes were soft. "Just don't forget to live while you're preparing."
I nodded. "I won't."
---
That afternoon, I went to Elias's workshop. He was sorting metal scraps.
"Ash," he said. "You look serious."
"I need to train. I've been lazy."
Elias smiled. "Lazy? You've been healing, helping, making friends. That's not lazy. That's living."
"Living won't stop a sword."
Elias set down a gear. "You're right. Come. Let's practice."
He led me to the clearing behind his workshop. A small stone circle marked the ground.
"Stand in the center," he said. "Close your eyes. Feel the mana in the air, the ground, the trees. Then try to pull it all at once."
I did. I felt the threads – thin, cold, warm, pulsing. I tried to gather them. They slipped away.
"Slowly," Elias said. "Don't force. Invite."
I tried again. A trickle of mana flowed into my core. My energy rose by five points.
"Good," Elias said. "Now transform. Small blade."
I focused. My hand shifted. Porcelain turned to metal. A small, sharp blade extended from my palm.
"Hold it," Elias said. "Feel its weight."
I did. The blade was light but strong.
"Now revert."
The blade melted back into my hand. I felt tired but satisfied.
"You're getting better," Elias said. "But you need to practice every day. Not just when you remember."
"I will."
---
That evening, I went to the river. Lora was there, sitting on her rock.
"You came," she said.
"I always come."
She moved over. I sat beside her.
"I trained today," I said.
"Good. You'll protect us all."
"I hope so."
We sat in silence. The river flowed. The sun set.
"Ash," she said. "Do you ever miss your old life?"
I thought about the cell. The needle. The bird.
"No," I said. "This is better."
She touched my sleeve. "I'm glad you came to Oakhaven."
"Me too."
We watched the stars come out.
---
That night, I lay in the barn. I did not sleep. I practiced mana sensing in the dark. The straw, the wood, the air – all had tiny threads of energy. I pulled them, one by one. My energy grew. My core felt stronger.
I would not be caught off guard.
I would protect this place.
I closed my eyes.
The days after the festival felt different. Lighter, but also heavier. I had friends now. A place to sleep. A girl who touched my face and was not afraid. I had everything I never knew I wanted.
But I could not forget the cave.
The goblin treasure was still down there. Gold, crystals, maybe the shaman's map. I needed those things. Not for greed. For power. The golem required 3500 energy. I had barely 200. The troglodyte was still somewhere in the deep tunnels. And the false hero's miners were digging closer every week.
I could not stay in Oakhaven forever.
One morning, I found Elias in his workshop. He was sorting metal scraps, his back bent over a wooden table.
"Elias," I said. "I want to go back to the goblin cave."
He did not look up. "Why?"
"The treasure. The crystals. I need them to get stronger."
He set down a gear. He turned to face me. His face was pale, tired.
"It's dangerous. The troglodyte might still be there."
"I know. But I have to try."
Elias sighed. He walked to the corner of the workshop and lifted his pant leg. His left calf was scarred – a deep, ugly wound, healed wrong. The skin was twisted, purple.
"I got this running from Kaelen's soldiers," he said. "Fifteen years ago. They chased me for three days. I hid in a cave, crawled through a crack in the stone. They couldn't follow. But my leg never healed right. I can't fight anymore, Ash. I can't even run."
"I didn't know."
"No one knows. I don't like to show it." He pulled down his pant leg. "Kaelen himself is not a warrior. His power comes from his system, from the nobles he gifts with strength. But his soldiers are real. His priests are cruel. Be careful."
"I will."
I left the workshop and walked to the forest. The sun was high. The birds were loud. I found the hidden tunnel entrance behind the roots of an old oak.
I climbed down.
---
The tunnel was dark and cold. I used my small blade transformation to light my way – the metal glowed faintly with mana. The walls were wet. Water dripped somewhere ahead.
I walked for an hour. Then two. The tunnel opened into the goblin lair.
It was empty.
The treasure pile was gone. The bones were scattered. The shaman's staff lay broken on the floor. I knelt and touched the stone. Dust. Cobwebs.
Something had been here. Something big.
I found drag marks. Heavy, deep grooves in the dirt. And footprints. Large, clawed, four toes. The troglodyte.
I followed the trail deeper into the cave. The tunnels narrowed, then widened. The air grew colder. I smelled rot – old meat, stale water.
Then I saw it.
The troglodyte lay in a cavern ahead, curled on a nest of gold and crystals. It was bigger than I remembered. Its pale skin was slick with moisture. Its mouth hung open, showing rows of needle teeth. It was sleeping.
I extended my awareness. The creature's mana was thick, like a storm cloud. It was far stronger than me. If I fought it now, I would die.
I backed away slowly. I did not run. I did not transform. I just walked, step by step, until I reached the goblin lair. Then I ran.
---
I burst out of the tunnel into the sunlight. My heart was pounding. My hands were shaking.
I walked to the river and sat on Lora's rock. The water was calm. The sun was warm. I tried to breathe.
"You look like you saw a ghost," Lora said.
I had not heard her approach.
"Something like that," I said.
She sat beside me. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"The troglodyte. The beast in the cave. It took the treasure. It's too strong for me."
"Then don't fight it."
"I have to. I need the crystals to get stronger. To protect this place."
Lora was quiet for a moment. "My father used to say, 'A wise hunter knows when to wait.'"
"Your father was a miner."
"He hunted rabbits. Same principle."
I almost smiled. "I'll wait. But not forever."
---
I went back to Elias. I told him everything. The empty lair, the footprints, the troglodyte's size and power.
"You did the right thing," he said. "Running is not cowardice. It's patience."
"I need to get stronger. Faster."
Elias nodded. "Then we train. Every day. No breaks."
He led me to the clearing behind his workshop. He had built a wooden dummy – a post with branches for arms.
"Hit it," he said.
I formed a small blade on my hand. I struck the dummy. The wood splintered.
"Again."
I struck again. And again. Until my arm ached.
"Now mana sensing," Elias said. "Close your eyes. Feel the threads. Pull them."
I sat on the ground. I reached out with my core. The air, the soil, the trees – all had thin threads of energy. I pulled. A trickle flowed into me. My energy rose by one point.
"Good," Elias said. "Now try to absorb from this."
He handed me a small crystal – a fragment from the shaman's broken staff. I touched it.
Mana crystal fragment. Absorb? (Y/N)
Warning: Absorbing from looted or defeated enemies grants XP. Absorbing from natural sources (trees, stone, water) does not. Limit: 50 XP per day from looted sources.
I selected Yes. The crystal crumbled to dust. My energy rose by 10 points. A system window appeared.
XP gained: 10. Daily limit remaining: 40.
"Interesting," I said. "The system limits how much I can absorb from loot. To keep me from growing too fast."
Elias frowned. "Then you need to choose wisely. Save the big crystals for when you're ready to level up."
We trained until sunset. My body ached. My core was full. I felt stronger, but not strong enough.
That night, I lay in the barn. I looked at the stars.
I thought about the troglodyte. The gold. The crystals. The golem waiting in the deep hole.
I would go back. Not yet. But soon.
I closed my eyes.
In the morning, chickens.
I went to train.