Chapter 120: New Heights

Chapter 120: New Heights

Chapter 120 - New Heights

Congratulations, Kai shoved the word out of his throat. Now that he knew where to look, the signs were obvious.

The tiny creases around Mouis eyes were gone, and his skin was practically glowing. That wasnt the effect of a night of good sleep or a new skincare routine. Advancing your grade didnt technically make you younger, but Moui sure didnt look like a man in his forties.

Thank you, kid. I know youll get there too, one day.

Kai couldnt tell if it was a heartfelt wish or a tease, probably both.

Then you can take Mana Sense and see the enchantment for yourself, right? He waved to the array in the shower.

Well, I Mouis eyes vainly darted around the bathroom before coming back on him.

Yes? Kai took a step forward.

You dont have any more excuses.

I guess youre right. Ill take it and see how it goes.

Whats with the gloomy look? No need to thank me for convincing your thick skull to take one of the most useful skills.

Kai forced himself to stay calm, Ive been showing Ele a few exercises to practice her mana skills. You can join us for the next session.

Huh, I

Id be curious to see how advancing your race affects your mana. Well practice tomorrow afternoon if that works for you.

I dont want to bother you two.

No problem. The more the merrier. Youre part of the family now. Kai squeezed through the door past him before the hunter could change his mind.

The ancestors grant me patience. Making people act in their best interest is exhausting.

With a knock, he entered Ele's room. His sister sat on a desk stringing a necklace of clear water pearls. A clatter of threads, pearls and tools lay around her broke the perfect order of her bed sheets and folded clothes.

Do you know that Moui Kai didnt need to finish the sentence. Yes, of course you do.

He stood awkwardly on his feet. The covers of her bed were so perfectly pulled it felt like a crime to sit down.

It took you only a few hours to notice this time, Ele put down the necklace to look at him. Sorry, I didnt want to tease you.

No, its fine. When did you realize?

Im not sure, about a week ago?

Kai frowned his brows. Moui said he only advanced this morning.

Yes, he did. But I knew something was up. I asked him what was going on and he told me.

Oh Kai plopped down on the bed and Ele came to sit beside him.

Are you okay, little brother?

Do I not pay enough attention?

Thats not what I meant. Its pretty hard to tell what Mouis thinking, and youve been living with us only for a short while.

It has certainly been a pretty hectic week organizing the new place. There is always an excuse, isnt it?

Howre you doing, sis?

Good, why?

Spirits, she finds it weird I asked. When was the last time I did?

Just wondering. If you ever need something, Im here. In their talks, she never brought up the problems she struggled with.

Same for you. Remember Im the big sister.

After chatting about random stuff with Ele, Kai went down to help his mother in the kitchen. Despite Mouis protests, the house buzzed into a frenzy of activity to celebrate his feat.

Im proud of you, honey, Alana said. They shared a quick kiss, the seventh little peck of todayKai had been counting. They both looked happy and unbearably lovey-dovey with each other.

Thankfully I finished soundproofing the walls. Ill remain blissfully ignorant.

Kea rolled her eyes. Can we eat now? Im hungry.

Sure, sweetie, Alana disentangled her arms from Moui to begin the feast. The hunter was about to stand when she stopped him. Just sit, this is your day.

Even though Moui wasnt used to being the center of attention, Kai had never seen him smile so much.

***

Waking up with a blissful silence, Kai was the first one downstairs. The stove was cold, and there was no trace of their mother.

Its been working well for me.

Kai shook his head. Youre using a sword as a walking stick. Sure, it can do the job, but it wastes the potential of Mana Manipulation. Try to actually use Mana Sense to see what you are doing.

There was something that hadnt changed from the first time he had taught him: how stubborn he was. For each exercise, he came up with three objections. It was like rowing against the currents.

After two hours, Ele left them alone. A glance was enough to tell Moui that they werent done yet. The light had waned by the time Kai allowed him to go.

I gained a level, the hunter exclaimed with his gaze lost reading his Guide. Two actually, and one in Mana Manipulation.

What?

My Mana Sense is level 3. Moui had the courage to beam proudly. I must be a genius too.

How is this fair?

Kai gnashed his teeth. It was maddening.

Maybe Im too good of a teacher. Yeah, that must be it.

I should start charging you by the hour.

How much do you want? Moui readily agreed.

Kai considered it for a moment when he got a better idea. Just admit I was right.

The confident facade of the hunter faltered, Its soon to say for sure

That or ten silvers.

Moui actually considered the choice, rummaging in his pockets. He took out a handful of coppers and one silver Fine. You were probably right. Im still not sure how helpful Mana Sense is, but at least the XP is nice.

Kai accepted that was the best he was going to get. Im going to get some air before dinner.

Is this the injustice Kea feels?

Seeing Moui sprint through the levels hit him more than his yellow advancement. The first levels were always the easiest, but Mana Sense was an orange skill.

Huh, I guess thats the point. He has reached Yellow in both grade and profession. Now hes punching down a tier.

Kai remembered the surge of levels when he advanced to Orange. And he didnt even have a profession. The realization left him more conflicted. No matter how hard he trained, a higher grade could close the gap with less effort.

I need to get there asap.

***

The next day his lab was ready. Kai cleared his room and moved most of his books to the new place. Reishi came escorted by the muscled twins who pulled out crate after crate from a spatial bag.

Are you satisfied with the place? the merman asked, overseeing the men unloading the cargo.

Kai was tempted to complain about the tiles' wrong shade just to see how the merman would react.

Yes, I just need to enchant the bathroom. After that, we can begin. He carefully avoided the pitfall. From how the mermans smile lost half its brightness, it wasnt just paranoia.

I see Well, do you want to check what I got for you? He waved to the twins who had finished pulling out the boxes.

I do, an alchemist can't work without the proper equipment.

Im sure what I found will be more than adequate.

Most of the crates contained mana herbs and were put in one of the back rooms that worked as temporary storage. But a dozen smaller boxes had been placed on the workbench.

With his usual flair, Reishi began unpacking. A sea of scalpels, sieves, burners and glassware of various forms and sizes took over every free surface in the room. Kai stoically observed everything, trying not to glance at the tools he had never seen before.

A good alchemist doesnt need all this fancy stuff.

This is the cauldron to test new recipes, Reishi said unveiling a shiny metal object with delicate runes carved down its surface.

Kai took a closer peek, there were a dozen switches and levers. Was this still a cauldron? If it worked half as good as it looked, he couldnt wait to try it.

Dora was indeed a bit frugal with these things.

His trusty old cauldron did the job, but he wouldnt mind getting an upgrade.

And this, Reishi caught his attention, struggling to open the last crate for its size. Is the cauldron youll use to scale production.

A black hunk of metal was revealed. A network of thousands of runes was interwoven around an unknown number of knobs and dials. Kai had to stand on the tip of his feet to look over the edge.

Whats this monstrosity?

What do you think? Reishi clasped his hands at his sides with a proud grin.

Mhmm Kai slowly inspected the thing. I think I need a shorter desk. Well probably need to delay the start for another day or two to find a proper one.

Improvisation is my new god-tier skill.