Chapter 3

The very next day something happened. I woke up that morning, got my uncle to hold me in his arm when he came to visit. Uncle seemed to laugh at my antic as this had been quite common. I was comfortable with him holding me in his arm like a baby. Though it seems that the fact that I was a reincarnation of a healthy teenage boy is just at the back of my priorities. To be honest, what the old woman said was quite true. About me practicing my magic. It was a way of coping as I busied myself with 3 things; eating, sleeping and experimenting with my magic. Or more to say not general magic but my unique magic [Puppeteer]. As for why not other magic like fire and ice? Well from what I heard, it requires something more than just Mana/Magic Power to perform. Right now was a rare moment that I actually had a time for just lazing around. I was busying myself with such thoughts as I tried pull off the beard that my uncle had grown. All around the maids and the butlers were bowing to us.

It kind of made me smug to be put on a pedestal, not gonna lie. Though I was curious about how my uncle met the old lady. So, I grabbed a fistful of uncle’s beard and tugged it even harder to get his attention.

“Yes, Adelaide?”

My name is Adelaide Bernstein of the Marquis House of Bernstein, Kingdom of Arcadia. Our surname means some kind of mineral as exporting mineral is our specialty.

“How you me’t th’ ol’ lady?”

My speech was no where as good as in my monologue, but it did get the point across. My uncle’s eye brightened up considerably like the gleeful eye of a child as he seemed to laugh mirthfully.

“Don’t tell anyone but that time I had ran away from the house after completing my studies. To be fair I was naive young man who believed in my own strength. Well fast forward a month or two, I was in gutter with just a dirty sword and rags for clothes in my possession. My own pride did not let me go back to my home and then there was my Teacher. She was surrounded by thugs in the alleyway so I scared those ruffians off. Needless to say that was my first meeting with her. Few days and some events later, she took me under her.”

Just as the story ended we were in front of the Guest Room where the old lady was staying. Uncle knocked the door and few minutes later just as the door opened, my eyes widened in confusion. The old lady that had slept in the guest room, someone else came out instead. A petite girl about 12 years old with black hair and slim figure. Pretty much to say that I was shocked in my uncle’s arm. However, uncle did not seem to be confused as he simply asked.

“I hope you have had a pleasant night, teacher.”

The young lady just stretched in her gown, before yawning cutely.

“So I did. I must say the air here is refreshing compared to the town inns.”

“Well our Mansion is in the center of the town, near the mountains to our mines. So the air here is quite good for the health. But if you did reveal your identity, I am quite sure your stay would be quite accommodating wherever you go.”

“Oh I don’t want to hear that suggestion from you of all people. How maddening it is to manage all those unruly people trying to win over my favors.”

The old(?) lady made a face as if she ate the most bitter thing and glared at Flammel. All the while I was thinking whether if this is the over-powered loli trope seen in anime? She then looked at me as I asked.

“Wh’o u?”

The lady simply quirked her eye at that before replying by touching her heart with her left hand in a pompous manner while raising the degree of her head upwards, which I had seen in anime.

“You may call me Maria, young lady.”

I wondered if this was a magic spell.

“Magi’c?”

Maria nodded in approval.

“Simply a self-made spell that functions as a power saving mode. This form is what I take to conserve my energy. I can only display 10% of my true might while I am in this form. Well the old woman form is also another form to remain inconspicuous. Quite observable you are. Hmm? Still practicing Magic on your fingertips?”

I simply shook my head as my uncle held me quite comfortably in front of her. Though my fingers were itching like the times I could make them glow. Will she know about it? I told her.

“My fing’r iches….”

Maria held my hand as she observed it a bit before asking my uncle.

“What is her unique skill?”

“Puppeteer?”

She seemed to be humming in thought.

“Hmmm….. quite intriguing….. say little one, does your finger produce light? Sometime which you write on something, let’s say on the floor?”

Hah! I knew it, she did know about the thing that plagued me. I vigorously nodded. Then I could hear my uncle mumbling about something.

“….It can’t be that…..”

My, my why are you all so shocked? Fuhahaha is it my time as a MC to shine? Hurry up and tell me what I want to hear! To be fair, I felt like I sounded way too pompous than I thought. It seems my mind seems out of it. It kind of feels like there is no filter in my mind, like I am drunk or something. Is this one of the effect of being a baby? I could guess it may be due to being tired by continuously using magic. It makes me extremely tired. Before I could delve in a debate against myself as to why I heard Uncle Flammel speaking.

“[Enchanter]? No, it is not as smooth as that, then an [Engraver]?”

Maria nodded, seemingly quite intrigued as she seemed to inspect by pudgy little fingers from every angle.

“It seems but we have yet to confirm if she has two unique skills.”

She looked at me and asked.

“Can you demonstrate to me?”

I nodded and tried to reach out to either the floor or a table near me. Luckily, my uncle knew what to do as he put me gently on the table. I hummed and felt a familiar rush of Magic in my fingertips and tried to draw a flower. Although it was a childish imitation, I did what I could. As I turned my head towards her as I could see her nodding to herself.

“It seems I can stay here for a while and teach her a thing or two.”

Uncle Flammel nodded in relief as he picked me up. To be honest his arms were quite warm and comfortable for weird reason. It’s as if he was a heater of some sort. He did seem way relieved when Maria decided to stay for a while.

“Thankfully, you will be here to monitor her.”

Then came a loud sound of ‘Thawk’ when she suddenly got a staff from nowhere and whacked it in his head.

“I ain’t a babysitter!”

Somehow her accent changed when she became annoyed. However I was intrigued by the word “Engraver” so I tried getting her or even my uncle to explain.

“Oww!”

Of course that would mean by pulling his beard. I am and will be a brat. It shows how comforting uncle’s presence is and how safe I feel instead of all the new maids and butlers as well as the head butler who had a thing for my mother.

“Eng’wable?”

But before Flammel could say anything Maria replied.

“It is a skill that allows you to ‘etch’ a phenomenon in an object.”

Wut?

My confusion must have been shown on my face because she replied once again while looking at me.

“On simple term, frankly I forgot you are still a weird 'baby', it allows you to ‘write’ or engrave a property to an object. Once Mana is passed, whatever property is engraved will come into being. Look here.”

I looked at her. She was flinging a stone that she got out of nowhere. She threw the stone even higher. Then she wrote something in air which looked more thin and refined than mine. It was an orange symbol which she then flicked it towards the falling stone and it met it in air. The stone glowed and it floated in air. Maria looked at me and at my un-amused stare. I mean it was really nothing but suddenly it lit up very brightly and heat radiated from it. Then Maria suddenly slapped it outside of the open window. Then it exploded like fireworks. Now I was impressed though I could hear a shriek of maid or two in the distance. My eyes twinkled in anticipation.

“Ca’ I dwi’ it too?”

Maria did not reply but hummed in her own world. Then I heard a cough from Uncle. I looked above at him as he replied in a thoughtful way.

“Well you could but Teacher is not an [Engraver] but an [Enchanter]. There is a very good difference. Like teacher said you ‘etch’ into an object but what Maria did was etch directly into an object.”

I was confused. What was the difference? Then I heard another ‘thwak’. I looked up and gasped in surprise and horror. It was Maria with a stick that was on Flammel’s head and he was bleeding while still smiling. Both were smiling in fact.

“Don’t confuse ‘er more than that you idiot. Leave the complicated part to me.”

Uncle was silent for a while, still bleeding like a fountain. He freed one of his arm that was holding me up and took a handkerchief with which he wiped his blood off. He mumbled something like 'you confused her'. It then surprised me as his bleeding seemingly stopped. He then looked at the dangerous smiling loli granny(?).

“…… it seems you still have that staff…..”

“Wasn’t the first time I hit you enough to know about it? It still has that bleeding effect which I turned it on. And you still give crappy information now let me explain ya dumbwit.”

She then looked at me and replied.

“As he said, I am an enchanter. One fundamental difference between Enchanter and Engraver is that for an Enchanter just the ‘air’ is medium itself. I can write effect in the air and it will be brought to reality. But for an Engraver it is not so. It need medium to ‘etch’ phenomena in the object. As I demonstrated earlier, I wrote in ‘air’ and gave the stone the property of fireworks. I activated it and it activates, making it explode. However for an ‘Engraver’ they need a pen, an ink and the object. The pen will then with the ink, write or etch the type of property of the material. The reason why it substituted your finger may be reason of your other skill [Puppeteer] which makes string appear on your finger therefore creating an outlet for magic to pass. Otherwise you would need a Magical pen to insert your Magic and engrave an object.”

Well I could understand it somewhat. I looked at my finger and used my Magic. Strings like things appeared in my finger while both of them looked at me. I was feeling disappointed? I felt a bit down and looked at her.

“Is’t bad?”

Maria smiled warmly at me. She took my hand and closed it between hers. Her hand were big enough to cover mine but I felt something. Before I could say anything she replied.

“No both, Engraver and Enchanter have their different use. It has both cons and pros. Enchanter may be powerful in its own way but I think Engraver is even more so.”

“Ho’w so?”

“As an Enchanter I can do only enchantments like fire, water, lightning and so on, but I can't do complex ones on the fly. But an Engraver can do complex formulas if given time and use it in a jiffy. Frankly, as a [Puppeteer] you couldn’t be more blessed.”

Before I could ask even more dumb question she replied.

“A puppeteer’s greatest strength lies in their collection of puppets and their secrets. What more better for a puppeteer that can make its own puppet than leaving it to others and risk in exposing the secrets of your puppets to other.”

I could already formulate in my head what I would make. It made me glee in anticipation. I could make hidden compartment for storing many things. Maybe even guns if there is even guns in the first place. Then suddenly I felt cold sensation on my back and sudden feeling of vertigo like the ones I felt after draining all my Mana in practice. I looked at my finger to see rings on each and every one of them. It was gold rim with a black glossy spherical marble in the middle. I felt my Mana being sucked in. I was now confused. Uncle just looked at the rings in surprise before exclaiming in disbelief for the first time I have known him.

“Are you raving mad!? Ten of these! Are you trying to suck her dry!”

Maria just grinned abrasively.

“It’s for her own good. The more it sucks her dry, the more her capacity increases. Also it is take and give type. I have enchanted it so that as it sucks her dry, it will store the Mana for future use. Her output is that of 3^rd Class Magister, close to 2^nd Class. It will take her give or take 5 more years normally to make it to 2^nd Class Magister. And then normally it will take 50 years to make it 1^st class at the very least. Now factor in the 10 rings along with the precious Milk you are giving, she will reach 1^st Class Capacity before she even goes to the Academy.”

A long awkward pause ensured for a while.

“...How I survived your tutelage is beyond me…”

“Have some faith in your teacher. It is also for her own good.”

Then she looked sharply at me. I felt pity and understanding in her eyes. But to me it felt like she knew something about me and it made me uncomfortable.