The sword fell down with a clang. My hands were trembling so hard they couldn't grip it properly.

Dutro immediately ran to my side. He had a pained look on his face as he wrapped my palm with bandages. "Please, don't push yourself too hard, Your Highness."

I glanced at the Commander.

"For today, please take a rest, my Prince," he said cooly.

I closed my palm and sighed. "I get it."

Nobody spoke to me on the way, but I could hear their pity all the same. And then, even though just a little, I could feel some of those pities turned into admiration.

At the very least, I was glad they stopped looking down on me.

When I entered my tent, Rikal and Tu popped up in the bed.

[[What are we going to do today?]]

"We? I am going to train."

||I thought you gonna stop training?||

"Yeah, I thought about it."

I sat cross-legged on top of the bed, facing the deities. "Huan, please teach me how to use magic."

There was a few seconds of silence before a text message popped up in front of me.

||Eh~ I don't mind~||

||But Erik has low mana capacity||

"You're a deity," I challenged. "Surely, you can do something about it?"

||Erik is good at provoking~||

"No, it's just easy to provoke you."

||Ok, I'll do teach you!||

Tu raised her hand energetically. [[Tu will help!]]

I wasn't sure how she was going to help, but I still bowed gratefully. "Please treat me gently."

[[It can't be helped]] Rikal clicked his tongue. [[Erik, you have understood the basics, right?]]

"I have."

Swordsmen were more respected in Albertani than mages, but children were still required to study the basic knowledge of magic.

There were generally three kinds of magic. The elemental, non-elemental, and nature. Fire and water mages fall into the first category. Healing mages were part of the second category.

Nature mages, or more commonly known as witches, were forbidden in the western region. The book of Night Sky stated that witches interfered with the law of nature. Learning about them more than this would be considered taboo.

A mage could do more than one type of magic, but there had never been a record of a mage who could master both.

When I was seven years old, I would sneak to the library and wrote all the spells I could read to my skin with a permanent marker. Father had never been more amused than the day I almost killed myself from mana exhaustion.

It was impossible for me to do even one simple magic trick. I studied all the books I could get my hands on, but they all needed at least twice the mana capacity I could provide.

||Then Erik just needs to learn the spell!||

||I'll tell you the easiest spell||

[[Erik, if you're scared, just hold Tu's hand]] Tu stretched both of her hands open. [[Put your hands on Tu's]]

"Thank you, but I don't-"

[[Just do it, for Lord's sake]] Rikal pulled my hands and placed one of them on top of Tu's waiting palm. He put my other hand on top of his.

If somebody were to see this, they'd think we were doing a demonic ritual.

I took a deep breath. "Alright, I am ready."

||Spell of the gentle smokescreen: ####||

For the first time in a long while, I tapped on my mana. I closed my eyes. "####"

[[Erik, look!]]

On Tu's beckoning, I opened my eyes to see smoke seeping out of my hands.

[[You have to learn to adjust your mana]] Rikal said, watching me intently. [[That spell took more mana than it was supposed to]]

I stared at my hands. The smoke didn't last long. It cleared out too quickly, almost as if it never came out at all, even though it drained my mana already.

I looked at the brat-looking deities. They were smiling.

[[Congrats, Erik]]

Rikal's smile was more of a grimace, but his congratulation sounded genuine.

[[Seeing Erik happy makes Tu happy!]]

"Ah, this is too early to celebrate..." I looked away, feeling a little bashful.

Was I happy? I touched my cheeks. I wasn't smiling. How did Tu know I was happy?

||It felt good, right?||

||( ꈍᴗꈍ)||

"...Yeah."

I looked down, rubbing the back of my neck. Magic was cool, after all. It was my crushed dream, but now I could do it too.

I cleared my throat. "Thank you, Huan."

||(◍•ᴗ•◍)♡||

[[Just Huan?!]]

"Thank you, Tu. You're the best teacher and friend I could ask help from."

Tu was practically glowing with the praises. I turned at the little boy in the dark cloak. "Thanks, Rikal. You're great."

Rikal looked away, his ears red. [[Didn't you say it was too early to celebrate?]]

[[Rikal's right! Erik still has a lot to learn]]

"Yeah, I have to work hard."

We continued the lesson with Tu and Rikal still holding my hands.

It felt peaceful like this. I didn't mind this moment last just a little longer. Tomorrow, I'd continue my sword training, and if possible, I'd learn how to praise people better someday.