I stared. How could I not? Where Kostis’s hand should have been was nothing but the vague outline of a hand made entirely of hazy smoke.

“That’s crazy,” I said.

“Indeed!” Kostis's grin was almost infectious. “This is the sort of thing one can perform once one's core has been awakened.”

“Can you, like, touch things with that? I mean, smoke isn’t exactly solid...”

“Another facet of an awakened core! With enough mana, you can bend even the original properties of your Aspect to your will, though of course, the difficulty will vary depending on the Aspect.”

That was a lot of words to say he could touch things just fine. Fascinating, really, but I needed to stop staring.

Plus, I wasn’t at all sure how that would work for me. Gravity was even less of a tangible Aspect when compared to smoke. What was a hand made from Gravity even supposed to look like?

I supposed I would be learning other Aspects as soon as I ranked up my Path.

“So,” Kostis said. “Does that motivate you to get working on your Spirit and your mana core?”

I felt like I was motivated enough already, but I grinned and nodded anyway. “Definitely!”

Kostis went on to give me a lesson on how exactly I was supposed to prepare for my mana core’s eventual implosion. Apparently, and unsurprisingly, most people’s mana cores didn’t threaten to explode. As such, I would need to do something different.

“Let me guess,” Kostis said. “So far, you’ve been channelling mana by using your Aspects and allowing them to drive your mana into a desired outcome, correct?”

I nodded. “Let me guess, you’re about to say I can channel mana directly.”

Kostis’s grin was all the answer I needed. I felt like I had done that before, at some point, but focusing on my Aspects directly and on what I wanted my mana to achieve had just become second nature.

“Your mana is yours to control and use as you see fit,” Kostis said. “It doesn’t have to follow the guidelines set by the Weave via your Aspects. Now, instead of driving them to bring about the effects of your Aspects, focus them on your body and your mind and on the idea of yourself.”

He was asking me to do it right that instant actually. I shrugged. What the hell.

I tried. It was strange focusing on just my mana by itself. Like trying to stop a thousand thin, slippery eels from wriggling about, eager to zoom off as soon as the gate to their enclosure was opened. Forget making it do what I wanted, just holding it in place felt weirdly difficult. Had the Weave been helping me control my mana all this time? There was so much to learn...

“You’ve been using your Aspects liberally with zero mana control training,” Kostis said when I mentioned how it felt. “This was to be expected.”

I hummed. “Mana control... Is that a separate style of training mages undergo?”

“They teach it as one of the secondary basics course at Xokrist, yes.”

I wasn’t going to make much progress then and there, so the idea was to keep practicing on my own. Instead, Kostis talked more about the core awakening. He said he would give me another letter that I could take to Xokrist. I would need to head there again because while I could try to awaken my core on my own, certain resources the academy possessed would help me a lot.

Literal resources. Pills, mana capsules, things like that. Not just information like the kind Kostis was providing.

“Most mages don’t need any sort of supplementary resources,” Kostis said. “Unless they really want to ratchet up the rate at which they want to awaken their cores. But also, most mages don’t have their cores threatening to implode during awakening.”

I conceded the point.

There wasn’t much else I wanted to discuss, except for one small thing. I smiled and leaned forward a little. We were sitting down now, enjoying the view to the outside where different mages were practising with their Aspects. I saw one robed person call up what seemed to be an Icon—a construction of threads that turned into a very fancy spear.

“So, was my story entertaining enough for an extra tidbit, master?” I asked.

Kostis considered for a moment, then nodded. “I’ll be generous and say yes. Here is your extra unrelated morsel—Guildmaster Lancko is with us, right here, right this moment.”

I froze. Then I jerked my head around. There were a few people on the gallery too, wandering about or talking here and there. Not a single one of them gave me the impression that they were the Guildmaster. No way was the Guildmaster of the Mage Guild that unassuming.

Kostis laughed with a soft hiss. “You won’t find Lancko by just looking around, Ross my boy. No one knows where he actually is. He is somewhere in the Mage Guild, however. Of that I am quite certain. In fact, he’s here more often than even than the Ring Two Guildhall or even his own home. Eccentric bastard.”

That was certainly news to me. I had to wonder where in the world Guildmaster Lancko could be hiding. All I got were images of secret cameras hidden inside bushes and pot plants with the Guildmaster lurking inside a room with a dozen screens.

With that intriguing little drop of information, we parted for the time being. Kostis did ask if I had plans to conduct other jobs, and I said I wanted to focus fully on getting Spirit to Silver. I already had a decent chunk of money I wasn’t even sure what to spend on. Back on Earth, rent and bills and food were always my biggest expenses, none of which I had to deal with here.

After I mentioned I was thinking about items, Kostis suggested that the academy might have a better line to acquiring more valuable treasures than the Mage Guild trade workshop. Just one more reason to visit Xokrist soon. I promised I would be waiting for his letter.

Before I left the Guild, I officially changed my designation from Iron-ranked mage to Silver-ranked mage.

The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

“Here you go,” Silhatsa said, offering me my shiny new badge over the receptionist’s desk.

It was the same symbol as my storm-grey Iron-ranked badge—two staves crossed behind what I assumed was a grimoire. But the new one was so silver, I could actually check my reflection to comb my hair back with my fingers. Hmm, I would probably need a haircut sooner rather than later.

“Thanks,” I said. “Now I won’t have anyone complaining about taking their Silver-ranked jobs.”

Silhatsa laughed. “People will always find things to complain about.”

“True enough.”

I supposed she would know. She was a receptionist, after all.

After getting lost on my way back, I spent most of the rest of the day practicing more with my Aspects. I still hadn’t truly figured out a way to make Field Manipulation useful directly on myself. Although, that sort of changed when I discovered I could walk on walls and ceilings.

“The Elder said we’re on lunch duty today, Ross,” Sreketh said as she came in. I was, once again, practicing at the rear of the temple where things were a lot more broken-down. She looked around, unable to find me. “Ross…?”

“Be there in a sec,” I said.

Sreketh screamed in surprise before looking up, pupils wide in surprise, scales slightly flushed. “How are you on the ceiling?”

I grinned. “I control Gravity, remember?”

My first attempts to create gravity fields with Field Manipulation to allow myself to walk on walls and such hadn’t worked. While I had created fields on the soles of my shoes to attach my legs to the walls, natural gravity still affected the entirety of the rest of my body, so I was leaning downwards like tree in a storm.

And then I remembered I had Siphon, so poof went gravitational forces.

Now I could walk around on any surface at any angle without all the blood rushing to my head. I was very grateful for not feeling like I was going to hurl.

“Do we really have to cook insects?” I said after dropping down.

“What’s wrong with insects?” Sreketh’s forked tongue flickered out in anticipation. “They’re amazing!”

“Right…”

At least we weren’t grilling earthworms or cooking live beetles or something like that. Being the poor cult that we were, we just purchased the cheap quality of crushed insect bits to create the porridge-like meal.

Sreketh was actually a pretty good cook, despite her young age, and I ended up mostly just helping her.

After lunch, I went back to training. The focus was entirely on raising my Spirit. It was still at Iron VI, the lowest of all my Attributes, which was actually a bit annoying since it was supposed to be my foremost one as a certified mage. Kostis had suggested that since I possessed two Paths instead of one, especially a faith-related Path, I would be needing twice the effort.

That felt like some bullshit, but there was no point in complaining about it. Instead, I focused on training my Aspect, on pushing my mana to its limits until I felt the familiar exhaustion carving out a space for itself within me.

It was funny how the hollowness from mana exhaustion interacted with the different kind of emptiness that had appeared after Power had broken into Silver. I knew the latter was due to my lack of an Augmentation. That emptiness felt more like anticipation, like a part of me was waiting for the new puzzle piece that would recontextualize what made me me.

Funnier still because I was practicing meditation while pushing my mana capacity to the limit. Channelling Gravity, I was now able to float, so I felt like a proper monk with my legs crossed and my hands in my lap. All I needed was to shave off my hair.

It worked, though. Pushing Gravity all day long in a directed manner, helped raise my Spirit.

[ Rank Up!

Your Spirit Attribute has risen by one Rank.

Spirit: Iron VII ]

I shook my head. Still the lowest. Gutran was right. What in the world would other mages think to see a mage with Spirit as his weakest Attribute?

Later on, I went to join the others for dinner. I of course didn’t need food but it was nice to keep everyone company and not turn too insular. Plus, mana exhaustion meant I couldn’t justify that I’d be spending time productively. But since I didn’t need to eat and I only saw Sreketh, Aurier, and the other two men—I had finally learned they were called Santoire and Guille—I chatted with them briefly before looking for Escinca.

Surprise, surprise, he was exactly where I was expecting him to be. But he wasn’t alone in his office. I heard voices as I approached, though one of them quieted as I got closer.

“I’ll think about it, Elder,” Hamsik was saying. “Looks like you’ve got the children seeking your attention.”

I was tempted to scowl at him, but it did make me wonder how old the half-vampire actually was. “You really should close the balcony doors, Elder. Then you won’t have mangy bats flying in without warning.”

“For one, I can’t turn into a bat,” Hamsik said, eyebrows twitching. “For another, I couldn’t just fly in even if I wanted to.”

“Oh right, I forgot. You need to be invited inside.” My sneer was unfortunately malicious. “You know, I wonder what would happen if I kicked you out. Would you need to be invited in again? Oh, please come kick my ass like I just kicked yours, Hamsik.” Hamsik glared at me. “Sorry, I thought you said I was a child.”

Escinca cleared his throat. He looked like he couldn’t decide if he was supposed to be amused or exasperated. “Hamsik actually has a pertinent request, Ross.”

“Elder!” Hamsik said, suddenly agitated. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Well, unfortunately, I am rather busy Hamsik.”

“Doing what? Leading prayers for all the people who stay home? Walking around the neighbourhood re-applying all the Blessings that are still perfectly functional?”

This time, Escinca’s gaze was a deadpan. “I am busy making my unruly fellow cultists get along.”

“Sorry,” I said genuinely. “I shouldn’t have been so aggro. I let my annoyance get the better of me.”

“Thank you,” Escinca said appreciatively. He turned to Hamsik with a raised eyebrow.

The half-vampire sighed. Even sighing like a jerk, he looked weirdly handsome. I wondered how much of it was a vampiric effect. Weren’t they supposed to be some sort of seductive, charming monster? “Sorry.” He modulated his tone into something a bit more sincere. “I shouldn’t have called you a child.”

“Good,” Escinca said, accepting the apology on my behalf, likely to facilitate our forced camaraderie. “Ross, I want you to go with Hamsik when he goes to visit his House on Ring Two.”

I blinked. “Why are we visiting House Kalnislaw?” I was reminded of my first day at the temple, when I had seen a member of Hamsik’s House accompanying that bullying Rakshasa noble from House Brasvay or whatever it was. When I had ruined their stupid carriage. “Is this about their attempts at trying to buy the cult’s land?”

“They aren’t, technically. My brother was merely accompanying Brasvay that day because he wished to see me, or so he said. Besides, with the recent Scarthrall business, all the Great Houses’ interests on Ring Four have cooled temporarily.”

Huh. Looked like even Scarthralls had silver linings.

“In truth,” Escinca said. “It is as much about Hamsik as it is about the cult.”

Hamsik flushed. I never thought I would be seeing the day when the half-vampire would actually look embarrassed.

“No such thing,” he said. “We’ll be heading up there because I want to see just what my family has been doing about the Scarthralls.”

Now that got my attention. While I wasn’t about to throw out accusations willy nilly, a Scarseeker was definitely involved in the mess, and it was eminently reasonable to assume that a Great House of Scarseekers might have some ties to the whole affair.

That Hamsik was ready to investigate his very own House reminded me that he did care about the cult a lot.

“Alright,” I said. “I’m in—”

Another voice interrupted us, along with a rush of footsteps.

“Hello!” Sreketh appeared, bearing two dishes piled high with the insect-porridge and the weird not-breadsticks. “You weren’t coming back to dinner so I thought I’d bring it up to you.” Her eyes landed on Hamsik. “Oh, sorry! I thought there were only two people in the Elder’s office. I’ll go and bring another plate!”

She was about to dump the plates she had brought onto Escinca’s table, but the Elder called out before Sreketh could leave.

“Sreketh, dear, one moment,” he said. “How would you like to go to Ring Two?”

Hamsik glared at the old man. “Alright, but this one is a child!”