When she arrived at her first mana initiation class, Eleanor could barely contain herself. She was finally going to become a mage. She already pictured herself casting impressive spells and driving back hordes of monsters beyond the borders of the kingdom.
The class took place in a large gymnasium where all the students were invited to sit and follow the teachers' breathing and concentration techniques.
Eleanor found it almost disappointing.
She sat up straight, hands resting on her knees, breathing deeply as she'd been taught. She had already heard about the awakening — from her tutors, from books, even from court mages — but she'd expected something more… perceptible.
Yet after an indefinite amount of time, she finally felt something.
It wasn't much — more like a faint glimmer, or an emptiness, that caught her attention for just a heartbeat.
A subtle warmth appeared, right there, at the center of her chest. She placed her hand over it without realizing.
— Don't force it, said Master Oren's voice softly. What you are feeling is the first step.
She opened her eyes.
Around her, the other students seemed focused or simply impatient. Nothing had changed.
But she… felt different.
The next initiation class changed everything for Eleanor.
The sensation that had been brief and fleeting last time now felt more insistent, more present. After a moment, it felt as though something was clicking into place in her mind. As if, until now, she had been looking at the world through a veil.
She became aware of the flow of mana around her. Of the way it interacted with her body.
She also understood, almost instinctively, how to guide it — in a certain way.
— Calm yourselves, focus, she heard Master Oren say.
So she did.
She focused on her newly formed core. It wasn't very bright, nor very large. But to her, in that moment, it felt like the most beautiful thing in the world.
— Come with me. I'll show you how to get used to your new life, Master Oren told her, guiding her to a quieter room.
As she left, she noticed the stares of her classmates.
Some whispered already. There was admiration in their eyes. But also — sometimes — jealousy.
Master Oren explained her affinity and how to refine her newly formed core. He forbade her from attempting to cast any spell for now, reminding her of the risks.
That evening, at the little restaurant with her friends, she couldn't stop herself from bragging a little.
Naye frowned as he congratulated her — clearly stung in his ego for not having succeeded before her.
— Congratulations, Vaelir answered politely.
Eleanor looked at him for a moment.
— You already have a core? she asked, surprised.
Naye stared.
— What? It's not common, but it happens that a first-year arrives with an already formed core, he protested.
— You already knew how to manipulate mana? Naye asked.
— A little, yes. You even saw me do it on the first day.
— You could have said so.
Vaelir lifted a shoulder.
— I already knew how to breathe too, but I didn't think it deserved a formal announcement, he said dryly.
Eleanor watched them, a little surprised.
— Why have you never mentioned it?
— Because it's not very interesting, Vaelir replied simply.
I grew up in places where it was useful. That's all.
He said it with perfect nonchalance.
But Naye, without knowing why, felt he was lying.
Or rather: that he was telling a version of the truth so incomplete it was almost the same as a lie.
He didn't push it.
He never really insisted when he sensed someone was closing a door.
Eleanor's room was still nearly empty. A few neatly arranged books, a pen, a notebook, and the soft glow of a lantern beside the window.
She had opened the curtains: in the distance, the mountains were outlined against the evening mist.
She took a sheet. Breathed. And wrote.
Mother,
The Academy is larger than I imagined. They say it houses more than three thousand students, but sometimes, in the gardens, it feels like being alone.
The classes are difficult, but I like them. I'm in the Exploration Section, just as I promised you. Some teachers were surprised, but I don't regret my choice.
Yesterday, I felt something. Like a heartbeat inside me. Today… it's there. My core is formed.
It's not very bright, nor very big. But it exists. And just for that, I feel like everything has changed.
We're not allowed to cast any spells yet. Not at the beginning.
But I understand a little better what I want to become.
Don't worry. I'm working hard. And I'm happy.
Your daughter,
Eleanor
She reread it. Changed nothing.
She took a second sheet. Smaller, simpler. And wrote differently.
Captain,
You once said: "One day, you will feel different."
It has happened.
It's not spectacular. Not like the stories.
It's neither fire, nor light, nor lightning.
It's just… silent.
And it's there.
You were right. You know when it happens.
I don't yet know what I can do with it.
But I know why I want to learn.
And I can't wait to show you, someday.
I hope you are safe.
— Eleanor
She set down the pen.
Night was falling over the Academy.
She looked at the mountain, at the lake — and found herself smiling.
Tomorrow, everything would begin again.
But tonight, she had become a mage.