Elydes 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 enchantnt 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 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 rrier. Youre part of the family now. Kai squeezed through the door past him before the hunter could change his mind.

The ancestors grant 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 cri to sit down.

It took you only a few hours to notice this ti, 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 sothing was up. I asked him what was going on and he told .

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

Are you okay, little brother?

Do I not pay enough attention?

Thats not what I ant. 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 ti I did?

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

Sa for you. Rember 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.

Good morning, Ele greeted with a yawn. Do you need a hand with those eggs?

Without waiting for an answer, she took the pan and skillfully shaped an olet. Kea arrived half an hour later, combing her ssy hair with her hand.

Im going out, tell Mom I wont be back for lunch.

He still needed to find two bookshelves for his new lab. As Reishi promised, the place was going to be ready in no ti. Polished white tiles were already being installed in his bathroom.

They were only waiting for him to choose the last pieces of furniture, so the rman could bring the alchemy equipnt. Busy days were ahead, and Kai was eager to start.

When Reishi said two days, he ant two twelve-hour shifts. Business was business and he was impatient to recoup the investnt to start earning. Child labor laws werent a thing. If Alchemy didn't have mana constraints, Reishi would have probably asked for more.

With how he had trained at the estate, the work didnt scare him. Though he was used to doing many different activities during the day. Brewing from dawn till dusk would be a different experience, and probably less interesting.

Guess thats why they call it work. I could probably divide the hours into three days. As long as I reach my twenty-four-hour quota, Reishi will likely agree.

Two beefy workers that appeared to be twins waited for him at the lab. Theyd been hired to arrange the furniture. Like most of the people Reishi employed, they werent from around here.

Youre from the Shattered Isles, right? Kai said, noticing their green hair. How is it there?

Not very peaceful, one grunted, he had a golden stud on his left ear.

His brother had a thin scar running down his chin, he just nodded in silence. Kai noticed they were both Orange . A bit of an overkill to move furniture.

Reishi likes to be extravagant.

Kai tried to prod them to say more. It wasnt happening. They stared at him in silence, waiting for instruction.

Not very chatty, are you?

Even though he was a kid, the two grown n followed his commands without any issue. They didnt complain when Kai made them move wardrobes and tables from one corner of the house to another, searching for the perfect spot.

We were told to help you buy anything else you need, the guy with an earring said after Kai was finally satisfied with the placent.

Not like saying no was an option. The previous tis, the articles he bought were brought in later. Reishi was eager to finish.

Okay, lets go.

Walking around Sylspring with two muscled dudes at his side was an interesting experience. People threw curious glances his way when they thought he wasnt looking.

Kai couldnt bla them. He felt like a mob boss flanked by his henchn. His short stature only made the scene more ridiculous. Asking the twins to walk on the sa side didnt help much.

Bodyguards werent a unique sight in poshtown, though rare. Safety was one of the main selling points of the archipelago. The private guards who followed behind richly dressed people tried to blend in.

Fine, I might as well enjoy it.

Out of other options, Kai decided to inhabit the part with Improvisation, assuming a confident swagger. If Reishi thought he could make him hurry this way, he was dead wrong.

They visited the woodworkers around town to order custom pieces and browse their stock, only stopping for lunch. Kai magnanimously offered to pay for them too, hoping to garner new information. The twins shared a few tidbits of knowledge, nothing useful.

With only a few sars left of the furnishing budget, Kai asked for so modifications to a bookcase he liked. He had to use so coppers of his own to buy a painting of the Vastaire ruins on the other side of Yanlun. Green vines spiraled around their ivory tower, with a backdrop of a crystal sea.

Kai left his henchn to wait for the woodworker to finish. They didnt mind after confirming that was the last article he needed.

He hurried ho for the mana lesson he promised. They chose to sit around the kitchen table since they were three today.

Youve taken the skill, right?

Yes, I did, Moui answered with a sigh.

Such a thankless job.

Without dallying, Kai began dishing out instructions. After confirming Eles progress and giving her a few tips, he focused on Moui. The problem kid that needed special attention.

The hunter squinted as he demonstrated a mana construct.

You know youre not truly using your eyes with Mana Sense.

Its just confusing to see all around .

Youll get used to it.

The hunter had improved considerably since Kai taught him how to control his own mana presence years ago. He was afraid to ask which level the skill had reached. With both his profession and race at Yellow, his attributes must dwarf his own by a mile.

However, his Mana Manipulation had grown in weird ways without its counterpart. He could control his whole essence pool with ease, while he struggled to mold a thread thinner than a rope.

Kai couldnt deny a small smidge of satisfaction. Only Yatei knew what he could have achieved if he wasnt so bull-headed.

Hell catch up. I wont allow such shoddy manipulation.

Kai demonstrated so basic exercises, and Moui easily followed his instructions.

Hows advancing to Yellow? he asked, failing to suppress his curiosity. Mouis mana network shone like the sun, compared to him his veins had the pale glow of the moons.

About the sa as Orange. Though I think having a profession of the sa tier must have helped, I wouldnt know how it was without. Moui let the mana monstrosity in his hands crumble. Not pleasant, but completely worth it. Ive never felt this good since I was in my twenties, probably better than even that.

Lets get back to exercise, we have a lot of ground to cover. You have a lot of bad habits to forget.

Its been working well for .

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 sothing that hadnt changed from the first ti he had taught him: how stubborn he was. For each exercise, he ca 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 ti Kai allowed him to go.

I gained a level, the hunter exclaid 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 mont 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 so air before dinner.

Is this the injustice Kea feels?

Seeing Moui sprint through the levels hit him more than his yellow advancent. 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 rembered 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 ca escorted by the muscled twins who pulled out crate after crate from a spatial bag.

Are you satisfied with the place? the rman asked, overseeing the n unloading the cargo.

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

Yes, I just need to enchant the bathroom. After that, we can begin. He carefully avoided the pitfall. From how the rmans 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 equipnt.

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 tal 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 tal 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.