“Mana is the core of magic. But, like I said, it’s not as simple as that,” saying so, the girl scribbled a line from the circle, flowing to the right before creating a smaller one. “One of the main things you need for magic is to be able to perceive its existence around you.”

  Without saying anything, he simply watched the girl create an arch, curving to the part above the first circle before etching a similar one to the second. “Then, you have to be capable of manipulating the energy.” she added, not stopping at all. Moving to the left side with another arch, Raeyine continued.

  “Only then can you utilize the mana through tens of means, one of those being mental visualization.” Drawing the smaller circle, she left off to head for the bottom of the large circle, already beginning to engrave the fourth minute one.

  “For the last bit of magic, you would have already produced it, however, the effect itself needs control. If you can’t harness the power, you can’t categorize it as magic yet. Instead, it would be counted as raw magic, which is also a topic for another time.” She said, ending the same time as she connected all of the four little small circles, only the first one connected to the initial.

  Before Lutiel could speak through his furrowed eyebrows, the maid started once again. “These are the five main aspects of magic. Mana, perception, manipulation, conception, and mastery. All of which have their own unique details.”

  “Huu, and I’m guessing that perception of mana only appears when the organ is there, right?” He said before an awry smile swept Raeyine’s face. “Of course,” he added after watching the girl nod meekly.

  “Don’t be disheartened, alright? Even if it’s unlikely, you never know what will happen in the future,” she said, however, the man simply shook his head.

  “Raeyine, I know it’s not possible already. I just want to understand magic at least a little if I’m meant to live there,” he said, but the girl kept her smirk on.

  “Okay, let’s just move on, then. What do you want to know now?”

  Asking the man, she watched his immured face for a while, staring deeply into the purple eyes before sparking back into reality as he parted his lips.

  “What about the demon horns? You only ever told me they signified higher power in demons. Can you give a proper explanation now?” Lutiel asked, making her think for a moment before she eventually nodded.

  “Sure, though it won’t be full, as that would be too much information for the amount of mana you possess currently,” she said lightly, quickly continuing underneath his agreement.

  “The horns are a great symbol for the whole of demons. Practically every child strives to acquire one as quickly as they can, even if most realize they simply can’t ever achieve it.”

  “Is it related to magic?” He asked, and the girl confirmed with her head swiftly. Then, she turned back to the wall, tapping once on it before it reverted back to its initial look.

  However, it only stayed that way momentarily. Cutting through once again, she took her time in drawing two silhouettes. Promptly, she drew a line that cut through the waist of the left one, while the other balanced a line on top of its head.

  “Let’s say both of these demons are young friends living in some village. Both come from a similar household whilst training their magical aspects the same amount,” she started explaining whilst pointing around the figures.

  “However, after a while, the left one starts to notice his training isn’t going as smoothly as before, not compared to the right at least. While his speed greatly diminishes around this line for example, the other one can still grow at the same pace as before.”

  Lutiel listened closely, furrowing his brows lightly to constantly keep sight of the figures. And, Raeyine kept moving her tongue. “Before long, while the left one either gives up, grows extremely slowly, or doesn’t increase the aspects at all, the right had already reached the most he could bring out of himself.”

  However, fuddle shrouded Lutiel’s face because of her words. “What happens next, then? What about the horns?” He asked, making the girl smile.

  “The one on the right has seemingly reached his all. However, he keeps training despite that, only to notice something eerie inside him. The mana starts to behave weirdly, as though it wants to break away from the organ restraining it. Despite fearing that his organ might shatter, he gives in to the feeling, clenching and grunting as something starts to grow out of him, his head to be precise.”

  ‘The way she described is strangely close to the feeling I had with the dark bubble. Though, I definitely didn’t gain any magic.’ Lutiel mused with a calm face, listening intently to her words.

  “He has broken through the barrier we call a level, reaching the second one. And his new horn, formed from all of the previous mana, allows his body to achieve more in the magical aspects, at the same time expanding the magical core’s limits.” Her voice continued to dribble down at the man who stopped listening as deeply.

  Hovering over the words, they rang out in his ears, prompting Lutiel to part his lips. “Levels, huh? Then, Is Zyponia on the third level, while you’re still on the first?” He asked, swiftly receiving a nod in response. Lowering his head slightly, the man wondered for a while, silent throughout.

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  Yet, before the lady could continue her lecture, she finally sparked at his face as his tongue rolled through the space. “Breaking those levels, is it just the sensation of something breaking inside you?”

  “What do you mean?” She asked with a raised eyebrow, somewhat puzzled at the question. Yet, a moment later, Raeyine’s eyes fell back into peace. “Actually, I guess I could have misled you. The feeling depends on the person. Breaking through a level might come in hundreds of different ways, it’s that most of them are similar to what I had described.”

  “I see,” muttered the man, soon busy inside his head. ‘Does that mean I could have broken through one? Still, I don’t have anything like a horn, do I? No, how could I even achieve a second level if I hadn’t trained magic once before?’ He mused internally, only to get nowhere.

  “Lutiel?” Suddenly, he tossed his head back at the maid, hearing her voice speak out to him. “I can help you understand better if you’re confused. Even demons have trouble comprehending magic solely by themselves,” she said, however, the man briskly shook his head.

  “I’m fine, I was just thinking about something. Let’s continue,” he said, promptly gaining a reaction from the girl. A breath later, he was already focusing his eyes on the wall, watching Raeyine’s gestures constantly as the lecture kept on for a little bit longer.

  …

  A certain image flashed in front of him, an eerie one, Lutiel mused. Staring at the gloomy shades of violet underneath him, he watched the dress flow about as the lady’s figure kept on walking. Her right arm behind her back, she steadily kept it entwined with his marked hand.

  Walking through the corridors as Zyponia led him, he couldn’t help but finally ask away. “Where are we going? I couldn’t even walk into your study,” he said lightly, only for the girl to briskly turn around, a joyous smirk stretching across her face.

  Turning around fully, she grabbed both of his hands, still walking through the space. “I was thinking of going to the city. I need to buy a few things and you haven’t seen it at night, have you?”

  “No, I haven’t,” he said whilst shaking his head.

  “Good, do you want to go, then?” The girl asked again, despite pushing him towards herself constantly. Budding into a full smile as he nodded to the question, Zyponia once again turned around, however, breaking their contact apart.

  Despite the sudden flash in his eyes, Lutiel couldn’t do anything as he saw the flight of stairs leading down before them. Simply walking beside the lady, they steadily reached the ground floor, hastily stepping through the darkness ridden floor.

  Albeit their break of touch, they hadn’t witnessed anyone flood into their sight, easily walking through towards the entrance. Yet, before opening the doors, the man made her stop quickly. “Are we going there with the carriage?”

  However, stopping only for a nippy breath to stare into his eyes, the girl had already opened her mouth. “Yes, but we will be there for a while, so Rovier isn’t coming with us.” She said, promptly making him furrow his eyebrows while opening the doors.

  “You can drive it?” He asked, only to almost squirm the brows deeper as her laughter resounded together with a sharp wind. Watching her swaying hair stumble across her giggles, the man added on. “What?”

  Flowing back to her previous state after a while, his eyes widened suddenly. Turning his head towards the commotion he heard, he watched the carriage move despite no horses being connected to it. The wheels turned on their own, it seemed.

  And, the one responsible for the event simply waved her arms around, constantly keeping glances around the man whilst a faint smile adorned her face. “Of course I can,” the girl said, making the carriage arrive right in front of them.

  “Is this what a third level can achieve?” He muttered out abruptly, gazing at the doors of the glossy, black carriage. This time, it was Zyponia’s turn to share her puzzle.

  “Did Raeyine tell you?” Her pink eyes pried, only to settle down once he nodded. “I see. Since you’ve asked, no, this is just a meager use of my magic,” the girl spoke, flashing her teeth to the man whilst he came closer to the carriage.

  “Please,” he said, gesturing with his arms after opening the doors. Without an utterance, the girl moved, getting inside before falling onto the soft seats. Following right after, Lutiel shut the doors tightly and sat in front of the lady.

  Yet, before long, the countless, blank glances from her prompted the lady to act on her own.

  His eyes opened up abruptly, a speedy yet meek force luring him towards the lady, her hands having pulled the man.

  Swiftly sat directly beside the girl, he only turned his head to the left. “That’s better,” she said, silently looking ahead of herself whilst lightly entwining her right arm with his figure.

  Looking through the windows of the already moving carriage, his left arm prodded through the delicate graze of Zyponia, getting it underneath her arm before their hands entwined and locked tightly.

  Both of them kept silent, staring beyond the windows calmly before seeing the surroundings change. With a steady speed, they started to leave the gates, promptly traversing through the forests around the hills near the mansions.

  However, having left the property fully, Lutiel finally turned down, only to witness the girl already peering at him. Keeping their gaze for a few steady breaths, he eventually parted his lips. “Why are we going exactly?”

  The question lingered in her eyes momentarily, letting go just as she spoke away. “I’ve run out of ink and a few other supplies. And I also don’t want to be constantly cooped up in the mansion. It’s nice to break away from the blind pursuit of power once in a while,” the girl said, finally turning around to face the seats ahead of them.

  “I guess so.” He said lightly, stopping for a second before an abrupt thought left his mouth. “Zyponia, is physical training similar to magic training?” Lutiel asked, making her spark back around his face before hesitantly nodding.

  “Yes… maybe? I don’t really know since I don’t train my muscles. I guess the idea behind both are quite similar, but it differs greatly in action. Though, some magical exercises are associated with muscle training at the same time. It’s a gray area of sorts now that I think about it,” the girl spoke to the man who readily kept his eyes around the rolling lips.

  “Maybe Folvana knows something about it,” a sudden mutter left his mouth, followed by a tart breath when the girl pinched his thigh. “Agh! Sorry, sorry, I won’t do it again,” Lutiel spoke briskly, making the stern face turn somewhat smiling again.