Point of View: Gase "What happened, Ho? Why did you stop me?" I halted the fight with Maki just before seeing a major breakthrough. When one pushes their body to the limit and keeps pushing, a great reward can follow. I was actually enjoying that training session, but I stopped only because of my partner's words.

"Marquis. Message." In all these years together, I've barely seen him speak more than a few words. He only does it when drunk or when something is extremely important.

"I'm calling him." Ho must have received a message and immediately told me so I could respond. I inject mana and Imra into the new communication device to try to connect with the Marquis.

"Hello?" I hear my master's deep voice on the other side.

"Greetings, Marquis Timal, this is Gase. Ho relayed a message." I need to introduce myself—this device is the second-to-last model and doesn't show who is trying to reach you. It's time to upgrade to the latest one when we return to the capital of the Marquisate.

"Yes, something strange has occurred near the Merno Kingdom. One of the Emperor's heralds discovered that monsters from various areas are appearing, and all of them are rapidly advancing in grade along the kingdom's borders. This has forced a massive mobilization of the kingdom's forces. It's best to stay alert in case reinforcements are needed—or if something similar happens in our empire." The Marquis' words are sharp and direct. This is serious.

"Could it be caused by an undiscovered dungeon nearby?" Situations like this are usually the result of grade 4 or 5 dungeons overflowing their limits, triggering monster avalanches.

"I thought the same, but… my instinct tells me otherwise. That all of this is part of something far more dangerous." A short silence follows. "I hope it's just an overflowing dungeon. I hope my instinct is wrong." This might be more serious than expected. The Marquis has an exceptionally sharp instinct—that's one of the weapons that helped him rise to his position so young. A sharp instinct that helps identify problems in all kinds of situations.

"We'll stay alert to anything. Should we leave Talar Village?" By his own orders, we're still here, though I'm starting to feel attached to Maki. Work is work.

"No, stay close to Maki and keep helping him. For now this is just a major alarm, no need to move yet. If they need you at the front, Ho can bring you there." At least we'll have a few more days of "relaxation" before returning to our main tasks, and the Marquis is right—thanks to Ho's ability, we can move anywhere in the shortest time.

"Understood, I'll remain watchful. Now, time for the report." I detail everything I've learned about Maki—his way of fighting, his affinities, and all the information needed to understand his current level.

"He never stops surprising me." His voice changes completely, becoming relaxed and joyful when hearing about Maki. That only happens when he truly cares for someone.

"From what you've said… Maki might already be stronger than I was when I was at the emerald rank." I didn't know the Marquis back then, but if he says so…

"Thank you for keeping me updated on my possible nephew. Keep helping him, please—I'll be waiting for good news in the coming days." Future nephew? Yes, I vaguely remember once hearing him mention young Lady Arisa being in love with someone… Wait—she's in love with Maki?

The Marquis ends the call without even giving me time to say goodbye—he always does that. Arisa and Maki? That pairing would create a powerful child. Arisa has enormous potential, capable of reaching diamond rank or beyond one day. Her mastery of the spear is extraordinary, rarely seen in recent years. She awakened her Imra far earlier than other so-called geniuses, and her mana control is among the best of her generation.

On the other hand, Maki is a monster in human disguise. If Arisa is a prodigy, Maki surpasses any standard. Swordsmanship, mana and Imra control, affinities—everything about him is above every child of his age that I've met. He is a very strange case of nature.

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I understand why the Marquis holds him in such esteem and wants to see him as family. Maki could disrupt the balance in just a few years, and if he truly has feelings for Arisa, it would be a huge benefit for this territory.

"I'm excited to see what the future brings." A playful smile escapes me—the next training session will be hell for that little one.

Point of View: Julio Timal

What is this strange feeling? I sense danger when I recall what happened in the neighboring kingdom. The feeling seems distant, as if this were only the beginning of something much larger in the future… If only I could know its origin and eradicate it to prevent future problems. But from my position, it's impossible—King Paulo won't allow external interference.

I hope this feeling fades… it only eases when I think of Maki. Will that young man have a role in this problem one day? He's a magnet for trouble, but he always ends up turning it into his benefit. I hope he can absorb something from Gase and Ho to become strong as quickly as possible.

It makes me happy to know how much he's grown in these last months since Baron Solar's daughter's birthday celebration. He has no support from a great noble house, no medicines or cores to strengthen him, no specialized tutors for proper training, yet he already stands at the very peak of his generation.

When he reaches sapphire rank, his power will rise again. I can't even calculate how strong he will become then—at the very least, he'll reach ruby rank at that point.

"That feeling again…" Could Maki be one of the key pieces in the future? My instinct screams something hard to understand. That's the problem when the threat lies so far away in time and space.

"It's time to focus on the near term." I look again at the mountain of papers before me and feel discouraged… I'd rather fight monsters than sit at this desk reading reports and stamping approvals.

I must focus on this year's tournament. It will be as important as ever. I hope to see some truly interesting surprises. With the sound of one hand turning pages and the other using the royal seal, the Marquis drowns himself in the world of paperwork.

Point of View: Maki

"Why can't I stop sneezing?" I shout in the middle of the forest, unable to hold back. I've been sneezing nonstop for a while. Is someone talking about me? Yes, that must be it. The sneezes vanish and I feel relief. "Where am I going?" I didn't feel like going back to the village—today is a day for adventure in the unknown. I'll walk aimlessly, looking for something interesting in this forest and mountains.

Glia appears by my side and begins running back and forth. "This air is so refreshing, I love nature." She seems so comfortable bounding around. "I'll be right back, I'm going to explore a bit around here." I wish her good luck and let her go. There are no monsters nearby that could threaten her, and with our bond we can always sense where the other is.

It feels strange not having anyone to talk to. All these months I've always had Glia close to me. Time to look for something interesting. Along the way, I've killed three grade 1 wolves who didn't understand the meaning of danger and stalked me. Luckily, they died quickly—a small Joyeuse the size of my palm pierced their skulls.

"This is a great way to improve my long-distance mana control." I play with my construction, moving it side to side, dodging all kinds of obstacles at a distance. It's a great exercise for mana control, allowing me to strike from a safe distance.

"Time to head home." I spent the whole day playing with my small constructions, killing monsters in the surroundings. I set myself the challenge of striking only those at least 80 meters away, to refine my control. At first, I barely missed, but then my aim improved. Without my "Own World" this wouldn't have been possible.

My control has always been good at close range—I've practiced it for years, after all. But I had never felt the need to fight at a distance, blinded by my confidence in close combat. I was short-sighted for too long. Conditions won't always be perfect. Not every battle will be fought on my terms.

What if I have to fight opponents beyond the reach of my world? I'd just be dodging until exhaustion. In this world, where infinite possibilities exist thanks to countless mana affinities, it's better to be prepared for every situation.

I sense my bond with Glia growing closer, so I head in her direction. When I arrive, I see several wolf corpses around her. She's started training on her own—she must be tired of being stuck in my cube when things get dangerous.

"How did it go, Glia?" The small jaguar sits on her haunches, watching the sun slowly set.

"Great! I want to do it again tomorrow." She turns toward me and walks over. "For now, I'll go sleep a bit. Wake me if there's meat at dinner." She returns to my cube to take a well-deserved rest.

Her words make me think about tonight's meal—I hope it's something good. Tonight I must talk to my parents and grandmother about my training with the heralds. I'm sure they'll feel proud of me.

With my mind focused on tomorrow's training, I head back home to await a new day. "I need to think about Arisa's gift." Surely, my mother has already found something, just like she did for Sol.

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