Nisha observed the young man before her with a mixture of pride and quiet satisfaction.
"Excellent work," she said, stepping closer. "Now we move to the next phase - basic shaping."
She manifested a ball of darkness, then slowly began molding it. "Start with simple forms. A perfect sphere, first, it’s the most natural shape for water to take. Then a cube and a pyramid, which will teach you precision and control over unnatural forms."
The boy nodded, already focusing intently on his suspended droplet. She could see the sheer concentration in his eyes, the way he approached each challenge, no matter how simple, with methodical determination.
She offered a few more advice at the beginning and then settled back to watch.
The first dozen tries failed predictably. The droplet would start to shift, then suddenly collapse or dissolve entirely.
But what caught attention wasn’t the failures; it was his response.
Sure, he was frustrated and became demotivated many times, but he never gave up. He didn’t curse or become impatient.
He simply analyzed what went wrong and adjusted his approach. He didn’t hesitate to ask for her help, no matter how small it was.
Such maturity for his age, she mused.
Most resonators, especially the young ones like him, would have given up long ago or found an excuse to quit, to ’do it later’, and so on.
Pride, frustration, the lack of discipline, the simple desire for instant gratification - she’d seen it all before.
She had seen many people over the centuries.
The naturally gifted ones who blazed through early training, only to hit walls later when raw talent wasn’t enough.
The mediocre ones who gave up at the first real challenge.
There were also talented ones who had the discipline to match, the rare few who became true legends.
Then there were those who lacked any natural gift but possessed a stubborn will that made them into immovable pillars of their age.
And there was this boy, no, young man.
He was also close to that category, but somehow different.
He was average, had no particular talent that stood out. But he had something far more valuable - an unshakable will tempered by wisdom beyond his years.
That’s right, intelligence combined with persistence.
She watched him after a near-successful attempt, closing his eyes to clearly visualize something before trying again with a subtly different approach.
He had already succeeded in the first two and was creating other shapes now.
...Not bad at all. Perfect match for her, she thought with growing satisfaction. I couldn’t ask for a better son-in-law.
If only he would recover his memories sooner. There were things he needed to remember that would make him even more perfect, whole.
But she had faith that he would discover everything eventually.
There was something else he wasn’t aware of yet, something that made her even more satisfied with his progress.
The method she was teaching him was deliberately archaic, far more difficult than the streamlined techniques used in the current age.
Contemporary Resonators learned through shortcuts and simplified processes that allowed for quick initial progress. But those methods had limitations. They created a ceiling that was difficult to break through later.
Her ancient method was brutally slow for most and frustratingly complex. It had long been abandoned by the world for easier ways. But for those rare few who preserved...
Once he masters this...
The modern Resonators would be like children wielding blunt instruments compared to his surgeon’s precision.
"Amazing, you finished it brilliantly again," She praised him. "Do you want to continue?"
He took deep breaths and glanced at her with a tired expression. "What time is it in reality?"
"Early morning," Nisha replied, already anticipating what he wanted to say. "Do you want to rest a bit before leaving?"
"...That would be helpful." He nodded before stretching his muscles. "But I prefer to sleep in my room."
"Alright, I understand."
"Right, can I ask something before I leave? It’s... another favor in fact."
She easily saw through him. "Do you want me to heal your father?"
"...That’s right." He nodded firmly. "I know I’ve been asking a lot, but it’s important."
"...Don’t worry, didn’t I promise you to protect your family? Then I can’t let them suffer too, right?"
"...Thank you." He bowed gratefully.
Nisha nodded, and with a subtle gesture, teleported him back to his room.
The void domain fell silent once more.
"Do you really not want to meet him?" She asked softly, her voice carrying across the empty space.
The shadows stirred, and though no figure emerged, it felt like there was someone there.
"Well, you’re gonna meet eventually anyway."
Cassandra woke up early today.
She wanted to talk with Amaniel about something. She forgot to mention it yesterday since it has been a lot hectic.
She looked at the item window on the system shop.
[Ultra Recovery Potion - 20.000.000 Aura Coins [1/3]]
She heard about what happened in the keep recently from his mother, and the fact that his father was seriously ill.
She wanted to help him somehow. And if the baron didn’t wake up anytime soon, not only would his family suffer, but her business ideas wouldn’t be able to come to life.
And this item would guarantee his father’s recovery within a day(in an hour, in fact).
But giving it to him was the problem. Amaniel probably wouldn’t accept it for free. He would ask its price.
So, she intended to say half the price with the excuse of ’I bought it from a friend’. Well, she wouldn’t be entirely lying since the item’s initial price was 10 million. But after buying twice, it has already multiplied by two.
Or... She could slip it to the baron directly, anonymously.
But Amaniel would surely suspect her.
...Yeah, let’s go with the half-price one.
Cassandra made her decision and headed toward Amaniel’s room. The corridors were quiet at this early hour, with most of the household asleep. Her footsteps echoed softly against the stone floor as she’d rehearsed what she’d say.
Ten million. It should be a reasonable price. Even if he suspects, he won’t have a choice but-!
She turned to the corner, mind focused on the plan, when she nearly collided with someone coming from the opposite direction.
It was someone she didn’t expect to see.