*** Magdalena ***

  Another attack under her watch ended without a single victim among the citizens she had been tasked to protect.

  “The king was a fool to have forsaken her family, and she had been a fool to trust him.” She thought bitterly.

  Arachnids should not be active this early in the year. It was the height of spring, and food in the mountains and woods surrounding Northwing should be abundant. Arachnids only rarely attacked settlements and normally only in late autumn, when looking for new hunting grounds. So, either something was disturbing the local ecosystem, or a major colony was forming, and the Arachnids were raising a new queen.

  She would send word to the nearest guild hall. The king believed the Guild was enough to protect his citizens, so they could handle this mess, whatever it was. Those fools would probably burn half the forest down and still mess it up somehow.

  She clenched her fist in anger before joining her family in the infirmary. Her son-in-law had gotten himself injured in the attack.

  “How did one get injured by an infant Arachnid?” she thought, shaking her head.

  She found all of them in the medical area of the shelter, stocked with different elixirs, salves, and other potions as well as mundane bandages and dressing materials.

  The whole family was gathered around the bed. Little Kiara was sitting on top of her mother's shoulders. She was about to turn four. Her eyes were somber and stern as she watched her father being treated.

  Sarok at least had the decency to look embarrassed by his injuries and all the attention he was receiving.

  At first, she had been 100% against Maya’s and his wedding. She had tried to put her foot down and forbid it, but at this point, she had driven away her daughter once already. She had only met him because she had run away from home to a faraway town, and maybe just maybe she had not made such a bad choice after all. Not that she would ever admit that to her daughter, but Sarok loved his family and was willing to do what was needed to protect it. Qualities she could very much appreciate.

  *** Kiara ***

  Unacceptable. Her family had been hurt. It was not her fault. She knew that. Of course not! But she was training her magic skills day in and day out, and yet she could do nothing. Her grandmother kept everyone safe and she could do nothing. Her father went out and fought, and she could do nothing.

  Petro had to babysit her. Ok, well, her mother had to look after her and Petro, if one was 100% honest, but it did not improve the situation. She had seen how much her mother had wanted to be out there with her husband.

  The way she had handled her short sword and checked each street corner for danger before progressing spoke of someone who had experience handling monsters. There was no hesitation or fear in her movements. She had a goal, and she was going to reach it while keeping her little girl safe.

  And she was holding her back! Without her, her mother would have been able to join her father and keep him safe.

  Something needed to change. No monster would be stopped by her being able to solve a toy cube. Yes, she had been proud of her achievements. Her Mana bracelet was no longer needed. She had formed her own Mana source long ago, and it grew and grew every day. The bracelet dangled from her wrist to avoid suspicion, but she no longer needed her beginner crutch.

  She had learned to control her Mana, to form it into thin strands, nearly without any leakage, to make them thinner and thinner, split them and control three at once, and sense the hidden mechanics and lines inside her cubes.

  It had taken her years of dedicated work to get here, and yet number 14 out of 32 was her current maximum. She could barely complete that cube and was not even half through them all.

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  It was time to move past the foundations and learn some real Magic. Years of peace had blunted her grandmother’s warning, but the next time, she would be ready.

  *** Magdalena ***

  Kiara was getting restless. Her father’s injuries had shaken her to her core, and she was no longer willing to sit idly by. Her granddaughter had made phenomenal progress. She wasn’t even sure if she would have believed it, had not witnessed it herself.

  A talented student was expected to solve about one cube a year, starting at age five. A good weaver would be able to solve the twentieth cube at the height of his career, and that was, of course, with the assistance of the skills he had gained after his initiation.

  Her granddaughter was a little monster, and her grip of the basics was a dream come true. When her initiation came, she would bind with an unattuned crystal of the highest order. Until then, it was best if she continued to focus on the basics, but maybe the best way to keep her motivated was to give her a little bit of a challenge and dangle a carrot in front of her. She had some books about glyphs, which might keep her busy for a while.

  She had done her best to keep Kiara humble. It would do her no good to develop an inflated ego. At worst, she would go around and boast about her skills. It was rare for recruiters to reach the edges of the realm, but it happened. If Kiara continued with her progress, she would likely awaken several second or third-tier skills, and at her age, she would be a crown jewel for any of the great Houses, Academies, or the Guild.

  She no longer held the influence to protect her, nor was she strong enough to keep her safe on her own, but for now, she could keep her hidden.

  Northwing was a perfect place to do so. It was a large town, and except for a few settlements surrounding it was mostly isolated. Once the books had lost their allure, she would have to give her something else to do. She couldn’t form any weaves on her own. Her Mana control was phenomenal, but without a magic core, the risk was just too high.

  Magdalena still had some contacts from way back, who might be willing to do her a favor for old times' sake, or were loyal to her family. Sia, for one, would love to spend time with little Kiara, and Lork, the old grumpy smith, would look after her and give her something useful to do as soon as she was strong enough to hold a hammer. He hated her guts, but he was an honorable man and had sworn his oath to the family.

  And teaching Kiara the basics of alchemy and smithing might come in handy later on, or at least keep the little one busy.

  *** Kiara ***

  It had taken some time for Kiara to get her grandmother alone so they could talk. By now, no one raised an eyebrow when they saw her talking, but she wanted to make sure no one listened in. Her mother might find the details of their discussions slightly unnerving.

  And now the devil proposed a bargain.

  “I know you are unhappy with your progress and want to do something to help your family. You are just like little Petro,” she said with a calm smile.

  It was infuriating. She was nothing like Petro. Petro was a child. He was picking his nose and dreaming of being a hero to save everyone. She was simply stuck in the body of a young child, but she was responsible and could do whatever she needed to do to help. She did not have any illusions of going out and fighting monsters just yet. By the gods, she wasn’t stupid! If they had been able to injure her hulk of a man father, they would have munched on her like an early morning snack.

  But she needed to do something. She was slowly turning mad. All the scrolls in the house had been read. (Even the cooking scrolls). Helping her mother in preparing ingredients or making dough was nice, and she enjoyed it, but in the end, she had to admit her mother would do it faster without her.

  “Normally, I would insist, you focus on the basics, but I have to admit your situation is somewhat special. So, I brought you this scroll. It contains all the basic weaves an apprentice weaver should know by heart. How to heat things up, cool them down, make them move, or emit light. Useful stuff.” Magdalena continued.

  “I don’t want you to neglect your training. I will give it to you if you can complete the first ten cubes in less time than the sand in this little hourglass takes to run through.” She made her offer.

  Anger burned in Kiara, but she kept herself under control.

  Why did she have to train more? She had been training for years! She wanted the scroll. She wanted it very much, but at the same time, it was not enough.

  “I want more. I want a way to practice them. I’ve seen the old bow Mum is using when she is hunting. I could enchant her arrows with some weaves if you show me how. The heroes in the stories I used to read used enchanted arrows all the time. Give me something to do, something to make a difference.” She demanded.

  Her grandmother hesitated.

  “You are not ready to enchant an arrowhead, far from it. Without being initiated, you will not be able to enchant anything. And even if you could do it, how would we explain it to your mother? Your mother is not the most talented weaver, but she can still weave circles around you. If she wants her arrows enchanted, she can do so herself,” criticized her grandmother.

  “There has to be something I can do to help!” she insisted.

  “I can talk to Sia she runs the local apothecary and alchemist supply shop. She might have something for an uninitiated child to do, if that’s what you prefer,” Magdalena said.

  “Deal, but I still want the scroll,” Kiara readily agreed.

  “Ok, but first you will have to complete my challenge,” Magdalena said, smiling.