Chapter 02

Peril & Power

              Kissing the floor has almost become a habit of the sort for me when it comes to training. Lisa, my mentor in magic and combat, is really amazing for a 2 century old girl. Over the last 5 years since I met her, she has trained me in Magic arts and over the last 5 years I still lose hands down. Oh yeah! She was once just a creepy floating book of spells until a month of our training, she turned into her human form. She’s cute looking and slim, but she packs a wallop. Don’t let her features fool you. A blond hair with pink tipped ends, slim and tall is how she looks like. Eventhough she is a book of spells, she said she can’t say stronger spells. Yet she still kicks my without even meaning too.

              “Uffffff!!” that’s what I sounded like landing face first on the floor with my arms locked behind my back and Lisa putting her body weight on her lock. She is smaller than me by a lot but she really is strong.

              “How many times, do I have to tell you?” I feel her body weight lessens one me as she stands, “Concentrate, Nathan! Don’t be distracted!”

              “Easy for you to say,” I stood up feeling up my wrists and looking at her, “I’m not the attractive mentor, looking so hot in her black tank top and leggings.” I gave her the usual smirk.

              She gives me her usual irritated look, “Auhane!”And the next thing I know, I was flying 10 feet away from her after she er punched me in the gut.

              “Uhhh.. ahhhaa!” these responses could become my personal vocabulary of ‘What Nathan Sounds Like When He Got His Handed To Him By A  Mentor Half His Size.’ In stores now! 

              “I’m serious, Nathan,” Lisa with her hands on her hips, and putting on her serious look. So adorable. “If you’re faced to face with an outlaw Magi, you could be dead…….. wait…. They left again didn’t they?”

              There she goes with the question I’ve wanted to avoid. Concerning my parents. And to think that maybe they would stay for at least one day for their son’s 20th birthday, I was wrong. Just this morning, they left for England to the grand opening of their new branch in London. Again all I got was just a hug and kiss from them, and a big cheque. All the money they ever gave me in all my birthdays is mostly donated and I keep only 15% of what I donated. Even with all that I donated, I have enough to buy my own stuff like car and paying for my own tuition fee.

              “Well what do you expect Lisa?” I stood again while looking at her, “They are always too busy for their one and only son."

              “I’m sure they have their own reasons for being like this,” Lisa replied with definite concern in her tone, “I’m sure they love you, kiddo..”

              “Let’s just continue?” I interrupted her midway cause I am not liking the topic of our conversation, “Auhane!”

              Quick to my feet, I immediately swing a right hook at her, hoping to hit her unawares. I was wrong; she dodged down a split second before I landed my blow and swipe her right leg to hit mine. I jumped and somersaulted forward while enchanting, “Inrero!” I released a fire ball towards her. “I got her!” with this close of a distance, there’s no way she can dodge.

              What she did next sent chills to my spine. She side smiled at me and, “Viritio…” and the next thing I know, I was the one in the path of the fireball and she was in my previous position.

              “Maidal!!” I enchanted almost immediately covering myself before leaving myself a charcoal. I was just in time.

              By the time the smoke clears, I heard a whining struggle behind me. My plan had worked. I enchanted the spell ‘Apem..’ the moment I came in contact with the spiraling inferno. And guess who is trapped?

              “Yes!” celebrating in my, finally received, victory as I look at my mentor, “So how do you think I do?”

              But it seems my victory was short lived. The image of Lisa before me flickered and before I could react, I felt a palm hitting my back and I was once again flying forward towards the wall. Although this time I am more aware and ready. “Auhane!...” I somersaulted before coming in contact with the wall and my feet instead landed on the wall. Springing my knees and using the wall as my foot hold, I bolted forward. And is it just me, but did I just see amusement in Lisa’s eyes. The kind of look I have never seen before since day one.

              Using her stunned state to my advantage, I made my move, “Tassaect!!..” and with her ability to speak out of the way, I made my second move, “Diign!!...” she is powerless now. No voice to utter any spells and no movements to counter attack me.

              But I just realized two things. I uttered two spells in mere second and gaining the upper hand. The other thing is the fact that I am like a human bullet bounding towards Lisa. When we come in contact, she will be seriously injured.

              “Naretae!!..” a few inches before hitting her, my view changed. At first my target was Lisa, but now after uttering the spell. Lisa is the one behind me and my new target is the wall. “Maildal!!...” All I heard after uttering that spell was a loud boom, and I out.

************

              Aching all over my body was the first thing I felt when I wake up. The top of my head, all the way down to my toes are in wincing pain. Squinting my eyes to look around, I found out that I’m already in my favorite library. Lisa must have deactivated the dimension spell in the library. She and I always use this spell to practice our hand to combat plus magical combat. It is soundproof so Duncan, my family’s Butler, couldn’t hear a thing.

              “Where is Lisa?” Still rubbing my aching head, I scanned through room but didn’t find any sign of her. Until my eyes landed on a familiar literature by the leather seat I’m so fond of. The Book of Spells or in Latin it’s called Libro Cantus aka Lisa’s true form.

              “Lisa?” I called out to the book and reached for it, “Umm.. You okay?” but no response came out.

              I started opening the page of the book again after almost one year not doing so. Lisa said that I progressed immensely, much to her surprise, so teaching me by book is no longer an option. And again in this first page, like 5 years ago, it’s blank except for two lines of words. It said “Read for Truth: Reltovi..”

              “Release?” I pondered in my mind as I look at the writing, “From what?”

              Curiosity always loves to play with my mind so, “Reltovi..” I enchanted the words but nothing happened. I was thinking maybe this was bogus. And as soon as the words vanished, the book in my hand starts to shake so much I had to let it go. Dropped it on the floor.

              In seconds, the once seemingly dead literature, spurred and turned into a human form. “Nathan!!” Lisa was screaming in a very loud tone, and it surprised the heck out of me.

              “Okayyy!!! WOAH!!” I covered my ears and looked at her in bewilderment, “What’s with all the screaming?”

              Lisa finally realized her predicament, and gained her composure, “Well, you….”

              “Hold that thought!” I interrupted Lisa after taking a glance at the grandfather clock near the fire place, and facing my favorite armchair, “I’m late!”

              Without giving any seconds thoughts, I bolted out the room. “No Magic outside the Library, Nathan!!” I heard Lisa shouting before I push open the doors.

              “Got it! Bye!” a somewhat rude reply was all I can say before disappearing into my big mansion.

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              Thank goodness of me that I bought myself a nice Gray colored Lamborghini Gallardo with customed red leathered interior and seats. I will get to class just in time. The freeway empty except for some cars and trucks, it is not a problem that my car can’t handle.

              “So??? This the inside of your car eh?” a voice, I can’t find the source, filled the interior of the car but I know who’s voice it belongs to.

              “What the?!!” almost swerving to my doom was my response, “Lisa?? What are you doing here?? And where are you?”

              “Here!” a radio static of multiple stations changing in my car gave me the idea of where she is.

              “H..how? I thought you said you can’t get out of the library!” Thrilled and confused, I continued to drive to college.

              “Nah-uh.. I never said I can’t” whilst saying these words, she materialized on the seat next to me which is the only seat available after mine, “I just don’t feel like going, but now I do… I’m curious about your life in college!”

              “Well, if that was your reason,” I look on the road and chuckled softly, “You will be disappointed.”

              “What do you mean?” she fastened her seatbelt and looked at me.

              “You’ll see soon enough,” still concentrating on the road ahead of me, I intent to end this topic, “And what’s the big idea? You screamed at me earlier in the library.”

              “Oh that..” she shifted in her seat and looked at me with slight concern, “Are you alright? I mean your crash was so hard against the Training Dimension that you broke it down almost immediately.. what spell did you conjure?”

              I frowned slightly as I take an exit from the freeway, “Well, I was a bit woozy and wobbly in the legs but I’m completely fine. And woah! Really?? It broke down? I just used Maidal to shield myself from serious injury.”

              She mumbled something under her breath with her brows curving into a frown. “Umm.. should I be worried?”

              “What? No no! Maybe you have grown stronger than expected,” She changed that frown into a cheerful smile, but I get the feeling that under that smile is something serious.

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              We finally arrived at college and I parked my car at its usual spot, un