Chapter 28: Afterwards

*AETHERIUS*

It's been several days since we returned to Shira, and my parents haven't let me train. Even the guild members didn't want me to move. Elowen was stubborn, insisting that I stay still. It felt like every breath I took would cause me harm. "Please, let me move a little. Otherwise, I won't get better," I say to my mother, annoyed. "Understand that we can't. You've been through so much in such a short time. It seems that every time you move, you get hurt," my mother scolds me.

"We already sent a letter to your brothers, taking advantage of Atheria's return to the capital," my father tells me. "I hope they don't faint or something worse after reading what I wrote," he says, looking annoyed. It seems he still hasn't forgiven me for that day he scolded me. "Come on, how long will you keep this up?" I ask my parents.

"Until you stop hurting yourself every time you move," Elowen shouts. "Please, it's been several days. Let me move a bit. I want to go out. Even Viola is bothering me because I don't want to play with her," I reproach. "She can wait, and so can you. Stay in bed until we see that there's nothing wrong with your body," my mother says angrily.

On the other hand, my father doesn't speak much to me. Every time he looks at me, he seems annoyed, expecting an apology from me for returning to fight. "You won't get an apology from me if that's what you want. I came back because I had to. What? Should I have left them behind while they fought, and I just ran after they saved us, me and your daughter?" I say to my father.

"Be quiet, boy, and don't talk to me like that. I'm still your father. Keep that in your head," my father shouts, and my mother is also surprised. "Calm down, both of you," she shouts. "Can't you behave a bit? Therius, I understand you wanted to return and return the favor, but understand that it was dangerous, not only for you but for Elowen. How do you think she would feel if she found out her brother died while repaying a favor for saving her?" my mother says.

"How do you think your other siblings would feel knowing they couldn't say goodbye properly after we left the capital, or even me and your father? How do you think we would feel seeing our son's lifeless body if Atheria hadn't arrived in time while we weren't there?" she says, tears falling from her eyes.

"Mom, I understand that, really, I do. But understand me too. I couldn't just leave them like that. They saved us, took care of us, fed us, and then ran off without a second thought. I'm not that ungrateful. By now, you should know what I'm like," I tell my mother as I look her in the eyes.

My mother just looks at me, thinking about what to say, while my father glares at me. "This kid, seriously," he says as he rubs his forehead. "One week, just one week, and then you can go back to training," my mother finally says. "What? Better yet, let's take away his weapon, because letting him go like this won't do," my father tells my mother.

"Quiet, Dorian. This is my decision, and that's final," my mother scolds him, and I just internally laugh. "Okay, Mom, thank you. I'll be careful this time, I promise," I finally say to my mother. She just nods and leaves my room, followed by my father, who glances back at me before they both leave.

That was loud. Thankfully, it could have been worse, I think to myself as I settle back into my bed and meditate a bit. It seems my core is halfway to the next stage, but I won't worry about that for now, as I want to see if I can speak with the shadow that gave me some of its power.

After several hours and no response from the shadow, I leave my room, still with my leg and arm sore but almost healed. I go downstairs to the kitchen for some water. "What do we do with him after this? Is it okay to send him to the academy after this?" I hear my parents discussing, and I listen from a distance.

"Of course we will. Just because of this incident doesn't mean we can't give him the opportunity to enter. Besides, there's still a year left, and he's already a professional. For now, we just have to keep an eye on him and hope nothing bad happens along the way," my mother says to my father. They seem to be arguing again. I hope it doesn't continue like this for a while, I think to myself as I return to my room.

A week has passed as agreed, and I finally head out to the small training area where Trevor and I had our fight. I start by warming up, stretching my body and doing light movements since my arm is still sensitive, but my leg has completely healed.

I start by jogging around the area for an hour, then take a break, drink some water, and start jogging slowly again for another hour. I feel my legs trembling, my vision starting to blur, and a chill running down my spine, reaching my arms. I stop, not wanting to fall and hurt myself again, and my parents start bothering me again.

I sit down next to a tree where there's a large shadow to rest and start to meditate. After a few minutes, I feel a familiar sensation. I try to replicate it but fail. I concentrate again until I finally reach it, whatever it is. I feel the same sensation I felt when the shadow gave me some of its power.

I extend my arm and open my hand, letting the sensation run through my body, my veins, tendons, and nerves, just like when I conjure my lightning magic. When I open my eyes, a dark ball is in the palm of my hand. It looks like fire but is black and seems viscous. The flapping sound of a bird's wings makes me lose concentration, and the dark ball disappears. Oh, come on, seriously, I was almost there, I say in frustration and try again.

Every time I do it, my concentration increases, almost reaching the level I could achieve in my previous life. After several more attempts, I manage to hold it for about ten minutes. Seeing that I could be distracted by my surroundings, I stand up and head to the center of the training area. When I arrive, I stop and start imbuing my body with mana, conjuring my lightning magic in my right hand and the shadow ball from before in my left.

I tried to mix them but failed. As I brought them closer, the lightning shot out of my hand, and the shadow vanished. "Oh, come on, seriously?" I say aloud. "Therius, what was that?" I hear my mother approaching, and I quickly clean my hand as the lightning blast burned it a bit. "Nothing, Mom, just casting some magic to make sure everything was okay," I tell her as she stands beside me.

"Are you sure?" she asks me. "Yes, I promise," I reply. She just closes her eyes and looks away as Viola's parents approach. "Hello, Altea, how's everything?" Sonia asks.

"Everything's fine. I came out to make sure everything was okay with him," my mother responds. "I'm glad, I'm glad. But setting that aside, why don't you go with Viola? She's upset because you didn't want to play with her for a while," Dominic says to me.

I tried to mix them but failed. As I brought them closer, the lightning shot out of my hand, and the shadow vanished. "Oh, come on, seriously?" I say aloud. "Therius, what was that?" I hear my mother approaching, and I quickly clean my hand as the lightning blast burned it a bit. "Nothing, Mom, just casting some magic to make sure everything was okay," I tell her as she stands beside me.

"Are you sure?" she asks me. "Yes, I promise," I reply. She just closes her eyes and looks away as Viola's parents approach. "Hello, Altea, how's everything?" Sonia asks.

"Everything's fine. I came out to make sure everything was okay with him," my mother responds. "I'm glad, I'm glad. But setting that aside, why don't you go with Viola? She's upset because you didn't want to play with her for a while," Dominic says to me.

"I understand. I'll go in a moment. Let me quickly wash up, and I'll go with her," I reply, distancing myself.