New World 5

A week had passed since Ken left Kenaz. He'd been walking through farmland, staying away from the roads and sleeping in barns when he could find them. His heat kept him warm at night, which helped, but he was getting tired of stealing food from fields and farmhouses.

He sat under a tree, watching farmers in the distance working their fields. Their tools glowed with the same blue light he was in Kenaz, but he still didn't understand how it all worked. Everything in this world seemed to run on that strange energy - mana, they'd called it.

"At least we're getting better at this," he said quietly, making a small flame dance between his fingers. The slime figured out how to control their shared power better. Now the flames stayed exactly where he wanted them, no more wild bursts of energy.

A strange bird flew overhead, its feathers shimmering with multiple colors. He still wasn't used to the wildlife here. Even the cows in the fields looked different, with six legs instead of four.

He pulled his worn jacket tighter. The clothes he'd taken from a clothesline two days ago were rough and plain, but at least they helped him blend in. As long as no one looked too closely at his mana signature, he could pass for a local, not like people who could read mana where just walking around anyways.

"Wonder what those are," he muttered, watching floating lights drift over one of the fields. The farmers seemed to be using them to check their crops. Magic was everywhere here, but he only knew how to make fire. The slime shifted inside him, sharing his frustration at their limited knowledge.

A rumble in the distance made him look up. Dark clouds were gathering, but they weren't like any storm clouds he'd seen before. These pulsed with internal light, and the air felt heavy with that strange energy.

"Guess we should find shelter," he said, standing up. The slime agreed, moving uneasily under his skin. Neither of them wanted to find out what a magic storm felt like.

He headed for a barn he'd spotted earlier, keeping to the tree line. As he walked, he thought about Senna's warning. She'd said there were others who would sense his power, try to use it. So far he'd managed to stay hidden, but for how long?

The slime had saved his life multiple times now, but they were still fumbling in the dark. Every day they discovered new things about this world that made no sense. Plants that glowed at night, animals that could teleport, even the rocks seemed to hum with power sometimes.

Maybe leaving Kenaz was a mistake. But every time he thought about going back, he remembered Vale's cold voice, the way the Hunter had nearly killed him. No, he couldn't trust them. He had to find his own way home.

The first drops of rain fell as he reached the barn. They sizzled where they hit his skin, leaving tiny trails of blue light. Definitely not normal rain. He slipped inside through a gap in the boards, finding a spot in the hay where he could watch both entrances.

"One week in magic land," he whispered. "And we still don't know anything useful." The slime pulsed gently, trying to be reassuring. At least he wasn't alone.

Outside, the storm grew stronger. Lightning flashed in impossible colors, and the rain glowed as it fell. He watched through the gaps in the walls, wondering what other surprises this world had in store for them.

He might not trust Senna, but she was right about one thing - he had no idea what he was dealing with. This world operated on rules he didn't understand. He could make fire and heal quickly thanks to the slime, but that wasn't going to be enough. Not if he wanted to find a way home, if he wanted to survive here.

"We need to learn more," he said to the slime. "But without getting caught." They had to be careful, but they couldn't keep running forever. Tomorrow they'd start watching the farmers more closely, trying to understand how they used their magic tools.

It wasn't much of a plan, but it was better than nothing. As the magical storm raged outside, he settled into the hay for another uncomfortable night.

Morning came with strange birdsong and the distant sound of work beginning in the fields. Ken stretched, brushing hay from his clothes as he moved to peek through the barn wall. The magical storm had left the ground covered in a light blue residue that sparkled in the early sunlight.

The farmers were already out, using their glowing tools to tend their crops. He watched as one of them held up what looked like a simple hoe, but its metal head glowed with that familiar blue energy. When they touched it to the ground, the soil seemed to shift and turn on its own.

"Now that would make work easier," he muttered, making a mental note of how they held the tools. Each movement seemed deliberate, like they were guiding the energy rather than forcing it.

His stomach growled, reminding him it had been almost a day since his last meal. The farm's storage shed was nearby, and he'd seen them bringing in fresh vegetables yesterday. It wasn't ideal, but he needed to eat.

Moving quietly, he made his way to the shed. He'd gotten better at stealth over the past week, learning to move between patches of cover and timing his movements with the workers' routines.

The lock on the shed was different from anything he'd seen - no keyhole, just a circle of glowing symbols. He held his hand near it, feeling the way the energy moved through the metal. After watching the farmers for a week, he was starting to understand how their magic worked, at least a little.

Focusing, he channeled heat through his palm, careful to keep it controlled. The symbols flickered, then faded. The lock clicked open.

'Too easy.'

Inside, he quickly grabbed a few vegetables and some dried meat, stuffing them into his pockets. As he turned to leave, something on a shelf caught his eye - a book, its cover decorated with symbols similar to the ones he'd seen in Kenaz.

'Something tells me this will be useful...sorry not sorry.'

He hesitated, then took it. Maybe it would help him understand this world better, even if reading it would be a challenge.

A noise outside made him freeze. Voices were approaching, speaking that harsh language he still couldn't understand without Senna's magic. He eased the door shut and pressed himself against the wall, listening as the farmers walked past.

Once they were gone, he slipped away from the shed and back into the cover of the trees. Finding a hidden spot, he sat down to examine his prizes. The vegetables looked mostly normal, though they had an odd feel to them. The meat was darker than any he'd seen before, but food was food.

As he ate, he opened the book. The symbols swam before his eyes, but some of them were starting to look familiar. He'd seen similar marks on the tools the farmers used, and on the walls of Kenaz. There had to be a pattern to them.

"One thing at a time," he reminded himself. First, he needed to figure out where he was going. The farmland had to end somewhere, and staying in one place too long was dangerous. He could feel his powers growing stronger each day, but he wasn't ready for another fight with the Hunters.