"Well, are we going to sleep outside now?" Zeke questioned once all of them had tried looking for money.
Except for stealing money or breaking into someone's house, the group didn't see any other option instead of sleeping outside.
"We can go ahead and try to find some kind of shelter or perhaps find a spot in the corner of the city and live there?" Amber suggested.
Since all of them had spent a week out in the wilderness, they knew how to create basic survival structures and leave peacefully.
Just when Jason was about to suggest something, an old woman came running in their direction.
All of them looked at her with weird expressions.
"Where have you all been? Do you know how I was worried searching for you?!" the woman exclaimed.
All of them exchanged a look, not knowing what they should say in reply. They hadn't expected to meet someone who knew them.
"Follow me back. I don't what would happen if all of you got kidnapped." The woman sighed and gestured the children to follow her.
"Should we go after her?" Jason whispered.
"We don't have any other place to stay at. The worst that can happen is that this woman is in disguise and later turns out to be the kidnapper." Orion shrugged, earning him judging looks from the others.
'He thinks the same theories as me.' Jason thought silently.
All of them reached an agreement and started following the old woman. Currently, she was their best bet for finding a shelter as well as information on the place they were present in.
She took them through different parts of the city before almost reaching the outskirts. There, an old building stood straight amidst other old houses.
A small ground extended right beside the building where children of various ages could be seen training.
"If not for the talent you all posses, I would have given you a good spanking. Now go there and train till dinner time. I want to see at least a spark of magic produced by then." The woman threatened.
Before any of them could say anything, she strode inside the building.
"Uh, are we living someone else's life?" Mila questioned.
None of them knew the answer to this. They had their respective theories on the current situation but none of them had solid proof to prove that they were correct.
"Let's just practice. We will get food soon and a shelter is already provided. Plus I think that we are some sort of prodigies here." Jason said and advanced towards the ground, followed by the others.
The moment they stepped foot on the ground, children started dispersing to provide them some space.
This confirmed Jason's theory as he got ready to cast magic.
'Wait, didn't the lady say that she wants to see us casting at least one spark of magic?'
[ Yes, she did. Perhaps this version of you is quite behind on magic casting. ]
While thinking about that, Jason decided to start by summoning a few sparks of lightning around his fingers.
Like usual, he raised his hand and willed the lightning mana to emerge forth. However, a minute passed in this manner and no sparks of lightning were visible around his hand.
Jason blinked in surprise. He tried the same thing again yet the result was the same.
'System…'
[ Already running a scan on your body. Please wait for a few minutes. ]
Jason nodded in acknowledgment before shifting his attention towards the others. None of them were faring better than him and looked confused.
[ Scan complete. It looks like the mana in your body is refusing to take form in this world. If you want to cast magic, you will have to use the natural mana. ]
A frown appeared on Jason's face after hearing the system's words. Using natural mana to cost magic was ten times difficult than normal magic casting.
The difficulty was high due to the fact that one would have to use mana that didn't belong to their mana.
While using mana from one's own body, it was easier to produce magic. By simply guiding the mana and submitting it to your command, you could produce magic.
On the other hand, one would have to first consume the natural mana and make it a part of their body. Only then would they be able to proceed to the next mana.
'No harm in trying.' Jason, who had tried using natural mana to do magic before, knew what the first step was.
He let his body relax and temporarily stopped his mana from flowing all around his body. Jason spread his senses in the nearby area and focused on the natural mana present in his surroundings.
One benefit of using natural mana was the fact that you could become a multi-caster. Even if you didn't have an affinity with an element, you could still cast high level spells by gaining supreme control over the natural mana.
Jason focused on the natural mana particles that were closest to him. He gently made them move towards his hand.
[ Why don't you use your vision control to see the mana particles directly? ]
'That's actually a good idea.' Jason turned his vision control on and focused on the mana particles closest to his hand.
He could see tiny white spherical structures carelessly moving around his hand. These particles had been separated form the natural mana present in the area.
With precision, Jason was able to make the particles come in contact with his skin. Once he had done that, he eased up a bit.
The particles of mana soon entered his arm. Jason's could still see them and in front of his eyes, the white particles turned purple.
Once he had successfully converted the particles into his own mana, Jason focused on his hand.
This time, sparks of lightning flickered around his hand. Jason grinned at his success before shaking his head.
'If this is the way to use magic in this world, things must be quite hard. But those who managed to become proficient in using natural mana will be quite terrific when they get to Clover.'
[ Host, I just thought of a theory. ]
'Hmm? What is the theory about?' Jason questioned.
Before the system could reply, mad laughter echoed around the ground.
"HAHAHAHAHA! I knew I had struck diamond when I took you in my orphanage!" The old woman from earlier rushed forward and lifted Jason of from the ground.
Attacked with the sudden embrace, Jason struggled to get free but it was useless. The old woman had the strength of a pro wrestler.
"All of you go to the dining hall this instance. We are going to eat slightly better food today!"
Hearing her words, the children dashed towards the orphanage. Jason's friends looked at him for a few seconds before following the horde inside.
The old woman set Jason down and grinned. "You did good, kid. Now go inside and enjoy your food."
Jason watched the woman enter the orphanage while humming a tone to herself. There really were different kinds of people.
'What is the theory called?' Jason asked curiously.
[ It is called the Theory of Natural Magic. I think with this theory, you will make a major breakthrough in magic and skill casting. ]
'Explain the entire theory to me while I eat,' Jason replied.
He looked at the ground one last time before entering the orphanage. Perhaps he would get to eat some dishes from Earth.
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