Chapter 23: 23. Magical energy increases
Just as Kai had expected, his request to go hunting caused quite a stir among nearly everyone. They were thrilled to hear it, but not because they supported Kaileon. Rather, they wanted to prove that their belief was correct—that Kaileon had never actually defeated the stone bird or the fire bird.
All of Kaileon’s so-called achievements were merely fabrications by Keith, designed to make Kaileon sound impressive.
In fact, they could see for themselves the iron cage containing the firebird under investigation, which Duke displayed in front of the castle every morning. So they could witness Kaileon’s greatness firsthand. But those people instead mocked both Kaileon and Duke Arslan.
Kai knew Duke Arslan was aware of this, but he remained silent. That’s why the Duke invited the people who had insulted Kaileon to see firsthand how Kaileon captured the stone birds and firebirds—creatures that were supposed to be several times stronger than Kai.
Some of them even suspected that the firebird was actually the Duke’s own catch; the Duke had only claimed it belonged to his son so that his pitiful son would be seen as great.
Well, Kai couldn’t blame them, since the rumors circulating about Kaileon were indeed terrible. Although, in reality, Kaileon’s condition before Kaiden arrived wasn’t that bad.
There were also people who considered Kaileon to be no different from a monster.
It was ridiculous.
Kai also knew that even after he succeeded in demonstrating his abilities, those people would still look for any excuse to insult him.
But it’s okay; Kai can still prepare for the hunt ahead. That’s why today he asked Keith to help him build muscle.
Building muscle on Ardhez is certainly different from on Earth. On Earth, people usually drink protein shakes, lift weights, and so on.
But on Ardhez, it’s simpler—though not exactly easier.
Keith just told Kai to eat plenty of meat, then run around the lake. But Kai wasn’t just running aimlessly; he had to run while channeling magical energy within his body.
Thanks to the system’s assistance, Kai was able to channel magical energy effortlessly on his first try. It was easy enough, but the real challenge was maintaining that flow of magical energy within his body while continuing to run.
At first, it felt incredibly heavy. After just half a lap, Kai already felt like giving up.
But then, he suddenly received a notification from his system.
[Your magical energy has been successfully enhanced]
After that notification, Kai’s body felt much lighter to move. So he kept running around the lake for two more laps before the notification appeared again.
[Your magical energy has been successfully enhanced]
Kai’s body felt much lighter than before. He kept running for several more laps until he heard the notification sound twice more.
He only stopped when Keith shouted at him to stop, sounding worried.
"Young Master! Are you okay? How could you run that fast?" Keith asked with a worried expression.
Kai just chuckled, then hopped around happily.
"Look, Keith! I boosted my magical energy, so my body feels lighter! This is awesome—what should I do next, Keith? Are we going to lift weights now?"
Keith stared in astonishment as Kai hopped around as if he had boundless energy.
Indeed, the goal of maintaining magical energy in the body while engaging in physical activity can increase magical energy, making the body stronger. But it doesn’t happen that fast; usually, it takes several days of training before magical energy increases. Not just in a matter of minutes.
"Right, next up is weightlifting, but since you’re small, we’ll start with something light first—sword training," said Keith.
At first, Kai was confused; how could they be doing sword training instead of weightlifting?
And as it turned out, the sword was very heavy.
While maintaining his magical energy, Kai lifted the sword. Naturally, he struggled with his small, underdeveloped hands.
Kai only managed to lift it forward, but his hands were shaking violently.
Until the system’s voice sounded again—his magical energy increased, and the sword began to feel slightly lighter.
When he saw that Kai could finally lift the sword straight out in front of him, Keith was stunned. Keith then added another challenge for Kai: he ordered his young master to swing the sword.
Kai thought it would be easy, but it turned out to be very difficult. He struggled with it for a while, until the system’s voice appeared again, and his magical energy increased once more.
"This is hard, Keith, but I can do it!" Kaileon shouted happily.
Meanwhile, Keith, who had witnessed it all, was astonished. How could Kai have grown so much in just a matter of minutes? Of course, that wasn’t normal for a child Kai’s size.
It should have taken them several days. That was why Keith postponed the hunt until a few days later.
"All right, young master, you can rest now. It’s time for lunch!" said Keith.
Hearing that, Kai smiled widely, sheathed his sword, and sat down under the wisteria tree.
Under the shady tree, Keith had spread out a rug, on which a small table had been set up to hold Kai’s food and drink.
"I think our training is enough for today, young master. I’ll go see the Duke to ask for something—a device used to measure magical energy. I think you’ll need that," said Keith.
Kai, hearing about such a device, widened his eyes with enthusiasm.
"Oh really? Is there such a device? Is it expensive? What if I just buy it myself?" asked Kai.
Keith, confused and curious, nodded and said, "Oh, if you can, you may... but I think it’s very expensive, young master."
Suddenly Kai shouted excitedly, "Oh! There’s one that costs one large gold coin, and another that costs ten large gold coins, Keith! Let’s just buy the one for ten coins—I’m so curious!"
"Oh, wait—"
Too late; it happened too fast, because suddenly a large box appeared in front of them.
Impatient Kai opened the box, revealing a magical energy meter more advanced than anything Keith had seen.
"Wow! It looks like a crystal ball. I just need to hold it like this, right, Keith? "Wow!" Kai exclaimed excitedly as light burst out the moment he touched it with both palms.
Keith, seeing the light, was utterly shocked, as the result was completely unexpected.
Though Keith had often seen people measure their magical energy, he’d never seen anything like this.
Magical energy could be measured by observing the color of light emitted from the measuring sphere. A faint white light means low magical energy, and the user can only master one element. A bright yellow light indicates moderate magical energy, allowing the use of two magical elements. Then there’s a bright pink light, signifying a fair amount of magical energy, with the ability to use two or more magical elements.
The strongest is a bright red light, indicating immense magical energy, capable of mastering all elements. And Keith knew of only one person like that: Duke Arslan himself. Keith had heard there was one other person like that, but he wasn’t entirely sure.
However, Kaileon’s wasn’t just bright red—it was a flickering bright red.
Which meant his magical energy could continue to increase, beyond what he currently possessed.
And that had never happened, not even in history; there was only one person like that.
The legendary mage, Zakah.
"Keith! Quick, tell me what this means—I don’t understand," Kai said.
"O-oh... that... you’re truly amazing, young master," Keith muttered, still stunned at the time.
Confused, Kai removed his palm from the measuring sphere and looked at Keith, who was still in shock.
"What’s wrong, Keith? Tell me the truth."
Keith then told Kai that the light had several meanings, and he explained everything.
"—And the only one who’s ever had a bright red light flashing like that is the legendary mage, Zakah. He’s the pioneer of magical technology, the owner of the magic tower."
Instead of widening, Kai’s smile vanished upon hearing this. Kai wanted to look impressive, but not that impressive.
"This is bad, Keith! Don’t let anyone find out. Wait, it looks like they’re selling something useful. Hold on." Then Kai seemed to be busy with himself until a small box appeared in front of him.
When Kai opened it, there was a necklace inside. Kai put it on, then touched the measuring orb again.
The light from the measuring orb showed a different result.
This time, the color was bright orange.
"It worked, Keith! I’ll keep wearing this necklace so no one can see my magical energy," said Kai.
Keith suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, that’s right, young master... your older sister, Lady Jessica, can easily see a person’s magical energy. You have to be careful around her."
Kai furrowed his brow, "She’s not my sister; my only sibling is Justine."
Keith chuckled softly; he understood why Kai didn’t like Jessica, who looked exactly like Duchess Arslan.
