Martha appeared beside Aethan in a flash of light, her skin glowing resplendently. She stared at Aethan's wrinkled brows with a smile, then waved her arms.
A sphere of light conjured between her hands, before rolling over Aethan's body and destroying the black matter oozing out of his pores.
A relaxed smile appeared on his face right after, and his eyes fluttered open.
Aethan had successfully broken through and become a First-Circle Sorcerer.
A Crimson Core had formed within his lower belly, rotating slowly on its axis as it naturally pulled Aether as he cultivated. When he broke out of his cultivation though, the Core stopped rotating.
The Crimson Core was both corporeal and intangible at the same time. It floated in a space that seemingly contained it, yet looked to be too large at the same time.
Aethan didn't mind this too much though. He couldn't understand why it was that way, so he saved his brain power for something else.
"I can think faster…" Aethan mumbled, clenching and unclenching his fists. "And I'm stronger too."
He raised his gaze to his mother's, and her smile widened. She moved closer to him and patted his head, rubbing off a few specs of tiny dust particles that had settled on it.
"Congratulations, Aethan Narok, your journey has begun," Martha said.
Aethan's brows wrinkled for a second, before he shook his head and stood to his feet.
"You and father sometimes confuse me with your words," he said with a dry smile on his face.
Martha chuckled softly.
"I'll get going now, me and Father are going hunting," Aethan said and began running in a direction, reveling in his new speed.
"Thanks for the quick bath by the way!" He added loudly, disappearing into the distance.
Martha turned back and walked into the Manor while humming a tune, resuming her stitching in silence.
Their manor was situated in a secluded area, though not so secluded as one might think. They had neighbors, but since the houses were sparse and dotted all around chaotically, it was hard to come across a neighbor without actively seeking them.
Aethan and Darion were on their way to a nearby Forest to hunt. They did this daily, letting Aethan accumulate more vitality and energy in his body, thus making it stronger and more mature.
He looked more mature than his age, almost like a 19-year-old, when he was barely 16. This wasn't only caused by the vitality flowing through his body, but also by the Aether. His father told him not to be concerned about that, because he would meet people his age who also looked mature than their age suggested.
He mentioned that there were only a rare few who didn't look much older than their age, but younger instead. His older brother Orien, for example, looked like an 18-year-old, when in actuality he was 21-year-old.
This was weird in Aethan's purview, but he accepted the information gladly.
He and Darion also went to the forest daily so he could gain an Element in time and start training with it.
According to his father, the Eclipse Sect wasn't a place for those with weak talents, or weakness as a whole. Strength determined if you would survive in there, and proving you had strength before entry gave you a headstart.
The Narok family didn't have a particular Element tied to them, so it wasn't a surprise when Merek had an affinity for Metal, their father, Darion, Earth, his mother, Martha, Light, and his other siblings, Water, Ice and Blue Wind to Astrid, Selene and Orien respectively.
This family was considered above average, because it was very rare for every member of a family to have an affinity for Aether, and an Element.
This not only made them stronger, it made them respected too, due to their known good deeds and services to the Kingdom.
Merek was an Iron Captain, a high rank in the Order of the Black Lance, an Order whose sole purpose was to protect their Kingdom, Thalerion.
He once in a while went on patrols with his unit, not just to show off or flaunt his status, like most powerful people did, but to actually safeguard the towns and villages he could.
His younger brother Orien, was a 3-Star Mercenary, respected for his regular completion of missions, both mundane and magical.
He was known by the locals for helping in completing mundane missions, therefore saving them the risk of sustaining injuries. In his Guild though, he was known as someone who mostly took Low Tier missions, which were also considered mundane, making him weak in the eyes of many.
Regardless, he did it diligently, saving a lot of old and young people alike, from going on dangerous or perilous quests.
Selene and Astrid were both married to Barons, living happily with their family.
They weren't really reputable outside their regular works as Baronesses, but they did well enough to gain the recognition of the people in their towns and multiple villages.
Astrid was married to the Baron overseeing their Barony, while Selene was married to a Baron in a neighboring Barony.
Their mother, Martha Narok, was a housewife, but she sometimes tended to the injured who came to her.
As a Light Elemental Sorcerer, she was adept at healing and reinvigorating, so she helped when she could.
Last, but not the least, the man of the house, Darion Narok. A 6-Star Mercenary and the Impregnable Shield.
Known for his impenetrable defences and unyielding resolve, he had fought deadly abominations to protect the Town during a dungeon outbreak, and saved many lives in the process.
This not only earned him more stars in his Guild, it also made him the hero of the Town, and he was recognized by many.
Though he could be a little too playful and unserious at times, he knew when to ignore all forms of distractions, and get serious in important or desperate situations.
A few minutes into Aethan's run, he met up with his father, and they took a trail leading towards the Forest.
The Forest was controlled, so there weren't many beasts to hunt anyway. The fact that they had been going there on a daily basis for a long time only made the beasts more sparse.
Darion walked ahead of Aethan, his sixth sense scanning the vicinity as he moved.
"This would be one of your last hunts, so make the best of it," Darion said, taking a sharp turn to the left.
"I will, father," Aethan answered from behind. "What will I be hunting today by the way?"
Darion didn't slow down in his steps, replying smoothly as if he was expecting the question.
"Typhoon Horses," Darion said with a slight grin. "Fast, wild and a little too proud for their own good. Perfect for testing that new strength of yours."