"House Mother is calling you," Hannah informed arrogantly, expecting Eric to be scared like Lyria and Livy, but she knew deep down it was hopeless.

  Indeed, Eric didn’t hesitate and, without any fear, walked in full stride toward Bella Noll’s office.

  He knocked once and entered without receiving any permission or response.

  Bella Noll had already given up on Eric, so she ignored the rude intrusion.

  After Eric sat down, she began, "You are mostly free, aren’t you? How about teaching those two beautiful girls school-related studies?"

  Without any hesitation, Eric stood up and started walking toward the door.

  "Hold on, young man! You will miss out on a big offer if you walk away!" Bella Noll rolled her aged eyes. She knew how to get Eric to do things.

  Eric turned 180 degrees and walked back with a bright smile on his face. He sat in the chair and waited for Bella Noll to begin offering wealth and treasures.

  Bella Noll sighed and spoke with a headache, "They refuse to go to school every day, just like you, but I’m still registering them."

  Eric wasn’t too surprised. Both Lyria and Livy looked far too beautiful and different compared to Ringwood Town’s children, so it wouldn’t take a genius to guess how the other children and teachers would gawk at them all the time. Also, what was the point of going to school? It wasn’t like they needed to pass a civil exam to get a job.

  "I understand, but I don’t have the time or patience to teach little children," Eric firmly denied, agreeing only after Bella Noll placed her offerings onto his plate.

  ‘Coming from a little child himself!’ Bella Noll rolled her eyes.

  She smiled. "How about this, then? If you teach them, every second day I’ll personally guide and teach all three of you in physical training." She had thought deeply about this and felt it was time to start guiding Eric, and now Lyria and Livy, in their physical training, which included various weapon techniques.

  ‘Time won’t wait for anyone, and mastering skills can’t be done in a single day. So, it would indeed be better if they begin now, especially after the mess they caused last evening.’

  Bella Noll had long planned to train Eric and pour all her decades of fighting skills and knowledge into him before she died. With Lyria and Livy’s arrival, she felt it was the perfect time to begin.

  Eric's eyes widened in shock. He slammed the desk in excitement. "Are you serious, old granny? You're finally willing to share the secrets of becoming a Mana Wielder?"

  "No, not Mana Wielder, that can wait. This will be physical training, including weapons. That's all! Young man, don't be so impatient. And from now on, call me Teacher! How dare you call me 'Old Woman' or ‘Old Granny’!"

  Although Bella Noll sounded like she was scolding, she was, in fact, very happy that Eric treated her without any respect, unlike how everyone else did.

  Eric ignored Bella Noll's rebuke and was actually bursting with excitement in his heart.

  'Finally, some proper training!'

  Until now, he had only trained by himself, and it had long reached its limit. So, he was very excited to continue tormenting his pitiful muscles, bones, and everything once again! Time to make them realize what the word 'regret' really meant!

  Without hesitation, Eric nodded and agreed to teach Lyria and Livy academic subjects. Both girls were also very smart, he was confident they wouldn't take long to finish all those childish books. But he still asked, "Why do you want to teach them academy-related things and get them into school? They should already know how to read and write."

  Bella Noll shook her head at Eric's ignorance and decided to educate him about worldly affairs.

  "People who haven't become Mana Wielders are known as 'Mortals.' It's just a way to distinguish them." After a short pause, Bella Noll continued, "Mortals' mentality and their society are quite different from Mana Wielders. You'll clearly see the difference when you travel to other places."

  She then shook her head in pity. "Those little girls have been disowned by their families, and without a special Elixir, they might never become Mana Wielders in their lifetime. In Mortal society, people value life skills and education. Even if they have all the necessary knowledge, it's still different from what they should know as Mortals and as citizens of Ringwood Town. Since they're no longer in the larger world, they should try to adapt to this town's lifestyle."

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  Eric understood Bella Noll's concern, but what did she mean...

  "You're saying they can no longer become Mana Wielders normally?" Eric asked with astonishment. He recalled Bella Noll mentioning something about it yesterday, but he hadn't paid much attention.

  Bella Noll nodded and shared her guess, "Don't tell them these things until they have grown up enough. There is a high chance that they have suffered from some sort of poisoning or some Mana Vein's crippling technique that they themselves hadn't noticed. So unless they receive direct healing from a Mana Doctor or take an Elixir which focuses on fixing Mana Veins of mortals, they probably cannot become Mana Wielders ever."

  Eric suddenly felt the nobles of this world were truly too 'noble.' That was why being evil was the best way to be- they were at least honest about their identity!

  Eric coughed. There was no way he would miss such an opportunity, so he innocently asked, "Grandma, what is a Mana Doctor? What is an Elixir? Also, what are Mana Veins?" He blinked his big eyes cutely to project that he was truly a harmless and clueless little kitten waiting for some guidance from an experienced and knowledgeable grandma.

  Bella Noll was speechless; she couldn't even become angry at such a cute face.

  In the end, she rolled her eyes and explained briefly, "Mana Veins are like nerves which are semi-physical in existence and cannot be seen by the naked eye. They store Mana for the first three Ranks of Mana Wielders. Normally, they cannot be injured even if someone's limbs get amputated; those Veins would continue to exist perfectly even outside of their physical body. They might get 'injured' in some high-Rank Mana Wielder battles or by some very rare accident, but most of the time, it is usually only seen when someone has intentionally messed with someone's Mana Veins from outside."

  "Mana Doctors or Healers are rare, and most Mana Wielders may not even need to visit them in their lives, as potions often do the job. But they are very well respected and popular everywhere, as they can be lifesavers. Visiting a Mana Doctor due to Mana Vein injuries was the same as handing your life into their hands, and they could do things to you without you noticing or seeing the effects soon. Of course, experienced people are not easy to fool, and not all Mana Doctors would do something damaging to others. Nonetheless, they charge a huge price, and they may not even want to help, as many of them are too arrogant and prideful."

  "As for elixirs, just like potions and pills, they are of different tiers, but they are far above in quality and effect compared to their counterparts. It is hard to summarize them, as their effects and standards vary. In the common understanding of Mana Wielders, they are seen as legendary magical things, even the lowest quality of them is very difficult to find. Their prices are always abnormally high, and, as you may expect, they are sold out as soon as they appear in any shop."

  Eric listened to all this with full attention and intrigue, as none of it was possible in his past life. He wanted to ask more questions, but he knew Bella Noll wouldn’t answer. So, he asked the one she had just mentioned:

  "What is a 'tier'?"

  Bella Noll glared at Eric for not missing a single opportunity to exploit, but she still answered briefly, "Tier is just like grade, rank, and so on- a way of indicating something's stage, rank, or level. Tiers of different professions are not of the same value. For example, Tier 3 alchemy products are still something a Rank 3 Mana Wielder can afford and use, but Tier 3 Blacksmith products are way beyond what a normal Rank 3 Mana Wielder can come in contact with. Even most Rank 4 Mana Wielder cannot afford them. Alright, I know you have questions. I will answer them when you grow up!"

  Eric shook his head in pity. He wanted to continue asking why Blacksmith and Alchemy products were different despite being of the same Tier, but it seemed his cute act could no longer fool Bella Noll's experienced eyes. So, he grudgingly nodded, "...Fine. I’ll make sure they at least get passing marks in the school exams."

  Bella Noll nodded with satisfaction. "Do a small teaching session with them after this. Just make sure they pass the simple admission test tomorrow to join Ringwood School in name, at least. The rest they can study in the orphanage without attending school until the end-of-year exams, like you do."

  Eric nodded. "Anything else? Also, when will our training begin?" His eyes burned with anticipation at the mention of training.

  Bella Noll turned to observe the weather outside through her wide-open window. "I don’t think it will rain today. Then, from today onwards, I will begin training all three of you. Just finish your studies and go do your warm-ups. I have already prepared some things for our first training."

  Eric wondered what Bella Noll had prepared but didn’t ask anything further. With a nod, he walked out of her office.

  Riya suddenly spoke inside his head, "Before you teach them, just glance through your schoolbooks, it will take only ten minutes at most."

  Eric agreed. There were still three hours until training time, more than enough for already-educated children to revise their studies on basic subjects.

  Eric arrived in front of his room and paused. Instead of entering, he knocked on his new neighbor’s door first.

  "Coming," a sweet voice called from inside the room. Soon, Lyria opened the door.

  Lyria was first surprised to see Eric but soon understood for what purpose he might have come, so she quickly moved to invite him inside.

  Eric walked in; the room was almost similar to his own.

  He quickly found something odd- it was too quiet! After a quick glance, he noticed Livy was sitting on the bed with her eyes closed in a proper Siddhasana posture.

  He was dazed for a moment and wondered, 'Does everyone in this world do yoga?'

  "What is she doing? Won’t talking here disturb her?" Eric asked in a very low voice to Lyria, careful not to disturb Livy.

  Lyria gently waved her hand to dismiss his concern. She answered in a hushed tone, "She’s currently doing her 'Mana Sensing Training.' We always do that when we have free time. Sadly, even though we can sense our 'Mana Veins' and channel Mana through them, we still can’t seem to open our 'Mana Space,' no matter how much we try..." She sighed sadly at the end, recalling all the suffering both of them had gone through just for this reason.

  Eric raised an eyebrow in surprise. 'An opportunity!'

  He continued in a low voice, "How do you do your 'Mana Sensing Training'?"