Leo, Mira, and Noah were walking straight ahead. The ground was dry and brown with some pebbles. On both sides were bushes, and behind them was a dark, deep forest full of trees.

  Leo and Mira walked together, and Noah was a few steps behind. Mira kept bothering Leo by asking constant questions:

  "Lord Leo, tell me, do you need to know the place before using portal magic? How much mana do you need? Who taught you? Where did you learn it? Did you learn it by yourself? Why aren't you telling me?"

  Leo wasn't in the mood to explain his past. His face looked miserable, as if he just wanted a rest from her questions. Meanwhile, Noah was thinking to himself.

  'To be honest, I feel a little bad for Leo, but I can't help him right now. Anyway, why did he take us here? And...'

  Before Noah could finish his thought, they reached a spot where thick bushes blocked their path. Voices of people calling out to guide each other mixed with the sounds of metal clanking and wood being thrown down were coming from the other side of those bushes. Leo stretched out his hands to push the bushes aside. Mira and Noah followed him through, and then...

  Mira closed her eyes. When she opened them, she saw everyone working. Multiple people were building houses; some were placing bricks on sand, and others were cutting trees and bushes.

  The workers were a mix of humans and demi-humans. They all wore the same construction clothes: black shorts, orange waistcoats, and orange helmets. Most of them looked to be in their thirties or forties. There were piles of bricks and logs stacked four or five layers high. Leo walked straight ahead while Mira and Noah followed. Leo raised his hand, waved, and called out, "Aurelius, hey!"

  Aurelius was standing on the ground talking to a man in a worker's uniform. Aurelius wore his usual white clothes. His red cloak was falling down on the ground. When he heard Leo voice, he turned around, waved the man away, and walked toward Leo."Leo, were you able to find your advisors?" Aurelius asked. As he reach close to Leo.

  Leo put his right hand on his waist and said, "Yep, I finally found them. Meet my advisors."

  He turned and pointed his left hand toward them. Noah calmly tilted his head down with a respectful smile, and Mira did the same. Aurelius looked at them, then turned to Leo.

  "You did some good work. Now you be rea—"

  Before he could complete his sentence Leo already moved from there and waved his hand.

  "I'm going to meet some of my other friends so till then you teach them things of here."

  Aurelius nodded and turned to Mira and Noah. "Hey, you two—follow me."

  Leo didn’t even flinch. He simply turned away to meet the others. Aurelius headed in a different direction, but Mira became confused. She tried to turn back and stop Leo, worried about why their King was leaving them behind with such a powerful ruler. She didn't want to mess things up, but at the last moment, Noah stopped her by grabbing her back collar. She turned her face toward him, making such a hilarious, tearful expression that Noah had to struggle to control his laughter.

  "Stop being a crybaby," he said. "We need to learn things." Knowing that Mira was making a miserable face and was on the verge of bursting into tears, Noah kept a firm grip on her. Leo, wanting her to become brave, left them behind. He closed his eyes and, with a hint of a smile, walked straight ahead.As he glanced around, watching everyone work, he heard a familiar voice from behind him to his left. "...Lord Leo, is that you?"

  Leo turned back to see the person. It was none other than Zama, whose massive size was still shocking and surprising to Leo. Zama was wearing black trousers with no shirt. It was clear he had been working hard; his breathing was heavy, and he was drenched in sweat.

  Zama and Leo walked together for a bit. Leo asked, "So, how are things going, Zama? Were you able to find anyone to be your friend?"

  Zama smiled. "Oh, actually, as for being friends... I don't know. But me and—uh, what was his name? Yeah, Sheron. I was talking with him, though I felt bad that he's so badly injured.

  "Leo stared at the ground and simply said, "Yeah." Then, he looked up and asked, "Anyway, do you know Balzock?"

  Zama stopped and looked at the sky, thinking.

  After a moment, he turned to Leo and said, "Hmm, I’m not sure who Balzock is, but if I’m right then..."

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  ........................

  Leo’s head poked out from between the bushes. "Oh! There you are."

  On the sandy soil stood Balzock, leaning slightly on a brown wooden stick. He was bald, wearing a black short-sleeved shirt, black pants, and black shoes. His back was slightly hunched. Hearing someone approaching through the bushes, Balzock turned and saw Leo emerging.

  "Lord Leo, you're here. How can I help you?" Leo began picking out the grass and stems that had gotten stuck in his hair. While doing so, he said, "Balzock... you don't need to call me 'Lord.' You're our elder. I should be the one respecting you."

  Balzock replied with a smile, closing his eyes. "Leo, you're our leader, so it's only natural that we all respect you. It’s not about who is older in age; it’s about the respect and love we all want to give you."

  Once the stems and leaves were finally cleared from his head, Leo walked past Balzock toward the river. He stood at the edge of the sand where the water flowed. The river wasn't fast; it was slow and quiet, with only the soft sound of the water rippling. Leo glanced around and asked, "Anyway, where is Zack?" Balzock laughed a little.

  "Oh! Him?" Leo looked at Balzock over his left shoulder, and the moment he said, "Huh?"

  SPLASH!

  Zack burst out of the river into mid-air and landed beside Leo. He was wearing a white shirt with two black line's that were on different direction but it was symbol like "X" it was paired with black pants.

  "Oh, Leo, you're here?" Zack walked up to Leo, and the two of them shared a high-five.

  Leo used his left hand while Zack used his right. Balzock placed a hand over his face and shook his head slightly.

  "Zack! I have told you many times to call him Lord Leo. And Lord Leo, you should be telling him the same."

  But Leo and Zack weren't listening to anything Balzock said.

  Leo threw an arm around Zack’s shoulder, pulling him into a playful headlock. As Zack tried to wiggle free, Leo replied to Balzock, "Oh, come on, Balzock. Zack is a really good friend, so it's alright."

  Balzock sighed but didn't argue further.

  Zack started shouting, "Hey, let me go already! I have to train more."

  Leo released him, unlocking the hold. Balzock looked toward Zack. "Now, go back into the water and start your cultivation again."

  Zack snapped back, "Huh? You want me to do that again? Do you know how hard that was, old man? Can't you give me anything else? I don't even think it's actually increasing my strength."

  Balzock approached him and began tapping Zack's legs and right hand with his stick. Zack scrambled to block the taps while protesting. "Hey! Stop that! Ouch—wait, why?" Balzock finally stopped and looked at Zack.

  "See how weak you are? You can't even endure this, yet you want strength? If you can't handle this pain, how will you handle the pain a powerful fighter would deal to you?" For a moment, Zack was silent.

  Then he argued, "Oh, I'll just dodge their attacks! Or I'll beat them down before they can even strike! But for that— I NEED STRENGTH!"

  "I NEED STRENGTH!"

  "I NEED STRENGTH!!"

  "I NEED STRENGTH!!!"

  "I NEED STRENGTH!!!!" Balzock shook his head again. Leo was smiling, though he covered his ears because of Zack’s loud shouting. When Zack finally stopped, Leo said, "Well, he has a point."

  Balzock didn't reply to Leo directly. Leo stepped closer to the elder and asked, "Um, Balzock, why don't you just teach him his own magic?" Balzock turned to Leo in surprise.

  "Huh? Oh! No, Lord Leo. Actually, demi-humans like Zack can learn any spell or magic; they don't have a specific innate ability like humans do." Leo’s eyes widened. "Oh, I didn't know that." He turned back to the river. "So… what exactly are you teaching him here?"

  Balzock stood beside him at the water's edge. "I’m trying to help him stabilize his aura," he explained.

  "The river’s pressure forces him to rely entirely on it. I told him to stay underwater without holding his breath. Instead, he has to generate a protective aura barrier around his body—not a magical one, but one made purely of his own aura.

  Because the river pushes so hard against him, he first needs to draw aura from his mana core, stabilize it, and then wrap it around himself. Once he learns to do this reliably, it will naturally make him stronger. Controlling and stabilizing aura under extreme pressure trains both the body and mind to handle intense, high-speed battles."

  Leo’s eyes widened as he turned toward Balzock. "Damn, that’s actually very good training..."

  He lowered his voice and looked over his shoulder at Zack, who was currently busy punching a tree. "Then what kind of training does he want? This seems great to me. Why is he having such a problem with it?"

  Balzock smiled and replied, "Because I haven't told him any of that yet."

  Leo turned back to Balzock, surprised. "Huh? Why not?"

  "Because I want him to realize it himself," Balzock said.

  "If I told him exactly what to do from the start, he’d just be following instructions. But the moment he figures it out on his own—that’s when he truly understands how to control his aura and what he is capable of. The lesson isn’t just about strength; it’s about intuition and not blind obedience."

  Leo nodded. "I see. But I think Zack just wants raw strength right now, right?"

  Balzock nodded in agreement. Leo walked over to Zack, who noticed Leo behind him but didn't stop punching the tree. "Hey, Zack," Leo said. "Yeah, Leo?" Zack replied, his fists still flying. To him, this was what training looked like.

  "Hey, Zack, why don't you start that water training again? It's actually good for you, you know?" Zack finally stopped.

  He clenched his teeth and turned to Leo, his face a mix of disappointment and rage.

  "I thought you would understand me, Leo, but you—" Leo reached out and slapped the back of Zack's head.

  "Hey, cut the emotional act." Zack shouted, "What is that supposed to mean?!"