Chapter 3: The Journey pt 2 - The Boys from Hage

Around 4 days earlier, two 15 year olds had set out on their journey to the royal capital. Both shared a common goal. Both were orphans, commoners from the village of Hage. And now, they were about to cross paths with our very own Lars Mertens.

Lars had been travelling for a while, but a short one compared to what he did yesterday. He had, once again, passed through many plains and villages, and was sure his journey was meeting its end. Father sure is a good inventor, Lars thought to himself. This turbospeed broom is quite useful. Ahhh, but I'm soooo tired. I think I'm gonna land here. Lars, mis-anticipating the drop, deactivated his broom, falling through the air.

No matter, he thought, I'll use my telekinesis as a cushion.

And landed right on an unsuspecting passer-by's head.

The victim of Lars's unwilling assault, a short child who was simply dressed with a headband and whitish hair, got up quite quickly and seemed to be visibly pissed off at this intrusion.

"What the hell was that for?" the boy screamed.

Lars, with his cheeks a deep shade of crimson, chuckled apologetically. "Sorry lad, I didn't… see you there?"

The boy, seemingly pissed off at this response, replied, "Well maybe you shouldn't be dropping out of the sky unannounced! A "look out below" or something like that would have been appreciated!"

"That's…my bad?" Lars smiled sheepishly.

Another boy, this time much taller than the short boy, with black hair and orange eyes, wearing a pitch-black shirt with a high collar and long sleeves, light brown trousers that are cut below his knees and, around his waist, a pair of brown belts that cross each other, with a pair of boots. He carried his grimoire in a pouch strapped at the right-hand side of his waist. "Come on Asta, I'm sure this guy meant no harm," he said, betraying a hint of a small smile on the edge of his lips.

The boy, who Lars could get a better look at now that he wasn't standing on top of him, wore a plain-white tunic with a V-shaped collar underneath a dark blue jacket whose sleeves extend only up to his elbows. He sports a pair of matching shorts which had stitch marks on the left side. His pants also extended just below his knees. His shoes were made out of two different cloths, a strange design choice, Lars thought. His grimoire was safely fastened in a pouch strapped to a brown leather belt. "Come on Yuno!" the boy replied. "He's just landed on top of me, how am I not supposed to be pissed?"

Lars, taking in all this information about how they were dressed, deduced that they must be commoners. "Thanks for your understanding," he said hastily, composing himself. "I assume you two are also travelling to the capital to partake in the Magic Knights Selection Exam?"

The orange eyed boy, Yuno, simply nodded. The short one addressed as Asta replied enthusiastically, "That's right! And one day, I'm gonna be the Wizard King!"

Lars's eyes lit up at hearing that. He remembered something his mother had told him.

One day, Lars… you'll find someone who shares your dream, your ambition. People will laugh at you, because they think someone like you can't achieve it. Prove them wrong, Lars. And those friends I was talking about earlier? Cherish them. Have fun with them. But most of all…surpass them.

"Hey buddy, you good? You kinda zoned out there…" Asta said.

Lars shook his head and gave him a confident smile. "If you want to be the Wizard King, you'll have to beat me to it!"

Asta laughed. "Is that a challenge?"

Yuno interjected. "I won't lose to you, Asta or mysterious stranger. I'll become the Wizard King!"

That's more emotion than I've seen him show this whole time, Lars thought. He burst out laughing. "I like you guys! You seem like good people. I'm Lars, by the way."

The short boy introduced them. "I'm Asta, from Hage Village! And this is my brother Yuno!"

"You don't look like brothers. Is he adopted?" Lars asked?

"We both are, actually! We were raised in the church in Hage Village!"

"Interesting. I have a question. I've been detecting no mana from Asta, by the way. Are you suppressing it or are you just manaless? (no offence meant by the way)"

Asta's face took on a determined look. "So what if I was?" he roared. "I'm not going to let that stop me from becoming Wizard King!"

Lars beamed. "That's the spirit!" he shouted with vigour. Their hands met in a clean yet firm handshake.

"I'll race you guys to the royal capital," Lars said, hopping on his broom. "See you there!"

Asta and Yuno waved him off, and then ran towards the Royal Capital, each having smiles on their faces (some wider than others).

3 hours later, Lars was bored. I mean like really bored. He pulled out his grimoire, with the air of someone going to a fridge to hope something new had spawned. In fact, a new spell had actually appeared there.

read it

"Mind Magic: Kraftvoller Gedankenanstoß?" Lars read with some difficulty and a lot of tentativeness.

Abruptly, he felt mana gathering around him. The tip of his brain tingled with power. A magic circle appeared straight in front of him. Controlled by instinct and pure power, he raised his hands, the mana compelling him to release it. He cast the spell…

The air around him shimmered as the invisible wave of mental force burst from his mind. It rippled outward, distorting the space around him. The air itself seemed to bend as a gleaming wave of mental force shot forward from his hand, tearing through the silence with terrifying speed. Lars could do nothing but laugh in glee, as he felt the pure adrenaline rush of using an attack spell for the first time. It felt like all of his stress, all the emotions he was feeling

This was his greatest high.

Spurred on by this newfound energy, he rushed towards the Royal Capital at double speed.