When she was eleven years old, Gwen's parents separated. Custody, alimony, property division, resentful families taking sides, and mean conversations all take their toll. It was a scary time for young Gwen, who went through it all as she tried to take care of her younger brother Percy.

In the end, she survived the storm with strength, believing that she would survive the play. She suffered some psychological convulsions – but it wasn't something a North Shore therapist couldn't solve, especially with the help of pharmacology, which was her old-world "magic".

She once believed in her past, but here she is ambushed in her second adolescence.

The area in which they lived, Fosterville, was primarily for working-class mages and non-civilians. The streets are narrow and narrow, and the neighborhoods are filled with suffocating residential quarters, affectionately demarcated as 11 districts, which stifle each other from the sun, ensuring that the vast majority of residents live in permanent shadow.

"Oh, lover!"

"Give us a kiss, sweetheart!"

"I can play with these legs for days!"

Boos from locals are common in Forrestville. After all, the area is full of unemployed nameless people and hapless mages half-hanging out of the window in sweaty shirts.

Gwen quickened her pace and walked towards the apartment.

She stopped in front of the gate, trying to remember. Now that her talent is a foregone conclusion, she has to disappoint.

Gwen shuddered involuntarily at the thought of her mother.

Her memories evoke a longing for a fierce, beautiful, lively life that is offset by a series of stupid plans and irrational jealousy. The midlife crisis combined with the polar personality made the elder Gwen extremely afraid of her mother's little unhappiness.

Her alter ego couldn't understand why her father—Moyer Song—a half-Russian, half-Chinese renouncer, an immigrant with a "success story," chose to stay in her mother's orbit.

But Gwen did.

The reason is simple.

Economic reality is a bitch.

The apartment she was in did not belong to their father, but to their mother, more precisely, her family. It is only through the philanthropy of mothers that their unrelenting, skirt-seeking fathers can provide a comfortable lifestyle for their children. Simply put, the economic impetus of the roof over their heads tied Gwen and Percy to their mother, like a sword of Damocles, to her ex-partner's head.

She pushed open the door and entered the building.

The six-story building does not have a suspended platform. The physically demanding boost gave her more time to reminisce about her alter ego.

Her parents met when they were studying, like a house on fire. According to Gwen's recollection, it was supposed to be the end of the matter. However, there is an attraction similar to that of the opposite sex that seems to have found the other person, and the easy-going Moyer Song is married to the rebellious Helena Wong.

Of course, the brightest candle burned only half the time, and her mother was gunpowder.

By the time Gwen reached an age, Gwen had grown up, and it was understandable that their different upbringing experiences had made them less related by blood and more malevolent. Helena is an ambitious princess and Moyer is a lazy guy. It's all Edward Albie.

When Gwen grows into a mentally skilled, unremarkable person, after a 10-year-old split age test, nothing is found that the marriage has reached its limit.

"Your blood is weak," her mother declared one day, long before her brother Percy showed his potential.

The argument escalated, and it wasn't just the dinner that was ruined that night.

Later, her mother discovers an old lover, a former admirer, a hard-working fourth-level clay wizard with a lingering fascination with the lively girl he dreams of.

Rationally, this is a rather cautious and pragmatic choice. Because if the shielding barrier fails, will people prefer some unnamed barrier abandoner, or is it better to be escorted to the nearest shipping company as a partner for a significant manufacturer?

She made her way up the last flight of stairs, out of breath and feeling exhausted. What should she do with her parents? Can she take them as her own? Sure, they're the biological parents of the corpse she lives in now, but-

Gwen turns the handle.

Is her father at home? It's hard to see his work schedule at the barrier station. After the divorce, Moyer finds rebirth while playing with a young woman.

Has her mother's possessiveness of her child paid off even a bit? Gwen reminded herself once again that Moyer always put herself first, both in this world and in the last.

She got to the door, turned the key, and came in.

Percy pored over Ahlenberg's introduction to astral theory on a desk full of notes. Judging by the book, her brother spent a lot more time than she did.

"I'm back!" Gwen announced to the world.

"Welcome back, sister," Percy said to her.

Gwen left the book in the cramped living room and collapsed into the rotting foam on their 20-year-old couch.

"What Avon tea do you drink?" she asked.

"The usual samba eggs. ”

"I put it on the bread. ”

"You slacker, do it yourself!" replied her brother scathingly.

"Do it for me!"

"Ahh

Percy made afternoon tea, and the two ate a suspicious egg together.

"So......" Percy said at last, "what about the aptitude test?"

Gwen admits in a bittersweet tone: "Evocative, zero elemental. ”。

"Congratulations!" Percy raised his fork in a toast, then realized what his sister had said. "Oh. ”

"Good. Gwen smiled wryly.

She thinks it's better than making a name.

Percy attends a high school of choice, where no one wants to pick a player who is at least level 2 to play the game. Percy's own worst-case scenario could be level 3, and if he's lucky, it could be higher.

Tell him that she wakes up as an evoker without any elements, which is similar to a version of the old world, and tell a colleague on the orbit of the Southern Mediterranean University that you managed to get into the art degree of a vocational college. She felt embarrassed when she said it.

The spicy chili eggs turned to ashes in her mouth.

"I'm happy for you. Percy tried to say something reassuring, but he was just a kid with teenage emotional intelligence. Percy's education places a special emphasis on gifts, privileges, and promises that are more sacred than your future. Judging by the look of astonishment on his face, Percy looked ashamed and confused. Gwen knew that Percy of all would realize that once they embarked on a career path, he would never see her again except for Christmas dinner. After all, this is what happened in their old life together, and the world may be different from old Sydney, but many things happen on parallel tracks.

"It's okay," Gwen said after a moment to finally thank you for your concern. ”

"I'll be in my room, there's a lot of work to do," Percy replied kindly. He packed the paper plates, threw them in the trash, and returned to his room. "You make pans. ”

Gwen roared. Whether it's this world or that world, she hates doing laundry.

Gwen pulled her face from the primer spread out in front of her. After a few more hours, she felt the urge to do an internship again.

Their apartments are built on the top floor, and they have access to the roof due to fire regulations.

Gwen recalls what it felt like to try to summon a mage's hand and find herself in a comfortable place in the sun. She opened the manuscript of Blake's Metamorphosis for beginners and turned a page.

Mage's Hand

Spells, Cantrip

Cast Time: 1 small spell

Range: visible, up to 10 meters

Component: Somatic cell

Duration: 1 minute + variable

The caster creates a hovering hand capable of manipulating small objects.

Gwen understands why the process is considered mysterious. Apart from general advice, there is little indication of how this phenomenon is represented; If she reads different versions, they will have different annotations.

She calmed down, thought about nothing, and temporarily eliminated her anxiety and apprehension.

Call the seal.

Channeling mana.

"Hand of the Sorcerer!"

Then release!

In her mind's eye, she saw a Sigil without a school, without the need for astral tuning. She felt something flow out of her diaphragm, crossing under her skin. A tingling sensation burst from her fingers with sparks of lilac, and then in front of her, a translucent hand appeared.

No, not a hand. It's more like a "being," a binding force shaped and shaped by her will. She imagined it holding up her manuscript and felt a ghostly weight on her fingers. So that's why it's the ghost hand, Gwen realized. It is much easier to replicate mysterious phenomena using physical synaesthesia.

So that's the body in action, Gwen mused. Most mantras require at least one hand to indicate direction and expression. It takes years of practice to give up the body component, whereas it takes much longer to give up the verbal component.

She played with her remote hand for a minute, lifting and moving the planters scattered across the roof, noticing that the spell's effect waned over time. She wanted mana to have a value, but apparently, it was too difficult to apply systematically and universally. In addition, when the spell drains mana from her astral body, she feels the onset of mental fatigue, like the loss of mental power she feels when trying to solve a complex equation for too long.

Well, she told herself. Good start.

She satisfactorily made another textbook, Otsu's Summoner Primer, and turned to the only first-level summoner spell that didn't have any elemental affinity - the ubiquitous magic missile.

Magic Missile

arouse

Cast Time: 1 major spell

Range: visual, about 30-40 meters

Component: Somatic cell

Duration: Instantaneous.

Three or more shells were fired at the designated target. When used with the default ability, this spell has a line-of-sight target search.

If she registers as a Level 1 Summoner, she will need to be skilled enough to demonstrate summoning spells.

Once again, Gwen prayed for the calling school.

It was foolish to finish her prayer with a raucous "magic missile", but she had no other instructions to follow.

With unwavering faith, her mind entered the heavenly passage of the summoning signal. She tries to imagine objects of three powers, each shaped by sharp edges.

Call the seal.

Channeling mana.

"Magic missile!"

Then release!

The expected heavy blow of three shells shattering concrete was not apparent. Instead, she suddenly became dizzy. She jerked, rolled over, spat out an omelette and curled up on the concrete pavement like a cooked shrimp.

Gwen groaned, putting her head vertically to the side so that the vomit would not choke on her. The book says that not having enough ability to enter the magic school's passage means that unconsumed mana is fed back into her body.

A quarter of an hour later, she returned to the kitchen and washed her mouth.

Gwen reminded herself not to eat chili eggs before practicing.

She then went back to the roof and rinsed the area with a garden sprayer.

This introductory article deduces that the only way to overcome mana sickness is to effectively activate the seal, which requires experience and talent – preferably a combination of both.

Gwen straightened her spine and entered her mind again.

After the second attempt, she had another nausea with an upset stomach.

Yes, there was no solid food before the practice, Gwen cleaned up after herself. When denial turned to anger, she felt a slow despair.

On the third attempt, Gwen showed no signal. She has run out of mana, or as popular saying goes, she has lost her mana.

No blue, no spells. Strict spell laws.

Three spells and I'm out. Gwen thought to herself, feeling her mana slowly recall.

The more she fails, the more Gwen fears what her failure means. Driven by tenacity and anxiety, she experimented until the evening, choosing to overcome the damage done to her body.

When the last drop of stomach acid was dry, she sat down blankly, contemplating the possibility of accepting the reality of her trauma.

She flipped through the book again, rummaging through every word and paragraph for clues. If she were the descendant of some large and influential family, they would find mentors, associates, and allies to teach her, but Gwen was entirely on her own, and only she could be a tool for her metamorphosis.

"Clank!"

The mesh door behind her opened.

Her father's baritone pierced the threshold.

"Oh my God!" her father's eyes widened in the terror of the roof, full of crumpled kitchen wipes and the contents of his daughter's digestive tract.

"Hi Daddy," Gwen replied weakly.

"Gwen, what are you doing? you little idiot! you can't rush these things!" her father's voice was unusually anxious and gentle. He held out a hand, and Gwen took it, feeling her father's firm grip as she lifted her from the ground.

"I know, Dad. "I've had a long day, and that's it," Gwen replied. She looked at her other father in the fuchsia sunset, and saw real worry in his eyes.

The Maya of this world is handsome, with a well-defined chin and high cheekbones, which is his Eastern European tradition. His eyes, two dark brown spheres, were soft and gentle. Oddly enough, he was a few centimeters shorter than his teenage daughter, although considering she was six feet tall, his limited stature wasn't noticed until they stood side by side. Maya is a carefree and calm man by nature, with a quiet masculinity that seems to appeal to a special type of woman.

"Thank you for the invitation," Gwen replied softly, trying to erase the edges of her voice.

"Don't be so cold," her father replied, feeling the distance on his daughter's body. "Come on. I bought something delicious for dinner. ”

She went back to the apartment with him, where Percy was setting the table.

"Roasted wild quail," said her father. "From the wilderness. It should help you replenish your mana. ”

Unlike domesticated beasts, many of the plants and animals that inhabit outside of human cities have qualities that are beneficial to mages.

The cost of cooking is another point of disparity, making Gwen's desire to balance her position more difficult. The offspring of a wealthy mage family will consume little but almost magical food in his or her lifetime, which makes a significant difference in a world where every ounce of mana counts.

"Let's eat," Percy begged. "I'm a growing child!"

"Okay, go ahead. Gwen smiled and slid into her seat, where her family was eating.

"I'm glad you can be a mage," said her father as the quail walked the way of the dodo.

"I'm happy too," Gwen said incredulously.

"So, an awakener?" her father grinned. "It's a good school for progress, perfect for getting into the green and orange zones. ”

"Yes. Gwen nodded, wondering if she should admit to her father that she wasn't technically a real evoker, just registered one.

"If you need anything," her father began.

As her memories continue to merge together, Gwen feels torn apart by logical and emotional dissonance. Her involuntary memories evoked a brief hallucination of her father, who watched indifferently as her mother smashed their dinner to pieces, ironically placing an indifferent cigarette on his lips as she screamed and rage. The whole time, Percy hides in the room while Gwen peeks through the gap between the bedroom doors.

"It's alright, Daddy. Gwen recovered from her disturbing memories. "I'll take care of it, I'll tell you if I need anything, I promise. ”

"Okay. Her father smiled tiredly, and was not surprisingly relieved that you are a big girl. You let me know. ”

After dinner, Gwen wants to go back to the rooftop, but her father disagrees, citing the fact that it would disturb the neighbors if they saw the chaotic, impulsive flashes of magic bursting from their building.

"Hey, before you go," the man continued. Gwen could see her father's Adam's apple bobbing back and forth. She always did this when her father forced himself to do something.

"Your grandfather gave me this when I was gifted. "Maya took off a jade pendant in the shape of a unicorn, a mythical chimara. "Since you have also become a mage, I want to give it to you. ”

Gwen held the pendant in her hand and felt the residual warmth on the jade.

"Thank you, Daddy, I'll cherish it," Gwen replied, surprised by her father's proposal. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Maya staring at Jade longing for a moment. When she tied the pendant around her neck, he seemed to be at the mercy of his own decision.

"I'm glad to give you," he said at last, giving Gwen the look that one had taken some heavy weight off his shoulders.

"Is there anything special?" Gwen asked cautiously, probing the water.

Her father laughed to himself, "It will bring fertility and wealth." ”。

"Be serious, please," Gwen said coldly.

"I don't know. Her father shrugged. "This is a souvenir of the old country. ”

"Grandpa's?" Gwen asked a little more. Her father had few triggers – although questioning how their family was lost in this ancient country was one of them.

"Go and take a break. Sure enough, her father's answer became vague. His grim face showed a weathered irritation.

"You have one big day ahead of you," he warned her. "You have to report to your mother. ”

Her dinner was about to mutiny.

"I'm going to sleep. ”

After dinner, Gwen returned to her room.

She quietly took a hot bath, evoking the contemplation of bathing.

What a day.

She woke up firmly caught in the rocks and hard places.

Despite her best efforts and most enthusiastic attempts, it was impossible to invoke that damn summoning signal. She spent so much time on illness that she couldn't successfully invoke a first-degree spell.

Level 1 spell!Gwen winced at the thought of this. What happens when she has to practice a spell with a double-digit spell? Will her head explode like a crumbling melon?

No wonder few people can surpass Mags, she thought to herself. Mental loss can smash a person's head like an egg.

Exhausted, she returned to the same bed she woke up to, the sheets still not yet arranged.

Hopefully, when she wakes up again, it'll be by the Sydney seaside.