Alpha Instinct

The beginning of that morning had proven tumultuous and exhausting. Leonard and Saito finally arrived at the cabin. Leonard, barely able to stand, leaned on Saito, his body a map of bruises and aches.

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Mikaela, who’d been waiting for them with visible apprehension, ran to meet them, supporting Leonard. "What the hell happened?" she questioned, her voice laden with concern and disbelief. "I heard... sounds of battle..."

"A little game from the master... hehe," Leonard quipped, a grimace of pain cutting through his forced smile.

"By the Goddess of Light, he’s going to end up killing you like this!" Mikaela exclaimed as she prepared her healing skill. "Sit here," she ordered, pointing to the rustic wooden bench in the yard.

Kaleb came out of the cabin, stretching and yawning loudly. "Wow, so much noise this early. This way, the almighty Kaleb can’t get his beauty sleep."

Nobody paid him any attention.

"Oh, hoo! Kid, as a reward, I myself will prepare your breakfast today!" Saito declared to Leonard with a surprisingly cheerful tone and then entered the house, humming.

"Are you guys really ignoring me?" Kaleb asked indignantly.

"Yeah… basically…" Mikaela answered bluntly.

"What uplifting behavior for a saint," Kaleb rebuked with sarcasm.

"I may be considered a saint, but I’m not obligated to put up with your complaints," Mikaela retorted, shrugging with an air of indifference.

"Haha—Ow!... Ha… Don’t make me laugh, please!" Leonard pleaded amidst a grimace of pain and a restrained laugh.

"Easy, Leo," Mikaela said gently. She clasped her hands as if in prayer, and her ELEV glowed intensely. A soft and comforting golden aura emanated from her, concentrating in her hands. With a light and precise touch, she touched Leonard’s bruised ribs.

"This is so weird... I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it. Leonard commented, feeling the pain gradually subside as his internal injuries healed as if by magic.

Mikaela smiled. "I was more careful this time, child," she said in a maternal tone. And then she scolded him with a stern but caring look, "And you, be more careful."

"It’s not my fault if Grandpa Saito decided to try to kill me…" Leonard complained with a tone of feigned indignation.

"He must have his reasons," Mikaela replied, looking at him seriously, as if she could see right through him.

"Maybe…" Leonard murmured, averting his gaze as if he were hiding something.

"You act like you’re his mother," Kaleb observed with a mocking tone.

"If that’s what he needs, then I will be," Mikaela stated with determination.

"Don’t you think he’s a bit too old to need a mother?" Kaleb provoked.

"You only say that because you didn’t have yours." Mikaela shot back, hitting him squarely.

"Ahhh, you…! You can only be a saint in hell!" Kaleb retorted, visibly irritated.

"I think you hit his weak spot." Leonard commented with an amused smile.

"He deserved it…" Mikaela replied with an air of indifference, continuing to heal Leonard’s ribs with her regenerative aura.

"I was thinking while walking with the Master..." Leonard began hesitantly, "When I finish my training with Saito, how about... we go out as a team? Across the world?"

Both Mikaela and Kaleb instantly looked at Leonard, staring at him with surprised expressions. Then they exchanged a meaningful glance.

"No!" they answered in unison with unexpected firmness.

"Ahhh, come on! It’ll be fun," Leonard insisted, trying to convince them.

"I’ll only agree if I’m the leader," Kaleb declared arrogantly. "You guys will need a high-level mage to guide you."

"I’ll think about your case, Leo," Mikaela sighed, showing little enthusiasm.

Leonard felt a small, almost imperceptible flame rekindle within him. A faint hope. But, knowing how things were, he didn’t know how long that flame would last.

Some time later, Mikaela had finished healing Leonard. The ensuing silence was broken by Saito. "Come, kid, are you ready?" he called with a wave of his hand, his voice full of expectation.

"Let’s go inside," said Leonard, getting up, still a little hesitant.

In a matter of minutes, and as if by magic, Saito prepared a lavish table. His experience, which clearly transcended the battlefields, was revealed in his surprising culinary skills.

"Wow…" Leonard exclaimed, marveling at the sight before him. "Roasted pork, fried eggs, fresh bread, a whole pie, and assorted fruits..." He listed, with shining eyes, each item that made up the unexpected banquet.

"The old man really likes to show off," Kaleb commented, pulling up a chair to sit at the table with a mix of admiration and sarcasm.

"It’s impressive how such a small cabin can house us and still offer us so much abundance." Mikaela observed, pondering the apparent contradiction.

Saito, with a satisfied smile, stroked his beard. "After living for so long, you learn that the best things in life are not measured by size but by quality. Enjoy!" he declared with a proud gleam in his eyes.

They enjoyed a quiet and invigorating breakfast. Then, Saito, with an abrupt tone, broke the silence again. "Now that Mikaela has healed you and you’re properly fed, are you ready to learn the basics of the Blade Dancer?"

"I’m always ready, Master," Leonard replied firmly.

"We won’t have enough time to turn you into a master, but we’ll make do," Saito said thoughtfully, tapping his fingers on the table.

"I’ll do my best, Master," Leonard stated, determined.

"First, the old man here needs to understand what your Neumond branch is to be able to guide you properly," Kaleb explained with a professorial tone.

Mikaela and Saito, in an unexpected unison, answered simultaneously: "Psychic," she said. "Physical," he said.

A confused silence settled. Everyone looked at each other, surprised by the disagreement.

"He clearly has a psychic ability: Temporal Cognition," Mikaela argued, defending her point of view with conviction.

"I saw the kid use Battle Aura just now. That’s why I hit him, Oh, hoo!" Saito retorted with his characteristic laugh.

"What?!" Kaleb exclaimed, incredulous. "That’s not possible…"

Mikaela couldn’t contain herself and burst into loud, unrestrained laughter. "HAHAHAHA, it is..."

Saito, ignoring the others’ reaction, remained silent with an extremely serious expression. He clasped his hands in front of his face in a meditative posture, as if immersed in deep thought. Then, in an almost inaudible whisper, he uttered a single word: "Weise…"

"Walker of the Pentagram, and now Weise? Ahhh, come on, Gramps!" Kaleb stood up, impatient and visibly irritated. "Are you going to tell me he’s also the herald of the apocalypse?"

"Times are about to change, of that you can be sure," Saito stated, his voice cutting through the cabin air like thunder on a rainy day, laden with a dark foreboding.