-Together-
It’s a sudden story, but a race that was a Dragon and also used to living using magical power like it’s their own limbs. One could say that none of the Dragon race has ever experienced a life without magical power. I can say that for Dragons, living without magical power is like a Human living without air.
Besides, I had lived since the Kojiro period where magic and mysteries filled the world. Even if there are benefits in using magical power instinctively, as an incarnated Human, with it all, there is no real favor. I had, long ago, while being held in my parents’ arms, decided to live my life as a Human, and so, all my life I have put effort into living as a normal Human being in this community. Nowadays, I’ve gotten used to living with purely Human capabilities, but when I was still a child, there were some difficult things that were incredibly tempting to use magic to solve, so I cheated a little. I also made sure not to reveal the fact that I can use magic to anyone, not even my parents.
For example, when I was a child, I played near Maguru Obasan’s house where she makes common medicines, medicines with magical property, and many others including Elixir. As the name suggests, an Elixir is a product that has some sort of enchantment, unlike normal herbal medicine. Normally, medicines are made from medical herbs and some are simple enough that even a kid in Bern can produce it. But it is a different story when it comes to an Elixir.
An Elixir is very difficult to make. Only a person with a vast amount of knowledge, talented in controlling magical power, and who understands the different composition of mixtures can produce Elixirs. The Elixirs made by the Witch doctor, using the herbs I collected, were found to have a strong effect in curing diseases and various other enchanting effects, which were very useful. They also attract attention from travelers and peddlers to visit our village to buy or trade for the Elixir.
I believe that if my family is happy, I want to help others in the village to be happy as well, so little by little, I practiced making the Elixir that the Witch doctor makes. At my Human heart, it’s full of adventures and curiosities. My soul on the other hand is of an old deteriorated Dragon, and it’s rejuvenating, so to speak. Under these circumstances, I could not help but try. When one is in their youth, they should not be afraid to try something and fail at it.
When all the experiences accumulated after a few years, I’ve adapted to living as a Human. My total living experience as a Human is by no means less than when I lived as a Dragon. Knowledge of the past does not always carry over. When I imitated the Witch doctor in making an Elixir, I usually spend a lot of time thinking on how the magical power was used. When the analysis takes too long, my father would tell me “Don’t try to imitate everything the Witch does.”
Of course my father only said that because he’s a farmer and knows next to nothing about magical power. Also he viewed imitating the old granny as a waste of time for me. The process of making the Elixir is extremely delicate work, the more experience and understanding you have, the more successful you will be. However there is always a chance that the final product is not a life saving Elixir, but a deadly poison.
He was angry, and knocked his fist, with thirty years worth of fighting experience, on top of my head. My Father was angry because he yearned for me to behave like a child, but in essence, I act too much like an adult. After receiving the hit, I obediently listened to his sermon. During times like those, I felt their affection toward me, a little violent but you can call it tough love, and every time, instead of feeling apologetic, I felt joy. But there was an unexpected result in this failure.
When I was being scolded by father, Maguru Obasan happened to come across the Elixir that I was working on. Noticing that I was using a stone pot as a holder, a stone bar as a surface to grinding herbs, and a wooden stick as a mixer, instead of proper tools, she became depressed and told me that she will teach me how to prepare the ingredients. From then on, after I finished my work on the field, I would head to the old granny’s house and was taught how to make an Elixir properly. The timing was also convenient for both of us.
I will challenge everything a Human is capable of.
With such an opportunity to learn Human magic from the Witch, I learned Human perception on magic and the ways they control and manipulate it ever since. Technically, every Human being has magic, but those who have enough magical power to exercise the phenomenon called magic are few. Unfortunately, no other villagers in Bern possesses the ability to manifest magical power beside the Witch’s family and I.
♦ ♦ ♦
Several days after parting with Selia, I am working on my field trying to exterminate pests and weeds. After I finished, I walk across the br