The morning arrived without much distinction from the previous one.
Ray woke shortly after sunrise, washed his face, and prepared a simple breakfast. He ate slowly, occasionally glancing toward the window as the streets outside gradually became busier.
Today, he intended to visit the mana assessment facility.
He wasn't particularly excited about it. If anything, he was simply curious about what the examination would involve and whether the books he had read yesterday were accurate.
After finishing his meal, he put on his clothes, checked that he had enough money, and left the house.
The facility wasn't difficult to find. It was located a short distance from the marketplace, in a modest stone building with a small sign above its entrance.
Several people were already gathered outside.
Most of them appeared to be parents accompanied by their children.
Ray paused briefly before entering.
There were probably around a dozen children waiting, ranging from those who looked barely old enough to walk to others who seemed to be around his apparent age. Some were accompanied by both parents, while others had only one.
A few children looked excited.
Others appeared nervous, holding tightly to their parents' hands.
Ray quietly joined the line.
He wasn't particularly concerned about the results. He only wanted to understand his current capabilities.
Inside, the building was relatively spacious. The walls were made of pale stone, and several wooden benches had been arranged along one side of the room.
At the far end stood a middle-aged man wearing a simple uniform. His build was sturdy, and his expression carried the familiarity of someone accustomed to dealing with children.
He was speaking to a young boy while explaining the procedure.
"There's nothing to be afraid of. Just relax your body and follow my instructions."
The boy nodded nervously.
Ray took a seat and waited.
It seemed that the assessment was conducted one person at a time. A child would enter a small room beside the main hall, undergo the examination, and return with their parents.
The process appeared fairly simple.
While waiting, Ray observed the people around him.
A mother was repeatedly fixing her son's collar, despite it already being perfectly arranged. The father beside her kept glancing toward the examination room.
Another child was swinging his legs beneath the bench, seemingly unaware of his parents' anxious expressions.
A girl sitting across from Ray was staring at the floor. Her fingers were intertwined, and every so often, she would glance toward the door.
They're more nervous than the children themselves.
Ray looked away.
He had no particular interest in judging anyone. It was simply something he noticed while passing the time.
After several minutes, another child finished the assessment and returned to his parents.
"Well? How did it go?" his father asked.
The child shrugged.
"They said I have some mana."
"That's good. That's very good."
The father sounded relieved.
Ray leaned slightly against the back of his seat.
So they can at least determine whether someone has mana aptitude.
He recalled what he had read in the book yesterday. Mana existed within living creatures, although the amount and natural ability to control it differed between individuals.
The assessment was presumably meant to determine those differences.
Eventually, the trainer looked toward him.
"You're next, young man."
Ray stood up.
"Alright."
He followed the man into the examination room.
Unlike the waiting hall, the room was relatively small. There was a wooden table, two chairs, and a circular platform engraved with faint patterns.
A few instruments were arranged neatly along the wall.
"What's your name?"
"Ray."
"Are your parents waiting outside?"
Ray paused for a moment.
"No. I'm here alone."
The trainer glanced at him briefly but didn't question it.
"Very well. Sit over there."
Ray followed his instructions and sat on the wooden chair.
The man pulled another chair closer and placed a small crystal on the table.
"Have you ever undergone a mana assessment before?"
"No."
"Then I'll explain. The process is simple. I'll introduce a small amount of mana into your body. You don't need to do anything complicated. Just relax and pay attention to what you feel."
Ray nodded.
"Understood."
"Good. Now, close your eyes."
Ray did as instructed.
A moment later, he felt something touch his wrist.
It was the trainer's hand.
"Try not to tense up."
A faint warmth spread from the point of contact.
At first, it was barely noticeable. Then, something unfamiliar began flowing through his body.
It wasn't painful.
Rather, it felt like a gentle current moving beneath his skin, passing through his arms and gradually spreading toward the rest of his body.
"Can you feel anything?" the trainer asked.
"A little."
"Describe it."
"Something warm. It's moving through my body."
"That's normal. Continue relaxing."
Ray remained still.
The sensation gradually became clearer.
He could feel the movement of something that he hadn't noticed before. It was as though a part of his body that had always been there was suddenly becoming perceptible.
Mana.
He couldn't explain how he knew it, but he was certain that was what he was sensing.
"Now, try to focus on that sensation."
Ray concentrated.
And then—
Something changed.
His thoughts became unusually clear.
The faint sounds around him seemed to separate from one another. He could distinguish the slight creaking of the wooden floor, the movement of someone outside the room, and even the trainer's breathing.
His eyes opened.
For a brief moment, the world seemed different.
The trainer's face was directly in front of him, but Ray found himself noticing details he would normally overlook.
The slight movement around the man's eyes.
The subtle tightening of his lips.
The position of his shoulders.
Even the small pause between his breaths.
It was strange.
He wasn't deliberately trying to examine the man.
Yet the information seemed to present itself naturally.
...What?
Ray blinked.
The sensation disappeared almost immediately.
"Something wrong?" the trainer asked.
"No. I just felt something unusual."
"Unusual?"
"Yes. It's difficult to explain."
The trainer studied him for a moment before continuing.
"That's fine. It's your first time sensing mana, after all. Some children experience unfamiliar sensations."
He placed his hand back against Ray's wrist.
"Let's continue."
Ray nodded.
The warmth returned.
This time, however, he noticed something else.
The trainer's mana wasn't moving randomly. It seemed to follow a particular path, entering through his wrist and spreading through his body.
Ray tried to pay attention to it.
The more he concentrated, the more distinct the sensation became.
And with it, that strange clarity returned.
His vision sharpened.
The trainer's movements seemed easier to follow. Even the slight shift in his expression became apparent before he spoke.
Ray could almost distinguish the man's current thoughts through his behavior.
Not literally.
He wasn't reading minds.
But he could interpret things that would normally escape his attention.
The trainer's fingers had become slightly more relaxed.
His eyebrows had lifted by a small degree.
His breathing had returned to its usual rhythm.
He's becoming less cautious. Probably because he thinks the examination is going normally.
Ray stared at him for another moment.
Then he looked away.
This is getting strange.
After a little while, the trainer finally withdrew his hand.
"Alright. That's enough."
Ray straightened his posture.
"Is the assessment finished?"
"For the most part."
The trainer picked up the crystal from the table and examined it.
A faint glow appeared within its surface.
He watched it for a few seconds before setting it down.
"Hmm. You have a mana presence, but nothing particularly unusual."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Your aptitude appears fairly ordinary. Nothing poor, but nothing exceptional either."
The trainer spoke casually, as though he had delivered the same explanation countless times.
"Of course, this is only a basic assessment. It doesn't determine everything. Your ability to control mana will depend on practice and experience."
Ray nodded.
"I understand."
The trainer leaned back slightly.
"Have you received any formal instruction before?"
"No."
"Then you should start with the basics if you're interested. Learning proper control is important. Don't try to force mana through your body without guidance."
"I'll keep that in mind."
The man wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to him.
"This is your assessment record. Keep it somewhere safe."
Ray accepted it.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome. That's all for today."
Ray stood up and left the examination room.
The waiting hall was still occupied by several families.
As he passed them, he noticed the same girl from earlier sitting in the same position.
Her hands were still intertwined.
Her mother was speaking to her, but the girl only nodded occasionally.
Ray glanced at her.
For some reason, the details seemed unusually clear again.
The girl's shoulders were slightly raised. Her fingers were pressing against one another, and her eyes kept moving toward the examination room.
She's nervous.
That was obvious enough.
But then he noticed something else.
Whenever her mother spoke, the girl's expression changed slightly. Her lips tightened, and her gaze shifted away.
She wasn't simply afraid of the examination.
She was worried about disappointing her mother.
Ray looked away.
...Am I overthinking things?
He continued toward the exit.
Outside, the sunlight was already bright.
He stopped near the entrance and looked down at the assessment record in his hand.
Mana Aptitude: Ordinary.
That was all it said.
He read it once more before folding the paper and putting it away.
The trainer's conclusion seemed reasonable. He had no reason to question it.
Still, something had happened inside that room.
Something he couldn't quite explain.
Ray raised his hand and looked at his palm.
He didn't feel any different physically. His body was still small, his fingers were still delicate, and there was no visible sign of anything unusual.
Yet the sensation from earlier remained in his memory.
The clarity.
The details.
The way he had noticed things without consciously looking for them.
He turned toward the marketplace and began walking.
As he passed a merchant arranging his goods, Ray briefly glanced at him.
The man's expression appeared neutral, but his eyes kept shifting toward a nearby stall. His right hand repeatedly adjusted the position of a small pouch attached to his belt.
Ray's attention lingered.
He's keeping an eye on something.
A few steps later, he passed two men talking beside a wooden cart.
One of them was speaking enthusiastically, while the other occasionally nodded.
Ray noticed that the second man's smile didn't quite match his eyes.
He seemed more interested in ending the conversation than continuing it.
Ray slowed down.
What is this?
He hadn't been trying to analyze them.
It simply happened.
The more he observed, the more details seemed to emerge. Small movements, changes in expression, posture, breathing, and even the way people directed their attention.
It wasn't perfect.
He couldn't know what someone was thinking with certainty, and he couldn't predict their actions.
But he could gather information far more easily than before.
Perhaps it was a side effect of sensing mana.
Or perhaps something else had happened.
He didn't know.
And he wasn't particularly interested in drawing conclusions without evidence.
For now, it was enough to acknowledge that something had changed.
Ray continued walking.
By the time he returned home, the sun had begun its gradual descent.
He placed the assessment record on the wooden table and sat down.
For a while, he simply stared at it.
"Ordinary talent, huh?"
He repeated the trainer's words quietly.
It wasn't disappointing.
He hadn't expected to possess some extraordinary ability in the first place.
Besides, being ordinary wasn't necessarily a bad thing.
He had already spent enough time trying to understand his new circumstances. There was no reason to create unnecessary expectations for himself.
Still, he couldn't ignore what had happened.
Ray picked up a small piece of paper and a writing instrument.
He began writing down what he remembered.
First, the sensation of mana entering his body.
Second, the unusual clarity he had experienced during the assessment.
Third, the strange ease with which he could notice small details about other people.
He paused for a moment before adding another line.
Possible improvement in observation and perception.
He read the sentence.
Then he added:
Cause unknown.
Ray placed the writing instrument down.
It was a rather strange development.
If this ability was connected to mana, then perhaps further practice would help him understand it.
But he wasn't going to experiment recklessly.
He still didn't know enough about this world, and the trainer had specifically warned him against forcing mana through his body.
For the time being, he would observe.
That was something he could do without taking unnecessary risks.
Ray folded the paper and placed it beside his assessment record.
He then began preparing dinner.
While waiting for the food to finish cooking, his thoughts gradually returned to the people he had seen earlier.
The children accompanied by their parents.
The nervous girl.
The trainer who had considered him ordinary.
He wondered whether the other children had experienced the same sensation he had.
Perhaps they had.
Perhaps they hadn't.
There was no way to know.
He looked toward the window.
The sky was slowly turning orange.
"...Well, at least I learned something today."
He returned his attention to the food.
For now, he had a place to live, enough money for a few days or weeks and a general understanding of the world around him.
That was sufficient.
As for whatever had happened during the assessment, he would think about it another day.
There was no need to rush.
After all, he had only just begun understanding this world.