It turns out that children are the quickest to accept new things.
—Truth
Rosha had become the children's king of the village, leading a pack of kids into the mountains to catch chikin, into the rivers to fish, or digging up water plants… He even found time to visit Village Chief Mali again, asking her to introduce him to a blacksmith named Deliwei. He spent quite a bit of money commissioning him to make hoses, seals, biogas lamps, stoves, and more. Of course, all this was bought on credit. In Ionia, people value reputation and credibility highly—once you sign your name and mark it, no one would ever think you'd go back on your word.
Deliwei was a middle-aged man, but his craftsmanship was superb. Rosha drew diagrams and explained details, and the blacksmith placed the materials onto a black altar, chanting under his breath. He was communing with the fire spirit. Just like when the tinkerer Mali had worked before, within a single morning all of Rosha's requested tools were ready.
Deliwei looked somewhat drained. Even simple magical forging consumed a lot of mental energy. His high fees were understandable. After Rosha promised again and again that he'd repay him within half a year, he brought all the tools back home.
After a month of hard work with his little helpers, a small ecological farm finally took shape. A month and a half later, the fermented straw and manure produced biogas that successfully lit their lamp—it shone brilliantly. Their kitchen no longer needed firewood either. Shava no longer had to wander the woods looking for dead trees to drag home.
On top of that, they harvested plenty of eggs from chickens, ducks, and geese. Shava took them to the nearby market and traded them for rolls of cloth!
Raising pigs was trickier. The wild boars were fierce and kept smashing the pigpen. At last Rosha lost patience, pulled out their tusks, castrated them, and finally they became docile.
Rosha's actions caused quite a stir in the village. Some whispered that he was a Noxian spy, trying to disrupt the balance. But when the harvest from the Conde family came in a month and a half later, those same voices fell silent—some even came to apologize for their foolish words.
From that day, the children of Stat Village began directing their parents to attempt small agricultural changes, transforming their old way of life. The bustling reform work even drew Deliwei's attention. Every day he was bombarded with requests to craft more of those strange tools. After asking around, he finally understood what the villagers were trying to do. The idea was so unbelievable to him that he personally came to the village.
He stayed for several days, watching all the changes. As a blacksmith with a bit of magical affinity, he believed all this would upset the balance. So he summoned the fire spirit—but instead of wrath, he felt joy radiating from it.
He couldn't figure out why. So, under the excuse of helping forge tools, he decided to remain longer to observe.
"Teacher, teacher!" The oldest and smartest among the kids, Marco, came running to Rosha, panting. "That Deliwei wants to stay in our village. He'll expose our secret!"
"We want him to see," Rosha replied, handing Marco a cup of water. "We need them to spread the word. Only when everyone begins changing can we hide behind them and make deeper reforms. And besides, we need talent to be drawn to our village, understand?"
The boy tilted his head, thought for a long while, then his eyes sparkled. "Teacher, does that mean we can also let Red-Hair and the shop-keeping fox see this?"
"Smart," Rosha laughed, patting Marco's shoulder. "When their village realizes they also need change, you and your friends will go guide them. But remember—never for free."
"I understand. I'll go tell the others." Marco put down the cup, saluted Rosha, and dashed off.
Riven appeared at the doorway, watching Marco vanish into the distance. She spoke softly, thoughtful: "At first I thought you were just fooling around with the children."
"Children are the future. If you want change, it must start with them. Only with them," Rosha sighed. "The pursuit of a happy life is the right of every person. But some things suppress that right—and that's wrong."
"Your ideas are dangerous," Riven knew exactly what Rosha meant.
"That's why I start with the children."
"Will it even work?"
"You'll never know unless you try."
"I'll be watching."
"For now, things need time to ferment. Meanwhile, I must train."
"Fine."
…
Riven led Rosha out of the village—not toward the farmland this time, but deep into the forest. They walked a long way up the mountain path until they reached a large pool.
Riven opened her palm. A wisp of green vapor appeared, wrapping around her hand like a half-transparent emerald glove. She struck a stone beneath her feet, splitting it perfectly in two. The cut was smooth, sharp, not at all like a brute force smash. Lulu, perched on Rosha's shoulder, squeaked in fright.
"I can use wood-type magical elements and convert them into battle qi," Riven said, dispersing the energy. "I call it Feather Basket Qi."
"Not entirely wood element," Rosha observed, staring at the clean cut. "Too smooth… and the name you gave it has the word 'feather'."
Riven's face showed brief surprise, then softened into faint nostalgia. "I always forget—you're from another world. The other Rosha wasn't this sharp. Yes, I can also control fire element."
"I see. Fire and wood make wind. Your Feather Basket Qi is born from a fusion of wind and wood." Rosha suddenly understood.
"Exactly." Riven nodded. "Unfortunately my control over fire is weak."
"That depends on the person. Elemental affinity is innate." Rosha suspected she was just humble-bragging.
"Yes. Affinity depends on one's constitution." Riven nodded again. "That's why you must first know which element you're attuned to."
"You have an Expert Testing Crystal?" Rosha was doubtful. The item wasn't exactly rare, but it was costly. Typically, only great families, magical guilds, or schools purchased them to test recruits' elemental affinity.
"Of course." Riven pulled out a semi-transparent, obelisk-shaped crystal from her pouch. Lulu reached out to grab it but got a slap on the paw, so he curled back up on Rosha's shoulder.
"Where did you get that?" Rosha asked curiously. Such things didn't exist in rural Ionia.
"Market. Found it by chance and traded for it," Riven said casually, handing the crystal to him. "Hold it with both hands, completely relax your body, empty your mind, and soon you'll see the result."
"Alright." Rosha gripped the crystal with both hands, closed his eyes, and tried to clear his thoughts. Soon he felt a faint suction from the crystal, and streams of warmth drawn from his fingertips.
"By Mitra!" Riven suddenly swore in pure Noxian, startling Rosha into opening his eyes.
"What, what?!" Rosha had never heard Riven curse before. Something must have gone wrong with his affinity test. Inside the crystal, a rainbow shimmered in a flowing arc. Rosha couldn't help blurting a curse of his own: "Holy shit!"
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