Days passed after Kai's incredible discovery during the tag game, and in that time, he had learned much more about what his magical specialty actually entailed. After countless discussions with Mary and consultations with magic theory books, they finally had answers—though those answers came with complications Kai hadn't expected.
There was, apparently, a form of magic called Augmentation magic, where a mage focused their mana directly into their body to boost their physical attributes as well as their defenses. The concept itself wasn't revolutionary—augmentation techniques were commonly used among mages across all specialties. Warriors would enhance their strength before battle, scouts would boost their speed for reconnaissance, and healers would fortify their bodies against the backlash of powerful healing spells.
However, having Augmentation magic as a primary specialty was almost unheard of in the magical community. Most mages learned basic augmentation techniques as supplementary skills to support their main magical focus, but to have it as one's core magical identity was extraordinarily rare. What made Kai's case even more unusual was his natural proficiency—the fact that he could augment himself to such a high degree only days after awakening, without any formal training or instruction, defied conventional understanding of magical development.
So with all evidence pointing in one direction, they concluded that Kai was indeed an Augmentation specialist—possibly one of only a handful in the entire kingdom, if not the continent.
But even though this discovery marked him as incredibly rare, it didn't necessarily mean it was good news. In fact, when Mary and the other children learned of his specialty, their first responses were almost... apologetic. There was a hesitant quality to their congratulations, a careful politeness that made Kai's stomach twist with uncertainty.
The reason became clear through their explanations. Augmentation magic was typically used only to a basic degree in tandem with other, more powerful magical disciplines. A fire mage might enhance their reflexes before casting a complex flame spell. An earth mage might strengthen their arms to better shape stone and soil. But using Augmentation magic alone, without other magical backing to provide offensive or utility capabilities, sounded... not ideal for a mage's long-term prospects.
The magical world valued versatility and raw power. Augmentation magic, no matter how masterfully used, was seen as a support discipline—useful, certainly, but limited in scope compared to the flashy destructive potential of elemental magic or the life-saving abilities of healing arts.
However, there was something important that none of them at the orphanage could fully understand: no one really knew what Augmentation magic would look like when pushed beyond the basic degree that most mages employed. Since Kai might now be one of the very few mages on the planet who could potentially master Augmentation magic as a primary discipline, he was venturing into uncharted territory. The limitations everyone assumed existed might prove to be nothing more than untested assumptions.
Kai found himself caught between emotions about this revelation. He wasn't necessarily happy or disappointed with the news—he was still in such awe at the simple fact of becoming a mage, coming from a world where the word "mage" existed only in fairytales and fantasy stories, that he couldn't find it in himself to feel truly disappointed about any aspect of his magical awakening. The wonder of possessing real magical abilities overshadowed any concerns about their specific nature.
But regardless of others' reservations, Kai decided he was genuinely interested in seeing where this rare ability might lead him. He began training alongside Maya, though admittedly not nearly as consistently as her dedicated daily practice sessions. Where Maya approached her magic with methodical determination, Kai's training was more exploratory, focused on understanding the limits and possibilities of his unique gift.
Months passed in this new routine of occasional joint training and individual experimentation. Then, just as they had all settled into their new normal, yet another extraordinary event shook the orphanage—Rowan awakened.
Mary genuinely fainted this time. The poor woman had been through so much stress with two unusual awakenings that when Rowan's earth magic manifested in a shower of floating pebbles and spontaneously blooming flowers, she simply couldn't handle the shock. The children found her unconscious in the garden, surrounded by Rowan's accidental magical creations, and had to splash cold water on her face to revive her.
Rowan's awakening was far more conventional than Kai's mysterious floating or Maya's near-catastrophic fire explosion. His earth magic specialty revealed itself through a gentle but undeniable connection to growing things and stone. Within days of his awakening, he was coaxing vegetables in the garden to grow larger and stronger, and could shape small amounts of clay and soft stone with focused concentration.
With three awakened children now living at the orphanage, their training sessions became more organized and collaborative. Maya, Kai, and Rowan would meet in the courtyard each morning, sharing techniques and encouraging each other through the inevitable frustrations that came with learning to control magical abilities.
Time continued its steady march forward. Soon they were nine years old, then ten, and their training evolved from simple experimentation to more structured magical education. At first, they had focused on learning the most basic spells and fundamental ways of channeling their respective magical specialties. Maya worked on controlling her flames without relying solely on emotional outbursts. Rowan learned to sense the mineral composition of different soils and stones. Kai experimented with different methods of physical enhancement, discovering he could boost not just his speed but also his strength, reflexes, and even his sensory perception.
But as they grew older and their basic control improved, Mary explained that if they wanted to eventually advance as mages and use high-class magic, they would need to learn something far more challenging: how to absorb larger quantities of mana from their environment and purify it to a higher degree.
Kai learned that this was fundamental to how all magic actually functioned. At the moment a mage began casting a spell, they started drawing in mana from the ambient magical energy that permeated the world around them. This raw mana then had to be purified and refined within the mage's body before being expelled as the desired magical effect. The better a mage became at rapidly absorbing large amounts of mana, and the more thoroughly they could purify that energy, the more powerful their spells could become.
This process was the difference between a novice mage who could light a candle with effort and a master mage who could conjure walls of flame or heal mortal wounds. It was also what separated those who would remain low-ranked practitioners their entire lives from those who might one day be recognized as true magical experts.
Unfortunately, understanding the theory was much, much easier than actually implementing it. The three friends now had to spend an hour each day in focused meditation, sitting in complete silence while concentrating on the subtle feeling of drawing ambient mana into their bodies and slowly purifying it through sheer force of will and concentration.
The process was maddeningly difficult and progress felt glacially slow. Some days, Kai wasn't even sure he was successfully drawing in any additional mana at all. The energy was so subtle, so difficult to distinguish from his own natural magical reserves, that he often wondered if he was simply sitting in silence for an hour while accomplishing nothing.