Mael's first words had struck like a knife to his heart, and then her next like a heavy hammer upon it.
The expression on Cloud's face didn't flicker. He remained staring at the woman, the gears in his head already turning.
Cloud brought out his right palm, and, staring at it, had the flame he had made earlier reappear, burning red and spreading warmth through his limb.
"That is just the first step. You'll need to study it more before you can use it in any way in battle."
Elva and Dina always treated Cloud with caution, worried for his feelings, especially after his first failure to awaken.
Cloud understood that they cared and didn't want to hurt him, but that wasn't what he wanted.
Mael's bluntness was what he needed. She operated like a robot, cold and logical, and honestly, he loved her for it.
"What is your class?"
With such an obstacle popping up, Cloud considered revealing his class, not just to Mael but also to his mother and Dina.
His lips moved, but before a sound could be let out, he felt his guts twist, his instincts flare, and he sealed his mouth shut.
"I can't tell you," he shook his head.
Mael's eyes narrowed.
"Trust me."
What thoughts went through Mael's head, Cloud did not know, and as he expected, she did not push further.
While Cloud wouldn't say she trusted him, Mael understood him.
The others might have attributed his sudden change after his first awakening to the shocking failure, but for a long period her eyes had narrowed and drilled into him every second.
"Can I know the grade?"
Cloud contemplated, then decided to let something leak.
"It has no grade."
Mael's eyebrow rose a little, and that was all. She stayed silent for some seconds, then began speaking.
"Your horrible comprehension can't be a result of talent, genes, or intelligence. I have seen very useless people, and even they would have learned the basics of the spell in at least two days.
"Your problem can only come from two things. The first is your soul.
"Comprehension involves not just learning the way to move mana, but also the way to communicate with the world as you move and transform it.
"The soul is responsible for communication with the world. A weak soul would find it difficult carrying out this communication, but trust me, you do not have a weak soul."
Mael's eyes narrowed when she said the last words, stating nothing but fact to Cloud.
"The second," the woman paused, letting out a troubled sigh, "is rejection by the world.
"The world doesn't like you, Cloud."
Cloud frowned, the jump from his personal problem to a world-scale issue nerve-racking.
"How sure are you of that? Couldn't there be other reasons?"
"There are, but those other chances are minor and near impossible for you.
"I'm not concluding this based only on your bad comprehension, but also your bad relationship with mana."
Cloud sighed inwardly, Mael's words making him remember his mana stat.
When he had first seen it, he hadn't been surprised. From his training, he had always known of his meagre mana quantity, but it still made no sense that while his other stats climbed as he strained, his mana depressingly crawled.
Five points was the amount of mana the average person had after awakening a class, and for Cloud, after seven years of torturous training, it had only climbed by two points.
"What's the solution?" Cloud muttered after several seconds of silence.
"I have none. I've never come across a situation like yours."
Cloud's eyes widened in surprise, his gaze fixing on Mael in disbelief. Then he sighed and pushed off the window.
"I'm going into the dungeon."
"I won't be able to follow you," Mael said, thinking he only wanted to blow off some steam.
"That's okay. I'll take Fil and Ban and stick to the lower levels."
Cloud had no plan to do what he had just said. He lied to get Mael and his mother off his back.
His horrible comprehension only proved that nothing came for free. Now he needed to check and be sure that he hadn't been scammed.
[Fire throw (level 1): 2 Kp to level up]
[Level up]
[Fire throw (level 2): 4 Kp]
[Level up]
[Level up]