When the new spring arrived, little Richard had begun to shed his childishness. The hunting knife at his waist was no longer just an ornament. He had started going into the mountains with the village hunters, although he didn't venture too deep into the forest and didn't take the front lines when dealing with magical beasts. His tasks were more about assisting, setting traps, and collecting game. Still, it meant that he was now considered a hunter. Blacksmith Bobby was especially pleased, as Richard's hunting knife had been crafted by him over several nights, using a few pieces of treasured forged steel. Every time Richard used it to kill a magical beast, Bobby would feel proud for a long time.

  Hunting always carries danger. Hidden within the sprawling Coastal Mountain Range are countless magical beasts, and sometimes even lost beasts from the deep forests wander into Rutherlan village. Little Richard once encountered a Grayfang Wolf. This was a true level-two magical beast, and even the village chief would have to approach it seriously. When Richard encountered the wolf, there were only two village hunters with him. It was a tough battle, and all three were seriously wounded, but in the end, they dragged the wolf’s carcass back to the village. What impressed the villagers the most was how calm and composed Richard had been throughout the deadly fight. His responses were perfect—no better than the best hunter. If not for Richard severing the wolf's hind leg tendon with a single strike, the outcome could have been different.

  In any case, that year, Richard faced many dangers, but he always remained calm and collected, handling each situation with grace. No matter how perilous the situation, he never hesitated.

  At nine years old, Richard learned courage.

  This year should have been the easiest one yet, for mountain children are never lacking in courage. However, the kind of courage his mother taught him was different. Richard had achieved it, and from then on, his mother no longer called him "little Richard," but "my Richard."

  "My Richard has truly become a man!" Ilene would always smile and say this whenever she saw Richard.

  But one day, Richard stood tall and replied, "A real man must also have wisdom!"

  Ilene was taken aback, staring at Richard with a serious expression, and asked, "Tell me, who told you that?"

  "It’s written in a book!"

  "Which book?" Ilene asked patiently. It wasn’t just mages; even magic apprentices had vast knowledge. Richard had already learned several languages from Ilene, even an ancient, obscure language. Reading was no problem for him. He had even read through several beginner's magic books during the dull, boring winters. However, Ilene couldn't remember any book that had such a line.

  "That book in the attic. It has lots of interesting things in it. I first learned how vast the world is," Richard said excitedly.

  "That book?" Ilene suddenly remembered something and smiled. "That book is indeed very interesting. My Richard, a real man certainly cannot lack wisdom, but perseverance, strength, and courage are even rarer. My Richard is so smart that when he grows up, he will never lack wisdom. So, mommy wants to cultivate these qualities in you first, okay?"

  "And happiness!" Richard added quickly.

  Ilene smiled and ruffled Richard’s hair. "Yes, happiness! My Richard, have you been happy these past few years?"

  Little Richard shook his head and muttered, "Not always happy. Piru bullied me. And I also dislike breadfruit. And, mom, what kind of person is dad?"

  Ilene’s face instantly changed, then she gently replied, "Your father is a real man..."

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  Richard immediately interrupted, "I know! He’s the worst bad guy! The person you hate the most!"

  Ilene smiled, as she always did when Richard asked such questions. He had asked these questions every year, and she always answered in the same way. Richard had memorized it by now. However, Richard was a clever child, and he could sense the deep hatred Ilene felt when she spoke about his father. Over time, Richard began to hate him too.

  Because many times, when Richard woke up in the middle of the night, he would hear his mother quietly crying.

  Children’s logic is simple: their mother loves them the most, and she is the person they love the most. If their mother hates someone, they will hate that person too. From time to time, Richard would ask about his father, partly out of curiosity, because once he grew older, his mother would tell him more about his father. On the other hand, Richard wanted to know more about his father so that he could take revenge on him when he grew up. He didn’t know how to get revenge at that age, but it was something he had already engraved in his heart.

  However, this time, Ilene didn’t tell Richard more about his father. She simply said that she had been with Richard's father for a very short time and only knew so much.

  "One day, you will understand your father," Ilene suddenly said, and when the words left her mouth, her expression changed as though something in her heart had tightened. She herself didn’t understand why she had said that.

  Richard, sensing his mother’s sudden shift in mood, quietly stuck out his tongue and said, "I’m going to read," before running into the back room. That room was Ilene’s study, next to it was the apothecary lab. The study wasn’t full of books, but the ones there were about basic magic, potion making, and the geography, history, and customs of the continent—subjects fitting for an apprentice mage. Richard loved to read here during the evenings. There was a magic lamp in the study that didn’t shine brightly, but with the little magic Ilene had, it could light up the lamp for an entire night. Because oil was expensive, only the village chief, the blacksmith, and a few of the strongest hunters could afford to keep lamps burning for long. Ilene was one of the few.

  In this humble yet warm little room, Richard quietly spent his childhood.

  In those thick books, he discovered another world, a world much larger, more complex, and more beautiful than Rutherlan. Little Richard always thought to himself that when he grew up to be the best hunter in the village, he would take his mother and leave Rutherlan, to see the world beyond the mountains.

  Ilene sat alone in the living room, the sound of pages turning quietly reaching her ears. Little Richard was reading carefully again. He had already mastered the basics of magic, though he hadn’t started practicing magic yet. Ilene even forbade him from practicing meditation. On the continent, to become a good mage, one usually starts meditating around the age of four or five, so that by ten, they have enough mental strength to begin studying magic and developing their magical power. But Richard didn’t think anything was wrong with this, as he didn’t know much about it and thought his mother was always right.

  Ilene sat quietly, but because of that one extra sentence she had spoken tonight, the door to memories slowly opened, and many long-buried past events began to surface, hard to suppress.

  Her head began to hurt, and Ilene gently rubbed her temple, letting out a faint sigh. Her gaze fell on the calendar on the table, and she suddenly saw a conspicuous mark. In just a few days, Richard would be ten years old. Ten was the boundary between a boy and a young man, and thirteen or fourteen would mark the beginning of adulthood.

  Had ten years really passed already?

  Ilene stared blankly at the light dancing in the magic lamp. The brass lamp was polished to a bright sheen, reflecting her face. She wasn’t particularly beautiful—just a woman of good looks—but in Rutherlan, she was considered one of the most beautiful. Ten years had passed, and time had left no visible trace on her face. If not for her clothes having shifted toward the style of a middle-aged woman, few would remember her age. If someone unfamiliar met her, they would likely think she was still in her early twenties.

  The reflection in the brass lamp was, in fact, quite unfamiliar to Ilene and too ordinary, because when she was born, it wasn’t this face. A long time ago, she never imagined she would be living such a simple and hard life, and yet, she had been living this way for ten years. But looking at Richard grow up day by day, she felt deeply fulfilled.

  Ilene walked into the study and smiled as she watched Richard, who was engrossed in a thick magical beast encyclopedia, "My Richard is soon going to be ten years old. I’ve prepared a special ceremony to celebrate my Richard growing up."

  "Yay! Will there be a gift?" Richard jumped up, showing that he was still a boy at heart.

  "Yes, a gift that will stay with you for your whole life. But you need to rest well these next few days, alright? It’s already late, you should go to bed."