The calmness of nature allowed Erzo to properly think. The city slums made enough noise throughout the day and he could not practice magic underground. The royal paladins would have a field day with him as it was forbidden to practice magic in public. Those without the affinity to tap into the arcane ley-lines or the naturalists who had access to elemental magic had a field day with this law. Surely someone would notice and find his hideout. Even though it was underground, it was still considered public space.

  The woods were vast and connected to the largest forest in the kingdom, Vehlorn. The name came to be from old elvish script, which meant 'lost'. Anything he did there wouldn’t stir suspicion because no one would care. Surely they could also believe he would never return again alive or otherwise.

  How long had I been walking?

  Erzo felt like he had walked for hours through the woods. It was getting dark and the inn’s leftovers he had earlier were not much to satisfy him for the whole day. He looked around for some kind of proper shelter to use but found nothing. Most bushes were thorny and provided no cover from rain or much else. Many trees did not have lower branches so he could not climb them effectively. There were too many obstacles that prevented him from finding some kind of shelter. He wasn't a naturalist so a small campfire was out of the question. Unfortunate given his understanding for campfires in their usefulness to prevent animals or beats to raid his camp. Flint would go a long way, he mumbled grumpily.

  Defeated, Erzo found himself sitting at the base of a rather large tree. Breathing heavily from all of the traveling, he couldn’t bring himself to do more for the night. Thankfully the moss beneath him was soft enough to sit on and find relative comfort. He sank into the tree and slept.

  Overnight the whistles from the wind through the trees and creature noises continued to put strain on his rest. Erzo would wake up, clasp his satchel against his chest and then fall back asleep. This occurred multiple times. The tree lost its original level of comfort and the few berries he did eat while searching for food earlier caused painful stomach aches.

  Enduring his first night out of the city seemed more difficult than living in the city slums. At least there, the constant chatter on the street acted like a white noise to help clear his mind. In the forest, almost anything could happen. Any noise could mean his last. He simply couldn’t know. And worse, he had no protection and no genuine magic to speak of.

  Did I make the right choice? Erzo clasped the broach in his pocket to calm himself back to sleep, but the night howls of the forest had other ideas.

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  By dawn, Erzo’s bloodshot eyes throbbed. The creepy sounds had finally stopped. Every creak, twig break, or leaf that hit the ground the night before aroused his sleep.

  “Feel,” a voice called out to Erzo’s inner mind. A faint purple glow flashed in his satchel.

  Erzo opened his eyes again to see the sun had already half set. Somehow he managed to sleep for more than half the day. Although, something felt different. He looked in his satchel for the grimoire and pulled it out. It was not nearly as heavy as it was previously.

  Strange, but I guess I can read a little before looking for something to eat, he thought quietly as he opened the pages of the book.

  He began to scour through the pages about the Ley-Lines that run through the world’s core like a sewer network supplying arcane energy to its inhabitants, and then move on to other topics. Before he knew it, the sun had just about set, and the evening chill crept through the forest. And once again, he did not eat. Curiosity consumed his need to satisfy his hunger.

  Though, the thought of finding shelter weighed more on his mind than food. Without it, he had no protection to eat in peace.

  He glanced back to the tree he was sitting against.

  Can I do it? He thought to himself. Erzo could recall reading something about manipulating nature on one of the pages earlier. Something one didn't have to be a naturalist for as it mostly had to do with mana manipulation.

  “Feel,” the familiar voice said to Erzo’s mind.

  The similar presence he had felt before returned. A purple glow poked through his satchel. It was as if the grimoire was trying to reach him. Get him to do or feel something. But what? Erzo stood in front of the large tree and placed his hand on it, then closed his eyes.

  What exactly am I supposed to be feeling? He thought.

  After a few minutes of standing, his cheeks reddened.

  This is stupid, he thought and removed his hand from the tree and plopped back down, back against the tree. He huffed and looked up to the sky with his hand stretched out above him. Erzo examined his hand as best he could. He knew was missing something. Something he did not quite understand. In theory, manipulating mana had seemed to make sense based on what he had read.

  Another night went by, and Erzo was left, once again, sleepless. His eyes darted from left to right, up and down. He waited for any sign that could let him know it was safe enough to sleep. As the morning sun arose, the sounds of the forest, yet again, began to dim. The trees rustled in the wind but the clean air brought Erzo just as much peace as the brooch left to him by his mother. Sleep took hold of him through his rumbling stomach.