[Congratulations! You have achieved victory against a group of thugs!]

[8 Silver Gained!]

[New Item Gained! You have gained a Wooden Buloke Staff]

[Wooden Buloke Staff Tier 2 - A Surprisingly strong wooden staff that works better as a weapon than as a focus for magical engergies. This staff is a stranger to magic in any form.]

[Although made with poor quality craftmanship, the wood used to craft this staff is one of the strongest woods in this world.]

With the prompts raining over my eyes I almost forgot what had transpired. Looking from the body of my only friend to the bloodied staff in my hand, I realized that life in this world was not going to be easy. I need to grow stronger, If I want to be able to protect those I care about, I have to grow stronger.

[Congradulations! You have Gained Steel Resolve!]

[Steel Resolve - A passive ability gained through personal hardship. Reduces affectiveness of incoming negative status affects by 50%]

Well, If I have grown this strong before I even have a name... I should be alright.

Two Days Later

Jesper's funeral was held the same day I found him dead. Koran and I were the only ones to attend. Koran told me that Jesper's family had sold him to the church for a bit of coin. But Jesper was no good at healing magic, so the church didn't pay him any attention. Pretending to not notice when he left and never returned, they simply gave his bed to someone else. Koran had found him on the street, half starved and covered in cuts and bruises. When Koran reached out to Jesper's family, so they'd know what the boy was going through, they began sending mercenaries to kill him. So Koran took him in and hired additional protection for the manor. Normally there would be guards stationed in the training courtyard, but it was early that day and the guards were still on their patroll. They were on the opposite side of the manor with no way to know of the attack until it was too late. If only I had been there five minutes sooner, he could be safe right now.

Koran and I had arrived at the naming ceremony. The area was big, to say the least. Outside, where the carriage had stopped and let us off, there were hundreds of merchant tents setup around the great colloseum like building. They were of different qualities. Some had beautiful bright colors and large collections of expensive products; others had what looked like stained bedsheets or stitched together potato sacks to cover their cart, alongside quality but cheap goods.  

Past the merchants that were constantly calling out to people as they walked by, the steps to the naming ceremony awaited. The walls and stairs were made of the same material, a pale white stone that the mana in the area seemed to dislike. As people walked up them, i could see stray elemental mana particles cling to them until they made it to about the third step. At that point it was like they walked into a wall, the elemental mana was repelled and thrown back with force. 

Focusing my senses, i was able to briefly see all the different mana particles for barely four seconds. It was beautiful, but it concerned me. There were dozens of different colors, each one a specific element or variant, and they were all trying to get in. As a man stepped on the first step, a dark brown and a bright orange particle attached itself to him. At the second step dozens more of the same colors started flying to him, clinging to his body, some seemingly disolving into him. The moment his foot touched the third step, all of the wisps of elemental mana were completely expelled from his figure. It was like a firework going off.

I felt Koran's hand on my shoulder. Looking up towards him, i could see a single tear running down the side of his cheek. He conjured a bit of fire magic under his breath and the tear evaporated right as i noticed it. He leaned down beside me until he was eye level with me, his long beard almost touching the ground. "My apprentice, my nephew, it seems the time has finally come. Today is the day that i have have been both waiting for with anticipation and dread." He exhaled deeply, showing stress that i had never seen him wear before. "With your.. abilities, you may have noticed the behavior of the mana. This staircase is a magical formation, or at least it's part of one. As you ascend, the mana in the area will attempt to come in with you. This is simply its nature. The formation creates a mana free zone, keeping all wild elemental mana from entering." His eyes almost glowed talking about it. It seems as though Koran might be a formation freak. He coughed, noticing that my eyes weren't focused anymore. "However, there is a secondary function to it as well. After entering the formation, all of your mana will be locked inside your body. No external expressions whatsoever are permitted within. That means neither of us will be able to use mana to defend ourselves if things get out of hand."

A heavy sigh escaped him, "Most high level mages can sense mana, so be mindful of that. If you attempt to do anything with mana, even if it's inneffective due to the formation, the mages here will sense the mana condense inside you. The only time you are permitted to use your magic is up until we walk up those steps, and once the formation is deactivated for the ceremony." With that said; he walked passed me at a slow pace, heading for the steps.