2 Kalar's Continen

Far northwest at the edge of Kalar's Continent lay Ritark, a small trading village barely more extensive than an ordinary outpost. The local farmers, fishers, and artisans of the region could exchange their merchandise for more sought-after goods here, such as iron tools, clothes, or accessories from the south.

Of course, they could also trade for more monetary currencies, but these were rarely taken home since copper coins hardly kept one warm throughout the harsh winter that was oh so common here in the north. 

It was as far from a bustling place as it could get, but it was the lifeline of the local community nonetheless. The economy of the region was mostly based on ores from the northern mine and processed metalworks, fresh and salted fish caught in the North Sea, as well as selling cabbages to the neighboring cities. 

It may not look like much, but it was home for young Teo.

This rustic village was everything he ever knew, where he grew up and where he played around with the other kids from the neighborhood.

Of course, this included the outskirts of the great Thorn Forest, which stretched from Ritark all the way north, even reaching past the mines on the slopes of Mount Kroll, the rocky cliffs and beaches around the North Sea and the tilled fields, just south of the village; but still, his knowledge about the rest of the world was somewhat limited.

He spent most of his time playing, exploring the surrounding landscape or helping his parents with easy tasks in the household, and naturally getting scolded for messing around in places he wasn't supposed to go, especially the forest.

It wasn't dangerous as far as he knew, at least not until past Mount Kroll, but obviously, it was still no place for a child, which did not seem to have much of an effect on the local community of troublemakers.

The sporadic poisonous plants and wild animals could be quite dangerous if not left alone, he had to admit, but they were only ever playing near the very edges of the forest!

Since adults frequented the woods around the village to collect wild berries and hunt for game, it was actually quite peaceful. Teo had only ever heard stories about large boars or even rogue bears being seen so close to the village, probably only told by old people to frighten naïve children, so his parents must certainly be overreacting!Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting.

But with his family being common craftspeople, this fate was not for him.

Parents who couldn't afford to send their children into the neighboring town's schools could only impart them their own limited knowledge and prepare them for what was to follow: Apprenticeship!

With his father being a blacksmith and his mother sewing clothes for a living, he was in a better position than most boys in the village could even dream of; except maybe the local merchant's son who had been sent to study in Sigella, the nearest harbor town to the south. He had been bragging about it a lot just before his departure, even though his family's wealth was hardly his achievement. Teo was oddly glad not having to see him around anymore.

Tomorrow his mother would take him to the regional Magician's Office to test his Elemental Affinity, and depending on his results, he would either start training to become a qualified blacksmith under the firm guidance of his father, or...

He was not so sure about the alternative roads his fate could lead him on, but he knew it was very likely for him to succeed in his father's craft — as all his friends had so far. 

Magic, the power to manipulate the Elements, in itself was not considered very rare or unusual even since roughly one in ten children showed measurable talent in one of the four major Elements. Still, even minuscule amounts of talent sufficed to bring great joy to their parents.

His friend Markus who was tested last year, showed a slight affinity for the fire element, just like his grandfather, but he is still going to step into his father's footprints and become a hunter. Teo could recall this day very well because Markus' father continued to brag about it for weeks on end until Teo's father threatened to bash his head in with his forge hammer if he wouldn't shut up about it, bringing back peace to the village.

Of course, everybody could understand his reaction as the Fire Element was a handy Talent for a hunter, but it still didn't stop anyone from being annoyed by his exaggerations.

Admittedly, it would allow him to use the fire Element for small tricks someday, like making arrowheads searing hot or lighting campfires made from wet wood with his bare hands — it gave him an edge over the competition; something very precious with three hunter families in the village, continually quarreling over the safe hunting grounds in the forest.

The extent of the effects one could summon would depend on their talent, training, and experience, but even the most basic ability to keep oneself warm for a few hours during the long hunting trips was something very useful this far in the north, with its unpredictable weather and long winters.

Teo was very excited by the idea of having a talent for Magic himself, especially Fire Magic, like Markus. It would also be the most useful for a blacksmith, as far as he could imagine, the increased resistance to heat being a major contributing factor. But maybe it was just his personal preference, developed from watching his father working the blistering hot forge every day.

Of course, if there was a Magician working in the Magician's Office, it should theoretically be possible to become a Magician himself, which did not seem to be too bad of an occupational choice. At the very least, Teo never saw the local Magician working much on anything, even though the adults seemed to respect him a lot. He spent most of the day in his fancy house near the forest, rarely accepting requests from anyone, aside from the regular affinity checks for the local children.

But whatever the criteria to become a Magician were, they must be tough to meet since he had never heard about anyone from the village succeeding, not even from the elders!

Anyways, Teo had no absurd ambitions and knew better than to chase pipe dreams like that; he was quite content to learn blacksmithing from his father, a Magic Talent would only be the cherry on top.

From the snippets of conversations he picked up so far, he knew that the chance to get a specific element and the degree of Affinity for it were mostly hereditary, with the occasional pinch of randomness mixed in. So obviously, Teo had been pestering his parents with questions about his ancestry for weeks, with mixed results.

His mother told him that a distant cousin of hers had a considerable gift for the Air Element, so that was probably her family's primary attribute. Still, his father always dodged any questions regarding this topic.