I Refused To Be Reincarnated

In a breath, a mage\'s hand materialised and crawled under the boy\'s blanket. Then, changing his pitch, he yelled, "Snake!"

Julius snapped his eyes open and jumped in fright, reaching for his gladius before hearing Arun scream.

The poor boy felt a stinging sensation, reminding him of Asha\'s pinches, forcing him to wake up in panic.

"Arun, behind me! There are snakes!" Julius warned in concern while sweeping the room with his piercing eyes. After two seconds, he scratched his head in confusion. He failed to spot any threats.

Meanwhile, Arun had already hidden himself behind his friend. With a pale face, he massaged his reddened belly, wondering if a snake had bitten him in dread.

As the two boys faced the sudden situation seriously, Adam roared in laughter, unable to contain it anymore.

"Haha, with all the training, it\'s been a while since I last pranked you." He said with an innocent smile amidst his laughter.

Julius gazed at his big brother with a frown before smiling. It had indeed been a while since his brother acted like that. Relief filled his heart as he realised their relationship was slowly returning to what it was before the incident four years ago.

"Calm down, Arun," he said, his hand on his trembling friend\'s shoulder. "It was a prank from big bro."

Arun\'s eyes widened as Adam manipulated the hand hiding under his blanket, showing it as proof.

"Wow! The hand is complete!" Julius exclaimed, his eyes reflecting his joy at his brother\'s achievement.

"Now that I have mastered the process, I can create another technique." He answered, eager to start a new training journey as he gazed at his skills.

Other: Mana bullet LV MAX, Atom Burst LVL MAX, Mage\'s hands LVLMAX.

Passive: Mana Control T4, Enhanced Intuition T1, Dagger mastery T1, Spear mastery T2,

Mana Shaping T2.

Note: Soul is damaged... Mages have tier-two control. Why are you the opposite?!

His experience with Atome Burst significantly improved his understanding of mana, allowing him to progress swiftly. He did not doubt that converting spells into mana techniques was the most efficient way to train, as the previous experiences would nurture his progress.

"Teach me that technique instead of making me create blocks!" Arun exclaimed as he marveled at the lifelike transparent hand.

"Sure." Adam wrote with a playful smile before adding, "Reach tier two in two weeks, and I\'ll teach you wholeheartedly."

"..." How unreasonable was that request? Didn\'t he have a month yesterday? But the technique was too enticing. He slapped his cheeks to gather courage and declared, "I\'ll do it. Don\'t turn back on your words!"

The duo gazed at him with encouraging smiles as Adam wrote, "You speak like a real man! Like it!"

The trio laughed happily before enjoying breakfast with the girls and heading to Elysia\'s class, finally meeting the elusive teacher.

As the students sat at their desks, Elysia shot a glare at Adam, her green eyes simmering with annoyance as she smirked.

Ever since their last discussion, she did her best to borrow an item from her elder brother, proposing trades and services. She even begged him, yet the man remained unmovable despite all her efforts. Determined, she seized every opportunity, darting out of school the moment the bell tolled, hoping to catch him off guard and increase her chances of success.

Yet, the ghost dared skip her class last week.

Then, she began her education as if nothing happened and instructed the kids on how important it was to get used to train control for at least two hours a week.

Adam couldn\'t help but snicker at the statement. \'With that kind of education, I\'m not surprised about the low number of mages,\' he thought, remembering they numbered one thousand only.

As the bell finally resounded after three hours of boring class, they patiently waited for the students to leave.

Noticing him, Elysia stopped in her tracks, causing her green hair to flutter and revealing her pointed ears.

"How can I help you?" She asked curiously, caressing her beautiful earring with her graceful fingers.

"I need your help to borrow a material from your family," Adam said, unwilling to waste time in pointless chatter.

"What\'s in for me?" She answered, her interest piqued.

"You can consider me your apprentice. I\'ll help you become an adept in five years and you won\'t have to invest any resources in me except the material." He offered, extending his hand towards her.

There were only one hundred adepts in the world, and becoming one was her dream. She could then fight against her brother for the family\'s head position and climb her race\'s societal ladder. More importantly, she wouldn\'t have to suffer from her brother\'s arranged marriage propositions every year.

Her eyes glowed with ambition as she asked, "How can I trust you?"

"I offered the same deal to Beatrix, Thaddeus, and Vikram. If I don\'t deliver on my promise, I\'ll have four mages hunting me down." He responded, shrugging. If he really wanted to bamboozle them, he would have said twenty years instead of five.

In that time frame, he was sure he could become an adept himself, at the very least, if not an arcanist.

Elysia nodded, understanding it was foolish to pull something so big on four teachers as it equated to becoming an enemy to four countries.

"I need to borrow an elemental-neutral tier-seven ancestral grimoire for a day. I\'ll return it in pristine condition." He finally revealed what he was after, causing her eyes to bulge in shock.

That was the item she had been trying to get to entice him to become her disciple in the first place!

With their long lifespans, it wasn\'t uncommon to find those grimoires among the most notable families of her race. However, the grimoire they possessed was a bit special.

Instead of focusing on nature, following their birth affinity, it literally went against it!