CHAPTER 50: 47: THE FORBIDDEN GROVE.

Edward felt a little uneasy with Selene still holding his hand. Her touch wasn’t firm, exactly—just steady, warm, grounding. But that somehow made it worse. His pulse fluttered embarrassingly fast, and he kept telling himself it was because of the lingering weakness in his limbs... not because Selene Verdigris was sitting so close that her shoulder brushed his every time she shifted.

The tingling sensation spreading from her hand up his arm was... distracting. Too distracting.

Trying to pry his mind away from it, he looked toward the three silhouettes sitting a short distance away, their heads bowed together in a tight circle.

"What do you think they’re discussing so seriously?"

Selene opened her eyes and followed his gaze. Her expression, as usual, remained unreadably calm—though Edward thought he caught a flicker of something sharper before she smoothed it away.

She shrugged lightly.

"Maybe how we’re going to go back home."

Edward frowned. "Are we lost?"

Selene shook her head. "Not at all. Even I know where we are. It will be easy to find the way back to the capital."

He gave her a slow nod, though her tone was far too casual.

She’s not telling me everything.

Still... it wasn’t like pressing her would help. Not when he couldn’t even lift himself off the ground a few minutes ago.

He looked at the glowing panel next to him.

[ Name: Edward Myrvale]

[Class: Femininity (Awakened)]

[ Current Objective: Form a bong with Selene Verdigris (73% completion) ]

[ Additional Objectives: Form a bond with the rest of the Nexuses. ]

[ Passive effects: Allure, Femboy Aura ]

[ Active Skills: Catwalk step Lv.1, Waltz of charm Lv.1 ]

He stared at the word "awakened" again.

It had changed.

What was an awakening?

Edward had briefly heard about it during his classes.

It was the process of awakening the ability to control and detect mana.

Basically the process of turning into a mage.

Edward felt a strange prickle in his chest.

He was a mage now.

He would be able to do... magic.

A strange feeling washed over him—light, unreal, almost weightless. Becoming a mage was something nobles trained their entire lives for. Something people studied, sacrificed for, prepared for.

And he’d just... accidentally done it?

"Would I even be able to use magic properly...?" he muttered without meaning to.

Selene’s grip tightened. "You’ll figure it out eventually."

Edward jerked in surprise, heat creeping up his neck.

Ah. I said that out loud.

"Magic responds to people," she continued softly. "Since you managed to use it instinctively... you’ll be fine."

Edward nodded.

Internally, he was a little disappointed.

It was the system who did it for me...

[ You’re welcome! ]

The panel chimed cheerfully.

He ignored it, and focused on letting Selene continue... whatever she was doing.

This was all to confusing.

Damnit!

He struggled with the urge to pull his hair out from frustration.

It took Selene a few more minutes to complete her task. She slowly let go of Edward hand, and stood up from where she was sitting.

"Try moving your body now"

Listening to her, and suppressing the panic he felt at the thought of not being able to control his own body, he pressed his legs to the ground, managing to shakily stand up.

He swayed for a moment from where he stood, and when it looked like he was about to fall, Selene quickly stepped forward and supported him.

She was smiling.

"Thats better."

Edward nodded.

After taking a few moments to orient himself, both of them walked towards Aria and the rest, who was still furiously discussing something.

The moment they reached within earshot distance though, they stopped.

Calen visibly relaxed the moment he saw Edward on his feet. Rowan—the stranger with the auburn hair—watched him with curious intensity, like Edward was a puzzle missing several pieces. Aria scooted aside and tapped the empty space next to her.

He took a seat in the circle, Selene did too, gracefully lowering herself to the ground to take a seat.

"So how are you feeling?" Aria asked.

"I can walk now, so there’s that..." Edward murmured, a little conscious about all the attention he was currently getting.

She nodded with a smile, then turned her attention back to the group, addressing everyone this time.

"So now that he’s better, we’ll discuss how well move forward from here on out. As the crown princess, I will be taking command of this makeshift adventuring party, got it?"

Everyone nodded.

"Great, the first thing on our agenda will be planning a route to get further away from the forbidden grove."

Edward tilted his head.

"Forbidden grove?"

It was Rowan who answered him.

"The forbidden grove is a forest that has an abundance of mana, unlike in our country, most of the creatures here are mana beasts. So it’s best for us to get away from here as soon as we can."

Edward wasn’t exactly convinced at the vague explanation, sure, mana beasts sounded scary and all, but he was sure that there was something more he was supposed to know.

He staring at Rowan, indicating that he wanted more information.

Rowan reluctantly gave in, not for the reasons Edward thought he had.

"The forbidden grove is also cursed by an ancient spell. If you enter that forest without a proper party and an excellent navigator, you’re as good as dead."

Edward felt the blood drain from his face.

A shiver crawled up his spine, and for a moment he was afraid his knees might give out again. Selene must have sensed it, because her hand brushed lightly against his back—so subtle he almost thought he imagined it. But it grounded him all the same.

Aria leaned forward, elbows on her knees, eyes sharp even in the dim light. "The curse is old. Older than the founding of the capital. The Grove used to be sacred land, until... something happened. No one agrees on what. Some say a deity died there, others say a mage king broke a taboo. Regardless, the forest became unpredictable. People wander inside and never come out."