"Ummm, who were you talking to?" Father asked, stretching the word, looking around the room. Clara asked as well. "Yeah, we heard you talking. Thought you were alone, aren't you?"

"Oh, that?" Jack dismissed the question. "I wasn't talking to anyone. Just Merhhh."

A goat suddenly came out of the corner, rushing to his legs. He bent down and pet the goat. "It's just Merhh. He's been troubling me about treats."

"Merhh!" Clara yelled out, running toward the animal. She cuddled the goat named Merhh as though it was her own pet. "What's he doing here with you?"

As she continued to cuddle, she said phrases like, "Merhh, you're so cute!"

"Meeeeeh!" the goat bleated.

"Wow, awwwn, he is sooo cute!" Rose said happily.

She came over and began petting the white goat's head. "Wow, he really is cute!" She rested her head on the goat's belly, rubbing it gently. Never knew Rose would be an animal person.

"Yeah, that little cutie has been asking for treats all day," Jack replied. He opened a lockbox, bringing out treats (carrots) for Merhh, and the goat looked happy.

"Meeeeeeh!" Merhh bleated in satisfaction.

"Awwwn, he is sooo cute!" Rose said happily.

"You find goats cute?" I asked her, surprised.

"Well, durr, look at him! So adorable, I just want to snuggle him."

I looked at her. For someone who didn't care about anyone except herself, now... Maybe she did have a heart and wasn't just some spoiled brat.

"What, I can't find animals adorable now?" she challenged.

"Suit yourself," I said jokingly.

She came over and began petting the white goat's head. "Wow, he really is cute and soft," she gushed. She took a big sniff and said aloud, without realizing how weird she looked, "He smells good too, wow!" She rested her head on the goat's belly, rubbing it gently. I never thought Rose would be an animal person.

"Yeah, that little cutie has been asking for treats all day," Jack replied. He opened a small lockbox and pulled out a few carrots. Merhh's tail flicked excitedly as Jack handed one to Clara, who crouched to feed Merhh.

"Here you go, you greedy fluffball," he teased.

"Can I feed him, pretty please?" Rose asked eagerly.

"Sure, why not," he said willingly.

Rose immediately broke a carrot in half and fed the goat as well. Merhh bleated softly, clearly enjoying the attention.

Jack watched them, smiling faintly. "And you must be the Manomancer, huh?" he said suddenly, turning his gaze to Father.

Father blinked. "That's correct."

The news about Father being a Manomancer really does spread fast. Even this man knows?

Jack continued, sounding like he was in a good mood, as he made a gesture with his finger. "Now, counting you would make it the second Manomancer I have ever met now."

"Oh, really?" Father looked intrigued, clearly wanting to know who the first was.

"The first was my brother.he said prodly

Wow, he had a brother who is a Manomancer, I thought to myself .

"That's nice. I would love to speak with him, maybe know his field of study and ohh yeah, the class or set he finished," Father chuckled. "Always good for me to meet a fellow Manomancer."

Rose wasn't impressed, as I could see from her face while she pet the goat. She asked bluntly, "So where is your brother?"

"Well, he's dead unfortunately," Jack replied, his face darkening slightly.

Father's chuckling stopped. "Oh, my, I'm sorry to hear that."

"Nah, don't worry." He waved it away as though begging us not to feel sorry for him. "If I knew one thing about my brother, he wouldn't want people to be all sad that he's gone. He got to do things he loved, and Manomancy was one of them."

"If you don't mind me asking," Jack asked, changing the subject, "How long did it take you to get into the academy?"

Father replied, "I got in on my first try."

"Wow, first try?" Jack said, his tone genuinely impressed.

"You're really talented, Mr," Jack continued. "It took my brother five times until he got in on his sixth."

Was I hearing him right? Was entering the academy that difficult? I mean, I bet I could enroll easily. I mean, six was quite a lot, I said inwardly.

"Wow, six times," I said, the words finally slipping out.

"Yeah, I know. I used to make fun of him back then."

"Really? Well, that's not very nice," Clara added lightly.

Jack, looking shy, scratched the back of his head. "I used to be a rascal back when I was little," he chuckled, feeling he was remembering the good old days. "But even during those days, one thing was clear: no matter how much I made fun of him, my brother would still go prepare, was still proud, until he finally got in."

"Wow, your brother sounds like an amazing person," Rose said aloud, petting Merhh.

"He was." Jack looked up, like he was remembering old memories. "I still remember what he usually said. 'Jack, no matter what anyone tells you, always work hard. It really does pay off. I'm going to be the best Manomancer alive and win the Nobel Medallion.

"Just like you, Dad," I said, as Jack looked at me, then Father, and smiled.

Jack chuckled. "He was such a dreamer. He dedicated his whole life trying to find ways to achieve that one single dream."

I didn't really get him. Why spend so much of your life on such things? But I guess only dreamers could understand each other.

"I'm sure you agree with that," Jack said, prompting Father.

Father replied, "We humans can dream, as it's the sign that we still believe in ourselves to do much more. But the Nobel Medallion. It puts so much stress on those who dream about having it." Father said this aloud, making the room feel cold and heavy with air. "An award that requires one must show the extraordinary amongst his extraordinary peers." father stared at me and then at morad then back to jack

"I'm sure my brother would have agreed with that" Jack said.

Father replied, "From what I have heard you say of your brother, he really sounds like a wonderful example of a Manomancer."

"But like most dreams, they usually hold nightmares, and my brother would come to realize that," Jack said, the warmth leaving his voice.

Jack chuckled sadly. "Too bad the Mage Council stripped him of his Manomancy license and sent him to central."

"Ohhh," was the only word Father could say, as it was clearly a very sticky situation.

As I could see in father eyes the gravity of what jack said what could your brother have done to lead him to central

Jack sighed heavily. "Don't know to be honest. They said he didn't have the... right... ethics." His tone shifted, becoming colder now. "They said he loved his work too much. Imagine that—being told you're too interested in the craft you live for."

The air in the small shack grew heavier, the silence broken only by the soft chewing sounds of Merhh.

"My brother never came back the same. He didn't even look at a Manomancy book again, as though the brother I knew was gone. As he died few years after."

"That's terrible" rose said.

"Central, hmmm. The only reason a Manomancer would be taken to Central," Father frowned, replying carefully, "would be if he broke one of the Hippocratic Oaths. As a Manomancer, that oath is taken extremely seriously by Central."

"Father, what's so bad about going to Central? What oath could Jack's brother have broken to be taken there and stripped of his license?" I asked, confused by the severity of the reaction.

Father turned, facing my direction. "Well, you see, being a Manomancer, you typically get a lot of freedom to explore, but that also means you must adhere to certain rules. And of all, the Hippocratic Oath is extremely important. Once you are taken to Central, you are now in the hands of the Order."

"The Order? The main enforcers of Central's laws?" I confirmed.

"But that's not to fully condemn the Mage Council, as restrictions exist for a reason. Some research crosses boundaries that should never be crossed."

Jack's grin was thin and humorless. "Boundaries? Huh. Where exactly do we draw that line? At self-judgment? At someone's preference? At creation itself? I call it progress. It isn't something that should be stopped," Jack said.

I kind of agreed with him, even though I wasn't sure what his brother did. But if the world I came from wasn't bold in making progress, we wouldn't have gotten this far.

Father's eyes narrowed. "Progress without restraint leads only to ruin."

"Maybe," Jack said with a shrug. "Or maybe restraint is what builds a progress of ruins."

The silence that followed was uncomfortable.

"Maaah!" the goat sounded. Merhh bleated again, as if sensing the tension.

"Alright, alright!" Clara cut in, clapping her hands once, forcing a smile. "Let's not debate philosophy tonight, please. We should get going before it gets any later."

Jack chuckled, low and rough. "Fair enough. I'll hitch my carriage and take you to Granny Maera's."

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