The next morning.
When I entered the small gate room inside the Valerion mansion, I felt a little nervous.
It was not a large, splendid long-distance gate.
They said it was a short experimental gate that connected the mansion’s indoor training hall to an annex.
Even so, I could feel faint mana waves from the magic circle engraved into the floor and the crystal pillar erected at its center.
In the past, my stomach would have started churning the moment I stepped inside.
But today was different.
There was discomfort.
But it was bearable.
In Elysia’s arms, I slowly drew up my demonic power.
A very thin layer of silvery-pink energy.
Rather than sending it outward like flame, I let it seep into the tips of my fur.
As if I were draping an invisible, delicate cloth over my entire body.
The mana waves touched me.
For an instant, there was a slight sting.
But unlike before, they did not burrow deep inside.
They flowed along the film of demonic power as if sliding over it.
‘……It works.’
My eyes widened slightly.
It was not completely comfortable.
But it was not enough to make me go limp right away like before.
Elysia asked carefully.
“Haku, are you all right?”
I nodded.
For now, I was fine.
Leopold spoke briefly.
“We begin.”
The gate activated.
Blue light flowed along the magic circle, and radiance spread from within the crystal pillar.
A sensation as though my body were floating lightly.
The feeling of mana folding space.
At that moment, the film of demonic power around me trembled.
Reflexively, I tried to put more strength into it.
But then I heard Grayden’s voice.
“Do not block it. Let it flow.”
I changed my thinking as if gritting my teeth.
Do not block it.
Do not push it away.
Just let it pass.
Hold on to the demonic power deep within me, and leave the surface soft and loose.
The next moment, my vision wavered slightly.
And we were on the other side of the gate.
“…….”
I stayed still in Elysia’s arms.
My stomach felt a little unsettled.
But I did not feel like I was going to throw up.
My head did not hurt either.
My body felt a little languid, but it was not the limpness of motion sickness.
Elysia looked down at me, holding her breath.
“Haku?”
I slowly lifted my head.
Then I let out a small cry.
‘I’m okay.’
I really was okay.
Relief spread across Elysia’s face.
“Thank goodness……”
Lucius looked at his record board and said,
“Compared to his previous reaction, this is far more stable.
There is a drop in vitality immediately after transfer, but almost no mana collision response.”
Mina immediately held out warm water.
“Lord Haku, please have just a little.”
I lapped up a bit of water.
The demonic power inside me was still trembling faintly, but it soon stabilized.
Grayden nodded as if satisfied.
“It was good that you let it flow instead of raising a wall.”
Leopold also spoke in a low voice.
“Then transfer to Stellarium should be manageable. However, consecutive transfers are forbidden. We must include rest in between.”
I nodded.
That much was enough.
I felt a little proud of myself.
Before, I had been a baby fox who got motion sick in front of magical devices, but now I could endure a short gate.
It was a small change.
But to me, it was quite large.
Elysia hugged me tightly.
“Well done, Haku.”
I turned my gaze away for no reason.
Being praised made me a little embarrassed.
But I did not dislike it.
Truly.
The next day, Elysia told Iris about the gate test results.
As expected, Iris’s eyes lit up.
“So Haku did not block the mana waves, but let them flow past him?”
I stopped chewing my bread.
As expected, she grasped the core of it right away.
Elysia nodded.
“Grandfather advised us to do that. It seemed like that method suited Haku too.”
Iris fell into thought for a moment, then said,
“In that case, transfer to Stellarium may be possible. However, he will need a stabilization space immediately after passing through the gate.”
“Father said the same thing.”
Iris looked at me.
“Haku, on the condition that you do not overexert yourself…… I do not think there will be any major problem getting you to Stellarium.”
I slowly nodded.
I was a little nervous, but now I no longer needed only to avoid it.
I had not completely overcome gates.
But I had taken the first step.
And that first step was making the path to Asteria’s city a little more real.
And so, until the day before departure, I practiced getting used to gates.
At first, I grew rather tense just passing through a short-distance gate once.
Every time the gate opened, the surrounding mana warped as if folding space, and those waves brushed over my body.
In the past, my stomach would have churned at that moment, and it would have felt as though all the fur on my body were standing on end.
But now it was different.
Little by little, I learned how to wrap my body in demonic power like a thin film.
Do not block it, but let it flow.
Do not clash with the mana.
Quietly hold the demonic power inside me, and keep the outside soft and loose.
As Grandfather Grayden had said, it was the feeling of deflecting a sword to the side instead of receiving it head-on.
At first, every time I passed through a gate, my ears grew slightly muffled and the tip of my tail tingled.
But with each repetition, twice, then three times, that sensation gradually decreased.
‘……I’m getting used to it quickly again.’
As soon as we arrived on the other side of the gate, I blinked in Elysia’s arms.
It was definitely strange.
I already knew that the more I used demonic power, the more it felt as if my body was regaining its memory and growing accustomed to it,
but I had not expected even gate adaptation to become this quick.
This time was the same.
At first, it had felt like I was forcibly wrapping myself in a film of demonic power,
but at some point, the moment the mana waves of the gate drew near, my body reacted first.
A thin energy gathered at the tips of my fur, and the mana slid past along that surface.
It was as if my body had found the method on its own.
‘I didn’t know this would help with control practice too.’
Making flames, knitting with my furry paws, and letting the gate’s mana flow past me.
They all seemed like different types of training, but in the end, the core was the same.
It was not about how strongly I used demonic power, but how delicately I handled it.
I felt as though I was learning that little by little.
In the final test the day before departure, I passed through the short-distance gate and felt almost no motion sickness.
There was a slight languor, but after I drank a little water and rested in Elysia’s arms, it quickly subsided.
Leopold watched for a long moment before quietly nodding.
“At this level, transfer should be possible.”
At those words, a little tension left Elysia’s shoulders.
“Will it really be all right?”
“We need only avoid consecutive transfers.
We will allow sufficient rest time in between, and if Haku shows any discomfort, we stop immediately.
Under those conditions, I believe it will be safe.”
I nodded.
I was fine.
This time, I was truly fine.
Grayden also laughed softly.
“Not bad. Even while passing through the gate, your power did not flare out.
At first, your body tried to push the mana away, but now you know how to let it flow.”
Those words were praise.
I turned my gaze away for no reason.
Praise was still a little embarrassing.
Lucius flipped through the preparation documents and said,
“The travel route will be through the central gate terminal at Lumina Port once,
then rest at the midway point, and afterward enter through the Stellarium gate.
Asteria’s side says they have prepared a stabilization room.”
Isolde looked at Elysia and me with worried eyes.
“Do not push yourselves too hard. In travel, returning safely is more important than arriving.”
“Yes, Mother.”
Elysia bowed her head.
Camilla held out a small cloth pouch in front of me.
“Haku, take this with you.”
I tilted my head.
Inside the cloth pouch were a small folded handkerchief and a little decorative cord.
Camilla said with a slightly shy expression,
“I chose them. When you travel, unfamiliar places might make you uncomfortable……
so I thought having something with a familiar scent might help.”
I paused for a moment.
Camilla was truly unpredictable, yet sometimes she struck right at the heart.
I tapped the cloth pouch with my front paw and nodded.
It meant thank you.
Camilla’s face brightened.
“And don’t forget my present.”
So she had not forgotten that after all.
Instead of sighing, I gave a small wag of my tail.
Mina had already finished preparing Haku’s exclusive travel bag.
A small blanket.
A water bowl.
Soft bread and dried fruit.
Ingredients for herbal tea to drink after magical transfer.
A brush.
A small pouch for storing fur.
And the scarf and pajamas I had made were packed separately by Elysia.
It was not yet the season to use a scarf, but Elysia said she wanted to bring it.
“Because Haku made it for me.”
At those words, I could no longer object.
The morning of departure.
A carriage was prepared in front of the Valerion mansion.
We had decided to travel to the gate terminal by ordinary carriage.
A magical carriage would have been faster, but Leopold had judged that there was no need to burden my body from before we even departed.
I was held in Elysia’s arms.
Elysia wore a traveling coat and had a sword at her waist.
On her chest, the Double Crown badge gleamed faintly.
Leopold looked at Elysia one last time.
“You go in the name of Valerion, but this journey is also a path for you to learn.
Do not be too tense, but do not be careless either.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
Isolde embraced Elysia.
“Take care of yourself. Haku too.”
I bowed my head slightly.
Lucius handed Elysia a small envelope.
“Letters of recommendation and contact letters you can use if needed. Asteria’s side is unlikely to make things difficult for you, but just in case.”
As expected, his preparations were thorough.
Grayden looked at me and spoke briefly.
“Haku.”
I pricked up my ears.
“The stranger the place, the more you should conserve your strength. Do not use it to show off. Use it only when necessary.”
I nodded.
Camilla waved until the very end.
“Sister, Haku! Have a safe trip!”
Mina also bowed quietly.
“Please return safely, my lady. You as well, Lord Haku.”
Before getting into the carriage, I looked back at the Valerion mansion once.
When I first arrived, it had been nothing but unfamiliar.
But now, it felt like a place to return to.
It was a little strange.
I had not even been in this world for very long, yet I already had a place like that.
Elysia gently stroked my back.
“Let’s go, Haku.”
I nodded.