Chapter 59: Caleb

Chapter 59: Chapter 59: Caleb

Judith arrived with Caleb a little past six, the boy trailing half a step behind her with the particular awkwardness of a teenager unsure what to do with his hands in an unfamiliar house.

"Jason, Novaria, this is Caleb."

"Nice to meet you," Caleb said, polite but clearly sizing up the situation.

Jason let his Perception settle over him briefly, more habit than suspicion at this point.

[Caleb Watson]

[Age: 16]

[Cultivation: First Level, Late Stage]

[Condition: Stable]

"Not bad," Jason said, genuinely impressed. "Late Stage First Level at sixteen. That’s a decent pace, kid."

Caleb blinked. "You can tell that just by looking?"

"Something like that."

Jason waved him toward the table before the question could go further.

"Sit. Food’s almost ready. You planning on becoming a Hunter with that talent?"

Caleb hesitated, glancing at his mother.

"Haven’t decided."

Judith laughed quietly as she sat down. "He’s been avoiding that question for months."

"Because everyone keeps asking it," Caleb said.

"Fair enough."

Jason returned to the kitchen and brought out another dish. "Then let’s start with something easier. How’s school?"

Caleb looked slightly relieved. "Fine."

"Fine?"

"Yeah. It’s mostly boring."

Novaria smiled. "What are you studying?"

"General cultivation theory. History. Combat fundamentals. Mana control. A bit of array theory."

"Array theory?" Jason asked.

"Basic stuff. Nothing complicated."

"Do you like it?"

Caleb shrugged. "It’s interesting. Just not enough to spend my whole life doing it."

"Then what would you spend your life doing?"

Caleb stared down at the empty bowl in front of him. "I don’t know."

Jason nodded. "That’s probably the most honest answer you’ve given tonight."

Judith smiled. "He’s sixteen, Jason."

"Exactly. Sixteen-year-olds shouldn’t have their entire lives planned out."

Caleb looked at him with faint surprise. "You didn’t?"

"Absolutely not."

Novaria laughed. "He still doesn’t."

Jason pointed at her. "See? This is what I’m dealing with."

"You’re doing fine."

"I’ll remember you said that."

---

The soup arrived a few minutes later, steaming gently as Jason ladled it into everyone’s bowls.

Caleb took one bite. Then another.

"This is incredible."

Jason grinned. "You can say that after you’ve finished the bowl."

"You made the noodles yourself?"

"Yes I did. And it took most of my day."

"But it was worth it, though."

Judith shook her head. "Don’t encourage him."

"It’s just noodles."

"That’s what he’ll say now. Give him another compliment and he’ll start making them every day."

Jason looked offended. "Everyday is kinda outrageous. I was thinking twice a week."

That earned a small laugh from everyone, Caleb’s shoulders finally loosening into something closer to comfortable.

For a while, the conversation stayed comfortably ordinary. Caleb talked about school, complaining about one of his instructors who assigned written reports after every practical session. Judith complained that Caleb complained too much. Novaria asked about his classmates, and he answered with the particular half-interested detail of a teenager who hadn’t yet realized adults genuinely wanted to hear the answer.

Eventually, the conversation drifted back toward cultivation.

"What exactly do they teach you once you’ve awakened?" Jason asked.

"The basics." Caleb smiled. "Mana circulation first. Then body reinforcement. After that, basic combat."

"What kind?"

"Hand-to-hand mostly. Stance work. Footwork. Breaking balance. How to reinforce your muscles without wasting mana."

Jason nodded. "That’s actually a decent foundation."

"Our instructor says most First Level cultivators make the same mistake."

"Which is?"

"They think cultivation makes them strong enough that technique doesn’t matter."

Jason smiled. "Your instructor’s more right than you’d imagine."

"You agree?"

"Completely. The ability to refine essence makes a bad fighter stronger. It doesn’t automatically make him a good fighter."

Caleb leaned forward slightly. "So what matters more?"

"Depends on the person. But at First Level? Footwork, timing, and controlling your breathing are probably more important than flashy techniques."

"Breathing?"

"You’ll understand when you start fighting seriously. People panic when they’re hurt. Their breathing gets messy. Then their mana circulation gets messy. Then everything falls apart."

Caleb nodded slowly. "That’s not something they really explain at school."

"They’re teaching you how to survive your first year. I’m talking about surviving your tenth."

Novaria listened quietly, occasionally adding something when the conversation touched on formal training, her own years of combat education clearly informing half of what she offered.

---

Caleb asked about weapons next. "Which would you choose?"

Jason thought about it. "For a beginner? A staff."

"Why?"

"Reach. Simple movements. Good defensive options. You don’t need to be stronger than someone if you can stop them from reaching you."

Caleb seemed to turn that over seriously. "And after that?"

"After you learn the fundamentals, choose whatever suits you."

"What about a sword?"

"There’s nothing wrong with swords."

"Then why not use one yourself?"

Jason smiled. "That’s simple, actually. It’s because I like spears."

Caleb laughed, some of the earlier tension from the seizure he hadn’t witnessed yet, and wouldn’t for a while longer, fully gone from his shoulders now.

The conversation wandered again. School became teachers. Teachers became training grounds. Training grounds became cultivation ranks.

Caleb eventually asked the question that had been sitting beneath everything else. "What’s it actually like being a Hunter?"

Jason paused, considering his words properly before answering. "Hard. It’s freedom. It’s money, a lot of it, actually. It’s danger. Most times it’s all three at once."

"Would you recommend it?"

"To someone talented in cultivation, yeah, I would." He glanced at Caleb. "Only if you understand that talent doesn’t protect you."

Caleb went quiet for a moment. "People make it sound like reaching First Level is the hard part."

"It isn’t."

"Then what is?"

"Everything after. You have to train. Turn that talent into actual strength first."

Novaria gave Jason an amused look. "You sound like an old man."

"I believe I’ve earned such a title."

"You’ve barely earned adulthood."

"That’s hurtful."

Caleb laughed again, Judith shaking her head with a fond, exasperated smile, and the dinner settled fully into the easy, unguarded rhythm of people who’d long since stopped treating each other like strangers.