*Vacation residence of the royal family of Hanneheim. Three days had passed since the incident with the children. The king had literally moved heaven and earth for their well-being. Fortunately, the unexpected arrival of Dagur, alias "June," had been of great help. Now, the children were playing in the courtyard of the villa, closely watched. Well, playing was a generous term.*
"You missed, you were so close," *said Cal.*
*The two children were literally fighting with steel swords, exchanging blows without holding back, sometimes causing bloodshed. The only rule was "no lethal blows." Despite this, the king struggled to accept that his only son engaged in such practices. Sitting on the terrace, anxiously watching the training area, he couldn't help but worry.*
"Jemy & Cal have really regained their colors since that fateful day," *Ambrosius said with a satisfied smile.*
"Do you think so? I mostly feel that something has changed in them," *said the worried king.*
"What are you talking about? They are still the same. I mean, physically, they are still our children..."
"No... I mean, look at them..."
*A glance at their faces, and one could see that they loved what they were doing. Seeing the smile on his son's face, Ambrosius raised an eyebrow.*
"It looks like..."
"Yes. It looks like their mother when they fight," *Jeremy said, crossing his fingers.* "They've never enjoyed martial activities this much before."
"I suppose it was our fault for trying to raise them as normal humans and not as Killicks," *said Ambrosius.*
"Are you crazy? Risking revealing the secret of our family? Must I remind you what we had to do to my sister to preserve our secret?" *said the king in a suddenly serious tone.*
*The two men stared at each other for a long time, tension escalating. But it disappeared abruptly when a knife landed right in the middle of the table.*
"Wow," *Ambrosius exclaimed surprised.*
"Sorry," *Dagur shouted from a distance.* "It's mine. Can you give it back, Your Majesty?" *he added with a smile.*
*King Hanneman retrieved the dagger from his table and stared at Dagur.*
"Do you trust this man, or whatever he is?"
"Trust has never been a consideration. I judge only by the actions taken."
"If that's the case, the matter is quickly resolved. He saved our two sons. And your little girl. His niece."
"That's where you're wrong," *the king continued.* "He did save them, but his actions had ulterior motives. I owe him, and he knows it. He's waiting for me to do something for him in return."
"Ha, are you telling me he's a man of intrigue? In that case, he's clearly similar to Queen Jenan, isn't he?" *the nonchalant prime minister commented.*
*The king threw the dagger violently towards Dagur, who stared back with an almost arrogant smile. Before the dagger reached his face, it was stopped in mid-air by Jemy, who then launched into a combo against Cal, who promptly evaded.*
"At least, they share a character trait," *Jeremy said.*
"He said he would take care of our children for now. I suppose we don't have a choice."
*At that moment, Jeremiah was trying to reach Cal, who kept dodging. If he couldn't dodge, he parried with his sword and counterattacked with a punch charged with Efrat. Sharp but not too violent blows. That's what he had been doing for a while, and it had made Jemy angry. The young boy had lost his rhythm and become an easy prey to his cousin's combinations, who defeated him by throwing sand in his eyes before thrusting his shoulder.*
"J... JEMY," *the king shouted.*
*He was about to intervene, but Cal held him back by the wrist and shook his head. In different circumstances, he would have gone to check himself, but he refrained. Cal, on the other hand, turned to "June" with a smile on his face.*
"Did you see that, Lady June? I beat Jemy with such ease; it was like a true warrior."
*June crouched down and patted his head with a smile.*
"Yes, I saw that."
"Lies," *growled Jeremiah on the ground.* "Your movements were nothing but cowardice."
*The young boy gradually removed the sword from his shoulder and stood up. Anger was evident on his face, especially since his fangs and claws were out. Seeing this, Cal got into a defensive stance, fists clenched and ready for a confrontation.*
"What, you want more?"
*But June stepped between the two kids.*
"Calm down, both of you. Jemy, instead of blaming him, you should try to understand why you lost."
"He cheated," *accused Jemy.*
"Jeremiah, there's no such thing as cheating in a battle, especially not a life-or-death one. In the end, there are only two types of people: those who are alive and those who are not."
*Jemy wanted to argue but refrained from doing so after hearing those words.*
"Your opponents won't always be honorable and fair, know that."
"Haha, I defeated you fair and square," *mocked Cal.*
"And you, Cal, it's good to be clever, but cunning has limited use on the battlefield."
*The young boy's face darkened as June stared at him with intensity and a piercing gaze.*
"A Killick must know how to defeat their opponents fairly, especially on their own turf. Winning is good, but it's not enough to win. You have to dominate them, strip them of their pride and what makes them fighters. They must understand that they never had a chance and never did from the start. That's how you win as a Killick," *he said, raising his voice. Jemy listened while the tension rose.*
"Sorry for raising my voice; I might have scared you. I sometimes talk to myself, haha..."
"Ahem, yes," *Jeremiah replied, still intimidated.*
"Yes. By the way, did you hear me, Jemy?! This advice is especially for you," *he said, turning in his direction.*
"I will protect our family and our kingdom; I swear."
"Words, just words, and more words. Show me how you're going to do it."
*The young boy smiled, and a faint, vibrant blue aura enveloped him. At the same time, Cal did the same, but his aura was much denser.*
"Oh, you want to test me already? Haha, very funny."
"Are you afraid, Lady June? If I beat you, will you agree to have dinner with me?" *Cal asked.*
"Thanks for the offer, but before fighting me..."
*A growl was heard. In the shadow of June appeared a large three-eyed creature.*
"You'll have to get past Fryr," *he said, smiling.*
*From afar, the king continued to observe the scene with the prime minister.*
"When are you going to tell your son that June is a man?"
"I'd love to, but I want to see his face when he learns it himself, haha."
*The two children got ready and started to fight with Dagur's nocturnal beast. Dagur watched them attentively with a piercing gaze. Meanwhile, in the royal capital, Phina, who had returned with the queen, had finished exploring the city's shops and stalls. However, her interest lay beyond commerce. it was Zoldia, the mage of the Hanneman royal family. Intrigued by his magic, Phina asked the queen for his place of residence and headed to the residential quarter accompanied by two men, Juroi and Brett.
"You can wait for me here; I won't be long," *Phina said.*
*Brett wanted to object, but Juroi held him back with a reassuring smile. She gave him a somewhat disdainful look and entered the seemingly run-down building in front of her. Phina had dressed simply for this outing, wearing black fabric pants and heeled boots, a red top with a corset, and her trusty fur coat. She had tied her hair back, and her gaze was sharp, even intimidating. Inside the crowded inn-like building:*
"A royal mage hiding in such a shabby place quite unexpected."
"Can I help you, young lady?" *offered a very amiable old man.*
*At that moment, a kind of dark mist lightly emanated from her eyes as if she were "scanning the building." She turned her head and looked upstairs. A pure blue aura manifested there, and a smirking smile appeared on her face.*
"That won't be necessary, old man," *she said sharply.* "I've found what I was looking for."
*She made her way to the fourth and top floor of the inn, which could just as well have been the attic because the place was filled with all sorts of objects. The fourth floor of this inn served as the workshop for the kingdom's only mage. Most of the items there were generally alchemical equipment, test tubes, rocks, and many precious gemstones. Even for Phina, who was wealthy herself, the quality of the materials impressed her.*
"It seems that the king spends without restraint on magical research."
*There was even a forge, an unusual sight for a mage. Phina continued to venture into the workshop with a fascination she only expressed within her heart.*
"Zoldia, show yourself," *she shouted.* "I know you're here."
"Who's there?" *he replied, panicked.* "Anisse, is that you? I've told you before; the king pays the rent. No need to disturb me; I'm in the middle of an experiment."
*Phina managed to make her way through the clutter and reached where the man she sought was. He held two test tubes – one containing what seemed to be blood and the other a blue-colored liquid.*
"Probably a magical rock," *Phina thought.*
*On the table was a rat strapped with belts. Zoldia applied drops of blood to its throat and the blue liquid. The animal convulsed and mutated into a fleshy monster, growing rapidly. Straps were soon inadequate, and Zoldia applied the blue liquid. The creature paused for a moment.*
"Did it work? Did it work hahaaha. I am a ge..."
*He barely finished his sentence when the strap snapped, and the rat transformed into a bipedal monster with claws, now the size of a human child. Zoldia then applied his blue liquid again. The creature froze.*
"What... What..."
*He stammered for a while as he felt his heartbeat again. He turned around and faced the person who had just saved his life – a young girl just a few inches taller than him, looking at him with an intimidating face. Shortly after cleaning up the mess herself, she invited the young man to sit on his only couch, which he did, crossing his legs.*
"You... What did you do?" *he asked.*
"I saved your life, for one," *she replied.* "Phina Gottwald is the name, one of the main shareholders of the Commercial Guild of the same name."
"Oh? And what does a merchant want with a simple mage like me?"
"Well, my friend, it turns out that I am also a mage."
*A large halo of dark mist surrounded the young girl, covering the entire room before taking the form of various animals – birds, snakes, horses – swirling around them before returning inside her. Phina crossed her legs and joined her fingers.*
"Have you ever heard of the Azuros cult?"
*Hearing this name, Ferry Zoldia immediately jumped and tried to cover the girl's mouth before covering his own.*
"Unfortunately, what are you doing?" *he said.* "If you say words like that out loud..." *he murmured.* "We don't know who might be listening."
"Don't worry. I am part of that cult."
*Upon hearing this, Ferry's face darkened. The tension became heavy, and he took a step back, grabbing his mage staff and grimoire.*
"Tell the grandmaster that I will never participate in his project. The Killicks may have massacred my kin and forced me into hiding, but the cult is even worse. They manipulated me, exploiting my beliefs to commit atrocious acts in the name of the greater good."
*The circles of incantations stabilized around him, and his gaze became serious. It seemed as if the coward from earlier was suddenly filled with courage.*
"King Hanneman is not a hypocrite; he genuinely cares for his people. Not once has he sought to use my magic for military purposes. I will protect this kingdom at all cost".
*Then he cast a spell*
Regina Blaze."
*Like a blaster shot, the lightning bolt charged straight towards the young mage. "Regina Blaze," a powerful lightning spell used to bring down castles. The fact that Ferry controlled and dosed the spell sufficiently to target only the person in front of him spoke volumes of his magical prowess. However, if Phina had been an ordinary mage...*
"Bon appétit," *she said, smirking.*
*SHe extended her arm as the lightning spell struck her head-on. Lightning continued to crackle everywhere, but the young girl seemed to suffer no harm. On the contrary, the spell lost more and more intensity, and under Ferry's traumatized gaze, she absorbed his spell into the dark mist in her hand. Once done, she surrounded herself with a cloak of lightning composed of her spell, as if taunting him.*
"No, it's impossible. You can't... You are..."
"A Chaos Mage," *she declared aloud.*
*With a wave of her hand, she dispelled the spell.*
"How do you manage to use so much Smog without devouring your soul?"
"Oh, you know, I had an excellent teacher. As you can see, I control transmutation," *she said, solidifying black daggers with her mist,* "and absorption. In other words..."
"I see. Rather than using Smog, which is the negative of mana, you absorb mana directly and transform it into Smog. Clever. The effects on your body are minimal, if not nonexistent. But with such a method..."
"I depend entirely on the power of the mages I face, I know," *she said, haughty.*
*She dissipated her mist and sat down, crossing her legs.*
"Ah, it's so annoying. I can barely maintain a proper amount. What I need is a way to dive into Smog directly to replenish my reserves. I'm asking for nothing more than my independence as a mage," *she said, conjuring a bit of mist.*
"I see. You almost reassure me," *he said, sighing in relief.*
*He leaned down and picked up his glasses, adjusting them back in place. Phina had the timid mage before her again.*
"I'm sorry, but I can't help you," *he said, cleaning his lenses.* "I refuse to assist someone from the cult, let alone someone who vandalized my workshop."
*She come near him and look at him not arrogantly this time but with a look of plea. In fact she even look".
"YOU. DON'T. UNDERSTAND. If things keep going this way i will be devoue by the smog. I don't want to hurt my fatther let alone my brother. Please you have to help before it's too late for me".
*Zoldia look at her with some kind of empathy then he let sight and turn to his library*.
-Alright maybe we can try something
*End of the chapter.*