Today is just like any other day. Ms. Cilla's eyes fluttered open as she felt the light of the morning sun caress her slightly wrinkled face through the window's glass. At once, she stood up and rejected the enticing comfort of her bed as she shrugged off the drowsiness she's feeling effortlessly. Her bedsheets and pillows straightened themselves as she went to take a bath...

Dressed up in her maid uniform, Ms. Cilla stood in front of her full body mirror. The gaze of her onyx black eyes roamed along the mirror as she carefully examined every part of her appearance to ensure that she is as presentable as can be. She fixed her auburn hair in a bun as the finishing touch to her most professional appearance.

After making sure that she is properly presentable, she nodded and modestly smiled in satisfaction. Before walking out the door of her bedroom, she called out a name.

"Good morning, Agua. Let's get to work."

With a blue glow like sunlight diffusing through water, a feminine figure took its form behind her. The blue glow took the form of a petite woman with blue hair floating as if she's submerged in water dressed in a maid uniform similar to Ms. Cilla. Her aquamarine eyes glowed as a power radiated outwards from her small body, drowning the whole manor in a gentle blue color. After 2 seconds, the gentle blue color receded back into Agua's body and left the whole manor spotless.

"You're surprisingly proactive today! Thanks, Agua," hummed Ms. Cilla before opening the door of her bedroom to go about her daily duties.

"Hey! You talk as if I'm always lazy. Just call me if you need help again," Agua responded playfully before disappearing in the same blue glow.

*************

Rudeus Artem, the 29-year-old Patriarch of the House of Artem, was stirred awake after subconsciously sensing a cleansing gentle blue magic. As he rubbed his eyes, he felt a figure shift next to him. He looked over at his side and saw the figure of Lady Aeris Artem, his wife, stir awake the same way he did. After shaking away their drowsiness, they both sat up on their side of the bed with their backs facing each other.

"Good morning," Rudeus greeted as he discreetly glanced behind him to see his wife's dirty blond hair flow on her back.

"...morning," Aeris returned as she stood up and walked out of the bedroom, not sparing a glance toward her husband.

With a tired sigh, Rudeus got up and walked towards the bathroom inside their bedroom to take a shower. Their bed fixed itself as Rudeus put his arms in the air to give way to his clothes that were taking themselves off of him.

*************

Aeris leaned her slim body back as she enjoyed the large jacuzzi tub that was built to be used by guests in the manor. The heat of the water caused the thick steam present in the bathroom. Despite the high heat, Aeris did not look bothered.

"Good morning, Lady Aeris," a deep voice said from behind her. The source came from a man with long flowing red hair that was looking at Aeris as if she was a child with his deep black eyes. He was dressed like a butler with a black suit over a long sleeve shirt with a bow tie and white gloves on both of his hands.

"I don't recall calling for you, Igni," Aeris bluntly answered without looking back.

"My, how cold. It is a spirit's duty to assist their Blessed. And I sensed that you needed my assistance. Or at the very least, someone to talk to," Igni answered before raising his hand and with a red glow from his eyes, he used his power to push Aeris forward. Before Aeris could complain, Igni used his power and enveloped Aeris in an even stronger heat while using a force that massaged her back. This elicited a satisfied moan from Aeris.

"This is nice," said Aeris with her eyes closed as a rare smile was found on her face.

"It has almost been a decade and you still have not accepted your circumstances. I did advise you to just run or choose a more appropriate challenge to triumph over the Artem boy… or should I address him as your husband now?" Igni amusedly remarked as his eyes glinted with a twisted mischief.

Aeris could only grunt in response.

After soaking in the boiling water for a few minutes, Aeris got up to dry herself. With another wave of a hand from Igni, the water that drenched her body evaporated and her wet hair dried and turned silky smooth. A bathrobe came floating towards Aeris for her to wear. Before she was able to step out of the bathroom, she heard Igni speak to her.

"You are still a mother, Aeris…" Igni said with an exceptionally serious tone.

"...I know." Aeris responded with a wistful look in her stormy-gray eyes after a few moments before closing the door and heading back towards their bedroom.

*************

Rudeus walked up to a room on the fourth floor of the Artem Manor where their Raven Keep was located. When he opened the door to the Raven Keep, he was greeted by the caw of ravens. He glanced towards the perches where high priority Night Ravens roost and heaved a sigh of relief when he found them empty.

"Thank Arcana! Empty!" he whispered under his breath as his tense shoulders visibly loosened and relaxed.

Rudeus then glanced towards the perch where a raven from The Barkeeper roosts. There he saw an old Night Raven with a miniature scroll tied to its leg. He took the miniature scroll between the thumb and forefinger of his right hand and made the Night Raven perch on his left forearm. He stepped towards the opening in the Keep where Night Ravens come and go. With a small thrust from his left arm, the old bird flew. He watched it fly and as it flew 100 meters away, he observed the space around the Night Raven twist and bend. With a soft popping sound, the Night Raven disappeared.

"No matter how many times I watch it, it's still so intriguing," Rudeus sighed as his eyes still lingered in the spot where the Raven disappeared, sparkling with curiosity. His eyes that were glued to that spot would have stayed there longer if not for the youthful voice that spoke up beside him.

"Why don'cha try to see if you can do it as well, then?"

He turned his head to the side to see the young boy with a lean body hanging upside down with his legs crossed. The boy was wearing green harem pants and a white scarf around his neck. The right side of the boy's upper torso had what looked like tribal tattoos.

"You know I don't have the time for that anymore, Venti," Rudeus regretfully stated as he returned his gaze to where the Night Raven disappeared. His face had a longing look as he leaned his forearms on the windowsill.

"Bah! Excuses, excuses. If you don't have the time, then make it! Come on, come on! You need to finish all the work you have today so you can have the time for yourself, yah lazy bum!" Venti huffed as he rotated and stood upright to drag Rudeus away from the window by the shoulders.

*************

Ms. Cilla was counting the ingredients in the kitchen when she sensed someone walk into the dining room in the room adjacent to the kitchen. She walked out to greet whoever it was and saw the current Artem Patriarch sitting at the head of the table.

"Good morning, Ms. Cilla," Rudeus absentmindedly greeted back as he paid attention to the miniature scroll in his right hand. By simply injecting his mana with the intent to reverse the transfiguration done on the small piece of paper, he found himself grasping a folded newspaper which he promptly began to read.

"Would you like to have breakfast, Master Rudeus?"

"Aeris and I will be having a breakfast meeting with the Centias when we leave. Coffee will do," Rudeus answered.

"Very well, Master," Ms. Cilla confirmed. With a wave of her hand an invisible force made coffee behind her in the kitchen as quickly as possible. After a few moments, Ms. Cilla walked towards Rudeus with a mug on a tray before returning to the kitchen.

As Rudeus was enjoying his cup of coffee, Aeris walked in the dining room in a dark purple colored instructor robe. Her flowing blond hair and piercing stormy-gray eyes along with her dignified steps gave the otherwise plain looking robes a majestic feel.

"I'll be joining you later. Go ahead without me. I still have some work to do at the Academy," Aeris said as she continued walking to the kitchen adjacent to the dining room to fix herself a cup of coffee. Again, she barely even looked at her betrothed.

"Sure…" Rudeus replied, shortly glancing at his wife before returning his attention to the newspaper in his hand.

"Good morning, Lady Artem," Ms. Cilla greeted when Aeris entered the kitchen. Aeris gave a hum in reply as she opened a vertical cooler where she took out a glass drinking container with frozen coffee. With the container in her hand, her palm emitted a soft red glow. After the glow receded, the frozen coffee inside the container melted except for a few ice cubes.

Without saying anything more, Aeris left with her iced coffee. Ms. Cilla went back to cooking for the young master of the Artems after she checked the stock of ingredients in the kitchen.

*************

A knock was heard inside a dimly lit messy bedroom on the second floor of the Artem Manor. The dark purple curtains prevented any light from entering the window. An assortment of books lie scattered around the floor. The bedsheets are crumpled and covering a sprawled figure on the bed. The knock on the door to the bedroom stirred the sleeping figure covered in bedsheets awake with a groan.

"Young master, it's time to wake up," Ms. Cilla called from outside the door.

The voice that called out from outside the door made the sleeping figure suddenly sit up on attention. From under the bedsheets came out the body of a 9-year-old boy. His stormy-gray eyes went as round as saucers when he realized that he overslept. "A moment please, Ms. Cilla," he replied to inform their maid that he is awake. He hurriedly got up and clumsily straightened his pillows and bedsheets. When his eyes found the books scattered on the floor, he picked them up to close them and swept all of them under his large bed. Before opening the door, he glanced at the mirror inside his room and swept his messy black hair to the left.

"Good morning, Ms. Cilla," the boy greeted the maid who scrutinized his appearance. After checking the boy's appearance, Ms. Cilla glanced towards the room that the young master was trying to hide.

With the wave of her hand, the books under the bed floated towards their respective shelves in an orderly manner and the bedsheets and pillows fixed themselves properly. After seeing the show of magic, the boy's eyes twinkled before dimming when he realized that he could be in trouble. He stiffly turned his head towards their strict maid who was looking at him with a stern gaze.

"Getting better at pretending to sleep, I see. Did I not tell you no more reading at night, young master Primo? Your eyes will be ruined" Ms. Cilla reminded the boy as she playfully pinched his nose while keeping a stern look on her face.

"I was really asleep! I just woke up in the middle of the night," Primo replied with a pout as if he was wronged.

"If you say so, young master," Ms. Cilla said with a small smile before going back to her usual stern expression when serving the Young Master Primo as a maid.

"It is almost time for your lesson and practice in table manners, young master. The table is ready. I shall await your arrival," Ms. Cilla announced before walking off to the room where Primo will have his breakfast and lesson on table manners.

Without being told what to do, the young 9-year-old boy knew what he needed to do. The moment Ms. Cilla walked away, he closed the door and opened his closet. There, he selected clothes that he should wear when invited to a dinner and put them on his bed. After being satisfied with his selection of clothes, he took a quick bath.

*************

Today is just like any other day. After Primo ate breakfast while showing proper table manners, he went upstairs towards a room on the third floor of their manor. He stopped in front of two large wooden double doors. His hands visibly clenched and relaxed as he took a deep breath before raising his right hand to knock.

"Enter," a deep voice resonated in the hallway Primo is standing in before he even managed to knock.

He opened the right door and stepped inside a well-lit room that smelled of books. There is a chalkboard and a podium at the end of the room. The walls of the room are lined with bookshelves containing books that were used to teach him various subjects ever since he was 5 years old. There at the center of the room sat a white haired man by the name of Vanitas Artem.

He wore black robes lined with purple designs that gave off a heavy sense of power. His slightly wrinkled face and short beard would have made him look younger than he actually is if not for the color of his hair. He sat straight on a wooden barstool chair with his arms crossed on one side of a wooden table that reached up to his waist. He gazed at his grandson with his black eyes that are as black and deep as a stare from the abyss.

"Sit," Vanitas told Primo with a gesture from his hand.

Primo can't help but shrink under the gaze of his grandfather. His eyes cast downwards as he walked towards the chair, placing him in front of Vanitas. Once he was seated, Primo sat up straight and did his best to look his grandfather in the eyes as a show of respect.

Silence ensued between the grandfather and grandson duo as Vanitas chose to return the stare his grandson was trying to give him instead of speaking. After a few more moments of silence, Primo tore his gaze away from his grandfather's eyes and looked down on the surprisingly empty table.

"Will we not study a book today, Grandfather Vanitas?" asked Primo, whose eyes were still on the empty table.

However, Vanitas decided to prolong the silence a while longer. After what felt like hours to Primo, his grandfather finally answered, "You will be 10 years old soon. Are you aware of what that will mean?"

Primo finally had the courage to look up again as a small smile emerged on his face, "I will awaken Mana—"

"Not precisely. The Mana Awakening Ceremony will be a test to see if you are one of the Blessed," Vanitas sternly corrected before standing up and walking towards the window behind Primo before continuing, "True, the blood of Artems and Centias flow in your veins. But that is not a guarantee that you yourself possess the gift of Mana."

Primo could not answer as he watched his grandfather stare out the window who seemed to be gazing at something out of his grasp.

"...I myself should know," Vanitas whispered low enough for Primo to barely hear as silence once again dropped like a curtain that covered the room.

"For the sake of the family, pray to Goddess Arcana that you may be blessed with her gift," Vanitas said without looking back, "That is all for today. No lessons. Go and play, or whatever it is you do. Your time is yours, child."

With his grandfather's dismissal, Primo got up and left the stifling air in the room. His thoughts are still a mess as his grandfather's words are still ringing in his ears. With the shake of his head, Primo walked towards their family library in the manor's basement, aiming to drown out the words of his grandfather with the words from books he has yet to read.

*************

The Artem Manor was lit up by the orange hue of the setting sun when Rudeus Artem came home from another busy day. He opened the manor house entrance with a heavy hand. The usual silence greeted him when he closed the door and stood in front of their huge staircase. He walked to the hall on the left where their kitchen is to make himself some coffee. On his way, he met their maid. Ms. Cilla greeted him and told him that his father is waiting for him in his study.

With a sigh, Rudeus thanked Ms. Cilla and detoured towards his father's study on the third floor. With a quick knock on the large double doors, he entered the study.

"You called for me… father?" Rudeus apprehensively asked Vanitas, who was writing on a book when he came in.

"Yes, boy. Sit," Vanitas confirmed with a glance to his son and a gesture to the chair opposite him.

Rudeus accepted the order and sat up straight on the barstool chair before saying, "It's still early. Is this another test?"

Vanitas did not respond immediately. He wrote a few more lines of text on the book placed on the table before closing it to focus his attention on Rudeus, "That will be for later. For now, tell me why the Centias called you for breakfast with them earlier this morning." Vanitas leaned his body forward on the table.

Rudeus chose his words for a moment and answered, "They expressed their concern about… the Curse. Again," before going back to silence.

"And? Speak, boy."

"They gave up trying to improve our… matrimony. They demanded Aeris to bear another child." Rudeus blurted out with a sigh. "I know that the first generation Blessed Artem and Centia are brothers in arms and our families have been the same ever since. They are just concerned about the future of our family for both our sakes, but there is no issue with our son. He is intelligent, barely throws any tantrums, wise beyond his years, and talented. Tell-tale signs of being a Blessed," ranted Rudeus with a huff.

"Hmm. A rather impulsive decision from the cautious and calculating Centias. It seems Old Claudio was more affected than I thought," remarked Vanitas with a small chuckle.

"What do you mean?" said Rudeus who has a perplexed look on his face.'

"I have been watching the boy for Mana fluctuations ever since he turned 9. No matter how much stress and pressure I subject him to, nothing. The child has not shown the slightest outward sign of possessing Mana," Vanitas clarified for Rudeus.

"And you chose to tell the Centias first…" Rudeus responded with a small glare.

"Your child is your own responsibility, boy." Vanitas sat up straight, returning the glare.

'Tell that to yourself old man…' Rudeus silently spat. Not a word was said for a few moments as the eyes of Vanitas slightly widened.

"I'll take that test now…" Rudeus finally said, breaking the silence.

*************

It was already dark outside when Aeris returned home from work. As expected, the lights are already turned off when she entered the manor. Even without much light, she still knew her way to their bedroom. Trying to stay as quiet as possible, Aeris opened the door to their bedroom slowly. After getting inside, she changed her clothes to something more comfortable before laying down on the other side of the bed with her back turned towards her husband.

She was about to drift into sleep when she heard a voice behind her. "How was work?" asked Rudeus. Her heart slightly jumped from the surprise.

"...uneventful. Just another day," Aeris answered before returning a question, "Did I wake you?"

"...no. I haven't slept yet," replied Rudeus. Silence hung between them for a few more seconds before Rudeus asked another question, "Did you ever notice how much Primo grew up?"

Pondering his question, Aeris spread her senses through magic and checked Primo's room. There she saw Primo lying down on his stomach reading a book by his bedside table's lamp. Primo's stormy-gray eyes—her eyes—skimmed over the lines of text with a shining glint of wonder and excitement.

"He loves reading, you know? Ms. Cilla told me. Stories and magic fascinate him…" Rudeus shared with Aeris. A smile was on his face before it was replaced by a small frown. "Do you still remember what you were like as a child?"

By now, Aeris was wide awake. Feeling the right mood to talk, she indulged Rudeus with a story. "I always played with my dog. I named him Brownie since his fur was brown. He… wasn't really a dog. He was just a stuffed toy that father bought for me as a gift. He transfigured it to look real and used mind and memory magic to make it act like a dog. Taking care of him was easy. He never did anything besides lying down and playing with me. Eventually, a spell runs its course," Aeris narrated with glee before losing her enthusiasm at the end.

Sensing something wrong, Rudeus asked, "Why? What happened to Brownie?"

"You smacked his head against a tree to see if he can die like a dog as well," Aeris spat with apparent distaste.

Feeling embarrassed and mad at his younger self, Rudeus hurriedly apologized, "Sorry! I… I was a little shit. I kind of still am…"

Silence once again passed between them. This time, it was Aeris who broke it with a question that has been hanging around inside her mind for a long time, "When did we become so much like our parents?..."

Rudeus had no answer to her question. The two of them let the silence be the answer as they both used their senses to watch their still actively awake son.

Seeing as how her son is still wide awake, Aeris used her mind magic to act like a mother for once. She reached out to Primo's mind to stimulate his drowsiness and watched her magic take effect on Primo.

Inside his bedroom, Primo suddenly felt very sleepy as he was reading a book he found in the library that he decided to take with him to bed. He was just getting to an exciting part of the story when his eyelids suddenly felt heavy. As he was about to smack his head on the book he was reading, he suddenly pushed himself up and shook his head. After shaking off his drowsiness, he took the book and set it on his lap, opting to read it while sitting down.

Inside the bedroom of his parents, Rudeus gave a small laugh. "Did he really just choose reading a book over getting a good sleep?"

The usually cold and serious woman that is Aeris answered with a chuckle and a smile. She watched her son for a few more moments before deciding that she herself should sleep to prepare for another busy day tomorrow.

"...good night, Rudy."

Rudeus was shaken by the manner Aeris called him. It took him a moment to collect himself before saying, "Good night, Aeri…"

That night, Rudeus and Aeris had the best sleep they ever had in a long time.

*************

Primo was still reading his book when he heard his bedroom door swing open. He hurriedly closed his book and looked at who opened the door to see Ms. Cilla standing there with a smile on her motherly face. She carried a tray with a glass of milk and wet napkins by the side with both of her hands.

"Still awake, young master? Still so young and you're already messing with your sleep schedule," Ms. Cilla affectionately reprimanded Primo who had a guilty look on his face.

"Sorry, Ms. Cilla. I didn't realize how late it was…" Primo apologized as he clutched the book he was reading in his arms. Ms. Cilla walked over and set the tray on his bedside table.

"What book are you reading?" asked Ms. Cilla with an affectionate smile as she knelt down in front of Primo.

Primo beamed a smile, realizing that he's not completely in trouble. "It's something I found in our library. It's a book about the adventures of Grandmaster Niero! I don't know if they're all true, though. But still! I can't believe someone so amazing really existed! And he was even my ancestor's student!" Primo rapidly shared like a little chatterbox.

Ms. Cilla couldn't help but laugh at the antics of the rambunctious child in front of her. "Alright, calm down, Primo. It's late at night and you're still so energetic. Here, drink this. It's still warm," Ms. Cilla said as she handed over the warm glass of milk to Primo which he obediently drank. Ms. Cilla wiped the milk mustache that formed above Primo's lips with the wet napkin she brought along with the milk.

After taking the now empty glass from Primo to set it back on the tray, she tucked Primo to sleep in his bed. As she was about to leave, Primo held her back by saying, "I'm still not sleepy, Ms. Cilla," in an attempt to make her stay longer.

Ms. Cilla pondered what to do for a moment before saying, "Want me to tell you a story?" with an amused smile on her face.

Primo gave a small frown and said, "I'm not small anymore, Ms. Cilla."

"But it's your favorite! This time, I'll add more to the story," Ms. Cilla answered in an attempt to tease Primo into accepting.

"Really? I wanna hear!" Primo accepted at once which once again put a smile on Ms. Cilla's face.

It was a story that Primo has heard countless times. A powerful wandering magus that helped the people he encountered in his journey. This nameless magus has been used by storytellers to give children lessons on good manners and respectable conduct. This time, Ms. Cilla narrated a Wandering Magus story to Primo that was read to her when she was a child.

"...then, the greedy and selfish king demanded his soldiers to take the head of the people's beloved wandering magus. Without hesitation, the soldiers dropped their weapons and rallied behind the wandering magus instead. And so, the reign of the terrible king came to an end, and the people were happy."

"But why did they help the magus? Isn't he their king? He's the one paying their salaries. He's not a good king, but he still protects his people from invaders. They would be treating the villagers worse than the king did," Primo said as he questioned the logic in the story. Hearing what Primo had to say about the story, Ms. Cilla laughed in amusement at her young master's pragmatic thinking despite being a child.

"True, reality is often more complex than stories. Being king or a ruler over people is more complicated than one would think. But, that's not the lesson the story is trying to tell," Ms. Cilla agreed with Primo before steering their conversation on a more suitable ending for a bedtime story.

"What is it, then?"

"A true king is not someone that rules over his people because he is in power. A true king is someone that rules over his people because his people chose to follow him. Someone that they believe will lead them to a better life," Ms. Cilla concluded.

Primo contemplated Ms. Cilla's words for a few moments before saying, "In another perspective, a true king is a follower of the people. The people chose him to lead, thus he leads. Like a dog in a hunting party…" Primo spoke out the thoughts in his head.

Hearing his words, Ms. Cilla shook her head with a sigh and a small smile before standing up. "Sometimes, I wish you were more like a child your age, Primo." She walked towards the door. "I shall see you tomorrow for another lesson, young master," she said to Primo with a small bow.

"I want to grow up like him one day."

"What?" Ms. Cilla's hands froze on the doorknob as she looked back at Primo.

"The wandering magus. I'll be like him one day. Strong, respected, and works to make everyone around him happy. But I don't want to be a king. I want to be… a guide! Everyone should be like the wandering magus! The world doesn't need a king if everyone lives for the sake of everyone!" Primo proudly stated with a huff, showing his childish side.

Ms. Cilla froze at the conclusion that the child in front of her arrived at. A proud motherly smile found itself on her face as she walked back to Primo and caressed the top of his head affectionately.

"I am certain that you will indeed grow into a fine magus, Primo," Ms. Cilla affirmed and Primo put on a big smile.

"Now, if you really want to be a strong magus, you must sleep. How can a magus fight evil if he's busy fighting sleep?" Ms. Cilla playfully admonished Primo.

"Good night, little Primo."

"Good night, Ms. Cilla…"

Drowsiness returned to Primo as Ms. Cilla walked towards the door of his bedroom. At the sound of the bedroom door closing, Primo closed his eyes as he let the comfortable embrace of sleep take him.