It's been a little over a year since Alice was born.
I've spent a lot of time playing with my little sister when I wasn't training magic with Everett and swordsmanship with Sophie. She's really fun to be around, and she isn't obnoxious like Casey or unnecessarily harsh with words like Cassie.
I've had the pleasure of being there for when she learned how to crawl, how to walk, and when she said her first words, which were "bruver".
My heart honestly melted when she said that. I remember telling the twins and they got so jealous.
I lean back in my chair and idly play with earth magic while Cassie and Casey beside me diligently studying for their upcoming ethics exam.
I'm so fucking bored.
I've already blasted through every test they gave to me with perfect marks, they're basically keeping me here to babysit me, but I don't need babysitting! I planned the rescue of Aunt Stella! This is an outrageous way to treat me, the genius prince of Knightford!
While in class, I can only hope to either sneak out to the library, or expand my mana capacity.
I no longer have a need to go to the library since I've read through every worthwhile book within its walls already. In addition to that, Cassie has stopped visiting the library recently, making me quite sad. Therefore, I haven't had much reason to go there.
As for expanding my mana capacity, well, I'm already doing that, but I've gotten to the point where I can do it without needing to concentrate, so it doesn't really take my mind off anything.
Alas, it seems I'm stuck wasting away in this classroom until it's time for my magic and swordsmanship lessons.
"Young Masters!" As if on cue, Head Maid Sophie bursts through the classroom door, "you all have been invited to Lady Veronica Goldenwind's birthday party two weeks from now."
"Two weeks?" Cassie piped up, "Aren't invitations like that normally given a month in advance?"
"Yes, Young Master Cassandra, this is true. However, the king and queen have been… putting off telling the rest of you."
"Huh?" Casey butted in, "Why though?"
"Well, it's because he felt it would get in the way of your studying, so he wanted to wait until the date was closer."
At Sophie's explanation, both Cassie and Casey nod in understanding.
"Now," Sophie continues, "over the next two weeks, Master Cassandra and Master Casey, both of you will undergo training on mannerisms and behavior at a formal gathering. You both will also be taking the ethics exam at that time."
A disappointed expression washed over both of their faces as they hear those words. Casey then tilts his head before speaking again, "Just the two of us? What about Raine?"
"Ah, about that, Raine already received training and passed the exam with flying colors." Cassie was the one to answer with a somewhat proud expression.
It's true. I got bored one day in class and decided to take the exam. When I asked Sophie to take it, she gave me a puzzled look, but ultimately agreed and let me take the test.
I was closely monitored by Sophie during the test-taking period to make sure that I wasn't cheating. When I had handed the test to her, she simply looked at it in disbelief since I had gotten all one hundred questions correct.
In the same week, I had also requested to go through the training for formal gatherings, which was a "rigorous" experience to say the least.
Anyways, all of that hardship seems to have paid off since I don't have to do it now.
"These maids will escort you to your training Young Masters." Sophie gestured to a pair of familiar maids. The two I normally come across when sneaking to the library.
The twins both let out a synchronized sigh as they get dragged off to do training and stuff, leaving me alone with Sophie.
"To tell you the truth," Sophie turns and looks directly at me, "the invitation was for you specifically, Young Master. The other two young masters were simply invited as a formality."
I tilt my head at the sudden revelation, "For me? Why?"
"The Duke wishes to establish a good relationship between you and his youngest daughter, Lady Sylvia Goldenwind."
My eyes widen at her words. The Sylvia Goldenwind? From the novel?
"Ah, of course. I'd be happy to befriend Lady Goldenwind." I reply with a small smile.
Sophie nods and exits the room, leaving me alone.
—-------------------------------------------------------
Sylvia Goldenwind was one of the most prominent heroines in Rebirth. She was also one of the three remaining heroines at the end of the novel and by far my favorite.
From a young age, Sylvia was raised and nurtured to be the perfect mage. Her family, House Goldenwind, worked her to the bone, not allowing for the slightest amount of play in the young girl's life. This stunted her emotional growth drastically, as she became nearly unable to understand or feel true emotions for a long time.
Through the hardship came results, however, and she became a first-rank magician in almost every category by the time she entered Knightford Academy. She quickly rose to the top of the rankings in school, only ranking behind the novel's dear protagonist, Aaron Leonhart.
Sylvia ranked behind Aaron in just about every category graded on. For someone that had always put so much effort into being the best, seeing someone so nonchalantly beat her in everything damaged her pride immensely.
I remember reading through her chapters and feeling bad for her character considering it wasn't really her fault, the author just made a stupidly broken main character.
Constantly coming in second to Aaron sparked an intense drive to grow stronger than him. It was through this drive, and the time she spent trying to become better than him, that for the first time she began feeling emotions.
Her character arc and reason she fell for Aaron was beautifully written compared to the rest of the novel. If 'Rebirth' was good at anything, it was good at fleshing out its main characters.
One thing I'll always hate Aaron for is leaving the story before at least answering her feelings.
"This suit is stuffy." Casey pouts as he runs his finger around the collar of his dress shirt.
He's wearing a white formal dress shirt and black suit jacket with a pair of black pants and formal shoes.
"Indeed," I agree with him while doing the same, "I'll have to create more comfortable clothing to wear in the future."
I'm wearing the exact same thing as Casey, just with the opposite colors, my dress shirt being black while my suit jacket and pants were white.
"Please, do that." Cassie nods in agreement, "I hate wearing these uncomfortable dresses, I want to wear some damn pants."
Cassie on the other hand had been dressed in a stunning white formal dress and black stockings.
I nod while listening to both of their complaints, making a mental note to create better clothes in the future.
"We have arrived, your highnesses." The carriage driver says as he opens the door.
Outside the carriage is the sight of a mansion, while not quite as big as the royal palace, was still massive.
On the side of our carriage, the king's carriage could be seen with Mother, Father, and Stella all coming out dressed in formal attire.
Father had been wearing a magnificent green and black suit along with his robe. Mother was dressed in an elegant white and ice blue mermaid style dress with blue frills along the arms, and Stella had been wearing a beautiful black and lavender a-line dress.
As they get out, Mother whispers something in Stella's ear and they both start laughing, which causes Father to get flustered as they walk into the mansion.
Wonder what that was about?
The twins and I follow suit, each stepping out of the cart one by one and walking towards the entrance of the mansion, which had a red carpet leading to it and guards posted on the side.
As we pass though the entrance, we're greeted by the sight of a massive ballroom with numerous noble guests inside chatting. There were also tables of food and drinks lined up along the edges of the room.
"Well, have fun you two. I'm gonna see some friends." With those words, Cassie departs.
"Well Casey, it looks like it's just you a–" Before I could finish my sentence, I could already see him getting dragged away helplessly by a group of noble girls.
Goddamnit. All alone I guess.
By the way, why didn't those girls go after me? I'm not one to brag, but I'm certain I'm more charming than Casey.
As I'm thinking that, I notice a man and a woman walking toward me. They're dressed in high class attire that would put almost anyone else in this party to shame.
"Raine! I'm glad you could make it." A tall, handsome young man with short brown hair and piercing blue eyes calls out to me.
He had been wearing a sharp black suit with white trim and gold lining.
"Karl," I give a soft smile as I reply, "it's good to see you again. And you too Lady Veronica. Happy birthday."
The woman beside Karl has long silver hair that reaches down to her waist and cold silver eyes. She was wearing a beautiful white a-line dress that highlighted the pronounced curves in her figure.
"Thank you. And please, Raine," She gives a soft smile, "I've told you countless times to call me Vera."
"Ah, sorry about that, Vera." The nickname thing always gets to me.
"It's fine," She shrugs with a smile, "by the way, have you met my sister Sylvia yet?"
I shake my head in response to her question, "No, not yet. Is she around?"
"Hmm, perhaps she's hiding out somewhere. She's not really the biggest fan of parties."
"Ah, I see. I'll be sure to keep an eye out for her."
"Yes, of course. In the meantime, enjoy the party." Vera smiles before beginning to walk away with Karl, "Oh, and be sure to find her in time for the dance."
She winks at me before she walks off, and I'm left standing in confusion.
I wonder what she meant by that? Matchmaking at this age? Surely that can't be the case?
After the two leave, I continue walking around the party, occasionally getting stopped by a few noble girls to chat, however, someone would always end up whispering in their ear and they'd back off.
"I'm beginning to feel like I got blacklisted or something." I sigh.
In the end, I find myself far away from any crowd and leaving the ballroom, stepping out onto a balcony looking over the mansion's garden.
I lean on the balcony railing and cast a long glance out upon the garden. While not as spectacular as the castles, it's still quite beautiful in its own right.
Fields of many different breeds of flora could be seen with large bushes acting as walls and stone walkways cutting between them.
Well, I suppose nobody would mind if I went for a little stroll.
I nod to myself and decide to climb onto the balcony rails. I proceed to take a step off, causing me to begin falling face-first toward the ground. As I'm falling, at the last moment before I hit the ground, I flip around and land on my feet.
I brush my pants off in case any dust got on them and I begin walking through the garden
Up close, the flowers here are really beautiful, especially at night.
I don't mean to brag or anything, but the garden here pales in comparison to the one at the castle, but it's still quite gorgeous.
I take note of the scenery as I walk along the stone path. Rows upon rows of assorted flowers filled the area around the walkway with large bushes acting as a sort of border between the two.
I come across the occasional bench along the side of the path made of a glistening reddish brown wood-like material. I stop walking for a moment and examine the material out of curiosity.
I reach out to touch it and it feels smooth, almost like a metal of some sort.
I have the urge to use 'Eye of Absolute Certainty' on the bench real quick, but a sudden sound of pages flipping catches my attention.
I try my best to listen for where the sound is coming from, focusing my ears, and find that it seems to be coming from around the corner.
As I round the nearby corner, I notice a girl in a white turtleneck sweater and skirt reading a book on one of the benches.
The girl has short silver hair and her ice cold silver eyes could be seen piercing through her bangs as she flipped through the pages of what she was reading, two distinct piles of books could be seen next to her.
That must be Sylvia, I think to myself.
My sudden appearance catches her attention, as she looks up from her book and meets my eyes with hers. Her ice cold gaze attempting to pierce through my very soul.
"Prince Raine Knighford, I presume." She inquires in a monotone voice.
"Yes," I reply, "You were able to tell with a simple glance?"
"Of course. It is my duty as a Lady of the Duke's house to recognize royals at a glance."
"I see…"
Thinking back to how Sylvia was in the novel, her personality now definitely correlates to how she was in the earlier chapters. Cold, calculating, and quick to brush off whatever she deems an inconvenience.
I was told that I need to establish a good relationship with Sylvia, so I'll have to be smart with the way I approach this.
If I don't quickly take hold of the conversation, I'll simply get brushed off as well.
"You're reading 'Introduction to Advanced Ice Magic' correct?" I ask, pointing to the book with a small smile.
"Yes," She nods, "what about it?"
"Well, considering that you're reading that, and you have piles of other books on ice magic and water magic, I think it's safe to assume you recently reached the third rank in water magic?"
Sylvia's eyes widen slightly and I seize the opportunity to take a seat beside her, picking up a book on water magic, "I know because I have also broken into the third rank in water magic. I've also read just about every book on the subject we have in the royal library."
Sylvia's eyes widen even more. She tilts her head slightly at my words and slowly opens her mouth, "How did you–"
"I pay good attention, that's all." I swiftly cut her off, smiling slightly.
She looks somewhat downcast as she hears me speak. Perhaps she has already judged that she's not on my level? Unfortunately, this is what I need to establish so I can get her to open up more.
She grips the book she's holding while looking down in slight frustration, "What do you mean to prove to me?"
"Hmm?" I give her a confused look.
She casts a freezing cold glare at me, "It seems you obviously have the intention to mock me, am I correct? To show me how inferior I am to you?"
"Of course not." I try to de-escalate, "Please don't assume something like that."
"What am I supposed to assume then? You show up out of nowhere while I'm studying then start talking about how you've already mastered everything I'm trying to learn."
Jeez, despite her lack of expression, she seems to have quite the complex. But it's to be expected for someone who was bred to be perfect. It's only natural for someone who has worked as hard as she has to be upset at my words.
"Sylvia," I raise my hands to calm her down, "I have no intention to mock you, regardless of how much better I am than you."
"Is that so…"
"Of course." I nod, "If anything, I admire your hard work and dedication to your craft. All of the effort you've put in to reach this level, it's inspiring."
Her lips part slightly and I continue, "I hear stories of the Duke's youngest daughter. I hear that her free time is restricted and her personal relationships are almost nonexistent."
I look her in the eyes as I reach out and take the book she's holding, "At the same time, she works tirelessly to perfect her magic, not because it is her own personal desire, but her family's."
I close the book and set it on one of the piles. I then cast barrier magic around the two piles of books and move them to the side of the bench, leaving just her and I.
"You asked me what I mean to prove to you?" I look Sylvia straight in the eyes, her once emotionless face showing a somewhat taken aback expression, "I mean to prove to you that it's fine to be number two every once in a while. That it's fine to reach out and ask for help every once in a while. That it's fine to have a bit of fun every once in a while."
I glance at her for a moment, her face showing a complicated expression as she tries to process what I said.
I stand up from the bench and turn to look at her, and, with a smile I extend my hand towards her, "Please, lets have some fun together, Sylvia."
She looks up at me, her cheeks slightly reddened, and gives a small smile before taking my hand, "Yes, alright."
Together, we stroll through the garden taking in the moonlit sights.
Throughout the walk, she holds my hand softly while looking down in silence, her expressionless face slightly flushed.
As we near the entrance of the garden, I begin to create a winding staircase from earth magic sprouting from the ground.
With each step we take, another was created in front, until the staircase finally reached the balcony I jumped from.
With one final step, we step onto the balcony.
We walk forward together and I open the door to the ballroom, where the sound of music could be heard and couples could be seen dancing.
As I led Sylvia inside, I noticed Casey in the distance dancing with some random noble girl with short brown hair.
My eyes quickly scan around for Cassie, and I see her hanging around another group of noble girls, who were chatting amongst each other.
I breathe a sigh of relief and turn my attention to Sylvia, who had just looked up at the dancing couples with curiosity.
I smile and hold her hand up as I bow, "May I take this dance?"
"..."
Sylvia, speechless for a moment, simply stares at me in confusion.
As she takes a bit to process the information, I look up from my bow, my crimson eyes meeting her metallic silver eyes, her face flushing an even brighter red.
A wide smile forms on her face as she gazes at me and speaks, "Yes, I accept."
The sight of the two of us taking the dance floor stole the attention of the entire crowd.
Everyone, beside the musicians, stopped what they were doing to watch our dance.
Not wanting to make any mistakes, I put all my effort into performing the most refined and mesmerizing dance with Sylvia possible.
As we spun around and stepped to the rhythm of the music together, Sylvia, the stoic and cold mage of ice from the novel, was smiling happily the entire time.