At the front of a classroom, a handsome young boy smashes a hammer onto a red-hot piece of iron, scattering sparks everywhere. The hammer he wields glows with an irregular blue light, like electricity sparking along its shaft and head. As the students and teacher look on, the blue light fizzles on the hammer. The boy swings one final time, and the hammer shatters against the piece of iron. The boy barely moves his head out of the way as flying pieces of broken hammer strike the wall behind him.

​"That's enough Ajax. Please spare the class from the rest of this embarrassing display," Teacher Simon says, "Come take a seat, and I'll try to explain where you went wrong."

​Ajax, the handsome 15-year-old boy, grimaces for a second before relaxing his expression and returning to his seat at the front of the classroom. Despite the jeers from his classmates, he is more focused on where he went wrong and how to fix it. Ajax has been learning from the Southern Royal Academy of Artificers for a year now, and despite being number 1 in theory, whenever he tried to craft anything, the tools broke into pieces in his hands.

​Ajax refocused as the teacher began lecturing, "Student Ajax is a good example of the importance of mana control in artifice. With a lack of control, you will not be able to create items or equipment of decent quality, and even the tools you use can break or potentially cause a backlash in energy, causing internal injuries to yourself. The control of mana can be improved through practice, skills, and the use of customized equipment…"

​Ajax fell into deep thought. 'I've been practicing my mana control for a year and still can't craft anything. Skills are too rare and expensive for me so that only leaves customized equipment, but that's also expensive unless I craft it myself, which I can't do unless I have some tools I can already use. *sigh* I guess I'll have to search for another solution in the library some more.'

***

​

Class ended, and Ajax sped down the halls to the library. Ajax had read almost every book the library had on crafting and mana but hadn't found a solution yet.

"Nice to see you again, Ms. Eveline. I'm here to study up on mana control again," Ajax said, grinning at the library manager, Ms. Eveline, who was lounging at the front desk reading a book.

​Setting the book down, Ms. Eveline stared at Ajax and said flatly,

"You finished the last of the 800 books on mana in the library yesterday, along with the last of the 3000 books on general artifice. If you can't craft anything by now, you should reconsider your choice of profession. Maybe you can become a mage or historian with how much you love reading."

"That's all you have? I still haven't found a good solution yet. I guess I'll just have to go through them again!"

"Stop, kid. Those books don't have any secret solutions for you. Unless you can afford to pay an artificer to make custom tools for you, I'm afraid you're just too untalented to be an Artificer."

Ajax felt frustrated. He also knew the books couldn't solve his conundrum, but his family couldn't afford to pay a high-level professional to make something for him. His dream was to create the most powerful equipment for the most powerful people in the world. He would never be reconciled to give up being an artificer. However, just because he wouldn't give up didn't mean he'd stubbornly find a solution in the library. With sagging shoulders and a pouting lip, he left the library.

***

Ajax returned home, but when he entered the door, he heard his parents arguing in the living room.

"We should tell him already. He's mature enough to understand by now, and it would only hurt him more if we waited any longer to tell him."

"I'm just afraid he'll feel alienated or hold a grudge against us, especially with our youngest son on the way. I don't want him to distance himself just because he's adopted. After all, he's still our son."

"I'm telling you, he's ready to hear it. I've-"

Ajax peeked into the room, but was immediately spotted by his father who was speaking.

"I- um. Ajax, you usually spend the evening at the library. Did you… hear that?"

"Yes. I heard it."

"Well, come in then. We should talk about it some more. It's a bit of a long story."