Elias Leywin POV
"...and then, just as the Stonehide boar charged me, I leapt over its head, twisted mid-air, and dropped a lightning bolt right between its tusks!"
Arthur demonstrated the motion with both hands, nearly knocking over his cup as he leaned across the table. His plate sat forgotten in front of him, roasted vegetables and spiced meat growing cold while he relived the fight.
Around the long table, everyone watched.
Even Ellie had stopped tormenting her peas. She leaned forward on her elbows, chin cupped in both hands, staring at Arthur as he'd stepped straight out of one of her storybooks.
Which, if I was being honest, he kind of was.
"Did you really jump over it?" Lilia leaned forward, one eyebrow raised. "Aren't those things twice your size?"
Arthur leaned back, brushing a loose strand of hair from his face with easy confidence. "Just about."
Uncle Vincent chuckled, raising his glass. "Sounds like the sort of story most adventurers start exaggerating after a few drinks."
"Then it's probably accurate," Jasmine said calmly beside Arthur, arms folded. "He's actually being modest."
I pushed my potatoes around my plate and tried not to stare. Six months away. Yet Arthur still looked like... Arthur. Maybe a little taller. His hair had grown longer. But that was about it.
"You going to finish those?" he asked suddenly, nodding at my plate.
"Huh? Oh. I, uh... maybe."
His smirk widened.
I quickly stuffed a forkful of potatoes into my mouth to hide my face.
Arthur leaned forward, resting an elbow on the table. "So, Lias. How's training with Director Goodsky been going?"
Every head at the table turned toward me.
The warmth of the room suddenly felt a little heavier.
I swallowed and wiped my mouth with the back of my hand before Mum could remind me about the napkin.
"It's... good," I said. "Hard. But good."
Arthur tilted his head, grin crooked. "You can't let me do all the bragging. What have you been working on?"
"I-"
"He passed out last week!" Ellie chirped happily.
My stomach dropped.
"He came home and just fell over," she continued, demonstrating with her hand slapping the table. "His nose went boop on the floor like-"
"Ellie!" I hissed.
Father nearly choked on his drink while Uncle Vincent burst into laughter.
Lilia leaned forward, eyes wide. "You fainted?"
"I didn't faint," I muttered. "I just... lost consciousness. Briefly."
"Lias," Mum said with that stern voice only a mother had, the one that wrapped you in a blanket and a scolding all at once. "Why didn't you tell me about this?"
I winced. "It wasn't that serious. I just... pushed too hard. Director Goodsky told me to stop for the day, and I rested, as she told me to do."
Mum didn't look convinced.
"Was the director supervising the entire time?" Dad asked, his brow furrowing as he leaned forward slightly in his seat.
"I mean... yeah. She's right there... Most of the time..." I said with a pause
"What do you think caused it?" my brother asked, cutting in.
"I was doing repeat casting, you know, to help my core progress, and to get me used to casting with a wand."
"And what were you doing when it happened?"
"Regenerating mana," I said, winking at him.
'I can't exactly tell them, Art, you told me to keep it secret.'
Seeming to understand what I was alluding to, he let out a slight sigh. "I see, just be careful... you're only seven."
"And a quarter," Ellie corrected again, half-asleep beside our Mother.
---
I climbed down from the carriage with Arthur's help, my boots crunching softly against the gravel as we stepped onto the path. Tall hedges lined the walkway ahead, trimmed so neatly they looked almost sculpted.
"What exactly are we doing here again?" I asked, glancing up at my brother as we started through the green corridor.
"We're going to see your girlfriend and her father."
"She isn't my girlfriend," I protested.
Arthur adjusted the collar of his shirt without looking at me. "Who isn't?"
"Princess Kat-"
The words died in my throat.
Arthur's grin widened.
'Damn it.'
Before I could say anything else, a familiar figure appeared at the end of the hedge-lined path. The residence's butler stepped forward with the same precise posture I remembered, his hand rising to his shoulder in greeting.
"Welcome, Young Master Arthur and Elias Leywin. His Royal Majesty and his Daughter await your presence ahead, if you would be so kind as to follow."
He turned smoothly on his heel and led us toward the manor.
The doors opened onto a grand foyer that swallowed our footsteps the moment we stepped inside. Polished marble stretched across the floor, and tall pillars rose toward a ceiling that seemed impossibly high.
We soon reached a fork in the corridor where our guide came to a stop. "His Majesty requests your presence in the sun chamber, Young Master Arthur. Young Master Elias, if you'll follow me, I'll escort you to the Library. Lady Kathyln awaits your presence."
Arthur gave me a quick pat on the shoulder and a reassuring smile. "Don't flirt too much."
"I'm no-!" But he was already walking away, following another servant down a side corridor.
The butler motioned me forward. We walked in silence for a few moments until he pushed open a tall, mahogany door, revealing a sunlit library filled with rows of neatly arranged books.
Two figures sat near one of the large windows.
The first, I recognised instantly. Kathyln wore a pale blue dress stitched with delicate silver leaves. Her black hair fell neatly down her back, held in place by a crescent-shaped ornament. She looked as composed as ever, though her eyes brightened slightly when they met mine.
The woman beside her, however, was... She looked older, perhaps in her early twenties. Her snow-white hair was loosely tied over one shoulder, and her sharp eyes, the colour of frozen steel, studied me carefully. The white robe she wore was elegant and fitted with subtle runic embroidery.
Something about her presence felt...
"Elias?" Kathyln asked, rising slowly from her chair, confusion softening her voice.
The other women stood before Kathlyn, holding one arm straight as if she was protecting her from me "Princess, this boy... he's a mage"
"I know, Varay," Kathyln replied calmly, lowering the woman's arm with a gentle push. "He's my friend."
"You have friends?" Varay said before she could stop herself.
I let out a slight snicker at the comment, earning a glare from the Ice Princess.
I cleared my throat and quickly copied the bow the butler had shown us earlier.
"It's nice to meet you, ma'am. My name is Elias Leywin."
'Is that fancy enough...'
"Student of Director Goodsky," I added quickly as I peeked through my bow.
"Ma'am..." The woman repeated the word slowly before inclining her head. "I am Varay Aurae, Lance of Sapin and guardian to the royal family."
"Lance?" I asked before I could stop myself.
She studied me for a moment, then shook her head faintly. "Pay it no heed. If you are Cynthia's student, then I am certain we will speak more in time."
With that, she turned and left the library.
The doors closed behind her.
'Cynthia?'
'She can call my master by her name?'
'Who exactly is she...?'
'And what the hell is a Lance?'
Kathyln cleared her throat softly.
"It's good to see you again, Elias," she said. "But what are you doing here?"
I hesitated for a moment before sitting down across from her, my fingers brushing the polished armrest of the velvet-backed chair. The warmth of the sun filtered through the tall windows, catching dust motes in the air like glittering stars.
"Well..." I shifted, glancing toward the door Varay had just vanished through. "Technically, we're here because your father had invited Arthur."
Kathyln blinked slowly. "And you came along because...?"
I scratched the back of my neck. "Because my mother didn't trust Arthur not to do something reckless, so she asked for someone slightly more sensible to come along and keep him under control," I said, leaving out the fact that she had dragged me out of bed and that I had no idea that this was where his carriage was headed.
Her lips twitched, but she didn't quite smile. "So she chose to send you?"
"I said slightly more sensible."
Silence settled between us for a moment. Kathyln lifted her teacup and took a careful sip.
"Still," she said quietly, "it's good to see you again. You've... grown."
Her gaze lingered on my face.
"I couldn't have changed that much. It's only been a few months."
"Still," she said softly, lowering the cup, "you have."
"Nonetheless," I said quickly, "it's good to see you too, Princess."
Her lips pressed together slightly.
"I would have expected you to still be in Etistin," I said. "What brings you to Xyrus?"
"Mother insisted we come for his induction into Xyrus Academy."
"That's fantastic," I said politely. "Please pass along my congratulations."
'Its not like either of us actually cares... but he is the prince.'
Our conversation drifted on for several minutes after that. Eventually, Kathyln began to fidget with the sleeve of her dress. "Hey, Elias... would you maybe want to come to my-" she asked nervously before being cut off.
The doors of the library swung open. The polished wood creaked softly as the tall doors parted, revealing two figures. Arthur stepped in first, his small frame impossibly confident for a nine-year-old. His expression was composed, serious even, but I could see the faintest flicker of annoyance behind his eyes.
Just behind him followed a tall, broad-shouldered man dressed in dark Crimson robes that oddly matched his hair.
I stood quickly, following Kathyln's lead as she placed her teacup down and rose, bowing slightly at the waist. I mirrored her with a somewhat less graceful dip of my head.
"Your Majesty," I said, my voice steadier than I expected.
"Elias," the King acknowledged with a warm but measured nod before turning his attention to his daughter. "Kathyln."
"Father," she replied, her voice soft.
Arthur, for his part, gave a lazy wave as he made his way to the chair beside mine. "Are we done with the tea party yet?"
"Art," I hissed under my breath.
He shrugged and leaned back in the chair, his arms crossed over his chest. "What? You've had your catch-up. Thought it was time I crashed the party."
King Glayder chuckled faintly, his hands folding behind his back as he stepped closer. "I see you two are getting along well." His tone turned a shade more formal. "Though I imagine you're both wondering why I had you brought here in the first place."
Kathyln tilted her head slightly, her gaze flicking from me to Arthur. "I admit, it has crossed my mind."
"Same here." I added, glancing at my brother. "He," I said accusingly, "didn't tell me anything. I was just dragged along."
"I didn't drag you," Arthur said blankly. "You were already dressed when I got out of bed."
"That's because Mum woke me up before she sent Ellie to wake you," I muttered.
The King cleared his throat lightly, and both of us sat straighter. "The reason," he said, "is because Arthur and I have come to an agreement."
Kathyln's eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "An agreement?"
Arthur nodded. "I've agreed to help you awaken Princess."
My head turned so fast I nearly sprained something. "You're helping her awaken?"
"He is," the King said in the same monotone way.
"And what does Arthur gain from this arrangement?" Kathyln asked pointedly, the formality back in her tone.
The King smiled, just slightly. "A few incentives."
"And those would be?" I said, staring at my brother, who was far too calm for the current situation.
"Classified," the king said calmly.
'Classified my ass.'
I looked to my brother, who was smugly smirking to himself, "I didn't sell my soul, Lias." He said whilst sporting a shit-eating grin.
'Don't be an ass.'
My brother unfolded his arms as his entire tone shifted to be far more serious, "When do you want me to begin?" he asked, looking at the king.
"As soon as possible," the King of Humanity said as he called over a maid.
With the staff's guidance, my brother and the Princess disappeared outside the halls of the Library.
Not wasting any time, the king looked down at me with a far more serious aura than he had shown in the previous conversation.
"So Elias," he said, turning his head slowly to face me. "What do you think of my Daughter?" He smiled.
'Huh?'
---
"How was she?" I asked my brother as the carriage began to roll.
Arthur sat across from me, one arm resting against the window frame while the city slipped past in slow stretches of green and stone.
"If she keeps up the meditation I told her to do," he said without turning his head, "she should awaken in a little over a year."
The words settled between us.
"That's amazing," I said quietly.
"It is." He reached into his coat and pulled out an envelope, holding it toward me. "She asked me to give you this once we finished."
The paper crinkled softly as I opened it and slid the card free.
[Please join us as we celebrate Princess Kathyln's Seventh Birthday]
[Sunday, the 18th of October, between the Hours of 4 and 8 PM]
[The Royal Palace of Etistin]
'I see...'
"What is it?" my brother asked, peering over at the card in my hand.
I handed it to him, a wicked smirk growing on his face as his eyes glided over the note.
"I didn't kn-"
Wanting to change the topic after feeling heat rise to my cheeks, I asked my brother something that had been bugging me for nearly two hours, "Art, what's a Lance?"
"A spear"
I looked to the future Lance blank-faced. "I know."
"Then why did you ask?" he said blank-faced.
---
Hello everyone, Rius here,
Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. See you tomorrow for Chapter 15.
Thank you to Lancelot Dragonroad for beta-reading and editing.
Rius Out.