Adrian de Rella frowned, placing his elbow on the side of the moving carriage.

“Darling~” His now-wife, the beautiful Mariana Delacartes, flirted. “What are you thinking about~”

How to divorce you.

“Nothing, really,” the third son of the Rella family replied airily. “Just the succession battle.”

“Your main obstacles are that monster and Lord William, right?” Mariana blinked, her long eyelashes framing her doe-like eyes.

Adrian had already gotten tired of those eyes a long time ago.

“Yes, Liam, that monster, and possibly Kieran. That idiot caught the eye of the King, and apparently is a candidate for the next Captaincy of the Order. Apparently, he’s very capable at magic.” Adrian snorted. “The Council are all fools.”

Mariana looked delighted to have approached a topic Adrian elaborated on for more than one or two sentences.

“Really?~”

“All Father’s children are eligible for his title; and that includes everyone. That monster, Liam, Kieran, me, and Adelaide. But of course, Adelaide can’t even get out of her bed because of her sickness, Kieran has no brain when it comes to management, and that leaves the monster and Liam. Lately, the monster’s been kissing up to father.” The last part was said with a frown.

And now with Kieran’s possible captaincy, the situation is a hell of a lot more complicated.

“Aw...my poor darling.” Mariana made a sympathetic expression. “I’m always here for you~”

I want to chuck you out of this carriage.

“Mmm.”

The Order of Mages was basically those stereotypical goody-two-shoes law enforcement that talented magic prodigies joined. But even high-ranked nobles who graduated from Vya had to go through rigorous training before being a part of their ranks. To be recognized as an ‘official mage,’ and to basically be able bump elbows with the aristocracy, you had to gain at least a High Mage certification from them.

A High Mage certification required someone to be a triple-elemental master.

There were three stages to Skills: beginner, expert, and mastery.

Beginner meant comprehension of the Skill after understanding the Core and having enough Will; expert meant being able to wield the Skill skillfully, and mastery meant being at the pinnacle of a Skill. There was no specific definition of ‘breakthroughs’ through stages, but it usually meant recognizing a concept of the Skill that boosted a mage’s comprehension of it.

Being Captain of the Order of Mages meant dealing directly with the King, and that could mean good news for Kieran and bad news for Adrian, as the King could bestow upon the heir title to the fool.

The Rellas were notoriously Royalist Radicals, but Adrian himself was a hidden Royalist.

Mariana blinked. Adrian could see her eyes practically boring a hole in the back of his head.

Mariana Delacartes was the best of the Delacartes siblings. Although only a viscount family, they were a vital vassal of the Rellas that served as its hands and feet. The succession of the next Viscount had been a thorn in Father’s side for quite a while.

“Mariana,” Adrian began, turning, causing a surprised look to the person being spoken to, “how are your siblings?”

“My siblings?” After a moment of confusion, Mariana replied, “Mallev is, well Mallev. He’s reportedly been bringing home women so often Father’s banned him from doing so. The last I heard, he tried to sneak himself over the fence to have a tryst.”

Adrian frowned.

True to his reputation, the son sounded more of a fool than his brother.

“What about the other one? What was her name? Maeve?”

“Maevri,” Mariana corrected. “She’s still harassing the commoners and the staff. Her personality still hasn’t changed, even after marrying whatshisface, Count Johansson. Why do you ask, my darling~”

Mariana Delacartes resembled a fly in Adrian de Rella’s life.

To the public, they were childhood sweethearts, and Adrian was the only one who could put up with Mariana’s willfulness. They were a sweet couple, Adrian being a talented swordsman and administrator, and Mariana being a beautiful, untalented, viscount’s daughter.

From childhood, he had remembered those wide eyes and auburn hair, with a smile.

“Darling~ I have to go soon~”

“Darling~ I’m turning ten soon!”

“Darling~ my father says we’re going to get married! Isn’t it exciting~”

He had visited those memories with a smile...until she had become a part of his life.

“Darling~ come visit the boutique with me!”

“What are you doing, my love~”

“Sweetheart…?”

Her bothersome habits hampered Adrian’s ambitions. Adrian was even tempted to make up a fake lover to chase her away.

But even then, she probably would say, “Do whatever you want, my darling~”

Adrian shook himself out of his reverie.

“What dress are you wearing to the marquis’ ball?” he inquired, his tone emotionless.

A pause.

“I think it was a blue one~”

“Alright. I’ll ask the tailor to match it. We’ll be arriving at the mansion soon for lunch.”

True to his word, the carriage halted in front of a luxurious house a few minutes later. The Rellas’ mansion.

----

Order of Mages Lieutenant, twenty-year-old Kieran de Rella unsheathed his sword. It was a trusty claymore, assigned by the Order, a two-handed blade humming with magic. A tri-flower, with three petals resembling spades similar to the royal family’s penta-flower, was carved into the leather hilt, a symbol of the Order.

Kieran summoned the tingly magic to his fingers, using the sensation to probe and shape the air around him, creating a vortex layer around his sword.

The temperature plummeted as he created mini-hurricanes behind him, a grand arsenal that resembled the heroic battles in tapestries. The wind hurricanes swirled rapidly, churning like whirlpools in the sea against the cornflower-blue sky. The trees near the training pavilion were soon bent and deprived of leaves, as the air itself turned dangerous - an invisible, somewhat stealthy force, yet a deadly one.

He had inherited the Rella good looks, with light caramel skin and a heroic bearing. Badges glimmered on his military mage uniform as Kieran raised his sword like he was a general on the battlefield instead of participating in a light spar.

[Wind Vortex] was a mighty weapon, a Concept that Kieran was renowned for.

Facing off against Kieran was William de Rella, his brother.

William smiled, unsheathing his delicate rapier that looked small compared to the large claymore in Kieran’s hand.

All of a sudden, as if the rapier was coated in oil, the thin blade ignited, the needle almost consumed by scarlet flames, dancing against the blade. William immediately conjured orbs of fire, the glowing shapes almost haunting. Dozens of orbs, each the size of a dinner plate appeared behind his graceful posture.

[Inferno Sphere], William’s main Concept.

All of a sudden, the two charged.

The orbs circled towards Kieran as the vortex-shielded blade tried to deflect them, William poised as he advanced with his rapier. A clanging of blades as Kieran spread out his hurricanes, swallowing the spheres.

William conjured more and more as the sword fight grew more intense.

‘Left shoulder. Right leg. Stomach.’

Trained in swordsmanship, Kieran’s darting eyes analyzed his brother’s steps.

“Oi, Brother. You improved,” Kieran called out.

William gritted his teeth as he narrowly dodged a hurricane. “Thanks. If I was allowed to use both elements, I would have more of an advantage.”

William didn’t make any useless moves, his fiery needle leaving heated traces behind. Kieran hissed as his rapier scraped against his elbow, burning through a layer of his skin. While William’s moves were precise yet intricate, Kieran was straightforward and powerful.

Fire met air and they both burned.

Kieran slowly went on the offensive as the battle tipped in his favor, beads of sweat dripping down William’s face as the orbs were consumed and more were created. Just as Kieran was about to strike a blow, there was a clearing of the throat and the fight was halted.

The hurricanes and inferno spheres dissipated, as both combatants turned towards the strange sound.

“Lord Kieran, Lord William.” The butler cleared his throat. “It’s time for lunch. The Duke reminds you not to destroy the training pavilion.”

----

Twenty-year-old Adelaide de Rella was always sick.

Her illness ate away at her bones, a cancerous disease that even the best healing mages in the kingdom could only keep at bay for weeks before it got worse. It was a never-ending cycle - it would get worse, then better, then worse, then better. The pain gnawed beneath her skin, making her skeleton fragile and thus, she could rarely get out of bed.

“Lady Adelaide…” a maid’s nervous voice, and heavy footsteps, gave it away.

Ah. There he is.

Aidann, her brother, was visiting.

“Ada.” Her oldest brother’s voice echoed.

Adelaide turned, stiffly, meeting his eyes.

When she was younger, she had known that her oldest brother wasn’t normal. The members of the ducal Rella household called him a monster, instead of his name. But Adelaide loved her brother all the same. Adrian never visited, and Liam would always do so with a pained expression on his face, as if he couldn’t even bear to look at her. Kieran would always act stiff, awkward around her. Only Aidann had treated her the same.

Of course, Adelaide couldn’t deny that he sometimes scared her.

But they were family.

He wouldn’t hurt her.

“Brother.” Adelaide attempted at a smile. “How are you?”

“Doing alright. Father banned me from violence for six months.”

He said this with the same, blank expression.

If Adelaide could move her lips, she would’ve burst out laughing.

“A violence ban? That’s new,” she replied, “are we eating lunch together?”

Aidann shrugged, his shoulders under the suit jacket he always wore convulsing.

A pause.

“Kieran’s coming back,” he voiced after a while. “Adrian’s obviously coming because of the captaincy, and Liam’s always in his study. The whole family’s here.”

Sarcastically, he added, “Yipee.”

“Aish. When there’s more than two Rellas, there’s always trouble I’m too tired to deal with.” Adelaide sighed. “Remember when Father got sick, the first thing Mother did was think that my disease was contagious? And then he miraculously got better? Like I said, too much trouble. The succession plan is all messed up now, but I want no part in it.”

“So it’s the monster, the snake, and the coward,” Aidann replied drily. “Even worse than the Delacartes.”

“You’re not a monster. You just experience the world differently.”

“So you say. But only you.” Aidann blinked. “The Duke wants you to come down for lunch. I told him that it would be too painful for you, but he was adamant. He probably wants to announce something.”

Adelaide moistened her lips. “I mean, a mage just visited yesterday, so it should be possible.”

But it might hurt…

“Possible, but you might get hurt.”

“Is that concern I spy, with my little eye?”

He’s...changed.

“It isn’t. Your eyes might get lost along with your bones. Be careful.”

Adelaide rolled her eyes. “Get the wheelchair.”

“I’ll get the wheelchair.”

Swatting the maid away, Aidann unfolded the wheelchair made from Elevyarian pine that was propped up against a wall. Scooping Adelaide from under her armpits, he eased her into the wheelchair and pushed her towards the direction of the dining room.

“How is Kieran?” Adelaide questioned.

“Still the same annoying brat as ever, I’m sure,” Aidann replied, stoic. “Scoring a captaincy doesn’t make him any less insufferable. I could score a captaincy.”

“Sure you could. Watch out, there’s a bump in the carpet.”

----