Warm beams of the sun pierced through the window in a small room. Inside, Lazarus was sitting on the bed reading a picture book depicting a man with a raised hand.

He closed the book shut, returned it to the shelf and got two other books that he brought back to bed with him.

There were the sounds of rollers constantly passing by his room. No doubt in preparation for the party.

Lazarus contemplated whether he should check outside of his room or just continue to practice magic.

Still, no matter how hard Lazarus tried, he somehow kept on failing to cast magic. He kept at it for a good amount of time ever since he’d met-.. or rather saw the girl who’d inspire him. Just remembering her visage and her elegance was enough to ignite a flame in Lazarus’ heart. He wanted to be like her or perhaps surpass her.

Indeed, it was the very same girl on the balcony who cast ice magic on the night before.

Who was she anyway?

- ...And why did she look like her? -

As Lazarus contemplated the identity of the girl on the balcony, his thoughts were interrupted by a soft knocking on the door.

“Young prince Lazarus, it’s Lara. May I come in?”

“Alright.”

The door opened with a soft click, and Lara bowed. Lazarus was wondering ‘Why was she being so formal?’

“Today is the day of the party. I would simply like to remind you that I will be coming to pick you up before evening.”

Lazarus furrowed his brow for a moment, then looked to Lara resolutely.

“Say-... can I skip this party?”

“Unfortunately not. Why do you want to skip the party in the first place? I recall you seem to have agreed to attend yesterday.”

“I-... Wait… I didn’t agree to anything! I just wanted to meet Mom as soon as possible. That’s all...”

Lara hummed thoughtfully, placing a finger on her chin. “But why do you not want to attend?”

“Well… I just hate parties.”

“The reason being..?”

“I just hate them... ”

Lara sighed. Clearly she wasn’t going to get any answers from him. Maybe it was because Lazarus was never treated well by the noble's kids, but she hoped that Emilia's presence would make him want to go. In any case,

“The fact still remains that you are required to attend the party.”

“Boo~ What’s it about anyway?”

“I’ve told you before, it’s a welcoming party.”

“But do you know who it is for?”

“I unfortunately do not.”

“Arghh….. Do I really have to attend this stinking party for something or someone I don’t even know?”

“Don’t be like that please. I do believe that there is merit in joining.”

“Which is?”

“You get to enjoy the party with her Majesty.”

“But I can just meet her after the party can’t I?”

At this point Lara furrowed her brows. She knew Lazarus would do anything to be able to see Emilia and spend time with her as soon as possible. But he seemed to hate parties enough that he wanted to wait for it to finish before even speaking with Emilia.

She simply wondered how she could convince Lazarus to go since his attendance was required after all. As for why, she had no idea. Maybe-..

“D-did father tell you that my attendance was required?”

Lara dismissed her thoughts and turned to look at Lazarus.

“Sir Falon told me, but it is indeed the truth that it was your father who had the orders relayed.”

Hearing her words, Lazarus stiffened for a moment, then sagged his shoulders in resignation. “Alright, I’ll go...”

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That night,

A middle aged man around 40 years old sporting a fancy haircut and mustache, casually walked along the corridors of Valheim Palace. He wore a green vest over his long white shirt, a brown belt with a red ribbon as well. It was clear from a first glance that this was someone important.

Beside him, was a middle aged woman who wore a similar attire as the man but showed her curves.

“I wonder why hold a party this grand?” The man who was a noble, asked. He glanced at the window where he could see that there were hundreds of people making their way towards the castle, all lavishly dressed. No doubt they were nobles too or held some very important positions.

“I’d like to know that as well, Count Reinhardt. After all, it’s quite rare for the Valhearts to hold a party this grand. Do you think it’s related to the discovery of new arcanery?”

“I doubt it. From what I discovered, it seems to be a debut of some sort.”

“A debut? For who?”

Though nobles and royalties were explicitly allies, they weren’t exactly in the most friendly terms. That said, there was a saying that ‘you couldn’t be too careful’ so obtaining information on allies was simply par for the course.

“Who knows. But it shouldn’t be for someone so insignificant if the Valhearts had hidden this information this well. After all, there’s no point in doing so for a small fry.” Said the man. This is why he personally came to the party having no information on hand, as he intended to see it for himself.

However, one candidate did come to mind.

“Do you think that the announced previdere on that prince was wrong?” The woman asked. To which the Count furrowed his brows.

Years ago, when Prince Lazarus’ had his previdere, expectations were high. Knights had mentioned the fact that during their travels they saw the once in a lifetime event, Spiritual Ascension. However the actual results were announced much later after the previdere, which was strange.

It was clear that something must’ve gone wrong at that time and the Count’s instinct back then had been right. After All, it was announced that Young Prince Lazarus’ mana reserves were even lesser than an average person.

It was shocking. So shocking that various rumours in which he may grow to be the black sheep of the family had spread.

Honestly, it shouldn’t have been all that shocking. It was a stretch to ask for another genius when the Valhearts were already blessed with two Elite children. But to just suddenly end up with an inept third child was a little...no, it was a massive disappointment. It had become the talk of the town for months on end.

But for Count Reinhardt, that couldn’t have been right. After all, there was no need to hide that information that was eventually going to come out.

So why had they delayed their announcement of the verdict? The only reason for that was so they’d have time to fabricate some story, he felt.

And so Reinhardt had investigated with that question in mind, he had connections to the inside of Valheim palace and he eventually found out that Prince Lazarus’ wasn’t actually below average, he was worse, he had little to no mana. Of course, being manaless was an impossibility in and of itself, so young prince Lazarus' mana must've been so little that it could barely be felt.

If it was that bad, then couldn't Reinhardt claim that Lazarus was manaless?

A being devoid of mana. Something that should not have been possible at all in Valeria.

The nobles against the royal would eat this up.

Reinhardt grinned. Now he had a card to play. Either way, if the nobles of the anti-royal faction investigated this themselves and it was found to be false, he could simply say that perhaps the maid he had planted gave him the wrong information.

But how could they prove him wrong if the prince's mana was very hard to detect.

Reinhardt also had dirt on a few pro and anti royal nobles, so he practically had all the cards he needed.

"Hehehe" He couldn't help but chuckle to himself.

Playing both sides was precisely how he got to where he is now, so having cards to play later was always a good thing.

Still, it wouldn’t do him good if he was found to have been snooping around.

But if ever he came into a confrontation or disagreement with the Valhearts, it was information he was willing to use, or maybe sell, if the opportunity arose and the price high enough. Holding onto cards of information was just a tactic employed by the many. One he wouldn’t hesitate to use.

“I’m not so sure... We had heard from our intel that it was very hard to detect the mana in Prince Lazarus, and it’s so unbelievable coming from a Valheart, the strongest known human mages. And that’s the reason why you doubt the verdict of that angel.” Said the Count, pointing out the woman’s thoughts.

The woman nodded.

Though there were doubts of the credibility of the information they had gotten then, the actions of the Valheart only proved their suspicions --that is,

“Princess Anastasia and Prince Clovis both had their debut parties while Prince Lazarus...hadn’t.” The Count trailed off and cleared his throat.

The Count could only knit his brows at the action of the Valhearts at that time. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t understand where they were coming from. After all, Veyron could arguably be the most famous human with a golden track record.

He had two geniuses as offspring, he was considered the most powerful human in the history of mankind, and he also had Emilia Valheart who was an unparalleled beauty for a wife. There was much to be envied from him but despite this,

“Having a below average child is one thing. But being as bad as Prince Lazarus can certainly cause a commotion. Especially coming from a Valheart”

“Agreed.”

“Isn’t it kinda sad for the child to not have his own party? I’ve heard that every year, his birthday is not celebrated at all.”

“That is indeed sad. However, the fact remains that this party is not for the Young Prince. So who is it for?” Said the woman.

After a bit of thinking,

“Perhaps it has something to do with why the Queen frequently leaves for months every year and yet she hasn't attended any official duties?”

“Perhaps.”

They could only wonder. The two then stopped talking as they were nearing a large set of double doors that were guarded by knights wearing full plates of armor.

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The night of the party--

People dressed in lavish outfits filled the room. Music played and chattering could be heard.

The usual lavish but same old party he would need to attend. Being a count was quite tedious indeed.

Reinhardt could only hope something noteworthy would happen right now.

As he scanned the surroundings, surveiling each and every noble while taking note of the important people to approach later, he noticed a little boy with pitch black hair and sapphire blue eyes, wearing a dark turquoise overcoat over a small white business suit in the upper decks of the throne room.

“So that's Prince Lazarus Valheart.” Reinhardt saw nothing impressive in the boy. Maybe that was simply his prejudice talking knowing full well what that boy entailed. Maybe he should approach him and get a feel of his mana?

He turned but then stopped, as a loud blast of trumpets echoed in the room.

“His Majesty, King Veyron Valheart and her highness Queen Emilia Valheart, has arrived!”

There emerged a woman with free flowing long lustrous black hair. Her icy blue eyes gave off a feeling of being pulled into a lake of frozen emotions. It was like all the myriad shades of blue swirled together to form a whirlpool of apprehension. Yet they were gentle.

She wore an intricately-decorated royal gown, with what appears to be a silver breastplate.

The world class beauty was none other than the Queen of the Twilight Kingdom, Emilia Valheart.

“The Queen is as beautiful as ever.” Reinhardt couldn’t help but comment idly. He could only hope his wife had at least half of her beauty.

The man next to her had long blond hair that reached his shoulder. His eyes were green, the kind of green that budded on the prisoners of winter, showing immense strength and dignity. His outfit was a match to the queen, but the two emitted completely different auras.

While the Queen gave off an aura of soft gentleness with her beauty, the King however, radiated an aura that commanded attention to his regal bearings, it was almost oppressive.

Just looking at the king made him feel assured and confident, even intimidated.

The King and Queen descended from the large stairs and addressed the crowd. Veyron, who held a golden cup, raised it high up in the air as he declared loudly,

“Today will be a very memorable day for all of us here in the Twilight Kingdom! No, perhaps the entire human race!”

“Hmm?” Hearing the King’s words made Reinhardt furrow his brows sharply. He’d thought this was just gonna be another boring party, but maybe he was wrong. Why did the King say it was gonna be a memorable day for the entire human race?

“As you may all know, Clovis and Anastasia both have immense potential. In essence, they are already a part of the upper echelons and will one day be the pillars of the Twilight Kingdom -- But who will those pillars support I may ask?”

At this point of his speech, almost everyone was confused. Needless to say, they all knew Lazarus was weak. But why’d the King made it sound like they were going to support someone, if there was no one else but that inept child?

Reinhardt had thought that Clovis was going to succeed Veyron, but instead, he was merely a pillar?

What was the King plotting?

It was then that the magic stones that lit the large open hall, all dimmed. A man who was positioned on the balcony, cast a spell, forming a complex white magical circle at the tip of his palm and then, it fired a beam of light, like a spotlight to the one person on top of the stair.

Reinhardt squinted his brows to get a better look, but the moment he’d noticed the person in the spotlight’s feature, he felt a jolt of electricity on his spine.

A young cute girl around five years of age. Her eyes were a life of green, hair a shiny straight black that waved in the edges, and were at her hip’s length.

She had a shiny silver teeny tiara adorned on top of her head. She wore a peach and white dress.

The top layer was riddled with flower patterns at the ends of her dress. She had a pink translucent corset to keep her warm and display her features in an elegant manner. Coupled with small white gloves that hid her delicate hands. A young girl who would one day grow to be an unparalleled beauty no doubt.

“It’s her!” Lazarus exclaimed, making Reinhardt eye him for a brief moment before turning his attention back to the star of the room.

Wait.. could she perhaps be who the pillars...that Anastasia and Clovis would be supporting?

Who was she?

The people began looking to one another. Murmuring the identity of the young girl.

"Doesn't she resemble Emilia?"

"She does doesn't she... But didn't they only have three children?"

"So who?"

Glancing at the confused faces of the nobles, Veyron smiled and announced,

“Everyone, I present to you the second princess of the Twilight Kingdom. The Crown princess.”

The King looked around, and he could see that everyone in attendance was entranced by the young girl who, like a petal adrift in the wind, elegantly descended the stairs with precise and careful steps. She then stopped on top of a platform as the King announced her name.

“Reisha Valheart!”

A thunder of applause followed after, then praises were sung.

“Brilliant!”

“She’s a beauty, almost like a fairy!”

“What discipline and elegance in those movements…. How could one so young do all of this?”

Everyone couldn’t help but drown the young girl in praise.

The young girl, Reisha then did a curtsy and smiled. She was indeed very cute and elegant, even Lazarus found himself staring. However, her smile didn’t contain an ounce of childish innocence, rather it was more mature and calm. Like the one Emilia showed.

Amidst the loud cheers of the crowd, Reinhardt could see the faces of a few nobles twist. Even he couldn’t form any words at the shocking revelation. All this time, there was a… fourth child?

Reinhardt snapped out of his thoughts the moment the young girl started to move.

Reisha placed the tip of her finger at her throat, making a green magical circle appear.

It was a voice enhancement magic that Reinhardt was all too familiar with. As she spoke, her soothing chime bell-like voice echoed throughout the room for all to hear.

“I am Reisha Valheart, it is a pleasure to meet you all.”

Silence.

There was an absolute silence in awe for the young girl.

Magic could already be learned at the age of 8 however, casting magic was a different matter. The earliest recorded in history was a genius from ancient times, and that genius managed to cast magic at the age of 7. Average people could cast it usually around the age of 10.

Everyone felt goosebumps on their entire body. Not only did this young girl have an air of absolute elegance, but she had used magic at a tender age of five. A feat surpassing that of the genius of old-.. No-.., actually even the geniuses of the fairy tales and legends would fail to compare with her.

“As you can see, she is still five years old and yet, she has already learned to cast a spell.” Said Veyron loudly.

Reinhardt felt giddy, as if a static current flew through his brain down to his skin.

The goosebumps wouldn’t stop.

Having a giant mana pool was one thing, but to show that level of magic at five years old?

Reinhardt hadn’t noticed that his calm and stoic facade was already broken.

The wide maniacal grin he had was unbefitting that of a noble. But everyone was too mesmerized to have noticed.

“Reisha… Valheart...”

Reinhard repeated her name to himself, tasting the very words he spoke.

It was then he glanced back to Lazarus, to see his reaction.

But the boy was frozen stiff. His eyes were widened, and mouth half open. It was as if he saw a ghost.

Why did he react like that?

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