Syron felt no need to lie about it to himself. His mother sneaking up on him while he was focusing on pushing his magic clump around and grabbing his shoulders made him nearly jump out of his skin. The clump ground to a halt unnaturally fast as he lost his focus. Forcing himself to breathe steadily, he smiled upon his new mother and dour personal maid.

“Oh, good morning Mother. Miss Mari. To what do I owe the pleasure?” Syron asked them, the afterglow of discovering real magic still coloring his face with warmth and wonder. His tone was light, almost sing song, given his extremely happy mood.

Magic… is that one thing he always desperately wished was real but knew it wasn’t. It was a sometimes painful yearning that he knew would never be fulfilled. On several occasions in his life before becoming Syron, he had even spiraled into a slight depression from wishing for the supernatural and never finding it. Perhaps the only reason he was willing to accept that he was transmigrated so easily was because he always hoped it would happen when he died anyway. It’s not like he had never read a light novel.

His mother’s almost sad expression suddenly brightened, lifting the mood of the surrounding area with an almost palpable aura. Fatigue and sores Syron hadn’t realized he possessed were washed away again like footsteps on a beach.

“Oh… are you using magic on me, Mother?” She seemed surprised for a moment, but the cascading aura surrounding her didn’t waver or fade.

“Apparently I am. How unlike me.” She calmly responded, her smile altering to one of ruefulness.

“So… I just read about aptitudes…” immediately the faces of both his mother and the maid Marigold warped slightly, before being forced back into a less genuine smile, “… and I was wondering if that meant that you were a healer type?” Syron noted their expression’s shift but didn’t make a deal of it for now.

Do they not want me to learn about aptitudes or something?

“Not exactly, my sweet boy. But I suppose that is a generic enough explanation for half my abilities.” She sat down in a chair at the table next to my cart, folding her hands daintily on her lap. She stared at me consideringly, choosing her words carefully.

“If I make a natural cycle… do you know what that means? Oh, in case you don’t, a natural cycle is the most natural direction for your magic to pass through your magic channels. Anyway, if I make a natural cycle, my magic creates a field of positive effect. This means I can exert a change upon things within my domain by weaving good effects into them. In your case, I am adding a healing effect to your body. While you were in your coma, I was able to nourish you so you did not starve to death. I was not strong enough to keep your muscles healthy, but I was strong enough to keep you alive.”

Looking at my mother, she tried to hide some of the pain from her face, but I could see it clearly. I beckoned her to come closer to me. She shifted her body and leaned closer, but not close enough. I beckoned her again. She smiled and put her ear right next to my mouth. I ducked slightly and kissed her on the cheek.

“Thank you, Mother.” Color touched her cheeks as she smiled gleefully.

“Did you see that Mari? My boy has not kissed my cheek in years! He has become such a sweetheart!”

Looking over at Mari, even she couldn’t keep the shock off her face.

Just what kind of person was Syron before I took the helm? His mother is an absolute gem and deserves all the affection. All of it.

“Going back to the topic of my magic… there is also something called an unnatural cycle. If you use that, your magic warps to be opposite in some way to your natural cycle. If you naturally can increase temperature to create fire, you unnaturally can decrease temperature to create ice. Unnatural cycles are typically much weaker than their natural counterparts, but can be trained to be almost completely equal in potency. Your unnatural magic can never be stronger than your natural magic because it is limited by the power of your Magic Soul, and its strength is only increased by performing natural cycles.” The Lady Forrester continued, pulsing her aura once again before letting it die down to only a slight warmth.

“So what happens when you use an unnatural cycle?” Syron asked, wondering if instead of healing those around her, she can only heal herself or something.

“My magic exerts a negative effect to things of my choosing within my domain. If naturally I add, unnaturally I remove. This can still be used for healing, as I can target unwanted things such as poisons or diseases and remove the harm they cause… but mostly this power can be used to harm by removing life force directly. Enemies would find themselves healing slower or simply wasting away in the middle of combat. Remember, no matter what aptitude one has, it can be used in both good and bad ways.” She stopped her lecture to look at her son, checking to see if he was repulsed by her magic. He just kept smiling.

“That’s amazing! What about you Mari? Can you use magic?” The maid, whom was checking the nearby bookshelves for dust and straightening the books that were slightly out of place stopped in her tracks. Almost mechanically she turned and bowed to Syron.

“My apologies Young Master. Though I do possess an aptitude, it is not such an amazing one as the Lady’s. I can only weakly retain or emit magic that I have placed within objects. It is a power dependant on others, as I cannot create effects by myself. It is one of the most common attributes. Due to its inherent dependance on others and its very weak strength, it is considered one of the most worthless aptitudes. If the original caster can exhibit ten strength, my magic can only exhibit one.”

So my mother is a healer, and my maid is an enchanter? Pretty awesome, even if Mari doesn’t seem to think highly of herself or her aptitude. People will always envy what others have, perhaps even to the point of putting what they have themselves down.

“Alright, so… what about me? I assume you both are extremely familiar with what I can do… what is my aptitude?” At my words, both women sighed and frowned. Mari at least realized what she was doing and returned her face to impassive before returning to her mindless cleaning.

“Ah, well, my son… you can naturally create images and sounds within other’s minds. Unnaturally you can create images and sounds in the world around you. As far as aptitudes go… yours is not a highly sought after one.”

Huh? Why wouldn’t people want that one? It’s friggin sweet. Sure, I can’t throw fireballs, but think of the possibilities!

“Why not? There are many practical applications to such a power?” Syron retorted, perhaps a little more forcefully than necessary.

“Because, my son, your powers do not work against monsters, only men. Men do not take kindly to having their minds addled. Most will distrust and fear you simply because of your power. It is commonly assumed that any who use powers to affect someone’s mind or judgement could only be doing so with nefarious intentions. If you dabble in illusions, you must be trying to trick someone. It is… not necessarily a fair assessment, but one that is highly prevalent. If you were a shop owner, and your till came up short at the end of a hard day, would you think you made a mistake in giving change, or would you think an illusionist convinced you they paid you when they did not? It is easier to see the weakness in other people than within ourselves.”

Well, actually I do kinda get where people are coming from. I have always hated being tricked or manipulated. If someone else could use this sort of magic on me, I dare say I’d be pretty leery of them as well. Granted, I wouldn’t necessarily ever feel safe around someone who can just get angry and throw lightning at me either. Or drop a mountain on my head or something.

“Though you have already answered this question once before in the past, I will ask again given your… situation. Would you like a magic tutor? Obviously I can help with the most basic of questions, but anything more advanced would require someone more knowledgeable. Take note that I do not make this offer lightly. It is no small thing to invite an illusionist into your home. They could attempt to rob us blind, all the while we are convinced they are in a separate room entirely from the crime being committed. We have our own protections in place… but it is a legitimate concern.” Lady Forester offered, a frown now clearly evident on her face. Marigold stopped straightening already straightened books and waited silently for an answer, her back turned away so as to pretend she wasn’t eavesdropping.

“What do you think, Mother? Do you think I should have a personal tutor?” Syron responded, unsure he wanted to burden his new family with a risk no one else thought was worth it. She pondered his question for a few moments, tilting her head back and forth as she considered points and counterpoints.

“If you wish to learn magic… yes. Learning without a teacher is a difficult task for something like this. This would put your already tenuous political position in even more jeopardy, though, so only do so if magic is more important to you than your inheritance.”

“How tenuous? Aren’t I an only child?”

“Well, no, you have a younger sister. She is… with your father, we all hope. They have been missing for around a year. Around the time you had your ‘accident’ and fell into a coma.”

Okay, am I the only one hearing the metaphorical quotations around ‘accident’? Okay, whatever. So I have an M.I.A. sister and father, and that gives me a tenuous hold of my inheritance? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t care that much about the House… I just learned about them two days ago… but still.

Syron just waited for the Lady to continue speaking. She opened her mouth and hesitated, closed it, pondered it some more, then opened it again.

“If you are found to be unsuitable to inherit the House by the Royal Family, and my husband does not return within the next year, I will either be forced to remarry or adopt a court appointed successor. One will result in you being removed from the public eye to maintain the House’s image before you quietly disappear, and the other will likely find you ‘too sick’ to be seen before you are again quietly disposed of. It all depends on how quickly a new heir can be produced and then I will be removed myself. After all, if anyone tries to hurt you, I will crush them with all the weight of a true Warden of the Woods.”

Ugh… damned if you do.

“Then I don’t need a tutor. I don’t want you to be forced to do something you don’t want just because I selfishly want to do magic. The inheritance I just learned about is amazing and all, but I don’t need it. What I do need, though, is to not get murdered for political intrigue when I’m still too weak to even walk to the toilet. Speaking of… I’m going to spring a leak soon.”

“Oh my! Marigold! My son is in need of your assistance. I must be off.” Lady Forester stood from her seat and made her way to the door of the library. Turning her head slightly as she left, she stopped a gave a parting message.

“Syron… I am ashamed to admit this, but I truly am glad you lost your memories. We haven’t really spoken much in years… and I really want to keep doing this. I have missed you, my baby boy.”