“Urie, dear, you can go ahead. Mother will follow after a while.”

“Alright, Mother,” Urie replied.

Rivelle gave him a quick hug and a pat on the head as she knelt down, but only after giving him a thorough scolding for his disappearance the previous night.

Apparently, his mother had caused quite the stir with the city guards while searching for him. Imagine everyone’s surprise when they found him lounging in the fountain. But when they saw him unconscious, they rushed him to a doctor. Thankfully, there were no serious issues, just a slight fever, and he was declared fit to return home. It wasn’t until he was safely in bed that Rivelle’s frantic worry finally eased.

—Ah, I really worried Mother.

Leaving Rivelle to her morning preparations, Urie made his way to the dining room.

On the way, he felt a faint discomfort in his chest—a strange wave of heat. Was his fever still lingering? he wondered.

—It’s probably not a fever. I don’t feel weak or lightheaded.

Urie decided to brush it off for now. As he entered the dining room, a familiar sight greeted him: a long brown ponytail swaying side to side.

“Good morning, Patty,” he greeted cheerfully, approaching the maid who was preparing the table for breakfast.

“Good morning, young master,” Patty replied, turning around in surprise. She smiled and asked with a hint of concern, “Y-Young master, are you alright?”

—Patty must have been anxious as well. Was it because of last night?

The maid looked exhausted, clearly lacking sleep. She had been the one tasked with watching over him when he disappeared. Urie immediately felt that he owed her an apology.

“I’m fine, and I apologize for worrying everyone,” Urie said, taking a seat at the dining table.

Patty shook her head lightly, her expression softening. “We’re just glad you’re safe, young master. Has milady Rivelle woken up?”

“Ah, Mother will be down soon. She just woke up.”

Patty nodded and excused herself. “Alright, I’ll be right back with breakfast, young master.”

As she left for the kitchen, Urie’s thoughts returned to the discomfort in his chest. The heat was still there, persistent and distracting. He raised his shirt slightly, checking for any obvious cause, but saw nothing except his flushed skin.

—What is this? Is it really a fever? But I feel fine...

Urie didn’t feel drowsy, but he suddenly had the urge to close his eyes. When he did, he snapped them open again after only a few seconds.

“A-Ah! It wasn’t a dream...” A smile spread across his face before he could stop it.

Under the new sensation, Urie closed his eyes again, this time focusing as he felt numerous motes of white light gathering around him. He let out a small laugh.

—Mana! Haha! This is mana!

He could feel it now, thin red threads of mana spreading throughout his consciousness. His mana roots were finally forming. His attention shifted to his mana seed; as the roots grew, the rate at which he gathered mana accelerated.

—Quickly! Form quickly! I want to use magic!

“Young Master!” A sudden shout broke through Urie’s excitement, pulling him back to the present. He blinked, his vision blurry, and saw the other maid, Ersha, standing across the table.

“What’s wrong, Ersha?” Urie asked, though his words felt distant. His vision was still clouded.

“Aah!!!” Patty’s startled cry came from behind Ersha before she could answer.

—What’s going on? Why did they shout?

Urie rubbed his eyes, hoping to clear his vision. It only took a couple of quick blinks before he realized the issue wasn’t his sight—it was the air around him. It shimmered, visibly warping. A glance at his arms gave him the answer.

He quickly closed his eyes again, doing a mental check.

His mana seed was fully active, drawing in mana through its roots. The roots were pulsating with red light, and their thickness varied, still in the process of settling.

The maids must have been startled by the red glow emanating from his body. But Urie couldn’t control it. The best he could do was try to hold it back a little.

“What’s going on?” Rivelle’s voice cut through the confusion, her face a picture of concern as she hurried into the room.

“Milady! Y-Young master! He—“ Patty began to explain, but Rivelle cut her off, her gaze snapping to Urie.

Urie’s face broke into a wide, uncontrollable grin. “Mother—!” he exclaimed, his cheeks flushed. “I can use magic!” His voice was full of glee as he beamed at her, his eyes sparkling with excitement.

Rivelle

“...Apparently, he can use magic.”

Rivelle stared at the piece of paper in front of her, the faint scent of ink and parchment lingering in the air of the study. Her fingers absentmindedly twisted a lock of her pale hair as she fidgeted in her chair.

“What else should I say?” she muttered, glancing between the letter and her thoughts. She had planned to write a letter to her husband yesterday but had to start over this morning after the surprising news.

Now that Urie could use magic, he was eligible to enroll in Daerin’s magic academy. Rivelle didn’t oppose the idea, but she couldn’t shake her concern about his desire to go to the wall after graduation. The thought of him joining his father and brothers there filled her with conflicted emotions.

“—Ugh! He’ll want to go to that damn wall!” She clicked her tongue, the pen in her hand creaking in frustration.

Even without magic, Urie might have run off to the wall on his own, without telling her or her husband. Rivelle couldn’t help but think that she knew her son too well.

“Hah...” A long, weary sigh escaped her lips as resignation settled in. Her husband and two older sons were already stationed at Erden’s wall, and yet here was her youngest, already eager to join them.

“I might as well go with them instead of waiting here alone for news,” she muttered under her breath.

She set the pen down, her thoughts scattered as she hastily finished the letter. Moments later, she sealed the envelope with the Loeth House’s crest.

Rivelle stood up and left the study, heading toward the garden. She encountered Ersha on her way out. “Give this to the courier when he arrives,” Rivelle instructed, handing her the letter. Ersha nodded and took it with both hands.

“How is Urie? Is he still having outbursts?” Rivelle asked.

“Milady, young master has settled down since this morning. Patty is staying nearby in case anything happens,” Ersha replied.

Rivelle took a moment to assess Ersha’s appearance. A sheen of sweat covered her flushed face, and her normally neat raven hair was disheveled. It was clear she’d been near Urie during his most recent mana surge. His mana roots had expanded ferociously, and though Rivelle didn’t fully understand what had happened, she knew a spirit had visited him in a dream—a spirit of fire, no less.

“If only his father or brothers were here, they might have been able to help with all this heat,” Rivelle sighed as she arrived in the back garden.

The garden, once full of white carnations surrounding a large stone circle, was now a shadow of its former beauty. The flowers had wilted from the intense heat. In another corner of the garden, Patty sat slumped on a stone bench, a bucket of water at her side, her skin bright red from the sweltering heat.

Rivelle looked to the center of the stone circle. There, seated cross-legged with his eyes closed, was Urie, surrounded by a swirling dance of crimson threads, each glowing with its own rhythm.