Elara Fors
It's almost impressive how far he flew.
Like a tossed doll, Sieg spun through the air and crashed to the ground with a thud that would've rattled bones in anyone else. Dust plumed from the field where he landed, but I didn't rush over. He's fine; I know he is. His body is too strong now.
Still, I walked toward him, hands behind my back. His limbs were splayed, a trail of grass flattened by the impact. I stood over him, a shadow under the noonday sun.
"Another failure, huh?"
From the dirt, he let out a groan. "It's decided. I am never going near horses again."
A sharp neigh caught my attention. I turned my gaze to the culprit, a chestnut mare trotting back toward the herd. The other horses stared at us from a distance, heads raised, tails flicking. Skittish, the lot of them. They weren't like this with anyone else.
This… all started last year, when Zayn returned. The plan was simple: teach Sieg to ride a horse. But no matter how many horses we tried, they all reacted the same way: nervous, hostile, distant. Some bolted. Some, like this one, tossed him like a sack of potatoes. Repeatedly. Violently.
"Ouch."
His voice pulled me back. I knelt beside him. His elbow had a small, shallow cut, no real danger, but enough to sting.
"Did you not protect yourself with mana?" I asked, brushing the dirt away and gently cleaning the wound with a soaked cloth from my satchel.
"I did, but… my concentration might've wavered."
That was rare. His control was sharper than most adult mages I've met. In just twenty-one months, he'd gone from barely sensing his Soul Crucible to mastering nearly every Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 mana-based spell in the grimoires Zayn left him. He was precise, focused, and frighteningly fast.
At this rate… he might surpass me before he turns ten.
"Granny?"
He looked up at me with one eye, always bright, too clever for someone his age. The other, hidden behind that black eyepatch, pulsed faintly with something even I couldn't yet decipher.
"Right." I placed a hand over his elbow and chanted softly.
A green light glowed from my palm. The cut faded, skin knitting together in seconds.
"Thank you," he said with a small smile, pushing himself to his feet and brushing off the dust clinging to his tunic.
"Looks like horses are a big no for you."
He groaned, dragging a hand through his hair. "I can imagine Zayn laughing every time I fall. It's infuriating."
I could still hear it too, Zayn's booming laughter echoing through the field, every time the boy tumbled.
According to Zayn, Sieg's mana felt different, special. It was dense in a way most mages never achieved. Somehow, even animals without magic could feel him, and they didn't like it.
"Then it will be a Drake, right?"
Sieg nodded. "That's what Zayn said."
Yes… If the Thorne Dukedom is known for its swords, and Merlinus for its mages, then Valois—our homeland—is known for its beasts. Drakes, especially.
Wingless dragons, four-legged titans, built for endurance and battle. They might not soar through the skies, but their legs could shatter stone, and their scales could shrug off steel. And unlike horses, they understand mana. They respect it.
Zayn said he'd find a good egg. A proper one. When he returns.
The moment I dusted off his shoulder, Sieg's expression shifted.
His head snapped toward the town, not in panic; his eyes narrowed with focus. A sense… a pull.
I followed his gaze. My senses stretched outward, brushing through the surrounding mana. Yes, there it was. Faint traces of mana… not human. Wild, raw. Sharp like a claw dragged across silk.
"Doesn't seem human, right?" he said, quietly.
I stared at him.
He felt that?
From this distance?
Even with my own senses, the mana trail barely kissed the edge of my perception, and yet here he was, not only sensing it, but calmly identifying the nature of it. At his age?
"…Should we go?" he asked with an innocent look. Too innocent. He knew I couldn't say no.
I let out a sigh, but my lips curled slightly. "We should. Let's see who's making trouble in broad daylight."
I reached for his hand, and we made our way down the slope toward the town.
As we crossed the main road leading to the mansion, a crowd had gathered, murmurs rising, people pointing and gasping.
And when I saw what they were pointing at—
Of course.
Why am I not surprised?
"That girl…"
Valka—my daughter—strode through the town, dragging a massive bird-like creature by the talon, its limp body bumping and scraping across the cobbles. Her expression was positively radiant, as if she'd just returned from a festival.
On spotting us, she waved with her free hand like a child showing off a toy. "Sieg! Ma! See what I got!"
I marched toward her, planting myself directly in her path. "Just what do you think you are doing?"
Valka beamed, proudly placing both hands on her hips, chest puffed like the beast behind her.
"Bringing dinner."
I didn't bother responding. My mana flared just enough to reinforce my knuckles, and I smacked her squarely on the top of the head.
"Ow! What was that for?!" she cried, clutching her skull.
"Put it in your magic pouch, idiot."
"I would, but it's already full! No space left!"
"Because you never organize anything. Honestly. Learn a thing or two from Sieg."
She muttered under her breath, rubbing her head, "Always chiding…"
I ignored her and turned to examine the beast. A Gravethrash. Vicious. Known to swoop down and smash prey into the ground until bones turned to paste. This one looked fresh, its neck severed cleanly. The axe work was precise.
"…How far did you go to find this?"
No powerful mana beasts ever came near Fors Barony. They could feel Valka's presence from miles away and steered clear. For this one to appear…
"I wasn't far, I swear! Just moving through the forest, and suddenly this thing swoops at me from above. So I swiped my axe and down it went."
That explained the missing head. But something was wrong.
"It swooped at you?" I frowned. "Instead of running?"
She shrugged. "That surprised me too. Probably just a young one. Daring and dumb."
I could only hope that was true.
"Why bring it here instead of the guild?"
"I thought you might want some materials. Core's probably intact."
"Hmph… I suppose I could use the magic core and—"
I paused mid-sentence. Sieg was crouched beside the Gravethrash, inspecting its talons. With practiced care, he loosened one claw, gently twisting and removing it from the joint without breaking it. His movements were swift and deliberate.
A quiet warmth bloomed in my chest. That boy…
It's working. Everything I've taught him, it's showing.
I stepped closer and rested a hand atop his head, gently stroking the strands of platinum hair. "Great work, Sieg."
He looked up at me with a small smile. "I learned from the best."
That, he did.
"So… "
"Hmm?"
"Can we eat it already?"
Huh?
I blinked.
Sieg had his hand on the Gravethrash's flank, fingers pressed thoughtfully against the flesh as if assessing its fat content. His eyes gleamed. A little drool even gathered at the corner of his mouth.
Ah yes, there it strikes again.
The Fors family's blood trait, muscle fibers storing mana, enhanced regeneration, fortified constitution, it all came with a cost: hunger. A monstrous, insatiable hunger.
And now, Sieg had begun eating for three.
On one hand, it was a good sign. His body was adapting, growing strong. But on the other…
I glanced at Valka. She was stretching like a cat and eyeing the carcass like it was already plated and seasoned.
He's going to end up just like her.
"Oh ho! I can't wait either!"
With a gleeful cry, Valka darted forward and scooped Sieg into her arms from behind, hoisting him like a sack of grain.
"My cute little Sieg gets it! Ma, take what you want, and then let's eat!"
She twirled with him in her arms, both of them smiling like fools.
I sighed, long and deep. Honestly. Look at them, my daughter and grandson, one feral and the other following her footsteps.
"Call some soldiers to bring it in," I relented.
"No need!"
Before I could blink, Valka had lifted the entire Gravethrash over her head with a single motion and took off running toward the mansion like a child carrying home a prize.
Sieg, still holding the talons, carefully put them in his pouch, then chased after her.
I watched them go, that ridiculous pair, fading around the corner of the manor gates.
And despite everything… I smiled.
I couldn't help it. For all their chaos, for all the noise and the madness, they were mine. My daughter. My grandson. A storm and a spark—always crashing into each other.
Still…
My gaze drifted upward, past the rolling clouds that had begun to gather on the northern horizon.
Something gnawed at my senses.
That Gravethrash… it shouldn't have been here. Not this close. Not this aggressive.
"Let's hope," the words left me as a prayer, "that this was just a coincidence."
Because if it wasn't—
Then the peace we'd built in recent years might be standing on the edge of a deeper shadow.