“We’ll settle this in a month’s time~! Right here, this very spot. Just call my name, and I’ll show up. Oh, and one more thing—you won’t chicken out, will you~?”

  Semiris fixed Hulim with a taunting grin, her tone dripping with provocation.

  “I’ll definitely be here! It’s you who’d better not run away, Semiris!”

  At the sound of this feisty little threat, Semiris burst into peals of laughter, doubling over and rolling around mid-air as if she’d just heard the funniest joke in the world.

  Hulim’s cheeks flared bright red with embarrassment. She turned on her heel and stormed off, huffing angrily with every step.

  She hadn’t gone far when a voice drifted over her shoulder, faint but clear, carried by the wind.

  “Remember—it’s all seven elemental magics! Don’t you dare mess it up, little~ ba~by~!”

  Loud, unrestrained laughter followed, echoing through the trees.

  Hulim quickened her pace, her small feet stomping lightly on the forest path.

  ......

  ......

  The sky blushed crimson as the sun dipped below the horizon.

  A tiny figure appeared at the gate of Heyerar Manor—it was Hulim.

  “You’re home awfully late today, little one. Father was just about to go looking for you.”

  Rezelian Heyerar, standing at the doorway, let out a sigh of relief when he saw her. But his smile quickly faded as he noticed the pout on his youngest daughter’s face.

  “What’s wrong, Hulim? Did something happen?”

  Hulim opened her mouth, ready to tell her father about her strange encounter. But the image of Semiris’s mocking face popped into her head, and her anger flared up all over again.

  “It’s nothing important, Father. I just ran into a really annoying person. Oh, by the way—do we have any magic books at home?”

  “Magic books? Let me think... Yes, we do. They’re in Father’s study, on the bookshelf to the left......”

  “Thank you, Father!”

  Before Rezelian could finish his sentence, Hulim darted into the house, her little feet pattering on the stone floor.

  Rezelian watched her hurrying back, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

  “Did she have a fight with her friends?”

  In his mind, the only “annoying person” a young girl like Hulim could meet was someone her own age.

  “Ah, right. How many words can Hulim read now......”

  He glanced at the empty courtyard, then shook his head with a chuckle.

  “I’ll ask her at dinner.”

  Meanwhile, somewhere in the forest outside Mentor Town.

  “Achoo!”

  A fairy with the face of an angel rubbed her nose, her brow furrowed in confusion.

  “That’s odd. Why do I feel like someone’s been disrespecting me? Oh well—I guess I’ll curse them to trip over every chair they sit on from now on.”

  ......

  Inside the study of Heyerar Manor.

  Hulim dragged a wooden stool over to the left-hand bookshelf, standing on tiptoes to reach the upper shelves.

  “This one’s not it... Neither is this one... Ah! This is it!”

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  Just as her small fingers were about to wrap around the spine of a magic book—

  “Hulim.”

  A voice called from outside the study door. It was Armen.

  “Dinner’s ready.”

  Her hand froze in mid-air. Hulim twisted around to glance at the window—the sky was already growing dark, streaked with the first hints of twilight.

  She bit her lip, torn between her eagerness to read and the rules of the household.

  Even though they were low-ranking nobles—a family of hereditary knights from a rural town—the Heyerars still abided by the proper etiquette of noble families. On ordinary days, young noble children were expected to finish all their activities after dinner and prepare for bed. No exceptions.

  “Hulim?”

  This time, it was her mother Lilia’s voice calling from the hallway.

  “Ugh,”

  Hulim sighed softly, letting her hand drop back to her side.

  “I’ll come back tomorrow.”

  She wiped the dust off the stool with her sleeve and carried it back to its usual spot in the corner.

  Then she opened the study door and stepped out into the hallway.

  As she did, a strange feeling washed over her—a sense of relief, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. The angry urgency that had driven her to find the magic books faded away, replaced by a quiet resolve.

  She paused, glancing back at the closed study door.

  For a moment, she almost saw her own reflection in the wood—a stubborn little girl, angry at being teased, desperate to prove herself. And in that instant, she understood: magic wasn’t something you learned out of spite.

  She stood there quietly for a few seconds, then gently closed the door behind her.

  It would be many years before Hulim realized that in answering her mother’s call that night, she had stumbled upon her first lesson in self-control. It was a lesson that would serve her well in the years to come, helping her stay calm and focused through countless crises.

  ......

  Dinner time.

  The Heyerar family sat around the long dining table, bowing their heads in pre-dinner prayer.

  At the head of the table sat the master of the house, Knight Rezelian Heyerar.

  To his left, in order of seniority, sat his wife Lilia, their third daughter Rudy, and their twin fifth and sixth daughters Rumia and Lucia.

  To his right sat their second son Reid, fourth son Armen, and finally, their youngest daughter Hulim. Normally, their eldest son Zieg would have occupied the first seat on the right—but he had left home to attend the Imperial Knight Academy, so everyone else had moved up one spot.

  The seat directly opposite the head of the table was reserved for guests, and was never used by family members.

  Besides the Heyerar family, the household staff also included a middle-aged butler named Laurent (in his forties), an elderly maid called Mrs. Jaeger, and a young servant girl named Jessica. Jessica was the daughter of an innkeeper in Mentor Town; when the inn had no need for extra hands, she had come to work for the Heyerars. Her cooking skills were excellent, so Rezelian had given her a raise and asked her to double as the family cook—saving them the expense of hiring a separate chef.

  As servants, they were not allowed to eat at the same table as their masters. They would have their own meal in the kitchen after the family had finished dining.

  By the standards of ordinary families in the Pasara Empire, this kind of household staff would have been a sign of great wealth and status. But for a noble family—even a low-ranking one—it was a rather meager setup. The Heyerars were, without a doubt, nothing more than rural nobles.

  “......May the blessings of the Six Gods be with us all.”

  Rezelian finished the prayer, opening his eyes and lowering his clasped hands.

  “May the blessings of the Six Gods be with us all.”

  The rest of the family echoed his words, ending their prayers one after another.

  As Hulim lowered her hands, a strange thought crossed her mind. She had recited this prayer countless times before, just like everyone else in town—it was nothing more than a common tradition, something no one took seriously. Whether you said it or not made no difference at all. But......

  That blessing—the one Semiris had spoken of—was real, wasn’t it?

  “Hulim? Are you not hungry?”

  Rezelian noticed that his youngest daughter hadn’t touched her food yet, and looked at her with concern.

  “It’s nothing, Father.”

  Hulim shook her head, picking up the spoon in front of her and scooping a mouthful of porridge into her mouth. Mmm—it was sweet and refreshing, cooked with her favorite Bobo Powder.

  Besides the porridge, her plate also held a serving of Gurgling Chicken Stew, a slice of bread spread with honey, and a quarter of a sliced Sunset Fruit.

  The rest of the family’s meals were much the same—only the portions differed, with the adults getting more food than the children.

  Seeing that Hulim had started eating, Rezelian picked up his own spoon and began to eat. But his mind was still wandering.

  He had been planning to ask Hulim about what had happened to her that afternoon. But judging by her expression, she was still upset about her fight with her friend. Bringing it up now would only make her feel worse. Still—what should he do as a father? Should he go talk to the other child’s parents? Hmm... But it felt silly for an adult to meddle in a squabble between kids......

  “Darling, have we heard from Zieg lately?”

  Lilia’s sudden question broke through Rezelian’s thoughts.

  Rezelian shook his head. “No, we haven’t. His last letter was a month ago—he said he was going on a wilderness training exercise. We won’t hear from him again for a while.”

  “Has it not ended yet? I thought a month would be more than enough time.”

  “Hehe, not a chance! When I went on wilderness training back in the day, I spent over half a year out in the wilds! By the time I finally made it back to the city, I looked like a wild man myself!”

  Rezelian replied with a laugh. Once he started reminiscing about his own youth, he completely forgot about his worries over Hulim, launching into a long, enthusiastic tale of his adventures.