บท 13: Magic

Adeline saw a visible change in the man the day before but now he was locked in his study. She knew he was a busy man but this was giving her flashbacks, or should she say it was making her recall the memories of from before she possessed her body.

"Dad! Are you in there?" She knocked on the door hoping to get a response. She didn't get an answer or even an acknowledgement.

Alaric found her getting frustrated and pulled her aside.

"Father is working through some stuff right now, let's leave him be."

"But if he is going through a hard time shouldn't we be there for him?"

"..."

He found it hard to argue with her logic. What she said makes sense: "People process things differently. I have today off, let's have a picnic Linny. Call Aaron."

He changed the topic so that she wouldn't be too sad after facing 'rejection'.

Adeline wasn't stupid, she saw through his 'scheme'. Still, she didn't complain. She didn't want to make it hard for her oldest brother, and spending time with them sounded really fun.

Seeing the departing figure of Alaric she sighed to herself. This young boy had to shoulder a big burden at such a young age. He took on the nurturing role for both her and Aaron. He deserved to be a kid.

This time her motivation wasn't just her desire for a family, it was to help her brothers as well.

Maybe inviting her father would make the picnic awkward, it would be better if they enjoyed themselves today. She marched towards the training grounds where Aaron was training with newfound enthusiasm.

It was the first time she ever saw him training, the old Adeline usually kept to herself and spent time with her personal maids. She knew he was a prodigy in terms of swordsmanship, she finally got to see it herself.

Seeing her clumsy older brother completely focused made her stand there watching him. She couldn't interrupt him now, the picnic could wait. Her eyes drifted to the sword he was wielding. It looked like a standard practice sword but there was a red glow that was emitted by it.

Adeline then remembered that a few people in this world could wield magic. She had forgotten about it because she didn't have any powers in the story. The only magic she remembered was the holy power the Saintess used.

Remembering that she felt a little bitter, even in the fantasy world she was given the shorter end of the stick. Didn't the Goddess say she was the chosen one? Where were her powers?!

One of the storylines, from what she could remember was that the Crown Prince didn't have any magic which gave the Second Prince the chance to shine, that was until Cassian revealed his hidden powers.

Not much was written about him, even if it was she couldn't remember anyway. She remembered he was one of the major antagonists in the story, that was all. Based on what she saw at the gathering it was hard to believe this timid boy grew up to be so ruthless.

All the children she saw were innocent and cute. Why did they have to turn out to be evil? She sighed to herself and shook her head. She couldn't let her guard down. She agreed to be Cassian's friend but now she had second thoughts. The further she stayed from him the better.

She blinked her eyes twice and focussed on Aaron. She missed much of his routine and was able to come back to her senses when flame shot out of the end of his sword, which in turn damaged his sword.

Fire magic! That was the power the House of Kendrick was known for. Alaric had it too but it wasn't as strong as Aaron's. This caused tension in the future when her father had to choose a successor. Although Alaric wasn't a magic prodigy he was a scholar, he knew how to handle affairs and was a true successor.

Aaron threw aside the damaged sword, he earned a few reprimands from the Captain of the Knights that was training him.

"If you can't control your power, don't wield a sword. You will be using a wooden one until then." He warned.

Aaron's head hung low. Adeline wanted to run up there and defend her brother but she stopped herself. She didn't know anything about the magic system or handling a sword. It wouldn't be her place to interfere.

Besides, she knew from the story that the Knights under the House of Kendrick were extremely loyal, the Captain wouldn't have said what he said for a good reason.

The Captain's voice softened a little seeing how his student withered.

"If you can't control your powers, you will hurt yourself. This time the sword broke, but next time you could be on the receiving end."

He nodded, but his head hung low. The Captain left after saying his piece. He wasn't going to coax the boy; Aaron needed to learn the proper techniques.

"Brother!"

"Linny!" His face brightened before an expression of worry took over. She didn't see everything, did she?

"Alaric told me to get you, he said we are going to have a picnic in the garden." She could sense his worry and didn't tell him she witnessed the entire thing. She didn't want him to get embarrassed.

Holding hands they went back inside.