Arthur lay dead asleep upon a soft white bed. Maria sat by his side, her brows scrunched. She took the wet towel from his head, squeezing it out into a metal bucket, and replacing it anew. Her hand grasped his own, his temperature was still so high, she could feel the heat seeping into her skin and his shaking body.

There were dead tears on her face along with dark circles. It had been her fault, she thought. Her fault that her older brother passed out and had been asleep for almost three days now. If she hadn't decided to test her skill...or if she had tested it elsewhere.

"Princess..." A voice drew her.

Maria jumped from her seat, turning around as she bellowed, "Has Fraz finally found what's wrong? Can he heal him?"

A black haired figure walked from Ais's back, smiling, "There's nothing to worry about."

"Nothing to worry about?" Maria hissed, "Can you heal him or not?"

Fraz Cass coughed, shaking his head, "No."

"What?" Maria narrowed her eyes, "No? Aren't you a light mage? Are you incompetent with your magic? What do you mean no? If you don't heal my brother I'll have papa kick you out."

The man's dark eyes widened momentarily. Was he being threatened by a two-year old to heal a five-year-old or else? He shook his head, laughing gently.

"What are you laughing for?" Maria raised a brow as she looked to Ais, "Ais, kick this man out of the castle."

"Princess, let him finish."

"Yes yes," Fraz worked forward, ready to pat the little girl, "Let me finish."

She dodged, her hands crossed, as her petite face stared unwelcomed at the man.

"Come down, Maria," At that moment, the Queen walked into the room, looking at her daughter with gentle eyes, "Arthur is alright."

"Alright? Is he healed yet? Why is he still sleeping?" Maria stared at her mother's tall figure, bemused.

Martha rolled her eyes, she had already came as fast as she could after a lengthy discussing with the light mage. Even she had been as worried and as confused as her daughter. She nudged the man.

"Explain it to her."

"Certainly," Fraz nodded.

Maria listened to the man.

"Your brother isn't in any danger, in fact, this may just be the luck of the heavens shining on him. He's experiencing all the signs of early mana awakening. Usually, there would be little to no symptoms as most awaken at the age of 10, however, your brother has awakened his mana only at the age of 5 and thus, his body hasn't gotten enough time to dwell with his mana and mitigate the side effects of the transformation. As well, he's affinity with the fire element seems to be abnormally high which strengthens the symptoms, causing his current feverish state. In simple terms, he's being 'modded' to be able to wield his mana--his physical attributes are getting used to his mana."

Although the man explained it quite calmly, he thought to himself, 'This people are monstrous...'

He couldn't help but look towards the tense Queen, sighing once more, "The boy will be alright, simply don't strain him for a few days as his body adjusts to the new energy it has acquired. In the process, he might eat more than normal or become tired but don't be alarmed, its a common result of his evolution."

Martha nodded, smiling down at her daughter, "Do you understand it now?"

Maria nodded.

"Will you go to sleep now?" Her mother asked, this question had danced from her tongue for the past three days, and no matter what, her daughter had refused to sleep until she was certain her son was alright.

Maria pursed her lips, mumbling, "Yes."

A low sound resounded within the room as a boy opened his eyes. He scurried slowly up, his body heavy and his eyelids struggling to stay open, but he managed to sit upright upon the bed.

"Ugghh..." His voice leaked.

Maria hurriedly ran to his side, "Are you alright?"

Martha pulled her back, "Go to sleep, young lady. Ais, take her to her room."

And the princess was dragged out. Scream as much as she wanted, there was no question that she immediately passed to sleep as soon as her figure was forced onto the bed.

Arthur blinked his eyes, "What?"

The Queen stared at her son with a smile, "You'll be meeting with my brother."

Fraz shook his hand, "Congratulations and welcome to the path of a mage."

The boy looked at the two, his head tilted, "...hmm?"

* * *

A dark scream tore through the innards of the castle grounds. Blood coiling. Shivering. Cutting through the lime walls with its piercing cry.

Maria raised a brow with a frown. Her eyes darted away from the sword in her hand.

". . .did he burn himself again?" She mounted, crooking her head. There was a hint of caution in her voice.

A sigh escaped her lips as she placed the weapon on her crossed lap. Her right hand resting on its hilt.

"What kind of training are they even doing? Is he safe?"

Layfon's smile skewed, "Fire is one of the hardest magic elements to train. Until he is able to grow a bond with his affinity, he will continue to receive slight burns in the course of learning a new spell. We're lucky he's progressing fast, Thomas says a bond should be made by the end of the month, or else these screams could last much longer."

"Oh?" Maria's eyes widened, "Uncle said that?"

She had never seen this elusive uncle of hers, but she had heard many times over that he was not only one of the greatest mages the kingdom had, but also one of the most intelligent individual as well. Aside from the fact that he alone advanced Water and Ice Magic to a realm not previously heard of before, he was also the head and founder of the Mage Guild. Yet, the thing she found most peculiar was the rumor that he and her father had been butting heads since they were children; she wondered if it were true.

"Mhmm," Layfon nodded, "Though..."

He pointed.

"Why are you holding a sword?"

"Hmm?" Maria raised her head.

She glanced at the two guards surrounding her. Ais placidly stood behind her and Layfon stalked, in front, watching her in curiosity. Though the room was dim, she couldn't help but wonder how mysterious it was that the sun shined so enchantingly on their figures. With their blonde-hair and aura alone, they were the poster images of a Royal Guard.

She shrugged, "Well, brother's working hard. He said he would protect me well, even though at the time you had to lift him up just to see me...so I thought I should get stronger too?"

". . ." Layfon, 'Erm...hmm??'

Content with herself, the princess turned back towards her weapon with renewed eyes.

Maybe it was due to the angle. Maybe it was due to that short break. Or maybe they were simply meant to be found.

It was the first time she saw them. Three runes running down the silver blade. Etched so faintly white that only her piercing gaze could glimpse. Square in composition, they seemed to swim and wiggle in their predestined spots.

She ran her finger across the craft.

However, at that moment, Layfon interjected.

"No no no, hold on a moment here...how do you even remember that?" He stopped her hand, looking directly into her eyes.

Maria looked up, her thin brows in a furrow at being disturbed, slightly frowning at the boy's stupidity, "What do you mean how do I remember that? Wasn't that when I was born? You were there lifting him up to stare at my face...though big sister Ais wasn't there."

Her two crystal eyes stared at the boy as if he was the dumbest creature she had ever seen.

"..." The two guards became speechless.

"What is it...? You two are making me nervous...mother says it's not good to stare you know!" Maria asked, breaking free and hugging her weapon tightly. Her shaky eyes moved back and forth, glancing between them.

"Princess," Ais opened her lips, as she gently patted the little girl's head, "babies should not, normally, remember when they were born."

Layfon nodded with enthusiasm, "Right right, this is definitely strange."

"What do you mean babies shouldn't remember when they're born..? Was I not supposed to remember it all..?" Maria asked.

"What's 'it all'?" Layfon questioned.

"Huh, coming into the world and being held in mother's arms until now?" Maria replied the best she could, not exactly sure. She was still only two years old after all, her knowledge of the world was still quite limited.

Layfon, "..."

'These two will be the death of me one day...first, one accidentally awakening his mana and got me an ear full for letting him out of my sight for a moment, and now, another tells me her memories span all the way from the time she was born and had always been 'awake'?'

He looked towards Ais for help, his eyes pleading.

However, that frozen face held little hope of helping him. Seemingly cold and unnerving, her golden dull eyes glimmered little interest in much.

'Ais William...' Layfon shook his head, his blonde locks swaying as he stood up.

"Well," he shrugged, "Although this is strange...I need to fill in my five hours. I can't get too rusty now."

"Ais, have you finished yours?" He looked towards the maid.

She nodded.

"Mhmm, when the princess slept."

Layfon widened his eyes, "When do you sleep then?"

"Sleep?" Ais tilted her head, "The training is only 5 hours long and the princess sleeps 9. That's four hours of enough sleep for me."

Layfon frowned. He couldn't help but notice her expert lack of awareness. Though...he had to admit...she looked utterly innocent...

He shook his head with lament. His boots clicked against the ground, moving closer. His azure eyes narrowing.

"You. Need. To. Sleep. More." He mounted.

Ais golden eyes blinked expressionless, "No."

She saw no reason her sleep needed to be extended. For a person with a physique such as herself, even if she were to forgo sleep for one, two, or maybe even three days, she would still be able to operate as if she had gotten a full night of sleep.

However, Layfon didn't quite align with her thoughts. He stumbled. His smile crumbling in disbelief. Seeing her unwavering nature, he could only give up and proceed on his way.

"I'll be going," He said to no one in particular, waving as he exited the room.

Both girls disregarded the boy, Maria had already returned to staring at the blade of her weapon. And before she knew it, she had begun to squint.

"Ais," She asked.

"Yes, Princess?"

Maria looked up, puzzled, "Why are there runes on my blade?"

Ais: "..."

The maid bent down to have a look at the weapon, her fragile finger gliding on its surface before she calmly stood back up.

"Those should be runes, but only artifacts should have runes..." She murmured.

But how could that murmur escape a princess's ears? Especially a princess with an A rank in strength?

Maria instantly perked up, "Artifact? What's that?"

"Artifacts are items, mostly weapons and armors, that have runic skills embedded within them. There are two main types of Artifacts, natural and artificial. Natural, are assumed to have been birthed at the creation of this world. They are relatively stronger than artificial Artifacts and generally hold multiple runic skills within them. However, they are extremely rare, to the point that only seven have existed so far in this world. I believe yours might just be the eight." Ais carefully explained.

"Oh?" Maria raised a brow, staring at her sword then back at Ais.

"Is that it?" She asked.

Ais "..."

"What about artificial artifacts?" The princess questioned.

This was the first time Ais was met with the strangeness of this girl before her.

"Artificial Artifacts are created by the kingdom of Traut. These artifacts are weaker than natural and can generally only hold one skill. However, artificial artifacts are the only one most can get their hand on, though a hefty fee is needed." The maid unhurriedly continued.

Maria's eyes widened with delight, "So you're saying I have the best of both? That's awesome!"

Her face was already grinning in the full blossom of a smile as she held the sword's hilt with even more force than before. It was as if she had just realized the rock she picked off the ground was instead an amazing toy. She looked at it as if it was a loved one.

Ais: "..."

"Hey, hey! Big sis, how do I test it?"