As soon as they were gone, Irene heaved a sigh and clenched her fists. What an annoying situation.

"Snow!" She called out, summoning her phoenix companion who appeared almost instantaneously in a flash. The bird perched on her shoulder as she gazed down the hall in the direction her friends had gone.

"What's up, Sprout?" He asked, his lean neck peering into her face as that golden beak glistened under the sunlight.

Irene glanced up at the bird, sighing. "I need you to take me to Rayvis and Ivan. This manor is too big for me to go looking for them." She asked him, but from the look on her face, he could tell she was slightly irritated. As if something tedious had been added to her list of things to do.

"Hmm... Alright." Snow answered, launching himself into the air and flapping his wings to gain altitude. As he closed his eyes, he focused his attention to his surroundings, using his strong senses to identify where the boys were.

"They're out in the training grounds," he then told her, flying in the direction of where they were as Irene followed in a hurry. "Why are you looking for them anyway?"

The white-haired girl heaved a sigh, glancing at the servants and nobles in the foyer as they carried on their daily business, switching to speaking with Snow in her mind. "That Ivan is ignoring his brother, so I'm having to find out why," she explained to her winged companion, speeding up her pace as she made her way out of the manor. "The quicker I get this out of the way, the quicker I can have my iced lemonade!"

Irene paced toward the long pathway that would lead her to the training grounds of the knights - now quiet with few soldiers on guard duty since everyone was in war. It was a clear day, the bright sun shining down on the land, it's scorching heat making Irene feel as stuffy as she did before. She liked summer, but not the heat that came with it.

Snow landed on her head as she ran, resting on her white hair for a moment. His presence was rather cooling, since the body of a spirit felt akin to that of a cool breeze. Soon, she reached the training grounds, a long, rectangular area and building with high, sturdy brick walls.

The area was empty, the boys nowhere in sight. Snow directed her towards the back of the building, by the forestry. It seemed the two were staying under the shade of the knight's quarters rather than basking in the summer heat.

At last, Irene meandered around the building to find two boys playing around with a straw dummy and wooden swords. The boys didn't notice her approach, too absorbed in their game to do anything else.

It was then that Rayvis spotted Irene walking toward them, and his look of slight disinterest in what Ivan was saying, turned into a beaming smile.

"Hey Rene! What brings you here?" He greeted, twirling the wooden sword around in his hands as he gave a little jump.

Ivan turned around to see her standing a few metres behind him, and for a moment their eyes met. The boy's dark, teal hair was straight and flat, unlike his brother's. They shared the same amber eyes and the same face, but Ivan carried a much less timid air about him.

Irene's eyes focused on Ivan, who was staring at her with disinterest and boredom. Albeit handsome, the boy had a terrible attitude sometimes. It's okay, he's just a kid who's probably caught up in his own childish illusions. I should go easy on him.

"I came here to speak with Ivan," she said straightly, much to their surprise. "It's about Haren."

Ivan's eyebrows knitted together slightly, as he realised quickly that his brother had probably cried to her about their situation. He tilted his head to the side. "What about him?"

Rayvis glanced between the two, confused. "Haren isn't here, right? You said he's ill, Ivan."

"He's not ill, he's here in the manor. He's with Isabella right now," Irene told them, noticing the clear surprise in her brother's blue eyes. She then turned to Ivan, who was avoiding her gaze. "Can we talk over there?" Irene asked, pointing toward a bench nearby.

"... Fine," he said grudgingly, before turning to Rayvis. "I'll explain later."

As the two headed toward the seats, Rayvis watched them in confusion, wondering why Ivan lied about his brother being ill. But he decided to let Irene handle it, since she was quite good at solving these kinds of disputes.

Even when he and Irene would have petty sibling fights, she would always put her stubbornness aside and apologise, even if she was in the right. Rayvis smiled, at her in admiration. Sometimes she makes me feel like I'm the younger sibling...

As Irene heaved a sigh, the boy beside her crossed his legs and leaned his head on his hand. "So? What did he tell you?"

"He cried earlier because you've been ignoring him, and he thinks you're mad at him but doesn't know why." She explained, staring at him with an expression of nonchalance.

It was then that Ivan's cheeks flushed a little red, and his brows knitted together. "I'm not mad at him! If I was, I would've yelled at him instead of ignoring him like this," he protested, crossing his arms. "Anyways, why are you here? Why do I have to explain something like this to you? It's none of your business!"

Irene sighed, again. This is why I don't like getting involved with these twins. Although one is a sweetheart, the other is a real brat who needs spanking.

Sadly, they come as a package.

"Fine, if you don't want to say anything, I'll excuse myself and tell him you refused to talk." She responded curtly, standing up. Ivan snapped his head to her in bewilderment, before stopping her in a slight panic.

"W-Wait!" He took her wrist, his long, straight bangs falling over his eyes. When she looked back at him, the faint red on his cheeks and hidden desperation became obvious to her - and she could tell that Ivan had some sort of reason behind his actions.

Although, the look on his face also looked like his pride was a little hurt. "I'm not mad at him! I just... Felt annoyed when he wanted to play with Harpi... Instead of me..." He looked away as he admitted this, his hold on her wrist weakening. His cheeks grew increasingly red, and it was then Irene was sure.

This is the face of jealousy!

"Who's Harpi?" She asked, wondering if there were some noble child with such a name. It would make sense if Ivan was upset his brother wanted to spend time with someone else, when the two were always together.

"Harpi is the new puppy my father got for Haren." He said, and Irene almost choked.

A dog??

You're kidding me! He's not jealous of a person, but a dog?!

Somehow... He reminds me of Rudien... She thought, as memories of when her father got jealous of a stuffed bear began to reappear in her mind.

"I wanted to play with Haren but... He was so busy looking after Harpi that he forgot all about me!" Ivan petulantly exclaimed, releasing Irene's hand as he clenched his fists. "That's why I decided if he doesn't need me, then I don't need him!"

Irene stared at him with a look of annoyance and disgust mixed together. Upon seeing her face, Ivan blushed even harder. "W-Why are you looking at me like that?"

She then sighed, turning away as she smiled bitterly. I sacrificed my lemonade for this idiot...

"Sir Ivan," she then turned to him, her expression becoming nonchalant. As he gazed up at her, those omniscient golden eyes were focused on him intently. "Are you stupid?"

His eyes went wide in shock. "Wh-What?" He frowned at her, cheeks flushed. He looked like an angry little rabbit, and Irene crossed her arms, she noticed his silky strands of soft, teal hair were displaced from his surprise.

"Your brother won't replace you with his pet, dummy!" She bonked his head, to which he yelped. It was definitely going to hurt his ego, being reprimanded by a girl three years younger than him. "How silly can you be? Gosh, if my brother was this petty, I'd be embarrassed!"

Ivan couldn't believe his ears. His brows narrowed together as he stood up in protest. "W-Who do you think you are! You're a girl, you shouldn't be acting so- so roughly!"

"Hah? What has gender got to do with it? I'm sure your mother would be twice as hard on you," she told him, scoldingly. "Besides, me being a girl doesn't change that you're stupid."

"Stop calling me stupid!" He began to get annoyed and stomped his foot on the ground for emphasis. "You're a little girl, what would you know!"

Irene sighed, turning her gaze away. "Anyways, I'm going to head back now," she told him shortly. "Make up with your brother or I'll tell him to ignore you back, Idiot."

Before he could retort again, Irene turned and began to head back in the direction she came from, her airy dress swaying behind her as her white hair fell off her shoulder.

Rayvis noticed her receding figure, and glanced at Ivan, who was watching her leave.

I wonder what's going on... He thought.