Lazarus, again, was reading in his room. But he couldn’t concentrate.

There were hurried steps outside and the sounds of clanking silverware.

The maids were getting busy with something, but what? Lazarus tore his gaze from the door and once again began reading the picture book of a mage raising both of his arms in the air. Then he was about to cast the great fireba-

“Are you awake, young prince?”

“....”

The powerful demon was also about to cast his spell. The mage, with his companion, could only bet their luck on the-...

“One.”

“...”

“Two.”

“I’m awake!”

“Then please excuse me.”

A maid with chestnut hair tied to a bun entered the room. She adjusted her square framed glasses before turning to look at Lazarus who was sprawled on the bed.

"How are your wounds?" Lara approached him with a worried look.

"It hurts a bit but its fine." Lazarus showed her his foot. It was just swelling lightly now and it had healed a bit.

Lara let out a sigh of relief, " Thank god. A week was enough to let it heal properly. But still, I don't understand why my minor healing didn't work..."

"I think it worked! See? I can move it better now."

Lara shook her head, and sat herself beside Lazarus, before taking his left arm that had been cut from the incident.

"I tried healing the cut in your hand, but it never closed the wound..."

Lazarus looked at her with a puzzled expression.

"But your hands glowed green! And there were lights glowing there. Doesn't that mean it worked?"

"No, it only meant I was able to cast it, but it didn't work."

Lara sighed once more thinking it was indeed strange how Lazarus wasn't affected. But maybe it was due to her inexperience with healing spells in general.

In any case, she gently held Lazarus' palm in both of her hands and looked at him.

"Please understand how truly grateful I am to you young Prince. And for that, I am deeply indebted to you."

Lazarus shifted uncomfortably, somewhat embarrassed and just took back his hand, inciting a subtle chuckle from Lara.

"Fufufu"

Her smile was gentle and radiated a warmth that could melt the frozen snow of winter. It was a smile that resembled Emilia's whenever she looked at Lazarus and it made him feel a bit flustered.

In an attempt to shift the topic Lazarus said,

“I thought Sir William told me there won’t be any classes today? So why did you come this early?”

“There isn’t.” Lara said calmly before smiling gently, “Instead there will be a welcoming party tomorrow night.”

Lazarus furrowed his brows thoughtfully, “A welcome back party?”

Lara shook her head, “No, a welcoming party for someone who’s going to be introduced. There were some complications and they should have arrived several days ago, but now that the situation is resolved they will be arriving tomorrow.”

"Who?"

"A special guest and," Lara's smile widened. "Lady Emilia."

A jolt of electricity ran through Lazarus’ spine. He threw the book aside, jumped from the bed and asked hurriedly, “Is mom coming back?!”

Lara nodded, “Which is exactly why you should get ready hours before the party. I will come to get you before evening tomorrow. Would that be alright?”

Lazarus nodded rapidly which made Lara giggle. She really loved it when Lazarus got excited for something, plus, this would be her first time seeing the Queen of the Twilight Kingdom since she was hired months ago. But above all, she wanted to see what kind of face Lazarus would make when he’d finally meet his mother whom he missed so much.

Honestly, Lara herself realized already how she was somewhat attached to Lazarus already. But she didn't think it'd gone this far.

Lara got up, smiled once more and said with a bow, "Well then, I shall take my leave. Be sure to be ready when I get here, alright?”

“Alright!”

The moment Lara left, Lazarus immediately bolted to the shelf and hurriedly looked for the book about spell casting once more. If he could cast magic when Emilia arrived, no doubt she would love him even more! He only had until tomorrow to do that.

Lazarus had tried his best to practice what the book depicted, but maybe it wasn’t working because of the noise outside? They were preparing for a party and no doubt they’d still be loud throughout the entire day so he had to go somewhere quiet. If only he had a room like Anastasia and Clovis which was in the upper floors of the castle, but instead he was on the ground floor.

Lazarus didn’t dwell too much on it and just carried the book outside. He went to the castle gardens since it was located far from the bustling and where he would usually play with Emilia.

He needed to practice as much as possible and maybe he could find out the secrets to casting. But no doubt Lara would look for him during lunch so he hid behind some of the garden trees beyond the bushes where it was cool and spacious for a child.

The perfect hiding spot as well as training spot!

Now, it was time to continue practicing.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The sunny and mild afternoon weather was peaceful… or at least it should’ve been. If not for the fact that the young prince she was attending to wasn’t anywhere to be found for lunch.

Lara, who was now stomping across the palace corridors and who was supposed to have been helping with the preparations, was now on the upper floors of the castle in search of the young prince.

Of course, she had asked the other maids were Lazarus was, but they were too busy to entertain her and asked her why she wasn’t helping with the preparation and the like, and the others simply said ‘I don’t know’, to which was a normal response if not for the fact that they were dealing with the second prince of the Twilight Kingdom.

But even with his status, the maids didn’t seem to care much as he seemed to be the type to be used in a political marriage and not someone who would gain influence since he was crowned as the black sheep of the family. He was the only one who wasn’t a ‘Genius’ of the children of the Valhearts.

Something hot welled up in Lara’s head. Young Prince Lazarus was more than that. He was kind yet strong. But only she could see it. Maybe in the far future, just maybe they too will realize how he really is?

Lara couldn’t help but reminisce of the time Lazarus had stood in front of her and faced the King. In her eyes, Lazarus deserved the throne more than anyone. Neither Anastasia nor Clovis had displayed such courage before, at least, since the time she was employed till now.

Shaking her head, Lara dismissed those thoughts. Now wasn’t the time to think such things, now was the time to find the young prince. It was quite annoying how he could disappear and no one would bat an eye. Apparently, he did this quite often before and it was now normal for it to happen.

“Where could he be...” She muttered as she looked at the windows in an attempt to search for him from the top floors.

But what she saw made her furrow her brows instead. An unassuming carriage was heading its way into the castle driveway. This was the very first time a carriage of humble looks could’ve been allowed anywhere near the castle which is quite strange since no guards appeared to put an attempt to stop it.

Lara shook her head. It wasn’t her business and continued to try and search for Lazarus.

------------------------------------------

It was already dark, the night sky was already filled with glittering dots. The chill of the night buffeted Lazarus’ cheeks, it was getting colder.

From where Lazarus stood he could see the Valheim Palace in all its glory, the back side of it though. But to Lazarus who’d seen this sight too many times to count, it wasn’t anything special.

He kept his gaze focused on the balcony of the palace that was illuminated by white gemstones kept inside something that appears to be glass.

Glow stones. Rocks filled with natural mana and will glow for certain periods of time. It usually comes in different colors depending on where the glow stones were formed, but usually the white ones were the more luxurious ones since they provide better illumination and last longer.

“No matter how hard I tried… the fireball just wouldn’t come out.” Lazarus complained.

Irritation was already bubbling from the pit of his stomach, but then…

A young girl emerged from the balcony, she looked to be younger than Lazarus, maybe around five years of age? But what stood out to him the most was how the young girl resembled a person whom Lazarus’ held deeply from within his heart but just a younger version...

Long lustrous black hair and emerald green eyes. She wore a transparent blue night gown with a white one piece underneath.

Strange, who was she? And what’s more is that the young girl came from Emilia’s room. A room that should've been unoccupied.

At this point, Lazarus was already frowning.

- ‘What is she doing there…?’-

He mulled over this thought in his head. No matter how you look at it, from the way she dressed.

- ‘She looks like a noble’-

As Lazarus contemplated the fact whether he should call her out or not, ultimately he decided that maybe the girl was there temporarily or just lost. After all, a party would be held here tomorrow so…

Wait, the party was supposed to be tomorrow so what was a noble’s girl doing here?

He decided to observe the girl for the time being.

The young girl looked around for a moment, and from her point of view it must’ve been unlikely for her to see Lazarus who was hidden behind the bushes and hidden in the veil of the night.

Seeing that the coast was clear, the young girl lifted an arm, it was as if she was stroking a brush to create a masterful painting, elegant and feminine. Her movements clearly displayed her discipline and poise.

This made Lazarus stare in awe at the girl, and just as he wondered what the girl was up to,

“T-thats--!!”

A subtle blue film of light surrounded the girl, making her surroundings radiate a clear transparent blue hue of light that, when coupled by her pose, made her seem like a fairy from legends of old.

Lazarus’ eyes widened in amazement. No doubt about it that blue light was….

“Mana...”

Small blue clumps of light floated from underneath the girl’s feet, swirling around her body before gathering in her raised palm. She was channeling mana.

Beautiful… absolutely breathtaking…Lazarus’ felt his jaw drop at such elegance and beauty that no way could he believe that all this came from such a young cute girl that looked to be around his age.

As the girl let out a soft sigh, a blue magical circle riddled with complex patterns took form, hovering in front of her palm. It was at that moment, Lazarus felt his mouth stuppored.

“I-Impossible… no way.. that’s-...... magic!”

Emitting your mana was the very first step in learning magic. This was the first thing one had to learn in order to cast magic, which should have been impossible for a girl younger than Lazarus who was six. But for her to even cast magic…..

-’Just what in the world?’-

It was then that Lazarus had remembered Williams words,

-’It’s dangerous to cast magic if you can’t control it!’-

No doubt something bad would happen if he left her at this rate.

Lazarus’ body moved, dashing to the center of the garden and just as he was about to shout to her,

The girl muttered a few words, and then….--

A torrent of snow fired from the circle like a hose, making the garden seem as if it was snowing. The blue hue of light that surrounded the girl slowly dimmed and then.... vanished.

The scenery returned to normal.

She’d done it… she had casted a spell that was supposed to be impossible for her age.

-’That’s..impossible….How did she!?’-

The girl let out a soft sigh then looked towards her work. She just… stared at it in amazement. Like the stars in the sky, subtle yet bright, she smiled. She was captivating in a way that she enjoyed the snow as if it was her very first time seeing one. She had this sort of childish innocence that caught Lazarus’ breath.

She reached her hand out to grasp at the soft snow.

But then she looked down.

“Hmm?”

“Geh-!”

Their eyes met.