Chapter 45:

Serana, like any young girl her age, had big dreams for the future. She was never very bright at school, yet she never slacked off. Her theoretical knowledge was at the top of her class, but practical magic was not her forte. Had she been at Hogwarts instead of Durmstrang, she would've been sorted into Hufflepuff.

Her father belonged to a minor branch of the Krovius family, therefore they didn't have a high standing. The only way for them to ever "amount for something" was through achievements, which was the reason why she tried so hard at school.

Yet life played a cruel joke on her. She always knew she'd have to marry one day, but she hoped it would come later on, when she's proven herself valuable enough to have a modicum of control over such basic life choices. But it was too late, she never had a chance.

The worst part is: there was no way out of it. Terrible things happened to those that renounced their family names, or those that eloped. In fact, assassination rings offered a special discount to hunt for such people, to earn allies. But worse of all: if she decides to take the risk, her family would be the one to suffer, as the Krovius family were known for many things, mercy not being one of them.

She spent her nights crying herself to sleep, for all her shattered dreams. All she could hope for right now was whoever she was going to marry would be decent enough to respect her the tiniest bits. She was only given a name: Kaiser Lunar, some rising enchanter. But even that was too much to hope for; She would be forced to sign a traditional marriage contract.

She will basically be a slave to her husband's wishes, no better than a house elf. It was rarely used nowadays, only when a "gesture of good will" was needed. That's right. That's all she was to that wretched family of hers: a gesture of good will. She hated them, every last one of them. Yet she could do nothing to change her fate.

She was taken to Asia to meet the patriarch, a man as scary as the rumors said. She was not about to forget that meeting any time soon. He had the gall to instruct her about the importance of family, and doing our "duty". Ironic, he finished by telling her to "look pretty" for tomorrow's meeting. Because that's all she was: a pretty face to be sold off to bear more Krovius children, for the cycle to repeat itself over and over again.

Serana was everything but composed, strolling warily from right to left in the little space she was put into, her usually straight and beautiful red hair was in shambles, her face was a mess from her endless crying, she cried so much you couldn't see a glint of hope in her eyes.

Today was the day she would meet the wizard she was promised to, or would be promised to. She couldn't even hate the patriarch, too worried about her future. But all she could do was cry and cry until her existential crisis would stop.

Her 'educator' knocked on the door, to make sure she was prepared for the occasion. Her personality was carefully modeled from a young age to fit a specific role, her abilities as a witch were never important.

From the thumping sound at the door, she regained consciousness, and in a split second she stopped shedding her tears, and proceeded to comb her hair as fast as she could. Throwing her clothes on. Before she knew her educator stormed in and took her by the arm.

Soon she was changed, her make up done, she looked like never before and her demeanor changed as she shifted personalities, her mentor was overseeing her process.

Kaiser was in the practice room, trying to take him mind off what awaited him. He found solace in experimenting with new things. Magic was a wonderful gift, and he always had fun whenever he practiced it.

Today, he was trying to apply a new theory of his. It all originated from a simple observation, and a comparison between the muggle and the magical world.

He was not new to the principle of "energy", having studied different types extensively. Yet his observation started from the first law of thermodynamics: The Conservation of Energy. "Energy cannot be created or destroyed. Only transformed." this same principle was surprisingly still applied even when magic was involved. Magical Energy, or Mana as he liked to call it was converted to the appropriate type of energy.

In fact, for every branch of magic, an elementary study of the conversion sequence was necessary before progressing further, whether it be Transfiguration, Charms or the Dark Arts. Even among the same category, spells of different nature would have a different sequence.

The Lumos spell converted Mana into electromagnetic radiation. But here's something that Kaiser considered a cheat: the conversion was way too easy. Conversion of magic was done in many forms in the non magical world. To illustrate, to obtain "electricity", muggels convert kinetic energy through a complex system, in order to obtain the desired result: all while playing within a set of strict rules, finding ways to exploit them.

For the Lumos spell, however, no "complex system" was needed. All the wizard had to do was the correct imaging and intent, then will it into existence. The question is: Could the same process be applied to any kind of energy?

One could probably find the answer in already existent spells: The Incindio Charm, the lightening spell, The Levitation Charm…

All those spells started from a basic form of energy: Mana, to reach a different state, whether it be heat, electricity, light… What Kaiser wanted to try was different: Invent a spell to convert a different type of existing energy from one state to another.

The most interesting one he wanted to achieve was Heat to Kinetic energy. Since magic was involved, if he ever succeeded in doing that, it would be possible to reach the absolute zero, or get infinitely close without all the hassle you'd need otherwise. Not to mention its offensive potential.

He tried to reverse the process at first: converting Light to Mana, some kind of reversed Lumos, but he didn't succeed after several weeks of trial with different types of energy.

He needed to find the correct intent and imaging, but it requires a lot of trial and errors. Success was never found on the first try.

His experimenting needed to come to an end, however, because of the upcoming meeting. He went over their strategy with Karl who instructed him on what to say. Erling did not know of their close relationship. As far as he was concerned, Karl was a neutral party in this meeting.

Karl and Kaiser took a portkey, sent to them by Erling Krovius to join him at their manor in China. The fact that he was allowed to use portkeys in one of the most powerful countries proves how much influence the Krovius family has. Portkeys were highly regulated, after all.

They were escorted to a well-furnished western styled room, with portraits of imposing wizards drawn all along, with some of them being alive. Swords, spears, halberds and different artifacts decorated the walls, all leaking magical energy, accentuating the imposing feeling the whole manor gave off.

It was probably deliberate of their host to make them go through all the sights to intimidate them, but Karl was invulnerable to such tactics, having used them himself before. Kaiser was warned, and could understand the truth of Karl's words. Not that he ever doubted them.

They were served tea after being seated, leaving the main seat to their host who was nowhere to be seen. Of course, a man of his status would never wait for anyone, the others did the waiting for him.

They sipped their tea, quietly waiting for their host to show up, which he did after fifteen minutes, not even bothering to offer an apology.

He had a different feeling to him, and he felt a lot more imposing than when he talked to Kaiser at the party. Maybe this was his attitude before striking a deal, to make sure he didn't get the short end of the stick? Not that it would get him anywhere with Karl.

After offering his greetings, Erling looked at Kaiser with a stern look, making him feel goosebumps all over his body. A feeling of dread starting creeping up Kaiser's spine. He was in enemy territory. One wrong move, and it would be his last. Maybe it was a bad idea to meet him after all? Alas, what is done is done. All he could do was solder on for now.

"You understand that my help is not for free, Mr. Lunar?"

"Naturally." Kaiser looked at him right below his eyes, never meeting them. You never know who might be a master Legilimens, and he would never risk it unless he was confident enough in his Occlumency, which he was not yet.

Needless to say, Erling was already getting plenty in return for helping them. Precision Technology has already received a non exhaustive list of orders from governments all over the world, a large part of the profit would make its way to Erling's pockets. But it was never enough for those in power. They always wanted more.

"We do not lack the means to shield you," Erling continued. "But your status does not make it easy. People are demanding answers. 'How can a muggle-born come up with a such thing', they say. And I do not blame them. Your origins do you no good, Mr. Lunar." Erling could see that his words had no effect on Kaiser, and he expected no less.

"Which is why I propose you join our family." Erling said with a smile, that lacked any kindness. "No one would question your achievements anymore. Our family takes care of their own."

"I would be honored." Kaiser gave the only answer he could give. Erling was not making a request, and Kaiser already surrendered himself to this fate. A minor setback in his road to greatness.

Their discussion was interrupted by the arrival of a young girl, who came in as if answering some kind of signal. Her natural elegance lit up the room, as she strolled in confidently. Gone was the vulnerable girl crying her heart out, replaced by an air of unmistakable haughtiness. Her light make up did not hide her natural features, and further accentuated her attractiveness.

She wore a simple Chinese gown that pinched her waist, making out the outline of her slender body, with bell sleeves and leather high heel boots giving her a tall and imposing stature. Few accessories rested on her wrist and hair, boosting her femininity significantly. She also added a long coat on top of her dress.

She offered a deep curtsy to her patriarch and his guests, a gesture a proud witch would rarely grace anyone with. But her circumstances left little choice to her in this matter.

Kaiser eyed the newcomer warily, gauging her attitude. From what she displayed so far, he doubted they would meet eye to eye. Even worse, he doubted she would play nice with Daphne, which was honestly a deal breaker for him. Hopefully, he was wrong. Karl was doing exactly the same thing as him.

"Ah, Serana. I was wondering when you would join us. Meet our guests, Karl Greengrass and Kaiser Lunar from England." Erling said with his usual cold smile.

Serana then, surprising everyone but her patriarch, turned to Kaiser, and offered an equally deep curtsy, throwing them off guard. That was completely unnecessary and out of character. Her entrance clearly indicated that she was not the kind of person that would offer such gesture of respect cheaply, yet she did so nevertheless.

"Enchanté."