Today was the day we were going to start our training. After having all my secrets and worries in the open yesterday, I felt a huge wave of relief as I now knew people would still accept me. Maybe not all of them, but I should always remember that there are people who care.

Caera is someone who I'll be eternally grateful for. It is probably her acceptance that made me feel happy the most. She was someone from outside my family, and yet she did not push me away.

[A/n: 'Outside' (っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ ]

Sylvie was running around the field and I was chasing her. We decided to do this until Seris and Caera arrived so that we could start our training together. Sylv was surprisingly nimble on her feet as she dashed around the grassy fields and occasionally hid behind trees while peeking enough to just show her golden eyes and stubby horns.

"Brother too slow!" she screamed before running to another tree and repeating the process while I acted like I couldn't catch her. Mother sat in the shade under a tree where tables and chairs were set up, enough for five people. She watched over us with a content smile and a happy expression.

We played around for a while until Seris and Caera arrived. Caera's expression brightened up on seeing me whereas Seris had the usual neutral face.

"Good morning Grey!"

"Good morning Caera. Seris."

"Morning to you too Grey"

I led them to where mother was and soon all of us were seated.

Before we could continue our conversation, a portal manifested nearby and Agrona walked through followed closely by a guard.

We all stood up with the exception of mother and Sylvie who was confused.

"We greet the High Sovereign." said Caera and Seris in unison as I stayed silent.

"Rise. I heard from your reports that you're starting training today. I came to give..." He stopped talking as soon as his eyes landed on Sylvie. She got a little scared as she hid behind me.

Agrona still hadn't spoken as he continued to stare at his daughter, his face apathetic. And Seris is reporting to Agrona? She seems loyal to him.

"Sylvie, come here. Meet your father." mother said as she gently pushed Sylvie towards Agrona.

"Da-daddy?" Sylvie voiced in a low tone as she held her hands behind her back drawing circles with one leg on the ground. She unintentionally gave the 'puppy eyes' look too.

We all saw it. A crack in Agrona's apathetic expression. His face faltered before turning into an expression that showcased guilt. His brows twitched for a moment before it was replaced by his previous expressionless face.

His change in demeanor was clearly something that I used to do a lot myself, masking one's emotions. What was Agrona guilty of? Neglecting his daughter? But to affect someone like him it had to be pretty severe.

"Hello there my little one. Hope you are enjoying yourself" he replied, almost avoiding her.

"And as I was saying, here are some beast cores I have obtained for your training. Use them well." he said as a guard handed over a dimensional ring to Seris.

He soon left as if in a hurry without waiting for our responses.

"Mama, was daddy angry?" Sylvie asked mother in a dejected tone.

"No, my daughter. He was...surprised, not angry. So don't be sad" she replied, caressing Sylvie's feather-like hair. Sylvie soon brightened up.

Looking over to my side, I could see that Caera was frozen in her place with beads of sweat on her forehead. I had completely forgotten that his aura was overwhelming to others.

Bringing a chair near her I gently motioned her to sit. She flinched at first, probably surprised but immediately calmed on seeing it was me and took a seat.

"Thank you Grey" she said with a smile.

"No need to thank me, Caera. He can be scary most of the time."

After everyone had calmed down, we decided to start on the training part. Caera revealed that she had received two emblems and a crest which enabled her to be able to fight like a striker.

This was good because I could teach her sword fighting and she could improve a lot since being trained at a young age would allow for rapid progression. She was surprised to learn about my lack of runes and my ability to use magic without them.

"Mom, there was another ability I got during my awakening." I mentioned before imbuing mana into my eyes to which the world turned monochrome as five colored particles became visible.

I could see mother's eyes widen into two full moons as she muttered

"Realmheart..."

But soon that surprise turned into confusion.

"Grey, would you mind taking your shirt off? I want to see whether there are runes covering your body."

"Sure mom." I said taking my training top off.

"Eep!" I heard someone squeak beside me. I realised Caera was still present as I looked over to see a red faced girl, which matched her crimson eyes that peeked through the fingers she held up shyly, clearly not doing the work they were supposed to do.

"Oh my~ , never thought Grey would be so direct" teased Seris as I gave an annoyed look. It didn't help the fact that she was loyal to Agrona. A part of me desperately wanted it to be a lie since she was the one who raised me.

After she regained her composure, mother looked around my torso.

"Weird. I haven't seen a realmheart without runes covering the body. Usually they help in identifying the branch. And..." she looked at the glowing purple mark under my eyes "neither have I seen purple marking for a rune of realmheart."

"There's also something here near the base of his spine," Caera said as mother went to see.

"Looks like there are two runes... purple ones. But why does it look incomplete? There are gaps in between the intricate markings" mom was deep in thought mumbling to herself.

"Brother's eyes look like mama's eyes!" Sylvie's excited voice brought us out of our trance.

"Mom, what is realmheart?"

"It is an ability few dragons possess, my son. It greatly increases the potential of its wielder by assisting them in understanding the elements of magic better. Having visual access to the elements which make up the constitution of our world will be of great help right? Usually realmheart helps in acquiring insights on one of the three edicts of aether. Spatium, Aevum or Vivum. But in your case, I don't see those runes depicting a certain edict. Except those incomplete runes on your spine. And, the runes usually shine a bright yellow or gold in color unlike yours, which glows purple."

Aether? I tried moving the floating purple particles, but they only shook a little. I tried to influence the other 4 colored particles, which moved according to my will. Trying to cast a spell, I could see the blue mana coalesce to form a ball of water. Looks like I can cast spells using ambient mana, but I could feel the strain on my own dark yellow core. I released the spells as my realmheart deactivated.

"Looks like you can influence elemental ambient mana, us pure dragons cannot, so we can't use it to cast spells like you." mother said in an impressed tone.

"But why can't I seem to control aether. They just shook when I tried to control it." I said in a dejected tone.

"Now, you can't expect to be able to use everything without working for it, do you? And you can't control aether because it cannot be controlled. It works in a way which is fundamentally different from mana."

"Different?"

"Yes. You see, mana is a liquid in a cup, changing to fit whatever shape, always moving and flexible. And the cup itself is aether. Which cannot be moulded according to one's will. Dragons and...now extinct Djinns could manipulate aether in ways other races couldn't. The djinns were especially good at it, the reason why my father decided to commit a genocide. Out of fear and jealousy." mother's voice turned grim.

"Now, forget that. It's time we start your training. Seems like my little son here is a genius who can control all elements. Not to mention you learned mana rotation by instinct which only pure asuran babies do. I'd like to see how much you grow!" mother returned to her usual cheerful tone.

Caera and Seris were surprised by my abilities on being able to utilize ambient mana. But I feel Caera's nervousness was not only due to that. Having seen the high sovereign must have taken a lot out of her. But soon she'll get used to it...I hope.

'This is going to be fun...'

I dodged and parried the deadly attacks that were thrown on me. While I did think of training Caera in swordsmanship, I never expected her growth to be monstrous. She seems to absorb all my teachings perfectly and quickly, not needing more than five demonstrations of any technique.

Her face was scrunched in concentration as her sword blunted by mana was missing my body by a few millimeters with each swing. To catch her off guard, I swung my own sword towards her extended arm to disarm her, but before my sword was halfway through, I was kicked in the gut by a mana infused leg.

"Owwww...that hurt Caera!" I said as I got on a knee holding my stomach in pain. "How are you improving so fast!?"

"Cause I'm a genius Grey! And I have a..." I looked up to see Caera smiling at me "..reliable teacher." she said as she extended her arm towards me helping me up.

Her gratitude and presence are one of the few things I've grown to cherish over these three years. She makes me feel like a kid again.

We have grown close and have hung out with Nico and Cecilia. We said we didn't want to intrude on their 'dates' but for some reason they insisted. She has become comfortable being around mother and does not freeze upon seeing Agrona now.

Sylvie has become more playful and naughty and likes to pull pranks on me along with Caera. She likes to spend more time around Caera than me which only helps in them formulating plans to mess with me. Be it drawing funny things on my face or waking me up after training, headbutting me in the stomach, Sylvie is always there looking at me with a wide grin. Is she entering her rebellious phase?

My training has paid off tremendously. I can control all elements properly now, but have a little difficulty with earth. Managing to unlock two deviances- lightning and ice. My core has progressed from dark yellow to initial silver. Active purification of my core over it naturally purifying itself helps a lot. I still couldn't figure out those incomplete runes on my back. Mother told me she sensed that one of the runes were about to form when she was telling Caera's circumstances back then but stopped midway. I wonder if it is linked to my emotions.

Lost in my thoughts, I hadn't realised Caera had reached where mother, Seris and Sylvie were seated. She waved her hands trying to call me over. I didn't know how much Seris has reported of my training to Agrona but with how he acted, he wasn't out of the loop. He used to call Sylvie sometimes along with mother which made me worried, but as mother seemed oddly happy, I didn't give it much thought.

I always wondered what should happen if I were to trigger the sequences of muscle actions artificially, using mana. Would that have the same effect without having to move my muscles voluntarily? I had spent time injecting mana to specific muscles individually based on my past life knowledge and the results were... promising.

So if I trigger a sequence of actions involving all those muscles in a determined order...

Dorsiflexion of foot, flexion of knee, flexion at hip joint followed by plantar flexion of foot, extension of knee and extension at hip joint. These were the sequences that usually occur for a dashing forward motion, like in the beginning of a sprint race.

Should I try to trigger the muscles responsible for them in that sequence using mana while standing?

'I guess no harm in trying'

As I did perform the actions I had planned in my mind aiming for the area around where mother and the rest were, the world turned into a blur and I felt my head hitting something.

A burning sensation was felt at my spine, before my vision began to darken..

"GREY!" "Brother!"

Was the last thing I heard.

We were watching over Caera and grey as they sparred. It's really surprising to see how fast her growth is even without a manifested body. She gave a kick to Grey's stomach when he attempted to disarm her and he knelt down in pain.

"Heheee" Sylvie seemed to be enjoying the sight. She got along really well with Caera, to the point she considers her family. A smile formed on my face considering the implications that meant. Even I feel like a kid. Agrona strangely wants to spend time with Sylvie, although it isn't much, it's better than nothing.

Caera walked back with a smile after helping Grey up. reaching us, she called him over. But soon Grey looked like he was deep in thought. All of us looked towards him because he wasn't responding.

A few moments later, I felt mana being used. Grey disappeared from his spot and instantly I heard a loud crashing sound at the tree near us. Looking over, I saw Grey collapsed on the ground, a huge impact mark on the tree. Blood slowly trickled down his forehead.

"GREY!" "BROTHER!"

Both Caera and Sylvie instantly rushed to his side. I got up from my chair and went to see what happened along with Seris. I knew he wasn't in mortal danger as his mana signature still stood strong. That didn't mean I was stable, I just hoped nothing disastrous happened.

I knelt down and checked for injuries.

"He seems to have had a concussion and a dislocated shoulder. The small laceration on his head should heal soon." I sighed in relief as I pushed his shoulder back in place.

As I got up, Caera and Sylvie both sat down and I could see thier eyes were moist. I smiled looking at them but a faint purple glow near his spine caught my attention. Kneeling down again and looking at the source while slightly shifting him, I could see another incomplete rune form as the glow subsided.What are these runes? I can't seem to figure them out. Pushing those thoughts away I turned my attention to more pressing matters.

If I'm not wrong, grey just did a technique similar to what the Theyestes clan's warriors are taught.

Mirage Walk.

Although I could sense mana being used,during his apparent travel, he was undetectable to the naked eye. I don't know how it would be for the mana infused one.

"Seris, not a word of this to Agrona"

"Of course Sylvia"

I looked back at Grey to find an interesting sight.

Caera had placed Grey's head on her lap, as she slowly parted his bangs so Sylvie could wipe the blood off. It felt like she herself was not aware of this. As when Seris chuckled beside me, Caera flinched for a moment and looked at us, realising the position she was in.

Her face turned beet red in an instant but didn't push him away, being aware of his injury. She's probably going to have a hard time with Grey.

Few Hours Later

I groggily opened my eyes. My head felt like it was splitting apart. My eyes burned as the light bombarded my retinas. What happened? The last thing I remember is trying to do a mana experiment involving my legs, so why is my head hurting?

Trying to move my head, I could feel it was resting on something soft. It felt more comfortable than a pillow. After my vision stopped hurting, I looked up to find a sleeping Caera leaning against a tree as her hair covered a part of her face.

'Cute.' I thought before realisation hit me as to what I was resting on.

I immediately shot up from my spot and regretted it just as fast. My head felt like it was hit by a truck as I collapsed back on her lap. This movement seemed to wake her up as she shot up, nearly knocking my head off. She then looked at me and relief washed over her face.

"Thank the Vritra you're alright Grey! You have no idea how worried we all were when you collided with the tree. You even had a concussion."

"What? A concussion? How did I?"

"Because..." mother's voice interrupted us and proceeded to explain all the things that occured.

"And if you're going to use that technique again, try and manage your mana output. You used too much back then that's why the accident occured. It is good that your body is stronger than humans, otherwise it'd have been fatal. Although I must say I'm impressed you managed to recreate something similar which is one of the closely guarded techniques of the Theyestes clan. But it isn't perfect." Mother said as she seemed relieved at my recovery.

I slowly got up this time making sure I wouldn't fall back. Looking over I saw Sylvie sleeping beside me and Seris wasn't present.

"If you're looking for Seris. She left as she didn't want to wait 4 hours for you to wake up." Of course, why would she wait. She's a busy person. Why is it that I feel irked when her topic comes up? Ever since that day I learned about Caera and the experiments.

"4 hours? That's a long time. And Caera, thank you for taking care of me."

"No need to thank me Grey. That's what friends are for." she answered with a smile.

I gently picked up Sylvie in a princess carry as she snuggled closer while mumbling incoherent words. I chuckled at her actions before making my way to the resting area and gently laying her over the sofa. I'm blessed to be her brother.

"She was crying you know," came Caera's voice " she might like playing pranks on you, but she never wishes you to be hurt like this."

"I know. I sometimes feel all of this is unreal. But if it is a dream, I don't ever want to wake up." I replied while brushing her feathery hair between my fingers while gently caressing her head.

Few Days Later

Me and Caera were doing our usual training, when Seris arrived and whispered something in mothers ear. Mother smiled and called us. Is mother in the dark about Seris's doing? She always seems happy around her.

"What is it mom?"

"You'll be accompanying Seris and Caera while they go shopping for supplies. Well, you also need to shop for necessary items for what's about to come."

"And what is that?"

"You know about the relictombs right?"

My eyes widened in surprise as excitement bubbled within me.

"Are we going on ascents?!!" both me and Caera beamed together.

Mother gave a small grin as what she told next crushed our expectations.

"No, you'll be training Caera as to how to survive in the wild. Seris will be taking you to the dense forest which makes up most of Sehz-Clar, her dominion. This is basically a necessary training as relictombs are a dangerous place. You'll be left there for a week. Train her well, my son. Nico and Cecilia are already done with this. And did the excitement make you forget that the age of consent for ascents is 14? You're three years too early for it."

"Oh. I forgot about that." I replied in a dejected tone. "But why now? We still have time."

Mother and Seris looked at each other and turned at us with a smile.

"Because, you won't have time to do this once the four of you start attending the academy."

(A/n: Hehe)

"Sir Bladeheart, the raid team we sent to clear Dire Tombs has been completely wiped out. No survivors. We found multiple skeletons in the geyser chamber and one of them belongs to the House of Wykes."