“Faster!”

Val and Vin increased their pace again. They slashed the throats of the dummies they passed as fast as they could while speeding along. Vin was way ahead of Val as he used the wind to boost his speed, finally reaching the end of the test.

“6.7 seconds and 14.9 second. Valerie, stay behind and keep practicing. Until you reach 10 seconds, you’re not allowed to leave. Vincent, you’re dismissed.” Said the middle aged man with a scar across his face.

The twins turned 8 not long ago, and have been training with Oscar. He was infamous among the new recruits for being the instructor with the most strict teaching methods.

“That’s not fair! Vin can use the wind to his advantage.” Complained Valerie. She was already out of breath covered in scratches and dust. They’ve been practicing the whole morning.

Crushing weight bore down on her pushing her down, but she resisted. She half kneeled while struggling.

“you’re merely a recruit during training so act like one. Don’t you dare disrespect your superior again. Vincent used his resources well, maybe you should do the same. Now start over!” said Oscar threateningly.

The weight lifted off of her allowing her to breathe freely again. She gritted her teeth, “yes sir.”

‘I’d be done with this already if I could only use space magic.’ She thought in frustration heading to the starting point. She played with her dagger on the way, swirling it around.

Their father gave them each a dagger when they started training. It was a black middle grade magical weapon covered in runes.

Vin gave his sister an apologetic smile before leaving the training room, ‘you can do it! just focus.’

He picked up the white fox lying near the door waiting for him, leaving behind a worried dragon and his struggling owner.

Val headed back to the starting point. She took a deep breath and positioned herself.

“Start!”

——

Two hours later, Val was lying on the ground out of breath. Her whole body ached in pain.

“10.6 seconds.” Oscar frowned, “our time is up so I’ll let it pass. You’re dismissed.”

Vincent was sitting on the sideline with the two soul-bonds next to him. He went to help Valerie up with a water bottle in hand.

Val didn’t dare linger too long as to not displease Oscar. A class of recruits were waiting near the entrance for the twins to exist so they could start their training. They were whispering in admiration among themselves after seeing Valerie practice.

As the twins passed by them to leave, with Valerie chugging down the water as if her life depended on it, the recruits bowed towards them parting way, “young masters.”

If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

Vincent nodded towards them politely on behalf of his preoccupied sister. Judging by the idolizing gazes they got, he guessed these recruits were very new.

The older recruits already treated the twins like one of them and would joke and tease them from time to time. Although most recruits that they met when they were two years old already finished training, some were still left. In The Shallows, the training period isn’t limited and they only graduate when they’re good enough.

“I can’t wait to take a bath.” Said Val groaning. She turned towards her brother giving him the cutest smile she could achieve, “Vin~”

Vin sigh.

“what do you want?”

“Can you carry me? Pleeasee~”

Seeing how beat up and tired his sister looked, he could only shake his head in defeat as he crouched down offering her his back.

“Hop on.”

He didn’t have to ask twice.

“you’re the best!”

“Save that energy for our night training. We still need to do our laps and weight lifting… though I’m clearly already doing that.” His voice lowered as he said the last part before he got a smack on the head.

“Are you comparing my me to those heavy lifts we use?!”

“Not at all, you must have heard wrong. By the way, you should really start paying more attention to Rue. He’s been sulking for a while.”

Rue gave a small roar in response. He was following behind them flying with Oni on his back napping.

Rue grew a lot in the past 3 years and was now over a meter long in height. Oni, on the other hand, haven’t changed at all.

“Way to change the subject, tsk. Now slow down a little. I want to nap for a few.” Mumbled Val while leaning her head on Vin’s shoulder closing her eyes.

Vin walked slower as he headed out of The Shallows walking towards the mansion.

— —

“We’re going to your aunt’s house this afternoon. You two should get ready.”

The twins were taken back by the news.

They were having their weekly lunch with their father; a tradition that started after their awakening ceremony.

They haven’t seen their aunt since the party, and when they asked their father about her, he gave them vague answers.

From what they learned, their aunt married into the Mueller family. It was a family know for their trading, especially with imported goods. Although their family head was just a marquis, the family was extremely rich and influential.

They also learned that they had two cousins. Samuel, who was nine, and Nathan who was 4.

Valerie grew excited after her initial surprise.

“Yes father.” They replied.

‘What are you planning?’ Asked Vincent after seeing his sister’s scheming look.

‘That gaining a few underlings wouldn’t be so bad.’ she replied with a grin.

Vincent sighed. He could tell that today is going to be a long day.

The twins got ready after their meal and headed out with their father.

This was their first time leaving their mansion. They’ve only been to the shallows before, which was located on the premise of their property.

They got into a black luxurious carriage that had their family symbol carved on it; 3 overlapping upside down silver triangles.

Their carriage ride to their aunt’s house was spent with Val glued to the window in awe. She would call Vincent over every time she saw something mildly interesting.

Vincent, however, ignored his sister’s mental messages and sat next to their father gracefully with a poker face.

Valerie was fascinated by the scenes she saw. She saw cooks using fire magic to bake and kids using air and earth magic to play. Almost everyone she saw had their soul-bond next to them or on them, which painted quite the picture when seen from afar.

The streets were packed with all kinds of shops and stalls, and the lanes for carriages occasionally had people on their mounts rushing through. Valerie could also see few airships up in the sky speeding through, which left her gaping in marvel. It only dawned on her now how magical this world truly was.

A short while later, their Aunt’s mansion came into view. Valerie hopped off the carriage the second it stopped and was looking around with glowing eyes.

although the Arkens were by no means poor, their buildings paled in comparison to one of the richest families in the kingdom.

‘They look like they burn money to warm themselves, what a waste.’ Commented Vincent frowning as he followed her off the carriage.

‘It sure looks beautiful though.’ Replied Valerie staring at the golden pillars with white cravings in front of her.

Their father came out of the carriage just as their aunt and her sons came from the building to greet them. The air tensed up once their father and aunt made eye contact. The twins could feel the suffocation of their auras around them as they frowned.

“Samual, why don’t you show the twins around with your brother?” Scarlet Arkens said with a smile not breaking eye contact with her brother.

Samual frowned in annoyance, yet replied in agreement anyways, “yes mother.”

the nine year old boy had straight blonde-ish brown hair and blue eyes.

His younger brother was next to him smiling innocently while holding his stuffed bunny toy. His curly pale white blonde hair almost being a contrast to his brother’s, with baby blue eyes being their only similar feature.

Valerie narrowed her eyes when she saw him. ‘The kid gives me a weird feeling, be careful.’

‘Samual?’ Asked Vincent surprised. His only impression of him was that he was hot-tempered brat, so his sister’s words shocked him.

’No, Nathan. Although his lips are smiling his eyes feel.. voided.’

Vincent didn’t say anything but noted it down in his heart. His sister can be scary perceptive sometimes.

“Follow me.” Samual said before walking away. The twins followed while scanning their surroundings subtly.

”oho~ are these two your supposed “genuis” cousins?”