Laying alone in a strange room made Lanthim feel uncomfortable. He could sense that no one was in this room with him. The room was small, and how he had gotten to it, he did not know. For a time, he had lost consciousness. The testing had taken more out of him than he had realized.

Feeling outward, he could feel the natural mana about him. He could not sense it as acutely as he could before sealing; however, with the wrist seals gone, he could freely use what purified mana wasn't being locked, even though that was not much. As he softly ran his hand through the air, watching as the natural mana attracted to it, he heard voices coming towards his room.

"The testing is not supposed to swallow the one taking it wholly, Mynrea. What would have happened if he had destroyed the mountain." [Litralia]

Hearing his mother's agitated voice, Lanthim immediately roused from sleep. The door was flung open with a mighty bang. Lanthim just sat on the bed. While feeling every possible emotion a mother could feel, his mother was out of breath and looked as if she had run the entire way.

Behind her was another woman he did not know. Her white hair being long was also immensely beautiful, with green eyes that pierced through his being. He sat and said nothing, whoever this person was. She was on a whole other plane of power compared to him, and he could sense it.

"I am pleased to see you unharmed, child." [Mynrea]

She spoke to him with a soothing voice.

"I had thought that sending you to the pool would yield different results than this. But it seems that you are an interesting little individual." [Mynrea]

As Lanthim listened, he saw something on this lady's head that he had not noticed until now. He was used to seeing the ears and tails of Demi-human races, but seeing horns sticking out of a person's head was new to him.

"You seem rather interested in this young one. Yes, I am a dragon, even though I can take human form. Some parts do not change in the transformation."

Quickly responding to his long gaze, her explanation pleased Lanthim, and with such a voice, it would likely please anyone. Then his mother, after regaining composure, spoke.

"Lanthim, this Is Mynrea. She is your father's third wife. Please do as she tells you without complaint." [Litralia]

Her instruction was not needed, for he was already fully invested in the idea of obedience.

"Third, then where does that place you, mother?" [Lanthim]

He did not think, just spoke the question. It was a natural one for him to ask.

"That little one is a question for a different time. Now lay down and show me the seal on your back."

Mynrea cut the conversation off quickly. The order of marriage was not the issue here. It was this seal and its purpose. Rolling over onto his back, he pulled his shirt up to expose the seal on his back. Mynrea ran her hand over the seal, not overlooking its many parts. The number of magical sequences required to make this seal was numerous. One fed the next, while others contained and sustained the activity of others. So, using his purified mana that the seal took into itself, the seal could continuously function without an outside controller like most types of magic required.

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Looking deeper into its construct, Mynrea began to see another type of magic. Tied into the seal, a spell that she remembered from her early life.

"You may sit back up now." [Mynrea]

She instructed, and so he did with no delay. Looking up into Mynrea's face, Lanthim saw pity in her face.

"What is wrong, Mynrea? Is something the matter?" [Litralia]

Litralia had asked as she sat next to Lanthim. The pity on Mynrea's face did not subside; looking upon the boy, she asked.

"May I see your hands, Lanthim?" [Mynrea]

Her request was quickly granted, but why would she want to see his hands? Extending his hands so she could see there was nothing.

"There should be seals on both your wrists." [Mynrea]

Surprise now covered her face.

"Litralia, you reported to me earlier that there were seals on his wrists as well, did you not?" [Mynrea]

She asked as she turned his whole arm. There was nothing there.

"Yes, they have been there for months, and he still had them when we arrived this morning." [Litralia]

Litralia answered, looking at where the seals had once been.

Slowly, as further examination showed no sign of the seals appearing, Mynrea smiled.

"To think that one of Frera's death seals would not be able to function because of the loss of the main triggers." [Mynrea]

'A what?'

Lanthim thought to himself, did that make him some weapon?

"Yes, back four millennia ago, when I was in my thirty-fourth year. The war between Calgian and the Fallen was coming to an end." [Mynrea]

Mynrea began to recount that time long ago.

"Back in that time, seals such as the one we see here were used by Frera. To sow terror throughout the continents. On the backs of children, they were most effective. She would implant the seals. Would naturally draw the purified mana of the one that bore it. Into a specific spell that Frera liked to use because of its effectiveness at dealing massive damage over an even larger area. After some time, the seal would gain enough mana to make the spell able to activate, and then all would disappear." [Mynrea]

Lanthim sat in amazement. Was that the answer all this time? They wanted him to survive because when the time came, he would blow up and take Calgian.

Anger was all that remained now. Was everything up to this point a lie? He sat shaking visibly. His rage was so very fabulous. Then, a calm, warm hand patted him on the head. Litralia was still with him; her warm touch calmed him, but his betrayal from this great lie would not disappear.

"May I ask what the spell used with the seal is supposed to be?" [Litralia]

Litralia seemed calm. Why? This story is so bleak, with almost no hope for Lanthim.

"The spell is called Felthritos." [Mynrea]

Mynrea gave a surprising answer. Litralia even jumped off the bed with a fearful look on her face.

"You are not serious. Using that spell takes twelve ranks of six witches in full regalia." [Litralia]

Her surprise and fear made Lanthim feel incredibly tense. He knew some about the ranking system. Placing a witch on a scale of one to seven, six is mighty high.

"There is no need to worry, Litralia. The triggers are gone. So, the spell can not be set off. All this seal does now is limit purified mana."

Mynrea seemed very pleased with the current situation. She now had to move towards a different objective.

"Litralia, as far as I can see, your son, even though young, has shown a remarkable talent for manipulating mana. For a time, you should move as you always have and contain this fact from the outside. However, he should interact with children his age. Since the seal limits him, I can not see him using magic openly in the presence of others."

This proposal came like a calm wind; it felt right, and Lanthim did feel growing loneliness. He was by himself with only maids to look after him.

"What are you suggesting? We allow him to interact with other children. Out of the blue, who would take part in such a thing?" [Litralia]

Litralia seemed skeptical of what was being proposed.

"I am suggesting no such thing, Litralia. It will be a good opportunity for your son to gain other experiences besides companionship. There is always the need to strengthen the body through hard daily training. From what I have seen, he will require a great deal."

Everything made sense now; the proposal was more an excuse for Mynrea to get one of her sons to train Lanthim so she could always have an eye on him.

"Very well, I see the value in this. I would prefer to have one of my own to work with Lanthim, but I will defer to you."

Litralia saw what she was being given and decided it would be alright if things went well.

Withdrawing from the room, both women silently closed the door behind them. Alone, Lanthim again lay upon the bed; so much had happened this day, and he wondered what the next would bring.