The spring wind was blowing hard, carrying pistils of flowers everywhere. The two boys walked behind the king. The oldest was rubbing his nose several times, enduring the itching from the pollen he had always hated.

They said spring signified a new hope for a new life. However, Darius didn't like it. Unlike his brother, Lucius didn't seem bothered. The eyes of the younger brother paid attention to the right and left of every detail of the kingdom.

A large palace that looked deserted. Everyone was busy with their own business. The walls were tinted in white to tell of being cold and lonely.

The two children didn't know where the king was taking them until they came to the other side of the palace itself. A towering door was plastered before them. Lucius looked shivered with horror at the thought of what kind of giant human was back there.

Could it be someone bigger than Jeno, the knight who was asked to train them?

"Darius, what is this place?" Lucius asked Darius.

That question was only answered with a sharp gaze. The younger boy understood. He was asked to be quiet.

The King didn't wait to knock on the door. The wood opened immediately. Darius looked ahead, while the image in his younger brother's head was starting to make no sense.

Thankfully, Lucius' image of a large man with hair covering every part of his body did not come true. On the contrary, the person who opened the door was a woman. The younger boy sighed softly, finding his imagination not coming true.

"Welcome," said Eveline to the two boys. "My name is Eveline Rosemary."

Evaline seemed to be smiling, Lucius was sorry he had bad thoughts about the place. While Lucius still seemed transfixed by reality, his brother introduced himself.

"My name is Darius," said the first child. He lowered his head.

"I'm Lucius!" his brother exclaimed easily. His face was filled with a bright smile.

The king held the shoulders of both of them, before he spoke, "They are both Adelle's brothers I said earlier, Eva."

"Then, please come in," said the chief magus.

Beyond that door was a large room. Big enough, they could even practice swords there. Wherever Lucius looked, all he could see were scrolls of paper.

He was not in the slightest curious, in contrast to Darius who seemed enchanted. The boy wondered in his mind how much knowledge was there.

"Once again, welcome. This is Rosemary's house, the home of every magus in Rosewell."

"What is magus?" asked Lucius.

He wasn't embarrassed at all. Not one bit. The boy didn't know, his confusion was clearly illustrated. In stark contrast to his brother who looked calm.

Eveline smiled. It was natural for someone not to understand what magus is. After all, their population was nothing compared to the knights.

"Magus are people who possess Mana and use it to manipulate the matter around them."

Even though Eveline had explained it, Darius and Lucius were completely unable to understand it. Their faces were legible. Darius was unable to imagine what Eva was saying.

Albert himself laughed softly. The king was not a magus, he understood the confusion of the two. When he was a child, his response to magus was not far from the two children.

"Sorry, this will be a little troublesome, Eva," said the king then.

He remembered how Eveline's mother had once explained to him, with great difficulty, what magus was all about.

"No problem, Your Majesty. You can wait. I'll explain it."

The king sat on one side of the room. He wondered whether the two of them had mana or not. If Adelle could have it, maybe Darius and Lucius were the same.

"So Mana is a special energy that allows you to manipulate what's around you, like the wind. Mana has existed since someone was born," Eveline explained. Both of them nodded. They have understood until there, "mana can also run out. When you run, you will be tired, right?"

"That's right," answered Darius. However, the energy for running and moving can be recovered through food. The first child wondered if Mana was the same, "what if Mana runs out?"

"Mana can be replenished with rest and water. Special water obtained from the goddess."

"Oh ..." Lucius nodded his head. He didn't understand, but the ability to manipulate what was around them seemed attractive, "do we have that?"

Eveline smiled and answered then, "that's what you guys are here for. To see if you have it or not. Adelle can have it, so maybe you can too."

***

Two sheets of paper with a magic circle on them were given to them. A foreign sentence for Darius and Lucius was written on the back. A spell.

"This is a special paper. You just have to read it," continued Eveline.

The spell on paper was a spell that causes Mana to leave the body. Anything that touches the magic circle would show a special reaction.

The two boys read it, bit by bit. However, until the sentence finished, the paper they held did not show any reaction.

Darius looked at the paper. The eldest son felt he might read it wrong. On the other hand, Lucius showed a different response.

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"I think the paper is ugly, no longer useful," said Lucius.

Darius was shocked to hear that. He almost wanted to silence his brother. Thankfully, Eveline was a very patient woman. The magus just smiled.

"No, it's impossible. Look," said Eveline. Darius and Lucius immediately looked at the paper in the woman's hand. With ease, the paper was torn in half. "See?"

The two of them looked amazed by what was in front of them. Eveline just pinned the paper at the tip of her finger, and the paper could be cut into two pieces.

"How can it happen?" Darius asked.

Next, he remembered how Adelle was able to use magic. Thinking back, Darius and Lucius never figured out how Adelle could form the ice needles around her.

"She's a magus, she's well-experienced, so good or bad paper will do," said Lucius, "we've never been."

Eveline then laughed at the second child's answer, "No. This is the easiest step to see if you have Mana or not. Your sister can do it in the first try, Lucius. This paper will show different reactions for each type."

The magus looked to the other side of the room, at the two girls who were there. Adelle and someone that Darius and Lucius didn't know.

"Adelle, Clara, please come over here for a moment," called Eveline.

Lucius looked at them. He knew Adelle very well, but he didn't know Clara. However, he felt he had known the girl for a long time. Lucius saw dark straight hair. Her lashes contrasted with her pearly white skin.

"What?" Clara asked Lucius.

The boy continued to stare at her. The child of the magus thought something was wrong with him.

"Clara!" scolded Eveline.

She knew very well how Clara disliked boys, especially those from royalty and nobility. However, being rude is not a good choice.

"Lucius," called Darius, "Apologies to him for irritating her."

Darius remembered the rules in his head. Only those who were uneducated, did not know good manners, and did not know themselves will continue to stare.

The first child then looked at Eveline and bowed slowly.

"I regret to say that my brother is far from being civilized."

Darius was something different. The rules were embedded in it quickly. The boy knew how to position himself. This was a quality the king was looking for.

"Oh no, he doesn't need to apologize," Eveline replied with a smile, "let's continue what's left."

Even though Eveline said so, Clara and Lucius occasionally met their gaze. Their eyes only showed dislike. Bad first impression.

"So, this is my daughter, Clara. Clara, they are the sons of King Albert, Darius and Lucius."

"Nice to meet you."

Clara told Darius, she completely ignored the other boys. Unlike Eveline who always had a smile on her face, Clara seemed to have no emotions at all. His face showed nothing.

"It's an honor to know you," replied Darius.

"Yes, it's very nice to know you," Lucius continued.

He was still pissed off by what had just happened. He just stared! What was wrong?

"Adelle and Clara have different Mana from me, maybe they can help give a clearer picture," said Eveline.

The magus gave two papers to Adelle and Clara. The same paper that was given to Darius and Lucius. In Adelle's hands, the paper caught fire and turned to ashes.

Even though in Clara's hand, the paper was wet, as if it had been dipped in water.

"See? Each paper shows a different reaction depending on the Mana type," said Eveline.

"Clara, Adelle, I want you to help them find out their Mana types. Please use whatever helps in this room."

"I'll help my oldest brother," said Adelle. She smiled at his brother, the oldest son then smiled back at him.

"Thanks, Adelle," she replied.

All that was left were Lucius and Clara. Either they wanted to or not, but for Clara what her mother said was a duty. The girl respected her mother as a mother, and also as the head magus.

***

"So like fire, fire needs air and heat, as well as fuel to keep the fire burning," explained Adelle.

"What's next?" asked Darius.

The girl was on Darius' lap. His brother's body became a support for her. Adelle was passionate, magic was one of her skills. Showing Darius was a matter of pride for her.

"What the magus does is collect the air and heat with Mana, then flow it with Mana to keep the fire burning," continued Adelle.

The palms of his hands were open, up there slowly appeared a fire that could be seen by the eye.

Darius watched her with care. Even though magic was an interesting thing, the boy would have lied if he said he was interested.

Darius was no longer interested in this topic. Under the guidance of Eveline and Adelle, the eldest son tried again and again. The result was zero. His intuition said clearly, he didn't have Mana.

***

Clara and Lucius didn't like each other. Coercion was the only thing between the two.

The girl's explanation was so brief and succinct, she refused to have any lengthy and insignificant conversation with the sons of the two kings.

"Mana is an energy that can be ordered and expelled from the body."

"Oh."

Lucius didn't seem interested in the girl, nor did Clara. His tone was flat, his face was the same. He didn't want to be there. Adelle was much better than this one, he thought.

Duties were duties, and Clara understood clearly. Next, in her hands, small drops of water were collected. Slowly, the water drops into a water ball.

"In this magic, the first command is to collect water from the air, the second is to join together, then the third command is to push the joined water to the target."

After that, Clara purposely threw her artificial water ball at Lucius' face which was hit in the target.

His hair was wet, his face was red.

"You...!"

"Oh sorry, I'm not very good at this magic. This is new magic I learned."

"Liar!" cried Lucius. His index finger was directed at the girl in annoyance, "I know you did it on purpose!"

"How would you prove I did it on purpose?"

Clara asked the boy. The two of them stared at each other in annoyance.

"You can't, can you?"

***

The end of the day was marked by the darkness of the sky. Sun got tired and went to rest. When the burning star was replaced by the moon, Eveline came to the king to report the situation.

"Your Majesty," she called. Eveline lowered her head, a greeting to him who was sitting on the throne.

"How did it go, Eva?" asked the old man. He dared to guess what the head magus would say. However, as a sign of politeness, he asked.

"I'm sorry. I've done everything possible to do. Unfortunately, they can't use magic. Simply put, they don't have Mana."

"They can't, can they?" said Albert. He nodded then, "I understand. Thank you, Eveline."