As Lysander saw who it was that entered the door, his face darkening before being quickly replaced by a smile, standing as he went to greet the First Queen. Besides her was one of Seris’s Court Mages, Arxus Ikard, his attention immediately drawn to Ieros, sensing the inconceivably high amount of mana Ieros possessed. His surprise caused him to release his control over his mana’s aura, causing a brief spike that Ieros was able to sense. Ieros then finally turned his gaze towards Arxus, their eyes meeting. Meanwhile, the Prince had finally reached the First Queen, greeting her.

“Ah, First Mother, you haven’t met my wife-to-be have you?”

The First Queen shook her head.

“No, I haven’t.”

Her gaze alighting on Stellaria, she allowed herself to be led by Lysander to the seat next to him, right in front of Ieros. However, she didn’t notice him at first, her eyes only on Stellaria.

Stellaria, noticing the look, bowed her head.

“Greetings your Majesty, I am Princess Stellaria of Athera.”

Kosara, much like Lysander, reassured, “No need to be so formal, you and I are going to be family soon.”

As they began to talk, Arxus—who had taken his seat by the First Queen—stared at Ieros and Ieros stared at him, placing down his eating utensils.

Finally, Arxus said, “I am Arxus of the House Ikard, Court Mage of Seris.”

Feeling as if it was expected of him, Ieros too introduced himself.

“I am Ieros, and as far as I know, I am not of any noble house.”

Arxus’s friendly expression darkened.

“Are you not a noble?”

Ieros only said, “I am a bit special.”

Arxus, cold now, just nodded and proceeded to fill his own plate with food, Ieros finding the sudden change in attitude weird. However, he didn’t say anything, it didn’t really matter to him if no one wanted to be friends with him. He returned his attention to his food, having deciphered much of the food on his plate, leaving only five more to go. These were deciphered relatively shortly, he had the hang of it now, and from deciphering came actual practicing. He began to recreate these foods and tasting them, although of course, they were subpar when compared to the original. However he didn’t mind, he never expected to get it on the first try.

He just took a few more samples and savored them again, this time searching for slight nuances of the word itself to make exact recreations. As he slowly began to master these words, the meal was coming to a close, with the Princess having satisfied her hunger. She excused herself from the table, saying that she desired a place to rest. Seeing this, Lysander commanded a few servants to lead the Princess and her escorts to the finest rooms available. Ieros got up to leave, taking his mithril staff in hand. Arxus saw this and his eyes narrowed, just how had such a mage who wasn’t even from a noble family gain such an artifact.

A staff made entirely of mithril—while not too uncommon—was still something that no regular mage could attain. Even if Ieros was a Court Mage, that wouldn’t erase his lack of wealth. Arxus grew suspicious of Ieros, just who was he? He made a mental note to do some research on Ieros when he had the free time, right now he had to escort the First Queen. Lysander too took his leave, leaving only the First Queen and Arxus eating silently.

Finally, the Queen whispered to Arxus, “What do you think of the mage, can you turn him to our side?”

Arxus said, “From what he says, he isn’t a noble your Highness, why would we want such a person?”

Kosara then asked, “Then can you defeat him?”

Arxus smirked.

“Who do you think I am?”

Kosara turned to look at him.

“Can you defeat him?”

Serious now, he nodded.

“Well I’d have to do my research but I think so, yes.”

She then dismissed him.

“Do your research then.”

He bowed and left the hall, the First Queen taking one final sip before she too stood up. She too then left the hall, leaving only the servants who were cleaning up the table.

Elsewhere in the Palace, the Princess had entered her quarters, deciding to share it with Alwine. As for Ieros, he was given another room all to himself, the Princess dismissing him from escorting for the day. With that, he entered his room, one that was a bit too extravagant for Ieros. For one who had spent much of his time out in the forest, to be suddenly surrounded by such opulence was a bit disconcerting. Uncomfortable, Ieros directed his gaze to the balcony, seeing a grand garden greet his eyes. With a labyrinth of flower bushes, slender trees of pure white bark, and various fountains dispersed throughout it, it seemed like a far better place to be than in his room.

So, leaning his staff against a wall, Ieros walked out of his balcony, using levitation magic to slow his fall. Alighting softly onto the ground, he made his way to the garden path, clasping his hands behind his back as he meandered through the garden, conversing with the shadows that were around him. All around him, the shadows began to move, all whispering in a quiet orchestra which only he could hear. As if he was back in the forest again, Ieros began to move with the silent rhythm, seeming more like a shadow now, not walking but gliding, his momentum increasing and decreasing with the intensity of the symphony of whispers.

In fact, as the shadows began to surround him, his form began to blur, appearing as a shadow himself. Suddenly, the shadows fell silent and Ieros came to a stop, someone was there with him. He turned his head, the shadows falling away from his form as he beheld a small child. He and the child stared at one another for a few moments, Ieros turning to face the young girl more properly, his silver eyes holding her in place. She was young, around nine years old if Ieros had to guess, appearing rather comically in a dirtied dress and ruffled hair. It seems that she had been crawling through the bushes and as faint calls could be heard in the distance, it seems that she had escaped her attendants.

However, it seems that the girl had temporarily forgotten about them, her eyes glued on Ieros. To her, this was like one of those characters in the stories her maids told her, the dark aura and those piercing silver eyes, he had to be a demon lord.

“A-are you a demon lord?”

After a slight pause, Ieros chuckled.

“No, I am not.”

The girl insisted, “But you have the dark aura and those silver eyes, you have to be a demon lord.”

Ieros shook his head, taking off his hood to reveal his face.

“See, I’m a human, just like you.”

Encouraged by this, she inched closer, saying, “You don’t look like other people.”

He smiled slightly.

“Well, I am a bit special.”

She tilted her head.

“Really?”

He nodded.

“Really, I’m a mage you see, I can make just about anything.”

A bit dubious, she crossed her arms.

“Really? Can you make a dragon?”

He nodded and she demanded, “Show me.”

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

He asked, “How big?”

She said, demonstrating with her arms, “Thiiiiiis big.”

With an amused smile, he nodded.

“Very well, but you’ll have to watch very closely, I can’t keep the dragon here for very long.”

She nodded and he turned his attention to the sky, igniting the mana in his blood as he created a large illusion. As he began to cast his magic, it sent ripples in the ambient mana, alerting many who were sensitive. However, Ieros didn’t care, all he was doing was entertaining this young girl. With a flourish of an arm, suddenly, the hazy silhouette of a dragon appeared, and with a flourish of the other, it came into reality. Of course, it wasn’t a real dragon, but combined with illusion magic and the artificial creation of winds, Ieros was able to replicate a dragon as if it was here.

The little girl, who didn’t know that this was an illusion, thought that it was real, that a dragon was here in flesh and blood. She could feel the wind buffeting her, the heat that came off of it as if it was a stove, and she could see the dragon stand above her in all of its glimmering majesty. After staring at her, its deep sapphire eyes—which stood out even against its equally blue scales—hypnotizing her, it turned its head to the sky and breathed out a column of blue flames. She could only stare at the magnificent sight, her mouth still wide open after the dragon disappeared, first turning into a wispy silhouette before vanishing altogether.

Ieros turned to her and smiled.

“Did you like it?”

She nodded and then they both heard the sound of approaching feet. However, she didn’t care, just staring at Ieros in awe. As the people grew closer, Ieros donned his hood once more, the aura of a Court Mage returning. A few guards soon rounded a bend in the labyrinth, their swords out. Upon seeing Ieros and the Ninth Princess, they immediately charged to her side, taking defensive positions around her. She attempted to tell them that it was okay but the royal guards bid her to be silent, staring nervously at Ieros.

One demanded, “Who are you!?”

However, the Ninth Princess was not to be denied, slipping through them and going over to Ieros’s side, standing in front of him protectively.

“He’s my friend, he just did what I wanted him to.”

The guard implored, “Princess, please, come away from him! He could be dangerous-”

However, she shook her head.

“No! He’s my friend!”

Ieros then said, “It’s alright, your Highness.”

He turned to them and said, “I am Ieros, Court Mage of Athera.”

Upon hearing the words Court Mage, the guards paled, they had raised their swords against a Court Mage. However, they also just couldn’t let him get away with this, he had disturbed the peace.

Seeing their hesitation, Ieros said, “You may report this to the King, I, for now, shall return to my quarters where I shall stay until the King decides a proper punishment.”

The guards could only nod, this was the best choice.

One of them did insist, however, “Please allow two of us to escort you to your room, just to be sure you keep your word.”

Ieros nodded.

“Very well.”

He then looked down to the Ninth Princess, his silver eyes warm.

“Well goodbye, perhaps we can meet some other time.”

She held onto his robe and shook her head.

“No, you’re not going to go!”

Ieros then knelt, saying, “Don’t worry, I’ll be okay.”

She still shook her head and Ieros knelt down, placing his hand on hers.

“It’s okay, I can summon a dragon, they can’t hurt me even if they wanted to. Just you see, I’ll be here again tomorrow.”

She looked right into his silver eyes.

“You promise?”

He nodded.

“I promise.”

She then held out a pinkie, saying, “Pinky-swear!”

Smiling as he saw this, he then intertwined his pinkie with hers, saying, “I pinky-swear.”

She then stared back at him, with a very serious look.

“Don’t break it, if you break it you’ll die a hundred times!”

He nodded, amused.

“Well, I’ll have to keep it then.”

He then stood and waved goodbye to her, going along with the two guards that escorted him to his room, leaving the Ninth Princess with a guard. Ieros was compliant, returning to his room without trouble. Perhaps he shouldn’t have gone all out to impress the girl but he just felt like he had to, it just felt nice to demonstrate his magic in front of an appreciative audience. In her eyes, his magic was not a tool or something to be envied, it was simply amazing, something... magical. How could he not want to show off?  

But those thoughts soon left his head as he prepared to sleep for the night, taking a long look at the bed before deciding to use it. Changing into more comfortable sleeping wear, he crawled into bed, amazed at its softness. Used to sleeping on the forest floor, this feathered bead was one of the softest things he had ever had the pleasure to sleep on and thinking that lie wasn’t going to be so bad, he closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Morning came and he awoke, lying in bed for a few moments before he sat up, rubbing his eyes. He yawned and then got out, absentmindedly changing from his sleeping wear back into his robes. He yawned again, making his way over to the mithril staff, taking it into his hands. He then turned towards the door and to exit his chambers, figuring that the first course of action would be to locate the Princess. However, that was promptly put on hold as he heard a knock at his door. Opening it, he found a manservant on the other side whose eyes briefly met his before hurriedly bowing his head..

The manservant—nervous—wasted no more time, saying, “The King summons you to breakfast.”

Ieros nodded.

“Then take me there.”

He bowed.

“Of course sir Mage.”

He turned and began to lead the way to the Dining, Ieros following behind. When he arrived, he saw that the Princess was there as well, this time the table more occupied. There were mostly beautiful women and young men, presumably the princes, each of them turning their gaze to Ieros as he entered. He stood still for a moment, thankful for his hood which hid his slight moment of panic. However, he soon saw a small figure waving her hand energetically and he smiled as he saw the Ninth Princess, bowing his head in greeting. It seemed that she had held a seat for him which she gestured he take, Ieros deciding it best not to refuse. The Princess already had both of the seats beside her taken so he didn’t really have any other choice.

When he took his seat, the Ninth Princess excitedly grabbed his sleeve, saying, “Summon the dragon again!”

Knowing that this wasn’t the proper place, he could only shake his head.

“But everyone’s eating right now, it would be rude to disturb them.”

She pouted.

“After?”

He shrugged.

“Well that depends on what my punishment is.”

She patted him on the arm.

“It’s okay, Father won’t be too mean.”

He nodded.

“I sure hope so.”

However, before they could continue their conversation, the Ninth Princess was tapped on her shoulder, it was an older woman—presumably her mother.

“Eat dear, before all the food is gone.”

She nodded and turned her attention to eating, Ieros deciding to do the same. He filled his plate with food, the dishes different than the ones from before so he spent quite some time savoring his food again, discerning the words which made these particular delicacies. After some time, he felt something tap his arm, it was the Ninth Princess.

“Why are you eating so slowly?”

Looking at her, he said, “Because I’m practicing.”

She tilted her head curiously.

“What are you practicing?”

However, before he could answer, the mother interjected, saying, “My apologies Sir Mage, my daughter is young and-”

He reassured her, “Oh it’s quite alright, it’s a rare pleasure to meet one who is so fascinated by my magic.”

The mother seemed to want to disagree but with an insistent look from her daughter, she sighed and returned her attention to her food, Ieros continuing his explanation.

“I am a Creationist, that means I can make things out of air. But I need to have the formula of making these things so that’s why I’m eating slowly, savoring the taste so I can find out the formula.”

She asked, “What’s a four-moo-la?”

He thought a moment, finally saying, “Well it’s a bit like a recipe for when you cook. You need a list of ingredients to make something and what I’m doing is finding out the magical recipe for this food.”

Her eyes sparkled with wonder.

“That’s so cool, teach me!”

He smiled and said, “It’s a very difficult subject, it’s not for a child to learn.”

She puffed out her chest.

“I can do it, I’m very smart!”

The mother intervened again.

“Please forgive her Sir Mage, I told her that she’ll learn magic when she’s thirteen but she’s just so impatient..”

Ieros nodded and then turned his attention to a pouting Princess.

“Well, magic can be a dangerous thing. If you aren’t careful, it could hurt you very badly. It’s best that you don’t learn it for now, when you are older I will teach you.”

With that, while still a bit discontent, the Ninth Princess returned to eating her meal. The mother felt that it was appropriate to apologize once more, bowing her head.

“I feel I must apologize on my daughter’s behalf, she’s a terribly excitable girl and even though I’ve tried to restrain her, it seems to only make it worse.”

Ieros nodded in understanding.

“I do not mind, it’s rather refreshing to meet one whose interest in magic is solely because it is magical, instead of the powers it can provide. Your daughter will be a fine mage one day, of that I’m sure.”

The mother smiled.

“Well, if you say so, Sir Mage.”

Ieros only nodded and returned his attention to the food, still eating as the others began to finish up. The Ninth Princess wanted to stay with him but her mother was not to be refused, the Ninth Princess forced to say goodbye to Ieros after exacting another promise that they’d meet again. He did so and waved goodbye as she exited the chamber, holding her mother’s hand. Ieros too decided that he should leave, after finishing the last morsel on his plate.

He stood up and was about to go when a voice spoke, “Wait mage, you and I have something to discuss.”