I looked at him open-mouthed, barely able to believe what I was seeing.

Leif just looked at me with a smile on his face. That disgusting face. So pretty. So punchable. I just wanted to run away.

“Going somewhere?” he asked, the corners of his lips turning slightly upwards as he looked at me. Elena nervously fidgeted beside me, her nervousness clear. I wasn’t doing much better myself.

“Ju-just for a walk.” I stammered out.

“The air is quite pleasant here, isn’t it?” Leif asked, his lips stretching into a thin smile.

“Y-yes, it is almost like mountain air.” I responded.

Leif looked at me with a puzzled expression on his face, clearly confused. I thought back at what I had said. Mountain air. Why had I talked about mountain air? Had I even been to a mountain before?

I was sure Aphra hadn’t.

I had to stop making stupid mistakes like this. Leif was already suspicious, he had to be, to have come here. Giving rise to even more suspicion would not do me any good.

“What brings you here, brother? Did you perhaps feel like going for a walk too?” I asked, trying to change the topic.

The smile on Leif’s face turned into a grin. “I wish, brother, I wish. But I fear it is not so. Father has seen fit to send us to the Academy, and we should leave at once if we are to reach on time.”

I looked at him. Leif glared back, grinning like a fool. Or a man about to eat his favorite meal. The Academy did not begin accepting new students for another ten days. The year shall start at least a month later.

What were the chances Leif was telling the truth? What were the chances we really were heading to the Academy, a place run by the royal family?

The grin on his face grew even wider as he looked at my expression. The monster knew what he was doing, and he was enjoying it. That expression was speaking to me. ‘I caught you escaping, isn’t it fun?’ the expression said.

“What is it, brother? Do you perhaps want to refuse our father’s commands?”

Of course, I wanted to refuse it. The question was if I could afford to. A question that sadly had a very easy answer. I did not have the power to reject either Leif or the Duke—whoever this command actually came from.

“Of course not. I was simply considering the fact that I would have to leave my maid.” I answered, trying to appear calm. “Is there any way we could take her with us? I would hate to leave her alone in the forest.”

I had considered if she should remain behind. Leif might kill her if she came. But I knew that she had died in the Trashy Novel. There was someone in the mansion that would kill her—a lot of someone, really. If she remained here after I was gone, she would likely die.

So I had to take her with me, even if it was dangerous. And it could be helpful. Story magic probably had a hand in my survival so far. Perhaps it would help me more because of her presence. Asking for her to come with me should not be too strange. I was, after all, supposed to be the son of a duke.

The grin on Leif’s face faded. A serious look came upon his eyes as he turned to look at Elena. I wondered if I had done wrong. What if I had brought Leif’s attention to her. What if he decided to use this chance to kill her? That would not be good.

I need not have worried. The grin returned onto Leif’s face, even bigger than before.

“Oh my, has my little brother grown a heart? I shall have to give you a gift to congratulate you.” he said, looking like he was really happy.

“But come, we should get moving.” he said. “I shall allow the maid to sit with us…this once.”

Leif opened the door to the carriage and stepped in, and then turned around to look at me. I considered if I should start running. I did not actually know Leif’s power. Perhaps I could succeed.

Hmm, couldn’t I actually find out how much mana he had? I had that power now, didn’t I? I looked at Leif, trying to sense the cloaks of magic I was seeing around other magical creatures. But I could not detect any. Leif looked like a normal person without magic, at least to my senses.

But I knew he wasn’t. That meant that I did not have the ability to see his power.

Well, fuck. And here I had been thinking I had gotten powerful. But Leif still remained a challenge I could not face. I followed Leif into the carriage, Elena not far behind. The door closed with a loud slam, as if declaring that we were now trapped.

I gulped, taking a seat. Elena looked down at the sofa, moving to take a seat. Leif glared at her.

“A servant should not sit on the same level as her master.”

Elena sat down on the floor, her face once again taking on a blank expression. I recognized that by now. This was the expression she made when she did not dare show her emotions. I should get one of those too.

There seemed to be plenty of times I needed it. And would need it in the future now that I had failed to escape. The fact was just sinking in now. I had failed to escape. Leif had caught me. Perhaps it was the fact that there had not been any apparent punishment, but it didn’t really feel important.

I hadn’t even managed to cope with the events of the test. The fact that the Monarch of Justice himself had come. The forest that had targeted me. And my Bloodline.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

What was happening with my Bloodline?

The System had said it had activated, and then it gave an Error. The mana system being offline was probably a result of the Monarch of Justice’s actions. Mana would not dare act while a Monarch opposed it.

But it should have started again once the Monarch was –

What?

I closed my eyes and opened them again, wondering if I was seeing things. I wasn’t. A moment ago I had been facing Leif. Now the Monarch of Justice sat across from me, staring at me with a worried expression on his face.

“Do you know what happened in the forest?” the Monarch asked.

I looked at him. I wasn’t really in the mood for a question answer session right now. I had other things to think about. But I also wasn’t foolish enough to say no to a Monarch.

Not after the display of power I had been witness to.

“The forest tried to kill me, and then you intervened.” I answered.

The Monarch stared at me for a few seconds and then sighed. That sigh made him seem exhausted.

“So you do not understand the danger you are in.”

“I know about the Game and the amount of power Monarchs -”

“No.” the Monarch interrupted. “For once the danger was not from the Monarchs. The Fae Queen and I are not about to kill you for something like this.”

“Oh.” I did not know where he was going with this then. Was there something I had missed? What?

Was Leif not enough of a problem? Why did I have to deal with another one?

“Story magic.” the Monarch said.

I blinked. That was not what I expected him to bring up.

“What you know about it is…partial. Not incorrect but lacking in context.” the Monarch continued. “In most cases it would not be an issue, but for you, it has become one.”

The Monarch looked at me, and I looked back. The fact that I did not know enough about Story magic wasn’t news to me. The Trashy Novel had barely mentioned it to begin with.

“Is it not just a powerful form of magic?”

“Yes.” the Monarch answered. “And no. As with most things Fae, it is an idiotic thing that loves being as confusing as possible. In this case, it is mostly a threat.”

I just continued looking at him. So it was another threat. I did not even know how to respond.

“What did you call mana? A dog, if I remember correctly.” the Monarch explained.

“Yes.”

“If mana is a friendly dog, then Story magic is like a child. A child that likes interesting things and has an interest in making it happen.”

I frowned, wondering where the Monarch was going with this. With every word the conversation was going in a direction I did not expect. I had thought he would want to scold me for failing. Or offer me some help in escaping. But he was talking about Story magic instead.

“Story magic was what caused the trees to attack you.” the Monarch said, pulling me out of my thoughts with his unexpected words.

What?

Story magic had done that?

Why in the world would it do that?

“Because it was interesting.” the Prince of Magic answered. “That is what Story magic does. Like a child that wants a new toy, it looks for interesting things. And for some reason you have become this new shiny toy it is very interested in.”

I froze. “A toy?”

“Yes, a toy. That is all you are to Story magic.” the Monarch said, his golden eyes staring into my eyes. I was starting to get the feeling that this was really serious. Why else would the Monarch have me brought to the Court like this?

“That magic was the one that brought you to my court. And it was the one that had the trees interfere. To see how I would react, and how other Monarchs would react to this. And I fear it would do so again.”

“Story magic is not on your side, and it is not your friend. For now, it finds it more interesting to increase your power, just to see what you would do with it. But that will not last. If tomorrow it thinks you dying in front of Elena would lead her to do interesting things, it will do so.”

“If it thinks Leif killing you in front of the Emperor would be interesting, it will try to make it so.” the Monarch's voice grew deeper, lights flickering behind him. “Even now, it pushes you to face challenges you are not prepared for. And it will continue to do so.”

“Story mana will raise the stakes, it will push every challenge and interesting thing towards you just because they exist. There will be no plan and there will be no rest. And if you fail in facing them, and you will, it will laugh as you die because even that would be interesting.”

I could feel my ears ringing as the Monarch finished his words.

“Where’s the Sto-story?” I asked, rubbing my ears trying to make the ringing fade. The Monarch flicked his finger and it did.

“This is why the Fae Queen should not be allowed to name things. Story magic does not refer to the magic itself, but how to escape it. The magic likes interesting things, and if it finds your future—your Story interesting then it will support you. That is how the magic can be…mitigated. Not controlled, but at least made to act in a way that may benefit you.”

That all sounded important. And very helpful. I just had one question.

“Why are you telling me this?” The Monarch of Justice did not help others gain power. That was one of his rules. This technically wasn’t giving me power, but he was giving me advice on magic. A powerful type of magic, even by his admission.

Why would he do that?

The Monarch just looked at me. “Leif knows about this magic, and he is using it for his own ends. If things continue as they are, you will die within the week. So you must build your own Story.”

“Find a goal, something difficult but not impossible, that matches with what you want to be. That is the first step to actually building your Story. Choose it well because Story magic not only has to like it, but it also has to support it. And if it does support it, then you shall have to pursue it for a long time to come.”

At this point it was starting to sound like it would be better for me to just give up. I opened my mouth to speak, but the Monarch cut me off.

“I will not be interfering again. I promised you twelve hours, but I shall have to end it here. Even if you face unfair challenges and die… I shall not be returning. This is my gift to you, a warning in recompense for what you lost. I hope it serves you well.” The Monarch said, literally fading from my vision. Even the Court of Justice seemed to be fading.

But that did not make sense. Rowan had met with the Monarch of Justice many times after his first meeting. Why would he end it here now? What was going on?

“Build your Story, Aphra, or your magic will build it for you.”

That was it. The meeting ended, and I was out of the Court of Justice.

But not back in the carriage.

I opened my eyes to stare at clear skies, clouds rolling about in the air. The same air I was falling through. I was falling through the air onto a lake below. Elena was right beside me. Leif was absent.

A scream erupted from my mouth as I realized that I was literally falling to the ground at a very high speed.

What in the world was going on?!

Local Magic System online.

Bloodline activation complete.

Story magic has awakened.