Months passed, and Albert had temporarily gone to Radia, preparing to enter the Academy.

  It was after yet another failed attempt that his father made a different decision. There was no anger on his face, only a calm, almost protective determination. She bent down in front of Sato, sitting on the ground with her knees dirty with mud and her face streaked with tears.

  "Sato," he said in a firm but gentle voice, "from today Talya will be in charge of helping you perceive mana. He is young, but has a natural talent for magic. He will work with you every day, until there is a change."

  Sato looked up, surprised. "Really?" he asked in a hoarse voice, a glimmer of hope in his swollen eyes.

  Talya entered shortly after, his steps light and precise. She wore the sober uniform of the cn's maids, but with an elegance that seemed innate. Her long copper-colored hair was tied back in a neat ponytail, and her amber eyes exuded a sincere warmth. As soon as she saw Sato, he smiled at her and knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his.

  "I'll take care of you, Sato-sama. And I'll do everything I can to help you awaken your magic. Okay?"

  "Very agreed!" replied Sato, squeezing her hands tightly. It was the first time in months that she felt something light up inside. Talya was not just an instructor. It was a safe haven, a fixed point. A light.

  Not everyone knew how deep the bond between them was. Three years earlier, Sato had found her in the forest, dying. She was looking for materials to build a magic staff, convinced that it would help her feel the mana, when her talisman was illuminated, guiding her right there.

  Talya was thin, hungry, too weak even to get up. And yet, in his proud eyes shone an indomitable will.

  "Come with me if you want to improve your position," Sato told her, offering her a hand.

  Talya grabbed it without hesitation. Sato's father not only welcomed her into the vilge, but offered her an important role: to become his daughter's personal maid. Both were still children, but a special bond was immediately born between them.

  Now, that bond was stronger than ever.

  The training was hard, inspired by the techniques of war mages. To learn to perceive mana, Sato had to wear a blindfold and walk among floating candles, distinguishing their distance only through magical sensitivity. He had to fight with his eyes closed against small enchanted wooden golems, predicting their movements with only instinct.

  "Magic is not a tool," Talya would say during the breaks, as he handed Sato some fresh water. "It's an extension of who you are. To use it, you have to become part of the world around you."

  Sato trained non-stop. He made mistakes, fell, got back up. And he ughed. Because with Talya, every day seemed like a step forward, even in the most difficult moments.

  "Even the sun needs darkness to shine again," Talya whispered to her as frustration took over.

  But at the end of each session... no spark. Only silence. Only Talya's hands stroking her hair, and an ever-increasing weight in Sato's heart.

  He didn't want to disappoint her. Yet, day after day, he felt more distant from everything.

  Until one night, under a leaden sky, he got up in silence. He wore a cloak, left no notes. He didn't pn anything. Walked.

  He passed the sacred wood, the forgotten paths. Until he found a puddle. But not normal.

  The water seemed alive. Breathed. Vibrated. It was liquid mana, pure. Dangerous. Ancient.

  Sato approached, barefoot. He put one foot in the water. A tremor shook her.

  A figure emerged from the fog. It was not flesh, it was not spirit. It was light and shadow at the same time.

  "So much effort... and still so lost," said the creature, his voice like wind in the leaves. "But you've come this far. I know you, Sato."

  "Who are you?" she asked, trembling.

  "I am a forgotten person, a legend now."

  "Why can't I wake up?"

  "Your core is imprisoned by a curse. One of the oldest. I can set you free. But you must find my body, and give me back to the world."

  Sato hesitated. But something inside her already knew the answer.

  "I accept."

  An explosion of light.

  Pain. Fire in the eyes. An unbearable pressure in the chest. And then, darkness.

  When he opened his eyes again, the sun filtered through the window. Talya was there, his hands csped on his knees. As soon as Sato moved, he burst into tears.

  "Sato-sama!" he hugged her tightly, trembling.

  Shortly after, the parents entered. Her mother ran to hug her. Her father brushed her forehead.

  "We thought we had lost you," she said, sobbing.

  "I ran away," Sato murmured. "I found... a spirit. She told me I'm cursed."

  Her father looked at her seriously. "We found you near a pool of mana. Luckily you didn't get in."

  Sato looked down. "I went in."

  Silence fell like a bde.

  The next day they returned to the pool with Talya, her parents and some elderly people. Sato took off his cloak and walked into the water.

  No pain.

  Then, his eyes lit up. They were no longer just purple. They burned like two fmes. Mana surrounded her. A burst of energy broke free from her, magenta and dense.

  The father froze. The mother covered her mouth. Talya fell to her knees.

  "You did it," he whispered.

  Sato opened his arms. "I see mana. I feel it."

  Power flowed through her like a liberated river. The whole vilge witnessed the awakening.

  In the Mikoto cn, power was no exception. It was the norm. But what Sato had achieved... went further.

  In the following days, he trained with his father. But it was he who gave in at the end of every fight.

  "You exceeded all our expectations," he said, wiping away his sweat.

  "Now comes the hard part: learning to control it."

  And Sato nodded, decisively. The insecure girl was no longer there.

  Meanwhile, Lily, having learned of the news, wasted no time.

  "We have to throw a party for Sato! It is the first time that the cn has witnessed such a spectacur awakening. And we certainly cannot let it go unnoticed!"

  The days were filled with flowers, preparations, and smiles. For the first time, Sato felt he was part of something.

  One evening, while Sato was sleeping and the house was quiet, his parents were talking to themselves on the porch.

  "Our baby has changed," said the mother, looking up at the starry sky. "But I can't help but worry."

  Her father turned to her, surprised. "Why? He's stronger than me, now. He exceeded all limits."

  She shook her head. "Not for this. It's for the Academy. The sons of nobles... They are ruthless. Maniputors. They won't want to accept that she's stronger than them, or the fact that she doesn't have an air of superiority. They won't make it easy for her."

  Her husband remained silent. Then he nodded. "I know. But we have to let it grow. Protecting it too much would be the real mistake."

  A few days ter, Albert returned to Radia. He had grown taller, with a new determination in his eyes. But when he saw Sato, he stopped, he knew something was different, but he tried to ignore it.

  That same evening, the family finally gathered in the dining room.

  Talya served the dishes with her usual grace and discretion, while Lily, with a smug smile, arranged the st decorations on the table. The air was charged with a subtle emotion, as if everyone knew something was going to happen.

  The father, sitting at the head of the table, cleared his throat. The stern but proud look.

  "Albert. Sato. We have made a decision."

  Albert looked up from his pte, his eyebrows slightly furrowed. Sato turned to his father, curious.

  "Now that your sister has finally awakened her power... we believe that the time has come for both of us to attend the Academy of Radia."

  The silence that followed was heavier than any words.

  Sato held her breath, surprised but excited.

  Albert, on the other hand, dropped his cutlery. The noise of the metal on the ptter was dry, almost annoying.

  "Really...? Father, I thought-"

  "It's not a request, Albert," said his father, interrupting Albert.

  Albert bit the inside of his cheek. His gaze shifted to Sato, who was watching him with wide eyes. Then on his mother, who nodded silently.

  Finally, he lowered his head. "Got it."

  The father nodded with satisfaction.

  "You'll be leaving in three weeks. Take advantage of this time to prepare.

  Albert said no more. He knew that even if reluctance consumed him inside, he could not refuse a direct order.

  Talya approached Sato with a small, encouraging smile, brushing her shoulder with affection.

  Lily cpped her hands, breaking the silence. "Then it's decided! We'll celebrate that at your party too, Sato! A double beginning. One for your magic, and one for the adventure that awaits you!"

  Sato nodded, csping his hands in his p. Her heart was pounding.

  A new beginning... But also a challenge. And she felt ready.

  That night, his father also assigned two waiters to Sato and Albert to accompany them on the journey.

  Talya for Sato, and John for Albert