“Mama, Mama!”

  The voice came from a little girl running down the hallway, five-year-old Roxy, dragging along her new friend, the seven-year-old Lavin.

  “What an adorable sight,” Lyra thought to herself, watching the two rush in.

  “Lady Roxy, please don’t run,” came a soft scolding voice from behind them.

  Following the two girls were Nia, one of the five executives of the Starlace Order, and Lavin’s older sister, Vio.

  Ever since the sisters, Vio and Lavin, were rescued, they had been living in the Stelluna mansion. The other orphans they had once lived with stayed there as well. At first, Vio had wanted to remain at the orphanage, but after Lyra’s gentle persuasion, under the excuse of letting them be Roxy’s companions, they had agreed to move in. It was, in truth, partly out of Lyra’s consideration for Vio, the fallen princess who had grown up in hardship, unaware of her royal blood.

  “Lady Lyra…”

  Lyra returned Vio’s polite greeting with a graceful nod before turning her gaze toward the children. She smiled warmly and patted Roxy’s head.

  “Be careful, dear. What if Lavin falls?”

  Roxy looked up at her mother, guilt flickering across her face.

  “Uu… I’m sorry…”

  “Why say that to Mama?”

  Roxy blinked, then understood her mother’s gentle reprimand. She turned to Lavin.

  “I’m sorry, Lavin.”

  “I-It’s fine…”

  Lavin replied, her words trembling slightly. She still hadn’t grown used to speaking so casually with nobles.

  Seeing that her daughter had learned her lesson, Lyra smiled softly.

  “So, tell Mama, what happened?”

  Roxy’s face instantly lit up.

  “Mm! You see, you see! Lavin can use ice and space magic without chanting!”

  “Oh? Really?”

  “Mm!”

  Lyra’s eyes widened in surprise. It had only been a few hours since Lavin began studying magic, yet she was already capable of chantless casting. Even the Starlace’s trio of genius mages, Glacia, Yuki, and Nia, had taken over a week just to shorten their incantations, and six weeks to perform true chantless magic. Lavin had surpassed that in mere hours.

  Roxy turned eagerly to her friend.

  “Lavin! Show Mama!”

  “Y-Yes!”

  Lavin nodded, her small hands trembling as she lifted them and closed her eyes.

  A few seconds later, faint lights began to form, one glowing blue, the other violet.

  Both Lyra and Chika froze, eyes widening. A single thought struck them at once.

  ‘Dual casting!’

  Not only was Lavin capable of chantless magic, she could cast two spells simultaneously, of completely different elements. And she had learned this in just one day.

  Her talent might surpass any mage in the entire kingdom!

  “Amazing, Lavin!” Lyra exclaimed.

  “Hehe~” Lavin giggled softly as Lyra reached out and affectionately patted her head.

  “Mama! I want to show you something too! Look!” Roxy said excitedly.

  Before Lyra could respond, Roxy closed her eyes and began to focus.

  “Mumumumuuu…” she mumbled in concentration.

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  After about ten seconds, a soft blue light flickered to life in her small hand.

  “Mama! Look! I can do chantless casting too!”

  But her expression quickly fell.

  “But I can’t use space magic yet…”

  Lyra immediately lifted her into her arms, rubbing her cheek affectionately against Roxy’s.

  “You’re amazing too, dear! Mama’s so proud of you.”

  “Really?”

  “Of course.”

  “Ehehe~”

  Roxy had only started learning magic from Nia after the catastrophe. Nia herself had taken a month and a half to master chantless casting, Roxy had done it in one. At five years old, her talent was undeniable.

  Lyra couldn’t help but feel joy swell within her. To see her daughter grow into such a prodigy filled her with pride.

  Or perhaps, she thought with a glance toward Nia, it spoke of Nia’s skill as a teacher.

  Nia tilted her head in slight confusion as Lyra smiled knowingly at her.

  Lyra set Roxy down beside Lavin.

  “Now, since both of you did something amazing today, Mama will give you a prize. Tell me, what do you want? A cake? Cookies?”

  But Lavin shook her head quickly.

  “E-Eh? N-No need. I… I’m already grateful you saved us and let us live here…”

  Lyra smiled gently and stroked her cheek.

  “That’s a different matter, Lavin. Saving children and giving them shelter is my duty as an adult. But a child who studies hard deserves a reward.”

  “T-That’s…”

  Lavin faltered. Other than her sister, no adult had ever treated her with such warmth. She couldn’t help but wonder, if she had a mother, would she be someone as gentle as Lady Lyra?

  Without realizing it, tears welled up in her eyes.

  “Oh my, why are you crying?”

  Lyra wiped the tears away with her thumb.

  “Thank you… but really…”

  Before Lavin could finish, Roxy tugged on her sleeve.

  “Lavin, Lavin! How about asking that?”

  “That…?”

  Roxy turned to her mother.

  “Mama, Mama!”

  “Yes, dear?”

  “I don’t want a cake or cookies! I want Mama to help Lily and the others!”

  “Wha?!” A surprised voice shouted from outside the door.

  Nia opened the door and revealed the culprits, Lily, Leo, and several other children standing awkwardly.

  “W-What are you all doing here?!”

  Vio’s eyes widened in shock. She bowed deeply toward Lyra.

  “I-I’m sorry, Lady Lyra! I’ll teach them properly. Please forgive them!”

  “S-Sis Vio…”

  “You all apologize too!”

  “U-Um… I’m sorry…”

  “I’m sorry…”

  Leo bowed, followed by the others.

  Lyra chuckled softly. “It’s fine.”

  In truth, Lyra, Chika, and Nia had noticed their presence long ago. But since Lyra had said nothing, the others chose to stay silent as well, letting the children eavesdrop.

  “So, dear, what was it you wanted to ask?”

  Lyra returned her attention to Roxy as if nothing had happened.

  “Mm! Lily and the others can’t use magic, so I want Mama to ask the sisters to teach them sword fighting!”

  The “sisters” she referred to were the knights of the Starlace Order.

  “Hmm? Can’t use magic?” Lyra turned to Nia.

  Without needing to be prompted, Nia explained.

  “Apparently, none of them have mana cores, only aura cores.”

  Having one core was typical for natives. Those who possessed both cores, like the players, were nearly unheard of among the natives. So, it was not surprising if the kids didn’t have mana cores.

  Lyra turned her gaze to the children.

  “Do you all want to become knights?”

  However, Leo hesitated, looking down.

  “T-That’s…”

  Lyra tilted her head in confusion. But then Vio spoke up, her expression darkening.

  “Um… Lady Lyra…”

  “During the catastrophe, they all tried to pick up swords from fallen mercenaries to fight the monsters. But…”

  She clenched her fist.

  “They were too thin. They couldn’t even lift the blades. I… I was inexperienced then, and couldn’t cast properly either. And because of that, the others…”

  Her voice trembled. She didn’t finish her sentence.

  “I see…” Lyra murmured quietly. She understood immediately.

  They had tried to fight, to protect other kids, and failed. Let alone fighting the monsters, they couldn’t even lift up the swords. The weight of that moment must have carved deep fear into their hearts and now they were scared with the swords.

  Then, Lily stepped forward.

  “U-Um… I… I want to try holding a sword again!”

  Her voice shook, but her eyes burned with resolve.

  “I don’t know if I can do it… but I want to be strong! I don’t want Sis Vio to protect us all the time! I want to help her! I want to be strong enough to protect everyone too!”

  Her determination sparked the others.

  “M-Me too! I want to be strong so I can protect Sis Vio!”

  “Me too!”

  “Please teach us!”

  They all bowed deeply to Lyra.

  “You guys…”

  Vio’s eyes shimmered, touched by their sincerity.

  And then—

  “Pffahahahahaha!”

  Lyra burst into laughter.

  “L-Lady Lyra…?”

  Nia was stunned in disbelief. She had never seen Lyra laugh so freely. The others stared, startled, while Chika only smiled knowingly.

  She understood exactly what Lyra was thinking.

  Their words, their desperation… It was the same as Lyra’s own long ago. She too had once begged her father to let her abandon her knight’s title so she could protect Cryssa from political schemes. Though she had loved the sword dearly, she had given it up for her sister’s sake.

  Looking at these children, Lyra saw her younger self reflected in their eyes. Despite their fear, despite their trauma, they still longed to wield a blade to protect someone precious.

  How could she not laugh at that?

  “Ahahaha… Sorry, sorry. I just remembered something funny. Ahem!”

  Composing herself, Lyra smiled at the group.

  “I heard you used daggers back then?”

  Leo nodded.

  “Ah, yes. Daggers aren’t heavy, so we could run while fighting the monsters.”

  Lyra nodded thoughtfully, studying the children.

  Aside from Vio and Lavin, there were thirteen of them in total. The eldest, Leo, was around twelve, and the youngest, perhaps eight. She could tell at a glance that the ones who hadn’t survived the catastrophe were the younger ones, perhaps even younger than Lavin.

  “I have another solution.”

  A faint smile curling her lips. It was a gentle smile, yet it feels foreign that even made Roxy puzzled.

  Chika shook her head lightly and thought, “Ah, she’s scheming something again.”

  Then Lyra spoke, her voice calm yet decisive.

  “How about… becoming assassins?”

  The assassins that were not to kill, but to protect.

  The assassins that were not devoid of emotion, but full of hopes.

  “I will teach you myself.”