Akira's eyes still sparkled with excitement as he leaned forward, "Anyway! Enough about me, Mother, that power you used before. Stellar Radiance. Tell me about it!"
Yuki sighed, giving him a look halfway between amusement and exasperation, "I will. Just calm down first."
Akira immediately straightened his back like a good child, "…Alright. I am Calm."
"…Good grief," Yuki muttered, then took a breath. "I'll explain. But first, let me ask you something: why do you think our family name is Starlight?"
Akira blinked, "Huh? I… never really thought about it. Is there some special reason?"
"There is," Yuki nodded. "The reason is the power I used just now. It's called Stellar Radiance."
Akira leaned forward with eyes shining. "Really! Is it like some ancient bloodline power? What does it do?"
"It works mostly as an enchantment," Yuki explained. "Think of it as a power that can enhance any ability you use. You can also shape it however you like, just like when I formed that sword earlier. It's especially effective against dark creatures, though it works fine against other magical beings as well."
Akira tilted his head, sensing there was more. "What else can it do?"
Yuki's smile turned a little sharper. "It also grants us a passive ability. Any powers tied to the stars, moon, or other heavenly bodies cannot harm us. In fact, they empower us instead."
Akira froze. "…Wait. Then… that's why my Grand Chariot didn't work?"
"Exactly," Yuki said. "If you'd used almost anything else, it might have worked. But not star-based magic."
Akira groaned, slumping forward. "Ugh… figures. So, what else can Stellar Radiance do?"
"There's a lot more," Yuki admitted, "but I'll tell you later. Or when I decide you're ready."
"Sigh, you always do that," Akira pouted, though he already knew there was no rushing her. Still… "At least tell me how effective it is against dark creatures?"
"More effective than even light or holy magic," Yuki said simply.
"…WHAT?!" Akira yelped. "Then… does that mean we're enemies with them or something?"
Ryuji, who had been quietly listening, finally spoke with a small smile. "No. We're neutral. We don't attack unless provoked. Our family is on good terms with most sides."
"But…" Akira scratched his head. "I thought powers like ours would make dark factions hate us…"
"They would," Yuki admitted, "if we used Stellar Radiance more often. But we hardly use them, even when fighting against dark creatures."
"Why not? If it's that effective, then wouldn't it make sense to use it against them?", Akira asked in confusion.
"Because it's hard to master," Yuki said with a smile.
Akira frowned. "Hard? How so?"
Yuki sighed, then looked him in the eye and said, "Because Stellar Radiance is powered by the power of love."
"…WHAT?!", Akira's jaw dropped, and he almost fell backwards in shock. "Wait, wait, wait, are you serious, our family's secret technique… is the power of love?!"
"It's not just love," Yuki corrected, unbothered by his outburst. "Friendship works too. So does hope, joy, compassion, any genuine positive emotion."
"…You can't be serious," Akira said. He looked like as if the world had betrayed him. He wanted to be a cool badass character in the future, but his ultimate power is the power of friendship, "Is it because I stole a magic from fairy tails? Is this my punishment?", he thought in despair.
"It's similar to the Patronus Charm from Harry Potter," Yuki continued, completely ignoring him. "You need to recall positive, happy memories and channel them."
Akira sighed and rubbed his forehead. "So basically… our ultimate secret technique is friendship power. Great."
"Don't underestimate it," Yuki warned. "Because you need to truly feel those emotions for it to work. And tell me, who would feel happiness and love when killing someone?"
"…A psychopath?" Akira deadpanned.
"That's just excitement or euphoria," Yuki said dryly. "It won't work here. You need actual good memories, real intent, real warmth. That's why it's hard to use in battle. We mostly use it to assert dominance rather than fight."
"Sure, sure," Akira sighed as if accepting his fate. "So how do I use it then?"
"It's simple. Think of a strong, happy memory. Feel it, visualize it, and let the emotion flow into the Radiance. Like this." Yuki said as she activated it, purple aurora appeared around her, and her Stellar Radiance reappeared, dancing like a shimmering aurora in the night sky. Akira felt its warm, calming presence seep into him. But his Mystic Eyes of Reason traced the flow, watching intently.
"Now, you try." Yuki let her aura fade.
Akira closed his eyes. "Happy memory… hmm… maybe the day I first learned magic? Yeah, that was a good day."
He focused as a faint purple glow flickered over him… then sputtered out instantly, "…Huh? It failed?"
"It's not your control," Yuki said gently. "Maybe that memory isn't strong enough. Try again with a different memory."
"Alright… let's go with when I became friends with Erika. My first real friend in two lifetimes, those kinds of memories would usually work in this kind of situation!", Akira thought as he tried to activate it again, but just like before, the purple light appeared, only to vanish just as quickly.
"…You've gotta be kidding me," Akira said in shock at his failure.
"We need more powerful and happy memories," Yuki said, exchanging a surprised but knowing glance with Ryuji. It was the first time she'd ever seen her son struggle with learning something.
Akira gritted his teeth and kept trying, cycling through memories from both this life and the last… but no matter what he recalled, the purple light never stayed.