Hiruko knew what he had to do. The real Lukas was annoyed by her frequent visits, embarrassed by the attention she brought him. He scowled, a flash of irritation crossing his face. "Mina, what are you doing here?" he grumbled, his voice low and feigning annoyance.
Mina smiled, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Oh, is it a crime for a friend to check on you, Lukas?"
Kaelen, always the boldest of the group, chimed in, "She's not just a friend, is she, Lukas? She's here to keep an eye on her lucky man."
Mina's smile widened. She strode over to Hiruko's desk, her movements fluid and confident. She took his hand in hers and squeezed it playfully, her grip surprisingly firm. "Why else would I come to a school like this? I have to make sure my fiancé doesn't get into trouble."
A collective gasp, followed by a roar of laughter, erupted from the class. "Fiancé?!" one of the students yelled. "Lukas, you dog! And here we thought you were just a scared, little noble!"
The teasing was relentless. They laughed and made jokes about Lukas "punching above his weight" and marrying a "prodigy." Hiruko's mind, the mind of a 28-year-old man, was completely unaffected. But he had to act the part. He had to be Lukas.
He snatched his hand back, his cheeks flushing with a feigned embarrassment he had to summon from the depths of his being. He stood up, knocking his chair over in his haste. "She's lying! We're not engaged! Mina, why would you say that?!"
Mina's laughter was soft and knowing. She leaned in close, her blue eyes filled with a secret humor only they shared. "Calm down, Lukas. You're going to embarrass me with your dramatics." She straightened up and turned to the class. "It's true. I was just teasing him. Now, if you'll excuse us, I have an important message for him from his family."
The teasing students, sensing the conversation had become serious, backed away, their laughter subsiding into low whispers. Mina lowered her voice to a serious tone.
"Your sister wants to see you, Lukas. She asked me to bring you back to the estate immediately." Her gaze was unwavering. "She seemed quite concerned."
The unexpected request hit Hiruko with a new wave of tension. Clarissa, the younger sister. What could she possibly want? Did she know something about him? The thought of an unexpected meeting with another member of the Tross family, one who supposedly cared for Lukas, filled him with a dread far deeper than any encounter with his father. He had to assume she was just as perceptive as Mina.
"Alright," he said, his voice flat. "I'll go." He didn't ask for details; he just put his books in his bag and followed her. As they left the school grounds, the weight of the coming confrontation pressed down on him. He was leaving the sanctuary of North Gate, the one place where he could be himself, and going back to the cage of his new life. What did Clarissa want? Was this a trap?
The Tross carriage ride back to the estate was a quiet one. Mina sat opposite Hiruko, her face unreadable, her gaze thoughtful. He felt her studying him, her perceptive mind likely piecing together the details of his peculiar behavior. He kept his own expression neutral, his mind a whirlwind of possibilities. What did Clarissa want? Was this a genuine check-in, or was Mina's sudden presence at the school part of a more elaborate scheme?
When they arrived, the grand Tross mansion loomed over them, its intricate stone facade a symbol of the family's cold, exacting standards. Mina led him not to the main entrance, but to a side door that led to a sun-drenched conservatory. The air inside was warm and sweet with the scent of blossoming flowers.
Seated at a small table, a book open on her lap, was a young girl with hair the color of spun gold. Her eyes, like her father's, were a striking emerald green, but where his held cold authority, hers were filled with a gentle, youthful warmth. This had to be Clarissa.
She looked up as they entered, and a wide, relieved smile lit up her face. She immediately rose and hurried over to him. "Lukas! You're back! I was so worried about you."
She embraced him, her hug a soft, genuine gesture. Hiruko, unused to such open affection, stiffened for a moment before forcing himself to relax. He gently patted her on the back, a gesture that he hoped felt brotherly.
"I'm fine, Clarissa," he said, trying to make his voice sound reassuring. "Just a bit of a headache. Nothing to worry about."
Clarissa pulled back, her emerald eyes scanning his face. "Are you sure? Mina said you were still a little out of it." She looked at Mina, her expression full of gratitude. "Thank you for getting him, Mina."
Mina simply nodded. "He's still a bit fragile, Clarissa. I'll leave you two alone." With that, she gave Hiruko a final, knowing look and slipped away, leaving the siblings alone in the quiet conservatory.
Clarissa led him back to the table and poured him a cup of floral tea. "I was worried," she confessed, her voice soft. "Father said you were fine, but he's always so distant. I wanted to see for myself."
Hiruko felt a pang of sympathy for the real Lukas. His younger sister was the only one who seemed to care about him as a person. This was his opportunity. She was kind, open, and not as suspicious as Mina or as intimidating as his father. He could ask her questions.
"What were you reading?" Hiruko asked, gesturing to the book on the table. It was a safe question, a way to gauge her interests and possibly learn more about the world.
A spark of excitement entered Clarissa's eyes. "Oh! It's a text on magical theory. I'm learning how to draw mana from the earth and shape it. It's so much harder than Father makes it sound."
Hiruko's mind went into overdrive. This was perfect. She was a source of information about magic. He decided to take a small risk. "You know, the fall... it left my mind a little fuzzy. Can you... can you tell me a little more about it? About mana, I mean. Everything seems... different." He tried to sound confused, a little vulnerable acting like lukas not wanting to show his incompetence.
Clarissa's expression filled with concern. She immediately took his hands in hers. "Oh, Lukas, of course! Don't worry, I can help you. I'll explain everything." She launched into a detailed explanation of mana, magic, and their family's unique lineage.
Hiruko listened intently, his mind was a sponge, soaking up every word. Clarissa was his greatest asset yet. She was a trusting, innocent source of knowledge in a world that was trying its best to kill him.
Clarissa's eyes, a mirrored emerald of her father's, watched her brother with a mix of surprise and pure, unfiltered hope. For years, she had watched him struggle. She had seen the way his shoulders slumped, the way he would flinch at the mere mention of his studies, the way he would hide in his room, weighed down by the Tross name. But here he was, asking her to explain magic, using the fall as an excuse to fill in the gaps of his knowledge.
She saw right through the flimsy story of a memory lapse. Her brother wasn't a fool; he was a coward who had given up. This was different. This was a fragile, brave attempt to start over, to understand the very thing that had brought him so much pain. A fall had not robbed him of his memory; it had given him the courage to ask for help. A small, genuine smile touched her lips. She would not question him. She would not push. She would go along with it and help him, just as she had always wanted to.
Clarissa gently released his hands and gestured for him to sit back down. "Of course, Lukas," she said, her voice filled with a warmth that felt like a healing balm. "Let's start from the beginning. Every family of the nobility has a magical talent, but ours… ours is special. It's not a flashy ability like the Rosewalt's mind magic. Our talent is our mana. The Tross family has a reputation for having massive mana reserves. We are the wells of power that fuel others. Father often says our ancestors were born from the very earth's core."
She picked up a small, smooth stone from the table and held it out to him. "Try to push your mana into this."
Hiruko's heart pounded. He had no idea how to do such a thing. He remembered the instructions from Lukas's journal and focused, imagining a stream of energy flowing from his core into his hand. Nothing happened. He tried again, concentrating with everything he had, and felt a tiny, almost imperceptible warmth spread from his palm to the stone.
Clarissa's eyes widened in surprise. "It's… it's working!" she said, her voice full of genuine delight. "That's it, Lukas! You've always had the mana, but you never knew how to channel it. Our family's strength is in producing geniuses who can tap into that potential from a young age. Our mana efficiency is supposed to be perfect from the start. That's why Father and Tristan… that's why they were so hard on you."
She paused, her expression turning somber. "But you're doing it now. I'll help you. We can do it together."
Hiruko listened, his mind working in overdrive. The Tross family's secret wasn't their magical talent, but their immense mana reserves. Lukas had the power, but no way to use it. Lord Tross saw this as a disgrace because a Tross who couldn't use his mana was like a king who couldn't command his army—it undermined the very foundation of their family's reputation.
With Clarissa on his side, his path forward was now clear. He had a trusting teacher who was willing to help him master the very skill that had plagued Lukas.
Hiruko's mind raced with the possibilities. With Clarissa as his tutor, he could not only learn the fundamentals of this world's magic but also uncover the secrets of the Tross family's power. His face, without his conscious control, broke into a look of genuine excitement. "I want to learn more!" he said, the word bursting from him with a newfound energy. "let's start now. Where do we begin?"
Clarissa's smile, bright and hopeful just a moment ago, flickered. Her eyes narrowed almost imperceptibly as she watched him. The determination, the mature resolve on his face—it didn't belong to the brother she knew. The real Lukas was easily defeated, quick to despair, and never, ever this enthusiastic about his studies.
"Alright," she said slowly, the doubt clouding her voice. "I'll go to the library. The basic mana theory scrolls are quite large, but they're the best place to begin." She turned to leave, her gaze lingering on him for a beat too long.