Throwing open the windows of Theo's room aggressively, a thunderous order echoed through the space:
"Wake up, princess," Ethan commanded, yanking the bedsheet off Theo.
Waking up gradually, still heavy with sleep and blurred vision, yawning while processing his father's voice, Theo sat up in bed. He expected daylight pouring through the window, but it was still dawn.
"Come on, make your bed and get downstairs in the next ten minutes."
Theo groaned in dissatisfaction, sleepy and uncomfortable. Still, it had to be done.
Getting up and obeying Ethan's orders, the boy quickly joined Edward in the residence's yard, where the Duke usually trained casually.
On the lawn, just a few meters ahead, Ethan was warming up beside Luanne.
"Hm… Make sure you teach him properly, so he can develop his own ignition," Luanne said.
"I know," Ethan replied, writing on a movable board.
"Hmm… Are you sure that's all you're going to do?"
"Luanne… It's the first day of training. Do you want me to overload him with information?"
"Yes."
Ethan searched for his friend with his eyes and stared at her with a comical, judgmental expression. In the panoramic view, he spotted Edward and Theo sitting and staring from afar.
The Duke motioned for Theo to come over.
"Tê, as I promised… I'll teach you enough to survive without exceeding my limitations."
"You can't teach me much, because…"
"There's a quota, son," Luanne answered. "Knowledge is monopolized by the academies; what cores are, how to use them—those are things we can answer. But complex and specific knowledge can only be taught in institutions."
"That's nonsense," Edward muttered to Theo.
"I agree, but unfortunately there's a treaty for everyone who enters one of the Four Great Orders. We're forbidden to share knowledge with individuals who don't belong to the orders."
"Right…"
Ethan tapped the board with a ruler.
"In total, there are seven stages of cores, five types of energy, and three polarities. I talked to Beatrice when classes were canceled due to the Cataclysm, so you should know something already, right?"
Theo nodded.
"The three polarities are negative, neutral, and positive. Within the seven stages, there are three stages for negative and positive polarities, and only one for neutral."
"What are the colors?"
"Yellow, orange, and red for positive; blue, lilac, and purple for negative… and finally, green for neutral," Edward answered when his nephew struggled to recall the sequence. Even as a human, Ed often studied deviants and their structure.
"Mana, aether, ki, quantum, and psychoenergy are the types," Theo said before Ethan could ask.
"Excellent. Now, simply don't worry about that. Those are concepts you'll only be able to learn at the academy. I'll teach you only how to convert energy into elemental attributes, recognize your affinity, and manipulate it."
"But first…" Edward said, grabbing Theo by the unfractured arm. "Let's prepare your body, right, brother?"
"Exactly," Ethan agreed.
Leading Theo across the lawn, Edward forced his youngest nephew to run around the house all morning.
Even when he was exhausted, legs weak, nearly collapsing…
Theo stayed on his feet.
When he was about to give in to his judging mind, he kept running until the end.
Edward made him practice jumps while running, move through the trees in the grove, and even orient himself.
Taking Theo down the road that led to Loureto, Edward made the boy enter the forest and get lost for a few minutes.
Running between the trees, Theo searched for the way back. Jumping over stones, he took a route to the right; a clearing allowed the last beams of sunlight to pass through, signaling dusk.
Seated on a rock near the end of the clearing, a skirran watched the Young Master's abrupt movements. A small white squirrel with hollow eyes was startled by the swipes Theo made at the bushes; in response, the little animal leapt upward and activated its gliders beneath its armpits.
With a gust of wind, the small skirran vanished back into the forest.
Noticing that night was falling, Theo decided to stop running and start walking. He needed to rest: Edward had made him run for the last two hours, his energy was running out.
Even so, he couldn't stop thinking about how incredible his energy reserves were to allow him to run that much.
But even a superhuman has limits.
Walking calmly through the forest, Theo saw, at the end, remnants of cobblestones forming a straight line as lampposts lit up, revealing that this was his guide.
Even though he had gotten completely lost and disoriented, Theo knew exactly where he needed to go at all times. The only problem was the steep, unfavorable terrain for walking alone.
Reaching the cobblestone road, Theo ran back toward his house, following the lampposts as the light spread.
But at no point was he alone…
"Did you like it?" Edward said, appearing at his side. "The exploration game. Did you like it?"
"Uh-huh… I just didn't understand the purpose."
"When you become a Vagus agent, between expeditions you can't lie around waiting for information. Intervals don't mean resting—they mean trying to complete the mission faster… At least that's what your father told me."
The two boys ran side by side, finding a pace that wouldn't tire Theo too quickly.
"There will be days when you're stuck waiting, so the smartest thing to do is learn the environment. Spending a day exploring and hunting is the best way to kill time on a mission."
"And you leave me alone all day for that?"
"Never! I didn't leave you alone. On the contrary, I was following you the entire time. I even killed a few beasts that tried to attack you."
Theo's eyebrows furrowed in surprise.
"But I didn't feel any of that…"
"You're not supposed to," Edward smiled, looking toward the end of the road, a sharp gleam shining in his eyes. Turning to Theo, he concluded, "That's why I train like a deviant."
Their speed gradually decreased as they approached the entrance square of the Lawrence Residence. A surprise awaited Theo.
The Young Master lost his momentum when he understood what was happening.