Chương 136: Book 3 Chapter 14 - Real Snow

Kiara nodded, bowing respectfully from her seated position.

"Yes, Lord Esborne, I am Shian Yountal." He looked at the others seated next to her.

"Dustin Savage, Zoey Trellen and Ava Dunsun, if I'm not mistaken?" They each bowed to him in turn as he said their names. Kiara was impressed with how well informed he was. Victoria's gaze had flicked to each of them as well, but had now settled on Kiara's bracelet, and she was staring at it quite fervently. Kiara was suddenly very glad that Victor had gifted her this bracelet, she would have to thank him again the next time she saw him.

No doubt the duke and duchess had both heard about her killing Kane Vondeer, and without the artifact, she might have had a hard time explaining why they only sensed her as a mortal.

"I didn't anticipate young Miss Ava here accompanying you to Lakeshire. Might I inquire as to why you brought her along?" Kiara glanced at Ava and smiled.

"Ava is a very talented young mage. Our private tutor at our estate in Easton recommended that she be enrolled in the magic academy in The Capital, which we intend to do while we are here." Charles stroked his chin.

"I see. Ava, would you mind showing us what you have learned so far?" Ava's eyes lit up, and she happily obliged. She started with a few of the meditation exercises that Belliston had instructed all of the estate staff in, then formed an ice mana construct above her palm. The ice took the shape of a miniature mountain, with ridges and cliffs. Focusing, and biting her lower lip, Ava conjured tiny snowflakes, really just tiny particles of ice mana, which fell down onto the ice mountain's slopes.

She blushed, bowing her head shyly, and the ice mana dispersed. Kiara ruffled her hair fondly.

"She only recently advanced to tier 2, and is still practicing." Charles's eyebrows shot up.

"No, that was honestly really impressive. Wouldn't you say, dear?" He turned to Victoria. The display had captured her attention, drawing it away from Kiara's bracelet, and she nodded in agreement.

"A lot of people rush to show us their biggest, brightest spells, but the level of detailed control you just displayed is wonderful. At your age, quite prodigious, I'm inclined to think. Do you, by chance, have any interest in art, young miss?" Ava shrugged, still acting shy.

"Maybe, I guess. I think the ice sculptures are pretty and fun, so I practice a lot. Belliston said it's a good way to practice my mana control, so he's always encouraged me to keep at it, even though it's not the main reason I want to learn magic."

"Belliston?" Charles asked.

"The private magic tutor at our Estate," Kiara supplied helpfully. Victoria got a pensive look on her face.

"And what is the reason you want to learn magic, Ava, if not for your interest in art?" Ava's eyes lit up with a fire Kiara hadn't seen from her in a long while.

"So that no one can ever hurt my family again." Charles leaned back in surprise, glancing at Kiara for context. Kiara placed a gentle hand on Ava's shoulder.

"Ava's family was unjustly sentenced to indentured servitude for a time, immediately after losing their oldest daughter, Ava's older sister." Victoria's eyes darkened, and the air in the room suddenly grew very heavy. Charles reached over to lay a calming hand on her arm, and the pressure in the room disappeared as suddenly as it had arrived.

"Has the situation been resolved, now?" Victoria asked, her voice laced with venom, mirroring the pressure that had filled the room. At the same time as Kiara nodded, Ava replied, "Lady Yountal rescued us." Her head dipped in embarrassment as she continued.

"I've learned better now, but for a while I thought she was the same as that evil man, just another no-good noble that didn't care for anyone beside themself…" she trailed off as she realized who she was talking to, her face going from embarrassed to mortified.

"Ah, I mean - that is to say… uh, no offense to nobles…" Charles gave her a reassuring smile as she trailed off.

"None taken. I've also met far too many self-important nobles who forget that their true role in society is to lead and serve, not rule and dominate." He turned toward Kiara.

"As far as the academy in the Capital goes, have you already secured an endorsement?" Kiara glanced at Dustin, who shrugged, implying he had no idea what the Duke was referring to.

"An endorsement?" she asked, confused. Charles nodded.

"Even with how expensive it is to enroll, they have to be selective in who they allow into the school. Only the kingdom's finest are allowed to attend. Young Ava would need an endorsement from a well-known and trusted individual before enrolling." The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. Ava's face fell as she realized the opportunity she had been looking forward to for a month might be slipping away. Kiara felt bad, but this was the first she'd heard about it.

"Ah, I see. I didn't realize that was a requirement." Charles nodded.

"That's not surprising, considering you just arrived. It's not a well-advertised fact. That is the exact reason I asked if Ava would be interested in showing us what she has already learned, though. Having seen her progress so far, I would be happy to provide such an endorsement." Ava's eyes lit back up with hope.

"Really?!" Charles smiled and nodded.

"Thank you, Lord Esborne," Kiara said, "that means more to us than you know."

"Well, I appreciate you making the long trip up here to see me. Given Miss Ava's talent, it would be a shame if she didn't attend the academy. I think a few of the professors there will be thrilled to learn of her talent for magic art." Ava looked ready to protest, to point out that art wasn't really what she wanted to focus on, but Victoria spoke up first.

"Your tutor was right to encourage your efforts in that area, young Ava. Precise mana control will provide you with advantages that your peers will lack. With time and practice, strength will come along with it, and you will be all the better for it. If anyone tells you otherwise, refer them to me." Ava didn't look convinced, so Victoria asked the group, "Would you all allow me to demonstrate?" They all glanced at each other briefly, then Kiara nodded. Honestly, she was curious to see what Victoria meant.

Victoria got a sly smile on her face, and the lights in the room suddenly dimmed. Kiara heard it first. The howling of the wind, followed by a sudden chill in the air. She blinked, and suddenly they were all sitting on a cold, snowy mountaintop. Their chairs remained in the same place, but everything else in the room had disappeared. The light near the ceiling had been replaced by the two moons in the sky, their light barely diffusing through the clouds above.

It was a dark and snowy night, and snow fell all around. A sudden cracking in the distance followed by a deep rumbling that shook the ground they sat on heralded some natural disaster happening, an avalanche probably. The snow that fell on Kiara dissolved on contact, much as she would have guessed, but she was surprised that the illusion had taken such a strong hold. She hadn't detected any kind of mental attack, which meant that Victoria was changing the actual sights she was seeing.

It was an immersive illusion, and an extremely believable one at that. She could also feel the cold and the wind, and she began shivering involuntarily. She glanced to the side and saw the others doing the same. Dustin was affected the most, having no magical resistance to speak of. Zoey had instinctively erected a mana shield around herself, and now extended it to surround Dustin as well.

Kiara could see drifts in the snow, rocks poking out through the snow, even footprints of some beast that had passed through recently. The level of detail and the scope of the illusion was awe inspiring. The snow faded, the wind stopped howling, and the clouds above them dissipated. A second later, they were back in Charles's office. Kiara glanced up, and noticed the chandelier was still swinging slightly from whatever wind had been whipping through the office. That part hadn't been an illusion.

The others still had snow built up in their hair and on their shoulders where it had fallen, which Kiara realized was strange. She reached out and scooped a tiny bit from Ava's shoulder, and it didn't dissolve as it touched her skin. Instead, it slowly began to melt from the heat on her finger. It wasn't mana, formed to look like snow; it was real-life snow. Somehow. She glanced at Victoria questioningly, but the woman simply smiled, quite smugly. Charles chuckled, staring lovingly at his wife.

"Isn't she incredible?" Victoria turned to face Ava again.

"Show me another mage in the entire kingdom who can replicate that, and I'll give you ten gold coins. Learning to control your mana precisely, down to the last detail, lays a foundation for your growth that you won't find in any other way. If art is the path that motivates you to learn that, then it is worth every second you spend learning and practicing it. As you practice, and advance through the tiers, you'll find yourself quickly outpacing those around you."

Ava nodded obediently, her jaw hanging slightly open from the display she had just witnessed. Kiara could almost hear the gears turning in her mind, her perspective changing about what it meant to truly be powerful. Charles wrote down a few names and instructions on a piece of paper, then wrote up a signed endorsement on a second piece of paper, and handed them both to Kiara.

"Once you arrive at the academy, follow those instructions, and give that endorsement to the headmaster. The current semester has already started, I'm afraid, and Ava will be a bit behind in her studies, but can no doubt catch up if she studies hard?" He turned a questioning eye to Ava as he spoke. She nodded eagerly.

"I will, I'll study hard and learn everything I can!"

"Good," he said with a nod.

"Now, to other matters." He glanced at Victoria. Kiara felt a sudden pressure emanate from the woman, surrounding just Charles, Victoria, and Kiara. It wasn't an oppressive pressure, more like the air was suddenly very still as if they'd been sealed into a small box. Charles nodded his thanks to his wife, then said, "Victoria's just erected a small sound barrier so that no one else can hear us.

We wish to discuss with you the matter of Kane Vondeer, as well as some more recent things that have been brought to my attention. Would you prefer that we excuse the others first?" Kiara glanced at the others, who were all simply staring at them with looks of curiosity, wondering what was happening. It was courteous of the duke to ask. Kiara honestly wanted Dustin to be here, and probably Zoey, but it was best if Ava left the room. She was too young to be burdened by further talk of violence and death.

She didn't really want her out there by herself though, that was the older sister in her talking.

"Let's excuse Zoey and Ava," she replied.

"I'd like Dustin to stay, if that's alright?" Charles nodded, and the sound barrier disappeared. He turned to the group.

"Zoey, would you mind stepping outside with Ava for a bit while we talk to Shian and Dustin alone?" Zoey bowed respectfully.

"Of course, my lord." They both stood and left, shutting the door behind them. The enchantments on the door deactivated a split second before they reached for the knob, then reactivated a split second after the door clicked shut.