Welcome Home

The gates of the Royal Capital rose like mountains in the distance—tall, majestic, and unchanged.

But as Adonis stepped out of the carriage, he remembered the time he left the place, he was 14 now only single year has passed but things now truly changed.

Now he was no longer the naive little boy anymore, he is a talented aristocrat level powerhouse, even in kingdom of Vistoria, an aristocrat mage could be called a powerhouse, only losing to royal and kind class mages. But these high level mages usually secretive and rare usually handling high level work while small stuff is handled by low level mages and aristocrat level is highest among low level mages.

But even so most Aristocrat level mages fail to advance to royal class, because of two reasons, first- Inheritances, there are too many people and less resources so only talented people could join magic academies to learn advance magic, and without learning advance magic advancing to Royal class mage is impossible. Second resources, treasures, artifacts, precious herbs and scriptures, not many are rich enough get these, resulting in high population of aristocrat mages, than other mages.

After that he arrived home quietly.

His house not a big mansion, though it give same warm and comforting feeling.

As he reached the front door, it opened suddenly—

"Adonis!?"

His mother stood there in an apron, wide-eyed and speechless.

"…Hey, Mom." He smiled.

A second later, she had her arms wrapped around him so tight he thought his ribs might crack.

"You grew taller! And what's this robe—? And—are you bleeding?! Wait, no—wait—WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN EATING?!"

"Mom! I'm fine—just a little tired from traveling…"

Behind her, his father leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed and smiling with pride.

"Look at you, son. You came back looking like a hero."

Adonis rubbed the back of his neck. "Still a long way to go."

His mother dragged him inside. "Hero or not, you're eating three bowls of stew tonight and no complaints!"

That night was peaceful.Warm light, quiet laughter, old stories retold.

But even as he sat between his parents, Adonis's thoughts wandered…

He knew his time here was short. In five months, he'd be leaving the kingdom for Stellar Magic Academy. He'd be stepping into a world where aristocrat-level was just the beginning—where the elite trained, where the pressure was heavier.

And yet…

Sitting at that dinner table, for a moment—

He was just Adonis again. Not the swordsman. Not the prodigy.

Just a son, back home.

The golden sunlight streamed through the curtains of his old room—quiet, familiar, almost nostalgic.Adonis sat at his desk, robe off, dressed in simple clothes once again, pen in hand as he wrote:

Dear Elora,It's been a while.I'm back in the capital now, visiting my family before I leave for Stellar Magic Academy.You didn't say much in your letter—but I hope you're alright. I'm not good at writing long letters, so I'll just say this:

I broke through. Aristocrat level.

…Took me a while, but I did it. You were right—it feels different. Stronger, sharper. And now that I know more about support magic, I'm even more grateful for what you taught me.

Oh, I named the robe "Eclipse."It's… mischievous. You'd love it.

Anyway, wherever you are, don't fall behind. I'm aiming higher now.When we meet again—I want to be standing shoulder to shoulder with you. No less.

—Adonis

He folded the letter neatly and placed it in an envelope, sealing it with a small crest."I'll give it to the guild master tomorrow…" he muttered.

Later that afternoon…

Adonis stood outside a modest house across the neighborhood, hands in pockets, staring up at the door.

"She should be back by now," he murmured.

The door creaked open.

A tiny head poked out—a girl with silver hair tied into a messy bun, eyes bright and round.

"…Brother!?"

"Hey, squirt."

"BROTHER!!"She launched herself forward, jumping into his arms like a bolt of joy.

"You came back! You actually came back!" she cried, hugging him tighter than expected.

Adonis smiled warmly. "Of course I did. Can't miss your awakening day, can I?"

That evening, sitting on the porch with his little sister—Lyra, age 11—he taught her the basics of support magic.

"What if I don't awaken any element?" she asked, worried. "Will I be useless?"

Adonis flicked her forehead gently."You'll never be useless. Even people without elements can learn support magic. You're my sister—so you're already cooler than half the kingdom."

She giggled. "Then I wanna be cooler than the whole kingdom!"

He grinned. "That's the spirit."

As the stars began to shine above them, Adonis sat silently, eyes fixed on the night sky.

Five months left.

Then he'd be gone again. A new world, a bigger challenge.But until then—he had time.

To be a son.To be a brother.To teach.To rest.

And maybe—just maybe—To remember what he was fighting for.