"Life is unfair to all of us. But do not let that break you, little one," he said simply. "Forge a path for yourself, as your father did."

"Speaking of paths one must follow," he then called out loudly: "Rose Vintergard, step forward!"

What was he up to now? He was totally unpredictable.

Rose immediately stepped forward as she was instructed, taking a position facing him in a courteous manner, her back to us.

He then called out: "Astraya Fula, step forward to where Rose is!" His voice was loud, clearly intended for his men to hear.

Astraya moved slowly and stood beside Rose. Rose was still slightly flushed with embarrassment, looking completely different more timid and shy compared to her previous arrogance.

Lord Zedd faced them both, his presence still commanding even though his aura had calmed.

"The two of you," he began, his voice carrying like a low tide, "are not finished with the test."

Both girls straightened instantly.

"Pardon me, Lord Zedd, what do you mean by the two of us? Weren't we merely here to test the child?" Rose asked, confusion clear on her face.

"Correct," he said. "But it appears you were also being tested as well. Must have slipped my mind," he said dryly.

What? Rose also was being tested? For what exactly—beating a kid? He doesn't even carry his family along, man.

"Rose, no. Let me prove there is no nepotism in my ranks. Rose Vintergard," he stated clearly without looking at her, "you have failed your test."

Everyone looked shocked and perplexed; murmurs filled the air. What was going on exactly?

"But… I didn't even know I was being tested, brother—I mean, Lord Zedd!" Rose stammered.

"Well, now you know," he said, utterly blunt. "Not only did you fail on other previous tests, but in this, you failed to analyze your opponent's moves and lacked control of the wind."

His voice hardened. "Were you not informed that the girl was a prodigy and that she must be taken seriously?"

"Well, yes, Lord Zedd, but she is still…"

"She is still what? A child prodigy?" he cut her off sharply. "The instruction was simple: take your opponent seriously. Instead, you played an arrogant move, kept feeding her crumbs until she adapted and now knew how to block your only skill sets as a mage of this company."

Lord Zedd leaned in slightly, forcing Rose to feel the weight of his attention. "Rose Vintergard, what is your line to the throne? I think you forget."

Rose replied with a low, shamed tone: "I'm six hundred forty-six to the throne."

"I can't hear you, Miss Rose."

She shouted out: "Number six hundred and forty-six!"

Rose's jaw tensed. "My lord… I've tried. I just—can't."

"Enough," he said, cutting her off. "Excuses are for those who have not accepted their responsibilities. What if six hundred forty-five of us in the line to the throne died, and it was you? Would you step up? Would you believe you are worthy to step onto the throne?"

But what he was saying made no sense. It was literally impossible. I mean, it would be a miracle if that happened.

His gaze finally turned to Astraya, and the faint glow of mana rippled behind him. "You, Astraya Fula. You impressed me with your instincts, but your mana control is not yet refined. You fight with heart, which is good. If only my niece here could do the same." All Rose could do was lower her head. If she could just disappear, I would advise her to.

"But you have a lot to learn, Astraya, and I shall give you time. I will train you."

Astraya lowered her head slightly, her voice small but clear. "Thank you for your honesty. Understood, my lord. It is an honor to be your student."

"You are not yet my student. Don't be confused. Like I said, the test is not over."

"Yes, my lord. What would the test be?"

Zedd's eyes glinted. "Then here is your next test." He pointed between them. "You will both learn from each other. Rose will teach you precision, and you will teach Rose how to take to the skies."

Both girls looked up in surprise.

"My lord?" Rose said, confused. "You want me to learn to fly… from her?"

Zedd's expression did not change. "You call yourself of noble blood, yet this commoner was able to cast multiple spells independently compared to your ones. The reality is, it's only one of her arrows that actually has the greatest force; the others are just for intimidation." He had just exposed Rose, really? Now it made sense why she kept using an arrow first.

He then faced her. "If she can make the winds obey her at her young age—as she is a fast learner—so can you."

He turned his attention back to Astraya. "As for you, child—if you wish for me to truly consider you a prodigy, you must achieve full flight."

A faint breeze stirred around him, the kind that carried and pushed away rocks and dust aside.

"Once you've both mastered it," Zedd continued, "you will return to me at Aetherhall. Rose knows where to find me. Then… your true training will begin."

Astraya nodded slowly, her heart racing, the challenge burning through her chest. From what I could see, Astraya was loving the challenge, well, only Astraya, of course.

Rose looked away, lips tight with pride, though her voice trembled when she said, "Then I suppose I'll be learning from you… Astraya."

Lord Zedd began to defy gravity and levitate in the air, just as the others did. It appeared they were about to take off.

The wind around him swirled faintly again, brushing past us.

Zedd turned, his cloak of white light catching the sun. "You have as much time as you need, but the longer it takes, well, Rose won't be able to come home," he said simply as he flew away right in my presence. The rest followed suit.

Wow, actual flight. How the hell was Astraya going to master this? Where was she even going to start from?

As only Ghost remained, he spoke up. "Alright, guys, I also have to go."

"Grumpy as ever, but he is a good man," Father replied. "I will see you two and know how far you have gone, but for now, I leave it to you, Rose. Take this as a way to prove him wrong. You know he loves you; we all need that tough love sometimes."

"Are you not going to fly as well?" I asked him.

"Fly? Nah, that's boring," he said. "No fun in letting the wind rough up your hair." His body began to turn into wind.

"See you later, Vulgabread. Bye, Rose, and you two be safe. It's a dangerous world out there." And just like that, they vanished.

"Dad, shouldn't they have helped with the village's missing people?" I asked after Ghost's stream of air had left.

"They can't interfere with another kingdom's issues. The only reason Lord Zedd was here was because of the presence of Ambassador Ghost."

"What? Ghost an ambassador?"

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