When it came to choosing an heir for the Raytheft name, Joshua had been chosen, simply because he had more aether than his brother. Craib quarreled with Arcus’s grandfather about it, which eventually led to his decision to leave.
He could still show his face to the head of the Raytheft estate and still be considered that man’s brother for one reason. Craib had studied and worked incredibly hard in exile. When he came back to fight in the war, he achieved success after success, eventually receiving an important office within the military from the king. His true strength ended up far exceeding his brother’s talent in the Arts. As a baron, Joshua still outranked Craib among the gentry, but within the military, their roles were reversed.
Craib didn’t associate much with the Raythefts, but he dropped by when he was moving between military posts, just to check in on his family.
“Hey, Arcus! How’re you doing?” Craib grinned as he spotted his nephew.
“I am well, thank you. It has been a long time. I am glad to see you are well, too,” Arcus replied.
“Since when did you speak so much like a grown-up, huh? Is this what they’re teaching you in those fancy ‘heir’ classes?” Craib let out a hearty laugh, apparently overjoyed to see his nephew maturing so fast.
Arcus’s uncle was always so open and straightforward; Arcus found him very approachable. Joshua, however, did not look so pleased.
“Arcus is no longer the heir to the Raytheft estate.”
There was a pause.
“What?!” Craib’s eyes widened in surprise.
“His aether is far too low for our standards. Lecia shall be taking his position as heir,” Joshua explained.
Lecia, who was sitting next to her father, shot an anxious glance at Arcus. He couldn’t blame her; she was put in an extremely awkward position. Suddenly, Craib narrowed his eyes.
“Don’t tell me that’s why you ain’t letting him sit on the couch?”
“That is indeed why,” came the response.
Arcus alone was being made to stand behind the rest of the family as they sat, on Joshua’s orders. Though his father was treating Arcus like a servant, he likely saw him as even less than that. Craib’s expression crumpled into a frown.
“Look, even if he ain’t got that much power, don’t you think it’s kinda early to be making that decision? He could still have potential, y’know.”
“Please,” Joshua scoffed. “You should know more than anybody that aether doesn’t increase over time.”
Craib let out an exaggerated sigh before turning his frustrated gaze back toward Joshua.
“You remember what Dad said to us before he died, right?”
It seemed he struck a nerve.
“Things are different now!” Joshua protested. “The fact is that the boy simply hasn’t enough aether to be worthy to lead the house!”
“Hey! That ‘boy’ is your son! At least treat him like your own flesh and blood!” Craib shouted, raising his voice to a level above Joshua’s.
“He is no longer the heir; therefore, he is no longer my son! The moment his lack of power was established, he became a worthless mutt!”
It was like a frigid wind swept through the room. Arcus nearly shivered. Joshua swallowed, clearly panicked, and Arcus put together that Craib’s anger was the source of that tension.
“I can’t believe you’re saying this in front of your own son,” Craib muttered darkly.
“Wh-Why shouldn’t I? Such a talentless creature is of no use to the House of Raytheft.”
“So you ended up like our piece of crap dad after all,” Craib spat.
He wasn’t just looking at Joshua now, either, but Celine too. Having played her own part in disowning Arcus’, she cast her gaze away. Neither of them able to look him in the eye, and the servants shivering behind them, Craib started to calm. He turned to look at Arcus sympathetically.
“C’mon. The kid’s only six years old.”
“We are a family known for our military prowess. If we must cut a member out to protect that family, we should not hesitate.”
“You’re gonna say that in front of him, too. You must be crazy,” Craib said, exasperated.
This was Arcus’s chance.
“Uncle,” he began. “Uncle, I have a favor to ask of you.”
“What’s up?”
“I would like you to teach me about magic.”
“Ar-Arcus! Y-You little...”
Joshua scowled at his son; Arcus met his gaze head-on. There was nothing to be scared of anymore. He let out all the tears he could spare days ago. His parents could glare at him and hit him all they liked, but he swore he would never let them make him cry ever again. From now on, he was prepared to stand up against them.
Craib stared at Arcus, taken aback by his words.
“Are you sure, Arcus?”
“Yes. I am sure.”
He was doing the right thing. In fact, this was all he could do. In getting so angry on his behalf, Craib proved Arcus could trust him.
Arcus nodded, watching as the confusion in Craib’s eyes turned to admiration. It didn’t take long for Joshua to interject.
“Stop right there!” he shouted. “How dare you ridicule the name of Raytheft like this?!”
“That is not my intention. In fact, I am doing this for the family.”
Arcus’s unexpected words and nonchalant tone merely provoked Joshua’s rage further.
“What utter nonsense!”
“If I prove that I have talent, then there should be no reason for the family to be ashamed of me. Am I wrong?”
Arcus was doing his very best to take a dig at Joshua. That he was doing so in front of Craib, who had already proven himself worthy, made his words all the more effective. Just as Arcus expected, the venom in his father’s gaze increased. In terms of his position within the family, Arcus could fall no lower, and so there was no way to make him regret this. He no longer cared how much his father came to hate him.
“Why, you...” Joshua began, but Craib interrupted him with a hearty laugh.
“C’mon, Joshua! It’s too early to decide he’s gonna shame the family! Or are you saying I showed you and Dad up, just ’cause I made something outta my life?”
“Brother!” Joshua’s face turned red as hot iron at Craib’s barb.
Craib stuck his tongue out at his brother as he raged.
“Okay, Arcus! I’ll teach ya! You’ll be a fine magician once I’m done with you!”
And that was how Arcus’s uncle, Craib Abend, became his magic teacher.
The following day, Craib took Arcus to his home in the royal capital. There in the garden, he began a magical demonstration.
Craib stood in front of Arcus, a bandana wrapped around his silver hair and his military jacket hung over his short-sleeved shirt. His tanned, muscular arms were folded in front of his chest. He looked much more like a fighter than any sort of magician, but despite his appearance, he was known across the land as a scholar of magic—not that he wasn’t also a fine man-at-arms.
“First I wanna see how much you already know,” Craib began.
“Yes, sir!”
“You got spunk! I like it!” Craib grinned.
“Right! I’m determined to show Mother and Father that they misjudged me!” Arcus declared.
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” Craib let out a hearty laugh. “Now, how much of the basics of magic do you know?”
“According to my readings, to use magic you need to know both artglyphs and the Elder Tongue. You use those to create a spell, which you then recite and imbue with your magical power.”
“Yup. You hit the nail on the head. Now, what do you need to learn artglyphs and their language?”
“A dictionary,” Arcus replied.
“That’s enough to brush up on them,” Craib agreed, “but just that won’t do if you’re serious about becoming a magician.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
Arcus was shocked. All he used in his studies at home was a dictionary, and so he thought that would be enough. He was starting to realize that his knowledge of magic still barely scratched the surface of what there was to learn.