[While Setsuko, Hideo, and Piedad stayed with Hyo by the stairs]

"My carrots!" Conrad said, staring at Roa all teary-eyed. The two had been fighting over them when I arrived in the kitchen. Roa had managed to snatch them and eaten several.

Roa sighed and held a handful of them out to him. "Fine, but only because I'm nice!"

I rolled my eyes at him. Yeah, right. More like guilty.

"Yippee!" Conrad said, taking them from Roa. "Thanks, cousin!"

I laughed. As simple as his big brother, eh?

"Hey, weren't you going to grab something to eat?" Azami asked as he entered the kitchen.

Oh, right. I just came here as an excuse. My stomach honestly felt rather messed up.

"On second thought, I'm not very hungry," I said, standing up. "Think I'm going to go do some more training."

Conrad frowned. "You sure that's a good idea? You look exhausted."

I sighed. "I feel jittery at the same time." It had to be all of that extra mana.

A sigh echoed by the entrance to the kitchen. It was Grandpa Saffron.

"Something the matter, Gramps?" I asked, blinking.

He crossed his arms. "Yes. The sloppy job you five did in absorbing the vajra energy." He glanced at Azami. "Your brother was too rash. Clearly, they weren't ready."

Azami shrugged. "You know how Osamu can be. He's as bad as Anis sometimes."

Gramps frowned. "Right..."

I stared at my bracelet. Did I do that bad? This was the first time I had tried using the energy absorption abilities my abysmal blood provided me with, but I had used Agnes to facilitate things.

Gramps looked over his shoulder. "Hyosetsu and Hideo got it the worse. My grandniece and Eiichi appear to be the only ones who did a good enough job."

I frowned. Eiichi beat me? Yeah, I definitely needed to do some more training.

I jumped to my feet. "I'm going to go find auntie Juniper."

"What for?" Gramps asked as I approached him.

"Rosa said she can make crystal armor from her aura. I want to learn to do that too."

He held his arm out, blocking my path. "Seriously. Did you not hear what I just said? The vajra energy didn't get completely absorbed. If you don't stabilize it, your aura will become erratic. It could even kill you."

Conrad gulped. "Kill him?"

Roa chuckled. "Poor Tetsu, couldn't even absorb energy properly despite being an abysmal."

I scoffed. "Says that one who got mana poisoning."

He slammed his hands on the table, causing Conrad to jump. "Hey! That's because Naoru messed up my regeneration and energy flow!"

I smiled. Got him.

"Your cousin has a point. His situation was because of the tactics of his opponent. Yours are of your own doing."

My smile vanished.

Roa gave me a smug grin. "See. Your gramps knows." He wagged his finger at me. "You simply lack talent, Te-tsu-ya!"

Grandpa scoffed. "Talent is overrated." He turned around. "What good is talent if it's not polished? Hard work will get your farther in life. That said, Tetsu does have a diamond in the rough."

I blinked. "I do?"

He shook his head. "You really do take after your parents. Do you still recall when I first taught you the Shadow Sphere?"

I hummed. That was what, fifteen or sixteen years ago?

***

[Fifteen Years Ago]

"Grandpa!" I yelled, throwing myself at him.

"What?" he asked as he put down his book on our living room table.

I smiled. "Teach me some angelic techniques!"

He took a deep breath and picked me up. "Do you even know how to use mana?"

I shook my head. "Not yet, but I can learn!"

Gramps sighed as he put me down. "We need to start with the basics. Without a solid foundation, your angelic techniques will be easy to dismantle."

I tilted my head. "Dismantle?"

"Yes." He held out his hand, forming a sphere of swirling purple energy. "You see this?"

I jumped up and down. "Yeah! It's so cool!"

"The energy isn't very tightly packed on this one, meaning if I were up against someone with darkness mana, they could break it apart. Either while blocking it or long before it reaches them."

My eyes glistened. "Woah! I wanna do that!"

He sighed and lowered his sphere hand. "Tetsu, you're getting ahead of yourself."

I pouted. When was I going to get to do cool stuff like that?

"Don't ya fret. We'll get there." His violet eyes gazed deeply into the sphere. "Remember, patience is a virtue. Be hasty, and you'll get caught up in trouble. On the flip side, hesitate for too long, and you'll be left in the dust."

"So don't rush and don't take too much time?" I asked.

He smiled slightly. "Exactly."

I crossed my arms and tilted my head. "But, how do I know when I should act?"

"That depends on the situation. But optimally, it'll be when you have a solid idea." He tapped his head. "A strategist is one who thinks of their actions two or more steps ahead."

I hummed. "I rather just beat up my opponents." I punched the air and did a couple of kicks.

He laughed as he dispersed his sphere. "Should have figured it was too much for a child. Well, you'll learn what I mean when you're older, so no need to rush things."

I grinned. "Yeah, you got to be patient! Now, show me these 'basics' so I can learn how to make that sphere!"

"Alright. But let's go outside. I'm afraid we might make a mess for your mother if we practice here."

"I don't want that! Mommy works hard already!"

He patted my head. "Ya a good lad. Let's head to the hill."

I nodded and followed him out of the house.

Mommy was picking flowers with Grandma Rose while Auntie Juniper taught Tere and Taku how to tear the earth, creating a barrier of dust in the process. I wanted to join them, but Tere said that I wouldn't get a thing. Auntie suggested that I go ask Grandpa Saffron to teach me how to use mana. I had wanted her to teach me, but she said Grandpa was the master. When I heard that, I rushed back to the house. If I were to surpass Daddy as the best knight who ever was, I would need a master!

"Hey, Dad, Tetsu! Where are you off to?" Mommy asked as she formed a bouquet from the flowers she had just cut.

"Grandpa's going to teach me how to use mana!" I said, grinning.

She furrowed her brow. "Dad, please go easy on Tetsu."

He scoffed. "Did I go easy on you and that husband of yours?"

She looked at her bouquet. "N-no, but that's why I worry."

I walked over and hugged her. "Don't worry, Mommy! Your little boy is tough! I can survive Grandpa's training from cianio!"

Grandma Rose raised a hand to her lips and giggled. "My, aren't you a spunky one?"

I put my hands on my hips and grinned. "As spunky as they come!"

Mom smiled. "You sound like your Uncle Skah."

I blinked. Uncle Skah? I hadn't seen him in a while. I couldn't really remember him either. The last time I saw him was during Father's funeral. Even Papa felt like a distant memory. All I could recall of Daddy was the warmth from his hugs. They felt like hugging a kitty.

"He sounds like Sorreal too," Grandpa said, patting my head.

"Huh? Where is Uncle anyway?" I asked, looking around.

"He went to town with Diana and your cousin Violet to get stuff for dinner," Mom said.

My tummy grumbled.

"Tetsu need a snack?" Mommy asked.

I put my hands on my stomach and blushed. "No. I was just thinking of how delicious Uncle's stew was last time. Hope he makes that!"

"Think he's going for something fancier this time."

"Fancy?" What could it be? Hopefully, it wasn't caviar! I didn't want to eat fishy eggs! Plus, too expensive!

Mom laughed. "Don't worry. It's nothing too spendy."

How did Mommy do that? She always seemed to know what was going on in my hand. Could she read minds?

I released my breath. "Good. Well, I'm off!" I said, marching on ahead.

"Wait! You sure you don't want that snack?" Mom yelled.

"I'll eat it after training! Taku and Tere would probably want some too!"

She smiled slightly as I picked up my pace.

"One, two. One, two!" I said, marching to the nearest hill. Was this even the one that Grandpa had meant?

"You really march to the beat of your own drum, huh?" Grandpa asked.

I put my hands behind my head and grinned. "Tere says that too!"

"Uh, that isn't really something to be proud about. Well, perhaps it is. It beats being a mindless follower."

I blinked. Why did he say it with such venom? Did Gramps not like people who did everything they were told? But, he had been part of the military. Wasn't that the expectation? Hmm. If I were to become a knight too, would my individuality be stomped down? Someone who marched to the beat of their own drum would be deemed unfit. Soldiers were to follow orders, and I sucked at that.

"Well, don't worry about it," Gramps said, patting my head. He smiled slightly and held out his hand. "Ready to start?"

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah!"

"Watch my hand and try to get a feel of the energy gathering up around it." Wisps of purple energy gathered in his palm like when he had formed the sphere in the living room. But with the slowed pace, I could get a better feel for how he did so.

I held out my own hand and continued to stare as mana was yanked from his surroundings.

"Remember what I said before? How it needs to be tight, else your opponent can break it?"

I nodded.

"Well, to prevent that, you need to pack the energy together tightly. The more densely packed, the better. But there is a risk it could blo-" His eyes widened as he saw the sphere in my hands.

"Is this good? Or do I have to condense it some more?" I asked, chuckling.

"How did you do that?"

I grinned. "By following your instructions of course!"

He furrowed his brow. "It usually takes more work than that." He released the gathered energy slowly and smiled. "Maybe I shouldn't be surprised, given what your father could do."

"Now to undo it!" I yelped as the energy blew up on me as soon as I tried to spread it out.

Grandpa sighed. "You have to do so slowly. Especially with how densely packed you made it. As you get better with your control, you should be able to do it fast."

I rubbed my hand. "I see." I smiled. Thankfully, I was fine. Though, my hand did hurt. "I'm gonna try again!"

He nodded.

***

[Present]

"My mana control!" I exclaimed.

Gramps shook his head.

"Wait, that's not it?"

"At first, I thought you had a talent for it like your father, but it's apparent you don't. Your true talent is more similar to your mother's. You can pick up on things by seeing them once. At least enough to get scrape the surface. Your hard work and dedication builds on the foundation you gain from that," Grandpa said.

"Basically, he's a quick learner?" Azami asked.

"Yes. At least at an intuitive level. Tetsuya can use what he learned and improvise on it."

I stared at my hands. Father said I had latent potential. Was that what he meant? I had yet to make full use of this talent. My arsenal of tricks had gotten bigger during these past few months, but it was still too small.

"Grandpa. Can you help me stabilize my mana?" I asked.

He turned around. "Was waiting for you to ask."

Grandpa didn't get to teach me much beyond those basics, but it helped me build a decent foundation. I had focused too much on building up my physical skills and obtaining an angel tool that I had neglected my angelic techniques. That same thought had occured to me while in Munil, but it now rung deeper. I would need to combine my body, mind, weapon, and mana skills to rise above the others. And that's what I would do! My name was Tetsuya Kuroriku, the rising guardian angel. The shadow of justice who would make the song of divine wrath ring on the battlefield of this fated holy war. The descendant of the angel of darkness who would close this book of resolutions!

**Solar Note: Hope that you enjoyed the chapter ^^. Thoughts? Theories?**