The Twin Mage

Selia's excitement over obtaining two snow-white rabbits betrayed her desperation. She let slip that their pelts were essential to fulfill a lucrative client order. Arthur and Morgan seized the opportunity, recalling their master's teaching: "Hunters don't do favors; they cut deals."

In exchange for the rabbits, Arthur and Morgan negotiated a full set of warm clothes—albeit lower quality—and Selia's promise to personally tan the remaining pelts for free. Adding to the bargain, the three cleaned rabbits he offered for cooking earned him praise from his family. All, except for Hades.

Hades, once again, seethed with resentment. Over time, he had come to take the bounty Arthur and Morgan provided for granted. His jealousy burned, framing Lith's success as an affront to his position as the firstborn.

"That idiot's luck is an insult to me. First, he flaunts his hunting skill. Then, he plays the martyr, making Mother and Father give the first set of clothes to that useless cripple, Tista. What could she even do with them? Fall sick in style? No, they're doing this to humiliate me!" Hades's bitter thoughts twisted reality.

In truth, Arthur and Morgan hadn't spared a single thought for Hades. They loved their mother Elina, older sister Rena, and ill sister Tista deeply, but Hades's existence was irrelevant to them. Arthur and Morgan wouldn't harm him, but neither would they go out of their way to help. He was, to them, merely a stranger under the same roof.

Their focus was on Tista, whose fragile health limited her joy in life. To ensure she could enjoy more of winter and perhaps even play in the snow, they ensured she received the first warm clothes. To brighten her days further, Arthur and Morgan—along with their father Raaz—built her a swing. It was a simple contraption: a wooden plank attached to sturdy ropes, hanging from a U-shaped wooden framework reinforced for safety.

"Why three wooden beams instead of one?" Raaz asked, admiring their work.

"Safety," Arthur and Morgan explained, sinking the frame's ends into the ground with earth magic to prevent toppling. "Multiple legs evenly distribute weight, reducing stress on each beam."

Raaz nodded in admiration. "That makes sense. What do you call it?"

Arthur and Morgan hesitated, struggling to recall the right term. "It's not exactly a rocking chair…" they thought, frustrated by their limited vocabulary. But the name hardly mattered—Tista adored her swing. It became a family favorite, so much so that Raaz had to build two more to prevent arguments.

Meanwhile, Arthur and Morgan spent months using Life Vision and Invigoration to better understand Tista's condition. He hoped the advanced imaging could reveal the underlying cause of her illness, bringing him closer to a cure.

As winter loomed and his fifth birthday approached, Arthur and Morgan worked tirelessly to stockpile food. The severity of the approaching cold was uncertain, and though he was confident in his strength, he doubted his parents would let him test it against a storm.

Arthur and Morgan explored deeper into the Trawn woods, honing their skills to move unnoticed by animals. They discovered a new use for darkness magic: a "Shroud" that masked their scent and aura. However, it required precision; any misstep would turn it into an aura of killing intent, alerting every creature nearby.

One day, a persistent buzzing sound in the woods drew Arthur and Morgan's attention. Initially dismissed as an animal call, the noise had grown louder in recent days, nagging at their instincts. They decided to investigate.

The deeper they ventured, the louder the noise became, accompanied by a bone-chilling howl. Quickly casting Shroud and Light Feet to silence their steps, Arthur and Morgan crept toward the sound. What they found made their blood run cold—a massive Ry, a magical wolf beast, stood nearby.

The Ry, with fiery fur and the size of a horse, was one of the Trawn woods' apex predators. Arthur and Morgan knew that while weaker than true monsters, magical beasts were still formidable. Yet, this Ry seemed distressed, growling and whining as its snout hovered near the ground.

Activating Life Vision, Arthur and Morgan studied the scene. The Ry's mana flow was immense, almost matching their own. But what caught their attention was a second mana flow emanating from a small stone near the wolf's paws.

"A living stone? That buzzing—it must be coming from it!" Arthur and Morgan realized. "No wonder the Ry is agitated. I can't let it destroy something so unique."

The Ry snarled in frustration, trying to crush the stone with its teeth. Taking a deep breath, Arthur and Morgan prepared to act. "I may not be stronger, but if I keep my distance, I have a chance."

With a shout, they unleashed Plague Arrow, a dense bolt of dark energy aimed at the Ry's blind spot. The spell hit just as the stone emitted another shriek, throwing the beast off balance. Arthur and Morgan followed with lightning bolts, but the Ry quickly recovered, roaring in fury.

Undeterred, Arthur and Morgan used spirit magic to try and break the beast's neck from a distance. The Ry, sensing the attack, reinforced its body with mana, hardening its muscles like steel.

"Dammit, so much for an easy win. If only I had fire magic!" Arthur and Morgan cursed, summoning ice javelins and hurling them at the wolf. Though the projectiles hit, the beast's thick fur absorbed most of the damage.

The Ry retaliated with a powerful wind blast, shredding Arthur and Morgan's sleeves and leaving minor wounds. "Selia said magical beasts don't have offensive spells. Clearly, this Ry didn't get the memo!"

Realizing they couldn't win in a direct fight, Arthur and Morgan devised a desperate plan. They conjured floating ice javelins as a decoy and cast Flash & Bang, a blinding light and deafening sound spell. Disoriented, the Ry crashed into a tree, giving Arthur and Morgan the opening they needed to grab the stone and flee.

"See you in a few years, sucker!" Arthur and Morgan shouted as they ran.

The Ry, still stunned, growled in frustration. It had only wanted the maddening noise to stop, but now, it was rid of the accursed stone. As the beast returned to its pack, it mused, "Humans and their greed… That pup was strong, but I hope he shows more care for his kin than he did for me. Otherwise, he'll bring nothing but trouble."

Miles away, as Arthur and Morgan inspected the stone, their blood from minor cuts seeped into its surface. The buzzing ceased, replaced by an ominous hum.