Solias III Year 891, Rainy End , Day 3
Aeon POV
As they stepped into the warmth of their rune-lit home, Aeon's excitement bubbled over like one of Grandma Hera's fizzing potions. His toes tapped against the glowing floor as if to match his racing thoughts. The faint scent of baked bread and rune-dust lingered in the air, the kind of comforting mix that only their home carried. Glimmering wards hummed softly from the walls, steady and familiar, but Aeon's mind was fixed on one thing. "Mommy, is the deal finalized?" he blurted, his blue eyes gleaming with barely contained greed—not for gold or glory, but for those shimmering magic stones she'd promised.
Aisa's orange hair caught the lamplight like slow-burning embers, her expression an elegant mix of amusement and motherly weariness—the kind only a woman raising a prodigy too clever for his age could wear. "Looks like someone's getting impatient," she teased lightly, her voice a gentle melody laced with warmth and mischief. With a flourish, she pulled out an ornate scroll, its edges shimmering with enchanted ink.
Aeon snatched it eagerly, his small fingers unrolling the parchment as if it held the secrets of the universe.
He skimmed the flowing Latis script, his genius mind piecing together the clauses amid the legal tangle. Most of it blurred—boring details on profits and distributions—but one line leaped out: Any product now and future of Microrune sold by the Merchant Guild must always bear their branding. A mischievous grin split his face, his heart racing with triumphant glee. "That's great, Mommy! Until they realize how much a brand matters, we'll already own the market. They'll think they're selling for profit—when they're really advertising for us!
Essa beamed, her fiery hair bouncing as she lunged forward, pinching his tender cheek with affectionate force. "That's right, Brother's a genius!" she exclaimed, planting a quick, emotional kiss on his cheek, her eyes sparkling with sisterly pride that bordered on clingy adoration. Micro, perched on Aeon's shoulder, squeaked enthusiastically, "Micee! Micee!"—as if echoing, Yeah, my master is great!
Aisa's faint smile deepened, her brown eyes softening with a mother's tender ache. She reached out, ruffling Aeon's curls gently, feeling the warmth of his clever spark ignite her own protective storm. "Yeah, that was a great idea to write it into the magical contract now, so in the future they can't change it," she agreed, pausing as her brows furrowed slightly, a shadow of worry flickering across her face—like distant thunder in a clear sky.
Seeing it, Aeon's heart twisted with concern, his mischief pausing for a beat. "Mother, is there anything to worry about?" he asked, his voice small yet earnest.
She shook her head, the worry vanishing behind her fairy-like charm. "Nothing, my spark. It's just... we may not be able to use the Merchant Guild for our new products. They might not agree, knowing each new one needs our company brand."
Aeon smirked, a twinkle igniting in his blue eyes like a hidden rune sparking to life. He already had an evil plan brewing, dramatic and light all at once—a scheme that made his pulse quicken with wicked delight. "He he he... there's nothing to worry about. The products we're going to make? They'll have no option but to come running to us."
Aisa tilted her head, intrigue mixing with amusement in her gaze. "And what is that?"
He grinned mischievously, seizing the perfect opportunity. "Before that, can I have my Tier-1 magic stones, as promised?"
Aisa sighed softly, her eyes twinkling with resigned affection, and pulled a small velvet pouch from her pouch. Aeon's breath hitched as she handed it to him. The fabric shimmered faintly with silvery runes stitched along the edges—a mother's small touch of magic for protection. He untied the cord and peeked inside.
Ten rough, unpolished stones rested within—each one different, some deep green like jade, others clouded gray with threads of white smoke swirling beneath their surface. They didn't glow, yet the air around them pulsed with a faint hum, heavy with raw energy. The moment Aeon touched one, a light tingling spread through his fingertips, carrying the scent of ozone and ancient dust.
He couldn't help but grin. Tier-1 stones—ten times denser in energy than Tier-0—were rare to get his hands on. But tiers alone didn't decide an item's worth. There existed two ways to value any magical material: Tier, which showed how much energy it could hold, and Rarity, which showed how hard it was to find.
A Tier-1 fire stone might be common enough for an apprentice's spell, but a Tier-0 space stone—born from the rarest convergence of elements—could cost a hundred times more simply because of how impossible it was to locate. The world called these rarities Common, Uncommon, Rare, Very Rare, Epic, Legendary, Unique, Mythic, and Divine.
His mind buzzed with possibility. If a Tier-1 stone held ten times the energy, could that energy be channeled to fuel something constant—something that worked without a magician's touch? The idea flickered through him like lightning in still air, impossible yet irresistible.
Aeon's heart fluttered with glee. These stones might not sparkle or carry fancy names, but for his experiments—they were perfect.
Aisa watched him zone out, a habit she'd seen more times than she could count. She ruffled his hair again, pulling him back with a soft chuckle. "Aeon... So, when are you going to tell us about these new products?"
He straightened dramatically, puffing his chest like a king about to decree salvation for his people. He paused just long enough for the air to hum with tension—the kind that hangs before a spell is cast.
"Automation!" he declared, the foreign word rolling off his tongue in Latis like an incantation from another world—unfamiliar, weighty, powerful.
Aisa and Essa muttered it under their breath, tongues twisting around the unfamiliar sound—like no word in their world existed for it. Even Micro tilted his head, squeaking a puzzled "Miceeee?" as if trying to mimic it.
After a beat of silence, Essa's impatience flared, her brows knitting in frustration. "What the hell is that?"
Aisa bumped her head softly, her tone stern yet laced with light teasing. "Language, young lady."
Before it could escalate, Aeon interrupted, launching into his bard-like tale with dramatic flair. "Mother, Big Sis," he paused for suspense, eyes twinkling like stars about to burst. "Automation is... imagine a powerful enchantment that lets a task—charting stars, copying ancient scrolls, or tending a magical garden—be done not by endless mortal toil, but by a cunning, self-contained design." His voice rose with excitement, heart pounding at the vision from his sealed memories.
Essa's brows furrowed deeper, her sword-callused hands gesturing wildly. "Aeon, do you mean golems, like Earth Elemental Magicians summon?"
Aisa nodded thoughtfully, a sly smile creeping in. "Or like that broom you enchanted to chase Essa last week?"
Aeon's grin faltered, cheeks flushing at the black mark on his genius inventions. "Mommy, that was just a small incident—Micro disturbed the rune!" He shot Micro an accusing glance, but the Mikka's innocent emerald eyes made guilt twist in his gut. He felt bad instantly, changing the topic with a hurried wave. "Yeah, they can be considered automation, but that's a simple application. Imagine magicians tasked with cleaning vast palaces via spells—they'd drain their essence just on one wing, leaving the rest dusty and forgotten."
He paused, letting them absorb it, his breath quick with dramatic intensity. Then he continued, "So, what if we make Rune Cards, like our card games, but inscribed with cleaning runes? Anyone could use them easily, without spending a drop of essence—no need for a proficient magician!"
Aisa's eyes lit with understanding, though she leaned in with a probing gaze. "Aeon, dear, that's a great idea. But each card would need a rune master to inscribe it—too costly for common folk."
Aeon's eyes twinkled like he'd sprung the perfect trap, his mischievous heart soaring. "Yeah, you're right, Mommy. But automation isn't that simple. Imagine automating the making of these cards— a few people, not even proficient in runes, producing thousands every hour, without using any magic essence!"
The room fell silent as Aisa and Essa imagined it, their faces shifting from curiosity to awe. Aeon could see the dramatic weight hit them—this could revolutionize the world, maybe even make them one of Artia's wealthiest families. His chest swelled with pride, a light thrill mixing with the shadowy promise of change.
Essa bounced excitedly, her voice cracking with emotion. "Aeon, what if we make powerful magical spell runes instead of just cleaning? As a knight, I could use them to cast like a magician—fixing my path's weaknesses!"
Aeon sighed, deflating her bubble gently, though his heart ached at her hopeful eyes. "Sorry to break your dream, Sis, but for now, only simple Tier-0 spells, and nothing chaotic in nature."
Aisa nodded, her protective warmth firming into resolve. "Yeah, Aeon's right. Attack spells are too chaotic for normal materials—they'd be too costly. And that's just up to Tier-1. Higher paths... well, they demand more than simple magic." She trailed off, her eyes distant, hiding depths Aeon yearned to uncover.
A loud growl shattered the moment—Micro's stomach rumbling like thunder, his emerald eyes woobly and sleepy, puzzled by the talk. Before Aeon could tease him, his own belly echoed the protest, heat rising to his cheeks.
Aisa sighed, her smile fond and dramatic, like a queen yielding to her court's whims. "Let's continue later, after I make dinner." She rose gracefully, heading to the kitchen, her fairy-like presence leaving a trail of warmth that promised more secrets and sparks to come.
Aeon watched her go, his mind already fizzing with automation schemes, the Tier-1 stones heavy in his bag like keys to endless mischief. Outside, thunder rumbled faintly—soft now, but carrying the promise of storms far greater than any of them yet imagined. For now, home glowed with light-hearted bonds, unbreakable as runes etched in stone.