The sprawling campus of the Royal Academy of Wynfall was a place of high-tier magic and refined elegance, but in the weeks since Aster and Astra had departed, the atmosphere had become strangely subdued. The "Snowflake Effect"—the constant buzz of innovation and the magnetic presence of the twins—had faded, leaving the student body in a state of quiet anticipation.
In the high-intensity training grounds, the peace was being systematically shattered by the sound of blunt force.
The Kingscrown Legacy
Lea Kingscrown stood in the center of the granite-tiled arena. As the daughter of the Kingscrown Ducal Family, she was the inheritor of a bloodline that prioritized the "Ultimate Body." In a world where many sought to bend the elements or weave complex spells, the Kingscrowns focused inward. Their magic was a dense, physical reinforcement that turned skin into armor and fists into hammers.
CRACK.
Lea's fist connected with a training dummy made of enchanted ironwood. The dummy, designed to absorb the impact of a charging war-horse, didn't just rattle—the internal mechanism snapped. She pulled back, her knuckles glowing with the characteristic brownish-gold aura of her family's physical magic.
"Too slow," Lea muttered, wiping sweat from her brow. "If Aster saw that, he'd spend twenty minutes lecturing me on the waste of energy and mana."
She sat down on a stone bench, looking at her hands. Her family's pride was their physical magic, yet even she felt the gap left by the twins. Aster and Astra weren't just royals; they were the heart of their social circle. Without them, the Academy felt like a clock that had lost its main gear.
A Friend's Arrival
"You're going to have to pay for that dummy, you know. The Headmaster is already complaining about the 'Kingscrown Repair Bill'."
Lea looked up and saw Rain leaning against the stone archway of the arena. Rain was a fellow classmate and a close friend to both Lea and the twins. Unlike Lea's intense, focused energy, Rain had a more easy-going air about her, though her eyes always held a sharp intelligence.
"He can send the bill to my father," Lea said, offering a small, tired smile. "He's the one who insisted I stay here and 'train like a proper Kingscrown' instead of going to Orestes."
Rain walked over and sat on the bench beside her, tossing her a fresh water flask. "He's a Duke, Lea. He thinks in terms of power and stability. Sending the daughter of the nation's strongest physical house into a mining kingdom with the Prince and Princess... it would have looked like an invasion force."
"I know, I know," Lea sighed, taking a long drink. "But it feels wrong. I'm their childhood friend, Rain. I should be there. I heard the news from the merchants—Aster opened a music shop in the capital of Orestes, and it's a disaster. Almost zero sales. The Orestians are laughing at them."
The 5-Day Countdown
Rain leaned back, looking up at the clear Wynfall sky. "Aster and Astra being laughed at? That's a first. But honestly, are you surprised? Aster probably knew the shop would fail. He doesn't do anything for 'money'—he does things for the 'performance'."
"I should've been there," Lea repeated, her voice dropping. "My father didn't allow me to go, and I hate it. I could be standing guard at that shop. I could be the one making sure no Orestian bully tries to mess with them."
"They have that Orestian Princess now, don't they? Lumine?" Rain asked. "The reports say she's been hanging around them. And they've taken in some orphan boy to train. It sounds like they're doing just fine without us, even if the shop is empty."
Lea's expression darkened slightly. "Lumine... a pink-haired royal. I've heard she's quite energetic. I wonder if she's actually helping or just getting in Aster's way."
"You're jealous," Rain teased, nudging her shoulder.
"I am not!" Lea snapped, though her face flushed. "I'm just concerned about the quality of their protection. If an iron-guard knight challenges them, who's going to stand in front? Astra's music? Aster's theories?"
Rain grew serious. "They're stronger than they look, Lea. And they have each other. Besides, the Moon-Feast is only five days away. That's when the real show starts. The merchants say the stage they're building is so large it can be seen from the city gates."
The Kingscrown Strength
Lea stood up, her mana flaring again. The air around her seemed to grow heavy, a testament to the Kingscrown family's absolute mastery over physical-type magic. In Wynfall, there was no family that could match their raw, bodily output.
"I can't just sit here and wait," Lea said, her eyes fixed on a second training dummy. "If they're over there training an orphan to sing, I'm going to train until my physical reinforcement can crack the palace walls. When they come back, I don't want them to think I've been slacking off."
Rain watched her with an appreciative nod. "That's the spirit. But don't break the whole courtyard. I still have to practice my maneuvers here later."
"Then get up and spar with me," Lea challenged, a competitive glint in her eyes. "Let's see if you've actually been paying attention to the twins' notes on 'rhythmic movement'."
Rain laughed, standing up and dusting off his uniform. "You're on. But no full-power Kingscrown strikes, alright? I'd like to keep my ribs intact."
A Peaceful, Lonely Academy
The two friends spent the rest of the afternoon sparring. Their movements were a blend of traditional Academy forms and the unique, rhythmic style the twins had introduced. Even though they were miles away from the iron mountains of Orestes, the influence of Aster and Astra was everywhere.
As the sun began to set, the training grounds were filled with the sound of their exertion. It was a peaceful time at the Academy, but it was a peace marked by the absence of their best friends.
"Three days," Rain said during a break, looking toward the north. "By this time next week, the whole continent is going to be talking about what happened in Orestes."
"And the Snowflakes will be home," Lea added, her voice soft but determined.
She looked at her hands, the gold aura fading as she relaxed her mana. She was a Kingscrown, the shield of her friends. And while she couldn't be there to stand on the stage with them, she would be the first person they saw when they crossed back into Wynfall.
****************
While Lea and Rain sparred in the golden afternoon of Wynfall, the atmosphere in the Orestian capital was entirely different. The sky was a bruised purple, and the air smelled of coal and ozone.
The countdown had begun. Only two days remained until the Moon-Feast.
The city was buzzing with a strange, nervous energy. The "Snowflakes Musical Store" remained largely empty, a shimmering white anomaly in the dark streets. The massive stage in the Great Plaza was finished, its parabolic shell catching the dim light of the mountain sun. People had begun to gather near it, whispering about the "Orestian Boy" who was rumored to be training with the foreigners.
Elian was exhausted. His throat was sore, and his mana channels felt like they were on fire from the constant wind-projection exercises. He had been expecting another grueling day of shouting into the gale at Sentry Hill.
However, when the sun rose on the second-to-last day, Aster did something that shocked both Astra and Elian.
"No training today," Aster announced, closing his notebook with a definitive snap. He was dressed in a surprisingly casual, high-collared Orestian coat, looking more like a local scholar than a visiting prince.
"No training?" Astra asked, tilting her head. "Aster, we only have forty-eight hours left. Elian still hasn't perfected the transition in the second verse."
"He's as ready as he's going to be," Aster replied, his eyes sharp. "If we push him any further, he'll lose his voice before the first note. Today, we do something more important."
He turned to Elian, who was looking confused and slightly panicked. "Get dressed, Elian. We're going out."
The Iron Bean
Aster led them deep into the "Upper Tier" of the city, away from the industrial refineries and into a district filled with high-end tea houses and meeting rooms for guild masters. They stopped in front of a place called "The Iron Bean," a famous coffee shop known for serving the strongest, most expensive brews in the kingdom.
It was a place where deals were made, where mine owners argued over percentages, and where the air was thick with the scent of roasted beans and expensive tobacco.
As the three of them entered—Aster and Astra with their shimmering silver hair and Elian in his new, clean clothes—the entire shop went silent. The rough-looking men in the room stared, their hands pausing over their coffee mugs.
Aster ignored them all, leading Astra and Elian to a secluded table in the back, shielded by a heavy iron screen. He ordered three of the shop's signature "Obsidian Brews" and waited until the server had left before leaning forward.
"Why are we here, Aster?" Astra whispered, her Sound Magic subconsciously creating a small barrier to keep their voices from carrying. "People are staring. This doesn't feel like a rest day."
"It's not," Aster said, his voice low and steady. He looked at Elian, who was nervously tapping his fingers on the stone tabletop. "Elian, drink your coffee. You need the caffeine to sharpen your focus. I didn't bring you here to relax."
Elian took a sip, wincing at the bitterness. "Then why, Prince Aster?"
Aster's expression softened, but his eyes remained intense. He looked at his sister, then at the boy they had spent weeks transforming.
"I brought you here because I have something important to say," Aster began. He pulled a small, black mana-stone from his pocket—a stone that looked different from any resonance stone they had used before. It didn't glow; it seemed to absorb the light.
"Two days from now, we aren't just performing a song," Aster said. "The King thinks this is about a trade contract. The Prince thinks it's about a wager. But after watching the city these past few days... after seeing the way they look at our shop and the way they look at Elian... I realized something."
Astra leaned in, her heart racing. She knew that look on her brother's face. It was the look he had right before he changed the entire curriculum of the Academy.
"Elian," Aster said, fixing the boy with a piercing gaze. "What I'm about to tell you will change the way you sing that song. And Astra, what I'm about to tell you will change the way you play the accompaniment."
The atmosphere at the table shifted. The noise of the coffee shop seemed to fade away, leaving only the three of them in a bubble of shared destiny.
"The song we've been practicing... 'The Voice of the Peaks'... it's not the song we're going to perform," Aster revealed.
Astra gasped. "Aster! We don't have time to learn a new piece! The arrangement, the resonance syncing—"
"We aren't learning a new piece," Aster interrupted. "We're changing the intent. I've been analyzing the atmospheric pressure of the Plaza and the mental state of the Orestian people. They don't want a song about mountains. They live on mountains every day."
He placed the black stone on the table.
"They want a song about the fire under the mountain. And I've found a way to use the resonance of the city's own refineries to power the performance."
Aster leaned closer, his voice a mere whisper. "I wanted to tell you here, in the heart of their city, where the iron is thickest. We aren't just going to win a wager. We're going to give this nation a heart attack. And Elian... you're the one who's going to trigger it."
As the steam rose from their mugs, Aster began to outline a plan so daring, so technically complex, and so emotionally resonant that it made Astra's breath hitch in her throat.
Outside, the citizens of Orestes went about their business, unaware that in the back of a crowded coffee shop, a 15-year-old boy with the soul of a titan was rewriting the future of their kingdom.
The countdown had hit 48 hours. And for the first time, Aster looked truly satisfied.