How a Catastrophe-Level Magician Lives

“I’m Aina von Frost, Mother.”
“Oh my, Mother…?”
“? Well, you’re Frey’s mother, aren’t you?”
“Ah, you meant it that way…?”
“???”

Aina tilted her head with a face that didn’t understand the meaning.

Looking at Aina and his momentarily flustered mother, Frey said:

“By the way, Mother. Where is Reina?”
“Reina?”

The one who asked back wasn’t his mother, but Aina.

“She’s my younger sister.”
“You had a younger sister…?”
“Yes.”

It’s as if she didn’t know he had such a younger sister.

Then his mother said:

“Reina went to pick flowers.”
“Flowers…?”

Does she mean she went to see Sophie?

But that wasn’t it.

“Big brother!!!”
“Reina.”
Because from one side, his younger sister Reina was seen running towards them, waving her hand high, with a yellow flower tucked behind one ear.

‘So she really meant she went to pick flowers.’

Hug-!
“Big brother! I missed you! Welcome back!!”
“Yes, Reina. This big brother missed you a lot too.”

He stroked the navy hair of his younger sister Reina, who had run into his arms and hugged him tightly.

A natural smile appeared on his lips.

However, he suddenly sensed something a bit strange from Reina in his arms.

“…!?”
“What’s wrong? Big brother?”

Frey spoke with a serious look to Reina, who had moved away from his arms a little and tilted her head cutely:

“You… have awakened to mana.”
“Ah, yes!”
His sister Reina smiled brightly with an innocent face, understanding what he meant and affirming positively.

From the side, his mother, Lady Rena, smiled and spoke quietly:

“Reina had the qualities and talent of a magician, didn’t she? Even this mother only found out recently. She went to see flowers in the flower garden, and would you believe it, light started surrounding Reina? I was really surprised then too.”
“……”

He didn’t bother to ask if that was really true.
There was no reason at all for his mother, Lady Rena, to lie to him.

“Hehe! Isn’t it amazing! Now I can learn magic and go to school like big brother!”

What his sister Reina was talking about with a smile was a magic school. That is, a place for children under 14 years old who can attend from 8 years old, which is different from the academy consisting of middle and high school divisions.

The 8-year-old children there haven’t felt mana at that age yet. It’s just that they’re enrolled at a certain age to be educated early as magicians at home, even if their talent hasn’t been confirmed yet.

Children in elementary school who actually feel mana and realize its existence firsthand and attend magic school are actually less than half of the people attending there.

Because even a child with some magical aptitude usually awakens to mana between 10 and 12 years old at the earliest.

Since his sister Reina, who was 5 years younger than Frey himself, would be 9 years old this year, below him at 14 years old.

The fact that she awakened to mana at this point meant it wasn’t ordinary talent.

“…Mother, if I may ask, when exactly did Reina awaken to mana?”

At Frey’s question, his mother Lady Rena thought for a moment, recalling the time, and then answered:

“Hmm… About 3 months ago, perhaps?”
“…3 months ago.”

If so, since it’s mid-July now, it would be talking about the spring season around April, when the pink cherry blossoms were in full bloom.

‘This is impossible… Although Reina is a daughter born into this family. She has never received any prior education to cultivate her talent as a magician.’

The younger sister he knew was almost as ignorant about magic as an ordinary person, let alone early education about magic.

Sometimes when he showed magic, she would be amazed like other children seeing magic for the first time, but it was just momentary curiosity. She never showed any signs of actively trying to learn magic voluntarily.

But.

‘…Is this even possible? At 9 years old, she awakened to the existence of mana on her own, without any effort, foundation, or interest? And to the extent that mana gathered around her in the flower garden when she awakened?’

A genius.
Or talent beyond that.

He felt goosebumps for a moment.

Because such a thing was rarely heard of or seen anywhere.

Reina looked up at her brother Frey, whose expression had changed to a strangely serious look, and asked with an innocent face:

“Big brother, you’ve been strange since earlier. Did something happen?”

“…It’s nothing. More importantly, I’m glad you seem to be doing well. You listened well to Mother while I was gone, right?”
“Yes. Reina listened well to Mom. I’m so happy that big brother is back~”
“You…”

It was the innocent young sister Reina, burying her face in his chest again and nuzzling against him.

“Then, I’ll go greet Father.”
“Alright. Take care.”
“Let’s go, Aina.”
“Okay. We’ll be back.”
“Oh my? Ho ho. Alright. Take care.”
Lady Rena covered her mouth with one hand and smiled with her eyes at the sight of Aina bowing her head politely until the end, with her hands clasped in front.

Soon, Frey entered the mansion, which was the main house, heading towards the study on the top floor where the head of the family was, with Aina following behind.

Soon they arrived at the head of the family’s study in the center after walking down the corridor.

Knock knock knock.

-Come in.

After a pause, a familiar voice of the head of the family giving permission to enter was heard from inside.

“Then I’ll go greet him first. Come in when I call you.”
“Okay. I’ll wait quietly.”
“Alright.”
Frey said that to Aina and then grabbed the doorknob and opened the door to go inside.

Click.

Closing the door.

“It’s been a while, Head of the Family.”

The head of House Phoenix, Count Sunlight, who was working on official business with piles of documents in the study, shifted his gaze from the papers to Frey standing in front of the door.

“Yes. It’s been a while.”
“……”
That was the end.
Of the brief conversation between the two.

Frey opened his mouth first after some deliberation:

“I brought a friend who attends the same academy for the summer vacation.”
“A friend?”
“She’s waiting outside to greet you, Head of the Family.”
“…Hmm.”
For some reason,
Count Sunlight, the head of the family, upon hearing Frey mention his friend, put down the documents he was holding with an unreadable expression, leaned back in his chair, and quietly looked at Frey standing by the door.

“I see. We shouldn’t keep a guest who has come all this long way waiting for too long. Tell them to come in.”
“Yes.”
When the head of the family gave permission, Frey approached the door again and opened it.

Then, with Frey’s nod, Aina, who had been waiting outside the door, entered the study.

“Greetings. I am Aina von Frost, the eldest daughter of House Frost, which is in charge of protecting the northern territory of the Orwen Empire.”
“House Frost?”
For some reason, the head of the family seemed to be deep in thought for a moment, holding his chin with one hand after hearing Aina’s family name and introduction.

And then.
The head of the family, lowering the hand that was holding his chin:

“Could it be… you’re talking about that northern grand ducal family, House Frost?”
“…!”
“Yes, that’s correct.”

Hearing that answer, he let out a small sigh with a face saying “Well well.”
Frey also seemed somewhat surprised, having had some expectations upon first hearing Aina’s status beside him.

“How did the daughter of that Orwen Empire’s grand ducal family come all the way here following my son? Do you have something you want to say to me?”

The head of the family was making his own assumptions.
Not thinking that Frey just brought her along, he thought that since she was from the northern grand ducal family, she might have some separate business with him and visited here together through his son.

However, that was just his misunderstanding.

“No. I just came here on a brief personal trip following him.”
“What…? Is that really true?”
“Yes.”
“……”
What Aina pointed to with her gaze while speaking was none other than Frey, who was standing quietly beside her.

Hearing those words, Count Sunlight acted as if he had experienced several surprises in a row today.

“Well, well. It’s truly unbelievable even after hearing it. What a strange day. I was very surprised when I first heard that fellow had brought someone he called a friend. To think that the daughter of the northern grand duke of the Orwen Empire really just followed my ‘son’ purely.”
“……”
Frey flinched for a moment at the head of the family referring to him as “my son.”

‘Son…’

Frey had no good memories of his father.

That includes both his previous life and this life.

That’s why he had always called the head of House Phoenix “Head of the Family” rather than using a term for addressing a parent.

Until now, not even once had Frey referred to Count Sunlight as his father, even when thinking alone.

Frey himself already knew this fact.

‘What nonsense. All nobles are the same. You can easily see that just by looking at guys like Alcas and Rekas. Even if it’s the being who gave birth to me biologically, it would surely be the same. But…’

Why is he feeling this unsettled and confused in his heart?

The next people who came to mind were those of noble status who had treated him well until now, or those he hadn’t thought of that way.

His mother and younger sister. Albert, the third son of House Phoenix.

And even Aura von Aust, whom he had seen at House Aust when he was young, and Aina von Frost, who was standing right beside him now.

‘…Is that really true? My thought that all nobles are the same in the end?’

No, he already knew.
While knowing, he had just been pretending not to know, not to see, not wanting to know, turning a blind eye to the truths and facts in front of him until the end.

At that moment, Count Sunlight spoke:

“…I see. I understand for now. If you have nothing more to discuss, you may leave now. As you can see, I have a lot to do right now.”
“Yes. Then we’ll take our leave.”
“……”
It was Aina who answered instead of Frey.

This time, Frey just bowed his head slightly and turned to leave the room.

He didn’t open his mouth to speak directly.

It wasn’t the attitude or manners that should be shown to the head of a family, but the head of the family didn’t mind much and simply let it pass.

Rather, from the moment after he spoke last, his gaze had already returned to the pile of work documents.

As Frey and Aina were about to completely leave the room like that.

Through the gap of the door closing as they left the room,

In Frey’s eyes.

He suddenly caught sight of an empty high-grade potion bottle or something similar sitting quietly next to the pile of documents on the desk where the head of the family was sitting and working.

‘……’

Soon the door in his hand closed completely.

Seeing Frey with a somewhat strange feeling, Aina tilted her head once from behind and asked:

“Frey, what’s wrong?”
“…It’s nothing. Let’s go.”
“Okay.”

It was something that was simply dismissed as nothing special.

Yes.

Until ‘that’ happened.

Some time later.
The head of House Phoenix,
Collapsed.

Suddenly losing consciousness…
In a state of unconsciousness for days, with an unknown cause that couldn’t be determined at all.

It was a time when an untimely deep darkness loomed over House Phoenix.

Rumble──

The rainy season, began.

Whoosh…

Accompanied by an uncontrollable storm of wind and rain, along with thunder….