“Have you received any news from Ethan?” Ethan’s Grandpa, Benjamin asked.
“No,” his wife, Agnes, replied. “He should be busy chasing after the skirts of noble ladies like I told him he should be doing. Both of us are not getting any younger, I’d like to at least hold my great grandson before I kick the bucket.”
Benjamin shook his head helplessly before opening the newspaper on his lap.
“I already taught him all of my moves,” Benjamin stated. “As long as he uses them, he will definitely bring a nice lady home in no time at all. By the way, I thought you were rooting for Chloe? Did you change your mind?”
Agnes, who was busy knitting a scarf, paused for a bit and glanced at her husband.
“Well, I’m still rooting for them, but Chloe has gone to ‘you-know-where’,” Agnes replied. “She might find someone outstanding in the Academy, just like any young lady her age would. Also, she and Ethan don’t belong in the same world. I don’t want to have false hope.”
Benjamin sighed after hearing the worries of his wife.
Before marrying her, Agnes told him what her family circumstances were like. At first, Benjamin didn’t believe it, but after seeing Agnes pull out things out of thin air using her storage ring, he had no choice but to believe that she was telling him the truth
Even so, that didn’t change the way Benjamin felt about her, and the two of them had been happily married ever since.
Although their one and only son had left to who-knows-where in search of someone important to him, he would still visit them from time to time to make sure that they knew that he was still alive.
Because of their son’s absence, they had poured all of their love into Ethan, who grew up as a healthy and lively boy, who could run for miles without even breaking a sweat.
Suddenly, a White Raven flew inside their home through the window, and landed on top of their table.
Agnes and Benjamin both exchanged a glance before the old lady hurriedly stood up from her chair to untie the long cylindrical black case that hung around the raven’s neck, which bore the messages from Wizards and Witches.
Even though she was surprised to see the White Raven, she was more concerned about the message that it carried to her.
Benjamin also stood up and stood beside his wife to peek at the handwritten message in her hands.
——————
Dear Grandpa, and Grandma.
I’m sorry for writing this late, but there was a good explanation for this. You see… I accidentally rode the wrong train and ended up in Brynhildr Academy.
——————
Agnes almost dropped the letter in her hands after reading the familiar name of the Academy her sisters’ had gone to when she was young.
Benjamin, who also knew of the existence of the Academy couldn’t help but gasp in shock after realizing that his grandson had somehow found himself on a train headed for the Magical Academy that Agnes had talked about a few years ago.
After getting past their initial shock, the two continued to read the letter to get the latest news of their grandson whom they hadn’t seen for nearly a week.
——————
The train ride was an eye opening experience because I saw a Dragon fly past our train.
I thought I was just seeing things, but when I arrived at the Academy, I saw more unbelievable things, which made me realize that Magic was real.
To my surprise, the Appraisal Stone that determined which Manor a student would belong to, found an incy-wincy-spark of magic in my body. Because of this, I was sent to the Dud Manor, allowing me to stay here at Brynhildr Academy to study magic.
Frankly, I don’t have very high expectations because the more I stay here, the more I feel that I don’t belong here.
However, I met someone here that I didn’t expect to see and that was none other than Chloe. Because of her, I was able to find out that Grandma’s side of the family has the lineage of Wizards and Witches.
Although I don’t know what the future holds, I’ve decided to stay here in Brynhildr Academy for a year. If things didn’t really work out, I’ll follow Grandma’s advice and go to an ordinary Academy to study.
I hope that both of you are safe. I’ll write letters on a regular basis and update you on what I’m doing here in the Academy.
Yours truly, Ethan. 𝐎𝑽𝐥xt.𝐂𝗈𝚖
——————
Agnes slowly sat down on a chair, supported by her husband. She re-read Ethan’s letter one more time to confirm that she had read it properly.
Benjamin, fetched a bowl of water, and a piece of bread to give to the Raven, who had traveled a long way in order to deliver their Grandson’s message to them.
“I can’t believe it,” Agnes said softly. “Our Ethan is a Dud, and he is now studying in Brynhildr Academy to learn magic.”
The old lady then shifted his attention to the White Raven who was busy pecking the bread that was given to it.
“Is he really doing well in the Academy?” Agnes asked the White Raven, who immediately stopped pecking the bread.
It bowed its head twice towards Agnes, telling her that the blue-haired boy was doing fine.
“What is the name he bestowed upon you?” Agnes asked. She was familiar that the Ravens of the Magical World weren’t ordinary creatures because they held a bit of power themselves.
“Dantalion.”
That was the name that Agnes heard inside her head before the Raven returned to peck the bread that was already half-eaten.
“Make yourself at home, Dantalion,” Agnes said as she stood up to look for a piece of paper and a quill to write a reply letter to her grandson.
There were many things she wanted to ask that she needed to put on paper. She understood that a Magical Academy was very different from an ordinary one, and she needed to give Ethan some pointers on what to do and what not to do when it came to dealing with senior and adult Wizards and Witches.
While this was happening, the blue-haired boy was inside his room and reading all the books he had borrowed from the Academy’s library.
There was only one day left before classes started, and he wanted to cram as much knowledge inside his head as possible to better understand the Magical World that he was currently living in.