There Is No Magic When No One No Longer Believes
“Lux Aeterna!”
It had been two days since Ethan had started his classes.
Whenever there was an opportunity, the blue-haired boy would practice Magic. Of course, all of his attempts failed, failing to create even the tiniest spark of magic.
“... Maybe I should just stop and accept it,” Ethan sighed.
While he was feeling depressed, he heard a knocking sound on the window of his room.
There, he saw a White Raven, pecking the window, alerting his Master that he had finished his delivery.
“Welcome back, Dantalion,” Ethan said as soon as he opened the window to allow the White Raven to enter his room.
“Can I have some water?” Dantalion said to Ethan through telepathy. “I was chased by an Eagle on the way back here. I would have arrived earlier if not for that.”
The blue-haired boy picked up the pitcher of water on the table and poured it on a bowl, presenting it to his trusted companion, whom he asked to deliver a message to his Grandma back home.
Ethan also took some cookies from his jar and offered it to Dantalion, who looked very tired from his flight back home.
“I guess delivering letters also poses some serious danger for you guys,” Ethan commented. “I’m glad you are able to escape that Eagle.”
“It’s part of our occupational hazard,” Dantalion replied after drinking some water. “If I was an ordinary Raven, I would have become its lunch. By the way, your Grandma sent you a letter. Read it first then we’ll talk later.”
Ethan nodded and carefully took the metallic tube off Dantalion’s clawed foot, which contained his Grandma’s reply letter.
After he had completed his mission, the White Raven immediately started to eat the cookies that were placed on top of the table.
Ethan, on the other hand, sat on a chair to read his Grandma’s message.
—--------------
To My Dunderhead Grandson,
Ethan you fool! How could you possibly ride the wrong train?! You are only asked to ride a damn train, and you can’t even do it right!”
—--------------
The blue-haired boy stopped reading and glanced at the ceiling of his room. His Grandma’s opening words hit him really hard, forcing him to try to regain his composure first before he continued reading his Grandma’s letter.
A few minutes later, Ethan turned his eyes back to the letter, and this time he planned to finish it until the end.
—--------------
Even now, I find it hard to believe that you were able to enroll at one of the most prestigious Magic Academy in Eastshire. Since it has come to this, I will tell you the things you have to know while staying there.
Our family, the Gremorys, has a lineage of Wizards and Witches. However, being in a Wizard family didn’t guarantee that their offspring will have magic as well. I don’t know if me, and my sisters were unlucky, but none of us were born with an affinity to Magic.
It was my two older brothers who had become full-fledged Wizards, continuing the family’s legacy.
Because of this, the things I knew about the Magic World were very little because my parents didn’t want to involve those without the gift of Magic in the affairs of Wizards and Witches.
According to your letter, the Appraisal Stone declared that you were a Dud. I know about this stone because my Brothers once told me that they were placed in the Eques and Terra Manors when they enrolled in Brynhildr Academy.
Ethan, being a Dud is no different from being an ordinary person who doesn’t have magic. You told me that you planned to stay there for a year, and if that was your wish, I will respect it. However, I can tell you now, that it will be a very painful experience.
When I was growing up, I felt incredibly jealous of my brothers, who were able to fly in the sky on their booms, and cast magic with their wands.
The envy and jealousy I felt back then was so bad, that my parents were forced to send me to the countryside, so that I wouldn’t be in an environment that would trigger my inferiority.
This was where I met your Grandpa, and since then, I’ve only heard minor news about the Magical World.
Perhaps, right now, you are feeling the same feelings I felt back then. Envy, jealousy, and depression. If you really can’t take it any longer, you can return even if a year hasn’t passed.
Remember this, my boy.
“In a world of diarrhea and constipation, it's OK to be a normal piece of sh*t sometimes.”
The only reason why I am not opposing your decision is because Chloe is there.
With her around, I am sure that you will be in good hands. The Magical World had many noble beauties. Although you are a Dud, your looks are not half bad. Although we were not blood related, you inherited all of my good points.
I’m fine with you bringing a lady from a magical family. Just make sure that they will become good wives in the future.
By the way, my sister and I had a nice and long talk about you and Chloe. She said that if you were unable to find a rich, noble girl to marry, how about you marry her daughter instead? Both of you had our seal of approval, so the wedding ceremony can be held once she, or both of you, graduate from the academy.
I also informed my brothers about you, and I believe that they will contact you sometime in the future. Although I don’t know if being in contact with the Magic World is a good or bad thing, what is done is done, and we can only wait until you decide to return home.
Make sure to write us letters on a regular basis, and always eat on time.
Always wishing for your happiness,
Grandma, and Grandpa
—--------------
Ethan read the letter two more times before folding the parchment in his hands.
“You know me well, Grandma,” Ethan muttered as he carefully stored the letter inside his cabinet. “Being here in the academy is quite depressing.”
Dantalion, who heard Ethan’s words, eyed his Master. He was the blue-haired boy’s guide in the Magical World, and he knew more than anyone how much his Master wanted to use Magic.
Just as the White Raven was about to tell Ethan something, they heard a loud knock on the door of the room.
“Who is it?” Ethan asked as he moved towards the door.
“It’s me, Henry,” the Prefect of Dud Manor replied. “It’s not good to coop yourself up in your room, Ethan. Come with me, I will show you something nice.”
The blue-haired boy glanced at his White Raven, and the latter nodded his head.
“I’ll rest for a while,” Dantalion stated. “We can talk when you get back.”
Ethan gave the Raven a brief nod before opening the door. He didn’t know where the Manor Prefect planned to take him, but he was willing to leave his room to have a change of pace.
Dantalion watched his Master leave the room before he sat on top of the table, and closed his eyes to rest.
“There is no magic when no one no longer believes,” Dantalion said softly. “The stronger your heart is, the stronger your magic will become.”
What most Wizards and Witches didn’t know was that their Ravens could draw power from their Masters.
While it was true that Ethan didn’t have any magical powers right now, Dantalion knew with every fiber of his being that all his Master needed was an opportunity to allow Magic to seep inside the Magical Circuit in his heart, which had been destroyed a few days after he was born.